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City: Gladwin, Michigan
Question:
Please explain to me the meaning of communion as far as who should take of it and why. Thank you
Answer:
Communion or the Lord’s Supper, as we would typically call it, was instituted by Jesus within minutes of his betrayal. The purpose of the Lord’s Supper is to serve as a memorial of his death. The bread gives us a picture of his broken body and the fruit of the vine gives us a picture of the blood that flowed from his body to cover our sins.
The Lord’s Supper is a church ordinance. Only Jesus’ disciples were with him when he instituted it. Later, when he wrote concerning the subject in I Corinthians 11, Paul wrote concerning “when ye therefore come together in one place….” In I Corinthians 5:11, Paul instructs us to not eat with one who is called a brother but fails to reveal that through his actions. The Lord’s Supper is limited to people who are saved and have joined the church.
The Lord’s Supper is further restricted. In I Corinthians 11, Paul refers to disunity in the church. Because the church was not unified, they were unable to participate in the Lord’s Supper. A church should first resolve their issues before having the Lord’s Supper. A church member who is not acting as a Christian should is not to take part in the Lord’s Supper (I Corinthians 5:11). This may require some judgment on the part of the church. Each person is to examine himself to determine whether he should take part. If he has something again a brother or some sin that he has not repented of, he should make it right with the brother and/or repent of the sin prior to the Lord’s Supper. If he does not, he should not participate, out of respect for the picture that the Lord’s Supper reveals.
There is some debate over the question of whether a member of one church may participate in the Lord’s Supper at another church. It is the opinion of our church that one should not. Because of the necessity of the church determining who should participate and even the need to take disciplinary action, we believe that only those people who the church has the authority to discipline should take part. It is our belief that only the local church has the authority to discipline her members, so we limit the Lord’s Supper to our members.
