Afraid to Take Communion?

I've known several Christians who were afraid to participate in the Lord's Supper. The most common reason for this fear is preaching that emphasized introspection, reverence, and personal purity as prerequisites for "worthy" participation in Holy Communion. The textual basis for such preaching is 1 Corinthians 11:17-34, the most lengthy discussion of the Lord's Supper in all of Scripture. So, let's examine the text, verse by verse, and see what a Christian's attitude toward Communion should be. 

Verse 17 But in giving this instruction, I do not praise you, because you come together not for the better but for the worse.

The Corinthians were getting a strong rebuke. Their behavior was so bad that their meeting did more harm than good! (but at least they gathered)

Verse 18  For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that divisions exist among you; and in part, I believe it. 

Corinth was a divided church – divided over favorite teachers, taking each other to court, and divided over social class.

God values highly a unified church. That’s why this epistle stresses unity so frequently. In chapter 11 we see an emphasis on unity in the Lord’s Supper. In chapter 12, unity in spiritual gifts. And in 13 – unity in love.

Verse 19  For there must also be factions among you, in order that those who are approved may have become evident among you.

There were faithful and unfaithful believers in the church. That’s why there were divisions/factions.

Verse 20 Therefore when you meet together, it is not to eat the Lord's Supper, 

What they were doing when they celebrated “the Lord’s Supper” was so bad (v 17) that it could not rightly be called the Lord’s Supper. 

Verse 21  for in your eating each one takes his own supper first; and one is hungry and another is drunk. 

Cultic meals were almost always a part of ancient worship. The early Christians ate a fellowship meal and the Lord's Supper together ("after supper" v 25). See also Acts 2:42, 46; 20:7, 11; Jude 12. In Corinthian society some guests got more and better food than others based on their status. The wickedness of the culture came into the church. It was not the Lord’s Supper. It was their supper (20-21). They were getting drunk at the table. But that wasn't Paul's main concern. They were not unified! The rich and poor were separate (perhaps even eating in different rooms, the dining room saved for the rich and the courtyard for the poor). The rich ate well while the poor ate poorly. And the rich may have started eating while the poor were still at work. Some communion that was!

Verse 22 What! Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Or do you despise the church of God, and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you? In this I will not praise you.

Be ashamed you who shame the poor and despise God's church. You have houses to eat in. Others have nothing. 

Verse 23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread;

Jesus was betrayed by a disciple – his friend.

Verse 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."

This is my body, obviously not to be taken literally. “Broken” (in KJV) may not be in the original. Christ’s physical body was never broken, at least not his bones. But his entire person was broken for us. It “pleased the Lord to crush him.” His suffering was “for you.” We eat to remember him and his suffering.

Verse 25 In the same way He took the cup also, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me." 

The cup is the New Covenant – a gracious covenant of love. Again, we drink in remembrance of him.

Verse 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes.

We eat the Lord’s Supper to proclaim his death until he returns. His death was a profound demonstration of self-giving love. A selfish Lord's Supper is impossible. 

Verse 27 Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord.

Those who participate in the Lord’s Supper in an unworthy manner are guilty of the body and blood of our Lord.

Verse 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 

Examine yourself before you participate.

Verse 29  For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself, if he does not judge the body rightly. 

He who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner brings judgment[1] on himself by not recognizing the body of Christ. An abuse of the body is an abuse of Christ himself (see Paul's encounter with the risen Lord). A true Lord’s Supper recognizes the unity of the body. 1 Corinthians 10:17 For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread.

Matthew 5:23 Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath something against thee; 24 Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.

Matthew 6:14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: 15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Verse 30 For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep. 

A community sin brought community judgment. The Spirit must have revealed to Paul that the reason for many sicknesses and death in the Corinthian church was their sinful “Lord’s Supper.” This does not mean that the ones who got sick and died were the same ones who were guilty. Neither does it mean that sickness and death in the church are always a divine judgment (whether pertaining to the Lord's Supper or not). It does remind us that “judgment begins at the house of God.”

Verse 31 But if we judged ourselves rightly, we should not be judged.

Judge yourselves or God will judge you.

Verse 32 But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord in order that we may not be condemned along with the world.

