All believers receive forgiveness through the Blood & health through the Bread of Communion.
1 Cor 11:
20 When ye come together therefore into one place, this is not to eat the Lord's supper
(NOTE: Paul is saying that although they gathered intending to take the Lord’s Supper, their selfish behavior turned it into an ordinary meal — therefore, it was no longer the Lord's Supper at all.)
21 For in eating every one taketh before other his own supper: & 1 is hungry & another is drunk
(NOTE: Paul is exposing the disorder in their gathering. Some were treating the meeting like a private meal, eating ahead of others so that one person went hungry while another drank to excess. Their behavior showed selfishness, not remembrance of Christ & this abuse is what prevented their gathering from being the true Lord's Supper.)
22 What? have ye not houses to eat and to drink in? or despise ye the church of God, & shame them that have not?
(NOTE: Paul rebukes them for treating the gathering like a private feast. The Lord’s Supper is not about satisfying hunger or thirst but honoring Christ. Their actions humiliated poorer believers & disrespected the church.)
23 I taught you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread
(NOTE: Paul reminds them of the sacred origin of the Supper. It was instituted by Jesus Himself on the night of His betrayal, emphasizing its solemn and covenantal nature.)
24 When he had given thanks, he brake it, & said, Take, eat: "this is my body, which is broken for you": "this do in remembrance of me"
(NOTE: The bread symbolizes Christ’s body given for believers. The command is to partake in remembrance & focusing on His self giving sacrifice, not on physical eating)
25 He took the cup, when he had supped, said, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me
(NOTE: The cup represents the New Covenant ratified by Christ’s blood. Drinking it is an act of covenant remembrance — recalling the forgiveness purchased by His sacrifice)
26 As often as ye """eat this bread""", & drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come
(NOTE: Every participation in the Supper proclaims Christ’s atoning death & anticipates His return. The Supper looks backward to the Cross & forward to His coming.)
27 Whoever eats this bread, & drinks this cup of the Lord, "unworthily" will be guilty of the body & blood of the Lord
(NOTE: “Unworthily” refers to the manner of partaking, not the moral worthiness of the person. Believers are made worthy by Christ’s sacrifice. The warning is against careless, irreverent participation that contradicts the meaning of the Supper.)
28 Let a man examine himself, & so let him """eat of that bread""", & drink of that cup
(NOTE: The examination Paul commands is not about searching for sins or proving moral worthiness. Believers are already made worthy by Christ’s sacrifice. The examination is simply: Are you partaking with understanding & reverence, recognizing the meaning of the bread and cup? Paul is correcting their careless attitude & not demanding sin confession rituals. You are already forgiven)
29 He that eats & drinks ""unworthily"" eats & drinks damnation to himself ""not discerning"" the Lord's body
(NOTE: Again “Unworthily” describes the manner of partaking, not the moral condition of the person. The issue is failure to "discern" & to recognize what the bread & cup represent. Paul is not warning about hidden sins, he is warning about treating the Supper like a common meal. The judgment comes from irreverence & misunderstanding, not from sinfulness in the participant.)
"""DISCERNING""" Vine's Dictionary Definition: 1 Cor. 11:29, with reference to partaking of the bread and the cup of the Lord's Supper unworthily, """by not "discerning" or discriminating/understanding what they represent""")
30 For this cause many are weak & sickly among you, & many sleep.
(NOTE: The consequence are physical by failing to understand & honor what Christ’s broken body provides. We miss blessings attached to rightly discerning the Lord’s body, both spiritual & physical.
Summary: Forgiveness, Spiritual Health & Physical Health
The Cup of Blessing (1 Cor. 11:25):
A covenant cup, representing the New Covenant sealed in the Lord’s blood. It proclaims full forgiveness & the removal of every sin for every believer.
The Bread He Broke (1 Cor. 11:24):
A symbol of Christ’s sinless body, broken to secure both spiritual renewal & physical wholeness for all who believe.
