Today I was drawn to the exhortation of Paul to the Corinthian believers that they examine themselves as they gathered together for the Lord's Supper, a feast which was supposed to illustrate the love of Christ and unity with one another. Hearkening back to Jesus who distributed bread and wine to His disciples on the night He was betrayed that symbolised His broken body and blood that would be shed for them, this practice was incorporated into regular meals. Paul rebuked the Corinthians because of their divisions, exclusion of others and excess in these gatherings where the poor went hungry and others were drunk!
He advised in 1 Corinthians 11:28, "But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and
drink of the cup." Each person was instructed to examine himself to ensure each one was obedient to Jesus, united in the fear of God, to love one another and repent of sin. Paul was not erecting an obstacle to fellowship with God or others: sin is what does that! Paul encouraged personal examination so people would be discerning of the LORD's body (the church) when they ate of the bread and drank of the cup--not to disqualify themselves due to sin they repented of. At times in the history of the church well-meaning leaders have taken it upon themselves to examine others and deem them unworthy to partake of communion when there is no one righteous but Christ. Each person is accountable before God, and thus each one of us in the church ought to examine ourselves.
To refuse to partake of communion because we have sinned is like not coming to Jesus Christ in repentance because we feel we ought to be punished for our sin. Didn't Jesus provide atonement by His shed blood for the sin of the world in full? Can we add to His sacrifice? Is it our feelings of guilt and shame that tore the veil of the Holy of Holies from top to bottom? To be sure, our sin is a hideous, horrendous thing: should we add to our sin by resistance to repentance for sin and broken surrender to our Saviour, when He has died so we can live and have fellowship with God and one another today? The self-examination Paul spoke of was intended to move sinners to repentance that preceded communion, not self-exclusion. To put ourselves in a self-imposed spiritual "time out" because we have sinned does not seem to take 1 John 1:9 into account for the Christian: "If we
confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to
cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
There is a person who receives communion who desires to be seen by other people to be receiving it, while another does not receive communion because they feel unworthy. In a fleshly sense, this may be an honourable thing to do. From a biblical perspective, however, we are all unworthy by the efforts of our flesh to be born again, to have fellowship with God, to be forgiven or receive communion. In light of the New Covenant Jesus has established in His own blood, we are called to examine ourselves, to repent of sin, and eat of the bread and drink of the cup knowing we are partakers of the Gospel by God's grace. Psalm 130:3-4 reads, "If You,
LORD, should mark iniquities,
O Lord, who could stand? 4 But there is
forgiveness with You, that You may be feared." Praise the LORD for the new beginnings He provides day by day for the humble soul that repents of sin in the fear of God.
