'The Lord’s Supper' Tagged Posts

The last couple times I’ve led communion I’ve been asking the question, “What is Communion?” We’ve been looking at the Greek word itself, “koinonia.” So far we’ve found that koinonia (“communion”) encompasses several key meanings. Communion means: Participation – Spiritual union with Christ (1 Corinthians 10:16-17) Communion begins by participating in a relationship with God himself through Christ Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross. So communion is first about loving God, our vertical relationship. But communion isn’t just about developing…

What is Communion? Last month I started a series on the Lord’s Supper explaining the word “communion.” We learned that the Apostle Paul uses this word in 1 Corinthians 10:16-17 to mean spiritual participation with Christ Jesus. So when we take the Lord’s supper, we’re being drawn spiritually into a relationship with God.  We also learned the word for “communion” or “participation” is the Greek word “koinonia,” which also appears in Acts 2:42 and means “fellowship.”  Acts 2:42 They devoted…

What is Communion? What are we doing here? Maybe you’re more used to calling Communion the Lord’s Supper. That’s fine, but why do we do we also call it communion? In 1 Corinthians Paul talks about communion. But in the chapter right before the famous one when he gives the Words of Institution, which we’ll get to in just a moment, he says this: 1 Corinthians 10:16-17 “Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation…

We find in the book of John that while Jesus was teaching, He talked about His body and His blood. He was trying to tell them that He was the manna that God sent when the people were in the desert. He was saying that He would save His people. But his audience the Jewish people got upset. They knew that eating flesh and drinking blood was an abomination. But here, Jesus was talking about being one with Him. This was…

Today I want to break from tradition by letting the Lord’s Supper speak for itself and by giving us extra time to reflect on what the Holy Spirit might be saying to you through the supper. So I’m going to read the word’s of institution, I’ll clarify who can partake, and then we will receive it. But when myself and the servers are in the back of the room, we’re going to pause for about 60 seconds to really let…

When Jesus came to Jerusalem the final week before his crucifixion, he came to celebrate the Passover meal. Although this isn’t always the case, this year Jewish people celebrated Passover the same week we celebrated Easter, just last week. God originally instituted the Passover meal as a reminder of how he brought the Israelites out of captivity in Egypt. The Israelites were enslaved for 400 years before God delivered them the night of passover. God delivered them by supernaturally striking…

In the Lord’s Supper, we do two things. We eat bread, which reminds us of the body of Christ broken for us, and we drink the cup, which reminds us of the blood of Christ spilled for us. We find this in Scripture. 1 Corinthians 11:23-24 For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it,…

When it comes to communion, the Gospel of John is different than Matthew, Mark, and Luke. In each of those Gospels, Jesus clearly institutes the Lord’s Supper. Matthew 26:26 While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” (NIV®) Mark 14:23 Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and they…

Today I’m starting our communion by reciting the Words of Institution. They are the words the Apostle Paul uses to explain the Lord’s Supper, which we continue to use today. 1 Corinthians 11:23-24 For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in…