The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Corinthians — Section 376

pl11;ce and intol!'rable_, are most ~trikingly so where all should be humbled and subdued. It 1s 1;1ot for us to thmk there how excellent we are, but how vile, and to admire the amazmg grace which rescue~ us from the dominion of sin. Instrad of despising others there, we should rather despise ourselves for our sins which crucified Christ, and we should feel, like Paul, that we are "the chief of sinners." It is utterly impossible for a proud heart to rightly show forth the death of him who was meek and lowly. It is preposterous and absurd to attempt it. II. SELFISHNESS. How can the. selfish )iave corumu'!li.on with the infinitely unselfish One! If we have a self-seekmg, graspmg, greedy spmt what part can we have "·ith him who" gave h~rnse_lff~r us"? How alien \o the spirit .of Christ is the spil'it of selfishness! If we sit 'IVlth 1t at the table of the Lord, we sit tn,ere as Judas did. III.. EsTRANG~ME::--T. Christ calls us ever to union, and most specially and pathetically at his table, where we eat of the one bread (eh. x. 17). To cherish a spirit of disunion is to run directly counter to one of his commands at the moment when we profess to observe another. And the spectacle of estrangement at the Lord's Supper must be one of utmost offensiveness in the Divine sight, as it is one of greatest scandal in the eyes of men. If we seek to be one with Christ, we must also seek to be one with the brethren. He is the Head; we are the members of his body. How utterly incongruous to be disunit,ed at that feast which specially sets forth our union with Christ and with one another! IV. HATRED. This in some form generally accompanies division. But where is the place for hatred at the feast of dying love? God is love, Christ is love, and we are-hatred. How can two walk together unless they are agreed? What reason our Saviour had to hate us! "He was despised and rejected of men," crucified hymen; and yet he loved men, and at his table his love is specially set forth. How can we there cherish our animosities, for whieh we have such little cause! "We know that we have pas~ed from death into life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth 11ot his brother abideth in de,ath" (1 John iii. 14). 'l'he Lord's Supper is a song of love; hatred at it is a terrible discord. V. GLUTTONY. Some of the Corintliians loved their meat more than they loved their brethren. They ate greedily, not even tarrying for others to arrive. A singular carnality for so spiritual a season. Men with the manners and unrestrained appetites of beasts are scarcely fit for the table of Christ. Sensuality and spirituality are at opposite poles. Those who abandon themselves to gratify the lower nature sacrifice the higher. "Man shall not live by bread alone." VI. DRUNKENNESS. It seems scarcely credible that any should have drunk to the excess of intoxication at the love-feast so intimately associated with the Eucharist; but it is to be feared that this was so. And there are degrees of iutoxication, so that the dancrer of imitating the Corinthians in this matter may not be so remote from some as the/'imagine. There is a great deal of semi•intoxication. And if this sin be not committed immediately before the Lord's table is approached, undue indulgence at all is surely a fatal hindrance to right ob~ervancc. No dmnl_rnrd shal! inheri~ th_e kingdom of heaven. And no drunkard, whilst be cleaves to his degradmg ho.bit, 1s entitled to a place at the Lord's table. VII. !RnEVEnENCE. There must have been vast irreverence in the Corinthians rebuked by Paul, or such abuses could never have obtained amongst them. '!'here may be as much irreverence in us, thongh we do not commit the same sins. Anyway, to approach the Lord's table irreve.rent.ly is to instantly demonstrate our unfitness. There we should be filled with godly fear, and our hearts should bo subdued to greatest devoutness anrl awe as we marvel over the justice of Jehovah, the amazing sacrifice of Christ, and the tender ministry of the Divine Spirit, whereby we who weM once afar off are brought nigh.-H. Vera. 23-26.-The sacred feast. Paul's description ie singularly beautiful. His information apparently came directly from Christ (Gal. i. 12). Additional importance attaches to the observance of the Lord's Supper, since an express revelation was ma4e to the great apostle of the Gentiles. The supper was for the Gentile world as well as the ,Jewi8h. Jts institution was associated with the preaching of the gospel throughout the world. • • oH. xr. 1-34.] THE FIRST EPISTLE TO THE CORINTHIANS. 381