Showing posts with label Eucharist. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Eucharist. Show all posts

Remembering Christ At All Meals

The food and drink that we consume daily are not the true life through which Christians survive, though we need them to keep our dying bodies alive for this short period on earth. When we allow any meal that we take to represent The Communion or The Eucharist, we are acknowledging that our daily, entire lives are found in Jesus Christ.

We are remembering that we live and have our nourishment through him whom God has appointed as the only Savior of mankind. As many times as we eat daily, it can be a sacred event where we take a moment to recognize Christ.
When we acknowledge Communion in this way, our daily meals become a representation of the eternal life of the soul, which each Believer has obtained through the shed blood of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It also gives us many more opportunities to remember God's beloved Son.
Choosing to remember Christ at all meals does not need to replace the formal ritual of taking Communion with our churches or ministries. It can be an additional, Holy way to submerge ourselves daily in Christ, to walk in the Spirit more often.

I believe that Jesus meant that whenever food and drink passes our lips, remember Him, until he comes back for us. How blessed it can be to remember Him that often!

I Corinthians 11:23 

Other names for The Communion or Eucharist are The Sacrament, The Lord's Supper, The Last Supper, Holy Communion, Blessed Sacrament and Sacrament of the Altar.

Allowing each meal that we take to be a reminder to remember Christ Jesus, His sacrifice for us and that we live through Him.

Thoughts on the traditional, formal, infrequent taking of The Communion.









Proclaim The Lord's Death Till He Comes

 

The Apostle Paul wrote to the new church, that he had founded at Corinth, the message for all of us today, that we should proclaim the Lord's death till he comes. (I Corinthians 11:23) He is reminding us all of what took place in that upper room when Jesus had his last meal with his Disciples. 

Jesus was telling them that whenever they had a meal, to remember that though He died in the flesh He was coming back again. He was saying let your eating and drinking of sustenance be a reminder that I was resurrected and I am returning to resurrect those who have died and rapture (change) those who are still alive on the earth at that time.

What does proclaim mean? It can mean to claim and act as if. It can mean to affirm. When we choose to claim the belief that Christ is coming back, we act everyday as if we know that he is. By our actions of taking a moment to remember him when we eat and drink, we affirm that we believe Jesus is alive and coming back.

When we choose that every meal that we take will be a reminder and proclamation of Christ's resurrection and return, we then have more opportunities to remember Christ. What about the Eucharist? What about Communion?

There is nothing wrong with practicing these formal procedures and traditions. Churches, ministries and Christian groups do it differently. Some have group Communion once a week, some once a month, some occasionally, some at special events. Some use grape juice and I imagine that some use fermented or alcoholic drink because they feel that they are being true to ancient, middle-eastern tradition.

Some use crackers, some use bread. Some insist on unleavened bread and other types of baked goods. There is no perfect way that Jesus meant for us to remember him when we eat and drink. 

If we take it the way that Jesus meant it, we will find ourselves with daily opportunities to remember him. That will be many more chances than if we recognize only formal Communion services.

When we only embrace the Eucharist events, we have a tendency to forget about Christ until the next Eucharist. It's as if we are being told that this is the only valid time that we can formally honor the resurrection and return of Our Savior.

In the Upper Room, Jesus Christ was giving each person a way to remember him everyday, as often as they each ate, whether they were together or not. If they ate together, fine. If they ate alone, fine. If they ate with a group of Christians, fine. If they ate with their families, fine.

I take Communion by myself at home whenever I remember or am inspired to and with whatever I have. I don't feel that I have to have a certain bread, cracker or drink to make it valid. My heart is valid before God. 

I am also training myself to remember, whenever I sit down to eat a meal, that my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was resurrected from his death, is at the right hand of my Father God and is returning for me one day soon, whether I have died or am alive.



  

How To Take Communion In Faith

I was reading I Corinthians 11:23-34 this morning and taking Communion. I began to think about the burdens that Christians put on each other about the Eucharist. The scriptures 27-33 seem to some to mean that we must go over, recount and acknowledge our sins before we can take part in the Lord's Supper. While it can be helpful to clear our minds of ill will, we can't ensure, through a few quick thoughts, that we are perfect.

In verses 28-29 we are encouraged to discern the Lord's body as we take Communion. We are to perceive that Christ's sacrifice on the Cross cleansed us from unrighteousness. We are to recognize that He is at the right hand of the Father always intervening on our behalf. When we remember, at the time of Communion, that the Blood of Jesus Christ of Nazareth is able to cover our transgressions, past, present and future, we have discerned the Lord's body. These are thoughts that we should enjoy daily.

We can read the Bible daily and pray with sincerity so that the cleansing power of prayer and the transformational power of the Word is continually converting us. This will help us to exist in a state of discerning the body of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Take Communion with faith. Don't be afraid.