THE SERVICE OF GOD AND THE LORD'S SUPPER (1)
[p. 342] THE SERVICE OF GOD AND THE LORD’S SUPPER (1)
1 Corinthians 11: 17 - 34; 1 Corinthians 12: 1 - 12
JT I was thinking of the Lord’s supper and the relation in which it stands to the Holy Spirit. It will be observed that the introduction of the Lord’s supper here is accompanied by the question of headship in the early part of the chapter, and then the question of the Spirit in chapter 12. These two thoughts should therefore occupy us a little, especially the twelfth chapter; that is to say, the relation of the Spirit in the celebration of the Lord’s supper and what part He has in it. In the first place, however, as we have remarked, the idea of headship is seen in chapter 11, beginning with the word, “I wish you to know that the Christ is the head of every man, but woman’s head is the man, and the Christ’s head God”. The question of the covering of the head is thus treated in the early part of chapter 11 prior to the introduction of the Lord’s supper. It is as if the dress of sisters (brothers and sisters, but especially sisters) is in mind, and that there should be seemliness in such. There should be deference to the man, and the man to Christ, and Christ to God; so it is the order of these things that is seen in the first part of the chapter, then the Lord’s supper following, and then the Spirit in chapter 12. It is thought that we may perhaps look at this part of the subject now, and, in the evening, some sections from the second epistle.
JFG Is it important that this matter of the covering and the principle of headship should be understood by us? Is it suggested here in view of taking the Supper?
JT Yes, quite. That is the setting of it. Then the Spirit coming in all through, to give power to the celebration of the Lord’s supper, because it leads to the whole service of God.
JPH Would you say a word to distinguish the matter of covering in verse 5 from the authority on her head in verse 10? The brethren would be glad of help about that.
JT Verse 5 is, “Every woman praying or prophesying with her head uncovered puts her own head to shame; for it is one and the same as a shaved woman”; and verse 10 says, “Therefore ought the woman to have authority”; that is, the word is “authority”, “on her head, on account of the angels”. It shows that the presence of angels is in mind in view of all this because they are ministering servants sent out for ministry on account of us, as heirs of salvation, and clearly they have a part in the service that we have now in mind.
JPH Is it, or is it not, the same kind of covering that is referred to in each verse, or is the covering in verse 5 more complete than in verse 10?
JT In verse 10 what is alluded to is authority, power in the sense of authority. That is to say there is the recognition that there is one above the woman, there is a power or authority above her; whereas in praying and prophesying it is to show respect for order. It is a question of what is seemly in woman’s clothing, and especially her head covering. The same idea is attached to the man as to his head being uncovered, but the stress, undoubtedly, is on the sisters, or women rather. The man and woman are the principal theme really in the mind of the Spirit in this part of the chapter.
Rem So that in the assembly the angels see God’s order in creation fully recovered.
JT Just so. God’s order in creation.
Ques I was thinking of the relative place of the man and the woman, and how it is so much denied in the world. Is it an object lesson for the angels [p. 344] to see that fully recognised, in those who form the assembly?
JT Quite so. The assembly is really the greatest family, and it is therefore of supreme importance that there should be no disorder or irregularity in the dress of our sisters, and of the brothers too, especially in the assembly, because that is the point. It comes into the great matter of the Lord’s supper, which we have from verse 17 onwards.
JT-r Would you say a little further what you have in mind as to the headship of Christ at the Supper?
JT There is the divine order beginning with God Himself, and then descending to Christ and then to the man and then to the woman; it is all a question of order. It has often been remarked that the order of creation is in mind. It is a question of what God would bring into it, and how the assembly has part in all that, and how it reflects the mind of God and the order that He will have in His service. It may seem trivial to some minds, but it is remarkable the place that headship has here in this chapter. Then we have the place the Spirit has following on the introduction of the Lord’s supper, and power is in mind. It may be mere religious order and practice, but the point is that in the presence of the Spirit there is power.
WC Had you in mind that the two passages would run parallel? What is actually done in connection with the remembrance of the Lord, and then the Spirit as the power in relation to it?
JT I would say that.
JP Is the literal covering referred to a token of the spirit of subjection that the Lord desires to see in His saints in view of the Supper?
