Should I take Communion in this Church?

God has commanded us to examine ourselves (1 Corinthians 11:28) before coming to his table and this article was written to help you obey that commandment.

If you can say “Yes” to each of the following questions, then we welcome you, in the name of Jesus Christ, to come to his table.

Have you been Born Again?

Jesus said that unless a person has been born again, he can neither see nor enter  the Kingdom of God. (John 3:1-6)

Being ‘born again’ means that you have personally trusted in Jesus Christ alone for your salvation and are now indwelt by his Holy Spirit.

If you are not sure whether you have ever experienced this spiritual birth from above, then please do not come to the table.

The Lord’s Supper cannot save you; only repentance and faith can.

Therefore, if you are unsure of your salvation, please speak with the Pastor before coming to the Lord’s table so he can help you find new life in Christ.

Have you been Baptized?

There are only two sacraments which Jesus commanded his church to observe: Baptism and the Lord’s Supper.

Baptism marks a person’s initial entrance into the Kingdom of God (Matthew 28:19) and should be received only once.  On the other hand, Communion is part of a church’s ongoing ministry of discipleship.

The supper gives believers a frequent opportunity not only to remember what Jesus did for them, but also to proclaim his death until he comes again. (1 Corinthians 11:25-26)

Therefore, if you have not yet been baptized, we must insist that you obey this commandment before you come to the Lord’s Supper.

Have you Professed your Faith?

Contrary to popular opinion, it is simply not enough to ‘just love Jesus in your heart’.

The Bible says that our mouths are just as involved in our salvation as our hearts. (Romans 10:10)

Therefore, we believe a person must profess their faith in Christ publicly before coming to Communion.

If you have trusted in the Lord and would like to confess your faith before men, then please arrange a meeting with the Pastor before you come to the table.

Are you Living Penitently?

 First of all, it needs to be said that living a penitent life is not the same thing as living a perfect life.  No Christian under heaven has ever reached a state of sinless perfection.

 Nevertheless, the Lord does expect his children to walk humbly and penitently before him on a day-to-day basis.

 If we claim to have no sin, then we are calling God a liar (1 John 2:4).  But if we confess our sins, we will find that God is faithful not only to forgive us of our sins, but also to cleanse us from all unrighteousness  (1 John 1:9).

Are you Right with the Church?

 Grace Reformed Church is but a small part of Christ’s universal kingdom. Therefore, we do honor the discipline of other local churches.

 If you are presently under ecclesiastical discipline or if you have ever been excommunicated, please do not come to the supper until you have been officially and publicly reinstated into membership.

 Further, we also believe that the Bible teaches Christians to join a local church.

 While we realize that this is not always possible, we do see it as normative and must, therefore, include it as a biblical requirement.  

 

Conclusion

 Did you say “Yes” to each of these questions?

 If so, then we warmly welcome you in the name of Jesus Christ to eat this bread and drink this cup with us.

 However, if you did not say “Yes” to each of these questions or if you are not sure about one or more of these requirements, then we ask that you please refrain from partaking at this time.

 It is certainly not our intention to be either unloving or schismatic in setting forth these requirements - quite to the contrary.

 Celebrating the Lord’s Supper is a very serious matter.

In Paul’s day, some of the church members at Corinth were treating the supper in a light manner and, as a result, some of them actually died. (1 Corinthians 11:30)

 We obviously do not want anything like that to happen here in our church.

 That is why we have put this pamphlet into your hands. We pray that the Lord grants you proper discernment.

“So let a man examine himself, and then let him eat of the bread, and drink of the cup.” (1 Corinthians 11:28)