The Desk Drawer
Originally scheduled for
January 4
Most of us have a desk drawer
filled with a clutter of objects. We might find pens with no ink; postage
stamps which used to be first class; old business cards, some wallet size
pictures and other odd clutter. But amidst all this there are the items that
we mean to keep, for they are precious to us. They are keepsakes – items which
we keep for the sake of another person. It might be Dad’s old pocket watch – a
reminder of his constant promptness. It causes us to remember him – and pass
that memory on to our children too.
“For I received from the Lord what I also passed
on to you” (1st Corinthians 11:23). That’s how Paul phrased it.
The Lord’s Supper is precious first because it was given by our Lord. We do
this to remember him. But like those precious items in our desk drawer, we
pass this on to the next generation. In so doing we accomplish three things:
·
We connect with our past – the saints who have gone before us –
and proclaim our unity with all the church.
·
By being faithful in this we stay steadily on course in our
lives, being repentant each time.
·
Keeping it as we found it, we pass it on, unblemished, to the
next generation.
We do this only with things we
consider important. To you, my dad’s watch has only antique value, but I value
it more highly. The Lord’s Supper, however, is prized by all of us. Done with
honest devotion, it is our proclamation of the faith. In doing this we
proclaim his death, and thus his atonement. By this we show our belief in the
resurrection – and his soon return.
As you partake, remember who gave
you this – and at what price. Your desk drawer contains no keepsake so
precious as this.
