1 Corinthians 11: 23-32 (Amp. C) by Rev. Dr. Julius Omomola. A Ministration delivered at the MORNING WORSHIP SERVICE held on Sunday, March 26, 2023 New Heritage Baptist Church, Fola Agoro, Shomolu, Lagos

1 Corinthians 11: 23-32 (Amp. C)
23 I have handed down to you what came to me by direct revelation from the Lord himself. The same night in which he was handed over, he took bread
24 and gave thanks. Then he distributed it to the disciples and said, “Take it and eat your fill. It is my body, which is given for you. Do this to remember me.”
25 He did the same with the cup of wine after supper and said, “This cup seals the new covenant with my blood. Drink it—and whenever you drink this, do it to remember me.”
26 Whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are retelling the story, proclaiming our Lord’s death until he comes.
27 For this reason, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in the wrong spirit will be guilty of dishonoring the body and blood of the Lord.
28 So let each individual first evaluate his own attitude and only then eat the bread and drink the cup.
29 For continually eating and drinking with a wrong spirit will bring judgment upon yourself by not recognizing the body.
30 This insensitivity is why many of you are weak, chronically ill, and some even dying.
31 If you do not sit in judgment of others, you will avoid judgment yourself.
32 But when we are judged, it is the Lord’s training so that we will not be condemned along with the world.

I will be speaking on A TIME FOR CHECK-UP

This is what is expected as a guideline to do a personal examination and checking of our lives if we are not crucifying Jesus a second time. Participation of the Holy Communion is a time to appreciate Jesus sacrifice.

For those who are married, it is a call to examine our marital life and for the unmarried, it is a call to examine ourselves if we are ready for marriage.

How many of us take time to check up on our relationship with the Lord, the Master Jesus Christ?

How many married ones do a regular check-up if we are worthy of participation in the Holy Communion?

How many unmarried persons take time to ponder if they are not breaking faith or not?

We shall look at three things to do while we examine/check up ourselves.

1. Take Time to PONDER –
As you ponder, you need to ask what marriage is.

Is marriage a contract or a Covenant?

Malachi 2: 14
Mal.2.14 – Yet you say, “For what reason?” Because the LORD has been witness Between you and the wife of your youth, With whom you have dealt treacherously; Yet she is your companion And your wife by covenant.

Once you say “I do”, you are joined together for life.

Are you in a marriage or a mile age relationship?

For some, marriage has become manage

Are you looking for a change of status or a change of sense?
Genesis 2: 24
Gen.2.24 – Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.

In this passage, Adam had a change of sense. Before that time, he was all by himself. Some go into marriage and are still all by themselves with no change of sense.

Some will do better as singles or make themselves eunuchs instead of getting married in order not to go to hell.

Matthew 19: 12
Matt.19.12 – For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother’s womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s sake. He who is able to accept it, let him accept it.”

Are you looking for a perfect partner or someone who is God-fearing in marriage?

Look for a God-fearing partner, not otherwise. Rather than look for handsome face, look for a tender heart.

In marriage, is your spouse a dear or a danger?

Let’s ponder on this!

Are you looking for someone to be a blend with you or someone to bend to be like you?

Marriages are crashing because you want your spouse to be like you.

Identify your differences.
Celebrate your uniqueness.

As you come into marriage, will you be a competitor or a consumer or a contributor?

Genesis 2: 18
Gen.2.18 – And the LORD God said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.”

2. Take Time to PREPARE –
i. Prepare Your Heart –
Move from a self-centred living to other centred. Move from being alone to accommodating another person.

Marriage is 2 forgivers coming together to become 1. If you can’t forgive, please don’t marry.

Marriage is a ministry of offense, so you must be the Permanent Secretary in the Forgiveness Department with a PhD in Understanding, MSc in Loving and BSc in Tolerance.

You must be willing to adjust from being alone to living together with your spouse.

ii. Prepare Your Hand –
What are you doing with your hands to provide for your family?

Not with sweet talks.
He that is married and can’t feed his house is worse than an infidel. 1 Tim.5:8
Handsome face without a hand to provide is a nonsense handsome face.

Ecclesiastes 9: 10
Eccl.9.10 – Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.

You must find something to do, even when you have no job.

3. Take Time to be POSITIONED –
Be properly positioned for marriage and rightly positioned in marriage.

To be properly positioned:

i. You must Stand Properly –

Ephesians 6: 13
Eph.6.13 – Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

My marriage must stand where others are sinking and stumbling.

ii. You must Stand out –
You must Stand out from the rot which appears to be the commonplace in marriage.
Let your marriage stand out. Stand out from the pack, from the rot.

Will your marriage be a standard?

Know that everyone is unique.
Identify your spouse’s weakness
Celebrate each other’s uniqueness.

Socrates says “An unexamined life is not worth living”.

So also we could say, an unexamined marriage is not worth engaging.

As you come to the table to participate in the Holy Communion, examine yourself.

Helen Lemmel Helen wrote a hymn in 1922 titled “Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus”.

Look fully in the eyes of Jesus and let everything holding you back go away.

SONG:
O soul are you weary and troubled
No light in the darkness you see
There’s light for a look at the Saviour
And life more abundant and free

Turn your eyes upon Jesus Look full in his wonderful face And the things of earth will grow strangely dim In the light of his glory and grace