JT Quite so. It might be well read with Ephesians 5, only this passage in Corinthians is the [p. 345] one that is devoted specially to the order of the Lord’s supper.
Ques Do you mean that those in the Corinthian position would be governed by the light of what comes out in Ephesians, that the assembly is subjected to the Christ?
JT That is what I would say. As I said, it may be trivial to some minds, but God is pleased to give considerable space to it, and it should be observed.
FJF Would there be any suggestion of the Spirit, as typified by Eliezer, preparing the woman for the meeting of Isaac? I was thinking of the Lord coming in at the Supper and the Spirit having everything in order. The woman, as Rebecca, is fitted for the meeting.
JT Just so. So that in Genesis 24, Isaac observes the camels, which would mean the power by which the saints are carried. Then another thing is the idea of remembrance which is in the Lord’s mind. It is evidently the first thought in view of the service of God. It is not a question of ministry or preaching or teaching, but the order of the Supper. It refers to the Lord’s own affections and His desires to be remembered. This do for the calling of Me to mind, He says, for that is the force of the words He uses.
Rem And that is said in relation to both the emblems.
JT Just so. “In like manner also the cup”; it is only one cup. A long time ago we used to have several cups, but the Lord has helped us to reduce the idea to the primary institution; that is, one bread and one cup.
JT-r Would these thoughts you are dwelling on help us as to the order of procedure at the Supper? I wondered if you had anything in mind [p. 346] as to addressing the Lord, and how and when the Spirit might come in.
JT The first thing to note is that it is for the Lord Himself. It is not God’s supper nor the Spirit’s supper; it is the Lord’s supper. If the Spirit comes in, it is to augment what is in the Lord’s mind, because it is a question of what is in His mind and what the saints are to Him. It is His assembly.
Ques So that what is for the Lord is rendered to Him in spiritual power?
JT Quite so. Spiritual power is the great feature in the service of God. It is not mere ritualism; it is spiritual power, but nevertheless there is order. The order of the service is not given in chapter 10, where the cup is mentioned first, but the order is according to this chapter, the bread and the cup. It says, “The Lord Jesus, in the night in which he was delivered up, took bread, and having given thanks broke it, and said, This is my body, which is for you: this do in remembrance of me”. So that I would like to get clear what our brother has in his mind as to the order, for the sake of all of us.
JT-r I am only feeling the need of help. If the Spirit is with us, as we so blessedly know, could we enquire what part He takes?
JT Well, it is what we do first, for the saints begin the service. It is not the Spirit, but the saints. The brethren come together to break bread on the first day of the week, that is what is in mind as coming together, and, of course, we should do it. It is an act that is well known and it should be done, and done immediately.
PL And as gathered in body feelings would that furnish the Spirit scope in His augmenting service?
JT Quite so. So that the sisters and brothers would fall into line, as it were, for we are all on the same level in the Lord’s supper. The sisters are to learn in silence, of course, in the assembly, but they [p. 347] are priests as well as the brothers. While the brothers have to take the lead, the sisters are priests in the same way as the brothers, and therefore should be in line. Let us see to ourselves that we act in a seemly and a holy way, in all that is done.
JP Are the emblems to be to our minds as a source of power in our souls for the concentration of our thoughts and affections upon the Lord Himself as calling Him to mind?
JT Quite so. We could not have the Lord’s supper without the emblems. We do have a service at sea occasionally, but we leave the emblems out. It is not properly the Lord’s supper, although there may be help in it. We could not have the Lord’s supper without the saints in a locality and without the emblems.
EBMcC Do you find it joyous to address a few words to the Spirit before speaking to the Lord on the Lord’s day morning, because of His great work in bringing forward the assembly?
JT Well, it is Christ’s assembly, I do not see that we should be specially concerned about saying a few words to the Spirit, because it is a question of the assembly, and the service of God being worked out in the assembly. Of course, it might be quite right if we could say a few words which would be helpful to the saints, but I do not know that I have ever known it to be the case. I think the thing is to think first of all of the Lord. It says, “The first day of the week, we being assembled to break bread”, Acts 20: 7. They came together; it was their action; it was to be done by them.
PAF Do we not proceed as giving place to the Spirit as power with us, yet concentrating on the Lord?
