25 Communion Bible Verses and Scriptures for Inspiration and Guidance
Communion is the central biblical doctrine and a core experiential reality for every believer. When it comes to Communion, Scripture reveals to us that it is an ordinance instituted by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself on the night of His betrayal. It is also known as the Lord’s Supper or Holy Communion – a sacred practice for Jesus’ followers to remember His holy sacrifice.
But it is much more than remembering something with your mind. It is “re-membering” – as in putting together, perceiving His holy presence in all things. Jesus Christ is forever present on this earth until the end of the age, even as He said in Matthew 28:19-20,
“And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
The elements of the Holy Communion represent the broken body and spilled blood of Jesus Christ. They are more than symbols; they are living symbols. In and through them, we commune with God the Father through the sacrifice of God’s Son. By remembering and acknowledging the significance of Christ’s flesh and blood, we can have eternal life in us.
Most certainly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you don’t have life in yourselves. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. (John 6:53-54)
The Bible is replete with verses that shed light on the profound meaning and importance of Communion. In this article, we will peruse 25 Communion Bible verses for inspiration and guidance.
1. Communion as a Reminder of Christ’s Sacrifice
He took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body which is given for you. Do this in memory of me.” (Luke 22:19)
Communion is a reminder of Christ’s selfless sacrifice on the cross and heavenly food for the soul. As believers partake of the bread, they also partake of the broken body of Jesus offered for their salvation.
For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me, and I in him. (John 6:55-56)
The concept of a holy and life-giving sacrifice is as ancient as the world itself. People have long noticed that animals or birds must die every time they eat. So, the idea of a substitutionary sacrifice slowly made its way into people’s subconscious through myths and legends. When Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper, it became the culmination of this ancient concept.
In the Lord’s Supper, God feeds us with Himself so we can receive from Him. God himself became our food from heaven – a perfect substitutionary sacrifice eaten by all those who wish to partake of His divine nature.
2. The Symbolism of the Cup
In the same way he also took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink, in memory of me. (1 Corinthians 11:25)
The cup symbolizes the new covenant sealed with the blood of Christ. However, it is more than a sign of the covenant – it is a living emblem of the divine blood transfusion. God gave us His blood on the cross so we can be made whole and live. By drinking His blood, we partake of the divine nature and receive eternal life.
Jesus used tangible physical elements – bread and wine – to present himself as “real food.” God is our real food and drink. Anything in the physical world can become Communion with God when we are mindful of God’s presence.
The spiritual significance of Communion is vast. It shows all the aspects of physical creation as vessels of God’s life-giving presence.
3. Self-examination before Communion
But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread, and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy way eats and drinks judgment to himself if he doesn’t discern the Lord’s body. (1 Corinthians 11:28-29)
The apostle Paul warns believers against participating in the Lord’s Supper without being mindful of its significance. Jesus spoke of the Lord’s Supper as remembering – being mindful of God.
Why is it so important to be mindful of God in Communion? Because Communion is the pattern for how we see everything. How we see anything is how we see everything. If we go through life without being mindful of God’s presence in Communion, we will miss Him in all other things. We will miss his grace.
We will not recognize the Lord when He comes, just like the Jews in the first century:
He was in the world, and the world was made through him, and the world didn’t recognize him. He came to his own, and those who were his own didn’t receive him. (John 1:10-11)
Communion is the ultimate litmus test for how mindful we are of the Lord. The physical elements we eat and drink are conduits of His transformative presence and food for the soul. If we ignore or neglect His presence, we cut ourselves off from God as the Source of life.
That’s why Paul urges believers to engage in self-examination before Communion. It’s an opportunity to still your mind and become aware of your thoughts and feelings so you can realign yourself with God’s will.
4. Unity in Communion
Because there is one loaf of bread, we, who are many, are one body; for we all partake of the one loaf of bread. (1 Corinthians 10:17)
Communion is a mystical experience of our oneness in God. We who are many are actually one in Christ, just like there are many members in one body. We are members in the one universal body of Christ. The one loaf we eat symbolizes our interconnectedness.
5. Reverence for the Lord’s Table
Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks the Lord’s cup in a way unworthy of the Lord will be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. (1 Corinthians 11:27)
What does it mean to eat the bread and drink the Lord’s cup in an unworthy way?
The apostle addresses this question in verse 29:
For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy way eats and drinks judgment to himself if he doesn’t discern the Lord’s body.
Do we discern the Lord’s body in, under, and behind the elements? Are we mindful of God’s presence in all things, including the bread and wine? If we do not discern the treasure of God’s presence under the physical elements, we won’t see him anywhere. We will stay in death and miss out on eternal life that is always available to those who would open their eyes.
Partake of Communion with a heart full of humility and reverence because God himself is miraculously communing with us in every manifestation of the physical.
6. Proclaiming Christ’s Death
For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. (1 Corinthians 11:26)
What does it mean to proclaim Christ’s death? It means to declare that the ultimate sacrifice has been made, and no other is necessary. Every sin has been atoned for. There’s lasting peace. There’s no more wrath. The old has passed away; the new has come.
In Communion, we powerfully proclaim that we are partaking of God’s sacrifice, which is the only holy food that makes us whole again. We declare the truth that we are receiving God in the elements.
7. Jesus, the Bread of Life
Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will not be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. (John 6:35)
Jesus is the only food that nourishes the soul unto eternal life. He is the fruit of the Tree of Life that grew in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve ate of that tree and lived. After the fall, the entrance to Paradise on Earth was shut so no one could eat of the Tree of Life anymore.
