1 Corinthians 11:31–32
There’s a verse in 1 Corinthians 11 that is a bit troubling. Paul was writing to the Corinthian church about their practice of taking communion. There were some followers of Jesus in Corinth who were not taking communion in a God honoring an appropriate manner. Paul wrote, “That is why many among you are weak and ill, and some have died”? (v. 30) Honestly, it makes you want to skip the verse entirely. But we can’t. Because Paul meant what he said. People were literally getting sick because they weren’t approaching Communion rightly.
Now, that might sound harsh, but let’s pause for a moment. We tend to separate our spiritual lives from everything else. We put our physical health in one category, our emotional well-being in another, and sometimes our spiritual life is put in some “Sunday morning” category, but Scripture doesn’t do that. It views us as whole, integrated beings… body, mind, and soul all wrapped together.
I experienced this a few years ago. I had some strange tension and heat in my neck, so I went to the doctor. They ran all the tests . . . and found nothing. The diagnosis? Stress. My emotional life was affecting my physical health. If that’s true emotionally, why wouldn’t it be true spiritually?
It’s all connected. We are integrated beings. That’s why Paul commanded us to examine ourselves before we come to the Table. Not to make ourselves “good enough,” we never could accomplish that task. But to honestly ask: Are there relationships that are out of joint? Sin I’ve grown numb to? Places where God has been trying to get my attention and I’ve ignored Him?
Paul writes, “If we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged.” (v. 31) In other words, when we open ourselves up to God’s loving discipline, we actually avoid His harsher correction. And make no mistake about it, this judgment isn’t condemnation. It’s grace. It’s discipline from a loving Father who wants more for us. Proverbs reminds us that the Lord reproves those He loves; just like a good dad disciplines his kids. Not because He’s angry. But because He delights in us. He wants to make us whole.
So next time you take Communion, don’t rush through the examination part. Don’t skip over the silence. Listen for God’s voice of correction, not to punish, but to pull you back into alignment with His love. It might feel uncomfortable, but it’s how we become whole.
Prayer: Lord, search me. Know my heart. Shine Your light into the corners of my life that I’d rather keep hidden. Thank You that even Your discipline is grace. Amen.
Pastor Ryan Paulson