A Look At The Lord’s Supper & Foot Washing

Name of Assembly: United Apostolic Church

Type of service: Bible Study

Date: November 29, 2022

Topic: “A Look At The Lord’s Supper & Foot Washing”

Scripture Text: Mat. 26:26-29; 1 Cor. 11:1-2, 23-24; John 13:1-10; 1 Timothy 5:9-10 

“26 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. 27 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; 28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. 29 But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom” – St. Matthew 26:26-29.  

“22 And as they did eat, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and brake it, and gave to them, and said, Take, eat: this is my body. 23 And he took the cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them: and they all drank of it. 24 And he said unto them, This is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many. 25 Verily I say unto you, I will drink no more of the fruit of the vine, until that day that I drink it new in the kingdom of God.26 And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives” – St. Mark 14:22-26. 

“14 And when the hour was come, he sat down, and the twelve apostles with him. 15 And he said unto them, With desire I have desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer: 16 For I say unto you, I will not any more eat thereof, until it be fulfilled in the kingdom of God. 17 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves: 18 For I say unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of God shall come. 19 And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. 20 Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you” – St. Luke 22:14-20.  

“1 Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end. 2 And supper being ended, the devil having now put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him; 3 Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he was come from God, and went to God; 4 He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself. 5 After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded. 6 Then cometh he to Simon Peter: and Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet? 7 Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter. 8 Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. 9 Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. 10 Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all. 11 For he knew who should betray him; therefore said he, Ye are not all clean. 12 So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? 13 Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. 14 If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. 15 For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you. 16 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. 17 If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them” - John 13:1-17.  

“1Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ. 2 Now I praise you, brethren, that ye remember me in all things, and keep the ordinances, as I delivered them to you. 20 When ye come together therefore into one place, this is not to eat the Lord's supper.21 For in eating every one taketh before other his own supper: and one is hungry, and another is drunken.23 For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread: 24 And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. 25 After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, this cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. 26 For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come. 27 Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. 29 For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. 30 For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. 31 For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world. 33 Wherefore, my brethren, when ye come together to eat, tarry one for another. 34 And if any man hunger, let him eat at home; that ye come not together unto condemnation. And the rest will I set in order when I come” – 1 Corinthians 11:1-2; 23-24. 

“9 Let not a widow be taken into the number under threescore years old, having been the wife of one man. 10 Well reported of for good works; if she have brought up children, if she have lodged strangers, if she have washed the saints' feet, if she have relieved the afflicted, if she have diligently followed every good work” – 1 Timothy 5:9-10.  

COMMUNION 

This subject of Communion or the Lord’s Supper has its roots in the Old Testament’s teachings of the Passover. 

Please note the following terms: 

1. A Type—is a person, thing, or event that represents or symbolizes another that is to come.
2. An Antitype—is the person or thing represented or foreshadowed by an earlier type or symbol. 

The Passover is a type of the death of Christ, which is the antitype. Since the communion service commemorates the death of Christ, we can also view it as an antitype of the Passover. 

• The Passover —Exodus 12:1-11    

Israel had been in Egyptian bondage for 430 years. God heard their cries for deliverance, so He sent Moses to Egypt and empowered him to lead the Israelites out of slavery. God worked many notable miracles through Moses, plaguing the Egyptians and defeating the Egyptian gods. As God prepared to unleash the last plague on Egypt—a death angel would go through Egyptkilling the firstborn of every family—He commanded the Israelites to apply the blood of a lamb to the lintel and doorposts of their homes to escape the plague. When the death angel saw the blood, he would pass over that home. God commanded Israel to keep the first Feast of Passover to escape the plague and to keep later Passover Feasts as a memorial of God’s delivering them.  

Below are the major points and details that Israel was to carry out to keep the Passover Feast. 

• • The Lamb
    • Had to be fastened up from the tenth to the fourteenth of the month.
    • Had to be without blemish.
    • Had to be a male of the first year.
    • Had to be a sheep or goat.
    • Had to be roasted; could not be eaten raw or boiled.
    • Had to be eaten in entirety along with bitter herbs.
    • Had to be kept whole; not a bone of the lamb could be broken.
  • The Individual
    • If a household was too small to eat an entire lamb, they were to invite their neighbors to help them eat all the lamb.
    • They were to apply the blood from the lamb to the lintel (above the door) and on the two side posts of the door, but never on the threshold.
    • The Israelites were to be dressed for travel when they ate the Passover lamb. They were to eat it in haste with their loins girded, shoes on, and staff in hand.d.    They were to put out all leaven from their houses; they were to eat unleavened bread for seven days after the Passover.
    • The Israelites were not to work on the day of the Passover. 
  • The Ordinance of the Passover
    • Passover was to be observed in the month Nisan or Abib (these are one and the same).
    • Strangers, those who were not Israelites, could not eat the Passover.
    • Jewish proselytes could eat the Passover.
    • Servants or slaves could eat the Passover if they had been circumcised.
    • The Passover Feast had to be eaten in one house; it could not be carried out of the house or from place to place.
    • One law was applicable to all, both to homeborn and to strangers if they were to eat the Passover.
    • All who were clean (not defiled through violation of the law) and not on a journey had to eat the Passover, or they would be cut off from the people. Failing to observethe Passover was a sin. Numbers 9:13.
    • The usual day for observing the Passover was the fourteenth day of Nisan or Abib, the first month of the Jewish year. A person who was defiled or on a journey at this time was to observe the Passover on the fourteenth day of the second month.Numbers 9:9-11.
    • Israel was to observe the Passover in the place where God placed His name (Deuteronomy 16:5-6). 