JT I think the saints as come together are to be first thought of, because it is for them. They came together at Corinth, but the order was not [p. 348] right, and the apostle could not praise them for what they were doing. He says, “It is not to eat the Lord’s supper”, meaning that it should be; but it was not, because of their conduct. Their conduct was not right.
Ques Is the statement in Acts 20 the normal thing, “We being assembled to break bread”?
JT Quite so. “We being assembled”.
FRH Could that be said of those at Corinth?
JT It could not be at this time, because the apostle says, in verse 17, “But in prescribing to you on this which I now enter on, I do not praise, namely, that ye come together, not for the better, but for the worse”. So that it could not be said of the Corinthians, and that is why the apostle wrote as he did.
Ques But did he not reckon that what he wrote to them would have the adjusting effect desired?
JT I think it did have the desired effect.
Rem He is not urging them not to continue; he is recognising the assembly position there and adjusting them to bring them into it rightly.
JT He says, “When ye come together in assembly”; that is the first time you get that phrase mentioned.
Ques Would the clothing that the servant gave to Rebecca have any bearing on what you are saying in regard of the covering on the sisters? “And the servant brought forth silver articles, and gold articles, and clothing, and he gave them to Rebecca; and he gave to her brother, and to her mother, precious things”, Genesis 24: 53.
JT Yes, I would say that. He is a type of the Spirit, and what he did is to be regarded in that light. That, of course, belongs to the next part of our subject and we shall come to chapter 12 presently. Chapter 11 is the order of things that happen actually at the Lord’s [p. 349] supper.
GCG In regard to the matter of what is initial, is it not a matter of appropriating one another in love: “We, being many, are one loaf”. We take account of one another primarily.
JT Just so, appropriating one another. In some countries they might kiss each other, but we here in England just shake hands with each other when we come together. But then we have the same kind of feelings, we think of each other, and the Lord is thinking of us too. So that if we have fifty saints in the meeting, you look around, and the question is, are they all here or are there some absent? You are glad if they are all present. So the presence of the saints is a prime thought, and the Lord knows that. It is a question of the saints first.
Rem So that the Lord’s supper is actually celebrated in an atmosphere of love amongst ourselves.
JT Quite so. There is a suitable atmosphere and suitable conditions too, because it says in verse 28 of our chapter, “But let a man prove himself, and thus eat of the bread, and drink of the cup. For the eater and drinker eats and drinks judgment to himself, not distinguishing the body. On this account many among you are weak and infirm, and a good many are fallen asleep. But if we judged ourselves, so were we not judged. But being judged, we are disciplined of the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world”. So that what we are as come together in assembly, on the first day of the week, is of prime importance, and it involves our dress, and our manner, and our appearance, and our attitude in every respect. It must all be according to the Lord’s mind.
Ques And our inter-relations with one another?
JT Just so. As our brother says, it is a question of our appropriating one another.
JT-r Would you say a further word about coming together in assembly, [p. 350] please?
JT Well, it is not as you would come together on a railway station, for example. There might be just the same number of people, but you are not there in order; you are not there in relation to Christ, and in relation to one another according to what we are as in the Lord’s mind. There is a certain order attached to it, and therefore the importance of all that I have said as to our dress, and our attitude, and demeanour, and everything that is done. There is a certain demeanour, a certain order that the Lord approves, and we are thankful to be in it. The Spirit is then ready to take part, for of course He will assist us and support us in the service. The Spirit is here for that purpose, but I do not see that there is any great point in speaking to the Spirit at first, because His time will come. It is with the Lord we are dealing first, and with one another.
Ques Were you saying just now that if conditions are right we should normally break bread immediately?
JT I would say that. It is what we have come to do. Time was when it was different. In the past many things were said and done before the bread was broken, and sometimes the box would be put down on a chair, or something, instead of on the table. There was not proper order maintained; but now there is, for God has helped us on those lines.
EuR Do your remarks as to speaking to the Lord rather than to the Spirit in relation to the loaf apply equally in giving thanks for the cup?
JT They would. A hymn is quite in order, and usually comes first when we come together. We greet the Lord, and we greet one another too, happily and freely taking part in it together.
Ques Do the emblems speak peculiarly of His love in giving Himself in death?
