Friday, July 02, 2010

"And me, and me!" (A Communion Meditation)



(Matthew 18:2-3) And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Some time ago, in The LORD’s Service of one of our sister-churches, a wee-toddler; a small girl barely over a year old, saw the bread being distributed during this Supper, and began cheerfully saying, "And me. And me."

This is something we all need to learn how to say, because it is right at the heart of biblical faith. This is the child-like approach that Jesus required of us. It is relatively easy to believe propositions in the third person. Jesus died for sinners, and there are certainly sinners out there. They do this and that. God has elected certain sinners for salvation, and they certainly are blessed. They have come to Christ in truth, and have responded to the Word in faith. They are true believers, and we are glad for them.

This is all true enough, and quite proper to say. But we need to grow in the kind of faith that knows how to intrude itself. Christ died for sinners, the preacher says. "And me", you say. This is my body which is broken for you, the minister declares. "And me", you say to yourself, anchoring the point. This is the cup of the new testament, which is for the remission of the sins for many. And me.

But we do not stop there. Once we are assured that, yes, this includes the referent of “and me”, we learn to rest in this, growing in faith, and we learn to look around. I am not the only one. God has been kind to us, and I am only here as one of His people. It is not just me, but and me. This is for all the saints, not one solitary person. This is for all the saints gathered in this room. And… me.

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