“Helping those who are far from God become committed followers of Jesus Christ from the Scenic City to the nations.”

Life Group Leader Guide

Sermon Text: Matt. 26:26-30| Complementary Text: 1 Cor. 11:17-34 ​ ​ ​ ​ ​

Opening/Community: Ideas for beginning your Life Group ​ ​ ● Icebreaker: Come up with a fun and fitting question to help people get to know one another. ​ ● Sing Together: BX Spotify Playlist ​ ​ ● Highs & Lows: What were the best and the most challenging parts of your week? ​ ● Follow up: How did you apply what you learned from last week’s discussion in your life this week. ​ ● God at work: How have you seen God at work this week? ​ ● Prayer: Thank God for his character and the ways you've seen his faithfulness this week. ​

Sermon Review: Review and discuss the sermon together ​ ​ ● Main Point: ● Sermon Outline:

● What challenged you in the sermon to deepen your commitment as a follower of Christ?

Complementary Text: Additional material to help deepen your Life Group’s understanding of Scripture ​ ​ and become more committed followers of Christ.

Text: 1 Corinthians 11:17-34

Author & Date: Paul/A.D. 54-56

Audience: The church in Corinth

Theme of the Book: Spiritual Correction

Immediate Context: The abuses of the Lord’s Supper

Main Point: The appropriate administration of the Lord’s Supper

1 How does the sermon text complement this text?

Jesus’ instructions to the disciples in Matthew 26 are complemented by Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 11 by giving specific instruction on how the ordinance should be observed in the local church. Christ commanded the observance in Matthew. Paul gave instruction on how to conduct it so as not to bring judgment upon God’s people for conducting it improperly. Richard Pratt comments as follows:

The Corinthians had so twisted the celebration of the Lord's Supper that it was hardly recognizable. To correct this problem. Paul applied the three principles which he employed in each subject related to worship. He appealed to: (1) the honor of God worship, (2) proper regard from one believer to another, and (3) the testimony of the church to outsiders. Paul insisted that the Lord's Supper at Corinth no longer met these criteria. (Holman New Testament Commentary) ​

What does this passage teach us about God?

God expects us to worship Him with a sense of order and civility. -- vv. 17-22.

The Apostle Paul’s purpose for writing the letter of 2 Corinthians was to correct the false doctrine and practices that had crept into the church of Corinth. He begins by condemning their obvious gluttony and selfish behavior toward the poor in the church. He was very frustrated with the church, and called them out for their sin. Richard Pratt comments as follows:

In the preceding section, Paul had begun with words of praise. But here he said, I have no praise for you. Paul's disgust with the Corinthians focused on how their meetings, or public worship gatherings, did more harm than good. Paul did not condemn them absolutely and categorically—he had already praised them for holding to many of his teachings on worship (11:2). Yet, his assessment was that the harm of their worship times outweighed the good.

What kinds of things would yield this kind of condemnation? The Corinthians had corrupted one of the most sacred events in Christian worship: the Lord's Supper. They had not given due regard to the honor of Christ, nor had they honored or edified one another in the celebration of the Lord's Supper. (Holman ​ New Testament Commentary)

The Corinthians had abused the practice of the Lord’s Supper by gorging themselves on the food before them, and not even sharing what they brought to the meal with others. Later, we will talk about the practice of the “love feast,” which has been abandoned by most Christians because of what took place in these verses. However, some Christians are insistent that a fellowship meal should accompany the Lord’s Supper, but these rules should be followed so it is not abused.

Paul begins his correction by discussing the divisions within the church. He was condemning the presence of cliques within the body of Christ. You can have close friends, but you should not stick with them alone, and refuse to fellowship with others due to social status or otherwise. Richard Pratt comments as follows:

Paul returned abruptly to the issue at hand. When the Corinthian Christians came together to celebrate the Lord's Supper, divisions so corrupted it that it could not be called the Lord's Supper. Although this terminology is common in the church today, this passage contains the only expression of the phrase 2 "Lord's Supper" in the New Testament. It may connote a number of ideas: "the Supper belonging to or hosted by the Lord"; "the Supper which the Lord ordained" (Luke 22:19-20); or "the Supper at which the Lord's body and blood are shared" (Matt. 26:26-28). (Holman New Testament Commentary) ​ ​

God expects us to be kind to the poor and the less fortunate. -- vv. 20-22.

