1 Corinthians 11:17–34: When the Lord’s Supper Brings Judgment

Some leave hungry while others have had too much to drink, and the Corinthians still call their gathering the Lord’s Supper. Paul brings them back to the night Jesus was betrayed and the words that make this meal His gift: “This is my body, which is for you.” The Apostle also warns that receiving unworthily brings judgment. How can the Sacrament given for forgiveness be received to a person’s harm? What does it mean to examine ourselves and discern Christ’s body without imagining we must become sinless before coming? The Rev. Steven Theiss, serving St. John Lutheran Church (AALC) in Pocahontas, Missouri, joins the Rev. Dr. Phil Booe to study 1 Corinthians 11:17–34. What happens when Christians turn their pastors into rival teams, take one another to court, and leave their neighbors hungry at the Lord’s Supper? Corinth gives Paul plenty to write about. Questions about marriage, meat sacrificed to idols, spiritual gifts, and the resurrection bring the apostle into the daily life of a church struggling with pride and division. Through it all, he keeps bringing them back to Christ crucified and risen. In 2 Corinthians, the strained relationship between Paul and the people he loves brings its own painful questions about forgiveness, faithful ministry, suffering, and weakness. These letters give us the treasure in jars of clay, the promise of resurrection, and the assurance that Christ’s grace is sufficient. Join Thy Strong Word as we study 1 and 2 Corinthians verse by verse and hear what God speaks to a troubled church He has called His own. Thy Strong Word, hosted by Rev. Dr. Phil Booe, pastor of St. John Lutheran Church of Luverne, MN, reveals the light of our salvation in Christ through study of God’s Word, breaking our darkness with His redeeming light. Each weekday, two pastors fix our eyes on Jesus by considering Holy Scripture, verse by verse, in order to be strengthened in the Word and be equipped to faithfully serve in our daily vocations. Submit comments or questions to: [email protected].