The Lord's Supper – Experiencing Ambivalence

By Matt Hennecke

Ambivalence is defined as "the state of having mixed feelings about something."  It's when we simultaneously have contradictory strong feelings about a situation or event.  Many people confuse ambivalence with indifference.  They're not the same.  To be indifferent is to show little or no concern about something.  To be ambivalent is to care deeply – to have strong feelings about two conflicting things.

Ambivalence is what parents feel when their child climbs aboard a bus for their first day of public school.  They feel both happiness as their child embarks on a journey of learning and education but sadness that those precious "toddler" days have ended.  It's what parents feel when their daughter is joined to another in matrimony.  Joy at the blessed union, but sadness as their child enters a new chapter of life and transfers her greatest earthly affection to another.  It's what many of us feel when at a funeral of a faithful Christian.  Joy that the child of God has been freed from a life of pain and trials and welcomed into a much-deserved reward, but anguish to be left behind to carry on without their wisdom and insight.

Indeed, all who have lost faithful loved ones – faithful husbands – faithful wives – faithful parents – simultaneously feel both sadness and joy.  Heartache at the loss of the loved one, but bliss that their loved one now lives with God in eternity.

Paul expressed ambivalence in Philippians 1: 21-24 when he wrote: "For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.  If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell.  I am hard pressed between the two.  My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.  But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account."

Even Jesus felt the tug of two opposing feelings as he prayed in the Garden.  Note his mixed feelings – the conflict between desire and duty – expressed in Matt. 26:36-39: "Then Jesus went...to a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, 'Sit here while I go over there and pray.'  He took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee and became anguished and distressed.  Then he said to them, 'My soul is deeply grieved, even to the point of death.  Remain here and stay awake with me.'  Going a little farther, he threw himself down with his face to the ground and prayed, 'My Father, if possible, let this cup pass from me! Yet not what I will, but what you will.'"  Ambivalence often manifests itself in the mixed emotions we feel when our duty and our desire are at odds with one another.

Whenever I partake of the Lord's Supper, I feel ambivalence – two strong, mixed feelings: I feel great sadness and great joy.  I feel sadness because of the evil men who nailed the Son of God to the cross and because my sins contributed to that necessity.  I also rejoice, for it was Jesus' amazing, sacrificial act of love – his horrible death on the cross – that made salvation not only available to those vile men who nailed him there, but to me as well.

Think about it: whenever we partake of the Lord's Supper, we participate in a sorrowful celebration – a time of both heartache and happiness.  As we partake, we are simultaneously reminded of the horror and the hope of the cross.

Our Worship Service

By Arter Gary

It seems our worship services have become routine to many of us. Some seem to just be going through the motions in many of our activities. Some leave our services no better than when they came. 

Some members do not know what God expects of them when they assemble with the saints.  If we do not follow the scriptures and worship God in spirit and truth, we miss the whole concept of our worship services, John 4:24.  From the view of some, our services are boring. For others the services have become unbearable as they have quit attending.  Then you have those who say, “I didn’t get one thing out of the worship service today.”  The question becomes, “What did you put into it?”  Then you have those who feel the high point of the week is being able to gather together with other saints to worship God each time there is a service of the church.  What are some things we can do to make our worship acceptable?

The first thing is to make the necessary preparation.  As with everything there must be some preparation.  A good night’s sleep would be the place to start.  Prepare lessons and meditate upon them before leaving for the services.  Arrive early.  Greet each other and have time to speak to the visitors.  Find a seat and start meditating and praying about our worship.  Then each will be blessed because we have properly prepared to worship.

Then we must participate in each act of worship in the manner God has commanded.

When we sing, we must look at the words of the song.  Each song that we sing has a message in it.  Our song service does two things – we are offering praise unto God, and we are teaching and admonishing one another, Eph. 5:19 and Col. 3:16; Heb. 2:12.  We must be an active participant in this.  Just sitting and listening is not sufficient if we are physically able to sing. 

When we pray, remember we are talking to our Father in Heaven.  We are either giving thanks to God for what He has done for us, or we are asking God for things we want or need.  The Christian life should be centered around prayer, 1 Thess. 5:17-18; John 14:14; Matt. 7:7-11 and 1 Pet. 3:12.

When we give, remember we are giving back to God a portion of the blessings that He has given to us.  Think about the material things God has blessed us with – jobs, homes, families and the portion of health that we enjoy, Eph. 4:28; 2 Thess. 3: 10; 1 Thess. 4:11-12; 1 Cor. 16:1-2.  Then give as we have prospered and with the right attitude .

When we partake of the Lords Supper, remember Christ died for us that we can have the forgiveness of our sins.  Remember when we eat the bread, Jesus offered His body as a sacrifice for us; and when we drink the fruit of the vine, remember Jesus shed His blood for our sins.  We are to remember His death and resurrection until He comes again, Matt. 26:26-29; Acts 2:42; Acts 20:7.

When we are studying the word of God, remember God gives us instructions on how to live in this world acceptably to Him, John 7:16.  We should take every opportunity to study and meditate upon His word.  In our worship service we should follow along in our Bible to make certain the teacher or preacher is teaching the Word as God would have it taught, Acts 17:11.  Then make application to our lives, Rom. 1:16; Acts 2:42; 1 Thess. 2:13;  2 Tim. 3:16-17; 1 Pet 3:15.

Our worship must be offered in Spirit and Truth, John 4:24.