1 Corinthians 11:23-26

Scripture: 1 Cor. 11:23 For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread,

1 Cor. 11:24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”

1 Cor. 11:25 In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”

1 Cor. 11:26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.

Teaching: Having admonished the Corinthians for sinning against the Lord in their raucous and libertine method of observing the Lord’s Supper, Paul establishes the correct way to observe the ritual, or sacrament. Interestingly, many scholars believe this letter was written before any of the Gospels, which would make it the first written account of how to observe the Lord’s Supper. We can see Paul understanding his audience of gentile Greeks, as he skips over teaching the deeper Jewish significance of the Passover meal. However, Paul stresses that Jesus knew this was his last supper, it was a moment of great significance, and he was determined to establish a certain way this ritual would be observed from then on, as Paul says Jesus personally delivered to him. Again, the Lord’s Supper is not up for reinterpretation or modernizing to fit the preferences of a certain culture, as the Corinthians were doing. 

Paul then details the breaking of the bread, which symbolizes Christ’s broken body for us, and the wine, which symbolizes his spilled blood, the marking of a new covenant with God. Paul then adds that this should be observed frequently, but does not specify an exact cadence. Lastly, in verse 26, Paul establishes the meaning of this meal — that each time we eat this bread and drink this cup, we proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

Takeaway: What exactly are we proclaiming when we proclaim Christ’s death? Don’t we more often proclaim his life? That he is risen? Yes we do. But we also should be proclaiming his death in conjunction with his resurrection. Christ died to pay for our sins, to free us from the shackles of sin and death. He did not come to us to be King and rule over us in his first coming, but rather to die. I think it is easy to focus our minds on the victory over death that Christ had and subsequently gives to us, as it is soothing, inspiring, and exhilarating to think upon such victory. But when we consider the brutal death of Christ — for my sin and yours, personally — and we consider his broken body and blood spilled, it is sobering, grounding, and even brooding. Thus, the Lord’s Supper is not a time for raucous celebration but rather stark remembrance of exactly what Christ did for each of us personally, and what put him on that cross to begin with. But verse 26 doesn’t just say “you proclaim the Lord’s death” but rather “you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.” Coupled with the sobering reflection is joyful anticipation. Christ did all of this because he so loved the world. Because he so loved each of us. So as we partake in the Lord’s Supper, let us remember all that Christ has done and will do.