In the upper room when Jesus instituted the Lord's Supper, one of the things he said was, This cup is the new covenant in my blood, poured out for the forgiveness of sins." Apparently, God took sin very seriously -- enough to sacrifice his Son. Jesus took it seriously enough to willingly shed his blood in order for us to be forgiven.
When we come to the table, how seriously do we take sin? I would hope that we are not like the Corinthian Christians. From chapter one through the book Paul describes a church with a lot of problems caused by sinful action. One bore directly on the Lord's Supper. Some were causing divisions in the church by their selfish and sectarian attitudes and actions. At one point Paul said to them, By sinning against others ... you sin against Christ. In those days the Lord's Supper was observed in connection with a meal. But some were being left out of the meal. The most needy among them, the have-nots, were being ignored by the affluent ones. Some were stuffed and others were starving.
Consequently, in 1 Corinthians 11:27-28 he wrote: Whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.
We need to be clear on what he meant. He was not saying that you must get rid of all sin in your life before coming to commune. That is impossible. He is talking about self examination, about being honest with ourselves, about acknowledging our sins. He is talking about coming in the spirit of repentance.
As the church grew and spread throughout the Mediterranean area in the first century, leaders sensed the need for specific instruction and procedures for observing the Lord's Supper, for baptism and other aspects of church life. To make the connection between sin and forgiveness and the Lord's Supper they began to include a recognition of sin in their worship service. One of the earliest documents to provide this information is called The Didache, or Teaching of the Twelve Apostles. It provided guidance for observing the Lord's Supper, including prayers that can be said for the cup and the bread. One of the things it says is this: on the Lord's day assemble and break bread and give thanks, having first confessed your sins that your sacrifice may be pure.
As the years went by the confession of sin became a regular element in the order of worship. At least from the 11th century on it was customary to have a corporate confession of sin prior to communion. To this day many churches include this in their worship as a way to help people examine themselves, acknowledge their sin, and come to the table in a spirit of repentance.
While exploring this subject on the internet I came across one site that included many confessions that are used in worship today. One caught my attention because we had just spent a profitable class on the Sermon on the Mount. It makes use of the Beatitudes as a responsive confessional prayer.
L/ Blessed Jesus, you offered us all your blessings when you announced, blessed are the poor in spirit.
R/ but we have been rich in pride.
L/ Blessed are those who mourn
R/ But we have not known much sorrow for our sin.
L/ Blessed are the meek --
R/ But we are a stiff-necked people.
L/ Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness --
R/ But we are filled to the full with other things.
L/ Blessed are the merciful --
R/ But we are harsh and impatient.
L/ Blessed are the pure in heart --
R/ But we have not sought reconciliation.
L/ Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness --
R/ But our lives do not challenge the world.
L/ Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me --
R/ But we have hardly made it known that we are yours.
L/ Your law is holy and your benedictions are perfect, but they are both too great for us. You alone are blessed. Thank you, Lord, for your tender mercies, your loving kindness, and your gracious forgiveness which we celebrate at this table. Amen.
