The True Meaning of Holy Communion! 1 Corinthians 11

 Correcting an Abuse of the Lord’s Supper

17 In the following directives I have no praise for you, for your meetings do more harm than good. 18 In the first place, I hear that when you come together as a church, there are divisions among you, and to some extent I believe it. 19 No doubt there have to be differences among you to show which of you have God’s approval. 20 So then, when you come together, it is not the Lord’s Supper you eat, 21 for when you are eating, some of you go ahead with your own private suppers. As a result, one person remains hungry and another gets drunk. 22 Don’t you have homes to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God by humiliating those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you? Certainly not in this matter!

Paul turns to another subject where he needs to rebuke the Corinthians for their behavior.  Paul goes as far as to say that their meetings do more harm than good, which is quite a statement.  Paul addresses the subject which he addressed in chapter 1 of "divisions" as it relates to celebrating the Lord's Supper.  Paul acknowledges that there will always be inherent divisions in the body of Christ based on spiritual maturity and whether someone has "true faith".  

But in this case the issue is pretty straightforward.  First of all, it is important to note that in addition to celebrating the Lord's Supper, there was a meal shared together by the community.   This was akin to our modern day "potluck".  But more than just sharing a meal it became more of a party with alcohol involved.  While there is nothing wrong with alcohol per se, Paul cites that some among them were getting "drunk". 

Guzik says this about the context of the Lord's Supper in Paul's day, "In the modern church, the Lord’s Supper is commonly celebrated in an atmosphere of dignity. But the Corinthian Christians came from a culture where the pagans commonly had wild, riotous banquets given in honor of a pagan god. This is how it might not seem so strange to the Corinthian Christians to even get drunk at a church common meal.?

Even worse, the more privileged families were celebrating the meal to the exclusion of the poorer families. They were getting drunk while the other had nothing to eat. Paul finds it hard to believe that in the context of remembering Jesus' death and sacrificial love that such behavior could even exist.  He sarcastically says, "Why don't you go home and have your own party!"

23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night 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, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

Paul then recites what we now know as the Words of Institution, which most churches say before they celebrate Holy Communion together.  These words really contain everything we need to remember and participate in the Lord's Supper.  Importantly Paul says he had passed on what he had "received from the Lord".  When you think of that way it is amazing that these words have been passed down for 2,000 years.  And with very little variation in the language.  Once again the historicity and inspiration of the bible is affirmed by such a fact.  

As a Lutheran pastor one of the aspect of Holy Communion that we teach is what the words "in remembrance of me" mean.  Most people associate the word remember with mainly a memory exercise.  Holy Communion becomes a time when we mentally recall what Jesus has done for us by offering his body and blood on the cross. But remembering is not only remembering but the word in the Greek means to "experience again as if it were the first time".   Meaning when we receive the bread and the wine we are experiencing the real presence of Christ in way that we can't explain. It is a mystery, which is where the Greek word "sacramentum" comes from.  To think of it this way actually makes communion a lot more meaningful. 

Finally, he says that when we remember Jesus in this way we are proclaiming Jesus' death until he returns.  So there is a sense in which Holy Communion looks back to to what Jesus has done for us, but also looks forward to when he will come again to call us home.  And when we go to heaven we will celebrate the wedding feast which will never end.  Therefore, we say when we celebrate this meal together it is a, "foretaste of the feast to come." 

27 So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. 28 Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup. 29 For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves. 30 That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep. 31 But if we were more discerning with regard to ourselves, we would not come under such judgment. 32 Nevertheless, when we are judged in this way by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be finally condemned with the world. 33 So then, my brothers and sisters, when you gather to eat, you should all eat together. 34 Anyone who is hungry should eat something at home, so that when you meet together it may not result in judgment.

Finally, Paul issues a very stern warning.  He says that when they behaved in this manner at the Lord's Supper, they sinned against the "body and blood of our Lord".  I think this means they cheapened what Jesus did for them.  They took something sacred and made it profane.  To change this Paul tells them to examine themselves before they partake of the sacrament.  Today, we usually have a time of confession before Holy Communion.  We prepare ourselves for receiving Jesus' body and blood, by thinking where our lives are out of alignment with God's will for our lives.  We make every effort to turn from what we know is wrong and live in newness of life.  

It is important to note that we don't make ourselves worthy.  We don't have to somehow clean up our act to be deserving of receiving Jesus' body and blood.  This is why we come to communion, to confess our sin, receive Jesus' forgiveness and be free from guilt and shame.   The devil loves it when we stay stuck in guilt and shame. Every time we receive communion is a re-affirmation of what we believe.  

Of course anybody can go through the motions and receive communion every Sunday without ever really thinking about what they are doing, but you can see that this defeats the whole point.  To the extent that we examine ourselves, confess our sins to God, and trust in Jesus' death and resurrection, we can leave church every Sunday born again and ready to live a life worthy of the calling we have received. 

The consequence of those who have completely made a mockery of Holy Communion was that some had become sick and some had even died.  This doesn't mean that they had lost their salvation but they suffered consequences for their sin.  This is a fairly obscure passage so it would be important not to try and build any doctrine off of it. 

How do you usually approach Holy Communion?  Does your church celebrate it every week or once a month?  Do you think one should receive communion every week?  Why or why not?  Give a reason for both cases!  Do you think communion is a mere remembrance of Jesus' death mentally, or that we actually participate in some real way Jesus' true presence?  However you answer these questions, approach the Lord's table seriously in remembrance of the great sacrifice Jesus has made on your behalf?  Recognize others who are in your midst in a humble manner serving them as Jesus has served you sacrifically!  This is the true Spirit of the Lord's Supper, which Jesus passed on to Paul and we pass on to future generations!