What is so significant about Holy Communion?

1 Corinthians 11:23-26: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; 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.” 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.

Think about this, my friends. You must think about how the significant Holy Communion or as people would call it "The Lord's Supper". Jesus had instituted the Lord's Supper on Matthew 26:26-30, telling His disciples to partake of the Blessed Bread and the Blessed Wine. The Lord's Supper, along with water baptism, is the sacrament ordained by God. When you take communion, you must understand that the bread represents Jesus Christ and how He was beaten and pierced on the Cross for our sins. Why is it that the bread represents the body of Jesus Christ? Because, Jesus said that He's the Bread of Life. The wine (we use grape juice as a substitute for wine) is the representation of how Jesus shed His blood on Calvary for the remission of our sins. Think about why do you do what you do. Don't take communion as something ritualistic and natural, but take it in the spiritual sense.

When you partake in Communion, what you're doing is that you're basking in God's glory and you are expressing your faith. Like water baptism, partaking in Communion is an outward sign of an inner work and within partaking in Communion, you are urging to the whole wide world to taste and see that the Lord is good. Also, when you take Communion, you need to reflect the sacrifice that Jesus made on Calvary for your salvation. In addition to that, remember that there is power within taking communion. How can God move through communion? Communion is a point of contact that God ministers His healing power through. Communion is also a meal that heals. When you go through an illness, I encourage you to take Communion in addition to the medical treatments you're undergoing. Why? Because when you take communion, you need to watch and see how God moves. Also, Passover has a prophetic connotation because Jesus Christ is the Passover Lamb being sacrificed and He delivers people from Egypt to Exodus.

Also, it's important to know order and discipline within partaking in communion for God's word says that things need to be done in decency and in order. If you read 1 Corinthians 11:27-34, it tells you how you need to examine yourself before partaking communion. What do you mean to examine yourself? You need to evaluate the sins you have committed and the oughts you have against the brethren. It's a time for you to work these things out because you don't want to partake communion in an unworthily manner bringing damnation to yourself. Only those who know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and are members of the bible-believing church in right standing can partake in communion. Yes, everyday is a time to repent and ask God for forgiveness. But Communion days are also times to repent and ask God for forgiveness before partaking in communion. By the way, children who don't understand the significance of communion should not partake in communion because we don't want them to treat communion as a playtoy and disrespect something that is truly sacred. Remember, you must understand that it's important to understand why do you partake in communion before partaking in it. You don't want to partake the communion blindly as a tradition of men. Communion is not a mere ritual, but it's a spiritual significance. Never underestimate the power of Holy Communion.

I hope that this message is a blessing to you and if you enjoy it, say amen. Also, feel free to bring your insights.

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Permalink Reply by Dr. Maxcina Gadsden on November 27, 2007 at 10:12am

The Holy Communion = Means for Grace

When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight. --Luke 24: 30-31

Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day….
-- John 6:54

Holy Communion … the Eucharist … the Lord’s Supper …the terms that we use for the "Holy Meal" all reflect its character as a means of grace. Take a moment to think about each term. When we speak of the Sacrament as being "Holy Communion," what we are doing is highlighting the unity that we receive through it. When we eat and drink of the elements, we are brought into a "holy communication" with God and are made one with each other in the Body of Christ. When we use the term "Eucharist," we highlight the powerful joy and the spirit of thanksgiving that we receive through the transforming grace of our savior. When we receive the Eucharist, we celebrate the feast of joy and offer our sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving for the gift of the presence of Jesus in our lives. And, finally, when we use the term "the Lord’s Supper," we lift up the truth that this Holy Meal is really God’s gift to us. It is his meal, not ours, and we are honored to be invited to receive it along with his disciples. Just as Jesus blessed and broke the bread in Emmaus and the Disciples’ eyes were opened to his real presence, so also today we are invited to his meal to have our eyes opened to his real presence in our own lives. It truly is "the Lord’s Supper;" it is his supper, in which he gives himself to us.

Through these three common terms we can see and know the meaning of the Sacrament, and its nature as a means of grace for the life of the Church. And that is our principle question in this chapter. How is the real presence of Jesus communicated to us through this principle means of grace, and what does this wonderful gift mean for us all?
Frequently it is said that there are many different ways to understand the meaning and role of the Lord’s Supper for the life of the Church. This is both true and false. It is true in that there are many different ways to think and talk about the Eucharist; it is false in that these many different ways can all be reduced to two fundamental approaches. We will begin with the one that is popular among those who reject the very means of grace/sacramental concept that this book is all about, and then we will proceed to the approaches of Sacramental Christianity.

Memorial Representation

"This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me."
--Luke 22:19b

Communion as just a memorial meal. It is the point of view held by the Baptists, the Church of Christ, and many other related or similar denominations. Some see the meal as simply a reminder of the Last Supper, and hence there is nothing at all going on in the act that isn’t understood to be happening apart from the act. This idea is sometimes called the doctrine of the "real absence" of Christ.

The Church, as it gathers around the table in faith, is understood as receiving divine grace directly from God, and not through the instrumentality of the elements of bread and wine. Essentially, the table has become irrelevant; the elements could be exchanged for pizza and beer or coffee and donuts, and God’s grace could still be discerned to be falling upon the gathered people of God.

Regardless of its form, Memorial Representation places the focus upon the believer and the believer’s response of faith, rather than upon God as the giver of divine grace. God is not thought of as being an actor in the ordinance at all. We are the actors in the sacrament. This is the cardinal difference between the Sacramental and Ordinance approaches to the means of grace in general, and to Holy Communion in particular. While the Sacramental approach views the means as having an instrumental nature, the Ordinance approach rejects the instrumental concept and focuses upon the role of the human in performing or "acting out" each of the means. Rather than being the means by which we receive God’s grace, they become the means by which we express our faith. While the expression of one’s faith is both an outgrowth and a form of the grace we receive, the Sacramental response is that the Ordinance approach robs the means of their essential role as the instrumental conveyers of Divine favor.

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Permalink Reply by John on November 30, 2007 at 10:31am

Thank you for opening my eyes because though I have partaken as a Christian it was just a motion that I felt we had to go through because nothing was ever explained to provide a true understanding. Just that we were showing or giving thanks for His body and blood and remembering Him. Same with when I was Baptised (I know Sister Gadsden another subject but just as an example) they said I was showing the world that I am a Christian through baptism just as Christ had been baptised by John. Open my eyes God!