1 Corinthians 10:16 (KJV)
16 The cup of blessing which we bless: is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break: is it not the communion of the body of Christ?
THE ROOTS OF COMMUNION
The Passover - Exodus 12
Exodus 12:25-28 (NIV)
24 “Obey these instructions as a lasting ordinance for you and your descendants. 25 When you enter the land that the Lord will give you as he promised, observe this ceremony. 26 And when your children ask you, ‘What does this ceremony mean to you?’ 27 then tell them, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice to the Lord, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when he struck down the Egyptians.’” Then the people bowed down and worshiped.
Passover would become entrenched as an annual feast called the Seder.
The four cups of the feast of Seder
Cup #1 - I will
Cup #2 - I will
Cup #3 - I will
Cup #4 - I will
The Last Supper - Matthew 26
Matthew 26:26-28 (NIV)
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.”
27 Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks (eucharistesas), he gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. 28 This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”
The New Testament Church
Acts 2:42 (CEB)
“The believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the community, to their shared meals (breaking of bread), and to their prayers.”
1 Corinthians 10:16 (KJV)
16 The cup of blessing which we bless: is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break: is it not the communion of the body of Christ?
The shift to the worship service
REDISCOVERING THE MYSTERY
The 5 Theologies of Communion
- Transubstantiation
- Memorialism
- The influence of secularism
COMMUNION AS KOINANIA
1 Corinthians 10:16 (KJV)
16 The cup of blessing which we bless: is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break: is it not the communion of the body of Christ?
Paul describes the bread we break and the cup we share using the Greek term Koinania
Literally to share in a
1 Corinthians 11 - How to defile communion
FROM TEMPLE TO TABLE
Jesus was relocating the
The circles of holiness
Brian Zahnd:
“The risen Christ did not appear at the temple but at meal tables. The center of God’s activity had shifted – it was no longer the temple but the table that was the holiest of all. The church would do well to think of itself, not so much as a kind of temple, but as a kind of table. This represents a fundamental shift….We thought God was a diety in a temple. It turns out God is a father at a table.”
THE EMMAUS ROAD
Luke 24:30-31 (NIV)
30 When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it, and began to give it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight.
Question 26 - Why is Communion Important?
Communion is the ordinance we practice to remember and participate in the broken body of Jesus and the blood of his sacrifice through sharing in the breaking of bread and the cup together. In communion, we discover Jesus present with us at the table as we remember his sacrifice for us on the cross. It is here we discover our common union as followers of Jesus.