Since these things typify the atoning death of Christ and the communion service in the New Testament, they are significant to the church today. Understanding the communion service is contingent upon understanding the Passover. 

Let us now turn to the New Testament communion service, or the Lord’s Supper. 

• The Communion Service — “The Lord’s Supper,” eating at “the Lord’s table,” and “the Eucharist” are also terms for the communion service. 

Numerous questions and ideas are raised in connection with this service. To discuss them, let us examine a few of the more commonly asked questions, letting the Bible provide the answers.  

• What is leaven? Leaven is yeast. The verb leaven means to raise or seethe with fermentation. Leaven is the substance in bread that makes it rise. The Israelites were to remove all leaven from their houses during the Passover and for seven days afterward. The seven days following the Passover were known as the Feast of Unleavened Bread. 

Leaven is a type of sin, false doctrine, or error, it represents things that puff up, exalt, and bring pride, as we see from the following references:

• • Jesus warned his disciples of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees (Matthew 16:6, 11-12).
  • Jesus warned his disciples of the leaven of Herod (Mark 8:15).
  • Paul warned us of the leaven of malice and wickedness (I Corinthians 5:6- 8).
  • Paul warned us that a little leaven leavens the whole lump (Galatians 5:9).
  • We must purge all spiritual leaven from our personal lives for us to keep the feast with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth (I Corinthians 5:6-8). 
• How often should I take communion? God’s Word does not specifically say how frequently we should celebrate communion. Paul stated that as often as we take communion, we proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes (I Corinthians 11:26). Since Israel observed the Passover once a year, we should celebrate communion at least once a year; this is a minimum. Observing communion as often as the pastor calls for it does not violate the Scripture. However, we should never allow communion to become commonplace or taken lightly, regardless of how often we take it. 
• Is taking communion part of our salvation? Jews who were undefiled or not on a journey sinned and were cut off from Israel if they failed to observe the Passover(Numbers 9:13; John 6:48-58). While communion is not part of the new birth, it is part of our life of obedient faith, and in this sense, it is part of our salvation. Of course, it is possible that a new convert would die before taking his or her first communion, or that the Lord would rapture the church first. But outside of such circumstances, all saints should want to take part in communion and thereby remember the Lord’s broken body and shed blood. We should make it a point to be at church for communion. When this is impossible, we should query if it is possible to take it later. If someone is defiled spiritually with sin in his or her life, he or she must repent before the communion service.
• What two views do we receive in the communion service? When we partake of communion, we look in two directions simultaneously, “For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come” -1 Corinthians 11:26.
  • We look backward to His death at Calvary with respect, awe, humility, thanksgiving, and love. We “shew the Lord’s death,” meaning we proclaim,declare, preach, speak of, teach and promulgate it. The way to show the Lord’s death is by taking communion.
  • We look ahead to the coming of the Lord. Paul taught that we  show His death “till he come.” Every communion service is a declaration that we believe in and expectthe coming of the Lord. 
• What is meant by taking communion “unworthily”? I Corinthians 11:27 warns us against taking the Lord’s Supper unworthily. “Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.”  We should note that it does not say “unworthy.” Unworthy is an adjective, meaning without merit or value, worthless, and not deserving. Unworthily is an adverb, meaning irreverently, unfit, or in an unworthy manner. Unworthy is a condition; unworthily is a manner. They are two entirely different words. None of us feel worthy to partake of His body and blood, but He has made us worthy through salvation. Unworthily has to do with the manner, spirit, conduct, and attitude in which we take communion. 
• What is meant by, “Let a man examine himself”? (I Corinthians 11:28). The Passover lamb was fastened up for four days to examine it for spots and blemishes, and during this time the individual made himself ready for the Passover by ridding his houseof leaven. 

Similarly, self-examination is a must before we engage in communion. “ Examine me, O Lord, and prove me; try my reins and my heart” - Psalm 26:2.  “5 Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?” - 2 Corinthians 13:5.  

Our hearts should be free of condemnation, guilt, and sin when we take communion. Preceding this service we should spend time in prayer, soul searching, humiliation, and fasting (this may exclude those who can’t fast due to medical reasons). 

