He Who Eats & Drinks

23 June, 2026

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. But a man must test himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup.

For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly.

1st Corinthians 11:27-29

These verses describe two essential aspects of how one must approach communion. To take the supper you need to do so in a worthy manner, and to take the supper you need to judge yourself. This does not mean that you need to be “worthy” by some standard of human righteousness. Know that your worthiness, or anyone else’s worthiness to partake of the Supper, is totally dependent upon the worthiness of Christ imputed to you through the Holy Spirit. Paul is not saying that good people get the bread and wine while the bad people don’t. Paul is saying that this is a serious sacrament deserving a genuine approach.

Earlier in Corinthians, Paul rebuked those who were already full and drunk when they got to church. That is not a worthy way to approach the table. But those who struggle with gluttony and drunkenness? Come to the table. Remember Christ. Remember that He is sufficient where food leaves you hungry. Remember that He nourishes where alcohol only numbs. Whatever sin you are struggling with, come to the table to remember Christ and be fed by Him.

The other half is that you need to test yourself. To use the words of the passage: “judge yourself.” As is often said, it may mean reconciling with a brother. But this is not an explicit command: to make a beeline to someone you’re fighting with, bread and juice in hand. The Supper may be the means by which you are convicted to reconcile with a brother. It could be that you act proactively. It could be that as you take the bread and the cup that you judge and test yourself, revealing spiritual deficiencies. Christ, through the supper, compels you towards obedience.

When you do judge yourself you may find yourself slipping. But you come to the table knowing Christ is the solid ground. When you do test yourself you could feel lost. But you come to the table confident that Christ is the way. But what is clear is that anyone coming to the table needs to be able to judge, to test, to consider who they are and who Christ is.

Those who can’t do this, because they are unable for whatever reason, shouldn’t come to the table. Those who refuse to do this, usually those in unrepentant sin or under church discipline, shouldn’t come to the table. As painful as this may be, the church must hold to this clear Biblical standard. Parents, must come alongside church elders and hold their children to this clear Biblical standard. A child should never take the elements just because they want to, just like an adult should never take the elements just because he wants to. The Biblical qualifications for communicants are a professing Christians who are able to judge themselves.

Which brings up another aspect of who should take the Supper. This has only become controversial and has only become a matter of discussion in recent history. Although there is no “thou shalt” in the Bible, there is a historical precedent and a theological rationale for only admitting baptized believers to the table. Irrespective of our feelings or what we have practiced in the past, the goal should always be to follow Christ thoughtfully, consistently, and completely. What does the Bible teach?

First, the idea of an unbaptized church member would have been unthinkable in the early church. To be a follower of Christ was to be baptized. The pattern in scripture is believe and be baptized. The text intimates that there was very little time between these two events. Thus, all those partaking of the supper would have been baptized.

Second, baptism is an initiatory rite by which Christians are, as the Bible says, “baptized into Christ Jesus” (Rom 6:3) and “baptized into one body” (1 Cor 12:13). Not only did the early church as described in scripture assume Christians would follow their conversion with baptism, but scripture points to baptism as the visible way in which one initially identifies as a follower of Christ and a member of His church. Thus, the initiatory rite (baptism) ought to precede the recurring rite (communion).

Third, as alluded to a moment ago, the historic church had this expectation. Some of the earliest, most significant documents we possess from the late first and early second century advocate baptism as a prerequisite for communion. Today, Biblical and confessional Baptist, Congregational, and Presbyterian churches have and hold this same standard.

Once more, there is no verse that spells this out succinctly. Yet, neither is there a verse that succinctly articulates a table of contents for which books belong in the Bible, the nature of the trinity, or the precise structure of church government. But Christians use the fullness of scripture to come to these conclusions. Baptism as a prerequisite for communion reflects the Biblical pattern of the New Testament church.

In conclusion, please hear this genuine pastoral question: Knowing what you know about the significance of the Lord’s Supper from the Bible, why would you want to follow Christ’s ordinance of communion and not follow His clear command and ordinance of believer’s baptism? What is standing in your way? Parent, what is standing in your child’s way? Christ has done the hard work. He now asks you – He asks all Christians – to gratefully respond in obedience.

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This is an excerpt taken from a sermon originally preached at New England Bible Church in June of 2024.