The Lord’s Supper (6)

By Bob Myhan

Paul says that those who partake of the Lord’s Supper unworthily “will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord” (1 Cor. 11:27). To treat irreverently the bread and fruit of the vine, the emblems of the Lord’s body and blood, is to treat the actual body and blood of Christ irreverently and be united in attitude with those who put Him to death, implicitly approving that unholy deed (Heb. 6:6). It is indeed a serious matter to partake of the Lord’s Supper unworthily.

Paul further states, “For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body” (1 Cor. 11:29). He who fails to see the body of Christ, and does not devoutly, humbly, and prayerfully bear in mind that God gave that sinless body as a sacrifice for his [the partaker’s] sins, will bring upon himself a certain type of judgment. The judgment referred to in this passage [cited from the NKJV] is not that of eternal condemnation, as is implied by the rendering of the word “damnation” in the KJV. In fact, Paul states that this judgment is visited on those who partake of the Lord’s Supper unworthily to prevent their being condemned: “But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world” (verse 32). This is a temporal judgment, described in verse 30: “For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep,” referring to their spiritual condition.

However, we should not conclude that there is no danger of eternal condemna­tion for those who treat the Lord’s Supper profanely. Whenever any child of God partakes of the Lord’s Supper irreverently, he puts his soul in jeopardy of being eternally lost. It is “a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God,” having treated the sacrifice of Christ with contempt by treating the symbols of that sacrifice with irreverence. Self-examination, prior to partaking, might prevent one from partaking in an unworthy manner and suffering the consequences thereof (1 Cor. 11:27-31).

Timeliness is another important consideration, in connection with a proper observance of the Lord’s death. “But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son” (Gal. 4:4). This implies that the Eternal Word of God did not procrastinate when it came time “to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons” (verse 5). Neither, my spiritual siblings, should we procrastinate when it is time to commemorate the redemptive act! There is something wrong with the attitude of one who habitually arrives at the place of worship too late to participate in the singing and praying which often precede the Lord’s Supper. &

Figures of Speech Used in the Bible (3)

By Bob Myhan

The fable is a figure of speech used in the Bible at least twice. The fable “consists essentially in this, that individuals of the brute creation, and of animate and inanimate nature, are introduced into the imagery as if possessed with reason and speech, and are represented as acting and talking contrary to the laws of their being. There is a conspicuous element of unreality about the whole machinery of fables, and yet the moral intended to be set forth is usually so manifest that no difficulty is felt in understanding it.” (Milton C. Terry, Biblical Hermeneutics, pp. 265-266, quoted by Rod Rutherford in Rightly Dividing the Word, edited by Terry Hightower)

The fable, as a figure of speech, should not be confused with “fables” condemned by Paul (1 Tim. 1:4; 4:7; 2 Tim. 4:4; Tit. 1:14) and Peter (2 Peter 1:16). The word for “fables” in these verses is “muthos,” from which the word “myth” is derived. This refers not to a figure of speech but to uninspired tales of dubious origin. Skeptics, for years, have used the word to describe the Biblical account of creation.

Perhaps the first use of fable is in the book of Judges. After the death of Gideon (also known as Jerubbaal) one of his sons (Abimelech) murders 69 of his 70 half brothers (the sole survivor being Jotham) and proclaims himself king over Israel. Jotham uses a fable to ridicule the idea of Abimelech being king and predicts the demise of both Abimelech and his supporters.

Then Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem, to his mother's brothers, and spoke with them and with all the family of the house of his mother's father, saying, "Please speak in the hearing of all the men of Shechem: 'Which is better for you, that all seventy of the sons of Jerubbaal reign over you, or that one reign over you?' Remember that I am your own flesh and bone." And his mother's brothers spoke all these words concerning him in the hearing of all the men of Shechem; and their heart was inclined to follow Abimelech, for they said, "He is our brother." So they gave him seventy shekels of silver from the temple of Baal-Berith, with which Abimelech hired worthless and reckless men; and they followed him. Then he went to his father's house at Ophrah and killed his brothers, the seventy sons of Jerubbaal, on one stone. But Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal was left, because he hid himself. And all the men of Shechem gathered together, all of Beth Millo, and they went and made Abimelech king beside the terebinth tree at the pillar that was in Shechem.

Now when they told Jotham, he went and stood on top of Mount Gerizim, and lifted his voice and cried out. And he said to them: "Listen to me, you men of Shechem, That God may listen to you!

"The trees once went forth to anoint a king over them. And they said to the olive tree, 'Reign over us!' But the olive tree said to them, 'Should I cease giving my oil, With which they honor God and men, And go to sway over trees?'

"Then the trees said to the fig tree, 'You come and reign over us!' But the fig tree said to them, 'Should I cease my sweetness and my good fruit, And go to sway over trees?'

"Then the trees said to the vine, 'You come and reign over us!' But the vine said to them, 'Should I cease my new wine, Which cheers both God and men, And go to sway over trees?'

"Then all the trees said to the bramble, 'You come and reign over us!' And the bramble said to the trees, 'If in truth you anoint me as king over you, Then come and take shelter in my shade; But if not, let fire come out of the bramble And devour the cedars of Lebanon!'

"Now therefore, if you have acted in truth and sincerity in making Abimelech king, and if you have dealt well with Jerubbaal and his house, and have done to him as he deserves-- for my father fought for you, risked his life, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian; but you have risen up against my father's house this day, and killed his seventy sons on one stone, and made Abimelech, the son of his female servant, king over the men of Shechem, because he is your brother-- if then you have acted in truth and sincerity with Jerubbaal and with his house this day, then rejoice in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you. But if not, let fire come from Abimelech and devour the men of Shechem and Beth Millo; and let fire come from the men of Shechem and from Beth Millo and devour Abimelech!" And Jotham ran away and fled; and he went to Beer and dwelt there, for fear of Abimelech his brother. (Judges 9:1-21)

In the fable, trees are depicted as trying to convince an olive tree, a fig tree and a vine to reign over them. Each, in turn, declines the invitation due to his importance in the service of man. But, when the trees ask the lowly bramble to reign over them, he accepts proudly. After all, he had little to offer man. The bramble obviously represents Abimelech, probably the least qualified man in Israel to be king. But the invitation reveals a haughty attitude in the bramble. He boasts that he will give them shelter if they are sincere in making him king but he will destroy them if they are not.

In Jotham‘s explanation of the fable, he tells the men of Shechem that, if they have “acted in truth and sincerity,” both they and Abimelech should rejoice. But, if they have not “acted in truth and sincerity,” both they and Abimelech will be destroyed.

Over the next three years Abimelech and the men of Shechem were at one another’s throats, they attempting to ambush him and he attempting to ambush them in return, until both he and they were destroyed, demonstrating that they had not “acted in truth and sincerity in making Abimelech king” and had not “dealt well with Jerubbaal.”

There are many other figures of speech in the Bible but perhaps these will be sufficient to whet the readers’ appetite for further study of them. Perhaps more articles on the subject will be forthcoming in the Faith Builder. &