If you attended church you most likely never had the opportunity to administer communion. So what happens when you’re part of a relational gathering and the topic of taking communion arises. Robert Schmidt’s short book (70 pages) The Bridal Banquet – Holy Communion for House Churches and Small Groups has a chapter devoted on how to administer communion. The first excerpt below is from a chapter about Banquet Gifts, where each gift is compared to a precious gem. The second excerpt is a section from his Conclusion. If you struggle with how, why or if it’s even necessary to have communion you should grab this book.
The Opal – The Gift of Community
Opals are unique. They are not all of one color; some are predominantly white, others black, but all contain a variety of hues. Yet, they are all within one jewel. As the stone is turned the different colors come through creating an enchanting whole. That is how a group of communicants must look like to God. Ginger, the new mother, carries her babe. Oscar, the judge, kneels next to her. There is Yung from China next to Devon, the punk rock fan. In this community there are farmers, shopkeepers, a physician, and three eighth graders. Just think to what sins they confessed; imagine what life will hold for them this next week. Yet, here they are together, one body of Christ.
If this is a wonder in a local gathering, think what it is like in the YMCA hostel in Hong Kong where some Christians from around the world have come as tourists, businessmen, designers, and government officials. Prayer was announced for eight in the morning, and communion was offered for those who were interested. Before they began they were to introduce themselves. A Ghanian, two from Shanghai, a British diplomat, a German engineer on his way inland, and a variety of soccer players greeted each other. From the ends of the earth God’s children came together as a single community in the Lord’s Supper. Nationalities are submerged for a time as God makes them a single people, unified for a moment, and with a memory of a time when all are one in Christ.
A CHANGE IN COMMUNION practices toward a more biblical model can have profound consequences to the church and in the world. By blessing lay people without a professional theological education to administer Holy Communion, churches are free from the necessity to raise money to support the church. Any group of Christians can be the church without funds for the support of clergy at that place. The church is also free from the necessity of paying for the construction and upkeep of a building in a missionary setting. Furthermore, when gathered as a small group with locally administered communion, more contributions can be used for helping the vulnerable.
With approximately 45,000 Christian denominations in the world, moves toward greater Christian unity are very important. In the past some new denominations were formed to bring about this unity. International organizations like the World Council of Churches and the World Evangelical Alliance have sought to be umbrella organizations fostering greater cooperation. At the local level Bible study fellowships have often brought together people from different traditions. However, without communion uniting these people into one church, they usually identify themselves with the church from which they came. Now, however, in a house church, with both the teaching and sharing of the word of God and the celebration of communion, the movement toward greater Christian unity takes gigantic leap forward. Since that local community is already made up of people from different denominations, hopefully they will be the first to recognize the totality of the Christian church on earth.
With Holy Communion at the very center of their efforts, some groups can devote themselves to specific prophetic works of radically addressing some social problems as did the Hebrew prophets or Christ himself. Without depending upon financial contributions to support their ministry, such groups are free to address the inequality of wealth, the sins of nationalism, and specifics of environmental destruction. Other small, sometimes ad hoc communities can devote their efforts to special needs in healthcare, education, refugee relief, housing, and other struggles. In the past, centered in the Eucharist, Roman Catholic monasteries and nunneries were able carry out some of these ministries. Now with Holy Communion again as the inspiring and equipping center of their activities, groups made up of lay people from a variety of backgrounds can join to accomplish some significant ministries.
The Lord’s Supper was instituted by Christ to create a new covenant with sinners, redeemed and forgiven by Christ. Joined together both by their sin and their salvation, Holy Communion was designed to bring people together to carry out their ministries as part of the very body of Christ. In the past, communion has divided God’s people across the centuries. Now, can it be celebrated to unite us?
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