Another Distinction Between the Old and New Covenants

Consider the following:

The commandments of the Old Covenant were to love God perfectly and absolutely.  That's why the command consisted of loving Him with your whole self (mind, body, strength, and spirit).  This is an impossible task!  We were to also love others as ourselves (this fails too, because our love is always tainted in some way with selfishness).  This also fails, because it falls short of God's perfect selflessness.

Matthew 22:34-40 - But when the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered themselves together. One of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" And He said to him, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the great and foremost commandment.  The second is like it, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets."

Here, Jesus was quoting from the Old Covenant:

Deuteronomy 6:4-5 - Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.

and

Leviticus 19:18 - You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the sons of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself; I am the Lord.

Under the New Covenant things are much different.  We are commanded to believe in Jesus and to love as God has loved us.

John 6:28-29 - Therefore they said to Him, "What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?" Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent."

John 10:37-38 - If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; but if I do them, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I in the Father.

Romans 4:4-5 - Now to the one who works, his wage is not credited as a favor, but as what is due. But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness.

Hebrews 4:2-3 - For indeed we have had good news preached to us, just as they also; but the word they heard did not profit them, because it was not united by faith in those who heard.  For we who have believed enter that rest.

1 John 3:21-23 - Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; and whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight.  This is His commandment, that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He commanded us.

1 John 4:16-21 - We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.  There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. We love, because He first loved us. If someone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also.

John 15:11-12 - These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.  This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you.

Ephesians 5:1-3 -  Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us.

Ephesians 5:25 - Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her.

John 15:9 - Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you.

Lastly, the standard under the New Covenant is not for us to ask God to forgive us in the same way we forgive others, as was the case under the Old Covenant (meaning, God's forgiveness of us is dependent on us first forgiving others), but rather that we recognize that God has already forgiven us, therefore we forgive:

Ephesians 4:32 - Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

Colossians 3:13 - Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

Grace, Community, and Communion

This gospel will offend you.  Just sayin'.

One of the issues Paul addresses with the Corinthians is the matter of joining in fellowship through observing the communal meal.  In 1 Cor. 11:16, Paul specifically addresses the matter of disunity, an issue that should not be present among believers, who are brothers and sisters, one body in Christ.  Verses 18-19 demonstrate that Paul is aware of disagreements, arguments, and even splits among the Corinthians.  He makes the surprising remark that through such divisions, the truth of the gospel will become clear.  In other words, those who are correct will be shown to be so:  "those who are approved may become evident among you."   Verses 20-22 cite that Paul views the purpose of the Corinthians' meal has been forgotten; while it should be an act of unity for the community (ἐκκλησίας: ekklēsias, not "church") in fashion after the Lord, it has become one marred by selfish eating and drinking, without regard to the needs of others in attendance.

Verses 23-26 are Paul's repeated instruction on the purpose of the Lord's Supper.  Verse 27 then addresses not the person taking communion, but rather the manner of participation.  It has been the traditional interpretation that one should consider oneself first guilty, confess any sins, accept Christ as Savior, and then be allowed to participate in the communal meal.  I strongly disagree with this traditional view, and I believe Paul would too, especially in regard to his opening (11:16, 18, 20) and closing (11:33) statements.  Verse 28 states that a man must examine himself, but we read into that the issue of sin, whereas Paul instead makes this commonly misread statement, again, in the context of unity.  In other words, is the eater/drinker conscious of union with Christ and his body?  Again, this does not necessarily imply sin.  Moreover, in 2 Cor. 13:5 Paul uses the same word "examine" to instruct the Corinthians in a similar matter, to effectively show Christ's strength and work.  This is not a negative command, in which they should refrain from participation due to sin, but rather it is an encouragement to remember the faith they possess.

The remainder of verses in Chapter 11 mentions several times the matter of judgment, none of which references a judgment coming from God.  We have read into the context a judgment from God on the sin of the participant.  Rather, again, the context is the community.  The factions present in the body are certainly not from God, but are instead a result of the members judging each other!  Of course this will be the case when one person or a few people eat most of the food.  The matter would be no different in today's context.  Verse 30 states that weakness and even death is the result of improper observance of the meal.  Again, no reference to or even context of judgment from God has been made; rather, we look to the purpose of the meal itself, which is to remind the participants of the new covenant and death of Christ, both pointing to life for the believer.  Instead of a matter of judgment, the improper manner in which the meal is observed is a matter of not seeing oneself as a beneficiary of the covenant.  Therefore, weakness, sickness, and death still plague some.  Proper judgment about the purpose of the meal and the real life of community is a form of child training (παιδεύω, v. 32) on the part of the Lord.  Again, punishment by sickness or death from God is not in the context of any part of the passage.

Finally, verses 33-34 again address the issue of unity among the participants, not whether or not someone is a believer or non-believer.  On that note, we look back to verse 19.  Paul describes that there exists "factions" in the community.  The Greek word is heresies (αἱρέσεις) which some have taken to mean "unbelievers."  Thus, they use this verse especially to support idea that not only will "un-confessed sin" in the life of a believer bring judgment upon drinking and eating, but also that non-Christians will somehow collapse on the spot to the horror (or instead maybe some perverse sense of righteous justification and pleasure) of those present.  Again, the context is community, not sin.  The reference to αἱρέσεις is a reference to differing opinions and discord, not sin.

I wonder what would happen if a critical change to this distinctive practice was made.  Instead of denying visitors and unbelievers and prostitutes and drug-dealers and perverts access to the Lord's Supper, maybe we should invite them to make a conscious, willing investigation into God's goodness and the new covenant favor and life found in the death and resurrection of Christ.  What if we said, "Here, drink and eat this.  Jesus died for you so that you could experience health and life.  We remind ourselves of his life and God's fulfilled promise every time we observe this.  Let's see if he'll come through for you, too.  He who puts his trust in the Lord will not be ashamed.  Taste and see that he is good."