Dear church,

What do we have in common with Jesus Christ? He is divine – the maker of heaven and earth. And yet we do have something in common with him. The writer of Hebrews tells us in chapter 2:

For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers, saying, “I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.” (Hebrews 2:10-12)

Here is something we have in common with Christ: We are of the same family as Him. He is not ashamed to call us “brothers and sisters.” The one who binds creation together was made perfect through suffering. He entered into our world, a world wracked by sin and death, and he suffered crucifixion in order to give us salvation. And he calls us brothers and sisters with him.

We know that in ancient Mediterranean families a great solidarity existed among siblings. The sibling bond was unbreakable, the strongest of all social bonds available to people living in the first century. And we know it was common for the stronger sibling to defer to the weaker, to never compete with or bring shame on his or her siblings. Rather, the stronger sibling was to invite the weaker siblings into his or her own honor. There was to be commonality.

As we take Communion together as a church, we consider the “body” of Christ. We want to “discern” the body as we take the bread and the cup. And so we take the bread and we take the cup and we think about this family, which is bound together in love and loyalty. And we know we have a “brother” who left heaven behind for a little while to dwell among us. And he won’t leave us or forsake us. We are now his family. And he invites us into his glory if we would but follow.

And so, as we take Communion, we remember this. We remember Him.

Chris