Regular food gives us some energy, but in the end, we still die. Jesus came down from heaven as God’s manna to offer Himself up as a sacrifice to be eaten by faith and discernment. Those who eat of this sacrifice eat of the tree of life and live forever.
8. Communion as Fellowship With Christ
The cup of blessing which we bless, isn’t it a sharing of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, isn’t it a sharing of the body of Christ? (1 Corinthians 10:16)
Communion can never be reduced to a symbolic act. The apostle Paul says that in Communion, we participate in the spiritual reality of Christ’s sacrifice. We eat the perfect food from heaven that transforms us into God’s likeness. By partaking of Christ, we become one with Christ.
9. Discernment Is the Key to Communion
For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy way eats and drinks judgment to himself if he doesn’t discern the Lord’s body. (1 Corinthians 11:29)
Discernment is a conscious act of becoming mindful of God in Communion. It is returning to the tree of life in the Garden of Eden – the perfect food from above. People who don’t discern the Lord’s body and blood under the visible elements cannot recognize Him in real life either and, therefore, stay in death.
10. Communion as Thanksgiving
When he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “Take, eat. This is my body, which is broken for you. Do this in memory of me.” (1 Corinthians 11:24)
Holy Communion is thanksgiving. In Greek, it is called Eucharist, which means “thanksgiving.” The only proper response to the perfect food coming from heaven is giving thanks. The only right sacrifice we can bring to God in response is gratitude.
11. A Call to Remember
“I will remember Yah’s deeds; for I will remember your wonders of old.” (Psalm 77:11)
As mentioned above, remembering is more than just invoking a picture in your mind. In the Bible, remembering means re-membering – bringing together, re-collecting, gathering, reassembling. To remember Christ in Communion means to perceive Him as fully present so we can commune with Him in the moment.
12. Communion and the Fellowship of the Holy Spirit
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, God’s love, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen. (2 Corinthians 13:14)
The fellowship of the Holy Spirit is more than a doctrine – it is an experiential reality for anyone who has faith as a spiritual vision. To discern the Lord’s body and blood in Communion means to see God in all things. The moment we see God in all things, we have fellowship with the triune God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
13. Feeding on the Word of God
But he answered, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of God’s mouth.’” (Matthew 4:4)
In the symbolic act of partaking of the bread, we feed on God’s Word, the Logos. God’s Word is not only a spoken or written word. It is the Logos which is the foundation of the universe. Even though we can’t see God with our physical eyes, we trust that He is present in all things. This trust is our spiritual nourishment.
14. Communion as an Act of Worship
Therefore I urge you, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service. (Romans 12:1)
Partaking of Communion is our true worship because discerning the Lord and His mercies is the ultimate act of faith. Faith is a spiritual vision. In faith, we offer our lives and bodies to God in response to his mercy.
15. Communion and the New Covenant
Now may the God of peace, who brought again from the dead the great shepherd of the sheep with the blood of an eternal covenant, our Lord Jesus. (Hebrews 13:20)
What is this new covenant in His blood? It is God’s unshakable promise to save anyone who would have faith in Him. His blood is the water of life that wells up to eternal life.
16. Communion in Love
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also love one another. (John 13:34)
Communion is a celebration of love. We are one in God’s body, so as we break the bread and drink of the cup, we celebrate that oneness – the love that binds all things together in perfect unity.
17. Communion as Spiritual Warfare
For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but mighty before God to the throwing down of strongholds. (2 Corinthians 10:4)
Communion is a mighty spiritual weapon because it connects us to God, the Source of spiritual light. Only divine light can overcome darkness, demolish strongholds, and fortify believers against any challenges.
18. Jesus, the True Vine
I am the vine. You are the branches. He who remains in me and I in him bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:5)
Apart from Jesus, the true vine, we can do nothing. Remaining in Him means seeing His enduring presence hidden under the guise of the physical elements. Communion is a tangible expression of this invisible connection.
19. The Feast of Communion
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. (Psalm 23:5)
Communion is our participation in the divine feast. As we partake of the presence of God in all things, we feel his abundance and overflowing blessings.
20. Communion and the Joy of Salvation
Restore to me the joy of your salvation. Uphold me with a willing spirit. (Psalm 51:12)
Communion is our ultimate healing. We become whole in God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This is a moment of true wholeness, joy, and restoration as we experience our salvation through Jesus Christ.
21. Communion and the Body of Christ
Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually. (1 Corinthians 12:27)
Communion is a celebration of our unity with God, other believers, and all of creation. Believers collectively form one body of Christ. We are intricately and mysteriously interconnected.
22. The Invitation to the Communion Table
Come to me, all you who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28)
Communion is solace for those who are weary and burdened because we are invited to God’s banquet – the wedding feast of the Lamb.
23. Communion as a Source of Strength
I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13)
Apart from Christ, we are powerless. We can’t overcome temptations. We can’t love. We can’t have lasting joy. But as we commune with the Lord, we experience a life-giving connection to the Source of all life.
24. Communion and the Anticipation of the Heavenly Banquet
Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb. (Revelation 19:9)
We are all invited to the feast of the Lamb, but only those who have faith can enter. When we rely on God and discern his presence in all things, we are ushered into the Kingdom of Heaven and participate in the heavenly banquet. This is the true Lord’s Supper.
25. Communion from the Eternal Perspective
For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. (1 Corinthians 11:26)
In Communion, the past, the present, and the future collide. We proclaim Christ’s death, which happened in the past. We experience our connection to the Vine. It’s happening now. And we anticipate His coming in power to fulfill everything predicted by the prophets.
As we approach the feast of the Lord’s Supper, let us open our hearts and pray so we can see the Lord and truly partake of His glory.
