2016.06.05_Commemorate the Lord Jesus

Let us be freed from our flesh which is a fetter and find our true figure

We in the past were the ones that were lost from God. At that time we did not know where to go and wandered in the darkness. That time, it was not only God that we did not know, we also did not know who we were. God has found us as such.

The figure that we once knew is not our true figure. That figure is just an appearance; we are temporarily clothed and take off during our lives. While we live in this poor world, we are likely to be weak and miserable due to poverty. Those are not our true forms either. Rather, while we adapt to this world, where the righteous are easily harmed and the wicked easily prosper, we have lived our lives mistaking our appearance for our true figure.

Now, we should free our true figure from our fetter, our flesh. For this, first, we should receive the grace and love of God. Second, we should overcome the worries of the world. Third, we should find our duty as servants of God. The meaning of our existence lies in practicing our duty as servants of God. For those who perform their own duties, the world is no longer filthy and the place that should be avoided, rather the place where they fulfill the work God has given them.

Let us remember the Lord who gave his flesh and blood.

God generously gave us the grace that allows us to be seated on the throne in heaven with Jesus (Ephesians 2:6). The beginning of this great grace that has been given to us is believed to be from the last supper that Jesus had with his disciples. Jesus said, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with your before I suffer” (Luke 22:15). That supper was Jesus’ last supper. That is because Jesus died soon after the last supper. If the disciples had not eaten that supper, they would not have had the chance to have supper with the Lord. The Lord tore and shared bread, and after few hours he tore and gave his body.

Jesus, giving his cup to his disciples, said, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many” (Mark 14:24). For disciples, the term ‘the blood of the covenant’ was not a strange one. When the Israelites gathered before the Mountain of Sinai after coming out of Egypt, after Moses read the Law to the people of Israel, sprinkling the blood of a lamb, he called this blood the “blood of the covenant” (Luke 24:8). To separate His own from the blood, He referred to His blood as ‘the blood of the new covenant’ (Luck 22:20). The content of the new covenant was about forgiving sins (Matthew 26:28). Jesus, a few hours after sharing the cup with his disciples, shed His blood himself. For the disciples who saw it, the term ‘the blood of the covenant’ would not have been forgotten.

Jesus’ death on the cross showed the truth of God’s love for us in the most precious way. God’s love is not just about the love in His mind. God loved us that He gave His body for us. While we are saved just by believing it, the Lord not only laid down His life but also withstood all kinds of misunderstandings and scorn, to save us.

The Lord commanded us to ‘commemorate me’, ordering the Holy Communion. He had never lifted himself up high before the Father. He always glorified the Father, delivered the words that the Father had commanded, and only did what the Father had commanded Him to do. However, only at the moment when He ordered the Holy Communion, He commanded us to commemorate not ‘the Father’, but, ’Me’. That is right. In the time of the Holy Communion we must commemorate Jesus. We must remember not just the fact that He died on the cross, but also His heart of waiting the coming death.

The meaning of the Holy Communion lies in evangelizing in the fields of our lives like the Lord’s torn body, gathering together again, and confirming that we are one body. By gathering and participating in the Holy Communion, we commemorate the love and sacrifice of the Lord, being centered on Him – the whole figure of the church. In the past, humans were one in Adam, but now, we are one in Jesus Christ. Through the Bible we know that God leads not each individual separately, but through a community. God led the Old Testament church which became one through the roots of Abraham, the twelve disciples, and one hundred and twenty disciples who had just received the Holy Spirit in Mark’s room. Likewise, God works through the community.

We belong to Jesus Christ. On the one hand, we are the representative of Jesus Christ. Since Jesus has bought us, we must no longer insist on ‘Me’. Our flesh and desire were crucified with the Lord. We must no longer represent the old figure that struggles to lift ‘Me’ up.

Through the Holy Communion we confirm the fact that we ourselves are in the New Covenant and we are the members of the church. Through the Holy Communion we remember that our duty lies in saving souls. Those who participate in the Holy Communion are the people who are in Jesus Christ. Thus, they have duty of taking care of the body of Christ, the housekeeping of the church. Being concerned about the church’s housekeeping is not only the job of the pastor. Since those who have eaten the flesh and blood of the Lord belong to the Lord, they must consider the reward in heaven and the love of God, not fearing the world.