Still, when God brings judgment to the church it is so that the church will be spared in the final day of judgment. His chastening is for our good.

Verse 33 So then, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. 

That’s why you should wait for one another, rather than some of you feasting privately.

Verse 34  If anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, so that you may not come together for judgment. And the remaining matters I shall arrange when I come.

If you’re hungry, eat at home. That way your gatherings will not bring God’s judgment.

Christians are a family. We are a close family. There is no room for division in this family.

Do not fear the Lord’s Table – reverence it. Jesus did not come to condemn us. He came to save us. By celebrating the Lord’s Supper we proclaim his sacrificial death – His death for us. We have all sinned, some more recently and grievously than others. He came to change that. He came to change us. That includes you. If you are weary and weighed down with guilt and care, come to the Table. There is grace for you there. There is life for the repentant there. Come to Jesus and live.

[1] KJV has damnation here and translates the same Greek word more helpfully as condemnation in verse 34. These days we tend to think of damnation in only one way – eternal condemnation. That is not what Paul has in mind.

Fee, Gordon. The First Epistle to the Corinthians. 1st ed. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1987.

Keener, Craig S. ; InterVarsity Press. The IVP Bible background commentary : New Testament. Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 1993.

Morris, Leon L. 1 Corinthians (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries. IVP Academic, 2008.

Spiritual Gifts Have Not Ceased

Here are a couple of helpful articles by John Ruthven for those with questions about Spiritual gifts today. One focuses on the biblical case. The other on the historical. 

Themes and Transformations in Old Testament Prophecy by Samuel A. Meier

(Chapter 3 is interesting. "Is the future determined?" Open Theist perspective.)


Especially enjoyed chapter 15! "Reliable prophets in the context of change" 


While recognizing that some degree of uncertainty cannot be eliminated, he gives some biblical earmarks of true prophets -- all with good biblical support. 
1. They live in poverty. 
2. They often bear bad news. Especially bad before good. 
3. They give the minority report.
4. Their predictions come true (unless conditions change. And bearing in mind that this test is quite limited, since it takes time to "wait and see".) 

A Study of Early Christianity: Jesus is Divine

Jesus is Divine – “One Lord, Jesus Christ”

            Here Christianity parts ways with the monotheism of the Israelites. Faithful Jews stumbled at the idea of Jesus as “God with us”. How could it be that the “Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1) if there is only one God? The Christian church struggled long and hard to understand this revelation.

            In spite of the intellectual difficulty of simultaneously maintaining the belief that there is only one God (which belief we have seen that the church did indeed maintain), there was no delay in accepting the revelation that Jesus was worthy to be worshipped as God. Jesus had told his first followers that he was eternal (John 8:24-58, 17:5; Rev 1:8), and that he was God in flesh (Luke 22:70-71; John 10:30-36). The first generation of Christians boldly proclaimed that Jesus was divine (John 1:1; 20:28; Acts 3:15; 4:12; 20:28; Galatians 1:1; Colossians 1:17; Philippians 2:6; Titus 2:13; Hebrews 1:6-8; 13:8) and directed prayers and worship to him (Prayers: Acts 7:59-60; 9:10-17, 21; 22:16-19; 1 Corinthians 1:2; 16:22;  2 Corinthians 12:8-9; Worship: Matthew 14:33; 28:9,17; John 5:23; 20:28; Philippians 2:10-11; Hebrews 1:6; Revelation 5:8-14).

            The oldest extant Christian sermon, outside of the New Testament, is generally known as 2 Clement (though written by an anonymous Christian rather than Clement of Rome).[1] That sermon begins “Brethren, we ought so to think of Jesus Christ, as of God, as of the Judge of quick and dead.”[2] The Apostolic Fathers constantly bear witness that Jesus is divine.[3]  Ignatius addresses his epistle to the Ephesians to those who are elect by the will of “Jesus Christ, our God” and describes their hearts as “kindled in the blood of God.”[4] As if that were not clear enough, he then goes on to confess, "There is one Physician who is possessed both of flesh and spirit; both made and not made; God existing in flesh; true life in death; both of Mary and of God; first passible and then impassible, even Jesus Christ our Lord.”[5] Ignatius’ hope and aspiration, as he was being led to martyrdom, was not to be delivered from his death sentence. Rather, he wanted to become an “imitator of the passion of my God.”[6] The earliest pagan reference to Christian worship (by Pliny the Younger) portrays them as “singing a hymn to Christ as though to [a] god.” It was only much later (c 318) that the Arian controversy brought the deity of Christ into question.[7]

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[1] Pelikan, The Christian Tradition, 173.

