The Lord’s Supper as a Declaration of Hope
And when the hour came, he sat at table, and the apostles with him. 15 And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer; 16 for I tell you I shall not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” 17 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves; 18 for I tell you that from now on I shall not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” 19 And he took bread, and when he had given thanks he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 20 And likewise the cup after supper, saying, “This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood. 21 But behold the hand of him who betrays me is with me on the table. 22 For the Son of man goes as it has been determined; but woe to that man by whom he is betrayed!” 23 And they began to question one another, which of them it was that would do this. - Luke 22:14-27 (RSV)
Introduction
In our study of communion thus far we have talked about the terms and attitudes of communion, the Lord’s supper as a time of remembrance, a time of fellowship and unity, and a time of forgiveness and mercy, a time of covenant renewal. We talked about the Lord’s Supper as a time of spiritual nourishment with the Bread of Life. In this class we want to talk about the Lord’s Supper as Anticipation: a Declaration of Hope.
In Luke’s account of the institution of the Supper, Jesus speaks in a manner of looking forward - an anticipation of that which is to come. Anticipation can be anxiety producing or hopeful. In communion, the essence of the anticipation is hopeful for a better world to come.
“The Eucharist quenches my thirst for hope.” - William Sloan Coffin
In this lesson we want to focus on the hope that is expressed in the Lord’s Supper.
1. We Need An Infusion of Hope!
The world in which we live is discouraging - war, isolation, mental illness, physical illness, and the disappointments that life brings will always be present. What we see is not the last word. We do not downplay what is wrong, but hope helps us see something different on the horizon.
Whether in our home, occupations, the church or the world - Christians live in an abiding confidence that one day all will be well. The hope of the church is intimately linked with the longing of creation. We are reminded in the Epistle to the Romans that the entire creation waits in eager longing for the resolution that comes with the consummation of the kingdom (Romans 8:19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God) and that this hope will not disappoint us (Romans 5:5 and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us.).
The Lord’s supper ‘quenches our thirst for hope.’ By this act we are proclaiming together that our hope is in Christ, and in this act, our hope is renewed as again we are enabled to live in a discouraging world as a people of hope. The Lord’s Supper is a meal of anticipation.
2. THE HOPE OF A COMING MESSIANIC BANQUET
Eating is an important motif in the Gospel of Luke. He describes ten meals, and some parables that involve eating and drinking. Each of those meals celebrate the eschatalogical blessing - the arrival of the kingdom. There is a looking forward to what is to be. While eating one meal, Jesus is looking ahead to another.
The Lord’s Supper is a meal that points to another meal. We declare in our participation …that evil, wrong, and pain do not have the last word and that we live now with an eager anticipation of the future. We eat together, yearning together for another day; we eat knowing it is coming.
In 1 Corinthians we read that as we eat and drink, we “proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes” (11:26). The Eucharist is celebrated in the time of hope.
3. THE HOPE THAT BRINGS JOY
The hope of the church and the world is symbolized and realized by a meal - the marriage supper of the lamb (Rev 19), a glorious feast hosted by Jesus himself.
Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty thunderpeals, crying, ‘Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to be clothed with fine linen, bright and pure”- Revelation 19:6-9
The Lord’s Supper anticipates this meal and is a foretaste of the joy and sense of well-being that is represented by that heavenly banquet (Luke 22:30; Rev. 19:7,9; 21:2,9; 22:17). Anticipation fosters a steady and abiding joy and assurance in those who participate in the Lord’s Supper. There is a joyful anticipation, the celebration of the reign of Christ in the world. Hebrews 12:2 says, “looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”
Key to this joy is our confidence, our faith that Christ is now on the throne and that one day this will be apparent to all. At the revelation of this wonder, all things will be made right and justice and peace will embrace. Acts 2:46-47 records, “And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they partook of food with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.”
4. THE HOPE THAT FUELS SERVICE
If our joy is not matched by concrete action in the world, if our renewed hope does not infuse our lives with both joy and engagement, then something is amiss, for the Lord’s Supper is not an escape or an act by which we look to the future because we have given up on the present. Just the opposite. We are enabled to live with joy in the present and we are enabled to make a difference in the present.
A dispute also arose among them, which of them was to be regarded as the greatest. And he said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and those in authority over them are called benefactors. But not so with you; rather let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves. For which is the greater, one who sits at table, or one who serves? Is it not the one who sits at table? But I am among you as one who serves.” - Luke 22:24-27
The Dispute about who is greatest: Jesus is talking about kingdom and his reign and so naturally matters of authority and who has authority comes to the table. Jesus puts everything in perspective in vs 27: I am among you as one who serves.
5. THE HOPE THAT GIVES US A MISSION
The Lord’s Supper is a sign and proclamation of the great feast toward which all history is moving, the day on which every knee will bow and every person will proclaim Christ as Lord (Philippians 2). When we celebrate the Lord’s supper, the ascended Lord Jesus Christ himself is in our midst. Jesus is among us as one who serves. This is the wonder of the table. Jesus meets us and hosts a meal; he forgives us and feeds us through intimate communion and fellowship with him and with our sisters and brothers, we look back (in remembrance), but we also look ahead to the kingdom that is yet to come. We renew our baptismal identity and vows as the people of the new covenant. And with hope we identify with the Lord himself, who is the servant of all.
Conclusion
The Lord’s supper is not an escape from our time or place. We do not sentimentalize our world, turn our backs on our world, or forget about our world. On the contrary, this event is very much one in which we participate as those who are unavoidably in this world. … WE can live now, truly live in this broken world, because we have hope. We see the world through the lens of God’s Prophetic Word.
The Lord’s Supper cuts the cord of cynicism and defeatism that so easily binds our hearts and minds and leaves us defeated. We have an awareness that Christ is on the throne of the universe and that we can rest on his faithfulness.
In Romans 15:4 and 15:13, hope is mentioned twice. The latter verse says, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”