“Every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you broadcast the death of the Lord until he comes.” These words ground the practice of communion within the very ministry of Jesus. They remind people of faith back then and now that we are something bigger than ourselves. They point us beyond a ritual which we do on Sunday mornings. It is a reminder of who we are. It is a reminder of why we do what we do. It is the theological foundation for our call to come to the Table, to stay at the Table to build a bigger table.
November 16, 2025
The Welcome Table
“Build a Bigger Table: Do this in Remembrance of Me”
1 Corinthians 11: 17-34b
Rev. Dr. Heather W. McColl
1 Corinthians 11: 17-34b
Now I don’t praise you as I give the following instruction because when you meet together, it does more harm than good. First of all, when you meet together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you, and I partly believe it. It’s necessary that there are groups among you, to make it clear who is genuine. So when you get together in one place, it isn’t to eat the Lord’s meal. Each of you goes ahead and eats a private meal. One person goes hungry while another is drunk. Don’t you have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you look down on God’s churches and humiliate those who have nothing? What can I say to you? Will I praise you? No, I don’t praise you in this.
I received a tradition from the Lord, which I also handed on to you: on the night on which he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took bread. After giving thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this to remember me.” He did the same thing with the cup, after they had eaten, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Every time you drink it, do this to remember me.” Every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you broadcast the death of the Lord until he comes.
This is why those who eat the bread or drink the cup of the Lord inappropriately will be guilty of the Lord’s body and blood. Each individual should test himself or herself, and eat from the bread and drink from the cup in that way. Those who eat and drink without correctly understanding the body are eating and drinking their own judgment. Because of this, many of you are weak and sick, and quite a few have died. But if we had judged ourselves, we wouldn’t be judged. However, we are disciplined by the Lord when we are judged so that we won’t be judged and condemned along with the whole world. For these reasons, my brothers and sisters, when you get together to eat, wait for each other.If some of you are hungry, they should eat at home so that getting together doesn’t lead to judgment. I will give directions about the other things when I come.
Build a Bigger Table: Do this in Remembrance of Me1 Corinthians 11: 17-34b
As we wrap up our series on the Welcome Table, it seems like a good idea to name, to claim, to remember why we do what we do. As Disciples, we get this question quite a bit-why do you do what you do? Why do you take communion every week? Why is the Table such an integral part of our identity?
The answer to these questions goes back to the words we say every Sunday, “I received a tradition from the Lord, which I also handed on to you .After giving thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this to remember me.” 25 He did the same thing with the cup, after they had eaten, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Every time you drink it, do this to remember me.” 26 Every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you broadcast the death of the Lord until he comes.
These words ground the practice of communion within the very ministry of Jesus. They remind people of faith back then and now that we are something bigger than ourselves. They point us beyond a ritual which we do on Sunday mornings. It is a reminder of who we are. It is a reminder of why we do what we do. It is the theological foundation for our call to come to the Table, to stay at the Table to build a bigger table.
To help us understand the significance of these words which we say every Sunday, we need a little background to help us understand their context. When Paul wrote this letter, people were not gathering in church buildings on Sunday morning for worship. They were gathering at people’s homes. The house needed to be large enough to host a group of about 10-20 or more people. So, what this meant for the community of faith was that they gathered in a house owned by someone who was fairly wealthy. This was because usually only the wealthiest had homes large enough to hold a group of that size.
We also need to remember that when people gathered around the table, they didn’t pull up chairs to sit. Instead, they usually reclined around the table. This limited the available space in the room. The reason why this piece of information is important is because when it came time to celebrate the Lord’s Supper, only a few people could actually gather around the table. The rest had to take seats in another room. And let’s just say this, the people who usually got a spot at the table were wealthy and powerful.
Now, word has gotten back to Paul that when it came time for celebrating the Lord’s Supper in the Corinthian church, part of the group went into one room while the rest went into another. And if that wasn’t enough to make Paul’s skin crawl, this next part certainly sent him over the edge. Paul was told that when it came to serving the meal, the choice foods were put in the actual dining room with the wealthy while the rest of the group ate whatever could be scrounged together or ate nothing at all.
So it is no surprise that Paul is furious when he writes this part of the letter. He reams them up one side and down the other. He tells them this was not their own personal party. That what they were celebrating and remembering is a moment which brings to mind Jesus’ death and sacrifice. The Lord’s Supper shows us as people of faith, shows us over and over again just how far God’s love extends. Paul is furious that the Corinthians were ignoring their call to come together as one Body of Christ and proclaim that there is another way.
Now this answers the question why we do what we do as Christians but to answer it as Disciples of Christ, we need a little bit more information. Fast forward to the 1800’s in Scotland. During this time, in lots of sanctuaries and yes still in some sanctuaries today, it was common for the area around the Table to be fenced off, creating a physical barrier between the people and God. It was also common practice during that time for the minister to administer tests to see if people were worthy of taking communion. These tests ranged from having people recite certain creeds and scriptural texts to whether or not the minister liked you or not. If the person passed the “test” and the minister deemed him or her worthy of taking communion, that person was given a token. Then when it was time to partake of communion, if you had a token, you would place the token in a tray. Then and only then, would you receive the bread and the cup. If you didn’t have a token, well, you were passed over.
So the story goes on a particular Sunday in 1809, Alexander Campbell, one of our founders, watched as members who attended the church the longest and those with the most influence in the congregation were invited to the Table first while others who had been deemed not worthy were left out from the very practice which was supposed to unify God’s people. Alexander Campbell kept watching as person after person came forward while others were ignored until finally, he had enough. When it came to be his turn, he threw down his token and left the building.
Like Paul, for Alexander Campbell, the words we say at the Table are vitally connected with our memory of Jesus, to our memory of the one who broke bread with the people on the margins, to our memory of the one who called us to care for the least of these. Our gathering that the Lord’s Table is vitally connected with our memory of Jesus and because of that, every time we break the bread of life together, every time we drink from the cup of the new covenant together, Communion becomes an act of justice making. It becomes a way for us to tell a different story. It becomes a way for us to build a bigger table, calling us to break down the barriers that this world insists on putting up, barriers to keep others in while keeping others out.
As Disciples of Christ, our theology and practice surrounding the Table is rooted in the examples Jesus shared during his ministry. He welcomed friends and strangers alike. He engaged in conversation with those who disagreed with him. He broke bread with the one who would betray him, the one who would deny him and the ones who would abandon him. Every time Jesus gathered around the Table, he shared a vision of God’s Beloved Community with one and all. In doing so, Jesus cultivated a way of community and connection that embraces God’s love, peace, grace and joy for all of God’s people. And as his followers, we are called to do the same.
In other words, like I said at the beginning of this series, for us as disciples of Christ, it has, it does and will always come back to the Table. May it be so. Amen.
See also: Theology Tuesday for Sunday, November 16, 2025 – Build a Bigger Table: Do this in Remembrance of Me1 Corinthians 11: 17-34b.
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