And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” [Matthew 26:27-28 (ESV)]
The celebration of the Lord’s Supper/Holy Communion/the Eucharist has been central to Christian worship since the early church. While Protestants think of the Eucharist as the sacrament commemorating the Last Supper with bread and wine, for Roman Catholics and some Orthodox, “Eucharist” specifically refers to the consecrated elements, especially the bread. How ever you define it, the word “eucharist” originally had nothing to do with this beautiful sacrament.
Meaning to be thankful, the Greek eucharisteó comes from eú meaning “grateful” and charizesthai meaning “to offer graciously”. Charizesthai comes from charis, meaning “grace” (a gift that cannot be repaid) from chario meaning “to rejoice”. From its etymology, eucharisteó isn’t the kind of thanks we’d say to a friend who saved us a seat at the movie or to someone for opening the door for us. Encompassing the ideas of thanksgiving, grace in receiving a gift that cannot be repaid, and rejoicing or joy, eucharisteó is the kind of thanks that is specifically directed toward God! This is the word the Apostle Paul used whenever he said he thanked God. We find Jesus giving thanks (eucharisteó) before feeding the 5,000 and again before taking the wine at the last supper.
The first sacramental Eucharist took place during a Passover meal (seder) celebrating Israel’s deliverance from bondage to Egypt. The question “Why is this night different from all other nights?” would have been asked early in the seder and would have been answered by a retelling of Israel’s exodus from Egypt. When Jesus took the bread and passed it to the disciples, they didn’t know that the bread symbolizing Israel’s suffering in Egypt would come to represent the Lord’s suffering on Calvary. When Jesus filled the cup and passed it to the disciples, they didn’t know that the wine symbolizing Israel’s redemption from slavery in Egypt would come to represent the blood Jesus shed to purchase mankind’s redemption from sin.
While the disciples didn’t understand what lay ahead for Jesus that night, let’s not forget that Jesus certainly did! He knew that His body, having been defeated by thorns, whip, nails, and cross, would be broken in less than a day. Nevertheless, knowing full well the torment he would suffer and the blood He’d shed, Jesus graciously offered Himself for us and gave thanks—and not just any old thanks. He gave eucharisteó—the sacrificial lamb gave thanks to God with joy!
Like the exodus, the story of Jesus is one of redemption. Israel was in bondage to Pharaoh—mankind in bondage to sin and death. Israel was saved by the blood of a lamb; we are saved by the blood of the Lamb of God. Moses led the people to the Promised Land; Jesus leads us into the Kingdom of God. When we partake of the bread and wine during Holy Communion, let us pause and ask, “What makes this meal different from any other?” Do we recognize God’s grace and give thanks (eucharisteó) with joy?
So the community of the cross is a community of celebration, a eucharistic community, ceaselessly offering to God through Christ the sacrifice of our praise and thanksgiving. The Christian life is an unending festival. And the festival we keep, now that our Passover Lamb has been sacrificed for us, is a joyful celebration of his sacrifice, together with a spiritual feasting upon it. [John Stott]
What would you do if you were six and your father said that your mom is in the hospital because she finds it hard to be happy and “did something stupid”? That question is answered in Duncan Macmillan and Jonny Donahoe’s one-act play, Every Brilliant Thing. In their play, that boy, now a grown man, tells the audience that he made of list of everything that was “brilliant” about the world—everything worth living for—and left it on his mother’s pillow. Reflecting a six-year old’s priorities, the list included ice cream, Kung-Fu movies, laughing so hard you shoot milk out your nose, burning things, construction cranes, and “me.” Although she returns the list with its spelling corrected, the boy’s mother never comments on it. Nevertheless, he keeps adding to his list. Although his mother eventually takes her life, the narrator tells how his list took on a life of its own and eventually saved him from his own depression and suicidal thoughts.
It was a web day at the park and I don’t mean the world-wide kind. It was one of those days when the morning dew, mist, and light cooperated in such a way that we saw beautiful intricate spider webs hanging everywhere. Looking as if they were made of strands of silver rather than proteinaceous silk extruded from a spider’s spinnerets, it seemed like the spiders had decorated all the trees in celebration of Christmas.
Unfortunately, much of our Advent season is not spent joyfully looking forward to celebrating the birth of the Christ child. In hope of finding the perfect gift for everyone on our list, we pore over catalogues and search for sales and coupons. Either we fight for parking spots at the mall and spend hours standing in line or spend those hours sitting at the computer while shopping on line! We then fret and fuss over wrapping those gifts, mailing packages and Christmas cards, hosting and attending parties, baking cookies, making travel arrangements, decorating the house, preparing holiday dinners, and paying the ever-mounting bills. When we say, “Merry Christmas!” we might find ourselves mumbling a Scrooge-like “Bah! Humbug” under our breath! Instead of looking forward to Christmas with anticipation, there are times we can’t wait until it’s all over and done.
When I was a girl (back in the days of pen, paper, and postage stamps), my mother insisted that I write a “thank you” note for any gifts I received. Whether my birthday or Christmas, I was not allowed to enjoy any gifts until the necessary notes had been written. Moreover, each note had to be personal. I couldn’t just write a quick generic, “Thank you for the nice present.” I had to say something specific about the gift and, if it was money, I had to say how I planned on using it. Even if the present was something I really didn’t like or want (and we’ve all had those kinds of gifts), I had to express gratitude. My mother reminded me that, while I might not value the gift, someone else’s time, thought, love, and money had gone into getting it for me. Therefore, I should take the time to properly acknowledge and show my appreciation for the giver’s generosity. Her “thank you” note rule also applied whenever someone did something special for me. If a family took me to an event or I’d spent the night at a friend’s house, a note of thanks had to be written.
A certain amount of discontent seems to be built into us, which isn’t all bad since discontent can be the incentive to make improvements. Dissatisfaction with the harpsichord’s inability to vary the intensity of its sound led Bartolomeo Cristofori to invent the piano around 1708. Benjamin Franklin’s annoyance at having to switch between two pairs of glasses led to his invention of bifocals and it probably was his discontent with a cold house that led to his invention of the metal-lined Franklin stove. The invention of the “ballbarrow,” with its rust-proof plastic bin and ball-shaped wheel that won’t sink into soft soil, is the result of James Dyson’s discontent with the traditional wheelbarrow. As Thomas Edison said, “Discontent is the first necessity of progress.”
Devotions of the Heart 