1 Corinthians #22 – Weekly Study Questions
Holy Examination
1 Corinthians (CGS#22) – 11:17-34
INTRODUCTION: The Lord’s Supper is one of the oldest and most powerful traditions of the New Testament church. It’s also one of the most beautiful pictures of the gospel we can display for the world. It’s a rich celebration, packed with meaning, and connects us to all believers across thousands of miles and thousands of years. There’s no way we could unpack all of its meaning and imagery here, but let’s take a minute to briefly consider what it is, what it means, and why we do it.
The Lord’s Supper, also called Communion (related to the word “community”), was initiated by Jesus on the night he was betrayed. Recorded in Matthew 26, Mark 14, and Luke 22, the original Lord’s Supper was actually a Passover feast Jesus attended with his disciples. Passover was a week-long celebration of remembrance in which Jewish families all over the ancient world would gather together to remember the Exodus, God’s deliverance of his people from slavery in Egypt. During the feast, they would eat bitter herbs to remember their bitter suffering in Egypt, they ate unleavened bread to remember the urgency with which their ancestors left Egypt, they drank wine to remember God’s promises of blessing, and they ate a Passover lamb to remember the blood that was shed so they could be saved from death.
Today, we can see how the Passover celebration was both looking backward and forward. Backward to the Exodus, but forward to Jesus. See, Jesus is the true Passover lamb. He died so we could be delivered from slavery to sin, a slavery more bitter than Egypt because it’s eternal. And his deliverance isn’t temporary. The ancient Israelites would be enslaved again, but once the Son sets you free from sin, you’re free forever (John 8:36). The Lord’s Supper celebrates this eternal deliverance. Jesus intentionally used the Passover imagery to tell his disciples what he was about to do. He was saying, “Remember how God delivered his people from Egypt? He’s about to deliver his people again, but this time from our eternal enemy: sin.”
So now, whenever we celebrate the Lord’s Supper, we can also look backward and forward, but with even more layers. We can still look all the way back to the Exodus, but we can also look back to Jesus’ crucifixion, and we can look forward to his return. Verse 28 tells us to examine ourselves as we eat and drink. What does that look like? As you take the bread (or cracker), picture Jesus on the cross, his body broken for you, just as the bread was broken. And when you take the wine (or grape juice), picture his blood, poured out for you, just as the wine was poured. Consider why he went through all the agony of the cross and the infinitely worse agony of abandonment; it was for you. He took the death you deserved and gave you the life he earned. That should give us pause. As you sit with the bread and cup in your hand, let this thought linger in your mind: it should’ve been you. You should’ve been on that cross. That’s what it means to examine yourself. Do you understand what he did for you? Have you come face to face with it?
At the same time, we can look forward with eager anticipation to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb described in Revelation 19. Jesus will one day return to rescue his bride, the Church. And what an overwhelmingly joy-filled day that will be. It’ll be better than the best wedding you’ve ever seen or imagined, because it’ll be the final culmination of everything you’ve been longing for your entire life. True joy. True peace. True freedom. True unity. By regularly participating in the Lord’s Supper with your church family, you’re remembering, expecting, and proclaiming who Jesus is, what he did, and why it matters. It’s a beautiful picture the world is desperate to see.
GETTING STARTED – As you begin your group time, take time to answer this question together: Why do you think Jesus chose a meal as the way he wanted his sacrifice to be remembered? What does that signify?
IN THE WORD – Let’s dig back into the passage. It is important to strengthen our muscles in reading God’s Word. On Sunday, we walked through the passage in the sermon. Hopefully, that helped you to see the landmarks of the passage with fresh eyes. Now, with your group, go back through it and see what God is saying to you specifically.
First, before you read the passage, take a moment to ask God’s Spirit to quiet your mind and heart and to illuminate the text to you. Second, read the passage aloud to the group. Then, follow the simple method below. (O.P.A)
Observe: Make 8-10 observations from the passage. Pay close attention to observe and note repeated words and phrases, names, places, and themes.
Principles: From your list of observations, what patterns or big ideas do you see emerging? Can you distill it down into 2-4 big idea truths?
Apply: Moving from your list of principles, it is time to apply God’s Word. Remember, we believe that God’s Word is living and active and that it can change the way we live Monday-Friday. What is one tangible way to apply a truth from your list above?
Note: Another way to approach your time together is to talk through the following questions about the article of faith we are studying that week.
- What did you hear God’s Spirit say to you through the passage this week? How does it encourage you? How does it sharpen you?
- How have you seen God at work in your life this week? Have you enjoyed him? Have you heard his voice and the leading of his Spirit? Big ways or small ways.
- What do you think about when you take communion? Does your mind wander? What practical things can you do to keep your mind fixed on Christ and his sacrifice for you?
- What benefit do we get from examining ourselves during the Lord’s Supper? What does Paul say are the dangers of not examining yourself?
- Why does Paul get so mad about the way the Corinthians were eating the Lord’s Supper? What were they doing wrong? Why was that a big deal?