» VV. 17-19
In verse 2 Paul had said “I praise you because you remember me in everything and hold firmly to the traditions”

But now he must say this:
11:17a: "But in giving this instruction, I do not praise you..."

They were faithful to the traditions, but their church gatherings were detrimental.

In his own words,
11:17b because you come together not for the better but for the worse. 18 For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that divisions exist among you; and in part I believe it. 19 For there must also be factions among you, so that those who are approved may become evident among you.

What a horror it would be if Jesus was waiting in the parking lot after service one Sunday, pulled us aside, and said sternly, “your meeting today did more harm than good (which is the NIV’s translation of 17b)!”

The first problem was their “factions.” You can substitute the word “cliques” or “denominations.” He’s discussed this since the beginning of this letter (see 1:10; 3:1-4; or all of chapters 5 and 6, for instance).

How can a divided church share the love and good news of salvation with the lost world? How can a divided church conquer the enemy? Can you imagine an athletic team arguing amongst themselves in the middle of a game? Can you imagine our military divided in the midst of a war? We aren’t preparing for battle; we aren’t on the lookout for battle. The battle started in Eden, and we are called to be its warriors. And to quote Jesus, “If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand” (Mark 3:24).

This is serious, folks!

DIFFERENCES among Christians are natural, as he points out in v.19. Those differences are in fact useful. They help us to examine each other, to grow toward truth, and to highlight God’s approval.

But DIVISIONS are destructive, and the next few verses show how serious this is.

» VV. 20-22
11:20 Therefore when you meet together, it is not to eat the Lord’s Supper, 21 for in your eating each one takes his own supper first; and one is hungry and another is drunk. 22 What! Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you? In this I will not praise you.

They gathered together to take the Lord’s Supper. I’m sure they ate the bread and drank the cup, but despite their intention and all outward appearances, it *wasn’t* the Lord’s Supper because they were self-centered, and to be self-centered is to be divided. It appears that the rich were chowing down, taking their fill, and leaving little for the poor.


I can’t study this text without calling out how differently the 1st century church observed the Lord’s Supper from modern churches. Divisions aside, I’m talking about the way it was practiced. In my church we observe the Lord’s Supper every Sunday. Some churches do it monthly, quarterly, only on Easter, etc. In my church we pass a tray with tiny pieces of unleavened bread and another tray with thimble-sized cups of grape juice. Some churches pass a loaf of bread from which each person takes a piece and cups of wine. Other churches do a combination of these and the members line up as a minister serves these to them.

Regardless, how different is that from what these verses describe? What I read about here is more like what we would call a potluck dinner with real wine served on real plates and in real cups. How else could people abuse it by filling themselves up to the neglect of the poor? How else could some people get drunk?

The abuse of these meetings aside, I think we can look at the early church’s style of observing it - as well as the very things Paul criticized them for - and see that the intention was a genuine celebration of Christ’s death and resurrection rather than a silent, solemn, self-centered sacrament. We call it communion; we should observe it as a community. We call it the Lord’s SUPPER; we shouldn’t observe it like a SNACK. But I know of no church that does this in the 21st century.
Back to the divisions. Their self-centeredness nullified their purpose. Their meetings scored more points for the side of evil than for the side of good. That’s a hard statement!

» VV. 23-25
11:23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24 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.” 25 In the same way He took the cup also after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.”

Paul’s teaching about the Lord’s Supper wasn’t something he read in the gospels. The gospels hadn’t even been written yet when he wrote this letter. Nor did he learn it from other apostles. It came directly from Christ (see v.23). Similarly, in Gal. 1:11-12 Paul said “the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ…”

» VV. 26-30
26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes. 27 Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. 28 But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly. 30 For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep.

The Lord’s Supper looks both backward (proclaiming His death) and forward (until He comes). It is a proclamation, not a feast –a proclamation of the Lord’s death! It is a witness! It is something to celebrate before the world!

v. 27, I need to straighten something out regarding the phrase “in an unworthy manner.” The Greek word is ἀναξίως anaxiōs. It is a compound word “an” (not) +”axios” (weighty). Anyone who eats the bread and drinks the cup in a “non-weighty” manner – that is, as if it were not a heavy issue as these Corinthians were doing - will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.

Man, that is a severe charge! Treat the Lord’s Supper as a light issue and you will be guilty for His blood – the very thing you are supposed to be celebrating!

When you observe this celebration at your church again, examine your mindset and your motive. Don’t approach the Lord’s Supper lightly! This is heavy, profound stuff! This is your life source!

» VV. 31-32
31 But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world.

I think it’s both profound and relieving that we can avoid God’s judgment by dealing with ourselves honestly. God always gives us an opportunity to change. But if we don’t do this, He will judge us Himself and “discipline” and train us like a father trains up a child. He will do whatever it takes to help clean up your life.

When He does discipline us like this, we shouldn’t see it as something terrible. He disciplines those He loves, as Hebrews 12:6 tells us. He’s trying to keep us out of more trouble, trying to shape us and get us back on track. It may be painful, but it is His love that brings these things into our lives – He would rather discipline us this way than punish us when the world is judged and condemned.

» VV. 33-34
33 So then, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. 34 If anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, so that you will not come together for judgment. The remaining matters I will arrange when I come.

The central point is simply that our meetings as a body of Christ need to be lived out in a way that promotes the growth and development of the individual members of His body. Do whatever you need to do – eat at home before the meeting if necessary! – to avoid your heart being in the wrong place and failing to build up the unity of the body.