Good afternoon WOL Chapel!
In preparation for communion this week, I want to remind you to prepare your heart for a very important covenant meal that we eat together.
The more that we look at communion as a ‘meal’ the better since it was first initiated during a meal at the “last supper” with Jesus and His disciples. We remember the life of Jesus given for our sins when we take the meal, and we remember the way that His body and blood broken & poured out for us united us together as a family. Just as families eat meals together, so now do we because of Christ. Therefore, communion is a uniting meal that we eat together.
And like any meal, it needs prepared. And with the Lord’s supper (communion), all of us are to play a part in preparing this meal as we prepare our hearts.
1 Corinthians 11:27-28 says to us: “27 Whoever, therefore, eat 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.”
V27 is saying that we are to take this ‘communion meal’ seriously. We are to understand that this is a meal set apart from others in that it represents the union between Christ and us. It also represents the great pain and price Jesus went through for us. So really learn to appreciate and respect this meal. Don’t go through the motions in a ho hum kind of way. Don’t take it in an ‘unworthy manner.’
And that’s why v28 tells us to “examine himself.” This will prevent us from taking Christ’s meal in an unworthy manner. Will you examine yourself in preparation for the Lord’s Supper this Sunday? It means that you give yourself a mini self-made exam:
- Are you aware of what Jesus did for you and heart felt in your adoration of His great sacrificial love for you?
- Are you aware that His life is in you as communion portrays? (1 Cor. 10:16)
- Are you aware of any unrepentant sin in your life that needs to be abandoned?
- In what areas of your life have you failed/sinned this past week/month?
If you have unrepentant sin and you’re not planning to change it, then you shouldn’t take communion because you are abusing God’s grace for you. That would be considered “eating and drinking in an unworthy way” and producing ‘guilt.’
However, communion is an amazing time to decide to abandon old sin habits and refresh your walk with the Lord by remembering that Christ’s body and blood was poured out for you to cleanse you and help you fight sin. Your sin is dead in Christ and your life is energized through His presence working in you.
Now believe it! Communion is an opportunity to work out and act out your faith in the Gospel by confessing it in action!
So let this Sunday encourage those of you who are struggling with sin to turn back to Jesus and taste the empowering grace of Jesus in your life.
May you all experience the empowering continued ministry of Christ’s Gospel in your life.
Love in Christ,
Aaron