JT Quite so. “This is my body”, He says, “which is for you”. It is to be appropriated.
Rem The words, “in remembrance of me”, in relation to both the emblems make the matter a very affecting one for our hearts, because it is so personal.
JT Yes.
FJF Is it the same as in Jude, “a love feast”?
JT Well, I suppose so! I prefer to say “the Lord’s supper”.
EBMcC We address the Lord in a hymn and then we speak to Him. We do not speak to the Spirit.
JT No, I would speak to the Lord first. You said earlier that you enjoyed the thought of speaking a few words to the Spirit? Did I understand you?
EBMcC That was after the hymn, of course.
Rem It has been suggested that in view of the fact that the Spirit has served us in locating the place where the Supper is held, “a large upper room furnished”, it would be in order to thank Him briefly in relation to that, and that there is warrant for this speaking to Him near the beginning of the meeting, in Luke 22.
JT Perhaps it would be well to read the passage from Luke 22, so that we can see what is in mind. Matthew and Mark and Luke all have some reference to the Lord’s supper; John has not; but the one that is in mind now is Luke 22.
JFG What our brother is referring to is the man with the guest-chamber. It says. “And he said to them, Behold, as ye enter into the city a man will meet you, carrying an earthen pitcher of water; follow him into the house where he goes in; and ye shall say to the master of the house, The Teacher says to thee, Where is the guest-chamber where I may eat the passover with my disciples? And he will shew you a large upper room furnished: there [p. 352] make ready. And having gone they found it as he had said to them; and they prepared the passover”.
JT We are dealing with the passover there, of course, but then the Lord’s supper comes in in the next section in the same chapter.
Ques Presumably it was in that room that the Lord’s supper was held?
JT I would say that too. But then, what do you mean further about that?
Rem The Spirit has served us as master of the house as He served the disciples here. He showed them where it was, “a large upper room furnished”, and it has been suggested that that is warrant for our thanking Him briefly, you might say, in passing.
JT Well, but I think the order that we proceed with is, that it is just an ordinary room, an ordinary meeting place. The spiritual side has to come in immediately, but it is what we do first. We come together to break bread. That is the first thing to be done. What part the Spirit will have would remain to be seen, but we come together to break bread. That is what we do. We have the order, we have chairs, we have a table, and so forth, but there is nothing more than that at the outset. It is only when the Lord takes His place, or when we begin to speak to the Lord, that we come to the spiritual side. The Lord is assumed really, in His Supper, not to be in heaven, but in the sphere of testimony. That is where He is, and He comes to us. He comes to many places, thousands of places, all over the earth. It is not a question of the Lord in heaven, but as in the sphere of testimony, and He says, ‘This do for the calling of Me to mind’. There is thus a testimony in it, and we begin with that. But then, as I have said, we have to proceed to do things, and then we shall find the power of the Spirit coming [p. 353] in to aid us in what we are doing, so that we do it properly and do it with grace and power.
Ques Is it important in that way that we do not add to the order as given in Corinthians? I was thinking of how in the history of the assembly much has been built around the Supper, in what the systems have made of it, that has been false.
JT I think there has been a lot out of order, but God has helped us to correct that, so that I believe we have come back to the order of it according to this chapter.
Ques If we were all, in every place, governed by what Paul says in 1 Corinthians 11, would it not greatly simplify matters and make for more directness?
JT Yes, it is a remarkable thing that Paul does say so much. He is the one that had the order of the assembly given to him. John does not touch it at all; Matthew, Mark and Luke do touch it, but Paul is the one from whom we are to take instructions to begin with.
Ques Is it noteworthy in Paul that he gives the truth of the feast of unleavened bread connected with the passover in chapter 5, and says no more about it in chapter 11, as though to distinguish clearly between the two in his mind, and in ours?
JT Very good, I would say that fully.
JT-r Would you also add a word as to the Spirit coming to our aid.
JT Well. He does. The Lord says, “I will beg the Father, and he will give you another Comforter, that he may be with you for ever”. He is here to help us in all things, but, above all, in the service of God on the first day of the week. He gives effect to everything, so that there is meaning to it.
EuR And your thought is that in giving thanks for both the loaf and the cup, our address would be to the Lord Himself.
[p. 354] JT Exactly.
