Homework
Originally scheduled for
August 21
It happens to even
the best of students: you get to class and you realize you don't
have your homework.
Most of us at that
point begin to think of some way to convince the teacher that we
have a legitimate excuse. You need something like, "I left it in a
hymnal in the choir loft to mark my solo." Or, perhaps you say
something like "I made it into a paper airplane, and it got
hijacked." The really creative among us might use, "all I had was a
right handed pencil and left-handed paper."
Whatever your
excuse, the teacher probably saw through it. But it may come as a
surprise to you to know that the people who are most anxious when
they don't have the homework done are the A students. They tend to
have very high expectations of themselves, and missing homework can
cause a great deal of stress.
Christians, in a
sense, have homework that needs to be done before coming to
communion. These things are not trivial:
·
Forgiveness probably
comes first. Do you come to the Lord's Table and ask forgiveness of
him, if you are not willing to forgive someone else?
·
Humility is another
necessity. Remember that on the night of the Last Supper Christ
washed the disciples feet. Do you come to communion in pride, or in
humility?
·
At the very least,
you should be prepared for communion by confessing your sins. The
Lord knows all about them anyway; but he does want you to own up to
them.
The more experienced
you are as a Christian, the more important these things become. It's
just like the A students; you know what you're supposed to do. If
you haven't done it, you have reason to be nervous.
By taking communion
you proclaim the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross; its effectiveness
in cleansing our sins and that he made this sacrifice for you. He
asks you to come to communion with self examination; to do your
homework, in other words. Communion is a memorial of the most
important event ever to happen in the human race. By partaking, you
proclaim your acceptance of his salvation. Surely you can come
prepared; surely you can do your homework.
