THE MEMORIAL COMMUNION SERVICE

B. MILLS

It does not really make any difference to us, as we accept the entire Bible to be of God through the pens of inspired men, but some think that 1 Corinthians was written before any of the four Gospels. If that is true, then this account of its institution is probably the first to be committed to writing, and either way, it is in the very words of the Lord on the very day of his arrest leading to his crucifixion and death. This makes it an “Ordinance” of God. There are two, and possibly three, ordinances or commands of the Lord for the Church era. They are Baptism, the Communion service, and possibly the Lord’s Day, which we call Sunday and is a day set aside for Him. The Sabbath was a day of rest, and happened to be the seventh day, the day on which God rested after the creation of all things. That was made a day of worship under the Law of Moses and continued until that law was fulfilled and the era of the church began.

Unfortunately, the church in Corinth had linked it to their weekly Love Feast , mentioned in Jude 12,which took place at the close of their worship. Jesus had used the emblems of the Passover feast, the bread and the wine. The Corinthian wealthy had taken those, added gluttony, selfishness, and drunken revelries misusing them. Paul spares no words in expressing his horror at what they were doing in the first portion of the text.

1 Corinthians 11:17-26 (King James Version)

17 Now in this that I declare unto you I praise you not, that ye come together not for the better, but for the worse. (1 Corinthians 11:2, 1 Corinthians 11:22)

18 For first of all, when ye come together in the church, I hear that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it. (1 Corinthians 1:10, 1 Corinthians 1:33)

19 For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you. (Matthew 18:7, Luke 17:1, 1 Timothy 4:1, 2 Peter 2:1, 1 John 2:19, Deuteronomy 13:3)

20 When ye come together therefore into one place, this is not to eat the Lord's supper.

21 For in eating every one takes before other his own supper: and one is hungry, and another is drunken. (Jude 12)

22 What? have ye not houses to eat and to drink in? or despise ye the church of God, and shame them that have not? what shall I say to you? Shall I praise you in this? I praise you not. (1 Corinthians 10:32, James 2:6, 1 Corinthians 11:2, 1 Corinthians 11:17)

23 For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread: (1 Corinthians 15:3, Galatians 1:12, Colossians 3:24, 1 Corinthians 11:23-25, Matthew 26:26-28, Mark 14:22-24, Luke 22:17-20, 1 Corinthians 10:16)

24 And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, quoting directly the Lord’s words reminding them of it’s institution. Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.

25 After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, this cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. (1 Corinthians 10:16, Exodus 24:6-8, Luke 22:20, 2 Corinthians 3:6)

26 For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord's death till he comes. (John 21:22, 1 Corinthians 4:5)

The frequency if this observance is not directly referred to here, though many assume that the ”breaking of bread“ in Acts 2:42. That is used in connection with “steadfastly.” A far more explicit reference linked with the Lord’s Day is given in Acts 20:7. They came together to “break bread.” This was their custom, and Paul waited five days knowing they would gather for this time of worship on the first day of the week.