ORDINANCES IN THE LOCAL CHURCH

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The Church has two ordinances: baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Baptism is observed at the beginning of the Christian life; the Lord’s Supper is taken all during the Christian life. We emphasize the fact that these are ordinances of the Church, and not sacraments.

A. Baptism.

Baptism is from the Greek word baptizo, meaning to dip, to plunge, to immerse for the purpose of dying. It can never mean sprinkling, or pouring.

1. Obligation

(Matt. 28:18-20; Rom. 6:1-6; Col. 2:12). All believers are obliged to be baptized. One does not have to pray about it to seek God’s will in the matter. The Lord has commanded it.

2. Administration.

Nearly every denomination, with the exception of some local Baptist groups, demands that their ministers, who administer the ordinance of baptism, must be ordained.

3. Explanation.

Baptism is a public declaration of faith in Christ by the believer before man. It is his outward demonstration of an inward act, and is a picture of the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. Immersion fully portrays the place of death; there are some people, even today, who have met actual physical death after coming up out of the baptismal waters. Those who have come out of other religions evaluate the ordinance of baptism more highly than those who have been raised in Christian homes. Not only does baptism show the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, but it also shows the believer’s identification with Christ. Baptism is his full declaration of his own death in Christ (II Cor. 5:14): dead to sin, dead to self and dead to the old life. It is also his declaration of being raised with Christ, after burying the old life, to walk in newness of life with Him. The baptism of all believers, as recorded in the Word, pictures the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. The baptism of John the Baptist looked forward to Christ’s death and resurrection, and our baptism today looks back to the death and resurrection of our Lord. It is not a saving ordinance. Man is saved by faith alone. This occurs before baptism. It is true, however, that baptism is a public declaration of faith before man, and God looks not upon the baptismal waters, but upon the heart of man.

4. Participation.

Who should be baptized? I believe only the believer! “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned” (Mark 16:16). Faith is first, then baptism. Again the question arises, “Does man have to be baptized to be saved?” No, for this Scripture says that he that believeth not shall be damned. If water baptism were essential, the Lord would have added these words, “He that is not baptized is damned.” The Apostle Paul, in writing to the Corinthians said, “I thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius. . . . For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be of none effect” (I Cor. 1:14, 17). If baptism were necessary for salvation, Paul would not have boasted in the fact that he had baptized so few. He plainly states that baptism had nothing to do with the Gospel (Rom. 1:16), for Christ had sent him not to baptize, but to preach. It is impossible to baptize an unbeliever, for if he is an unbeliever before he is immersed, he will be an unbeliever when he comes out of the baptismal waters. What is the age limit for baptism? Some parents contend that twelve years of age is the youngest age at which a child should be baptized. This has no Scriptural foundation whatsoever. It may be a carry-over from the Jewish custom of adoption. The Word clearly states that baptism is for all believers, regardless of age or sex.

B. Lord’s Supper.

“I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread: and when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the New Testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death till he come. Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup” (I Cor.11:23-28).

1. Origination.

From the above Scriptures little doubt is left as to who instituted the Lord’s Supper. There is no record of this ordinance being held before the Lord Jesus inaugurated it. We, as it were, take the bread and the cup from His own precious hands. The theory that Christ never lived is exploded by the Lord’s Supper. It is His, and His only.

2. Obligation.

The words “this do” are a command of the Lord, and the words “all of it” (Matt. 26:27) are better translated “all of you.” This ordinance is for the entire Body of Christ.

3. Participation.

a. Who?

No one but a baptized child of God should participate in the Lord’s Supper. Those who sat with Him at the last supper had been baptized. Baptism is the symbol of the commencing of the new life, and the Lord’s Supper is a symbol of the sustenance of that life.

b. How often?

Some churches observe the Lord’s Supper every Sunday; some, once a month; others, four times a year; and still others, once a year; some never observe the Lord’s Supper. What is the Scriptural stipulation for this observance? “As often” (I Cor. 11:26): there is no set, rigid rule.

c. In What Manner?

Some believers are very confused concerning their fitness to partake of the Lord’s Supper after reading I Corinthians 11:27-29. They notice the word “unworthily,” and immediately they review their past mistakes, ever since they became a Christian, and fear that they shall be eating and drinking damnation to themselves if they partake. Let us point out that the word “unworthily” is an adverb, and modifies the word “drink,” which means to drink in an “unworthy manner.” As far as being worthy is concerned, which one of us can call himself worthy? No one! This has reference to the act of participation. The context will give a perfect explanation. In the early church love feasts were held; the rich brought their store of food and wine, while the converted slaves brought nothing.

