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How Big is the Table! 1 CORINTHIANS 10:16-17
Do you sometimes feel disconnected, isolated, uninvolved, lonely? This is World Communion Sunday. You are not alone; you gather at the Lord’s table. You are connected. Communion is more than a group of similar like-minded people gathering together to remember their founder. Communion is more than a group of like-minded people celebrating an anniversary of some past event. Communion is a sharing, a participation in the body and in the blood of Christ. We not only remember but we experience Christ in this act. We gather not as individuals—you are not alone— but as the people of God. We come as a family to God's table. We come as children, youths, young people, middle-aged and older. We come in all shapes and sizes. We come as we are, not pretending to be anyone else. We come because the Creator made us, Jesus loves us, the Holy Spirit powers us and we are the people of God. Christ is uniquely present in Communion, which we call a Sacrament—a sacred act, a unique act in which Christ is present as he is present in no other relationship, no other form of worship, no other practice. Christ is uniquely present in the act of Holy Communion. Christ is present to renew, redeem, restore, and power us to be his body, his people. We participate by gathering at the Lord’s table and look how big it is! It is bigger than our beautiful marble table. It is bigger than this building. The Lord’s table extends beyond the sanctuary. World Communion Sunday celebrates the fact that we are not alone, you are not alone. We are connected with Christians all over the world.. I see the table this morning extending all the way to Japan. I went to Japan for three years as a missionary in Nagoya at the ripe old age of 21. I was a teacher in a former Methodist Junior and Senior boys high school. The Methodist, Presbyterian, and Congregational churches have merged into one United Church. My first Sunday I went to Chuo Kyokai—Central Church. I was a green farm boy from rural Minnesota, 21-years old, a long way from home with just a tinge of homesickness and a tinge of feeling of “what did I get myself into”. But, my first Sunday in Japan was World Communion Sunday. I felt at home. I felt part of the people of God, the body of Christ. I felt connected. Isn’t that a powerful word! The table extends to Japan today. The table extends to Brisbane, Australia where we lived for four months on an exchange. The Methodist, Presbyterian and Congregational Churches have merged into the Uniting Church of Australia. I was pastor of two churches—a former Methodist Church and a former Presbyterian Church. We celebrated World Communion Sunday and felt connected. The table extends to Fiji. On our way to Australia we spent a week in Fiji and attended an inspiring worship service in a small village The attendance was about 30. The small Methodist church was made of wood with a rough wooden floor, wooden pews, and a large pulpit up front. I didn't understand a word, but when they sang I didn't need to understand. They sang like Tongans sing! They sang in four-part harmony with no piano, no organ and we felt connected. Does the table extend to Tonga? Are Christians in Tonga celebrating Communion today? Wouldn’t it be exciting if at one time we could gather all the various expressions of Christianity together in one place—the singing, the practices, the cultural differences. What an exciting banquet feast that would be—all together connected at the table of the Lord! Not only does the table extend geographically around the world, it extends to heaven. Here at the table are heroes and heroines of our faith— Calvin, Zwingli, Wesley, St. Augustine, Mother Teresa. Your loved ones who have died are at the table. The book of Revelation tells us that those in heaven sing and praise God. I see them at the table today. Not even death can separate us. We are connected. We believe in the communion of saints. Death cannot break that fellowship. Death has been overcome. I believe that it's perfectly appropriate for us to pray for our loved ones in heaven, to ask God that they may know more fully and completely the love and the joy of Christ. And I believe they are praying for us as they and we gather at the table. How big is the table! What a privilege to gather at the table! What a joy it is to feast! But, there are empty places for those who have not yet come to the table— those persons in your family, those who live down the street, the unchurched children, all those who do not know the love, joy and fellowship of Christ, all who need our concern and compassion. Ellie called my attention to something I wrote in my book I’ll Go. In the mid eighties, when a national survey showed that 77.9% of first-time visitors to a church attended because they were personally invited, I asked some of our new member classes at that time how they first came to our church. The responses were first: music, second: yellow pages, third: the building’s architecture, and the last, number four, being personally invited. Who knows how many of our potential visitors did not come because no one personally invited them! How many did you invite to come to church today? How many did you pray for? How many opportunities did God give you this past week to speak a word of encouragement and share your faith? “Go out into the highways and the byways,” Jesus said, “and bring them in.” Today we gather at the table on World Communion Sunday and how big is the table! There’s room for multitudes. There’s room for you. You are invited. You are welcome. You are connected to Christians around the world. © 2022 Douglas I. Norris |