This is one of those things I feel moved by the Spirit to tell people. He's been wanting me to say this for a while and I'm finally getting around to doing so. Here goes:
I think the overwhelming majority of Christianity today is missing the boat when it comes to that familiar ritual involving wafers and wine. Whether you call it the Holy Eucharist, the Lord's Supper, Communion, it's all the same thing.
Christians have made a rite out of something that Jesus wanted to be much more personal and intimate. We share the wafers and wine and read (or have read to us) Jesus' quotes from the Last Supper where he tells the Apostles (and I'll paraphrase here):
"Take this bread and eat it. This is My Body, broken for you. Take this cup and drink from it. This is My Blood, freely given for all."
We've made a rite out of bread and wine and His words, and totally missed the point. Let me digress with a little science and a little theology and explain.
John 1:1-3 (Living Bible) says this: "Before anything else existed, there was Christ, with God. He has always been alive, and is Himself, God. He created everything there is--nothing exists that he didn't make." That means He made us. He knows our physical makeup from the inside out. (That's the little bit of theology.)
We remember (or should) from high school science classes that our bodies use part or most of everything we eat or drink. That bread (or donut, cracker, tortilla, etc) is broken down into its component parts. The very atoms that make up its sugars, starches, carbohydrates are broken up and incorporated into our bodies as the building blocks by which our body makes new cells. Or they are "burned" to provide the chemical energy necessary for life to continue. The wine we drink (or soda, coffee, juice, beer, etc) is broken down to hydrate our cells, keep our cartilage soft and springy, and keep our blood's plasma at an optimum viscosity. (That's the little bit of science.)
So if Jesus made us (and He did) and He knows all about the inner workings of our bodies (and He does) then there's got to be more to the wafer and wine than sharing a snack with God (and there is!)
In eating the bread (His Body) and drinking the wine (His Blood) He wants be a literal part of us. If the food we eat becomes our body, and the liquids we drink become our blood, then He wants to become a part of us (and us of Him) on a cellular, even atomic level.
Here's the part where we're missing it: You can't eat a salad once a month and fast food every other day and be healthy. Likewise, you can't partake of Body and Blood once a season, once a month, even once a day and reap all the benefits that come from them. We need them at every meal. Are we then supposed to eat only bread and drink only wine? No! Then Communion should be every meal. That means whatever you eat. That burger, fries and soda? Salad and iced tea? Eggs, bacon, toast and coffee? They should all be meals of communion with Christ.
He said, "Do this in remembrance of Me. For as often as you drink of it, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes" (paraphrase) "As often..." That means that we should be doing it frequently. As the body constantly renews itself, and so continues to require nourishment, the spirit needs to be renewed constantly, and requires spiritual nourishment. This keeps us spiritually strong to defend ourselves against the trials and tribulations that come along with living in a sin-ruined world.
So take that ham sandwich, salad, Hot Pocket, or bowl of mac and cheese. Take that soda, beer, glass of milk, tea or coffee. Pray over them. Ask Jesus to transform them. And partake of the Body and Blood at every meal.
I think Christians used to understand this. I think this is how "saying Grace" got its start, and later got separated into its own ritual disconnected from its original intent.
You don't need some flavorless wafer and grape juice to commune with Christ. You don't need a deacon, pastor, or priest to give it to you. You can do it every time you sit down to eat.
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