What is the Lord’s Supper
and How do we Celebrate it?
by Keith Comparetto
“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.” (2 Corinthians 13:14)
Introduction
Communion, or the Lord’s Supper, is one of two sacred ordinances (the other being baptism) instituted by Christ and the Apostles, and celebrated by Bible-believing Christians since the founding of the Christian Church. Though one purpose of communion is to represent the unity of all true Christians, many differences have developed over the centuries regarding the precise meaning and proper observance of the Supper. Our purpose here is not to examine each of these different opinions in detail, but to arrive at a reasonable and biblical model for our own faith and practice on this important issue.
What is the Purpose and Meaning of Communion?
Communion is described in our London Baptist Confession as follows: “The supper of our Lord Jesus was instituted by him the same night he was betrayed, to be observed in his churches until the end of the world as a perpetual remembrance [of him] and to show forth the sacrifice of himself in his death. It was also instituted to confirm the faith of believers in all the benefits in Christ’s death, for their spiritual nourishment and growth in him, for their further engagement in and commitment to all the duties they owe him, and to be a bond and pledge of their fellowship with him and with one another” (1689 Modernized by A. Kerkham). Communion, then, has no power to save the soul; rather, communion is an expression of our testimony and belief, based on biblical evidence, that we have already become a partaker of Christ’s saving and sanctifying benefits.
How Often Should Communion be Administered?
Although communion is commonly served monthly or even quarterly, we believe the Scriptures indicate weekly observance. In fact, both Acts 20:7 (“Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread”) and Paul’s rebuke in 1 Corinthians 11:17 (“When you come together, it is not the Lord’s supper that you eat“) indicate that a central purpose of coming together was the breaking of bread, or practicing the Lord’s Supper. Early church history indicates that weekly communion was the norm, and John Calvin also indicated a preference for weekly observance: “No meeting of the church should take place without the Word, prayers, partaking of the Supper, and almsgiving.” Calvin gave the following as his reasons for so doing: “If we duly consider the end which our Lord has in view, we shall perceive that the use should be more frequent than many make it: for the more infirmity presses, the more necessary is it frequently to have recourse to what may and will serve to confirm our faith, and advance us in purity of life; and, therefore, the practice of all well ordered churches should be to celebrate the Supper frequently, so far as the capacity of the people will admit.”
Who Should Participate in Communion?
Three basic positions are generally put forth in answer to this important question. We believe, first of all, that communion is a church ordinance, not an individual one, for Acts 20:7, quoted above, indicates that communion was practiced “when the disciples came together.” As to the question of which individuals should or should not partake of the Supper, there are three common views. Open communion says that communion is open to all who desire to participate, regardless of differing doctrinal beliefs, Christian testimony or church affiliation; closed communion restricts communion to only those who are members of a particular local assembly or denomination; and close communion narrows participation to those who are of common testimony and doctrine, but does not consider membership in any human organization to be the basis of one’s qualification for communion.
The first of these three, open communion, was not the practice of the Apostles or the early church, and historically (until very recently) has been broadly represented only by establishment churches in a state of decline. “Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?” (2 Corinthians 6:14). Closed communion is still in common practice, especially among conservative evangelical churches. However, we are inclined for a number of reasons to practice close communion, and ask those who partake of the Supper with us to consider the following guidelines regarding who should, and who should not, participate.
First, we ask those who are not in agreement with the doctrines which we hold dear not to participate with us. Acts 2:42 indicates that communion, or “breaking of bread,” in the early church was an extension of their common bond in the doctrines they shared: “And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.” Because we labor to study and live by those apostolic doctrines, and out of a respect for the consciences of others, we ask our guests to familiarize themselves with what we believe – for at least a week or two – before sharing this time with us.
Second, we ask those who are not walking in obedience to Christ’s commands, even if they profess to be Christians, not to participate with us. This was Paul’s command to the church in 1 Corinthians 5:6-8: “Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” Note that this church was failing to confront a man (the “leaven”) who was living in open fornication, and it was not merely the church’s prerogative but its obligation to exclude such from “keeping the feast” with them.
Third, we respectfully ask parents that children who are too young to have a serious and reverent understanding of Christ’s death do not participate. 1 Corinthians 11, in its call for a solemn time of self-examination, (or “proving of oneself”) indicates that only those who are mature enough to “discern the Lord’s body” should participate. The Scripture does not give us a specific rule here, nor does it indicate that any age is too young for a child to be saved, but we would generally consider most children under the age of 12 to lack the maturity for such discernment.
In response to this restriction, some might point out Jesus’ famous words to his disciples, “Let the little children come to Me.” However, far from turning children away from Christ, we consider the taking of communion to be a danger to the souls of children because it can so easily lead to false assurance before they are genuinely converted; thus, what is thought to be an act of love and acceptance may in the end prove to be to the child’s spiritual undoing.
How Should We Take Communion?
Here, the Scripture gives us several indications that the Supper should be a serious and not a frivolous time. It was instituted “on the night in which Jesus was betrayed” (1 Corinthians 11:23), showing Jesus complete willingness to give up His life for His friends. Certainly, we cannot follow Jesus’ example if we partake of this Supper in a lighthearted manner. Furthermore, 1 Corinthians 11:28-29 commands us to “let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.” Though none of us is worthy of Christ’s sacrifice or His blessings, the Lord’s Supper cannot be celebrated without setting aside a time for serious reflection on Jesus’ willingness to suffer for sinners, and the disposition of our hearts before Him.
Conclusion
The Lord’s Supper is not simply an added blessing to the weekly gathering of the saints; in fact, many consider 1 Corinthians 11:28 to be a command for all mature individuals who profess Christ to participate: “so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup” – i.e., do this. The Scriptures cannot be more emphatic as to the blessings and benefits of the Lord’s Table, for it is an expression of both our oneness with Christ and our unity with the saints: “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread” (1 Corinthians 10: 16-17). May the Lord, then, give us all a greater understanding and a deeper appreciation of this wonderful ordinance!