Communion Message
(Don't you fear God?)
May 1-2, 1999
Pastor Don Sheley

For I have received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me. In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me." For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes. Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 

The apostle Paul tells us that every time we share the communion service together it's a time of proclamation. We tell again the story of the cross. We do it in very visual visible form. Matthew paints for us the picture of the closing hours of Christ as he in his gospel describes the trial of Jesus which was so illegal. It violated almost every Jewish law. But when they condemned Him to death, Matthew paints the picture very clear, but he etches in the back of his writings a scene that sometimes we miss because it's in the shadows. It says in Matthew 26:58, But Peter followed Him at a distance to the high priest's courtyard. And he went in and sat with the servants to see the end. That has always fascinated me; that little phrase, to see the end. What end did they think they were going to see? The end of His teaching? The end of His ministry? Or the end of Christ Himself? We cannot be too sure what was in the minds of Peter and his ill gotten associates as they watched and they waited and they pondered the scene. It, of course, was not patient passivity, but the delusion of an impossible neutrality. 

They were merely sitting on the sidelines; simply spectators from the galleries, but there is no neutral position when it comes to Christ and His death. You are either for Him or you're against Him. You just can't sit there. You just can't stand there. The cross always demands a reaction. Peter and his friends may have just sat there, but someone else pondered the cross. He was the malefactor. This man who found a place in the who's who of sacred writ had to look beyond the center cross to see the third, his criminal buddy. And he must have gazed upon the Savior as he spoke to his buddy, and this is what he said; Don't you fear God? That criminal hanging there that day knew that that person hanging next to him was someone very special; someone very important. In fact, he concluded He was God. And he said to his buddy, Don't you have any fear for God? I tell you, when you stand at the cross very long, you can't help but have a referent fear for a gracious loving God. That old malefactor renounced himself. He recognized his doom. He was in no condition to die, but he was in the right condition to believe. His pride was dissipated. He desire was definite and his profession very clear. And this is what he said; we received the due reward for our deeds. He recognized his own sinful condition. And then he said something very respectful of Christ. He said this man has done nothing amiss. 

Do you know friends, that apart from Pilate's wife, the malefactor was the only other human defense witness willing to speak on behalf of the innocence of Jesus? And the old malefactor requested salvation. He said, Lord, would You remember me when You come into Your kingdom? He confessed Jesus as Lord and he believed in his heart in the fact of the resurrection. For though Jesus was dying, this old malefactor believed that He would come into His kingdom, and he wanted to be a part of it. Paul writes that if you will confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you too will be saved. The old malefactor just couldn't hang there. The cross deeply affected him. And one of the reasons we have communion every Sunday, is I want to make sure that the cross is driven right into the heart of every service. And every person here has got to react to Christ and the cross. 

Someone told me the other day of a person who said, I don't go to your church anymore. Why don't you go to the church? Because I don't like being confronted with those communion elements every Sunday morning. Sad. You see, he's already made his decision. He's rejected the cross and he's rejected the Christ. You just can't sit there as Peter tried. It doesn't work. And I'm grateful to God. You know sometimes I've been asked the question, Pastor, do we have altar services in our church? And that question is asked very sincerely because some of us come out of evangelical backgrounds wherein at the close of each service the pastor gives the open opportunity for people to make a spiritual decision. So I understand the question. And my answer is always this; every communion service is an altar service because every one of us, when those elements are passed in front of us, make a determination where we stand with almighty God in relationship to Jesus Christ and His cross. And I respect those who come and join with us and who are still wrestling though spiritual decisions in their lives. They respectfully let the communion pass before them, because they know that that is something very sacred to Christians. I admire that, but my prayer is that you too would bow your heart and say, Jesus, I know that I'm a sinner and that on that cross 2000 years ago You died for all mankind. You paid the penalty for all of our sins, including mine. And I acknowledge You and receive You as my Savior and my Lord, and I want to be a follower of You. If you'll say that, you'll be in paradise when life is finished with the malefactor whose life and heart was touched at the cross. I'd like for you now to bow with me as we take the communion together.

Lord Jesus, in loving adoration and respect and with thankful hearts we bow in Your presence today. The cross has affected our lives dear Jesus, because it was there at the cross that You paid the price for our eternal salvation and we know that. And ever time we take these elements You said that in the bread that represented Your body, and we know that in Your body You took our sin. You became sin for us, who knew no sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God. So with this bread we are reminded of Your sacrifice, and with this cup, you said, Lord Jesus, that this was the cup of the new arrangement, the new covenant. In ancient past the covenant was that people were forgiven as they brought a lamb who was slain to pay with its life so they could live. Because the divine principle was laid down from the beginning of mankind that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. So in ancient past You arranged the substitute death, the substitute of an animal to die on behalf of man. And that's what comprised the ancient form of worship. But in the fullness of time, dear Jesus, You came to this world to be the lamb slain before the foundation of the world. And when You went to that cross You ended all other sacrifices. Yours was the last and the ultimate, and the only, and the sufficient sacrifice to pay for the sins of all mankind; including mine. And so Jesus, with this cup You say that it's Your precious blood that cleanses us from all sin. Thank you. Let's take the bread together, shall we? And then the cup. For salvation's mercies, for Your grace and Your love, we say thank you dear Jesus. And everybody said, amen. Let's stand and greet the folks that have come to worship with us.