Communion
Jesus instructed His disciples to take bread and wine in remembrance of His personal sacrifice on the cross for them. He willingly commemorated the gruesome suffering He was about to go through, before it even happened, because of how significant it would be for every person on earth. Communion is not just a Christian tradition, it can and should be a deeply personal act before Jesus. We honour the personal covenant we entered into with Jesus and remember what it cost Him. No one has ever paid such a high price for our sakes.
Note: Where possible, it is advisable to use unleavened bread, just the way Jesus would have taken it. The act of eating unleavened bread, which is thin, dense, and chewy or crispy, is quite different from taking leavened bread, which is soft, airy, and spongy.)
A prayer at communion
“Father God,
Thank you for sending Your Son, Jesus, to die and pay for our sins. By His blood, we are redeemed (Ephesians 1:7) and by His stripes, we are healed (Isaiah 53:5).
As I take this time to remember Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross for me, please examine my heart and show me if there are any thoughts or emotions in me that grieve You. Please reveal any hidden pride, bitterness, unforgiveness; any way I have transgressed Your commandments; and anyone I have hurt or offended that I need to make amends with. (Please pause and wait for the Lord to bring anything or anyone to mind, then confess them to the Lord.) I now confess all these sins and ask for Your forgiveness. I want to present myself as a living sacrifice, cleansed and purified in heart and mind, so I may be acceptable to You before I take part in communion.
1 Corinthians 11:28-32 NKJV But 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. For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world.
Psalm 139:23-24 NKJV Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting.
Matthew 5:23-24 NKJV Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.
Romans 12:1 NKJV I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.
As I break this bread, I remember that Your body was broken for us. As I chew and crush the bread with my teeth, I remember that Your body was tortured and broken for my sins. It is for my sins that You were crushed. I am humbled by Your immense love and sacrifice for me. Thank you Jesus. As I take this wine, I remember Your blood was shed for the forgiveness of my sins so that I may remain in covenant with You.
1 Corinthians 11:23-26 NKJV For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.
Matthew 26:26-28 NKJV And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
Thank you for reconciling me with You through Your body. Jesus, help me to continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, until You return.
Colossians 1:19-23 NKJV For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross. And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight – if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.
In Jesus’ name, amen.”