Partaking of The Lord’s Supper is a fundamental aspect of our faith because it helps us remember what Jesus did on the cross and it stands of as a reminder of the covenant we have with God. Because of this, we approach communion with seriousness and reverence for its meaning, so much so that if we don’t, there are consequences. There are many things that can cause us to approach communion in an improper way and like most things we struggle with, these are issues of the heart. In 1 Corinthians 11:17-33, Apostle Paul is admonishing the Corinthian church for how they have been partaking in the Lord’s Supper and as I read this, I can find three issues that hinder them whenever they broke bread together.
Divisions In The Church (v18 - 19)
In the passage, we read that the church was divided by doctrine and this caused major issues whenever they met as they could never agree. As I read this, I am convicted by the Holy Spirit of the amount of times I partook of holy communion whilst in conflict with my brother or sister in Christ. The bible tells us that we have to strive to be at peace with people in the house of God, so much so that we should priorities making amends with each other before offering gifts at the altar (Matt 5:23-24) or in this case partaking in communion. Who do you need to make amends with before the next time you partake of The Lord Supper?
Divided Attentions, Distracted Minds (v20)
Even though the people were together, their hearts and mind were not focused on taking the Lord’s Super. Presumably, their attentions were elsewhere thinking or focusing on other issues. This caused me to think that sometimes we come to church meetings and communion service but our minds are distracted, so we end up taking the communion without thinking or reflecting on what it means. When we do this, we cheapen the price that Jesus paid because we are intrinsically saying that other matters are more important than him. What are some things that steal your attention during communion time? How can you reduce distractions?
Taking Communions For The Wrong Reasons (v21 - 22)
Some members of the Corinthian church ate the Lord’s Supper quickly because they didn’t want to share, so some went without having any whilst other ended up drunk. Ultimately, this demonstrated the greed of the people as they took the communion for the wrong reasons. Though we might have enough to go around during communion nowadays, we can still find ourselves taking communion for the wrong reasons. Matt 26 tells that we partake of the bread and wine to remember Jesus’ body and His blood, so whenever we take it for any other reason, we are abusing its meaning. Commonly, we can find ourselves taking communion because everyone else is doing it even though we have no understanding of it’s significance. How can you ensure you are always taking communion for the right reasons?
We are called to examine ourselves before partaking in the Lords Supper, because eating the bread and drinking wine in an unworthy manner could lead to sickness or even death. Therefore, let us not be quick eat or drink; we take time to focus on its significance before we approach the table and prepare are hearts accordingly.
Claud Jaiyeola
Song Recommendation
The blood is still the Blood Maverick City Music