Holy Thursday

I Corinthians 11:23-26

[one_half] Over the years I have taken the Lord’s Supper into any number of homes, hospitals, and nursing homes. I almost always prepare the elements out of a small portable communion set before we pray together. Then I read the words from I Corinthians 11 where Paul describes the gift of the Lord’s Supper as he received it from Jesus himself.

Verse twenty-six is my favorite. I remember sitting on a hill side on a late April afternoon with about 15,000 young people. We were getting ready to receive the elements so we could all partake together. I was fascinated to see how they were going to distribute the elements. Then suddenly about a hundred servants [/one_half] [one_half last=last] appeared and systematically provided a sacred meal to each person. We held the elements until the pastor on the stage gave the instructions. He spoke about ‘proclaiming the Lord’s death until he comes’ by reminding us that the proclamation was the gift of holiness lived out in our daily lives.

He said, “This is my body – this is the cup” and we ate and drank in unison. It was beautiful. There were 15,000 young people sitting silently and prayerfully in the chill of an April afternoon breeze. And the Lord was there.

When we gather tonight to share the sacrament…the Lord will be there. I hope you will be there too. [/one_half]