Communion

Communion

Our LiveStream Communion Plans

This past Sunday Pastor Jonathan invited us to prepare for communion by setting aside something to eat and drink for this coming Sunday, like bread and juice. While the concept of taking communion together at church is familiar, the idea of taking it from our homes connected by an online worship service is foreign. We do not want anyone to participate if they feel uncomfortable with the concept, but we also thought it might help to share an article that…

Thanksgiving Communion

This past Thursday we gathered with friends and family to share a Thanksgiving meal and give thanks for the ways the Lord has blessed us. I found that this year I was far less intentional about giving thanks than I should have been. I gave thanks to the Lord for a few things in my mind but I got so wrapped up in family time that I didn’t stop and thank the Lord as I would have liked. I’m assuming…

Congregational Communion

Attached you can find the call and response reading and prayers from when we took the Lord’s Supper together in September. Take a moment to review it as we prepare our hearts to take communion together this coming Sunday.

The Lord’s Supper – You are how you eat

Last month during communion we talked about the expression “You are what you eat.” In communion Christ Jesus invites us to come and feed on him spiritually by remembering his life, death, and resurrection and by renewing our faith and trust in him. This month I want to add the expression, “You are how you eat.”  Before the Apostle Paul ever tells us what is going on in the Lord’s Supper he confronts the church of Corinth over how they…

The Lord’s Supper – You are what you eat

Have you ever heard the popular expression, “You are what you eat”?  The idea is that if you eat bad foods you’ll feel bad but if you eat good foods you’ll feel good. So if I eat lots of fruits and vegetables and chicken and fish I’ll probably be healthy, but if I eat lots of ice-cream and spam I’m probably be unhealthy. You are what you eat.  Think about this concept as we come to the Lord’s table. What…

Fasting and the Lord’s Supper

Today after communion I’m preaching a sermon on prayer and fasting. This week as I was preparing that sermon I read the book A Hunger for God and in it Pastor John Piper explains how the Lord’s Supper and fasting are connected. The Lord’s Supper is “past-oriented” but fasting is “future-oriented” (p. 79). When Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper he asked us to do it regularly “in remembrance” of him (focus on the past).  1 Corinthians 11:23-24 For I received…

50 Caliber Bullets into Communion Cups

In 1943 during World War II General Douglas MaCarthur lead an invasion of the Philippines. He wanted an island airfield from which to launch into the Pacific and so he set out to invade the little Indonesian island of Biak. He sent 12,000 troops but they thought they wouldn’t encounter much resistance. 11,000 Japanese troops hid on the island and ambushed US troops. What should have been a quick engagement took much longer. After a month of fighting General MaCarthur…

What is Communion? Sharing – Romans 15:26 & Hebrews 13:16

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? Fellowship – Acts 2:42

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? Participation – 1 Corinthians 10:16-17

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…

John 6 Communion Reflection

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…