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YS STUDENT NEWSLETTER #335
March 31, 2008
Contents
1. Something for Your Heart
2. Surf Report
3. Forgettable Fact
4. Potent Quotables
5. Parting Shot
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO MAKE DISCIPLES?
Before Jesus left his disciples he said to them, "go and make disciples of all nations." It was a command for everyone who follows Jesus. But what does it mean?
In "Duplicate This!" you'll learn the foundations of discipleship and what it means to make a disciple, and you'll be equipped to walk with your friends as they learn what it looks like to follow Jesus.
Learn more about "Duplicate This!" here.
https://shop.youthspecialties.com/store/product.php?productid=581
Also available in your local Christian bookstore.
Find a Christian bookstore near you:
http://www.youthspecialties.com/store/dealers/
1. SOMETHING FOR YOUR HEART
WHAT DID JESUS MEAN WHEN HE COMMANDED US TO EAT HIS BODY AND DRINK HIS BLOOD? (ALL ABOUT COMMUNION)
It must have been an incredible sight to watch Jesus preach. John 6 details a real-life meeting between Jesus, the disciples, and 5,000 witnesses.
Can you imagine? They sat on a hill, Jesus at the bottom, the disciples sitting at his feet listening to every word out of this miracle healer's mouth. He was already gaining quite a reputation for being a man who could perform miracles over nature, and he even claimed to be able to forgive their sins.
The Bible doesn't describe the message. We don't know if Jesus was preaching about following God or about a husband treating a wife with respect. What we do know is that he was setting the stage for something great!
The message was about to end, and Jesus leaned over to Philip and said, "Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?" (John 6:5).
He knew what he was doing (verse 6). The Bible says he already had a plan. He was testing Philip to see what the disciples' response would be. I suppose you can infer that he was ready to really put their faith to the test.
Crowds of people were following, but did they really believe Jesus could perform a miracle this big--feeding 5,000 people? (Actually, in Jesus' time, 5,000 referred to the number of men only; there could have been double the amount if they counted women and children.)
Can you imagine Philip's face when Jesus asked him where to buy bread? To Philip, it probably seemed as if Jesus were commanding him to go and find the money, the restaurant, and the catering company to deliver the food; and surely the crowd was getting hungry.
I don't know if you've ever seen a crowd go into a feeding frenzy, but if they were anything like American crowds, Philip knew they were about to have a problem.
They didn't have the money to feed all those people. They didn't have the resources even if they had the money. There wasn't a place where 10,000 people could sit down and eat all at the same time. What was Philip to do?
You've probably read the story before. If not, check it out in John 6. Jesus took five loaves of bread and two fish and prayed to God to supply their need. The Bible records that the meal was so bountiful the disciples picked up the scraps and filled 12 baskets with the leftovers. It was a miracle over nature.
The next day, Jesus began to teach the disciples about bread that would keep you from going hungry (verses 32-59). He gave them a history lesson of the Old Testament Israelites in the desert and reminded them of God's provision in their hunger by miraculously placing manna in the desert every morning for them to eat.
Then he recalled the miracle just performed in front of their eyes, as if to say, "Hey, guys, if I can provide you with physical food, don't you think I can provide you with spiritual food?" He says in John 6:53, "I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood; you have no life in you."
He was making a point. You have physical hunger, but you also have spiritual hunger. If I can feed your physical body, don't worry--I'll take care of your spiritual body as well.
The New Testament is full of wonderful analogies of bread and water as sustenance for our bodies, as well as Jesus' provision and their meaning in our spiritual lives. Jesus even ends his three-year earthly relationships with his disciples by conjuring up an analogy of bread and wine as it relates to his body and blood.
WHY DID JESUS BREAK BREAD WITH THE DISCIPLES BEFORE HE WENT TO DIE?
Just like baptism, the other sacrament you can find in almost every church in the world is communion. It's the time when they pull out the silver offering plates full of broken crackers and grape juice--or whatever format your church uses.
Growing up, my pastor always used to tell us about how we are to remember Jesus by eating his body, represented by the bread, and drinking his blood, represented by the grape juice. And although I think remembering Jesus' death on the cross is vitally important, I don't think it's just Jesus' death that's cause for this ceremony.
Jesus took his disciples into an upper room to eat the last supper.
While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take and eat; this is my body." Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins." --MATTHEW 26:26-28
What if he wasn't trying to tell the disciples to remember the event of the crucifixion merely for the event itself? What if Jesus was actually trying to communicate that the spiritual sustenance was about to be poured out? He commanded the disciples to remember--but remember what?
WHY DO WE "DO COMMUNION" TODAY?
I think communion is one of those things we need to take a look at and ask ourselves if it's necessary to do it like we've always done it.
Imagine for a minute you were about to give someone the gift of eternal life, but you were going to have to face the most excruciating torture known to the world to this point in order to give it. If she accepted your gift, would you want her reflecting on the sacrifice, or the gift?
I think Jesus wanted us to use communion as a rallying cry, not as a memorial. He wanted us to remember his sacrifice, sure; but I think he smiles down on us when we approach his throne with a joyful attitude of thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving. Don't we have a holiday like that?
Isn't Thanksgiving the time when all our families gather around one common table of thanks? We make certain foods to remember the pilgrims and their voyage to America. We give thanks for all the blessings we've had during the year, and often those blessings include loud, funny stories. Sometimes they even help us recall embarrassing moments. We tell jokes. We have serious talks. We sit around and remember--remember for the sake of our family here in America.
I wonder if communion should be the Christian Thanksgiving feast. What if we all gathered around a table and took communion like we eat Thanksgiving dinner? We remember the good times, we recall the sacrifice, and we celebrate the fact that Jesus came to die so we could live. Wouldn't that be cool?
WHO CAN PARTICIPATE IN COMMUNION?
- Who are those free from sin?
- Who has received eternal life through Jesus?
- Who is set free from their old sinner selves and reconciled to a righteous God?
- Who has experienced God's grace?
- Who has accepted God's forgiveness?
- Who is living an abundant life because of Christ's death?
- Who is making disciples?
- Who is obeying Jesus' commands?
- Who really loves Jesus?
I suppose there's your answer.
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Taken from "Duplicate This!" by Andy Braner, copyright 2008, Youth Specialties/Zondervan. Used by permission. Order the book here.
https://shop.youthspecialties.com/store/product.php?productid=581
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2. SURF REPORT
~Famous Hoaxes Throughout History (just in time for April Fool's Day!)
http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/hoax/history/before_1700
~Find cool places to volunteer
http://www.coolworks.com/volunteer/
3. FORGETTABLE FACT
More redheads are born in Scotland than in any other part of the world.
4. POTENT QUOTABLES
"In the Kingdom of God, service is not a stepping-stone to nobility: it is nobility." ~T.W. Manson
"Few things are impossible to diligence and skill. Great works are performed, not by strength, but perseverance."
~Samuel Johnson
5. UH, THAT'S FUNNY?
A small boy swallowed some coins and was taken to a hospital. When his grandmother telephoned to ask how he was a nurse said, "No change yet."
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copyright 2008 :: Youth Specialties
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