The Lord’s Supper
As they were eating the Passover, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body”. Today as we partake of the Lord’s communion, do we realize that what we partake of is the universal Body of Christ? Do we love the universal Church, scattered all over the world, irrespective of our denominational and national barriers? Secondly, we should remember the suffering members of His Body who undergo persecutions in many parts of the world. As we break the bread, we should also remember that the physical Body of Jesus was broken for us so that we, who are of His mystical Body, the Church, are united together in His one Spirit. Jesus then 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.”
The Blood of the New Covenant is alive today. Through this Blood, all our sins are forgiven and all our sicknesses and diseases healed. Do you need healing today? Take a vessel full of water and say prayerfully, “This is the Blood of Jesus shed for my salvation and for my healing”. Then drink this water and go on doing so till you are healed. You will be definitely healed. Do you need deliverance from the evil spirits? Sprinkle the water on the head of the person possessed by the evil spirits. In case the evil spirits torment some one in his/her house, the water may be sprinkled around the house. I give below an incident in this regard.
There lived an evangelist, namely Vedapotham in the Tirunelveli District of Tamil Nadu, South India during the early 20th century. He lived for 115 years. He was an evangelist used by God mightily with signs and wonders. God endowed him with the gifts of healing. One day, he was praying for the healing of some sick people. God was healing the sick through his hands when he took water and prayed for them, saying, “This is the Blood of Jesus Christ”. Some Hindu people created a furore in the meeting and accused him of cheating them through ordinary water. Vedapothagam took water in a vessel and said “This is the Blood of Jesus Christ” and then sprinkled water in front of them. As the water dropped on the floor, it turned into blood and dried. On seeing this miracle, many people accepted Jesus Christ.
Paul wrote in his epistle to Corinthians (11:23-34) that regarding the Lord’s supper, he received it from the Lord. When Paul was not amongst the twelve disciples who physically partook of the Lord’s supper, how did he receive it from the Lord? It was the Holy Spirit who taught Paul about the significance of the Lord’s supper. Paul was not one of the twelve disciples of Jesus who ate and lived with Jesus physically. But Paul received more of His grace, and suffered more than the other disciples. Paul did not know Jesus after flesh but knew Him in the Spirit. This shows the importance of the ministry of the Holy Ghost.
Paul further wrote that one should examine himself and then let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup because he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgement to himself, not discerning the Lord’s Body. For this reason, many are weak and sick among us, and many sleep.
If many of us are weak and sick today, it is probably because we have eaten and drunk in an unworthy manner while partaking of the Lord’s table. Let us today examine ourselves and then go to the Lord’s table with a broken heart. Let us seek His forgiveness. As the Lord forgives us about our trespasses committed by us in the past either knowingly or unknowingly, we will surely be healed.
Whenever you take part in the holy communion service, you can pray for your healing, remembering the death of Christ on the Cross for delivering you from your sickness. You need not go all the way to some distant place to attend any healing crusade for receiving your healing. Just go to your local church and partake in the holy communion service with all the reverence and humility. While accepting the wine symbolical of the Blood of Jesus Christ, just confess through your mouth, "Lord, thank You for healing me". While accepting the bread symbolical of the Body of Christ Jesus which was broken for you, just confess through your mouth, "Lord, thank You for Your Body which was broken for peace in my family or for restoration of my restoration or for peace with my spouse". You can pray for a miracle in your life also. This is the place where you can submit your prayer requests to our Father in Heaven. Amen.
- Job Anbalagan