The Miracle Table: REDISCOVERING THE POWER OF COMMUNION

by Andrew Murray

Is there something that we are missing when we break bread? Are there some things that we need to re-discover?

I believe that joy around the Communion Table is undoubtedly something that we need a revival of. As I read Scripture I always see the Bread and Wine associated with joy. I read of a joyful Saviour who invited people to a Kingdom centred around a joyful wedding banquet. I see an early Church that broke bread with joy. I see a call to remember the joy of our salvation and an invitation to fellowship with the One in whose presence there is fullness of joy.

“Christ held Himself in His hands when He gave His Body to His disciples saying: “this is My Body.” No one partakes of this Flesh before he has first adored it.” - St. Augustine

Thanksgiving is the starting point of communion. We will only go as deep into the presence of God as much as we have first given thanks.

The word Eucharist has been used by some denominations to refer to the act of the giving and receiving of the sacraments themselves, but Eucharist comes from the Greek noun which means thanksgiving. Eucharist is not meant to be the act of eating and drinking, but rather the attitude in which we eat and drink. We are meant to approach the Communion Table with a heart bursting with thankfulness and praise.

Twice John refers to Jesus giving thanks as He broke bread. Why would he mention this twice? Is he showing us a principle: this is how you break bread. You do so with a heart of thankfulness.

He gave thanks for the bread. He gave thanks for the wine.

In all of these scriptures the Greek word Eucharisteo is used, which is where we get our word Eucharist from. It effectively means three things - to be thankful, to feel grateful, and to give thanks. Just pause for a moment and think about that. To be. To feel. To give. To be - we are grateful. This is who I am, my identity as I approach the Table. I am thankful, I am grateful for all that Jesus has done, all that the Father gave, all that is available through the Spirit. To feel - this is not just a cold, religious ceremony. I feel something. My heart has been set on fire with this love and I burn with thankfulness and gratitude. Thankfulness, praise, and worship fill my entire being. To give - this is my response. I am not just a grateful person who feels thankful, I actually give thanks. I open my mouth and give thanks to Him in prayer and song. I also give Him my heart, my affection, my very life. This is my thankful response to all that He has done. The word Eucharisteo also contains within it another Greek word ‘charis’ which is translated in English ‘grace.’ The word charis itself also contains within it the word chara, which means ‘joy.’ Putting these different translations and words together, we can sum up how God expects us to break bread and drink wine like this: I am grateful for all that God has done for me. My heart burns and bursts with thankfulness because of the amazing grace that I have received in Jesus. Now through the joy of the Holy Spirit...

Communion was not just meant to be a private act of devotion, but a public demonstration of praise.

The highpoint of our praise should be the Lord’s Table. It should be the most passionate, and powerful time of praise in our church services.

In our public gatherings the act of Communion is meant to be a game changer. As the saints gather around the Lord’s Table the atmosphere in the service should change. Things should feel different, even smell different (spiritually speaking), as there has been a shift, heavenly perfume has been released. Something has filled the house that wasn’t there before.

Communion is meant to be about praise! It is meant to be about thanksgiving. It should be the highlight of every public gathering

Those who truly get the Lord’s Table may even be accused of being too excessive and over the top by those who don’t understand the value God places on communion. After all, Mary’s act of worship was considered a waste by others. But to Jesus it was a beautiful thing. May we all provide the Lord with beautiful moments of worship at His Table.

According to Paul, true worship is more than just singing songs, it is living a life of consecration in surrender to God.

It is important to note that it is the “Lord’s” Table. At the Table, He is the Friend of Sinners who welcomes all, but He is also the Lord. He is the One who demands my allegiance, my worship, and my very life.

One of the greatest examples is found in Acts 27. In this chapter, Paul is on a ship that goes through a powerful hurricane. The Bible tells us that they took a ‘violent battering.’ They go on to throw their cargo overboard. All is in darkness as they see neither sun or stars for many days. They reach the point of giving up all hope of being saved. (v20) I wonder if Paul’s situation can sometimes describe our lives? Do you ever feel like you are being tossed about by the circumstances of life? Do you ever feel like you are losing everything of value? Do you ever feel like you are going through a violent battering? Do you ever feel like you are in darkness and you can’t see the way out? Have you lost hope that things will ever change? We can learn from Paul’s wonderful example. Verse 35 tells us the choice Paul made, ‘He took some bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all. Then he broke it and began to eat.’ In the midst of this great trial, Paul chose to break bread and give thanks to God. The Aramaic says that ‘he glorified God.’ Paul chose not to focus on the storm but on His Saviour. He chose to trust His Lord and what He had promised rather than give in to fear. It is one thing to give thanks when the sun is shining, but in the midst of tribulation - to break bread and give thanks to God - this is a man who knows the power of communion, and the power of worship. Imagine if when we next go through a storm, instead of panic and fear, we respond by coming ...

“I hunger for the bread of God, the flesh of Jesus Christ. I long to drink of His blood, the gift of unending love.” - St. Ignatius of Antioch

the Lord’s Table is a looking back to the death of Jesus and the covenant made in His blood. The Lord’s Table is also about encountering the risen Saviour in the here and now. However, the Lord’s Table is also a looking forward – ahead, to the return of the King of King’s and the Lord of Lord’s.

As J. Todd Billings puts it, ‘The Lord’s Supper, as a foretaste of the Wedding Banquet of the Lamb and His Bride, gives us a taste of God’s new world.’

Every time we approach the Lord’s Table we should do so with a ravenous appetite and a desperate thirst; hungry for a taste of Him and thirsty for His presence, longing to meet and commune with our God. We come hungry and thirsty, trusting the promises of the Bible that those who hunger and thirst for righteousness shall be filled, (Matthew 5:6) and that He satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things. (Psalm 107:9)