Do this to remember me

 Do This to Remember Me

 

On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this to remember me.” In the same way, he took the cup of wine after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people — an agreement confirmed with my blood. Do this to remember me as often as you drink it.” For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again.

1 CORINTHIANS 11:23-26

 

What do you do when you want to remember someone? Put the person’s picture up in your room? Put his or her number in your mobile phone? Add the person to your “friend list” online?

Jesus assigned us a specific and special way of remembering him — a way that honours him. It also strengthens us and helps us feel and know that he is close to us and even in us. It’s called the Lord’s Supper or Communion. But sometimes when we are celebrating Communion, our minds drift to other concerns, and sometimes our hearts just aren’t moved by the sacrifice of Jesus for us. How can we truly remember him at this special celebration?

When we eat the bread, our thoughts focus on how the bread symbolises Christ’s life as a human being. We are taking his life into ours — inviting him in, asking him to flow through us. We reaffirm our deliberate choice to receive Jesus into every area of our lives. When we drink the wine or juice of Communion, we focus our thoughts on the blood of Jesus and its power to take away our sin. Just as we have blood pumping through our veins giving us life, we reflect on the power of the blood of Jesus pumping life in and through us. We thank God for his sacrifice that bought our freedom and gives us power to live for him. Before we drink the wine or juice, we should ask God to show us our sin and confess it.

Communion becomes meaningful to us as we consciously remember God’s forgiveness and love, demonstrated by the price Jesus paid for us on the Cross. As we enter into Communion with our thoughts and emotions, we can feel and know God’s closeness around us and in us.