[2] J. B. Lightfoot, The Apostolic Fathers (ed. J. R. Harmer; Baker Book House, 1997), 44.

[3]Shepherd of Hermas Ibid., 231.; Diognetus VII, ANF I p. 27; Kelly, Early Christian Doctrines, 90–101.; Pelikan, The Christian Tradition, 173–91.

[4] ANF I p. 49

[5] Ignatius, Epistle to the Ephesians VII, ANF I p. 52; I followed Lightfoot’s translation in replacing  possible and impossible with passible and impassible.

[6] Ig., Romans VI, ANF I p. 76

[7] A key passage for the Arian controversy was Proverbs 8:22-31; Pelikan, The Christian Tradition, 173, 191–210. Justo L. Gonzalez, Story of Christianity: Volume 1, The: The Early Church to the Dawn of the Reformation (2 Rev Upd.; HarperOne, 2010), 181–92.

A Study of Early Christianity: Creation from Nothing

Creation from Nothing – “Maker of All That Is”

Again it is helpful to remember the Jewish background of Christianity. Though Christian responses to contemporary Judaism were sometimes less than congenial[1], and though as far as we know (in contrast to the writers of the New Testament) all of the Apostolic Fathers were Greek, the church never lost sight of its roots in the law and prophets. Christian doctrine did become increasingly distinct from Judaism as it continued to develop in the centuries following its birth.[2] Nevertheless, the religion remained monotheistic and continued to affirm that the Almighty God created everything out of nothing. 

The oldest of Christian writings are found in the New Testament. They declare that God “created all things by Jesus Christ” (Eph 3:9)[3]. Peter calls the Lord a “faithful Creator” (1 Pet 4:19). Heavenly worship is described by John as including the confession “You created all things” (Rev 4:11). There is no hint in the New Testament of any competing Christian belief regarding creation. Gnostic views ascribing the work of material creation to a lesser and evil deity only developed later.[4]

Ante-Nicene Christians continued to affirm, in unmistakable terms, that God created everything from nothing. Take Irenaeus’ statement (c 180) for instance:  “While men, indeed, cannot make anything out of nothing, but only out of matter already existing, yet God is in this point preeminently superior to men, that He Himself called into being the substance of His creation, when previously it had no existence.”[5] Clement of Rome (writer of I Clement) knows God as “Creator and Lord of all.” [6] Hermas says that God not only created everything, He “brought all things from non-existence into being.”[7] Here again, witnesses could be multiplied.[8]

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[1] See Epistle of Barnabas

[2] Jaroslav Pelikan, The Christian Tradition: A History of the Development of Doctrine, Vol. 1: The Emergence of the Catholic Tradition (University Of Chicago Press, 1975), 11–27.

[3] See also John 1:3

[4]  González, A History of Christian Thought, 126–41. Craig A. Evans, Fabricating Jesus: How Modern Scholars Distort the Gospels (Expanded.; IVP Books, 2006)

[5] Irenaeus Ag. Heresies  2,10,4 ANF II p. 370; see also Iren Frag. VI ANF II p.569

[6] I Clement, XXXIII, ANF I p. 13

[7] Shepherd of Hermas Book Second Commandment First, ANF II p. 20

[8] Theophilus of Antioch Theophilus to Autolycus 2,4 ANF II p. 90 “all things God has made out of things that were not into things that are”; Tertullian ANF III p. 493; Tatian ANF II p. 66

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[1] See Epistle of Barnabas

[2] Jaroslav Pelikan, The Christian Tradition: A History of the Development of Doctrine, Vol. 1: The Emergence of the Catholic Tradition (University Of Chicago Press, 1975), 11–27.