His biggest issue was the way they were treating the poor of the congregation. They were putting the rich and important people ahead of the poor and needy, and Paul knew that God was not pleased by their actions. Richard Pratt comments as follows:

Paul began his correction by asking several questions. First, he asked if they did not have houses in which to eat and drink ordinary meals. It may have been that Paul's question was an indirect way of saying, "If this is what you do at the Lord's Supper, then stay home." Paul did not approve of discrimination against the poor, but it would have been less offensive for someone to disregard others in an ordinary meal than in the midst of Christian worship. ...When believers disregard the sanctity of the Lord's Supper by keeping the poor among God's people from partaking, they look down on God's people. Because the poor are an integral part of the church community, one cannot hate the poor without despising the church. Those who mistreat the people of God are destined for God's judgment (Deut. 32:43; Isa. 3:13-26; Ezek. 13:9-10; Rom. 12:19).

Paul asked if the rich members of the Corinthian church actually wanted to humiliate those who had nothing. The poor of the ancient world were mocked and humiliated by the wealthy. According to the Old Testament and Jesus, however, this was not to be the situation of the poor in God's kingdom. In fact, Jesus blessed the poor (Luke 6:20-21) and warned the rich of the difficulties that accompanied their social status (Mark 10:25). The poor already had nothing in human, worldly terms. In Corinth, they also had their sense of dignity stolen by fellow believers— and this at the Lord's Supper. (Holman ​ New Testament Commentary) ​

Jesus gave the Lord’s Supper as a command to be celebrated until He returns. -- vv. 23-26.

The Apostle Paul reminded the Corinthians that the purpose of the Lord’s Supper was to remember the death of the Lord until He returns. When we take the Lord’s Supper, why are we doing it? Are we doing it because it is the “thing to do” at church, or because we understand that Jesus commanded us to do it to truly remember and commemorate His death.

The Corinthians were forgetting the reason they had gathered to eat their meal. They were just stuffing their faces and having a good time without recognizing the reason: t0 remember what Jesus had done for them. Brent Belford notes as follows:

Did you notice that Paul repeats the phrase, “DO THIS IN REMEMBRANCE OF ME?” Paul uses repetition to emphasize a main point to the Corinthians. The real problem was that they were not only selfish, but they were also very forgetful. They got together and had their meal, yet they forgot who they had come to worship. He also says in verse 27 that the unworthy participation in this supper brings the guilt of sinning against the death of Christ, which was a very serious offence.

3 In verse 20, Paul uses a bit of sarcasm with this church to shame their sinful practices. Notice, you may be passing the bread, drinking the cup, but what you are doing has nothing to do with the Lord. Christ would have no part in this. This is not the Lord’s Supper!

We can make this same application about how at times we “play church.” We take the offering, make the announcements, read our Bibles and say our prayers, but do we really come to REMEMBER CHRIST? We must remember Christ when we meet together! (Pursue Love: A Study in 1 Corinthians) ​ ​

The Lord will judge us if we partake of the Lord’s Supper in an inappropriate manner. -- v. 29.

God takes worship very seriously, and the observance of the Lord’s Supper is no exception. The Apostle Paul warns us that we are held guilty of the crucifixion ourselves if we do not observe the Lord’s Supper with our hearts before the Lord. Richard Pratt comments as follows:

The Corinthians' unworthy observance was no small matter. One can imagine them thinking that they had just been inconsiderate of their poor brothers and sisters in Christ. That much was true enough. Yet, Paul insisted that something much worse was happening. Because remembering and proclaiming Christ is the purpose of the Lord's Supper, violators actually sin against the body and blood of the Lord. That is to say, their offense violates the central, sacred purpose of the Lord's Supper: honoring Christ for his work of salvation. To sin against the body and blood is to sin against the very hope of salvation. They also sinned against the body and blood of the Lord by sinning against Christ's church, or more particularly against the poor Christians who were not granted admission to the Lord's Supper. To sin against those for whom Christ shed his blood and gave his body is to sin against Christ himself. (Holman New Testament Commentary) ​

What does this passage teach us about mankind?

Most Christians discontinued the love feast due to these abuses. -- vv. 17-22.

