Thanking Him Always
The Gospel according to
Luke 22: 14 – 20 is part of the institution of Holy Communion as we know it, being indeed a refinement of the offering of bread and wine by King Melchizedek, a High Priest of God, before blessing Abram, (who later became Abraham) as recorded in
Genesis 14:18. What is striking and bears examination and reflection is the thanks given before the giving of the bread and wine by Jesus Christ, and it is on this that the theme of this homily:
thanking Him always is found.
Today, a young lady, Ms Ronke Odutola, who died suddenly, literally in Church grounds, while pommelling herself for the gospel and Christ was laid to rest. As said in
Romans 3:25 Christ, the Sacrificial Lamb was He:
“
whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith.” In imitation of Him, through faith, with thanksgiving, Ronke was interceding for lost and troubled souls, and in pommelling herself for this purpose lost her life. Angels must have been singing as she passed on, for which reason all of us here must be thankful for her life. Ronke had her fair share of life, its burdens and joys; succeeded in her field of endeavor, and will certainly be missed more by those she labored to the death to save than even members of her family.
As with every death it is fitting to remind ourselves of that life is transient and in all situations we must give thanks, and I first consider this from one of the examples our Lord Jesus Christ laid before He laid His life, as Ronke also in imitation of her Saviour and Master did.
In instituting Holy Communion and asking that we do this in remembrance of Him with thanksgiving in our hearts, our Lord Jesus Christ first gave thanks to His Father for the bread of resurrection and the cup of salvation. The symbolism in this being giving thanks for His body and more so His blood – and therefore His life. His life because we know from
Leviticus 17:11 that “
… the life of a creature is in the blood and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar; it is the blood that makes atonement for ones life.” Though the scripture here spoke literally about animals, it is a spiritual peak at the future of the Unblemished Lamb – the propitiation of all sin.
Christ’s incarnate life was in the blood He shed for you and me at Calvary so there may be atonement for our sins, and release from bondage of this world – giving us passage to the next: eternal life. The body given for you and me, and the blood shed for you and me thus avails much, and because this pure blood of an unblemished and sinless Lamb is your pass over death, sickness and ills of this world, it must be a permanent mark on the door post of your life.
Christ the Passover Lamb said specifically in
Luke 22:15 that “
And he said to them, I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer” thus signifying His full knowledge of what ahead of Him. Trial, tribulation, insult, bodily harm, scorn, scoffing rudeness, injustice, wickedness, false accusation, crucifixion and death. Yet He nonetheless gave thanks. This He did to teach you that no matter the situation you must give thanks and praise God always.
Beloved of God, you heeded the call to be a soldier of Christ. You have heeded the call to a better life in Christ. For these alone you must be grateful. Full of thanks because it is only by grace that we are called, by greater grace that we heed the call, and by his power that we stay the course. So worry not, rather be thankful, when your loved one passes on, or you face the vicissitudes of life. So in good times and bad times, in sickness and in health, in richness and in poverty, you must give thanks.
There is no gainsaying the fact that men, whether or not blessed with provision are buffeted by the difficulties and challenges of this age, especially in these parts. A generation of spiritual indiscipline oiled by love of things material, licentiousness and supposed enjoyment of this life. An age, which but for grace, may have lost the rainbow – the covenant sign of seed and harvest through the ages. An age in which but for grace, (as said in
Ephesians 1:7), of “…
redemption through His blood … in accordance with the riches of God” superstorm Sandy, the floods we see in Nigeria, and the like elsewhere, would have been like the flood in Noah’s time.
Luke 22:
20 says “
In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.” It is this new covenant, in and through His blood, that replace the covenant marked by the geographical phenomenon of a rainbow, which is here today and gone the next. So as the Gospel says though Christ knew He was going to be poured, He still gave thanks. One could say that Ronke knew while fasting and praying fervently in supplication for the spiritual wholeness of others was pouring herself unto death in Christ.
It is this same sense of gratitude expected of you that Christ displayed when He wanted to bring Lazarus back from the dead to physical life, as a precursor of eternal life, and in edification of the glory of God - as we can tell from
John 11:38 – 44. Beloved of God, Christ knew that bringing Lazarus back to life will be the catalyzing factor that will coalesce the plan to put Him through pain no man had ever seen and thereafter murder Him – for we know from
Luke 11:46 – 51 that it was this miracle of resurrecting the dead that led to calling of the Council of Pharisees that unjustly decided that Christ had to die, as suggested by Caiaphas the year’s high priest.
What this ministers to you is that come rain or sunshine, even to the point of death you must give thanks. You must be like Jesus Christ who gave thanks in spite of the fact that He knew He had to pour Himself in order for there to be a third era for man, an era of the new covenant. Therefore, beloved of God, give thanks even if you have no child. Give thanks even if you have no spouse. Give thanks even if you have no work. Give thanks even if you have no money. Give thanks even if you have no good health. Give thanks even if you have no house. Give thanks even if you have bad school grades. Give thanks even if you have no promotion at work. Give thanks even if your child is wayward. Give thanks even if you have no good home. Give thanks even if you have no love around. Give thanks even if you all you have around you is strife and jealousy; oppression and all manner of unrighteous conduct. Give thanks because the blood of Christ avails for you, and His body is Bread for you to feed on to give you eternal life. A life free of all ills.
Rev. Prof. Konyin Ajayi
Emmanuel Chapel
The Adunola, Plot L2
401 close, Banana Island,
Ikoyi, Lagos.
konyinajayi@gmail.com
