Paul now wraps up his teaching on the Lord’s Supper with a warning, consequence, and instruction. Please read the following passage:
“So anyone who eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord unworthily is guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. 28 That is why you should examine yourself before eating the bread and drinking the cup. 29 For if you eat the bread or drink the cup without honoring the body of Christ, you are eating and drinking God’s judgment upon yourself. 30 That is why many of you are weak and sick and some have even died. 31 But if we would examine ourselves, we would not be judged by God in this way. 32 Yet when we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned along with the world. 33 So, my dear brothers and sisters, when you gather for the Lord’s Supper, wait for each other. 34 If you are really hungry, eat at home so you won’t bring judgment upon yourselves when you meet together. I’ll give you instructions about the other matters after I arrive”
1 Corinthians 11:27-34 NLT
Question 1. What is the warning Paul issues in 1 Corinthians 11:28-29?
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Question 2. What is the consequence for not heeding the warning (1 Corinthians 11:30)?
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Question 3. What is the summary instruction Paul gives in 1 Corinthians 11:33-34?
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To eat the bread and drink the cup of the Lord "unworthily" is to fail to see the cross of Christ, to disregard Jesus’ suffering in our place and His death for our sins, and instead treat Holy Communion as if it were a regular meal.
Disregarding the spiritual realities of the Lord's Supper brings judgment. Paul said it is why some Corinthians were sick and even "sleeping" in death. These believers in Corinth were not being punished or losing their salvation because of their foolish actions; they received discipline. "When we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned along with the world" (1 Corinthians 11:32).
Here we see the difference between how God treats believers and the world of unbelievers. Believers are "disciplined," unbelievers are "condemned."
The whole point that Paul is making is that eating the Lord's Supper is supposed to be a reminder of how Jesus suffered, bled, and died to remove our sin and institute the New Covenant. When the Corinthians were selfishly eating and drinking, getting drunk, etc., they treated sin and the sacrifice Christ made for it lightly. By God judging and disciplining them, the church learned to treat sin with the weight and gravity of the cross itself.
God is so serious about this issue that it is as if He says, “you either recognize the suffering my Son endured for you and His death in your place, and let that cut and heal your heart, or suffer my discipline.” This discipline is intentional and loving so that God’s people “will not be condemned along with the world.”
Being reminded of the cross is the most valuable tool and powerful experience a believer in Jesus has. It should tear our hearts, humble us, and cause us to mourn our sins. “They will look on me whom they have pierced and mourn for him as for an only son. They will grieve bitterly for him as for a firstborn son who has died” (Zechariah 12:10).
After we have seen the bloody suffering of our Savior for our sin and mourned in repentance, we are to rejoice that our sin is removed, our guilt destroyed, our record of wrongs nailed to the cross, our enemy conquered, our names written in heaven! We are free! Jesus finished the work He was given: “The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is upon me, for the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to proclaim that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed. 2 He has sent me to tell those who mourn that the time of the LORD’s favor has come, and with it, the day of God’s anger against their enemies” (Isaiah 61:1-2).
Question 4. If we are living and growing in the gospel, how will we celebrate the Lord’s Supper together?
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