Honor
1 Corinthians 11:23-26
“For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes”

The Word Of The Year for MC: Dunamis

“This is the year Dunamis goes from on us to in us”

“This is a year of strengthening and fortifying”

What is Communion?

The Webster’s Dictionary defines the word communion as “Intimate Fellowship”

My Definition: Communion is simply an encounter with Jesus

Communion is an open invitation Jesus gave us to connect with Him, to sit at the table with Him. When you take it, He is Present.

Another name for Communion is “The Lord’s Supper”

- The Lord’s Supper is not an altar where you bring your offerings and
sacrifices, it’s a table where Jesus Has already made the sacrifice and
just desires fellowship

Address religious spirit:

The Religious spirit would like you to think you have to pay a price to receive the Lord’s Supper, but Jesus already paid that price.

- Religion says communion is hard, Jesus made it easy.

- It’s holy but not somber, there is joy at the table of the Lord Communion is
a Corporate AND Personal Encounter with God.

- We do it when we gather, but it is between us and Jesus.

- it captures the full vision of MC.

Address Common Question: Is it literally the flesh and blood of Jesus?

- We believe we are not consuming the literal flesh and blood of Jesus, but we also don’t believe it is just a symbolic piece of bread and grape juice with no power. We recognize that there is a weighty spiritual reality behind the bread and juice, there is power in receiving His Body and Blood.

His Body Broken For Us

We see bread through the Bible.

- The Manna that sustained the Israelites in the Wilderness in Exodus 16.

- The Bread of the Presence in the Holy Place outside the Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle (12 loaves on a table of pure gold) in Exodus 25.

From the Moment Jesus was born in Bethlehem (The House of Bread) in a feed trough He was being prepared as a meal for us.

John 6:35
“Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”

- Jesus Himself declared that He is bread for us.

The Bread represents His body broken for us.

- From the moment He was arrested He was Mocked, Spat upon, beaten to the edge of death by whips with metal balls and spikes that would have ripped off chunks of his flesh, He had a crown of thorns pressed into His head, and He was nailed by His hands and feet to a cross and placed upright where He suffocated until a roman soldier pierced His heart or lungs with a spear.

Isaiah 52:14 NIV
Just as there were many who were appalled at him.
— his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any human being and his form marred beyond human likeness—

His body was broken for us, but by His body we have:

- manna that does not spoil

- Access to the Showbread, the very bread of His Presence

- Healing (By His Stripes)

Isaiah 53:5
“But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.”

His Blood Poured Out For Us

Every sacrifice in the Bible points to the blood of Jesus

- Exodus 12, Passover, blood of the lamb on the doorposts

- Sacrificial system for the atonement of sins

Matthew 26:28 NIV
This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

The Blood of Jesus Washes away our sins

You have to recognize the potency of this cup. Nothing exists more powerful than the blood, and from the moment it was spilled on Calvary to now and the end of time it will never lose its power and when you drink it that power goes from on you to in you.

When we take communion we receive the Dunamis power of what He did, what He is doing, and what He will do!

Remembrance- What He did (Power)

1 Corinthians 11:24-25
“and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”

“Do this in remembrance of Me”

- When we take Communion we remember the cross.

Communion takes our eyes off of what we can do and puts them on what He did.

- We remember that it is not by our own power, but His.

- Remembrance shifts our heart posture to Thanksgiving and Praise, which Psalms 100:4 says is the posture to enter His Presence

- We remember the cross and how it overshadows our sin

Remembrance in Communion is when we relive the power of the Gospel and our salvation

-Every time we take it, it is like a vow renewal with Jesus’ new covenant, a fresh opportunity to experience our salvation

Connect With God: Remembrance
- Text “Connect” to 59090

Proclamation- Spiritual Warfare (Power)

1 Corinthians 11:26 “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.”

Proclaim=katangellō in Greek, which means to declare openly, this word is used interchangeably with Preach in many translations.

“For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you PREACH the Lord's death until he comes.”

Who are we preaching the cross to?

- God (in Worship)

- Ourselves (as we strengthen and fortify our faith)

- The Enemy

Ephesians 6:12 NKJV
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”

- People are not our enemy, the spiritual powers and principalities are

This is the most significant thing the Lord has been teaching me about Communion this year, that it is a weapon of Spiritual Warfare.

You may have heard at Mercy Culture that we don’t go after Principalities and Powers, we simply lift up the higher authority. That is exactly what communion does, it lifts up the highest spiritual authority.

TO LEARN MORE, WATCH Pastor Landon's MESSAGE FEAR BASED WARFARE ON YOUTUBE.

Colossians 2:15
“And having disarmed the powers and authorities, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.”

I asked the Lord what does it mean He made a public spectacle?

