"So a man should examine himself..." (cf. 1 Cor. 11:28).
The key to grace is the right mindset toward God--true humility! "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble" (cf. James 4:6). We are never worthy of God's grace (or it wouldn't be grace, but justice!), but the one qualification for it is to reckon ourselves as unworthy and unfit--just like our salvation. Grace always goes to the lowest bidders, as it were.
The Lord's Supper is a reminder of our fellowship and longstanding salvation, whereby we renew our commitment and dedication by remembering what it's all about and the price Christ paid on our behalf. We must see ourselves as great sinners in need of a Great Savior. We are exhorted by Paul to examine ourselves at communion to take personal inventory of our spiritual life and give ourselves a spiritual checkup to validate our faith and salvation by seeing Christ at work in our lives and person (Christ lives in us by an exchanged, surrendered, relinquished, substituted, inhabited, and obedient life in Christ by virtue of His power--Gal. 2:20). In 2 Cor. 13:5 it says to examine ourselves frequently to see if Christ does indwell us--i.e., whether we are in the faith. We are to be fruit inspectors of our own fruits and must test ourselves periodically--not others!
The Eucharist (Holy Communion or the Lord's Supper) is to be given to those walking obediently with the Lord in fellowship and not have any known sin to their account, which would render them carnal. Basically, if we are enjoying a fellowship with God through Christ and discern the body, as Christ admonished, we are ready for communion. If we have repented we are clean, but we may still need a confession to update our walk with Christ. But this privilege doesn't mean we are qualified to partake of this grace or ordinance laid down by Christ at Maundy Thursday, or at the Last Supper in the Upper Room celebrating the Passover. The point to ponder is that we are never worthy, but we can prepare our hearts to receive the grace of God by confession (keeping short accounts and admitting sin as soon as we are convicted, which is the responsibility of the Holy Spirit).
In partaking of the communion emblems, we are to "discern the body" and blood of Christ, reckoning that He laid down His life for us and His blood sealed a New Covenant or Testament, making the Old Covenant or Testament obsolete. Our humility ought to be such that the more unworthy we feel we are, the more we resonate with God's grace and are in a position to receive the ordinance, just like John Bunyan wrote in his testimony Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners, and Paul saw himself as the "chief of sinners" likewise (cf. 1 Tim. 1:15). It is a fact that the closer our walk with Christ, the more aware we are of shortcomings and failures. Getting close to God makes us all the more aware of our sins, not our success and holiness. Samuel Rutherford said to "pray for a lively sense of sin, because, the more the sense, the less sin."
We are admonished by Paul to partake of the elements in a worthy manner (that doesn't mean we are worthy per se), but by discerning the body and being in fellowship with no unconfessed, known sin, we are ready for grace. The Lord's Supper is more than a memorial we do to proclaim the Lord's coming, but also a spiritual exercise and checkup and discipline to make us experience group fellowship and accountability--church isn't just a private affair but we are members one of another.
In the final analysis, it's comforting to know that Christ knew what we were made of before He saved us and loves us despite ourselves, and His acceptance doesn't depend upon our behavior or performance, but totally on His grace. "Salvation is of the LORD" (cf. Jonah 2:9), not from us. There's no place for merit in our salvation, but we are saved, are being saved, and will be saved all by grace alone (sola gratia in Latin), Christ alone is the worthy one and therefore is worshiped or assigned worthiness. Soli Deo Gloria!
The key to grace is the right mindset toward God--true humility! "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble" (cf. James 4:6). We are never worthy of God's grace (or it wouldn't be grace, but justice!), but the one qualification for it is to reckon ourselves as unworthy and unfit--just like our salvation. Grace always goes to the lowest bidders, as it were.
The Lord's Supper is a reminder of our fellowship and longstanding salvation, whereby we renew our commitment and dedication by remembering what it's all about and the price Christ paid on our behalf. We must see ourselves as great sinners in need of a Great Savior. We are exhorted by Paul to examine ourselves at communion to take personal inventory of our spiritual life and give ourselves a spiritual checkup to validate our faith and salvation by seeing Christ at work in our lives and person (Christ lives in us by an exchanged, surrendered, relinquished, substituted, inhabited, and obedient life in Christ by virtue of His power--Gal. 2:20). In 2 Cor. 13:5 it says to examine ourselves frequently to see if Christ does indwell us--i.e., whether we are in the faith. We are to be fruit inspectors of our own fruits and must test ourselves periodically--not others!
The Eucharist (Holy Communion or the Lord's Supper) is to be given to those walking obediently with the Lord in fellowship and not have any known sin to their account, which would render them carnal. Basically, if we are enjoying a fellowship with God through Christ and discern the body, as Christ admonished, we are ready for communion. If we have repented we are clean, but we may still need a confession to update our walk with Christ. But this privilege doesn't mean we are qualified to partake of this grace or ordinance laid down by Christ at Maundy Thursday, or at the Last Supper in the Upper Room celebrating the Passover. The point to ponder is that we are never worthy, but we can prepare our hearts to receive the grace of God by confession (keeping short accounts and admitting sin as soon as we are convicted, which is the responsibility of the Holy Spirit).
In partaking of the communion emblems, we are to "discern the body" and blood of Christ, reckoning that He laid down His life for us and His blood sealed a New Covenant or Testament, making the Old Covenant or Testament obsolete. Our humility ought to be such that the more unworthy we feel we are, the more we resonate with God's grace and are in a position to receive the ordinance, just like John Bunyan wrote in his testimony Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners, and Paul saw himself as the "chief of sinners" likewise (cf. 1 Tim. 1:15). It is a fact that the closer our walk with Christ, the more aware we are of shortcomings and failures. Getting close to God makes us all the more aware of our sins, not our success and holiness. Samuel Rutherford said to "pray for a lively sense of sin, because, the more the sense, the less sin."
We are admonished by Paul to partake of the elements in a worthy manner (that doesn't mean we are worthy per se), but by discerning the body and being in fellowship with no unconfessed, known sin, we are ready for grace. The Lord's Supper is more than a memorial we do to proclaim the Lord's coming, but also a spiritual exercise and checkup and discipline to make us experience group fellowship and accountability--church isn't just a private affair but we are members one of another.
In the final analysis, it's comforting to know that Christ knew what we were made of before He saved us and loves us despite ourselves, and His acceptance doesn't depend upon our behavior or performance, but totally on His grace. "Salvation is of the LORD" (cf. Jonah 2:9), not from us. There's no place for merit in our salvation, but we are saved, are being saved, and will be saved all by grace alone (sola gratia in Latin), Christ alone is the worthy one and therefore is worshiped or assigned worthiness. Soli Deo Gloria!
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