For I pass on to you what I received from the Lord himself. On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, he took the cup of wine after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood. Do this in remembrance of me as often as you drink it.” ~1 Corinthians 11:23-25.
Paul, the author of Corinthians, was so impacted by what Christ had done for him that he wanted to share it with others. He told the church of Corinth about the importance of communion with God. It is to remember Christ’s sacrifice in order to be more effective in following after His will for our lives.
Sacrament is the official word, from the Roman Catholic Church. They practice this regularly. Some churches do the “Lord’s Supper” (another term for eating the unleavened bread and drinking the wine to remember Christ’s sacrifice) only as a special occasion because the don’t want it to lose its importance.
Everyone has their preference. What matters isn’t the time or frequency but the heart behind taking communion.
At our church, we take communion once a month as a full body in unity. I take communion when I am not feeling well, because what better medicine could there be than remembering what He did for me.
In Bible times, they used unleavened bread and wine but that isn’t required. He isn’t stating above to follow an extremely specific version of bread or drink. The important part is the heart.
Some churches use red wine, some grape juice. I have used orange juice before because it was all I had in the moment. The same can be said for the bread. Unleavened bread is bread without yeast, kind of like pita bread or a tortilla. Churches have used broken pieces of saltine crackers, rice wafers, and even Italian loaf of bread torn into bite sizes. I have used those and oyster crackers, pieces of tortillas, and a slice of bread because that is what I had.
Do in remembrance.
The key phrase and importance of this act of love is remembrance. The fine details are not important and can become legalistic if we are not careful with our understanding of these passages.
There is something peaceful and a closeness that can’t be explained when you take communion for Him. I don’t believe that He is saying that partaking in the Lord’s Supper is the only way to have communion and remember His sacrifice.
When we spend time in prayer or His Word, abiding in Him, we are communing with God. A great way to feel close to Him, is communing with the Holy Spirit through worship or praying in tongues. Say what you will, many people have opinions about it, but it is a game changer!
If we look back on where we were in comparison to where we are now, knowing that it was only possible because of Him, we are remembering Him. Telling others our testimony is also remembering Him and His sacrifice.
We are in communion with Him whenever we choose to be.
He is our best friend, or should be, and, if He, is it will be reflected in your day to day. When we commune with friends, on a regular basis, we know them so well that we see the behind the scenes. The secret hidden things about our dearest friends are made known. Knowing friends on that level causes us to see their needs, joy, hurts. It helps us support them to our fullest capability.
Think about a time when a close friend was going through something and you brought over the right thing. Relief was felt in their moment of pain because you knew what was needed before they said.
God wants us to have the same version of communion with Him. He wants us to know his heart so well that we can see what is needed to draw others closer to Him. When we commune with Him on a deep level, we can feel the hurt He has for His children.
Empathizing with God’s view.
God’s command is to love Him and love others, in that order. If we love God with all our hearts, then we seek after what His heart feels. We empathize with His cares. Once we are in close connection with God, it becomes easy to follow the second part of the command. It becomes a desire because we can see the difference in ourselves and want others to experience the same.
Get in communion. Partake in the Lord’s Supper, spending a bit of time beforehand asking for the forgiveness that is needed. Come to His table clean and ready to feast. Then when you eat the bread and drink the wine, think on the things Christ delivered you from. Think on the potential punishment you may have faced if it wasn’t for His sacrifice and commit to being in that reverence more often.
He is within arms reach, if we allow Him within our space we will know what communion should feel like. The peace, gratitude, and connection we long for is available. Knock and the door will be opened, seek and ye shall find. He wants to communion with us.