Pay special attention to Matt 8:17; it accentuates why His Body was Broken
Matt 8:17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.
(NOTE: Matthew applies Isaiah 53:4 to Jesus’ healing ministry, showing that Christ "took" (carried away) our infirmities & "bore" our diseases. The Greek word astheneias (Strong’s G769) means physical weaknesses, sicknesses, & conditions that drain strength. Matthew emphasizes literal, physical ailments, not symbolic or spiritual ones. This confirms that part of Christ’s atoning work includes the provision for physical healing, represented in His broken body.)
Isa 53:5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
(NOTE: Isaiah speaks prophetically, declaring the healing secured by the Messiah’s suffering as a present reality ("we are healed") even though the Cross was still future. The Hebrew verb rapha (Strong’s H7495) means to heal, to restore, to make whole & is used consistently for physical healing throughout the Old Testament. Isaiah is announcing that the Messiah’s wounds would provide both spiritual & physical healing. A provision God considered so certain that He speaks of it as already accomplished.)
1 Pet 2:24 Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.
(NOTE: Peter quotes Isaiah 53 after the Cross, shifting the tense from Isaiah’s prophetic "we are healed" to the fulfilled "ye were healed." The Greek verb iathete (from iaomai, Strong’s G2390) is an aorist passive meaning to heal, cure, restore to health. Peter is declaring that Christ’s suffering has already accomplished what Isaiah foretold. The healing is finished, secured & available to believers. )
Remember — Remembrance
Generally, when we remember the death of a fallen soldier, a family member, or a loved one, it is a moment marked by grief and loss.
But REMEMBER: JESUS HAS RISEN!
Our remembrance in the Lord’s Supper is not a funeral. It is a celebration. In Communion we are invoking the New Covenant.
"Remembrance" Lord’s Supper is a covenant meal. We remember that our blessings were purchased at a costly price.
1 Corinthians 11:26 teaches that this ordinance is to be repeated "as often as you do it" until Christ returns. Each time we proclaim His death in the Supper, we are also reminded that He is coming again.
In the Lord’s Supper we remember the past. The covenant that brings us forgiveness was ratified, or "cut," by the shedding of Jesus’ blood & the breaking of His body. And we look forward to the future, for "you do show the Lord’s death until He comes."
Communion: A Regular Practice, Not a Rare Ritual
The New Testament gives no fixed schedule for Communion, but it provides clear patterns showing it was practiced frequently. The early church "broke bread daily" (Acts 2:46), gathered on the 1st day of the week specifically "to break bread" (Acts 20:7) & Paul taught believers to partake "as often as you do it" (1 Cor 11:25–26), indicating regular repetition without restriction. The priests in the Old Covenant ate the holy bread weekly (Lev 24:5–9) Together, these clues show that Communion was intended to be a regular, ongoing practice. Partaking was central to worship! NOT an occasional ritual invented by later church tradition.
1 Cor 10:18 Behold Israel after the flesh: are not they which eat of the sacrifices (The Priests) partakers of the altar? (Lev 7:6 & 7:15)
Lev 24:5 In the Temple the showbread was baked & eaten (By the Priests) weekly.
Acts: 20:7 Upon the 1st day of the week, when the disciples came together to "break bread"
We are saved by grace through faith in Jesus. The sacraments themselves do not save us. The Lord’s Supper nourishes & sustains those who are already born again—His Church, His Body
Proverbs 4:
20 My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings.
22 For they are life unto those that find them, ""and health to all their flesh""
Psalms 105:37 They ate the LAMB & the next day: Although many were old ""NOT 1 WAS FEEBLE AMOUNG THEM""
Jn 6:53 Then """Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood""";
(NOTE: "No life in you"” means: Jesus is saying they do not possess God’s life apart from receiving Him. Reinforcing that life comes only through Christ’s sacrifice the very reality Communion celebrates. NOT that you lack physical life or need the ritual of Communion to be saved.)
