Communion

Holy Communion
Holy Communion

Remembering What Jesus Has Done for Us

Have you ever wondered why we eat a small piece of bread and drink little plastic cups of grape juice once a month at Christian Fellowship Church? Chances are, you’re not the only one. For thousands of years, the global Church has continued a practice called communion, otherwise known as the “Lord’s Supper” or the “Eucharist” in other traditions or denominations. Communion uses “bread” as a symbol for Jesus’ body and “wine” as a symbol for His blood. At first glance, it seems pretty weird. Why would we talk about eating Jesus’ body and drinking Jesus’ blood? But once you grasp where this practice came from and what it symbolizes, it can be beautiful and meaningful.

Technically, Jesus started the tradition of communion. He instructed His followers to use bread and wine to remember the sacrifice He was going to make when He died on the cross. The Apostle Paul talks about this in his letter, 1 Corinthians 11:23-28. Jesus called Himself “the bread of life,” which means that we’re nourished by Him in a spiritual sense. The early Church celebrated Jesus by taking communion regularly. They saw that every time they gathered around a table to eat and drink (communion = community), it was a chance to recognize Jesus and thank God for life and one another.

Taking communion doesn’t make you a follower of Jesus, save your soul or get you to heaven. The intent is not for us to mindlessly perform a ritual, but to intentionally set aside time to remember what Jesus has done, why he did it, and how we can enact that same sacrificial service to one another and to everyone we encounter in the world. In other words, it’s not the crackers and grape juice that are important, it is what (or who) they point to and represent. Communion is our celebration of what Jesus has done, is doing, and will continue to do in and through us in a symbolic, yet embodied, practice. It helps us to remember who we are and what we’re here to do.