1 Corinthians 11:17-34
Be Still: Father, thank you for your breath in my lungs. I praise you today. Holy Spirit breathe your life in me as I read your Word. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Read: 1 Corinthians 11:17-34
'For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night 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 remembrance of me.” 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.” For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. (vv 23-26)
Encounter: I don’t know if you relate, but I have been known to make a list in my head for the food shop -- and returned home without that one essential item I went out to get, because I failed to remember.
Jesus has given us a meal, referred to in the Church as Holy Communion or the Eucharist (which means ‘thanksgiving’) to help us regularly remember Jesus and what he has won for us, through his sacrifice upon the Cross. This is a remembrance that doesn’t just involve our sight and hearing through words we recite, but one that involves all our senses.
We often say or hear these words in 1 Corinthians 11 during Communion so that, unlike my list, we don't forget what we are there for. Then we step forward to receive the bread and the wine into our bodies. It is a tangible remembrance that engages our whole self. We remember and we receive. God is so kind to give us an act of worship where we receive: we can never out-give the greatest Giver.
These words in our passage also remind us that when we take Holy Communion, we are rooted back to that very night around 2000 years ago, when Jesus himself instituted this meal with his disciples. The Sacrament (holy mystery) has been passed down through all the generations of the Church since and will continue to be until He comes again. It is the act of worship that unites the global Church.
Apply: Next time you receive Holy Communion, thank God for instituting such a beautiful, simple and communal way of remembering and receiving from Jesus. We come together to the table of the Lord -- and we are satisfied. Every time, we proclaim his saving death together. Recall, when you next take the bread and the wine, that you are joining those first disciples and our brothers and sisters in the global Church, in this act of remembering Jesus' sacrifice.
Devote: Lord thank you for your sacrifice upon the Cross - that it is complete and finished. Thank you for giving us this meal to remember you and unite us with the world-wide Church family.