Jesus Shocks His Audience Jesus said many things that surprised and even shocked his followers. One of his more appalling statements was that we needed to eat his body and drink his blood. That’s a hard thing to swallow—literally and figuratively. Gross. He asserted that those who ate his body and drank his blood would […]
Discover What Scripture Says About the Lord’s Supper Last week we looked at the context of the Lord’s Supper, noting that Jesus based it on Passover, which is an annual event celebrated with family around a shared meal. Although Communion is a New Testament practice, only four books in the Bible have verses about it. […]
Reclaim Our Practice of Communion from a Biblical Context In their practice of Communion some churches allow children to take Communion (the Eucharist) and others don’t. I’ve seen both occur at various worship services, but I don’t know which practice is more common. A similar consideration is the issue of closed Communion versus open. For […]
Embrace the Benefits of Meeting Together When we can’t attend church, to meet in person, and must experience a service online, does that count as going to church? The essential parts of the service are the same. There is music, a message, and a prayer or two. F or these three key elements, the result […]
Three significant actions stand out from church today: 1. Here’s What to Expect “Let me tell you what to expect in our service.” A lady takes time to explain their worship style and reveals they take communion every week. “It’s an open communion.” I nod, glad to know. I ponder this question every time a […]
Exploring Christian Practices That Lack Biblical Support For years I’ve told people that I strive to write from a Christian worldview. That’s what I believed I was doing. I even regularly prayed that God would empower me to do so, that each word I wrote would embrace, support, and advance a Christian worldview. However, I […]
Sunday we visit another small church. I expect a traditional, liturgical service. The sanctuary is simple, filled with color and symbolism. Several lit candles mesmerize as incense fills the air. A worshipful instrumental piece, courtesy of a CD, plays in the background. The music stops and the opening liturgy begins. We hear the minister but […]
When We Take Communion It’s to Remember What Jesus Did for Us The Lord’s Supper is another phrase found only in the New Testament. This isn’t surprising since Jesus instituted this practice when he taught it to his disciples at Passover. Most Christian churches follow Jesus’s command to celebrate the Lord’s Supper (Luke 22:19), though […]
The Broken Bread at the First Communion Represented Jesus’s Body The phrases breaking bread, break bread, and broke bread only appear in the New Testament. And they only show up eleven times, appearing in Matthew, Mark, Luke, Acts, and 1 Corinthians. Should we understand this idea of breaking bread as a euphemism for Communion or […]
We almost skip this church since efforts to contact them were unsuccessful. It took a Saturday evening drive to confirm they’re viable and learn their service time. On Sunday a small crowd gathers, mostly older. The service is traditional, but in an informal way. At times it seems evangelical and other times mainline, with periodic […]