Administration and Participation
The Scripture does not specify how
often we need to partake of the Communion, but does stress its effect and
meaning. So each congregation may decide to hold the Communion as often as it
deems fit, as long as the participants take it with solemnity.
In the same manner as our Lord, we
give thanks to God for Christ's sacrifice and salvation. We can then break the
bread and give it to the congregation. The same goes with receiving the cup.
During the Communion, the
participants should be together in one place. None of the elements should
remain until the next day. These instructions are from God's commands to the
Israelites concerning the Passover, a festival remembering the salvation of God
through the blood of the lamb (see Exodus ,46).
Only those who are baptized may
receive the Communion, for it is a spiritual fellowship between the Lord and
his church. If someone has not been baptized, or has not done so in a way that
is according to what the Bible teaches, he should not participate in the
Communion because his sins have not been washed away, and he does not yet
belong to Christ.
It is important that we take the
Communion seriously and solemnly, knowing that we are partaking of Christ's
body and blood.
"Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or
drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning
the body and blood of the Lord. Let a man examine himself, and so eat of the
bread and drink of the cup. For any one who eats and drinks without discerning
the body eats and drinks judgment upon himself" (1 Corinthians 11:27-29).
Before the Communion, we need to
examine ourselves, remove our grudges against anyone, ask the Lord to forgive
our sins, and determine to live by Christ's perfect example.