Rem And He would be in our minds, too, in a particular way.
JT Quite so.
EBMcC Has it not been said that we are free to go to the Spirit as we feel the Spirit is prompting us?
JT We are ready to go to Him at any time, for that matter, but if we feel He is prompting us, well then there is something very distinctive. But I would say the first thing in order is the saints themselves, their attitude and what we think of each other, and what we are to each other. There is love amongst us, and the Lord comes in regard of that. He comes to us, but He comes in relation to His own supper too; first the bread and then the cup.
Ques And would you say He comes in relation to the local assembly, because we are on assembly ground when we are gathered?
JT Just so, it is in relation to the local assembly.
PL “He himself stood in their midst”, Luke 24: 36.
JT Yes, quite so.
Rem The Spirit would not urge us to do anything out of order.
JT Of course not.
WC Where would the type of Numbers 21 come in, if at all, in a practical way at the Lord’s supper? “Then Israel sang this song, Rise up, well! sing unto it”, Numbers 21: 17.
JT That is to the Spirit; you mean singing to the Spirit? I do not think that is a matter of the Lord’s supper, at all.
WC I said, ‘if at all’. If it does come, where would it come in?
JT I should not like to say, because it is a question of the Lord. It is not a question of the [p. 355] Spirit, nor of the Father even. It is the Lord Himself; it is the Lord’s supper, ‘This do for the calling of Me to mind’, definitely not the Spirit, but the Lord.
Ques Would you say that the Lord would fully reveal Himself in the giving thanks for the loaf, or would it involve the complete thought of the breaking of bread?
JT It is one Supper, with a dual character. The first is the bread, of course, and the second feature is the cup.
Ques Have you not said, helpfully, that the cup augments what has already come to us in the remembrance of the Lord in the loaf?
JT Well, it is one Supper. That is all, just one Supper, but in two parts.
Ques Would you amplify a little what is in your mind as to the Lord coming in from the sphere of testimony?
JT That is what is in mind. It is the scene where He suffered, and although we do not say He comes literally, yet He does come, according to the word, “I am coming to you”, John 14: 18. We are made to feel that He comes. It is a thing you would expect Him to do at the time of the celebration of His Supper, because it is a question of the remembrance of Himself. You would expect Him to do it.
Ques Can we regard the Lord as near to us in that way?
JT Well. He comes to us, and when He comes to us He is near to us. He is in the sphere of testimony; that is the idea of it.
Ques May I ask in regard of the earlier part of Luke 24. The Lord evidently came there, although it does not say that He came, but that He stood in their midst. He had already served the two going to Emmaus, and Peter, so that it seems as though [p. 356] He had previous contact with those who were gathered. Does that have some bearing on the local position?
JT Well, they went to Emmaus, of course, and He was constrained by them to go in. They, of course, would prepare, but then He took the bread and vanished from them.
Rem I was thinking of the distinction you are making between the Lord coming from the testimonial position, and not exactly from heaven.
JT Well, I think it is important to see that the service of God must be in relation to the testimonial position. It begins with it, but, of course, we go on to the Father. What we are dealing with now, however, is the Lord’s supper and the relation of the Spirit to it, as seen in chapter 12.
Ques Do you mean, as to the testimonial position, that from that point of view the Lord is always here?
JT According to Matthew, He is always here. “Lo, I am with you alway”, He says. It does not say in Matthew that He went up to heaven, and that is the assembly gospel too.
Ques Could we have what is in your mind as to the way in which chapter 12 flows out of this?
JT Apparently the Lord, or the apostle, had it in mind, because of the word ‘but’. “But concerning spiritual manifestations, brethren, I do not wish you to be ignorant. Ye know that when ye were of the nations ye were led away to dumb idols, in whatever way ye might be led. I give you therefore to know that no one, speaking in the power of the Spirit of God, says, Curse on Jesus; and no [p. 357] one can say, Lord Jesus, unless in the power of the Holy Spirit”. I think that is the normal connection with the Lord’s supper, in chapter 12. We have the two expressions, “Lord Jesus”, and then “Curse on Jesus”, which the devil would use. It says. “No one can say, Lord Jesus, unless in the power of the Holy Spirit”, and you feel that that is what you might expect at the Lord’s supper. It is not a question of God, or the Spirit, but the Lord Himself, and I think these verses in the beginning of chapter 12 connect with the Lord’s supper.
