“So anyone who eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord unworthily is guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. That is why you should examine yourself before eating the bread and drinking the cup.
For if you eat the bread or drink the cup without honoring the body of Christ, you are eating and drinking God’s judgment upon yourself.” – 1 Cor 11:27-29
What does it mean to “examine yourself” and to “honor the body”?
According to Strong’s Concordance:
examine = to recognize as genuine after examination, to approve,
yourself = himself, herself, itself, themselves
… and I admit, I am cherry-picking….
honor = to determine, give judgment, decide a dispute
body = a (large or small) number of men closely united into one society, or family as it were; a social, ethical, mystical body as in the NT of the church
Is it possible then, that before communion, the body of Christ is instructed to be in unity? Without division, without lack of honor, discerning, judging, and correcting the wrongs therein? If so, there are many among us (a group concept) who are without power or in a slumber. (sick and dead are the translations most often used.)
Many would insist that these verses are for personal instruction about our personal affairs, I say (as usual), “yes, and yes.”
Today, I believe that Holy Spirit is saying to me that when I am part of a body, I have a mandate to examine, discern and correct the divisions among us, to insure that I have a healthy, vibrant alert, oriented and effective body.