[3] See also John 1:3

[4] Craig A. Evans, Fabricating Jesus: How Modern Scholars Distort the Gospels (Expanded.; IVP Books, 2006)

[5] Irenaeus Ag. Heresies  2,10,4 ANF II p. 370; see also Iren Frag. VI ANF II p.569

[6] I Clement, XXXIII, ANF I p. 13

[7] Shepherd of Hermas, Book Second Commandment First, ANF II p. 20

[8] Theophilus of Antioch Theophilus to Autolycus 2,4 ANF II p. 90 “all things God has made out of things that were not into things that are”; Tertullian ANF III p. 493; Tatian ANF II p. 66

A Study of Early Christianity: Monotheism

Monotheism – “We believe in one God”

            In its earliest days, Christianity was seen as a sect of Judaism (Acts 3:13; 18:15; 23:29; 25:19; 26:3). Christians attended synagogue and designated hours of prayer at the temple (Acts 3:1; 9:20; 13:5, 14; 14:1; 17:1-3, 17; 18:4; 19:8). Those first Christians, faithful Jews that they were, likely repeated the Shema as part of their daily devotion to God. Shema, meaning “hear,” is the first word of Deuteronomy 6:4, “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD.” ^[1] This confession set Judaism apart from their polytheistic neighbors. Christians, from the beginning, shared this doctrine with the Judaism.

The New Testament bears witness to the continuity between Judaism and the first generation of Christians regarding monotheism. There is no room for doubt that the New Testament authors recognized only one God (Mar 12:29; Joh 17:3; 1 Cor 8:4-6; Gal 3:20; 1 Tim 2:5; Jam 2:19).

This commitment to monotheism did not diminish in the post-apostolic period. Clement referred to God as the “great Creator and Lord of all,” elsewhere calling Him “the true and only God.” [2] Ignatius, writing to the Magnesians, insisted that Christians worshiped the same “one God” as the Old Testament prophets.[3] Such quotations could be multiplied.[4]

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[1] Ferguson, Everett. Backgrounds of early Christianity. (W.B. Eerdmans, 1987), 445-46

[2] 1 Clement XX, ANF I p. 11; I Clement XLIII, ANF I p. 17

[3] Ignatius to the Magnesians VIII, ANF I p. 62

[4] “First of all, believe that there is one God” Shepherd of Hermas, Book Second Commandment First, ANF II p. 20; “For who will not say that there is one God? Yet he will not on that account deny the economy.” Hippolytus, Ag. Noetus .4, ANF V, p. 224; “The Jews then, if they abstain from the kind of service above described, and deem it proper to worship one God as being Lord of all, [are right]; but if they offer Him worship in the way which we have described, they greatly err.” Diognetus III, ANF I, p. 26; Arnobius, Ag. the Heathen III ANF VI pp. 464 ff. (contrasts Christian monotheism with polytheism); Tatian IV, ANF II p. 66; Tertullian Ag. Marcion III, ANF III p. 273, etc.

A Study of Early Christianity

The Christian faith is ancient. Long before your grandparents were born Christianity had been around for centuries. It is much older than the United States. Yet, many of us know little to nothing about the beliefs and practices of the Christians who have gone before us. Since historical events such as the Incarnation, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus are so essential to Christianity it seems that we should be quite interested in history.

What you are about to read is a brief introduction. It will focus on select writings from the earliest Christians, prior to the first council at Nicaea in A.D. 325, especially the Apostolic Fathers.[1]

Why study early Christianity?

            By “Early Christianity” I primarily have in mind the few generations immediately following the Apostles. Some of those early Christians were taught by people who walked and talked with our Savior during his earthly ministry. Ignatius and Polycarp are traditionally believed to have been disciples of the Apostle John. Clement was probably a disciple of Peter and Paul. Papias is reported to have received teaching from the Apostle John and oral tradition from the daughters of the Apostle Philip.

Some things found in these ancient writings can seem strange to modern readers. So let me give you some reasons why we should take these early Christians seriously. 