Ques Would he have in mind what he had already said, “That the Lord Jesus, in the night in which he was delivered up ...” Would he expect that the affectionate way in which he mentions that term would be continued in thanksgiving?
JT Just so, I think it is just beautiful to see it there. It is ornamental, so to speak.
EBMcC Where the apostle says, “I received from the Lord”, would that be authoritative?
JT It would be. He is impressing on the Corinthians that he did receive it directly from the Lord, and that it was important for them to abide by it, and pursue the course that is indicated.
Ques Is there some suggestion that he did not get it from the apostles?
JT I would think so. I think that is just the suggestion. Although the apostles had it, for we are told that they broke bread in the house, yet Paul greatly enlarged on it.
Ques I was thinking it might elucidate for us the way in which the Supper is removed from the household setting at the beginning of Acts, and placed in the assembly by Paul’s ministry. Would his having received it direct from the Lord give the authority for what was done?
JT It did. It ought to affect us all, and particularly where there is a desire to break bread. Of course, many young people are coming into the fellowship now, and it is a great matter that they should have the right thought as to it, and all that has to be done, because it is the one thing that is marked by ceremony, you might say, I use the word [p. 358] ceremony, for there are certain ceremonial things to be done. At the same time it is a question of reverence.
JT-r Why do you think the Lord felt the night of the delivering up so plainly or feelingly?
JT Well, the expression is very touching, “the night in which he was delivered up”, the night He was betrayed.
PL Does He look to the saints to reverse, in that sense, in love, the act of hatred?
JT Just so.
Ques He says in the Psalms, so touchingly, “It is not an enemy that hath reproached me then could I have borne it”, Psalm 55: 12. Does that strengthen, in spiritual power in our souls, the desire to be faithful in the time of His absence?
JT Just so, and it is especially important that young people should know what to do. They see the elder brethren and these ought to be very cautious so that they do not set a bad example. The elder brethren should lead in everything, and when the young come in they will know what to do. It promotes reverence.
HPW So that you think loyalty with the young people is a very great thing, and greatly appreciated by the Lord.
JT Very good. It is a great thing to keep them in loyalty to the Lord, because it is His own Supper; it is what He has instituted Himself in relation to Himself.
HPW I was thinking that the Spirit helps us in that. If we desire to be loyal to Christ, do you not think the Spirit would help us immensely?
JT He would indeed.
HPW And bring about sensitiveness of soul, as to matters such as the covering of the head, and all those things you spoke of earlier. The Spirit [p. 359] would help us in that, would He not, so that we should be pleasing to the Lord.
JT I am sure it preserves our families too. Of course, that is a secondary thought, but it is a very important thought, that the families of the saints should be preserved. The Lord’s supper is where they should learn, and get their understanding as to how to do things in the presence of God. So many young people have been lost to us, because they have not been brought up in the truth of the Lord’s supper.
AEM-o Would you normally refer to the Lord’s sufferings at the Supper?
JT I would, but I should refer to them very lightly, I do not think it is a matter to be enlarged on because it is a question of the Lord Himself, and His own. It says that the twelve were with Him; everything is to be authoritative because the twelve were there and saw what He did.
CFI Is it your thought here that what takes place at the beginning of chapter 12 is to be in the power of the Spirit, but in addition to that does the Holy Spirit have some place objectively in the service?
JT I would think so. The idea of the Spirit being presented objectively is distinctly in the book of Acts. He says to Peter, for instance, “I have sent them”, and so forth; and then again, “Separate me now Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them”. So that the Spirit is there actively and in authority.
Ques You mean, in what flows out of the Supper subsequently?
JT Just so.
JPH Would you be free to say at what stage in the service on Lord’s day morning you would be free to speak to the Spirit directly, briefly and [p. 360] spontaneously?
JT Well. He is the Spirit of adoption, so it would come in particularly in the second part of the service, which is the Father’s part.
PL Could He be addressed also as the Father’s Spirit?
JT I think so. He is said to be that.
Ques Do I gather that your concern is that what flows out of the Supper subsequently is contingent upon the place the Lord Jesus has with us at the time?
