According to Paul, the Lord's communion table is the fellowship of Christ's blood and body and a memorial that shows the Lord's death until He comes.
In 1 Corinthians 10:16 Paul says the cup of blessing which we bless is the communion of the blood of Christ, and the bread we break is the communion of His body. In 1 Corinthians 11:23-26, Paul explains that as often as we eat that bread and drink that cup we show the Lord's death until He comes. Les Feldick emphasizes that this has nothing to do with salvation—it is uniquely for believers to remember what Christ accomplished on the cross.
1 Corinthians 10:16 — Paul directly defines the cup and bread as the communion/fellowship of Christ's blood and body.
1 Corinthians 11:23-26 — Paul recounts the night Jesus was betrayed and identifies the bread and cup as a remembrance that shows the Lord's death until He comes.
In 1 Corinthians 10:16 Paul asks, "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?" He immediately adds in verse 17, "For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread." Here Scripture connects the elements directly to Christ's blood and body, and to our unity in Him. Then in 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 Paul writes, "For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread: And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come." That is the scriptural purpose of the Lord's table: a repeated remembrance and proclamation of Christ's death.
Les Feldick emphasizes that the communion table is fellowship with Christ. In 1 Corinthians 10:16, he points out, the cup and bread are connected directly with Christ's blood and body, and then Paul compares the body of Christ to a human body under one central nervous system—everything centered in the head. Les also stresses that the table is a memorial. It is, as he says, "nothing more and nothing less than a remembering of what Christ accomplished on the cross." Les makes a point to say that the practices of the Lord's table have nothing to do with the salvation of the Corinthians. They were already saved believers; their practice—or lack of practice—could not affect salvation. He also highlights Paul's direct revelation: Paul did not receive this from the Twelve in Jerusalem or from any human institution, but from the Lord Himself. Les notes that at the night of the Passover the disciples had not the foggiest notion what the bread and cup meant. Jesus did not explain it, because it hadn't happened yet. The Lord's table is a memorial of His death, and it was Paul who later spelled out the reason and purpose: to show the Lord's death till He comes.
Paul's word for communion is fellowship—the cup of blessing we bless is the fellowship of Christ's blood, and the bread we break is the fellowship of His body. Les Feldick connects this to Paul's later analogy in chapter 12: the body of Christ is like a human body with many functions, but it is all under one central nervous system and centered in the head. In the same way, all believers are partakers of that one bread.
No. Les Feldick points out that the Corinthians were already saved, and that their lack of practice of the Lord's table had nothing to do with their salvation. Paul's teaching on the table was not a condition for being saved, but instruction for those who already believed.
The Corinthians were turning the Lord's Table into a real supper, bringing food to satisfy a whole day's energy. This led to excesses, so Paul had to bring them criticism and tell them exactly how the supper came about from the Lord.
Les Feldick explains that the broken bread pictures Christ's body broken and suffering in ignominy and shame, while the cup pictures His blood poured out. The purpose of the Supper is to remember what Christ accomplished on the cross and to show the Lord's death until He comes.
Les Feldick points out that although the Old Testament had meal offerings and drink offerings, bread and wine were never associated in combination throughout the Old Testament economy. For those in the age of grace, bread and wine speak of the Lord's Supper, the communion table, and the only way to fully identify it is to go to the Gospel accounts and then to Paul's explanation in 1 Corinthians 11.
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of escape. Now we have to look for it. God isn't going to put that way of escape right smack dab in front of us. Here again we become people of choice, and when we're confronted with a temptation and we know it's about to get us, we look for that way of escape because God has provided it. All right, back to I Corinthians chapter 10 and verse 14 now. So he says, "...
Why the Disciples Could Not Understand
Les teaches that the disciples had no explanation of the bread and cup at the Passover; the Lord's table is a memorial of Christ's death, and only in 1 Corinthians 11 does Paul explain it.
Paul's Correction of the Corinthians
Les shows that the Corinthians turned the Lord's Table into a full meal, leading to excesses, so Paul corrected them and set out what the Lord had revealed about the bread and cup.
The Last Supper in Matthew's Gospel
Les connects the upper-room scene with 1 Corinthians 11, noting that neither Jesus nor the Gospel writers explained the meaning to the disciples at the time.
Communion as Fellowship with Christ
Les teaches that the cup and bread are the fellowship of Christ's blood and body, and he compares the body of Christ to a human body under one central nervous system.
Bread and Wine in the Old Testament
Les points out that bread and wine were never associated in combination in the Old Testament; for the age of grace they speak of the Lord's Supper and communion table.
Paul's Direct Revelation and Salvation
Les teaches that Paul received the meaning of the Lord's Supper directly from the Lord, and that the table has nothing to do with the Corinthians' salvation because they were already believers.
The Purpose of the Lord's Supper
Les explains that the purpose of the Lord's Supper is nothing more than remembering what Christ accomplished on the cross—showing the Lord's death until He comes.
1 Corinthians 10:16: The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?
This is Paul's direct statement identifying the cup and bread as communion with Christ's blood and body.
1 Corinthians 10:17: For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread.
This shows the unity of believers as one body through partaking of the one bread.
1 Corinthians 11:23: For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread:
Paul introduces the institution of the Lord's Supper as a revelation he received directly from the Lord.
1 Corinthians 11:24: And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.
This connects the broken bread with Christ's body and commands remembrance.
1 Corinthians 11:25: After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.
This connects the cup with the new testament in Christ's blood and repeats the command to remember.
1 Corinthians 11:26: For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come.
Paul gives the clear purpose of the Lord's table: showing the Lord's death until He returns.
Matthew 26:26-28: And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
This is the Gospel account of the Lord's Supper that Paul echoes in 1 Corinthians 11.
No. Les Feldick says the Corinthians were already saved, and the lack of practice of the Lord's table had nothing to do with their salvation. The table is for believers, to remember Christ's death until He comes.
The disciples did not have the foggiest notion what it meant because Jesus did not explain it and the death it memorialized had not yet happened. The explanation came later through Paul in 1 Corinthians 11.
Communion means fellowship—the cup is fellowship in Christ's blood, and the bread is fellowship in His body. Paul then shows that believers, being many, are one bread and one body in Christ.
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