Dear Family,
The following is an outline for a talk I (Dad) gave on the sacrament. I went through the prayer phrase-by-phrase--something I had never done before. You might find it interesting. It was certainly enlightening as I prepared it.
A sacrament is a spiritual covenant usually associated with a physical act. If the person making the covenant has his heart in it then the act strengthens the commitment.
Sacramental prayer is an intercessory prayer. Priest is asking something for the congregation. He is not their voice (1st or 2nd person) as in the invocation in a meeting, but 3rd person: “the souls . . .they may. . . they are . . . they may. . .”
Oh God, the Eternal Father, we ask thee in the name of thy son, Jesus Christ, We are reminded of whom we are addressing and of the nature of the Godhead.,
…to bless and sanctify, to become sacred—clean pure and spotless.
…this bread (or wine or water) Common foods with which we are all familiar with no special significance unless they have been sanctified.
Bread— Replaces the Law of Sacrifice in remembrance of the offering of Jesus Christ. Physical pain. Adam’s transgression (death). Physical resurrection.
Wine/water—Blood of life. A connective tissue that cleans and nourishes. Forgiveness for our personal sins. 3N20:8 Nourishes the soul.
…to the souls God’s children.
…of all those who partake of it, (or drink of it) Partake is more than just eat; we take a part of or share the qualities or attributes of the sanctified bread and water. When we partake, we are becoming sanctified ourselves—pure, clean, spotless.
…that they may eat [or drink] To consume gradually. Implies some thoughtfulness as we do these simple and common acts.
…in remembrance Act of recalling to mind; a greeting or gift recalling or expressing friendship or affection. The word remembrance is something deeper than just casually thinking about.
…of the body of thy Son. Broken and bruised for us—the physical pain He suffered for us. We all know and are familiar with physical pain, we know bruising, we know the tearing of the flesh. We are reminded that through Christ’s physical suffering He has paid for Adam’s transgression that we may all be physically resurrected.
[…of the blood of thy Son which was shed for them]. We know what it is like to bleed. Symbolic of Christ’s mental and spiritual anguish in the garden as He accepted the burden of the sins of the world and carried them to the cross.
We do not know. We cannot tell
What pains He had to bear.
But we believe it was for us
He hung and suffered there.
…and witness This is a covenant, to testify to, to attest. But it is more. Pres. McKay: . . . “do we always stop to think on that sacred Sabbath day when we meet together to partake of the sacrament, that we witness, promise, obligate ourselves in the presence of one another, and in the presence of God, that we will do certain things?”
…unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, Another reminder of the Being to whom the priests are praying and with whom we will be making these covenants.
…that they are willing This implies the future, not the past. It isn’t what we have done but what we want to do or are willing to do. We are warned that we must not partake of the sacrament unworthily. But, what is unworthy? Brigham Young: “It is essential that we renew our covenants by partaking of the sacrament. When we do this with a sincere heart, with real intent, forsaking our sins, and renewing our commitment to God, the Lord provides a way whereby sins can be forgiven from week to week . . . To those who have unresolved major transgressions, who profane God and His Holy Son, who trample His words, who are godless, who reject Him, who do not sustain His servants or have no desire to repent, the Lord has said “Whoso eateth and drinketh my flesh and blood unworthily eatheth and drinketh damnation to his soul.” 3N18:29. Elder Mickelsen: “There are two reasons for not partaking of the sacrament: 1. Your priesthood leader has asked you not to partake. Or, 2. You are unwilling to repent. But, if you want to repent of transgressions of the past week, then the sacrament is so important to help you to repent. It can give you strength to repent. If you want to change or repent, if you are feeling guilty about your actions of the past week, then take the sacrament. Take advantage of this wonderful source of strength and power.” But, when we partake of the sacrament We repent with full purpose of heart (3N10:6).” And we “. . .have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually” (Mos5:2) like we should have felt when we were baptized, then we are partaking of the sacrament worthily.
OUR PART OF THE COVENANT
“…willing…to take upon them the name of thy son,…” Represent Christ. When I wear a shirt that says BYU-Idaho, I feel like I am representing BYU-Idaho and should conduct myself accordingly. When you have taken the name of Christ upon yourself, you represent Him. If you don’t represent Him well, you are taking His name in vain.
“…and always remember Him,…” This phrase is in both the blessing of the bread and the water. Elder Holland: “ The principal word here seems to be remember. . . His premortal life, His birth, His miracles and teachings, His loving beautiful life. . . On some days we will have cause to remember the unkind treatment He received, the rejection He experienced, and the injustice—oh, the injustice—He endured. When we, too, then face some of that in life, we can remember that Christ was also troubled on every side, dut not distressed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed. To those who stagger or stumble, He is there to steady and to strengthen us. In the end He is there to save us, and for all this He gave His life. However dim our day may seem they have been darker for the Savior of the world.” Alma 5:6 “Yea, and have you sufficiently retained in remembrance his mercy and longsuffering towards them? And moreover, have ye sufficiently retained in remembrance that he has delivered their souls from hell?”
“…and keep His commandments which He has given them;…” Another reminder to repent and follow Him. “If you love me, keep my commandments.” E.T.Benson: “When obedience ceases to become and irritant and becomes our quest, in that day, God will endow us with power.”
“…that they may have his Spirit to be with them, Amen” What a wonderful promise. If we will do our part, we will have His Spirit to be with us. We can then be lead, strengthened, inspired, helped, assisted, and sanctified by the spirit. If you are trying to repent, here is the key: The Lord’s Spirit. We all need it. Do nothing to offend it.
Jesus instituted the sacrament among the Nephites (3N18:1-11)
Pres. McKay: “The greatest comfort in this life is the assurance of having a close relationship with God. . . . The sacrament period should be a factor in awakening this sense of relationship. (See 1Cor11:23-28). No more sacred ordinance is administered in the Church of Christ than the administration of the sacrament.”
Why do we partake of the Sacrament so frequently? Do we not run the risk of it becoming too familiar? Would it be of greater meaning if we did it only once a year, or monthly? We need the spiritual nourishment at least once a week.God knows that we will go out from sacrament meeting into a wicked and hostile world and that we, in spite of our resolve and repentance, will sin and suffer the sorrow associated with sin. But, we learn from these earth experiences and accumulate a burden of sin. He doesn’t want us to go around in a constant state of woe and misery. So He has given us the opportunity to make a course correction through partaking of the sacrament every week. “Oh, it is wonderful, wonderful to me.”