They were closer to the source

Standing here, in 21^st century North America, we are separated from the world of Jesus of Nazareth and his apostles by thousands of years and thousands of miles.[2] Early Christian interpreters did not share our temporal and geographical disadvantages. The culture of the Bible was not nearly as foreign to them as it is to us. They, at least more than us, lived in the same world as the biblical writers. Their language, racial views, concepts of honor and shame, values, and customs were often shared with the writers of the New Testament. Early Christian writers serve as helpful guides along our journey toward understanding the New Testament Scriptures.

This is not to say that we should consider the beliefs of the early church to be authoritative by default. The Church Fathers were sometimes wrong. Only God and the Scriptures are never wrong. At times the premodern outlook of the early Christians may seem quite foreign to the modern or postmodern observer. Listening carefully to the voices of ancient Christian witnesses (outside of Scripture) does not require that we slavishly accept every detail of their beliefs and practices. All that is required of us is that we patiently and respectfully seek to understand their perspectives.

Growing in unity and love

The first few hundred years of Christian doctrine and practice is sometimes referred to as the “Great Tradition.” Those first few centuries of Christianity are our common heritage – whether we identify ourselves as Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, or something else. Recovering an awareness of the Great Tradition may help us to cultivate and demonstrate greater love and understanding for those who do not embrace the particulars of our specific traditions. That would be a good thing.

A safeguard against deception

There is at least one more reason for learning about the beliefs of the earliest Christians. In recent years there has been much confusion about Christian origins. Some claim that heresy preceded orthodoxy, that the original diversity of theological expression was silenced by political power.[3] Such ideas may sell well in our pluralistic culture, but historical support for them is sorely lacking. This short overview of early writings will show that Christians continued to believe and practice what Jesus and the apostles taught from the beginning.

Early Christian Doctrines

Doctrine is simply “that which is believed and taught.” Contrary to popular opinion, doctrine is quite important and relevant to daily life. The things we learn, believe, and teach are either true or they are not. They either guide us in virtue or they encourage our tendency toward vanity and vice. If truth and virtue are important then doctrine is important.

Though there are many Christian doctrines we could examine, let us focus on the most central of Christian beliefs. These core teachings received significant attention in the New Testament and are delineated in the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed.[4]   

Nicene Creed

We believe in one God,

the Father, the Almighty

maker of heaven and earth,

of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,

the only Son of God,

eternally begotten of the Father,

God from God, Light from Light,

true God from true God,

begotten, not made,

of one Being with the Father.

Through him all things were made.

For us and for our salvation

he came down from heaven:

by the power of the Holy Spirit

he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and was made man.

For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;

he suffered death and was buried.

On the third day he rose again

in accordance with the Scriptures;

he ascended into heaven

and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,

and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of Life,

who proceeds from the Father.

With the Father and the Son he is worshipped and glorified.

He has spoken through the Prophets.

We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.

We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.

We look for the resurrection of the dead,

and the life of the world to come. Amen

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[1] These are the earliest extant Christian writings outside of the New Testament. They include Clement of Rome, the Didache, Ignatius of Antioch, Polycarp of Smyrna, Papias of Hierapolis, the Epistle of Barnabas, the Shepherd of Hermas, and the Epistle to Diognetus. For an brief introduction to the Apostolic Fathers see Justo L González, A History of Christian Thought: Volume 1: From the Beginnings to the Council of Chalcedon (2nd,Revised ed.; Abingdon Press, 1987), 44–55. Unless otherwise noted, all references to Apostolic Fathers and other Early Christian writings are from Roberts, Alexander, James Donaldson, and Henry Wace, eds. The Early Church Fathers. Hendrickson Publishers, 1994.

[2] E. Randolph Richards and Brandon J. O’Brien, Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes: Removing Cultural Blinders to Better Understand the Bible (IVP Books, 2012).

[3] Andreas J. Kostenberger and Michael Kruger, The Heresy of Orthodoxy: How Contemporary Culture’s Fascination with Diversity Has Reshaped Our Understanding of Early Christianity (Crossway Books, 2010).

[4] Most of this creed was written at Nicea in 325 and is often referred to as the Nicene Creed in spite of the included additions added in 381 at Constantinople. The main change introduced at Constantinople was the addition of the words following “we believe in the Holy Spirit.” It will be seen that the doctrines of the Nicene Creed were not imposed by imperial power. Rather, these beliefs were cherished from the earliest days of Christianity.