The early church mainly discontinued the “love feast” due to the abuses by the Corinthians and others. Jude called out believers for inappropriate behavior in his letter (v. 12). Many Christians today observe the simple passing of the elements rather than a full meal so these issues do not come up in their worship services. Warren Wiersbe comments as follows:

Since the beginning of the church, it was customary for the believers to eat together (Acts 2:42, 46). It was an opportunity for fellowship and for sharing with those who were less privileged. No doubt they climaxed this meal by observing the Lord’s Supper. They called this meal ‘the love feast’ since its main emphasis was showing love for the saints by sharing with one another.

The ‘agape feast’ (from the Greek word for ‘love’) was part of the worship at Corinth, but some serious abuses had crept in. As a result, the love feasts were doing more harm than good to the church. For one thing, there were various cliques in the church, and people ate with their own ‘crowd’ instead of fellowshipping with their whole church family. While Paul condemned this selfish practice, he did take a positive view of the results: at least God would use this to reveal those who were true believers. (Holman New Testament Commentary) ​

4 Baptists by and large do not observe the love feast today, but every church is autonomous, and can do as it pleases within the bounds of Scripture. Some do share a meal when they take communion. There is nothing sinful in this, but it is definitely questionable as to whether it is commanded, considering the issues that Paul addressed in the text.

We must examine ourselves to make sure we are worthy to partake of the Lord’s Supper. -- v. 28.

The Apostle Paul gave strict instructions to the Corinthians which are true for us today. We must “examine” ourselves before we take the Lord’s Supper. What does this mean?

When we examine ourselves, it conveys the idea of being tested like metal is tested in a fire. We must ​ ​ “test” ourselves and make sure that we are right before the Lord before we take the elements.

When we fail to examine ourselves, Paul tells us that we are “guilty of the body and blood of the Lord” (v. 27). The following verses tell us that without proper examination at the Lord’s table, we will be judged for our actions.

Not only should we examine ourselves, we should consider the reason for the Lord’s Supper--the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. In v. 29, we read that we are “to discern the Lord’s body.” This means one of three things: (1) we must distinguish between the elements of the Lord’s Supper and the food of the agape feast; (2) ​ ​ we must show a love for Christ’s body, the church, when we gather to celebrate the Lord’s Supper; or (3) we must recognize the sacrifice of Christ and recognize that He has died and been raised for our salvation, and this is the reason we celebrate the Lord’s Supper. (Pursue Love: A Study in 1 Corinthians). ​ ​

We will be punished for not properly observing the Lord’s Supper. -- vv. 27, 29-32.

Paul makes it clear that judgment will happen when we do not observe the Lord’s Supper properly. Some who had mishandled the observance were chastened with sickness and even death. Richard Pratt comments as follows:

Paul continued explaining the seriousness of violating the Lord's Supper by pointing out the judgment the Corinthians were experiencing as a result of their failure to observe the Lord's Supper properly. He wrote, Many among you are weak and sick. Paul probably received information about illnesses in the church from messengers sent to him. Second, he remarked, “A number of you have fallen asleep.” Some in the church had died as a result of God's judgment against them because of their sin against the body of Christ. Sickness and death do not always happen as a result of personal sin. They come to believers and unbelievers alike for many reasons (Job 2:1-7; John 9:2-3; Rom. 8:36). But in this situation, Paul had apostolic authority to support his pronouncement.

Paul added the comment that if the Corinthians judged themselves, they would not come under judgment. In other words, if the Corinthians took time to evaluate themselves before the Lord's Supper and changed their actions based on this evaluation, God would not judge them with sickness and death. God disciplines his church so the true believers will take notice and turn back to Christ in repentance, so that they will not be condemned with the world. (Holman New Testament Commentary) ​ ​

5 We must be united in worship and love for one another. -- vv. 33-34.

Paul’s final words to the Corinthians are a lesson to all Christians in their relationships with one another within the local church: “Therefore, brothers and sisters, when you come together to eat, welcome one another. If anyone is hungry, he should eat at home, so that when you gather together you will not come under judgment.” Warren Wiersbe comments as follows:

We should not look around in order to criticize other believers, but in order to discern the Lord’s body (1 Cor. 11:29). This perhaps has a dual meaning: we should discern His body in the loaf, but also in the church around us--for the church is the body of Christ. ‘For we being many are one bread and one body.’ (1 Cor. 10:17). The Supper should be a demonstration of the unity of the church--but there was not much unity in the Corinthian church. In fact, their celebration of the Lord’s Supper was only a demonstration of their disunity.

