04/04/2019 — Communion is one of the church's great sacraments. Observed properly, it is a reminder of God's life and death for our sakes that inspires us for righteous action on His behalf. Reduced to a religious ritual, it's nothing but an appetizer before Sunday brunch.

Believers are called to approach communion only after examining themselves, checking their attitudes for gratitude over what Jesus has done in their lives. Then and only then can we celebrate what He means to us by remembering His sacrifice and His victory over death on our behalf!

EDUCATION

Mark 14:22-26
“As they ate, Jesus took the bread and blessed it, tore it, and gave it to his disciples. He said to them, Receive this; it is my body.' Then taking the cup of wine and giving praises to the Father, he declared the new covenant with them. And as each one drank from the cup, he said to them, 'This is my blood, which seals the new[q] covenant poured out for many. I tell you the truth, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the day comes when we drink it together in the kingdom realm of my Father.' Then they sang a psalm and afterwards left for the Mount of Olives" (TPT).

1 Corinthians 11:23-34a

I have handed down to you what came to me by direct revelation from the Lord himself. The same night in which he was handed over, he took bread and gave thanks. Then he distributed it to the disciples and said, “Take it and eat your fill. It is my body, which is given for you. Do this to remember me.“ He did the same with the cup of wine after supper and said, “This cup seals the new covenant with my blood. Drink it—and whenever you drink this, do it to remember me.”
Whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are retelling the story, proclaiming our Lord’s death until he comes. For this reason, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in the wrong spirit will be guilty of dishonoring the body and blood of the Lord. So let each individual first evaluate his own attitude and only then eat the bread and drink the cup. For continually eating and drinking with a wrong spirit will bring judgment upon yourself by not recognizing the body. This insensitivity is why many of you are weak, chronically ill, and some even dying. If you do not sit in judgment of others, you will avoid judgment yourself. But when we are judged, it is the Lord’s training so that we will not be condemned along with the world.
"So then, my fellow believers, when you assemble as one to share a meal, show respect for one another and wait for all to be served. If you are that hungry, eat at home first, so that when you gather together you will not bring judgment upon yourself“ (TPT).

APPLICATION

• Communion reminds us that we are born-again, blood-bought believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. Because His Spirit lives in us, anything that is not of His Spirit does not belong in us, including disease!
• Scripture records that Jesus broke a large piece of bread and distributed it to His disciples. Within 24 hours His body would be given for them, and for us.
• Similarly, we cannot be given unless first we are broken! That is how the anointing is released in your life. And the process of being broken and the anointing being released continues again and again in the believer's life.
• He doesn’t take you once, but over and over again. He doesn’t bless you once, He blesses you over and over again. He doesn’t break you once, He breaks you over and over again. The blessing prepares you for the breaking.
• We are to examine ourselves in communion. But don't examine yourself according to what you think you should be; you are never going to be what you think you should be. That’s called grace. Grace manifests in your life because God simply cannot stop loving you!

IMPARTATION

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for reminding me of Your sacrifice for me every time I take communion! I so need the reminder that Your body was given and Your blood was shed for me at Calvary. Order my steps so that I would examine my attitude every time I partake in Your holy sacrament.

When I realize what You have done for me, it makes me want to tell everyone I know about You! Be with me in my places of comfort and my places of unease as I do exactly that in the weeks before we observe Resurrection Sunday.

In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ – Jehovah Joshua Messiah – I pray. Amen!