Live Free

The meditation today comes from the New Testament, Philippians 3: 12-16. All quotations are from the English Standard Version and are used with permission.

My hope is that you will benefit personally from this time with Jesus. Please encourage others to observe the Lord's Supper. In these trying times, we need to keep our eyes on Jesus!

Transcript

Welcome to Eat This Bread Drink This Cup. The title of my communion meditation today is "Live Free." I read from Philippians 3: 12-16. All quotations are from the English Standard Version and are used with permission.

12 Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. 15 Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. 16 Only let us hold true to what we have attained.

While Christians are inspired by the confidence of the Apostle Paul, his confidence was not of his own making, it was given to him by the Lord Jesus. Paul writes (1 Timothy 1: 12-16),

"12 I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to his service, 13 though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, 14 and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. 15 The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. 16 But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life."

If a man like Paul can forget his past, refuse to stand still, and focus on moving forward with the help of Christ Jesus our Lord, then so can we. Just like him, we have the same assurance of God's promises. Sadly though, we can choose to create a personal prison built with bars from our past missteps and mistakes. We can dwell on our record of not measuring up to our own and God's expectations. We are frozen in place and cannot move forward because we lock ourselves up. Paul is telling us we need to let go of our past sins; they are forgiven. If we do not live free, then what help are we to fellow prisoners! That's what our adversary wants - for you to be miserable, locked up, and no help to anyone. On the contrary, that is not what Jesus wants; He wants us to be free and live free. He tells His followers (John 8:34-36),

"34 …Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. 35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed."

How great are the blessings we receive in Christ! We are loved, forgiven and free! We assemble today to remember the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. He is the source of all these blessings. He has set us free and wants us to live free by the strength of His power. Let us pray.

Abba, Father. Today we bless and set aside this bread and the fruit of the vine in this cup to remember Your Son, Jesus. We know that the bread represents His body that was nailed to the cross, and the fruit of the vine represents His blood that He shed for us. As we pour out the wine from the cup, we are reminded of how Jesus poured out His own blood that our sins might be forgiven. Abba, Father, it is an amazing thing to be set free from the prison of our own sins—we are free! Our sins were such a heavy burden to bear, and they separated us from You. Even more, we know for certain we are pardoned from the sentence of death—we are alive! These blessings are ours because Your Son, Jesus, was willing to offer His own life to pay the penalty for our sins. Just now we pause to remember Jesus as we partake of the bread and drink wine from the cup. In the name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

Today, Jesus invites you to partake of His supper. I read from Matthew 26: 26-28 (ESV).

"26 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” Let us partake of the bread.

27 Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. 28 For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins." Let us partake of the cup.

And the assembly of believers said, "Amen!"

Until next time, from Numbers 6: 24-26, "May the LORD bless you and protect you. May the LORD smile on you and be gracious to you. May the LORD show you his favor and give you his peace."

Artist's Note: If you have questions about the Lord's Supper, I invite you to visit my website, https://eatthisbreaddrinkthiscup.com, for a brief overview. The Eat This Bread Drink This Cup podcast is listed in most podcast directories, and I invite you to add my podcast to your favorites and be notified of new posts. There is a written transcript that accompanies each podcast, and you are free to use the transcript in accordance with US copyright law. My prayer is that you will benefit personally from this time with Jesus and encourage others to observe the Lord's Supper. In these trying times, we need to keep our eyes on Jesus!