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April 2, 2000
FOR BY GRACE YOU HAVE BEEN SAVED THROUGH FAITH, AND THIS IS NOT YOUR OWN DOING; IT IS THE GIFT OF GOD…NOT THE RESULT OF WORKS, SO THAT NO ONE MAY BOAST. FOR WE ARE WHAT HE HAS MADE US, CREATED IN CHRIST.
The popular writer, Maxie Dunham, tells a story about three men who were talking about what status means. The first said, "Real status is being invited to the White House for a personal conversation with the President." The second said, "No, that's not it. Real status is having a conversation with the President and when the hotline rings, the President ignores it and continues talking to you." The third man said, "No, you're both wrong. Real status is having a conversation with the President and when the Hotline rings, the President says: 'It's for you.""
This is for you. When we come to communion, we enjoy the highest, best status of all: Communion is for us! God is the host at communion for his son, Jesus Christ, instituted communion and issued an always current invitation: "You all come to my table, you are my guests. You are welcomed."
As guests, we want to be polite. Guests freshen up for the party; they try to arrive on time; and guests often bring a gift for the hosts. So at communion we bring the bread and the drink for the table of Jesus. Also we present our material offerings as well. But then we ask God to receive our gifts to him because God is our host, and through the Holy Spirit, to use them: to use our material gifts for the work of his Kingdom; to use our bread and wine to make them spiritual nourishment for our souls.
In Christian understanding, real status is received in baptism and celebrated by being present at Christ's table to receive all the gifts which God intends for us to have: forgiveness and reconciliation, love and mercy, justice and compassion, righteousness and purity, and obedience and empowerment to do good works.
Communion offers us the unique status to celebrate that we are the sons and daughters of God, the friends of Jesus. Iln truth we can take great joy at communion and for some sometimes it may even convey spiritual ecstasy.
But the result of communion must not be that we depart filled with pride and arrogance for our text from Ephesians reminds us that it is God who makes possible all good works and not we ourselves. As guests at the table of Jesus we are called to obedience. If we are good guests who appreciate all that God gives us, but we commit to work for the Kingdom of God: we will walk the second mile in discipleship, we will respond to moral imperatives by serving the least and the lost; we will strive to be good stewards of that which God has placed in our care for a while; and we will aim to be good members of the body of Christ.
If not, our joy and ecstasy at communion can become lost in some form of idolatry and self-indugence.
The promise of Communion is not that we are welcomed because we are worthy, but because we are at communion we become worthy to do the good works which God intends for us.
The promise of Communion is in the words of David, the Shepherd, that God has prepared his table for us and from it goodness and mercy shall follow us all the days of our lives and we shall dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
So welcome, you princes and princesses of Maine, you kings and queens of the universe, you children of God, to God's table which is your feast.
Pastor Gene Preston
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The Rev. Gene R.Preston14th Floor, Blk 36, Lower Baguio Villa Tel : 25516161 Fax: 25512114E-mail : gpreston@netvigator.com |
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