1 Corinthians 11:28-32 presents three reasons why we should examine ourselves:  

• • To prevent us from eating and drinking unworthily.
  • To prevent us from being weak, sickly, or dying. These three words have both physical and spiritual implications.
  • To prevent us from being judged with the world. Instead, we are to judge ourselves, which means to separate thoroughly, to withdraw from, and to discern. “Judged” here means punished, avenged, condemned, decreed, or sentenced.Self-examination before communion is a scriptural requirement for each of us. 
• “If any man hunger, let him eat at home” (I Corinthians 11:34). Earlier the passage asks, “Have ye not houses to eat and to drink in?” (I Corinthians 11:22). Apparently, the Corinthian church brought individual and family meals and ate them in the church in observance of communion. Division and disharmony resulted because the rich had plenty, and were even getting drunk, while the poor wereignored. 

No communion service was ever intended to be a full-fledged meal such as we eat at home. Such eating would be irreverent and unacceptable as a memorial to the Lord’s death. We should take only a small piece of unleavened bread and a small portion of the fruit of the vine. We eat the unleavened bread first and then drink the fruit of the vine immediately afterward.  

Israel was to observe the Passover as a memorial throughout all generations and to keep it as an ordinance forever (Exodus 12:14-17). Paul referred to ordinances (precept, tradition, direction or command of an authoritative nature, or an established religious rite) andadmonished the church to keep them (I Corinthians 11:2).

God’s ordinance of the Passover continues in the New Testament era of grace through the communion service.  The church is to observe this service until the Lord returns (ICorinthians 11:26). May we never forget the communion of the body and blood of Christ, remembering that “we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread” (I Corinthians 10:16-17). 

FOOT WASHING 

Many churches have abandoned or ignored the biblical truth of washing the saints’ feet. However, it is clear from the scriptures that washing the saints’ feet is an essential New Testament teaching for the church today. Immediately after our Lord instituted the communion service, He instituted footwashing as an ordinance for the New Testament church. Communion without washing feet is not wrong, but footwashing should follow communion services, when possible, with all the saints and ministers participating. At the minimum, we should observe a service of communion and footwashing at least once a year. 

At the conclusion of the communion service, the men should separate from the ladies. Men should then wash men’s feet, with ladies washing ladies’ feet. Footwashing should be observed by washing both feet of one person, splashing water on the person’s feet, and then drying them with a towel. 

While washing our fellow saint’s feet, we should be in a prayerful spirit, rejoicing that we are doing what Jesus did for His disciples. It is recommended that after our feet are washed, we should pray together.  Each person should wash someone else’s feet and have his feet washed if he is physically able. 

We should not practice selectivity at this time. Some who are present maybe even a little dirty and unkempt, but we should not shun them or refuse to wash their feet. Jesus washed Judas’s feet only hours before he betrayed Him into the hands of sinners.  

Footwashing services should break down pride, barriers, feelings, and resentments that may exist in our hearts. Let us discuss some important truths from the Scripture relative to foot washing. 

1. “If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me” (John 13:8).  Jesus said this to Peter, who was questioning Jesus’ action. Could not this declaration be true for us, just as well as it was for Peter if we deliberately refuse to obey the Lord? We need to drop the practice of footwashing if it is not important, biblical, or essential. But if footwashing is important, biblical, or essential, then believers should practice it until Jesus comes. When we wash someone’s feet, we establish a point of identity with Christ that does not take place any other way. 
2. “He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet” (John 13:10). When Jesus warned Peter that he would have no part with Him if He did not wash his feet, Peter then wanted Jesus to wash his hands and head also. Jesus replied that when we are washed there is no need for additional washing outside having our feet washed. 
3. “I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you” (John13:15). Jesus declared that His washing the disciple’s feet was an exemplary act for us to follow. Since Christ washed His disciple’s feet, how can we do any less than wash His present-day disciples’ feet? What an example! If we truly want to be like Jesus, here is a classic example for us to follow. 
4. “If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them” (John 13:17). Happiness is a by-product of other things; it is not self-perpetuating. Washing the saints’ feet produces happiness in the believer’s life because (1) we demonstrate that we have a part with Him, (2) we are seeking to remain spiritually clean, (3) we have followed Jesus’ example, and (4) we have obeyed the Word of God. 
5. What was Paul’s teaching concerning the church’s assistance of widows? Along with several other requirements, Paul taught that a widow is eligible for assistance fromthe church “if she ha[s] washed the saints’ feet” (I Timothy 5:3-10). Paul did not indicate that only widows should wash the saints’ feet, but that widows would not be eligible for assistance from the church if they had not done this. Footwashing must have been important to receive this kind of emphasis. 

Footwashing is biblical, essential, and a blessing to the church. Let us participate in it with humility and joy. Communion draws us close to God, and footwashing draws us close to one another.