Examining Ourselves at the Lord’s Supper
Communion centers our attention on Jesus Christ and his sacrificial death while also calling us to examine our own hearts. Self-examination at the Lord’s Supper reminds us of our sinfulness, our need for Christ, and our call to deeper commitment.
- The major focus of Communion is Jesus Christ and what he has done for us.
- Paul calls believers to examine themselves before eating the bread and drinking from the cup.
- Remembering Christ’s sacrifice naturally leads us to reflect on our hearts and our commitment to him.
By David L. Eubanks
The major focus of Communion is the Lord Jesus Christ. When he inaugurated it, he said, “Do this in remembrance of me.” The Lord’s Supper is not primarily about us but about him, what he did for us, and the life he gives us when we feed on him.
Self-Examination at the Lord’s Supper
At the same time, there is a definite element of introspection that goes with this feast. That was true of the meal at which Jesus instituted it. When Jesus told his apostles that one of them would betray him, they immediately began to ask, “Surely you don’t mean me, Lord?” Introspection was certainly at work the night of the last supper.
In 1 Corinthians 11:28 Paul writes, “Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup.” Some mistakenly believe that the examination enjoined by Paul in this text is to determine if we are worthy to eat and drink. If that were so, all would fail, for none is worthy. We have all sinned and failed our Lord. Paul does warn against eating and drinking in an unworthy manner. Self-examination will help us keep from that sin.
Others suggest that Paul is referring here to examining our attitudes toward the body of Christ and the other members of it. Their thought is that “without discerning the body of Christ” and eating and drinking “judgment on themselves” (1 Corinthians 11:29) refer to a person’s not having proper concern for his brothers and sisters in the body when he partakes. The divisions in the Corinthian church and the cliquish way they were eating the agape feast before observing the Lord’s Supper lends credence to this view.
Looking into Our Own Hearts
But I also believe that focusing on the wonderful sacrificial death of Christ just naturally causes us to examine our own hearts, our sinfulness, our unworthiness, and our need for deeper commitment to the One who died for us. We will often respond like Isaiah did to the holiness and glory of the enthroned Jehovah: “Woe to me! I am ruined!” or like Peter did to Jesus, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!”
In her play The King’s Supper, Dorothy Sayers has Peter whisper to John, “John, why does he say that we are not all clean?”
John responds, “I don’t know Peter, but when I look into my heart, I find it full of unswept, dusty corners.”
Let all of us examine ourselves as we eat and drink.
David Eubanks is president emeritus of Johnson University (formerly Johnson Bible College), Knoxville, Tennessee.
