At the conclusion of Paul’s first letter to the church at Corinth, Paul’s signs off with this the title phrase. As a child, I learned this table prayer, “Come, Lord Jesus and be our guest…” (paraphrased) The word “Come” is certainly a gospel-like invitation! Yes, as Jesus invites you and me to the eternal table to dine with Him forever, so we too, invite our neighbors to join in on the message of salvation by the blood of the Lamb of God, Jesus, the Christ.
As I examined the closing sentences in 1 Corinthians 15, I have a handwritten note that provides the Aramaic word for “Come, O Lord.” (maranatha) Digressing for a second, I remember the time in Paul’s life when the church at Corinth was what we might call, “a problem child.” Yes, the church was a confluence of various members whose backgrounds tended to infect the church with heresies, including sinful pleasures. Paul was disturbed, to say the least. Some theologians suggest that his second letter to them was a terse response to their issues. But, as we know, a church, regardless of its issues, is important to our Lord. God would want all His churches to be united in faith and in oneness toward the eternal mission.
This same phrase is repeated in John’s Revelation in the concluding verses. Listen! “Amen, Come, Lord Jesus.” (Revelation 22:20) As I researched the phrase, I found that this Aramaic phrase was used by the early Christians in a prayer. The early church prepared a document (second century AD) called the “Didache.” The phrase means “the teaching.” It is generally accepted to be the writings of the early disciples based on the “the Twelve.” Chapter ten in the Didache is described as a prayer following the Eucharist (Holy Communion). That prayer specifically uses the Aramaic word maranatha. Yours truly, has a coy of the Didache and would like to share this ancient prayer with all of you today as, collectively, we continue to lean on Jesus and Him alone.
We give you thanks, Holy Father,
For your holy name.
Which you have caused to swell in our hearts,
And for the knowledge and faith and immortality,
Which you have made known to us
Through your Servant Jesus;
The glory is yours forever!
You, All-Governing Master,
created all things for the sake of your holy name,
and gave food and drink to people to enjoy,
that they might give you thanks;
but to us, you have graciously given spiritual food and drink,
and eternal life through your Servant.
Above all we give thanks because you are powerful,
The glory of yours forever!
Remember your Church, Lord,
To deliver it from all evil
And to make it perfect in your love;
And gather the Church that has been sanctified,
From the four winds into your kingdom,
Which you have prepared for it;
because the power and the glory are yours forever.
May grace come, and may this world pass away,
Hosanna to the God of David!
If anyone is holy, let him come;
If anyone is not, let him change the way he understands the world and act accordingly.
Maranatha, Amen.
(source: Didache, Chapter 10, “After the Eucharist.”)
As we are in the season of Lent, let us all remember our LORD’s walk to Calvary. Following his triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, His walk became rocky at best. He endured the abuse, torture, and shame for you and me. Today, we too can repeat the maranatha as we eagerly await His second coming. Amen, Come, O LORD!
Peace
Connected in Him, I stand
GHR
