The Lord Jesus, on the night when he was betrayed, took bread, 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. In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
(1 Corinthians 11:23)
While reading this passage, these words stuck out to me: “Do this in remembrance of me.” I hear the tenderness in his voice, the longing to be remembered when we come to his table to take communion. He took bread and broke it. As he broke it and handed it to each of his disciples, so was he broken and given for all the world. This man of sorrows, well acquainted with grief, reaches out to us, inviting us to partake of his broken body.
He said the cup was his blood which was poured out for us to establish a new covenant. As we drink the cup of the new covenant, we celebrate that we are forgiven and washed clean from our sins by his blood. The punishment for our sin does not fall on us, but Jesus took the weight of the sin of the whole world and bore our punishment. We have a new way to come into His presence. We don’t come because of our own goodness; much the opposite. We come before him because of his goodness, by the sacrifice he made for us. He gives us his law, this time writing it on our hearts to keep us close to Him. We have been purchased, redeemed, cleansed, set free, valued, brought close, and are loved both now and forever as children of God. At the table we are invited to remember Jesus and who we are to him and in him.
At the end of this passage, Jesus says ‘For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. I feel as though we’re invited to not only remember, but to look to the days ahead with hope, knowing that it is certain he will come again. We remember his promise that his name will be great among the nations. His kingdom will come. He will be our God and we will be his people.
