The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, and
majestic in his radiant splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him today and what came to my heart and mind in 1 Corinthians
11:27-31,

"So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an
unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood
of the Lord. Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of
the bread and drink from the cup. For those who eat and drink without
discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves.
That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have
fallen asleep. But if we were more discerning with regard to
ourselves, we would not come under such judgment."

Back in these days, the days of Paul, what we today celebrate as
"communion", "the Lord's supper", etc. is nothing like the practice
then. Back then, the church got together and actually ate a meal
together, the "love feast". This is the context within which Paul
excoriated the church in Corinth.

It was being abused by the church in Corinth as different factions or
groups would eat apart from the rest of the fellowship. Rather than
wait for others, they would go ahead with their dinner without them.
Paul viewed this as harmful, "I have no praise for you, for your
meetings do more harm than good." Verse 17. The church was already
suffering from divisions that Paul spoke of at the beginning of this
letter where we learn that members claimed to be following their own
special leaders, "My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe's household
have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is
this: One of you says, 'I follow Paul'; another, 'I follow Apollos';
another, 'I follow Cephas [Peter]; still another, 'I follow Christ.'"
1 Corinthians 1:11-12. Not celebrating the love feast together as a
church was further adding to the disintegration of the church.

In verses 23-26 he said, "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." This was practiced during the "love
feast" commemorating the last supper Jesus had with his disciples that
we read of in Matthew 26, Mark 14 and Luke 22. Paul says the Lord gave
him this to pass along to the churches.

In his admonishment of them, Paul pointed to their need to examine
themselves. Failure to do so would be a failure to discern the body of
Christ, "For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of
Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves." Consequently he told
them not to eat the bread or drink from the cup in an unworthy manner.

It is taught in the church today that we need to examine ourselves
before taking communion to see if there be any sin within ourselves we
should deal with to avoid the Lord's condemnation, "That is why many
among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep.
But if we were more discerning with regard to ourselves, we would not
come under such judgment." Verses 30-31.

I'm not sure what we have been taught today quite gets us there. What
does it mean to "discern the body of Christ"? Surely, it must be a
focus on the believer's outlook and attitude toward the other
believers that comprise the body of Christ. This letter is addressed
to a church that is crippled by schisms. The previous chapter focuses
on the need to live our lives in a way that builds up others, rather
than causing others to stumble, 10:32.

That examination of ourselves certainly should include a major focus
on our attitude and outlook toward the other believers in the
fellowship. Are we enjoying ourselves to the exclusion of others
within the fellowship?

What do you think?

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to
hear from you!

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