{"id":455,"date":"2014-03-29T12:04:26","date_gmt":"2014-03-29T18:04:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thesimpleanswers.com\/articles\/?p=455"},"modified":"2025-01-15T00:17:08","modified_gmt":"2025-01-15T00:17:08","slug":"how-often-should-we-eat-communion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thesimpleanswers.com\/articles\/2014\/03\/29\/how-often-should-we-eat-communion\/","title":{"rendered":"How Often Should We Eat Communion? (with audio)"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"pf-content\"><p><span class=\"verse\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Listen to this article:<\/p>\n<div class=\"sc_fancy_player_container\"><audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-455-1\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"https:\/\/www.thesimpleanswers.com\/audio\/How_Often_Should_We_Eat_Communion.mp3?_=1\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thesimpleanswers.com\/audio\/How_Often_Should_We_Eat_Communion.mp3\">https:\/\/www.thesimpleanswers.com\/audio\/How_Often_Should_We_Eat_Communion.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div>\n<p><a title=\"How Often Should We Eat Communion?\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thesimpleanswers.com\/audio\/How_Often_Should_We_Eat_Communion.mp3\">\u201cHow Often Should We Eat Communion?\u201d MP3 File<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 right click and select \u201csave as,\u201d \u201csave link as,\u201d or \u201csave target as\u201d to save it to your computer.<\/p>\n<div class=\"underline\"><\/div>\n<hr \/>\n<p>There are probably more <em>opinions<\/em> about this question than any other; some keep it whenever they feel like it; some do it daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, yearly; some in the morning, some in the evening; some use wine, some use grape juice; adding my own opinion to the mix will just make it worse. The only way to find a real ANSWER is to ask your Bible, and that&#8217;s what I will help you do.<\/p>\n<p>Communion, in the context of eating bread and wine, is only mentioned once in the Bible. That is in <strong><span id=\"001Corinthians1016\" class=\"verse\">1\u00a0Corinthians 10:16<\/span><\/strong>; please turn to it in your own Bible. TheSimpleAnswers is about you learning these things for yourself, so you KNOW why you know them, not spoon-feeding you like so many do today.<\/p>\n<p>In that passage, some versions say &#8220;the communion of the blood of Christ&#8221;. The Online Etymology Dictionary says &#8220;communion&#8221; comes from the Latin word <em>communionem<\/em>, which it says means &#8220;fellowship, mutual participation, a sharing&#8221;. That&#8217;s why it is possible to <em>communicate<\/em> a disease\u00a0\u2013 meaning to share it.<\/p>\n<p>Because of this, many versions, such as the BBE, don&#8217;t use the word communion at all, instead translating it into English:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"verse-highlight\"><strong><span id=\"001nbspCorinthians1016\">1\u00a0Corinthians 10:16<\/span><\/strong> <em>The cup of blessing which we take, does it not <strong>give us a part in the blood of Christ?<\/strong> and is not the broken bread <strong>a taking part<\/strong> in the body of Christ?<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>So right up front, notice that the Bible does <em>not<\/em> call the taking of the bread and wine COMMUNION at all; it says &#8220;the cup of blessing&#8221; GIVES US A PART (communicates, shares) of the blood of Christ, when it&#8217;s translated into plain English like you and I speak. And there is no other place in the Bible that uses this word, so we can&#8217;t really say that the Bible speaks of communion at all. Incidentally, it doesn&#8217;t speak of the &#8220;eucharist&#8221; either. At all. However, it does plainly speak of taking the blood and the bread, but under a different name. Read where the first time it is used in the New Testament and see for yourself what exactly Jesus commanded: <strong><span id=\"00Luke221320\" class=\"verse\">Luke 22:13-20<\/span><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>First, notice it was <em>\u201cwhen the hour was come\u201d<\/em> <strong><span class=\"make_blue\">(<\/span><span id=\"00Luke2214verse14\" class=\"verse\" data-verse=\"Luke 22:14\">verse 14<\/span><span class=\"make_blue\">)<\/span><\/strong> that Jesus sat down and gave them these symbols. So there was a DEFINITE HOUR that Jesus had in mind to keep this service, setting us an example!