1 Cor 11:
20 When ye come together therefore into one place, this is not to eat the Lord's supper
(NOTE: Paul is saying that although they gathered intending to take the Lord’s Supper, their selfish behavior turned it into an ordinary meal — therefore, it was no longer the Lord's Supper at all.)
21 For in eating every one taketh before other his own supper: & 1 is hungry & another is drunk
(NOTE: Paul is exposing the disorder in their gathering. Some were treating the meeting like a private meal, eating ahead of others so that one person went hungry while another drank to excess. Their behavior showed selfishness, not remembrance of Christ & this abuse is what prevented their gathering from being the true Lord's Supper.)
22 What? have ye not houses to eat and to drink in? or despise ye the church of God, & shame them that have not?
(NOTE: Paul rebukes them for treating the gathering like a private feast. The Lord’s Supper is not about satisfying hunger or thirst but honoring Christ. Their actions humiliated poorer believers & disrespected the church.)
23 I taught you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread
(NOTE: Paul reminds them of the sacred origin of the Supper. It was instituted by Jesus Himself on the night of His betrayal, emphasizing its solemn and covenantal nature.)
24 When he had given thanks, he brake it, & said, Take, eat: "this is my body, which is broken for you": "this do in remembrance of me"
(NOTE: The bread symbolizes Christ’s body given for believers. The command is to partake in remembrance & focusing on His self giving sacrifice, not on physical eating)
25 He took the cup, when he had supped, said, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me
(NOTE: The cup represents the New Covenant ratified by Christ’s blood. Drinking it is an act of covenant remembrance — recalling the forgiveness purchased by His sacrifice)
26 As often as ye """eat this bread""", & drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come
(NOTE: Every participation in the Supper proclaims Christ’s atoning death & anticipates His return. The Supper looks backward to the Cross & forward to His coming.)
27 Whoever eats this bread, & drinks this cup of the Lord, "unworthily" will be guilty of the body & blood of the Lord
(NOTE: “Unworthily” refers to the manner of partaking, not the moral worthiness of the person. Believers are made worthy by Christ’s sacrifice. The warning is against careless, irreverent participation that contradicts the meaning of the Supper.)
28 Let a man examine himself, & so let him """eat of that bread""", & drink of that cup
(NOTE: The examination Paul commands is not about searching for sins or proving moral worthiness. Believers are already made worthy by Christ’s sacrifice. The examination is simply: Are you partaking with understanding & reverence, recognizing the meaning of the bread and cup? Paul is correcting their careless attitude & not demanding sin confession rituals. You are already forgiven)
29 He that eats & drinks ""unworthily"" eats & drinks damnation to himself ""not discerning"" the Lord's body
(NOTE: Again “Unworthily” describes the manner of partaking, not the moral condition of the person. The issue is failure to "discern" & to recognize what the bread & cup represent. Paul is not warning about hidden sins, he is warning about treating the Supper like a common meal. The judgment comes from irreverence & misunderstanding, not from sinfulness in the participant.)
"""DISCERNING""" Vine's Dictionary Definition: 1 Cor. 11:29, with reference to partaking of the bread and the cup of the Lord's Supper unworthily, """by not "discerning" or discriminating/understanding what they represent""")
30 For this cause many are weak & sickly among you, & many sleep.
(NOTE: The consequence are physical by failing to understand & honor what Christ’s broken body provides. We miss blessings attached to rightly discerning the Lord’s body, both spiritual & physical.
Summary: Forgiveness, Spiritual Health & Physical Health
The Cup of Blessing (1 Cor. 11:25):
A covenant cup, representing the New Covenant sealed in the Lord’s blood. It proclaims full forgiveness & the removal of every sin for every believer.
The Bread He Broke (1 Cor. 11:24):
A symbol of Christ’s sinless body, broken to secure both spiritual renewal & physical wholeness for all who believe.
