Blessed Communion

These days, with us under a Stay-At-Home order in place through April, some are concerned about not having Communion—the Lord’s Supper. I can understand this concern.

The word “communion”, in the New Testament Greek, means ‘fellowship’ . Even though this is not possible at this time—to celebrate Communion as we are in the habit of doing—your faith needn’t suffer. Communion itself is based on the Scriptures—particularly what Christ taught His disciples in Luke 22:14–20 . The Bible is a solid means of grace that is a precious resource at times like this, when we have to limit our close contact with each other.

When this Stay-At-Home order is lifted, and we gather together safely, it will be a joy to not only fellowship together, but to celebrate the Lord’s Supper too. In the meantime, take comfort in the fact that Jesus said: “For where two or three come together in my name, I am there with them” Matthew 18:20 (GNT). The Lord said, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. 32 And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” in John 8:31-32 (NLT) and “the words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life” in John 6:63. (NIV) The Lord Jesus wants us to know how important the word of God is to us. And here we have yet another verse, this from Romans, that shows that it’s the whole Bible that God uses to create and sustain faith within us: “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope” Romans 15:4 (NIV).

How can two or three come together in Jesus’ name when we are practicing social-distancing? Perhaps you have more than one in your household. We can gather virtually, using amazing technology for fellowship and encouragement in Christ. What other examples can you think of?

κοινωνίαa, ας (koinonia"): an association involving close mutual relations and involvement—‘close association, fellowship’ (from Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., Vol. 1, pp. 445–446). New York: United Bible Societies).

Examples from the Bible:
     “in order that you may have fellowship with us” 1 John 1:3;
     “through whom you were called to have fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ” 1 Corinthians 1:9;
     “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?” 1 Corinthians 10:16.

When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. 15 And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. 16 For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.”
17 After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you. 18 For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”
19 And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”
20 In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.” Luke 22:14-20 (NIV)