Broad Ways
Originally scheduled for April 22
Many of the younger generation might be
confused by this description. In a time when television was just
beginning to make its mark on American society, it was still common
to go to a county fair. One of the delights of a county fair was the
collection of hucksters pitching their various products. I remember
one I encountered when I was 10 years old at a county fair in the
deserts of California. He was pitching a version of the Bible;
rather large, well illustrated and — his major selling point – with
an excellent concordance. So he said. His example was that his
concordance pinpointed the only verse in the Bible to reference
freeways.
Now, you might think the Bible doesn't have
much to say about freeways. But then again perhaps you've never met
these hucksters. If you will take a look at Nahum 2:4, in the King
James Version, you will see something that might possibly be
interpreted that way. (The exact wording is, "broad ways.") Notice
that I said, "Possibly." Sad to say, I did not purchase a copy of
this oddity to add to my collection of strange and weird things.
The truth is that there is always someone who
is around to will interpret or just plain muddle what the Scripture
says. Sometimes this is done simply to make a buck; sometimes it's
just plain stupidity; sometimes it's more sinister than that. So the
Christian is warned that he should always seek the plain sense of
the Scripture. By God's good grace, the plain sense of the Scripture
is almost always apparent.
The plain sense of the Scripture about
Communion is this:
·
This ceremony was instituted by Jesus
Christ himself. It is not an accident, but something he intended to
do.
·
The ceremony is a memorial to his
sacrifice on the cross. Bread and wine are meant to represent his
body and blood.
·
We are to remember that by this
sacrifice God's grace is given to us.
·
In so doing, we are to examine
ourselves and submit ourselves to repentance as required.
·
Then we are to partake; drink the
wine and eat the bread in a "worthy manner."
There is an elegant simplicity to this, which
is often the hallmark of truth. Our Lord has made it to be something
simple and yet profound. Let us examine ourselves, and take in a
worthy manner.