The Lord’s Supper is a family meal, and the Lord of the family desires that His children love one another and care for one another. It is impossible for a true Christian to get closer to His Lord while at the same time he is separated from His fellow believers. How can we remember the Lord’s death and not love one another? ‘Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another’ (1 John 4:11) (Bible Exposition Commentary) ​ ​

How does this text point to Christ and the gospel?

When Christians come to the Lord’s Supper, they must see the symbolism given to them through the Passover Seder of Judaism. After all, Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper at the Passover meal before His crucifixion. As the Jews were to remember their deliverance from Egyptian bondage, so Christians are to remember their deliverance from sin by the sacrifice. The Lord’s Supper is a reminder of the work of Christ and the message of the Gospel. Richard Pratt comments as follows:

The Lord's Supper was ordained as an event when God's people were to remember the death and resurrection of Christ. The last meal Jesus shared with the apostles was set within the context of Christ's betrayal, arrest, and eventual death.

The Lord instituted this ritual at the Passover, which commemorated the Exodus (Exod. 12:14-27). By telling the disciples to perform the new ritual in his own remembrance, Jesus made a bold statement, appearing to claim significance at least equal to the Exodus. This third portion of Christ's words occurs again in association with the blood of Christ. (Holman New Testament Commentary) ​ ​

6 What specific applications does this text call us to do or believe?

PRINCIPLES

● The Lord's Supper is to focus on the church's unity in Christ. ● In the Lord's Supper we proclaim the gospel and honor Christ and his sacrifice. ● Dishonoring fellow believers during the Lord's Supper also dishonors Christ.

APPLICATIONS

● We must "get right" with our fellow believers before we partake of the Lord's Supper. ● We should not focus so much on ourselves during the supper, but on Christ and what he has done for all believers and the church.

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER

1. Why do we celebrate the Lord's Supper? Of what does the Lord's Supper consist? What is the significance of its elements? What is the significance of its observance?

2. When you celebrate the Lord's Supper in your church, do you focus more on personal introspection and confession, or more on the unity and loving fellowship of the church?

3. Is your church in danger of discipline? Has it perhaps experienced discipline that no one has recognized yet? (Holman New Testament Commentary) ​ Recommended Resources

1. Holman New Testament Commentary: 1 and 2 Corinthians. 2. Bible Exposition Commentary by Warren Wiersbe.

Additional Resources

Belford, Brent. Pursue Love: A Study in 1 Corinthians. Unpublished manuscript. Letter from author, ​ ​ February 26, 2021. Forthcoming publication, New Testament Exposition Commentary: 1 Corinthians. ​ ​ ​ Schaumburg, IL: Regular Baptist Press, 2022.

Pray @ Brainerd: Please pray for: ​ ● Those who committed to apply the text in some way this week. ● The needs in your Life Group. ● Pray if the Lord might be calling you to serve in the opportunity below. ● Pray for Brainerd members deployed around the world (Deployed requests below). ​ ​ ● Pray for the activities of our church (Announcements below). ​ ​

Brainerd Deploy Grey, Minna, Caitlyn, and Rose | Middle East Specifically pray for strength for each family member as they are taking multiple hours of language each day, in addition to their cultural adaptation.

7 Serving @ Brainerd First Impressions and Kids Ministry ● As we previously considered what it meant to be "Stewards of the Mission," will you consider how God ​ would have you serve at Brainerd Baptist Church? We have great needs in First Impressions and Kids Ministry. Talk with your Life Group about how you might collectively fill these needs. Email [email protected] if you have any questions. ​

Announcements EASTER SCHEDULE

Chattanooga Campus: BX and Sanctuary Services Combined: 10 am & 11:30 am ​

North Georgia Campus: 8:30 am and 10 am ​

Downtown Campus (Meeting in the BX Venue): 8:30 am, 10 am, & 11:30 am ​ ​ ​

● Check out the church Events Page and social media for updates on what’s happening around ​ ​ Brainerd.

8