Open Heavens 19 April 2016: Tuesday daily devotion by Pastor E. A. Adeboye – In Remembrance of Me

Topic: In Remembrance of Me [Tuesday 19, April 2016]

Memorise: And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. – 1 Corinthians 11:24

Read: 1 Corinthians 11:23-29 (KJV)

23 For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread:

24 And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.

25 After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.

26 For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come.

27 Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.

28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup.

29 For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body.

Bible in One Year: 2 Samuel 16-17, Proverbs 12:15-28

MESSAGE:

There is one significant and fundamental reason (among other important reasons) why the Holy Communion (The Lord’s Supper) was inaugurated by our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

 Jesus died for us, shedding His blood to atone for our sins because it is written, “…and without shedding of blood there is no remission.” (Hebrews 9:22). Consequently, when Jesus Christ said we should observe the Holy Communion often in remembrance of Him, but it takes a deep level of wisdom to understand and remember what He went through for our redemption. One important thing to note here is that Jesus Christ knew what He would go through to die for His friends. Having died for us, He surely doesn’t want His gesture of love to be forgotten by the people He did it for. We unfortunately often forget the passion of our Lord, which led to His ignoble death. This is why we do things that, by implication, necessitate our Lord’s going back to the Cross frequently.

“If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.” - Hebrews 6:6

Most people backslide because of their loss of memory about the agony of the death that the Saviour suffered in order to procure salvation for us. The Bible says:

“If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto thou hast attained.” - 1 Timothy 4:6

What should we put ourselves in remembrance of? Paul, the apostle wrote:

“8 Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised from the dead according to my gospel: 11 It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him: 12 If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us:” - 2 Timothy 2:8, 11-12

In an ideal situation, communion should be taken as frequently as possible in order to enable us remember the death of our Lord and the reason for it. The Bible says we should not be forgetful hearers but doers of the Word (James 1:25). When we gather for Holy Communion, everyone is compelled to carry out a self-examination so that he or she does not eat to damnation according to our Bible text for today. May the passion, suffering and death of Jesus Christ avail for us through eternity in Jesus name.

Action Point: Do you remember what Christ went through for you often enough?

Open Heavens Daily Devotional guide was written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, one of the largest evangelical church in the world and also the President of Christ the Redeemer's Ministries.

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