Proclaiming Death

"In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes." (1 Corinthians 11:25-26, NRSV)

The words of Institution of the Lord’s Supper—we say them so often, they seem to roll off our tongue or pass through our ears without a second thought. But when I read them, hear them, or say them, they also seem to strike me as odd. “This cup is the new covenant in my blood”, “you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.” Those are odd things to repeat and hear over and over again.

It is interesting that Paul states that when wee participate in the Lord’s Supper we are in the action of proclaiming. By taking the Bread and the Wine as a community we are making a proclamation to the word. I usually don’t think of my participation in the Lord’s Supper as proclamation but I think of it as a way to remember and reflect on what Jesus has done for me. But yet, Paul clearly states it is a proclamation not an act of remembrance. By participation we are standing on our soap box to the world and proclaiming—proclaiming what?—proclaiming the Lord’s death. (?)

Whoa! Doesn’t it seem like we should be proclaiming his resurrection, his victory over death. That is such an odd thing to say, we proclaim death…

Well, we do proclaim death. The path of following Jesus is death. Death to this life, death to sin, death to slavery, and our ambitions and lusts— but in that death is true life. A life of servitude to our king, a life of freedom, a life of joy, an life that is everlasting.

In our proclamation of death we proclaim true life in Jesus.