Consider ‘Us’ not ‘Me’

We are the possession of the Lord. Now, we must lay down our life styles of struggling only for ‘Me’, which we have gotten used to in the world. When the Lord had the supper with His disciples, He let Judas Iscariot leave, the one who only thought about his own success. The disciples, remembering it, recalled the moment when they had the supper at the last time, sacrificed themselves, and lived their lives of saving other souls. Anyone who participates in the Holy Communion should have a desire for saving souls. And for the holy mission we should change ourselves by turning into the character which is appropriate for the New Commandment. Also we should help other saints around us experience such changes.

As it is written in 1 Corinthians Chapter 11, in the context of Paul’s explanation about the Holy Communion, there must not be divisions in the church. If those who divide or misuse the church for their own sake participate in the Holy Communion, it is eating and drinking judgment on them. If you are the one who takes part in the Holy Communion, at least, you must be able to lay down yourself for the sake of the church. When the Lord commanded the Holy Communion to His disciples, He referred to ‘You’ (plural). When He referred to the church, He emphasized not ‘Me’, but ‘Us’.

For those who participate in the Holy Communion, above all, there should be the fullness of appreciation for the Lord. Also we should be filled with the thoughtfulness that takes others into consideration first, making ourselves empty. Even in the world, it is common sense that if any organization or state is not unified it will collapse. If much less the church, the body of Christ, is not unified, how can the Lord do His work? If so, it would be hard for each of us to get help from God. By participating in the Holy Communion with a sincere and earnest spirit, we allow our church to become the church that the Lord is pleased with.

What I have felt in my whole life regarding writing is that I am grateful for my ability to speak in Korean. The Korean language is said to be a scientific language that allows various expressions and can expresses the extents of depth, height, and weight. However, although I am using Korean nearly more than anyone else, I come to think that I am not fully using the Korean language.

A college student sent me a letter, and I thought the student was poor at writing. Though I consider him proficient at English or other languages, I feel the lack of his progress in using the Korean language. If I am not good at speaking Korean, even though I am not also good at English or other languages, I will be very ashamed. Just as the word of God expresses His will and thoughts as they are, so too should Koreans be skillful in expressing themselves through their own language. If, however, a Korean is poor at the Korean language and lacks writing ability, he or she is not able to demonstrate God’s will perfectly, which means God’s will cannot be delivered.

It is known that if you keep reading and writing, it activates your brain sufficiently, and you will never acquire Alzheimer’s disease. However, it is reported that those who forget how to read and write have a higher chance of receiving the disease. Since we, the people of Jesus Christ, can read and write the words of God, we should have no worries about it. Thus, by delivering what we have heard after carefully listening, our brain will be activated greatly, but without listening, we cannot tell, and if we don’t tell what we have listened to, we are likely to forget what we have heard, which makes our brain useless.

It is commonly known that if one gets old, he or she cannot listen well due to weakened ears, and that is why the elderly are likely to be disdained by speaking irrelevant things, since they do not clearly listen to what others say. All of these can be symptoms of diseases. By the way, writing should be learned when one is young, while still in elementary or middle school. It is foolish to think that you don’t have to study your own language since you hear it often and understand it easily.

One of my regrets in my old age is that I should have been better at Korean literature and language. I cannot get rid of the feeling of remorse. I want young children to learn and practice reading and writing a lot, so that they can be skilled at Korean. All knowledge can be maintained temporarily, but language should be maintained until you die, since your personality, your spirit, your mind, your knowledge, and your emotion are great inspirations in communicating with God.

The old are encouraged to try to repeat what they have listened to from sermons after they return home, so that they would be far away from the grasp of Alzheimer’s disease. If you do not want to get Alzheimer’s disease, you should read and write the passages from the Bible, essays, poems, and keep a diary every day.

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Outline translated by Sarah Lee
Letter translated by Sung-In Hong
Interpretations by Sarah Lee

Chief Editor: Helen Nam
Korean Summary by Ki-Taek Lee