There is great power when a church participates together in the Communion Table because it is designed to cause each Christian to regularly examine themselves and clear their conscience of wrongs.
And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship,in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. 43 Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. 44 Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, 45 and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need. 46 So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved. [Acts 2:42-47 NKJV]
Our communion or breaking of bread together is a practice that our Lord established but in our day the true reason and purpose has almost been forgotten. First, we must remember that Jesus presented communion as a blood covenant. The Bible says, “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? For we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread” [1 Corinthians 10:16,17].
The symbolism of the blood covenant was very clear to the first disciples, for example, God made a blood covenant with Abraham. He initiated His relationship to Abraham, made all the promises, and guaranteed His blessing. Such a covenant contains lifelong obligations and commitments. Therefore it is serious business with God. Our New Covenant In Christ’s blood is an eternal and sacred promise from God Almighty to Christians.
The apostles’ doctrine and fellowship are foundational for church health and growth. Our loving savior uses the Lord’s Table as the key to ensuring the purity and power of the church.
Paul writes, “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.’ For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.”
“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. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.”
“For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world” [1 Corinthians 11:25-32].
We are called to understand how serious this event is for our spiritual cleansing. Just like the liver of the body removes impurities and keeps a person healthy, the Communion Table is also designed to cause each Christian to thoroughly examine themselves and clear their conscience of wrongs. We must constantly examine ourselves. Remember how a doctor examines a patient, he probes and pokes. He looks for hidden signs of problems. This same procedure is just as important for all to grow spiritually and root out sin. If these sinful impure practices are not removed the body of Christ becomes weak and sick. In fact, we will face God’s judgment!
“For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep. “Obviously, from reading this explanation from the Bible, sin is a medical cause of some physical disease. For example, many medical textbooks now agree with the Bible and state that fear and anxiety are a primary cause of coronary artery disease, angina, and heart attacks. The scripture even warns that people will be dying from heart disease, “Men’s hearts failing them for fear” [Luke 21:26].
But on the other hand, many have found out as they truly deal with their sin, they are receiving physical healing also. This makes sense because Proverbs warns, “He that covers his sins shall not prosper: but he who confesses and forsakes them shall have mercy” [Proverbs 28:13].
And this is why “…not discerning the Lord’s body” is suddenly very significant! It is the stated reason for many Christians becoming sick and even dying prematurely.
You need to understand that the body of Christ does not just mean His human body. Here it is clearly speaking of the church, the “body of Christ.” “Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually.” [1 Corinthians 12:27].
Since we are connected, what one member does effects the whole body. So Paul says, “Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a harlot? Certainly not!” [1 Corinthians 6:16]. Our sin infects the whole body of Christ. We offend the entire body and will be judged for it.
Paul continues to warn us about what we do with our bodies by saying “…each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire. Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are” [1 Corinthians 3:13-17].
As you see, our bodies are called God’s temple, and if you do not keep it pure God reserves the right to destroy it. Harsh right? Americans do not want to hear this. But, God is holy, and not a tolerant American. Dishonoring the huge sacrifice Jesus made on the cross for sin, and the power of grace he gives all Christians to be able to walk in obedience, is a repulsive, deep insult to our Creator.
Take a look at the first letter Jesus dictated to John for just one of the local churches in Revelation 2.
Notice Jesus sees the local church as one, and all are responsible to obey Christ’s commands and those who refuse defile the whole body of believers. The church will be punished for the sin of the unrepentant. And He clearly warns all the believers, that anyone in the church membership that continues to sin brings punishment on their church and He will erase, dismantle, and remove the whole church. But, if there are some who are obedient and faithful, individually they will still enter heaven at death.
Therefore, if a local church like ours is to prosper through God’s blessings, it must regularly examine itself and clear up all past offenses between its members. That means each of us must get real with God and confess and repent of any known sin. Well it is logical that small churches need to have communion more frequently because the possibility of hurts and offenses is accelerated by their close associations. Misunderstandings easily happen. Remember “a whisperer separates the best of friends” [Proverbs 16:28]. “And where there is no talebearer, strife ceases” [Proverbs 26:20].
And also remember this, the early church met very frequently for “breaking of bread” because it was vital to spiritual growth and keeping God’s hand of blessing. Maintaining a clear conscience is a powerful weapon to protect us from spiritual disaster, so Paul says, “…having faith and a good conscience, which some having rejected, concerning the faith have suffered shipwreck,” [1 Timothy 1:19]. We can be forgiven, but you must understand the consequences of a ship wreck will leave permanent damage to the church and others.
Judas the half brother of Jesus, and a church leader in Jerusalem mentions the common practice of love feasts in Jude 1:12 (NKJV), “These are spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves…” Communion and celebration were tightly bond together by “breaking bread from house to house” while “they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart”, and it grew to church wide gatherings to focus on fellowship and communion together. They would have communion before the love feast and practice the power of fellowship. This was the norm for the church for 350 years, until the churches so lost it’s love and purity it was abandoned.
So if our church expects a powerful time of prayer and miraculous answers, we must have effective, purifying times of communion together. That is the importance of close social union of church membership and constant times of spiritual examination. Sin is subtle and the enemy loves to see believers defeated, powerless, and unable to have their prayers answered. But, as we fellowship and exhort one another, we strengthen everyone to obedience and purity. When the body of Christ is clean, it is healthy. A healthy church bears much fruit, and so greatly glorifies God!
And the result. Our Lord God empowers His church to fulfill His mission, and together with one voice, proclaim the Good News of Christ and His kingdom. The common distribution of our spiritual gifts pours out God’s love throughout our church and community. And the deep communication of our loving exhortations, confessions, and testimonies matures the saints around us.
So never, never, forget that Communion is not a mundane ritual. And forever remember your duty to keep your blood covenant with the Lord Jesus by completely clearing your conscience, fully obeying His commands and together wholeheartedly fulfilling the GREAT COMMISSION. Paul exhorts you to“…keep yourself pure” [1 Timothy 5:22].
Is this your next step?
