There are moments in life you never forget.
The birth of a child.
The day you said “I do.”
The phone call that changed everything.
Some moments mark you.
Communion is not just something we do.
It’s something that marks us.
Yet if we’re honest, sometimes we treat it like a church routine.
A quiet moment. A small cracker. A sip of juice. Then we move on.
But when Jesus instituted Communion, He wasn’t starting a ritual.
He was establishing a reminder.
A declaration.
A covenant.
And today we’re going to rediscover what this table really means.
I. COMMUNION IS A COMMAND TO REMEMBER
Jesus said in Luke 22:19, “Do this in remembrance of me.”
He didn’t say, “Do this if you feel emotional.”
He didn’t say, “Do this occasionally.”
He said, “Do this.”
Why?
Because we forget.
We forget what it cost Him.
We forget what it saved us from.
We forget who we were before grace found us.
Deuteronomy 8 shows us something about human nature. God repeatedly tells Israel, “Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God.”
Prosperity makes us forget.
Pain makes us forget.
Busyness makes us forget.
Illustration – “The Medal in the Drawer”
I once heard about a soldier who received a medal for bravery. It was awarded in a formal ceremony. Salutes were given. Words were spoken. It meant something.
But years later, the medal ended up in a drawer.
Still real.
Still earned.
Still valuable.
But no longer remembered.
It didn’t lose its significance —
it just lost its visibility.
Sometimes that’s what happens with the cross.
We don’t deny it.
We don’t reject it.
We just tuck it away in the drawer of routine Christianity.
Communion takes the medal out of the drawer.
It puts the sacrifice back in front of our eyes.
It reminds us this was not symbolic bravery.
This was substitution.
The bread says:
You were broken — but He was broken for you.
The cup says:
You were guilty — but He bled in your place.
Isaiah 53:5 “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.”
Communion is a holy interruption.
It stops our week.
It silences distraction.
It fixes our eyes on Jesus.
II. COMMUNION IS A DECLARATION OF THE GOSPEL
Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 11:26 “For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”
Notice that word — proclaim.
Communion is not private.
It is a sermon without a microphone.
Every time we take the bread and the cup, we are declaring:
Jesus died.
Jesus paid.
Jesus saves.
The cross was not symbolic.
It was substitutionary.
2 Corinthians 5:21 says: “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”
At the cross:
He took my sin.
I received His righteousness.
That’s not religion.
That’s redemption.
When we take Communion, we are preaching to ourselves.
We are reminding our doubts.
We are reminding our guilt.
We are reminding the enemy:
“The blood still works.”
Hebrews 9:22 says: “Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”
And Jesus shed His.
Fully.
Willingly.
Completely.
III. COMMUNION IS A CALL TO EXAMINE
Now here’s where it gets serious.
Paul says in 1 Corinthians 11:28 “Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup.”
Notice — examine yourself.
Not your neighbor.
Not your spouse.
Not the person across the aisle.
Yourself.
Illustration – “The Physical Exam”
Think about a yearly physical with your doctor.
You don’t go in and say,
“Doc, I’d like you to examine my friend.”
Or, “Can you check my wife instead?”
No.
The doctor checks you.
Sometimes they find things you didn’t feel.
Sometimes they catch things early.
Sometimes they ask uncomfortable questions.
But the purpose isn’t to shame you.
It’s to protect you.
It’s to strengthen you.
It’s to keep you healthy.
Communion is a spiritual check-up.
God already knows what’s there.
Examination isn’t for His information —
it’s for our transformation.
Communion is not for perfect people.
It is for forgiven people.
But we don’t approach it casually.
Psalm 139:23–24 “Search me, God, and know my heart… See if there is any offensive way in me.”
Before we come to the table, we ask:
Is there unconfessed sin?
Is there bitterness I’m holding?
Is there pride I need to lay down?
Is there disobedience I’ve been ignoring?
Communion is not about condemnation.
Romans 8:1 “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
But it is about honesty.
Grace is free — but it’s not cheap.
The cross cost everything.
So we pause.
We reflect.
We repent.
And we receive.
IV. COMMUNION IS A CELEBRATION OF UNITY
Paul also says in 1 Corinthians 10:16–17 “Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all share the one loaf.”
Communion reminds us:
We are not individuals gathering for inspiration.
We are one body.
Different stories.
Different backgrounds.
Different struggles.
But one Savior.
One cross.
One blood.
Ephesians 2:13 “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”
The ground is level at the cross.
No one here earned their seat at the table.
We were invited.
And when we take Communion together, we are declaring:
We belong to Christ.
And we belong to each other.
V. COMMUNION IS A PROMISE OF WHAT’S COMING
Jesus said in Matthew 26:29 “I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”
Communion doesn’t just look back.
It looks forward.
Illustration – “The Deployment Countdown”
I Think about when I was a soldier deployed.
Every day marked off the calendar.
Every phone call treasured.
Every letter reread.
Why?
Because there was a date circled on the calendar.
Homecoming.
The deployment wasn’t permanent.
The separation wasn’t forever.
There is was promised reunion coming.
And that promise changes how you endure the waiting.
That’s what Jesus is saying here.
“I will drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”
Church, there is a coming feast!
Revelation 19:9 “Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!”
Today we taste it in part.
One day we will see Him face to face.
Communion whispers hope:
This is not the end of the story.
The cross was not defeat.
The grave is empty.
The King is returning.
And until He comes, we remember.
TRANSITION TO COMMUNION
Church, today we don’t rush this moment.
We remember.
We proclaim.
We examine.
We celebrate.
If you are a believer in Jesus Christ — trusting in Him alone for your salvation — this table is for you.
If you need to repent, do it now.
If you need to pray, do it now.
Invite men forward to administer the elements and give instructions to go back to seats and we will take Communion together.
TAKING THE BREAD
1 Corinthians 11:23–24 “The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, ‘This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.’”
Church — this bread represents His body, broken for you.
Take and eat in remembrance of Him.
(Pause as congregation eats.)
TAKING THE CUP
1 Corinthians 11:25 “In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.’”
This cup represents His blood, poured out for the forgiveness of sins.
Take and drink in remembrance of Him.
CLOSING PRAYER
