The first written words about the Lord's Supper are not contained in the four Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Instead, the earliest words about the Lord's Supper were written by the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 11 (You will find this Scripture passage posted below). As with any Sacrament, sacred observance, or word from Jesus, the meaning of the Lord's Supper can be distorted. At the time of Paul's writing of 1 Corinthians 11 which came only a few decades after Jesus' ascension, the early Christians in Corinth had already forgotten why they observed the Lord's Supper.
In vs. 20 of this passage, Paul tells the Corinthian Christians that it is not the Lord's Supper that they eat. Sure, they were drinking wine and eating bread in their church setting, but they were doing so with no regard for each other. Furthermore, in disregarding each other, they were ignoring the presence of the Living Lord among them as they ate the elements of the Lord's Supper. For years (maybe even centuries), people have read vs. 27-30 and abstained from eating the Lord's Supper in fear of being unworthy of the Sacrament and thus bringing judgment upon themselves. However, eating the Lord's Supper in an unworthy manner doesn't mean that one eats the Lord's Supper before becoming "good enough" on his or her own merit. Instead, eating the Lord's Supper in an unworthy manner is to eat without regard for one's brothers and sisters in Christ and without remembering the Living Lord who gave His life for her or him on the cross.
In eating the Lord's Supper, how do you take worthy consideration of your brothers and sisters in Christ? Do you pray for them? Do you seek reconciliation with them? How do you remember and meet the Living Lord in the eating of the bread and juice? Think on these questions.
1 Corinthians 11
11:17
In the following directives I have no praise for you, for your meetings do more harm than good.
11:18
In the first place, I hear that when you come together as a church, there are divisions among you, and to some extent I believe it.
11:19
No doubt there have to be differences among you to show which of you have God's approval.
11:20
When you come together, it is not the Lord's Supper you eat,
11:21
for as you eat, each of you goes ahead without waiting for anybody else. One remains hungry, another gets drunk.
11:22
Don't you have homes to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you for this? Certainly not!
11:23
For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread,
11:24
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."
11:25
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."
11:26
For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.
11:27
Therefore, 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.
11:28
A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup.
11:29
For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself.
11:30
That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep.
11:31
But if we judged ourselves, we would not come under judgment.
11:32
When we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned with the world.
11:33
So then, my brothers, when you come together to eat, wait for each other.
New International Version
