[Truth & Love] in Word and DeedНамуна

The Bread and the Cup

When we partake of the bread and the cup, what are we remembering? We remember that Christ’s body was offered so we can participate in His death on the cross. This was our atonement that provided the forgiveness of all our sins.

Communion gives us the chance, as the body of Christ, to come together in the one thing that unifies us across the board—the finished work of Jesus on the cross and our faith in Him.

It is a privilege to reflect on what we believe about Jesus and His work on our behalf through the bread and the cup.

After giving thanks for the bread, Jesus broke the bread and said that His body would be physically broken for us. If He hadn’t broken the bread, He wouldn’t have been able to distribute it among them. If His body hadn’t been broken on the cross, then that atoning work wouldn’t have been distributed throughout all the ages for all mankind.

When we look at the bread, we are being offered the same thing He offered the disciples—Himself.

In the new covenant, the wine symbolizes Jesus’ blood, and the cup, His lot in life. Jesus’ lot in life was to go to the cross and be the sacrifice for us. By drinking the cup, we are joining Him in His cup, and He is joining us in ours.

Jesus is now inaugurating the new covenant in His blood. God kept His promise of a new covenant that opened the door for the Gentiles to get into the Kingdom and receive all the blessings of what Christ did on the cross. It is through Him that we have received grace upon grace, filled with His Spirit, and received a new heart.

According to the law, almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood, there is no remission of sin. So, it had to be a blood sacrifice.

But Jesus’ blood sacrifice was not like any of the blood sacrifices for sin—the blood of bulls, goats, and other sacrificial animals could only temporarily cover sin, but not remove it. Jesus’ blood was perfect because it was sinless and, therefore, powerful to wash away all our sins.

We can have communion, or fellowship with Him, because of His blood. We can approach God’s throne boldly with His blood. As believers, we stand before God holy, blameless, and acceptable because of Jesus’ blood.

Christ, who went to the cross, let His body be broken (the bread) and shed His blood (the cup) so we could enter into a new and better covenant. This is how we gained eternal relationship with the God of the universe. This is what Jesus does not want us to forget when we come to this table.

Lord, thank You for the privilege of remembering that Jesus’ broken Body and the Blood He shed opened the door for believers to be redeemed, reconciled, forgiven of sins, and given divine gifts of grace. Help us not to take this lightly, and enjoy the abundant blessing of being in Your family by virtue of Jesus’ perfect, complete, and powerful sacrifice.