- He brought me to Jesus on the road to Golgotha, surrounded by crowds of people mocking Him, the enemy thought they were making a spectacle of Him, little did they know…

1 Cor. 2:8
“None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.”

- Colossians 2:15 is saying that the enemy thought they were making a public spectacle of Jesus, but it was really them that were being made a spectacle of.

- Every time we take communion the enemy is put to open shame, not by anything we’ve done, but by what He has done. Not by our authority, by His.

If Remembrance is when we relive the power of the Gospel and our salvation, Proclamation is when the powers and principalities have to relive it

Communion is a key to Spiritual Warfare

Psalms 23

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

I have read this my entire life thinking it meant the table was there as a refuge or backup in case something was wrong

- The entire chapter says He is leading us

- It says He Prepared the table (This means He did it in advance knowing where He would lead us) The Lord has prepared a place for us in the presence of our enemies. The Lord has positioned Mercy Culture Waco in the middle of this Spiritual battle in the Presence of our enemies, because that is where He has led us.

Some of you may feel like you are in the Presence of your enemies facing spiritual warfare, worry, anxiety, you may feel overwhelmed…(share what it feels like)

- But He has prepared a table for us-

- A table where we conquer in Spiritual Warfare through communing with Him, through intimacy and encounters with Him You may wonder why God would lead us into the Presence of our enemies, and it’s the same reason why The Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness where He was tempted–Victory

When we take communion we receive His Dunamis power to wage war from the table where our weapons are a meal and the battle is a feast

Practical Advice:
When you encounter Spiritual Warfare, Take Communion! ????

Anticipation- What He Will Do (Power)

1 Corinthians 11:26
“For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.”

When we take communion we are anticipating His return

What does anticipation feel like?

- A Track runner on the starting blocks

- When you are packed for a trip and have your suitcases by the door

- Like a Bride standing outside of the chapel ready to walk down the aisle

-Anticipation is when expectancy and preparation meet

Warning: Many have experienced predictions of Jesus coming back on certain dates and now think it’s foolish to live in anticipation of His return, I’m here to tell you it’s foolish not to

Marriage Supper of the Lamb

Revelation 19:6-9
Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: “Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns. 7 Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.
8 Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.” 9 Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” And he added, “These are the true words of God.”

Practical Advice- i.e. How we take communion

1 Corinthians 11:27-32
“Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. 28 Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. 30 That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. 31 But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.”

Examine Yourself

- unpack: how do we examine ourselves?

- The word “Examine” there in the Greek is “dokimazō” which means to test for authenticity. This is the word a banker or merchant would have used to identify counterfeits.

- We are examining ourselves for anything counterfeit that the Lord didn’t put there The way we examine ourselves is simple:

- Search my heart Lord (Psalms 139:23-24)

Examining your heart is asking: Lord, Is there anything in me that you want to get out of me?

Address Religious Spirit: Don’t skip this thinking this is just examining yourself for major sin, this is examining yourself for pride, hard heartedness, love that has gone cold

- We examine ourselves to repent and receive everything He paid for

- Once you have identified it, repent for it

Discern the Body

This Passage tells us to “Discern the Body”-What does that mean?

- The word Discern in this Scripture is the same root word used when the Bible talks about the gift of Discerning spirits in 1 Corinthians 12.

- it means to recognize a spiritual reality

Context is important when reading the Bible! We find the answer In the chapter right before this where Paul has this to say about communion:

1 Corinthians 10:19-22
“What am I trying to say? Am I saying that food offered to idols has some significance, or that idols are real gods? 20 No, not at all. I am saying that these sacrifices are offered to demons, not to God. And I don’t want you to participate with demons. 21 You cannot drink from the cup of the Lord and from the cup of demons, too. You cannot eat at the Lord’s Table and at the table of demons, too. 22 What? Do we dare to rouse (or provoke) the Lord’s jealousy? Do you think we are stronger than he is?”

Paul is simply saying that they are provoking the Lord by bringing food and drink from pagan sacrifices to church and taking communion with it, They did not discern the Spiritual weight of this meal!

- it says for this reason many of you are sick and weak, and some have died.

- This is a verse people don’t want to touch because it implies people are sick and weak due to taking communion improperly

- Some have even avoided communion because they are worried they will do it improperly and will get sick

- it says this happens because they didn’t recognize the spiritual reality, You do not have to approach the Lord’s Table with concern if you discern the spiritual power of the body and blood!

- When you recognize the spiritual reality of Communion you won’t forget His benefits

-When you recognize the spiritual reality of Communion you won’t forget His benefits

Psalms 103:2

“Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits”

On the cross He paid for our healing, deliverance, victory, and I believe as
we take communion today we are consuming His Dunamis power

Communion is Consuming Dunamis

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