Eat This Bread Drink This Cup
The purpose of this podcast is to help individuals, groups and churches observe the Lord's Supper. The podcast includes a relevant portion of Scripture, brief commentary, prayer, and participation in partaking of the bread and drinking from the cup.
Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are taken from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The ESV text may not be quoted in any publication made available to the public by a Creative Commons license. The ESV may not be translated in whole or in part into any other language.
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Eat This Bread Drink This Cup
Jesus, Our Healer
Welcome to Eat This Bread Drink This Cup. The meditation today comes from the New Testament, 1 Peter 2: 21-25. All quotations are from the New Living Translation and are used with permission.
My hope 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!
Welcome to Eat This Bread Drink This Cup. The title of my meditation today is "Jesus, Our Healer." I read from 1 Peter 2: 21-25. All quotations are from the New Living Translation and are used with permission.
21 For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. He is your example, and you must follow in his steps.
22 He never sinned,
nor ever deceived anyone.
23 He did not retaliate when he was insulted,
nor threaten revenge when he suffered.
He left his case in the hands of God,
who always judges fairly.
24 He personally carried our sins
in his body on the cross
so that we can be dead to sin
and live for what is right.
By his wounds
you are healed.
25 Once you were like sheep
who wandered away.
But now you have turned to your Shepherd,
the Guardian of your souls.
According to the World Health Organization, ischemic heart disease was the leading cause of death in the world in 2021 and accounted for 13% of all deaths. As alarmed as we might be over this statistic, the harm done to humankind by heart disease is understated in this report. If we look to the Scriptures, we discover that heart disease is universal among humankind and is the sole cause of death. Of course, we are talking about the human heart that rejects God and spiritual death. These are matters far more serious than life and death of our physical bodies as they determine where we will spend eternity. The good news is twofold. There are treatments for ischemic heart disease that can prolong life. For humankind as a whole, there is a 100% effective cure for sin and eternal death! Better yet, it is free and available to everyone! Peter tells us that Jesus "personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right." By his wounds, we are healed. In other words, Jesus died on the cross that those who believe in Him would not die, but live. We would not only live but have the power to live differently. We can imitate how Jesus lived in our day-to-day life, and be joyful as we know that Jesus, our Shepherd, is the Guardian of our souls. As we remember Jesus today by partaking of the bread and drinking from the cup, we know Jesus' wounds meant death on a cross. That's what it cost to heal us. 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. Thank-you, Abba, Father, for healing us as we were in desperate need of a cure. We are alive today because of what Your Son, Jesus, did for us. We were lost sheep in the world, Abba, Father, but we have now returned to Your Shepherd, Jesus, the Guardian of our souls. In the name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.
Today, Jesus invites you to partake of His supper. I read from Matthew 26: 26-28 (NLT).
26 As they were eating, Jesus took some bread and blessed it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take this and eat it, for this is my body.” Let us partake of the bread.
27 And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them and said, “Each of you drink from it, 28 for this is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many." 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!