We are a conservative church. We believe the Bible. We hold to the tenets of the Reformed faith, and we have no patience with the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which God also hates. With all this being the case, this meal could easily turn into a banquet of self-congratulation.
But it is a meal for sinners. Forgiven sinners, to be sure, but still sinners for all that. This is not said so that we would somehow acquiesce in this condition—if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, and is summoned by the Scriptures to live that way. But this is the grace of God, mediated through faith in the Word declared.
It is not the grace of God, mediated through mere membership in a Bible-believing church. In short, conservatives can really screw up their lives, marriages, and families too. And conservatives can be tempted to look at the guilt-spattered wall of the lives and be tempted to try to hose it down with various tricks they have learned from the first Adam. Those tricks would include, but not be limited to, resolutions to get better, dedication to external good works, faithful attendance when the church doors are open, memorization of uplifting phrases, and other appalling substitutes for Jesus.
Grace does not dangle conditions in front of you. Grace does not prod you down the road with a stick. Grace is your present possession. You have it. Act like you have it.
This Table is not a reward for all you good people. This Table is nourishment for those who understand they are called to grow in what they have already been given. This Table is not the finish line; it is the body and blood of the one who already ran the race, and who already made it to the finish line, and who has bestowed that great accomplishment on you, for you to participate in.
This is not the Table of striving. This is not the Table of “I’ll try to be better tomorrow.” This is the Table of the Beloved, and of your complete acceptance in Him.