Communion

When the Lord brought Israel out of the land of Egypt he took them through the Red Sea in order to demonstrate (and indeed to finalize) their complete deliverance from Egypt. He also gave them the Passover meal. His instruction to them in Exodus 12:42 was,
"It is a night to be observed for the Lord for having brought them out from the land of Egypt; this night is for the Lord, to be observed by all the sons of Israel throughout their generations." But when he delivered them from Egpyt at the shores of the Red sea, it was a deliverance he did only once. Exodus 14:30 reads "thus the Lord saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians..."

Israel only passed through the Red sea once. Never again would Egypt pursue them to enslave them, and never again would they pass through the Red Sea.

These two events in Israel's history pass on to us with a new sense of meaning in the ordinances of Baptism and the Lord's Supper.

Just as Israel passed through the Red Sea only once, and in that passing they were separated from the Egyptians who wished to enslave them, so too a Christian who first comes to Christ undergoes Christian baptism and there proclaims his allegiance to Jesus Christ as well as symbolically tells the story of the death, burial and resurrection of the son of God. Baptism serves as a testimony of the cleansing that God has done.

Baptism is a one time event. It is not in and of itself salvific. Despite the oft told heresy of "baptismal regeneration" nobody is saved by undergoing baptism. Baptism is a testimony of the cleansing Christ has given us.

The passover also came down to us in a new form; for on the night that Jesus was betrayed he sat down with his disciples for a final passover meal. During that meal he took two of the main items at the table and infused them with new meaning. The bread of passover which once symbolized the haste with which the Israelites were driven from the land became the symbolic reminder of the wounded body of Jesus. The glass of wine which was customary at Jewish meals became an eternal symbol of the lifeblood of Jesus given in complete substitutionary death. Contrary to Catholic dogma, taking communion is not a path to salvation. Instead it is the continued visible retelling of the story of the gospel.

Baptism occurs only once but Communion continues throughout our Christian lives. Here at Fame, we've decided to celebrate Communion on the first Sunday of every month. Because communion is such a vital part of our lives, I want to take this morning to remind us again of the value of the Lord's Supper.

There are two extremes we have to watch out for. On one hand