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What does the Lord's Supper mean to you?
What Does the Lord’s Supper Mean to You?
Earlier this month you probably celebrated Independence Day. In other words . . . you saw some fireworks. That’s what the holiday has become to most of us. We don’t even call it “Independence Day” any more. Most of the time we simply call it “4th of July.” Commemorations tend to lose their significance over time. We often forget the original purpose of the numerous holidays we traditionally observe in our culture.
Sadly, the same thing has happened with the Lord’s Supper. It is meant to be a commemoration of the death of our Lord on the cross. In many religious circles, however, it has become nothing more than a formal ritual, a routine obligation. Maybe that’s why so many churches don’t observe the Lord’s Supper every Sunday. It takes up too much time! Other groups, on the other hand, have turned communion into a common meal, similar to the church at Corinth in the first century (1 Cor. 11:17-22). These churches have completely forgotten the significance of this sacred memorial.
But what about us? We are the ones who observe the Lord’s Supper properly, right? We would never dream of eating the bread and drinking the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner! The truth is, observing the Lord’s Supper is an individual matter, which means that, if we’re not careful, we can as individuals let it become nothing more than “that quiet part of worship when we partake of the bread and the juice.” Plus our minds may wonder as we partake, dwelling on things like which restaurant we should choose after services, or why some men don’t tuck their shirts in when they're serving the trays, or any other number of earthly matters. In that case, we too have forgotten the significance of this sacred memorial.
Jesus said, “Do this in remembrance of Me” (Luke 22:19). We are to reflect soberly, intently, and deeply upon the death of our Savior, using all of the mental energy we can muster to remember the events of His crucifixion, to ponder the eternal significance of His sacrifice, and to renew our covenant commitment to Him.
Jesus established the Lord’s Supper at the Passover meal, thus forming a connection with the centuries-old commemoration of the Exodus. The Passover feast was, in effect, an annual memory aid. God wanted the Israelites to perpetually remember their deliverance out of Egypt. In like manner, the Lord’s Supper is a memory aid for God’s people today — only we are to observe it every single week, not just once a year. We need to be constantly reminded of the deliverance Christ provided for us on the cross, so that His death will always stay on the forefront of our minds.
Do not let the true significance of the Lord’s Supper be lost on you. Communion is more than partaking of the emblems; it is more than “a moment of silence.” It is a divinely appointed solemn commemoration of the body and the blood of our Lord.
