Yesterday, as I was attending a Bible study and while we were taking communion, I thought about the rebuke of Apostle Paul that… one is hungry and another is drunk….
1Co 11:21 For in eating, each one takes his own supper ahead of others; and one is hungry and another is drunk.
1Co 11:22 What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you in this? I do not praise you.
1Co 11:23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread;
1Co 11:24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”
1Co 11:25 In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.”
1Co 11:26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.
1Co 11:27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.
1Co 11:28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.
1Co 11:29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.
Then I thought about the way we take communion…
1Co 10:16 The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?
We take a tiny cracker and a tiny thimble of juice and call it communion. But in 1 Cor 11, Paul is saying that some go hungry while others are drunk, which implies a meal, the Lord’s Supper, not a ritual.
When discussing those thoughts during the Bible study, I also thought about how someone can go into a large church or even a small church, sit down, take “communion”, then walk out the door without having a true relationship with any person in that church. The “communion” they received… was it really a true communion or Lord’s Supper in the way that was initially intended in the time of the gospels and book of Acts???? I don’t think so. I now believe that it is way off the mark.
I don’t believe the modern church is anything close to being what it is supposed to be, unless it turns into close relationships where people visit each other’s homes, build meaningful relationships, and have meals together.
How many leaders in the church open their doors to “fellowship” and meals together with people from their churches??? Yet the standard for leadership is “hospitality”…
episkopē
1Ti 3:2 A bishop (overseer/elder) then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach;
Presbuteros & episkopos
Tit 1:7 For a bishop (overseer/elder) must be blameless, as a steward of God, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money,
Tit 1:8 but hospitable, a lover of what is good, sober-minded, just, holy, self-controlled,
Does this mean hospitable in the church meetings only, or as a lifestyle that extends out of the church building???
I honestly believe that we are missing the true meaning of receiving communion, which is the Lord’s Supper.
I found the scripture verse that I referred to, in the audio of this post, about rote ritual…
Isa 29:13 Then the Lord said, “Because this people draw near with their words And honor Me with their lip service, But they remove their hearts far from Me, And their reverence for Me consists of tradition learned by rote,
Isa 29:14 Therefore behold, I will once again deal marvelously with this people, wondrously marvelous; And the wisdom of their wise men will perish, And the discernment of their discerning men will be concealed.”
There you go! Those scriptures say a lot!
Your thoughts and insights on this topic are welcomed and appreciated.
Abundant blessings to you all!
Tina – Keep on Running2Win!