1 Corinthians 11:23-26
Maundy Thursday, April 2, 2026, 6:00 PM
Sermon preached by Rev. Donald Ng at Lakeshore Avenue Baptist Church, Oakland, CA.
On a Sunday morning, if you didn’t get up early enough to have breakfast and you didn’t know anything about The Lord’s Supper, you might think that you will be treated to a nice brunch at church.
We can identify when a five-year old complain about being hungry at church; her stomach is growling so loud that her parents can hear it. And you can imagine that when the bread is being passed down the pews that the child is just tempted to grab a handful of little cubes of bread!
For those who may not know or understand the meaning of The Lord’s Supper, this can certainly happen. In fact, the abuses of the Lord’s Supper happened recorded in the Scriptures right before the verses we read this evening (11:17-22).
Paul scolded the Corinthians that when they came to The Lord’s Supper, those who were more privileged selfishly went ahead to eat and drink, leaving others with nothing. They went hungry. Some went so far as to drink so much that they became drunk. Paul said that when they came together, they were not better but they were worse.
Paul said, “What should I say to you? Should I commend you? In this matter I do not commend you!” (11:22b)
Remembrance
Once a month, usually on the first Sunday of a month, we celebrate The Lord’s Supper here at Lakeshore. There’s nothing sacred about the first Sunday of a month and there are many churches that offer the elements of the bread and the cup every Sunday.
For us, we celebrate The Lord’s Supper to remember the sacrifice Jesus in death through the crucifixion. The word, “sacrifice” is synonymous to the horror of death and as we know even today as disciples of Christ, we often fear death. We avoid the topic of death and dying as often and as long as we can; sometimes at our own peril that we are not prepared for that day to come.
But the mystery of the Christian faith is that however scandalous death is, Jesus’ death made human life sacred in the face of the violence of human injustice. This is the proclamation Jesus is making in the presence of his disciples at the Passover table that have now become The Lord’sSupper for us today. Jesus said, “Do this in remembrance of me.”
Re-Membering
In Corinth, we know that there were rich members in that community and following the socially acceptable practices of the day, the rich members came to the meal before others and they would start eating and drinking as much as they choose until they were satisfied and drunk.
The poorer members were often still outside—even though they were all members of this early church community. What is more, the poorer members may not be able to afford an evening meal as well. In that day, they would actually have supper or dinner, called the Agape Meal first and then followed by The Lord’s Supper.
In this passage, Paul was speaking about the injustice of this. Paul wants the Corinthians to not only to remember Christ’s sacrifice on the cross but to also “re-member” to become one family when being together for both the Agape Meal and for The Lord’s Supper.
The purpose of remembering Christ’s words as they eat the meal together is to bring them together as Christ’s community, collapsing the barriers among them. Whether they are socially acceptable or not, over a meal they are reuniting in covenant with one another and with God.
While they have been “dis-membering” as members of this Corinthian community, Paul is calling them to “re-membering” to become the Body of Christ as Christ has called them to be.
God is the one who sets the table of life, inviting us all in God’s image. When we eat this meal in a community that takes this to heart, we are invited to break open our lives for one another as we break bread. We are invited to pour out our lives in covenant with one another and with God as we pour out the wine and share the cup.
As we eat this meal, we participate with Jesus in death and resurrection.
Tonight’s Table
The hunger and thirst we bring to the Communion table on Maundy Thursday is to remember our covenant with God and with one another. We long to have our hearts broken open, poured out, and transformed by this ritual meal. It is only when our hearts are broken and made vulnerable that they can be truly transformed through love.
When Jesus offered his life to be broken and poured out for God’s love and justice, his death was transformed to new life through the resurrection. In remembrance of Jesus, we eat this bread and drink this cup. In “re-membering” to one another as sisters and brothers, unified in the name of Christ, we care for one another so that no one is left hungry or thirsty.
This meal is the opportunity to empty ourselves as Jesus did on the cross, so that we too may be filled with the power of God’s grace and love in resurrection.
Let us pray.
Dear God, make your presence felt tonight as we remember and celebrate; as we realize that it’s also a time of fear and betrayal. As your disciples, call us to love one another as Christ loves us. Teach us to learn from Jesus Christ and lead us to be ready again to follow where Christ leads. Amen.