Taking holy communion is essential for the bold believer in Christ.
It is perhaps the most under utilized gift amongst the Christian body.
We observe the taking of Holy Communion generally as an event set apart for special occasions in some churches. For some churches, there is a specific Sunday out of every month where it is observed.
Notably, there tends to be a focus on taking Holy Communion for Easter services.
Today, we want to explore the significance of this practice.
We particularly want to challenge any perception that partaking of Holy Communion ought to be limited to special occasions.
What is Holy Communion?
Holy Communion is a religious practice amongst Christians where we eat a piece of bread(or cracker) and drink wine(or grape juice) in commemoration of Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross.
It is often referred to as The Lord’s Supper or the Eucharist, depending on the denomination.
The ‘bread’ is used to symbolize His broken body. The ‘wine’ represents the His blood which was spilt at the cross.
What Jesus Says About Taking Holy Communion
The bible prescribes the partaking of the Holy Communion for us believers.
Jesus Himself started this tradition when He instructed that we do this in remembrance of Him.
It only makes sense for us to examine each bit of scripture for ourselves to see what He said.
Here are the go to verses that tell us what He has said about this essential act:
Matthew 26:26-29
26 Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” 27 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, 28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”
Mark 14:22-25
22 And as they were eating, he took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.” 23 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. 24 And he said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. 25 Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”
Luke 22:19-20
19 And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 20 And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.
Why Should We Take Holy Communion
While not every believer partakes in the ritual of communion, we at Stating Faith believe every believer should.
You see, Holy Communion is a grace gift to us from our Lord. It is a celebration of who He is and what He has done for us.
We pray “Give us this day, our daily bread ” and Jesus Himself said in John 6 that He is ‘the bread of life”.
Jesus gives us spiritual nourishment that enriches our lives in every way.
He is the spiritual armor who shields us from the fiery darts of the enemy. He it is who has already won the victory for us all.
Plenty of believers credit their healing as well to taking communion.
There have been incredible testimonies of breakthroughs of all kinds to those who faithfully partake in The Lord’s Supper.
This commemoration of His blood-bought sacrifice is an honor we all should press into and aim to partake in as often as possible.
In fact, since we are doing this in remembrance of Him, we really ought to take it daily.
By taking some intentional time to do this really short, meaningful ritual we are recognizing the new covenant.
And oh how important it is for us to remember this new grace covenant.
Quite simply though, Jesus Himself instructed us to.
For the devout believer, that ought to be reason enough.
For the price He paid, it should be a great honor for us to take every opportunity to discern His body.
Imagine too, the transformative power we would access if we thought about His resurrection every day?
Can you see it with me?
If ever there is a challenge worth taking, we double dare you to take this one.
It will build our faith!
The Right Way To Take Holy Communion
There is only one wrong way to take Holy Communion.
We dishonor our Saviour when we partake of it in an unholy manner.
Paul tells us that this unworthiness comes about if ever we fail to discern the body of Christ as we eat and drink as He instructed.
27 Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. 28 Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself.
1 Corinthians 11: 27-29
In other words, any believer who is thinking about anything other than Jesus during this sacred moment, is in fact taking Holy Communion incorrectly.
So too for anyone mindlessly performing a ritual.
We can think about ourselves, our circle of influence and our problems before or after communion but not during.
This is God’s time and He beyond deserves full reverence and honor from us.
Practical Tips on Taking Communion at Home
Massive disclaimer here – These are just recommendations and not biblical instruction.
So by now, we have established that communion can be taken daily thus can be taken at home.
Take With Any Food Element
We also believe the most significant element of the Lord’s Supper is not the ‘what’ but the ‘how’. So, we believe that we can take it with any food element.
A piece of bread or cracker is usually easy to find in our homes.
Still, a piece of cookie or anything that can be broken off and eaten will work just as well.
So too for the drink. If one has no ‘wine’ or grape juice, any other juice will do.
We say this to say that specificity should not be a deterrent to the believer who is eager to partake.
Use Your Supplements.
This is admittedly very unconventional but oh so practical. Many of us have some kind of supplement that we take daily.
Consider using this time as an opportunity to observe the Lord’s Supper. This might work wonderfully for those who already have prescribed medication.
By discerning Jesus’s sacrifice in this moment, we can get to really consider that by His stripes, we are indeed healed.
Set An Alarm
Yes, let us set a simple alarm.
Not everyone will need to do this, especially if we decide to mentally pair it with something we already routinely do.
But for others, using our phone to set an intentional alarm will help us build this life-giving habit.
Think of it as selfcare.
This intentional time of quiet reflection is the ultimate selfcare.
Thinking about Jesus’s broken body and the spilling of His blood for our sakes will fill us.
Taking the Lord’s Supper daily and thinking about His resurrection each day will humble us.
It will minister to us and be a kind of daily ‘heart surgery’. It is a daily faith building exercise that will pull us into thinking about the miraculous.
Use Songs
Again, the whole aim of Holy Communion is to remember Jesus.
When we take that time to intentionally eat and drink in discernment of His body, we fulfil the instruction of our Saviour.
In that vein, we can use a song that helps us to remember His sacrifice for us.
We can sit in quiet contemplation and worship Jesus by discerning His body and partaking of our elements.
There are many songs that provide the perfect backdrop for taking communion. See our current favorite for deep reflection.
Tell us in the comments what other gospel songs come to mind.
Final Word
Holy Communion is really important. We, at Stating Faith, desire to incorporate this wonderful grace gift into our lifestyle.
Will you join us in making this a habit?
After all, Jesus asked us to.
Do you believe like we do that this will do wonders for growing our faith?