Our communion practice
On the basis of Christ’s own Word and institution, we believe “that in the Lord’s Supper the body and blood of Christ are truly and substantially present and are truly distributed with those things that are seen, the bread and wine, to those who receive the sacrament.” We also believe that “fellowship at the Lord’s table is a testimony of consensus, harmony, and unity in doctrine and faith, as Paul says: ‘We who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread’ (1 Cor. 10:17).”
In this meal (Communion), Jesus gives us his own body and blood in, with, and under the bread and the wine. He gives us forgiveness we can taste and see! But this isn't just Communion with God, but also with one another. It says that we all confess the exact same faith. For that reason, if you don't belong to our congregation or another WELS or ELS congregation, we ask that you don't commune with us today. Some people think it's judgmental. And it is.
But it's not us judging you. It's us asking you to judge us. Before you say whether or not you confess the same faith as we do, we invite you to check out what we believe! If you hunger for this meal and are a visitor who has not previously communed in our congregation, or you have some questions about participation in the sacrament, speak with the pastor beforehand. Visitors are also invited to speak with the pastor about the classes we offer for those who are interested in communicant membership, or to ask him any other questions they may have about the beliefs and practices of our congregation.
(The quotations are from the Apology of the Augsburg Confession and from Chemnitz’s Examination, Part II)
The testimony of God's Word
"The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?" (1 Corinthians 10:16, NKJV)
"For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged." (1 Corinthians 11:26-31, ESV)
"Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful." (Hebrews 10:19-23, ESV)
"They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers." (Acts 2:42, NAB)
Unworthy and worthy communicants
The unworthy guests at this Supper are... those who go to the sacrament without true contrition or sorrow over their sins and without true faith or the good intention to improve their lives. With their unworthy eating of Christ’s body they bring down judgment upon themselves, that is, temporal and eternal punishments, and they become guilty of Christ’s body and blood.
The true and worthy guests, for whom this precious sacrament above all was instituted and established, are the Christians who are weak in faith, fragile and troubled, who are terrified in their hearts by the immensity and number of their sins and think that they are not worthy of this precious treasure and of the benefits of Christ because of their great impurity; who feel the weakness of their faith and deplore it; and who desire with all their heart to serve God with a stronger, more resolute faith and purer obedience.
As Christ says, “Come to me, all you who are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28) and “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick” (Matthew 9:12).
“God’s power is made mighty in the weak” (2 Corinthians 12:9) and “Welcome those who are weak in faith, ...for God has welcomed them.” (Romans 14:1)
For “whoever believes in the Son of God,” (whether weak or strong in faith,) “has eternal life” (John 3:16).
(Formula of Concord, Book of Concord, Kolb/Wengert edition)
Personal preparation for Holy Communion
Before coming to the Lord’s Table, worthy communicants can use these questions and the prayer that follows for their personal preparation.
Q. What does God tell me about myself in his holy Word?
A. He says that I am a sinner and deserve only his punishment.
Q. What should I do if I am not aware of my sins or am not troubled by them?
A. I should examine myself according to the Ten Commandments and ask how well I have carried out my responsibilities as a husband or wife or single person, as a parent or child, an employer or employee, a teacher or student. Have I loved God with all my heart, gladly heard his Word, and patiently endured affliction? Have I been disobedient, proud, or unforgiving? Have I been selfish, lazy, envious, or quarrelsome? Have I lied or deceived, taken something not mine, or given anyone a bad name? Have I abused my body or permitted indecent thoughts to linger in my mind? Have I failed to do what is right and good?
Q. When I realize that I have sinned against God and deserve eternal punishment, what should I do?
A. I will confess before God all my sins, those which I remember as well as those of which I am unaware. I will pray to God for his mercy and forgiveness.
Q. How do I receive his gracious forgiveness?
A. His Word assures me that Jesus led a pure and holy life for me and died on the cross for me to pay the full price for all my sins. Through faith in Jesus, I have been clothed in my Savior’s perfect righteousness and holiness.
Q. What further assurance do I have that Jesus is mine and I am his?
A. In Holy Communion he gives me his body and blood together with the bread and wine as a truly life-giving food and drink to unite me with him and my fellow believers. By means of this sacrament, Jesus not only forgives my sins but sweeps away all my doubts about his love for me, gives me his own strength to live a God-pleasing life, and grants me a joyful foretaste of heaven.
Q. How can I be sure that I receive all these blessings in the Lord’s Supper?
A. I have his own word spoken as to his last will and testament on the night before he died. He tells me: “Take and eat; this is my body. Drink from it, all of you; this is my blood which is poured out for you for the forgiveness of sins. Do this in remembrance of me.”
Q. How will I respond to this priceless gift from Jesus?
A. I will daily thank and praise him for his love to me. With his help I will fight temptation, do my best to correct whatever wrongs I have done, and serve him and those around me with love and good works.
Lord Jesus, with joy and gratitude I now come to your table to receive the precious food of your life-giving body and blood. May it strengthen me to remain in you as you remain in me, so that I bear much fruit in devoted service to you and in acts of kindness to others. Amen.