As the feast progressed, the rich believer, keeping his food and drink to himself, soon became drunk. The poor slave, of course, had nothing, and remained sober. The Lord’s Supper was observed at the conclusion of the feast. The drunken believer could not appreciate the Lord’s Supper. In his drunkenness, the cup of the Lord’s Supper meant nothing more to him than another drink of wine. He could not discern the Lord’s body and blood; thus, he drank it “unworthily.” This fact led to many untimely deaths in the Corinthian Church: “For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep” (I Cor. 11:30).

If the Christian feels unworthy, it is a good indication that he is worthy, and vice versa. The man who finds some personal quality in himself to make him worthy to partake of the Lord’s Supper had better stay away. The table is not spread for the righteous, but for the unrighteous, who are justified by faith.

4. Constitution.

The elements of the Lord’s Supper are bread and fruit of the vine. The bread was unleavened, as it was used in the observance of the Passover, from which the Lord inaugurated the Lord’s Supper.

5. Interpretation.

a. Transubstantiation.

This interpretation is held by the Roman Catholic Church. It declares that by the consecration of the priest the bread and wine cease to remain, as such, and become the actual body and blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. This Faith contends that when the Lord said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you” (John 6:53), he meant the actual flesh and blood of Christ. Therefore, the Mass is that ritual which turns the bread and wine into the actual flesh and blood of Christ. The priest alone drinks the wine, as not one drop of Christ’s blood must be spilt. The bread is in the form of a wafer, so that not a crumb of His body should be lost. In answer to this we ask, “How could Christ, while being in His perfect body, hold part of His body in His hand when he said, ‘This is my body’?”

b. Consubstantiation.

The Lutherans and the Church of England believe this interpretation, which states that, while the bread remains bread, and the wine remains wine, the body and blood is present in a spiritual sense; the body and blood are present only at the moment when they are partaken of, and after being taken, cease to be the body and blood of Christ.

c. Symbolism.

This is the true interpretation, which states that the bread and wine are only symbols of Christ’s body and blood, which were offered upon Calvary’s cross for the remission of sins. “This do in remembrance of me”; it is observed in blessed memory, and that is where it ends.

6. Limitation.

How long should the Church continue this observance? Till He comes again. What is our answer to the scoffer who jeers at the Second Coming, and who asks, “Where is the promise of His coming?” We point to the Lord’s Table and reply, “There is the promise of His coming.”

7. Evaluation.

(a) His Humanity.

His humanity is as real as His Deity. The symbols speak of His actual human body and blood, and it is most essential that it is human, as the atonement must be in the nature of that which sinned (“Christ died for us”).

(b) His Deity.

His Deity is expressed in the words “Lord’s Supper.” All titles of Deity are in this one word, “Lord.”

(2) The Work of Christ.

(a) His Death. The elements of the Lord’s Supper portray this fact, for the body and blood are together in life, but separated in death.

(b) His Resurrection and Second Coming. “Till I come” does not mean “till I come from the grave”, but “till I come from heaven.”

(3) The Way of Salvation.

(a) It Assumes Our Guilt and Helplessness.

(b) It Emphasizes Substitution. (“Broken for you”)

(c) It Reminds Us That Salvation Is Free. (Given for you)

(d) It Declares the Gift of Salvation Must Be Accepted. (Take, eat and drink)

b. Its Value Devotionally.

(1) We Come With Confession.

(2) We Come With Prayer.

(3) We Come With Consecration.

(4) We Come With Humility.

(5) We Come With Thanksgiving.

(6) The Whole Man Is Engaged.

(a) Ears to Hear His Invitation.

(b) Eyes to See Its Symbol.

(c) Hands That Handle the Elements.

(d) Mouth Which Eats the Elements.

(e) Body Which Assimilates the Element — Becomes Part of Us.

c. Its Value Practically.

(1) It Is a Means of Grace.

(2) It Is a Means of Testimony.

(3) It Is a Means of Strengthening Faith.

(4) It Is a Means to Promote Our Love Toward Him.

(5) It is a Means to Promote Love Toward One Another.

(6) It Is a Means to Promote Fellowship. This fellowship is one with another inChrist around the Lord’s Table, He being the center.

(7) It is a Means to Stimulate Holiness.

d. Its Value Prophetically.

If the Lord Jesus is not coming the second time, why celebrate the Lord’s Supper? He is coming! Remember, in answer to those who ask, “Where is the promise of His coming?”, we point to the Lord’s Supper.

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