JT It is a question of the place the saints have to begin with, or the assembly; because that is the idea, the matter happens in the assembly. The Lord says He will praise the Father in it too; He praises the Father in it. It is thus quite clear that we have to begin on those lines. The place the Lord has in our hearts, of course, will enhance what we do and say, because we are thinking of Him as He is thinking of us, ‘This do for the calling of Me to mind’, He says, both in regard of the bread and in regard of the cup.
JT-r You referred just now to the Spirit objectively. Would that lead to a spirit of worship to Him?
JT Well, it would. The Spirit is God Himself, so that He is to be worshipped, of course. Anyone who denied that would deny the truth. The word is, “The name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”. They are all there on that platform, but it is the same name, one name.
JT-r We are all desiring a little help on this great thought, feeling, as we blessedly do, the presence of the Holy Spirit in our coming together to break bread, but one would desire to reach a more conscious impression of how He moves and serves on that occasion.
JT Well, what has been said over and over again is true, that it is not the Spirit’s supper, nor the Father’s; it is the Lord’s supper. But then the Spirit and the Lord Himself would lead to the Father. He would lead to the Father, and the Spirit would support that too.
WC In view of the type in Genesis 24, and the great service of the Spirit in relation to securing the assembly for Christ, would there not be something due to Him in that setting as well as subsequently in the service?
JT I think so. I think we ought to read Genesis 24 more than we do, because it leads up to what we are speaking about. The Spirit typically there takes a subordinate place; that is the thing. He is Abraham’s eldest servant, of course, but still he is a servant; I mean to say, he takes a subordinate place at that time. He had the assembly in mind; in fact, it says he wondered at Rebecca.
ECM Does the title, Lord Spirit, link with the Lord’s supper?
JT We shall come to that in the next meeting; for that is in the second epistle. He is called “the Lord the Spirit”, there.
JP In verse 26 it says, “For as often as ye shall eat this bread, and drink the cup, ye announce the death of the Lord, until he come”. Is that the testimonial position, and what coming would you say it is? Is it the manifestation of the Lord?
JT It is not exactly His coming for us, but His public coming. The Lord’s coming is a well-known term in Scripture, and it is His public coming, “Until he come” means His public coming.
Ques You mean, it is the appearing, as we usually term it, and not the rapture so much?
JT Yes, the appearing is the word; “all who love his appearing”. It says also that He “shall appear to those that look for him the second time without sin for salvation”, Hebrews [p. 362] 9: 28.
FRH Would the spiritual manifestations be more or less private? You spoke, in connection with the Lord’s coming, of what is public?
JT More or less private, yes. The part we shall have tomorrow (God willing) will be a private matter, but still the order of the assembly, or whatever is ministered in the Spirit, is a testimony. There is a testimony there, so that a person who is sitting behind, as we say, can see it, and it is intended for them to see it. The order of the assembly is a wonderful thing.
FJF So it is sacramental as well as thanksgiving?
JT Just so; sacramental.
Ques Does drinking into one Spirit have a place in the Supper? “We ... have all been given to drink of one Spirit”.
JT That is just to bring about unity. It is the idea of all drinking into the same thing. The idea is to promote unity. It is one Spirit, as we sometimes sing:-
‘One Spirit, glorious Lord!
O blessed, wondrous word!
What heav’nly light, what power divine,
Doth that sweet word afford!’ (198:1)
Ques Does the cup symbolise that?
JT Just so. It certainly does. “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of the Christ?”
EuR “Baptised into one body”, too. Is there a reference in that to our having partaken of the loaf?
JT “Baptised into one body”. That would be the action of the Spirit in putting us into the body. That is what is in mind there; He puts us into the body.
[p. 363] Ques Do I understand that whilst all these things have their part, what is primarily before us is the remembrance of the Lord Jesus at the Supper, and all that flows out subsequently really flows out of the manifestation of Himself in love and power?
JT Very good, I think it is remarkable that the Supper should be enclosed within these two great subjects, headship and the Spirit of God. That is the enclosure, and what it encloses is the Lord’s supper.
KH You referred to the Spirit of adoption. Why is it a spirit of adoption in Romans 8? Is it characteristic?
JT That is right. It is “a spirit of adoption”. That is, it is characteristic.