1 Corinthians 11:17-30

In the things I tell you now I do not praise you. Your meetings hurt you more than they help you. First, I hear that when you meet together as a church you are divided. And I believe some of this. (It is necessary for there to be differences among you. That is the way to make it clear which of you are really doing right.) When you all come together, you are not really eating the Lord’s Supper. This is because when you eat, each person eats without waiting for the others. Some people do not get enough to eat, while others have too much to drink. You can eat and drink in your own homes! It seems that you think God’s church is not important. You embarrass those who are poor. What should I tell you? Should I praise you for doing this? I do not praise you. The teaching that I gave you is the same teaching that I received from the Lord: On the night when Jesus was handed over to be killed, he took bread and gave thanks for it. Then he broke the bread and said, “This is my body; it is for you. Do this to remember me.” In the same way, after they ate, Jesus took the cup. He said, “This cup shows the new agreement from God to his people. This new agreement begins with the blood of my death. When you drink this, do it to remember me.” Every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you show others about the Lord’s death until he comes. So a person should not eat the bread or drink the cup of the Lord in a way that is not worthy of it. If he does he is sinning against the body and the blood of the Lord. Everyone should look into his own heart before he eats the bread and drinks the cup. If someone eats the bread and drinks the cup without recognizing the body, then he is judged guilty by eating and drinking. That is why many in your group are sick and weak. And some of you have died.