Keeping His Sheep Together

Written by Pastor Nuckols Monday, 04 April 2011 10:37

For although the gospel keeps Christians together and makes them of one mind, the Lord's Supper does more, in that every Christian confesses publicly and to himself, what he believes (although hypocrites are among them). Those who are not his separate themselves, and the believers are left together in one hope, one mind, and heart toward the Lord. It is a very important think in the church to be thus drawn together with no divisions in the faith.

Consequently, it is called, also in Latin, communionem, "fellowship," ans those who will not be of the same faith, doctrine, words, mind, and life, and therefore should not be allowed to remain with the few who are of one mind, lest they divide it and make it sectarian. Christ uses the Sacrament to keep the people together.

Therefore, the old fathers who have had the mind of Christ have said Christ used bread and wine for His Supper because as many kernels, each having its own body and form are ground together, becoming one bread, so every human being is an individual kernel, that is, his own person and a separate creature. But because we are all partakers, we are all one bread and body, and are called one lump (1 Cor. 10:17). For there is one faith, one confession, love, and hope. Similarly, in wine there are many grapes, many berries, each having its own body and form, and subsequently pressed and made into wine; there is no dissimilarity in wine but it is one, excellent, fine end product. And so the Christians should be also.

The fathers interpreted it this way, and not without justification. For the Sacrament should serve to keep Christians united in one mind, doctrine, and faith, not each being his own kernel of grain, creating his own doctrine and particular faith.

And the devil does anything but rejoice; he would be only too glad to destroy such unity and concord. For he knows well what damage is done to him if we are all of one faith and hold to one Head. So he attacks first one, then another, with misbelief, with despair, with errant thoughts which men wrongly believe about the Sacrament and other articles, to cause a division.

Although it willnot be otherwise, and offenses must come, we should always resist his efforts to completely divide us. If one or another will not remain and separates himself from us in the doctrine of the Sacrament or one some other point, let us nevertheless remain together, so that in unity we are disposed toward Christ in faith and hope in the same way. But that can never be, except there be uniformity in doctrine.

It was to preserve uniformity in doctrine, faith, and life that our dear Lord Jesus Christ so heartily instituted the Sacrament.  This Sacrament brings to light such inner uniformity, since no one has anything better or different than another. The devil would inevitably desire to tear this unity to pieces. For, as we said, he knows what damage this does to him when Christians are united in doctrine and faith. Christ instituted this Sacrament against this very thing, to keep the Christians together, that they would know nothing but Jesus Christ, the crucified One, nor believe otherwise than Christ teaches.

     Excerpt from Easter Wednesday sermon by Dr. Luther in 1534