Epistle: 1 Corinthians 11:23-26

23 For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took a loaf of bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body that is for[g] you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

At a Maundy Thursday service at a small church, the congregation gathered in the sanctuary (remember those days?). A visitor joined in that night with the 20 or so others for worship. Seeing the group was small, the pastor decided to invite them all forward for the communion liturgy. They gathered around the altar, and heard the words again… “In the night in which he was betrayed…”

Then the pastor instructed those gathered to share the meal with their neighbor. She offered the bread to the first person and said, “The body of Christ, broken for you.” Then the cup, “The blood of Christ shed for you.” The pastor told those gathered to share the same words as the elements were passed from one to another.

The visitor, afraid of embarrassing himself in front of these strangers, kept repeating the words over and over to himself, willing himself not to forget “The body of Christ… the blood of Christ…” He was doing alright until the woman next to him offered him communion. She said, “Take it. It’s for sinners.”

Let us Pray: Dear God, we receive the gift of life in the breaking of the bread. Fill us with your love. We pray this in Jesus name. Amen