<\/p>\n<p>Second, notice that He COMMANDED them to observe it; He said <em>\u201cThis do\u201d<\/em> <strong><span class=\"make_blue\">(<\/span><span id=\"10Luke2219verse19\" class=\"verse\" data-verse=\"Luke 22:19\">verse 19<\/span><span class=\"make_blue\">)<\/span><\/strong>. So this is not optional, any more than \u201clove thy neighbor as thyself\u201d or \u201cturn the other cheek\u201d are optional. Jesus commanded it! But WHY? For what purpose are we to DO it?<\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cIn remembrance of me\u201d<\/em>, Jesus went on to say. This was a MEMORIAL\u00a0\u2013 a remembrance of His death. Now how often do you keep a memorial of say, the signing of the declaration of independence? Or of the day of your birth? Do you do it every day? Weekly? Quarterly? Or do you do it on the same DATE every year?<\/p>\n<p>Or look at it a different way; when a spouse dies, the grieving widow (er) always carries a small piece of that grief around with them, every day\u00a0\u2013 but on the day of the spouse&#8217;s death, they always take it extra hard because this is the day that COMMEMORATES the day they lost their loved one! One day a year they are reminded with extra bitterness that it was X years ago, TODAY, that their beloved died!<\/p>\n<p>They don&#8217;t feel this remorse weekly, quarterly, or monthly; but yearly. But draw no conclusions yet, for there is more evidence to be entered.<\/p>\n<h3>WHAT DOES THE BIBLE CALL THIS \u201cLAST SUPPER?\u201d<\/h3>\n<p>You&#8217;ve already read over the answer, but go ahead and read the parallel version of the story in <strong><span id=\"00Matthew262628\" class=\"verse\">Matthew 26:26-28<\/span><\/strong>. First off, notice that Jesus was in the process of eating the <em>passover<\/em> meal when this was done. <em>\u201c<strong>And as they were eating<\/strong>\u201d<\/em>, Matthew recorded. Eating what? What did Jesus say they were going to eat in this very room? Read <strong><span id=\"10Luke2211\" class=\"verse\">Luke 22:11<\/span><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>So the PASSOVER is what the Bible called this event when Jesus instituted these symbols\u00a0\u2013 the bread representing His body, and the wine representing His blood. It uses that term over a dozen times, so there can be no doubt. Most people don&#8217;t realize that, but it shouldn&#8217;t come as a surprise if you know your Bible, for Paul tells us <em>\u201cChrist OUR PASSOVER is sacrificed for us\u201d<\/em> <strong><span class=\"make_blue\">(<\/span><span id=\"101nbspCorinthians57\" class=\"verse\">1\u00a0Corinthians 5:7<\/span><span class=\"make_blue\">)<\/span><\/strong>. So when else would Christ have introduced these new symbols of OUR NEW PASSOVER, except AT the passover meal that the Jews observed every year?<\/p>\n<p>And at what time of day did Jesus eat this passover service, when He gave us the bread and wine as symbols? <strong>\u00a0<span id=\"10Matthew2620\" class=\"verse\">Matthew 26:20<\/span><span class=\"make_blue\">;<\/span> <span id=\"00Mark141517\" class=\"verse\">Mark 14:15-17<\/span><\/strong>. And so it was DURING this passover service that the Jews always observed that Jesus gave us these new symbols which REPLACED the Old Testament&#8217;s symbols:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"verse-highlight\"><strong><span id=\"01Matthew262628\">Matthew 26:26-28<\/span><\/strong> <em>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.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>And now to really grasp what this means, we have to journey to the Old Testament passover service and see what it is that Jesus&#8217; sacrifice replaced!<\/p>\n<h3>OLD TESTAMENT PASSOVER<\/h3>\n<p>The original passover was the last of the ten plagues God sent on Egypt; you can read the whole story for yourself in <strong><span id=\"00Exodus12\" class=\"verse\">Exodus 12<\/span><\/strong>. The important facts are that the Hebrew year begins in mid-to-late-March in our calendar (the exact date changes every year), not in midwinter like ours does. And on the tenth day of the first month, called <em>abib,<\/em> they were told to choose a lamb for the passover, one perfect, without spot or flaws of any kind; this lamb of course represented Jesus, the <em>\u201clamb of God\u201d<\/em> <strong><span class=\"make_blue\">(<\/span><span id=\"00John136\" class=\"verse\">John 1:36<\/span><span class=\"make_blue\">)<\/span><\/strong>, who <em>\u201cdid no sin\u201d<\/em> <strong><span class=\"make_blue\">(<\/span><span id=\"001nbspPeter222\" class=\"verse\">1\u00a0Peter 2:22<\/span><span class=\"make_blue\">)<\/span><\/strong>, who was to <em>\u201ctakes away the sin of the world\u201d<\/em> <strong><span class=\"make_blue\">(<\/span><span id=\"10John129\" class=\"verse\">John 1:29<\/span><span class=\"make_blue\">)<\/span><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>They were to take this lamb they chose and keep it separate from the flock until the fourteenth day of the month (sometime in our April), and kill it <em>\u201cin the evening\u201d<\/em> <strong><span class=\"make_blue\">(<\/span><span id=\"20Exodus12verse6\" class=\"verse\" data-verse=\"Exodus 12:6\">verse 6<\/span><span class=\"make_blue\">)<\/span><\/strong>; the literal Hebrew reads \u201cbetween the two evenings,\u201d or more accurately, \u201cbetween the two darks,\u201d which means between the two <em>levels<\/em> of darkness\u00a0\u2013 that is, when the sun disappears, and when it is completely dark; as the BBE translates it <em>\u201cput it to death <strong>between sundown and dark<\/strong>.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>So if sundown is at 6pm, which it often is that time of year, then Israel was commanded to kill the lamb between 6pm and 7:30pm, when total darkness sets in. It must be noted that God counts days from sunset to sunset, with the evening beginning the day (see <strong><span id=\"00Genesis113\" class=\"verse\">Genesis 1:13<\/span><span class=\"unbold\">,<\/span> <span id=\"00Leviticus2332\" class=\"verse\">Leviticus 23:32<\/span><span class=\"make_blue\">)<\/span><\/strong>. So the lamb was killed at the very beginning of the 14th day of the month, just after sunset began that day.<\/p>\n<p>As soon as it was killed, they took the blood and put it on the doorposts, to protect them from the death angel; then the lamb was roasted, and eaten in haste. Then at midnight the death angel passed through the land of Egypt to punish them for their sins against God, but he <em>passed over<\/em> every house that had the blood of the lamb on it!<\/p>\n<p>Thus it was called the PASSOVER, because on that day God PASSED OVER Israel and punished only the Egyptians. But now suppose there had been people in Israel who said \u201cwell, I want to keep the passover TOMORROW\u201d\u00a0\u2013 why, they wouldn&#8217;t have had the blood on their houses on that special night and the death angel would not have spared them!<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"verse-highlight\"><strong><span id=\"00Exodus1214\">Exodus 12:14<\/span><\/strong><em>\u00a0 And THIS DAY shall be unto you for <strong>A MEMORIAL<\/strong>; and ye shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance <strong>for ever<\/strong>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>It was THIS DAY\u00a0\u2013 not weekly, or monthly, but THIS SAME DAY, the 14<sup>th<\/sup> day of the first month, that Israel was to keep FOREVER, as a memorial of putting the blood of the lamb on the doorposts and eating it&#8217;s flesh; just as Jesus commanded us \u201cthis do, in remembrance of me\u201d\u00a0\u2013 on that very same day, when He gave us His flesh to eat and His blood to drink!<\/p>\n<p>But suppose there had been some Israelites who wanted to keep it weekly, or quarterly, or in the morning&#8230;\u00a0 they were free to do what they wanted! But if they weren&#8217;t covered by that blood on the NIGHT God came seeking it, <strong>they would have been slain by the death angel along with the Egyptians!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cWhen I see the blood, I will pass over you\u201d<\/em>, God says\u00a0\u2013 surely a metaphor for when God sees the blood of Christ on us, He <em>passes over<\/em> our sins! As Jesus said <em>\u201cthis is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins\u201d<\/em> <strong><span class=\"make_blue\">(<\/span><span id=\"30Matthew2628\" class=\"verse\">Matthew 26:28<\/span><span class=\"make_blue\">)<\/span><\/strong>. So Jesus REPLACED that lamb, at the SAME ceremony; Jesus and His disciples ate that passover, just as the Israelites had done, and \u201cWHILE they were eating,\u201d He gave them these new symbols!<\/p>\n<h3>IS IT NECESSARY FOR SALVATION?<\/h3>\n<p>Let&#8217;s let Jesus answer.