Have you ever wondered why we take Holy Communion, what we believe and what are we proclaiming as we partake of the Holy Communion?
John 6:52-56 (NKJV) The Jews therefore quarrelled among themselves, saying, “How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?” Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him.
The Holy Communion is not a literal eating of the flesh of Jesus and drinking of His blood. In fact, it is advocated in the Old Testament that one should not eat blood. Instead, it is a spiritual nourishment. Jesus was teaching them that He is the bread of life and whoever partakes of this bread will live forever. He was teaching them to appropriate their faith in His blood and His death on the cross so they can be saved. This saying of Jesus is meant to help us understand the depth of intimacy that we would have when we partake of the Holy Communion, which He subsequently instituted (Matthew 26:26-27).
There is a scarlet thread that goes through the Bible from the Old Testament to the New Testament. God works through covenant relationships. In the earlier part of the chapter, Jesus had just fed the 5000 people and the same people were following him. Throughout history, people have followed Jesus for different reasons: some for materialism and some for a free meal. It is no different today, where people pursue money and materialism that will never satisfy them. Therefore, Jesus was teaching them to pursue food that will endure for eternal life, which is to have faith in the Son of God whom God had sent, and His work of redemption.
We also need to ask ourselves why we are in church. Are we pursuing God just for the earthly pleasures, such as promotions, good schools, financial blessings, materialism, or are we living a purposeful life for Him given what Christ has done for us through the shedding of His blood? The world is blindly pursuing materialism and significance in life, but sadly, they will never find fulfilment in it because true fulfilment can only be found in Christ. On the other hand, we who have found Christ, should have a different perspective about life. All of this should be a part of our reflection whenever we come to church and especially when we partake of the Holy Communion.
Sermon Series: The Holy Communion
祂是生命的粮
你是否曾想过为什么我们要领圣餐？在领圣餐时，我们相信和要宣告的是什么？
【约翰福音6:52-58】因此，犹太人彼此争论说：“这个人怎能把他的肉给我们吃呢？”耶稣说：“我实实在在地告诉你们：你们若不吃人子的肉，不喝人子的血，就没有生命在你们里面。吃我肉、喝我血的人就有永生，在末日我要叫他复活。我的肉真是可吃的，我的血真是可喝的。吃我肉、喝我血的人常在我里面，我也常在他里面。
圣餐并不是字面意义上的吃耶稣的肉和喝祂的血。旧约中提倡不可吃血。这是一种属灵的喂养。耶稣教导他们说，祂是生命的粮，凡吃这粮的人就永远活着。祂教导他们要相信祂的血和祂在十字架上的死， 这样他们就可以得救。 耶稣的这番话是为了帮助我们理解，当祂设立圣餐后，我们在领圣餐时将会拥有和祂怎样的亲近程度。（马太福音 26:26-27）
有一条红色的线贯穿着整本圣经，从旧约延伸到新约。上帝藉着盟约的关系来动工。在这一章的前半部分，耶稣刚刚喂饱了五千人，就是那些来继续跟随他的人。纵观历史，不同的人因不同的原因跟随耶稣：有些人为了物质需求而跟随他，有些为了免费的食物。今天并没有不同，人们追求那永远无法满足他们的金钱和物质。因此耶稣教导他们要追求那将长存至永生的食物，就是相信上帝所差来的神的儿子及相信祂的救赎工作。
我们也需要问自己为什么我们来教会？我们追求上帝是否是为了地上的享乐，比如晋升、好学校、财务祝福、物质需求，还是因着基督藉著祂的宝血我们所成就，我们为祂过有意义的人生？这个世界在盲目地追求物质和人生意义，但可悲的是，他们永远无法真正在其中找到满足，因为真正的满足只能在基督里找到。另一方面，我们这些已经找到基督的人，应该拥有非常不同的人生观。每当我们来到教会，尤其是当我们领圣餐时，所有这些都应该成为我们反思的一部分。
讲章系列：圣餐
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