(taken from Christian Worship: A Lutheran Hymnal, p. 156)
On the basis of Christ’s own Word and institution, we believe “that in the Lord’s Supper the body and blood of Christ are truly and substantially present and are truly distributed with those things that are seen, the bread and wine, to those who receive the sacrament.” We also believe that “fellowship at the Lord’s table is a testimony of consensus, harmony, and unity in doctrine and faith, as Paul says: ‘We who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread’ (1 Cor. 10:17).”
In this meal (Communion), Jesus gives us his own body and blood in, with, and under the bread and the wine. He gives us forgiveness we can taste and see! But this isn't just Communion with God, but also with one another. It says that we all confess the exact same faith. For that reason, if you don't belong to our congregation or another WELS or ELS congregation, we ask that you don't commune with us today. Some people think it's judgmental. And it is.
But it's not us judging you. It's us asking you to judge us. Before you say whether or not you confess the same faith as we do, we invite you to check out what we believe! If you hunger for this meal and are a visitor who has not previously communed in our congregation, or you have some questions about participation in the sacrament, speak with the pastor beforehand. Visitors are also invited to speak with the pastor about the classes we offer for those who are interested in communicant membership, or to ask him any other questions they may have about the beliefs and practices of our congregation.
(The quotations are from the Apology of the Augsburg Confession and from Chemnitz’s Examination, Part II)
The testimony of God's Word
"The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?" (1 Corinthians 10:16, NKJV)
"For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged." (1 Corinthians 11:26-31, ESV)
"Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful." (Hebrews 10:19-23, ESV)
"They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers." (Acts 2:42, NAB)
Unworthy and worthy communicants
The unworthy guests at this Supper are... those who go to the sacrament without true contrition or sorrow over their sins and without true faith or the good intention to improve their lives. With their unworthy eating of Christ’s body they bring down judgment upon themselves, that is, temporal and eternal punishments, and they become guilty of Christ’s body and blood.
The true and worthy guests, for whom this precious sacrament above all was instituted and established, are the Christians who are weak in faith, fragile and troubled, who are terrified in their hearts by the immensity and number of their sins and think that they are not worthy of this precious treasure and of the benefits of Christ because of their great impurity; who feel the weakness of their faith and deplore it; and who desire with all their heart to serve God with a stronger, more resolute faith and purer obedience.
As Christ says, “Come to me, all you who are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28) and “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick” (Matthew 9:12).
“God’s power is made mighty in the weak” (2 Corinthians 12:9) and “Welcome those who are weak in faith, ...for God has welcomed them.” (Romans 14:1)
For “whoever believes in the Son of God,” (whether weak or strong in faith,) “has eternal life” (John 3:16).
(Formula of Concord, Book of Concord, Kolb/Wengert edition)
Personal preparation for Holy Communion
Before coming to the Lord’s Table, worthy communicants can use these questions and the prayer that follows for their personal preparation.
Q. What does God tell me about myself in his holy Word?
A. He says that I am a sinner and deserve only his punishment.
Q. What should I do if I am not aware of my sins or am not troubled by them?
A. I should examine myself according to the Ten Commandments and ask how well I have carried out my responsibilities as a husband or wife or single person, as a parent or child, an employer or employee, a teacher or student. Have I loved God with all my heart, gladly heard his Word, and patiently endured affliction? Have I been disobedient, proud, or unforgiving? Have I been selfish, lazy, envious, or quarrelsome? Have I lied or deceived, taken something not mine, or given anyone a bad name? Have I abused my body or permitted indecent thoughts to linger in my mind? Have I failed to do what is right and good?
Q. When I realize that I have sinned against God and deserve eternal punishment, what should I do?
A. I will confess before God all my sins, those which I remember as well as those of which I am unaware. I will pray to God for his mercy and forgiveness.
Q. How do I receive his gracious forgiveness?
A. His Word assures me that Jesus led a pure and holy life for me and died on the cross for me to pay the full price for all my sins. Through faith in Jesus, I have been clothed in my Savior’s perfect righteousness and holiness.
Q. What further assurance do I have that Jesus is mine and I am his?
A. In Holy Communion he gives me his body and blood together with the bread and wine as a truly life-giving food and drink to unite me with him and my fellow believers. By means of this sacrament, Jesus not only forgives my sins but sweeps away all my doubts about his love for me, gives me his own strength to live a God-pleasing life, and grants me a joyful foretaste of heaven.
Q. How can I be sure that I receive all these blessings in the Lord’s Supper?
A. I have his own word spoken as to his last will and testament on the night before he died. He tells me: “Take and eat; this is my body. Drink from it, all of you; this is my blood which is poured out for you for the forgiveness of sins. Do this in remembrance of me.”
Q. How will I respond to this priceless gift from Jesus?
A. I will daily thank and praise him for his love to me. With his help I will fight temptation, do my best to correct whatever wrongs I have done, and serve him and those around me with love and good works.
Lord Jesus, with joy and gratitude I now come to your table to receive the precious food of your life-giving body and blood. May it strengthen me to remain in you as you remain in me, so that I bear much fruit in devoted service to you and in acts of kindness to others. Amen.
(taken from Christian Worship: A Lutheran Hymnal, p. 156)