In the 1st letter written by Paul to the Corinthian Church in the 11th chapter verse 23 onwards, He specifically speaks about the Lord’s Table or the Communion table established by Jesus. The passage is as below;
23 For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. 27 Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. 28 Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself.
It was the first church established by Paul. The Church was going very well but somewhere down the line they had completely lost their focus from God to themselves. Many times, in our walk with the Lord Let this not become a ritual or routine for us.
Paul was writing this with a purpose and let us see what is he trying to convey to the people through this passage. Below are the purposes for which Jesus on the night He was betrayed established this sacrament.
1. V26 instructs us to proclaim the Lord’s death, resurrection and second coming. Jesus wants us to proclaim His death on the cross for our sins. He wants us to proclaim as to how Jesus took our place and chose to die to give each one of us a new life, a new beginning. How many of us proclaim the Lord’s death when we invite our unbelieving friends? God wants us to be the salt and light of this world. God wants us to proclaim that Jesus is the only way to heaven. So, let us make every effort and use every opportunity to proclaim God’s sacrifice of His one and only Son Jesus Christ for sinners like us.
2. V28 instructs us to examine. What does God want us to examine? God says in His Word that “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? But I, the Lord, search all hearts and examine secret motives.” (Jeremiah 17:9-10). When we come to God, He wants us to examine our hearts and be honest to Him. Proverbs 4:23 says “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.” By doing so we are able guard our hearts from all evil because God is faithful to help us over all the deceptions of our heart.
3. V29 instructs us to Discern/Recognize. God wants us to recognize the body of Christ i.e. His Church. The Church is Christ is like one body with many parts (1 Corinthian 12:12). So let us learn to be humble, thinking of others as better than ourselves according to Philippians 2:3.
Next time when we come to the table, let us partake from it in a meaningful way and not loose the essence of it. Let us refresh our covenant with God and proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes back by examining our hearts not just when we come together for worship but every day of our lives, confessing our shortcomings to God and recognizing His people as our own family.