Pay special attention to Matt 8:17; it accentuates why His Body was Broken
Matt 8:17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.
(NOTE: Matthew applies Isaiah 53:4 to Jesus’ healing ministry, showing that Christ "took" (carried away) our infirmities & "bore" our diseases. The Greek word astheneias (Strong’s G769) means physical weaknesses, sicknesses, & conditions that drain strength. Matthew emphasizes literal, physical ailments, not symbolic or spiritual ones. This confirms that part of Christ’s atoning work includes the provision for physical healing, represented in His broken body.)
Isa 53:5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
(NOTE: Isaiah speaks prophetically, declaring the healing secured by the Messiah’s suffering as a present reality ("we are healed") even though the Cross was still future. The Hebrew verb rapha (Strong’s H7495) means to heal, to restore, to make whole & is used consistently for physical healing throughout the Old Testament. Isaiah is announcing that the Messiah’s wounds would provide both spiritual & physical healing. A provision God considered so certain that He speaks of it as already accomplished.)
1 Pet 2:24 Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.
(NOTE: Peter quotes Isaiah 53 after the Cross, shifting the tense from Isaiah’s prophetic "we are healed" to the fulfilled "ye were healed." The Greek verb iathete (from iaomai, Strong’s G2390) is an aorist passive meaning to heal, cure, restore to health. Peter is declaring that Christ’s suffering has already accomplished what Isaiah foretold. The healing is finished, secured & available to believers. )
Remember — Remembrance
Generally, when we remember the death of a fallen soldier, a family member, or a loved one, it is a moment marked by grief and loss.
But REMEMBER: JESUS HAS RISEN!
Our remembrance in the Lord’s Supper is not a funeral. It is a celebration. In Communion we are invoking the New Covenant.
"Remembrance" Lord’s Supper is a covenant meal. We remember that our blessings were purchased at a costly price.
1 Corinthians 11:26 teaches that this ordinance is to be repeated "as often as you do it" until Christ returns. Each time we proclaim His death in the Supper, we are also reminded that He is coming again.
In the Lord’s Supper we remember the past. The covenant that brings us forgiveness was ratified, or "cut," by the shedding of Jesus’ blood & the breaking of His body. And we look forward to the future, for "you do show the Lord’s death until He comes."
Communion: A Regular Practice, Not a Rare Ritual
The New Testament gives no fixed schedule for Communion, but it provides clear patterns showing it was practiced frequently. The early church "broke bread daily" (Acts 2:46), gathered on the 1st day of the week specifically "to break bread" (Acts 20:7) & Paul taught believers to partake "as often as you do it" (1 Cor 11:25–26), indicating regular repetition without restriction. The priests in the Old Covenant ate the holy bread weekly (Lev 24:5–9) Together, these clues show that Communion was intended to be a regular, ongoing practice. Partaking was central to worship! NOT an occasional ritual invented by later church tradition.
1 Cor 10:18 Behold Israel after the flesh: are not they which eat of the sacrifices (The Priests) partakers of the altar? (Lev 7:6 & 7:15)
Lev 24:5 In the Temple the showbread was baked & eaten (By the Priests) weekly.
Acts: 20:7 Upon the 1st day of the week, when the disciples came together to "break bread"
We are saved by grace through faith in Jesus. The sacraments themselves do not save us. The Lord’s Supper nourishes & sustains those who are already born again—His Church, His Body
Proverbs 4:
20 My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings.
22 For they are life unto those that find them, ""and health to all their flesh""
Psalms 105:37 They ate the LAMB & the next day: Although many were old ""NOT 1 WAS FEEBLE AMOUNG THEM""
Jn 6:53 Then """Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood""";
(NOTE: "No life in you"” means: Jesus is saying they do not possess God’s life apart from receiving Him. Reinforcing that life comes only through Christ’s sacrifice the very reality Communion celebrates. NOT that you lack physical life or need the ritual of Communion to be saved.)