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"verse-highlight\"><strong><span id=\"20John65354\">John 6:53-54<\/span> (BBE)<\/strong> <em>Then Jesus said to them, Truly I say to you, <strong>If you do not take the flesh of the Son of man for food<\/strong>, and if you do not take his blood for drink, <strong>you have no life in you<\/strong>. He who takes my flesh for food and my blood for drink has eternal life: and I will take him up from the dead at the last day.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>If you do not take these symbols Jesus gave us, HOW, WHEN, and AS OFTEN AS He commanded us to do it\u00a0\u2013 you have no life in you. You CANNOT be saved, Jesus said, UNLESS you eat His flesh (the bread), and drink His blood (the wine).<\/p>\n<h3>WINE OR GRAPE JUICE?<\/h3>\n<p>Grape is used to represent blood when He tells Israel <em>\u201cand thou didst drink the pure blood of the grape\u201d<\/em> <strong><span class=\"make_blue\">(<\/span><span id=\"00Deuteronomy3214\" class=\"verse\">Deuteronomy 32:14<\/span><span class=\"make_blue\">)<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 so that grapes are used to represent the blood of Christ is no surprise. But was it <em>grape juice<\/em> or wine that we must eat?<\/p>\n<p>As has been proved, this was done in the springtime; so in early April, Jesus drank <em>\u201cof the fruit of the vine\u201d<\/em> <strong><span class=\"make_blue\">(<\/span><span id=\"20Luke221718\" class=\"verse\">Luke 22:17-18<\/span><span id=\"00Luke222020\" class=\"verse\" data-verse=\"Luke 22:20\">, 20<\/span><span class=\"make_blue\">)<\/span><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>But here is the thing; in April there is not a single grape within a thousand miles of the Middle East. Remember, they had no refrigeration. No way of preserving fresh fruits. And the first\u00a0\u2013 the VERY FIRST grapes ripen in JULY! Over three MONTHS after the passover service! In April, grapes seldom even have LEAVES, much less ripe grapes!<\/p>\n<p>So try this experiment; this October when the last of the grapes come in, buy some organic grapes from the store, and put them in your cellar in an earthenware crock. Come back in April and see what you have\u00a0\u2013 you will find you have wine. You might even find you have a pretty good wine! But after even a couple of days, you will NOT have grape juice anymore, as it will have already started to ferment!<\/p>\n<p>So Jesus used wine. And He told us \u201cDO THIS\u201d; He didn&#8217;t say \u201cdo something,\u201d or \u201cmake something up,\u201d or \u201cdo what you want\u201d\u00a0\u2013 He said do THIS, and gave us an EXAMPLE of what, how, and when to do this ceremony without which \u201cwe have no life in us!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There are probably more opinions about this question than any other; some keep it whenever they feel like it; some do it daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, yearly; some in the morning, some in the&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1868,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,11],"tags":[17,38,16],"class_list":["post-455","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-start-here","category-with-audio","tag-food","tag-holy-day","tag-sacrifice"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thesimpleanswers.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/455","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thesimpleanswers.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thesimpleanswers.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thesimpleanswers.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thesimpleanswers.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=455"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.thesimpleanswers.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/455\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2672,"href":"https:\/\/www.thesimpleanswers.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/455\/revisions\/2672"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thesimpleanswers.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1868"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thesimpleanswers.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=455"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thesimpleanswers.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=455"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thesimpleanswers.com\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=455"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}