Bible Verses About the Lord's Supper

The Lord's Supper is the celebration of the bread and the cup that Jesus instituted as a memorial of his sacrifice. On the night he was betrayed, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it, and said, "This is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me" (1 Corinthians 11:23-24). Likewise he took the cup and declared, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood" (1 Corinthians 11:25). In partaking, the believer does not perform a mere rite: he proclaims the Lord's death till he comes (1 Corinthians 11:26). The Supper is at once remembrance and communion. It recalls the price paid at the cross, it celebrates the new covenant sealed by the blood of Christ, and it unites the church around the Lord's table. The apostle Paul exhorts each one to examine himself before eating this bread and drinking this cup (1 Corinthians 11:28), so as to draw near with faith, thankfulness, and a sincere heart. These verses unveil the deep meaning of the Supper: a meal of thanksgiving that looks backward to the cross and forward to the Lord's return. The believer draws near not in fear but with joy, knowing that through the bread and the cup he communes with Christ and with all his redeemed people. So the table becomes both a remembrance of grace and a pledge of the hope that one day he will drink it new in the kingdom of God.