Reflection

Brotherly love, the forgotten message of The Lord’s Supper

Brotherly love (Philadelphia) refers to the deep affection and kindness shown towards fellow Christians. Before partaking of the Lord’s Supper, we are called-  1. To examine ourselves  2. To discern the body of Christ.  Read 1Cor 11:29 “For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ- eat and drink judgment on themselves”. That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep. So, my brothers, when you come together to eat, wait for one another.”

Waiting for your brother in Christ at the communion table requires practicing unity, humility, and love. While lot of preaching is done on “examining oneself” little is said about “discerning the body of Christ”. As I meditated upon it, the Holy Spirit began to reveal the significance of brotherly love. Holy Spirit began to teach me it’s importance in a Christian’s life.When we prepare ourselves for the Holy Communion, we should necessarily review our relationships with other Church members. We have to judge our own thoughts, urges, desires and acts in this aspect before partaking of the Holy Communion. Have we been slandering about a fellow-believers or mocking them? Have we offended anyone by not walking in Christ’s love? Have we not extended prayer support or provided for a need of a fellow believer when there was an opportunity? Remember the second commandment the Lord gave us is to love our fellow-believers. There are two aspects to it- 1. Showing love to others through acts of kindness 2. Which is equally important, FORGIVE your fellow believers for offending or hurting you.

Brotherly love is a virtue. We as Christians are commanded to develop it. This ensures our faith does not become ineffective. It allows our faith to grow beyond mere belief into action and character. And it is an extremely important virtue in the eyes of our Lord. So much so, that Lord Jesus has linked it to the Lord’s Supper. The Word of God commands us to stop judging fellow believers. We should avoid being selfish and displaying individualistic behavior. Instead, we must view The Lord’s Table as a communal meal for the entire church. We should approach it with love and forgiveness for our fellow-believers.

So, as a Church, when we assemble together to join in the Lord’s Table, the enemy has no room. This prevents the creation of strife and quarrels. Preparing ahead ensures that all negativity is wiped from our hearts and minds and love of Christ rules us. We come with true humility to the Lord’s Table. When all believers, included in the Lord’s Table, come with this attitude, the partaking of the elements brings life. It also brings health and healing. This inclusion spans across social or economic status, ethnic origins, and levels of faith.

Source of health and healing – The Lord’s Supper brings life. The Holy Spirit uses it as a powerful tool. It has the ability to heal, restore, and rebuild when taken with right believing.

Unity Over Division: The Corinthian church was a divided Church. Wealthy had a separate circle leaving out the poor Christians. And some believed differently from others and formed their own group. As a result when they gathered together for the Lord’s Supper each group went their own way

Obedience to the Word of God– Actively displaying forgiveness and love for one another is adhering to the Lord’s commandment

Become Destiny Helpers: Praying for God’s purposes and plans to be fulfilled in fellow believers lives.

Discernment of the Body of Christ: It means respecting and loving fellow believers who are Christians but unlike us. We achieve this through tangible acts of kindness and love as part of the body of Christ

Community Context: Church Communion is meant to be a gathered, shared experience of love

“There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.”

Ephesians 4:4-6 (ESV)

Some Scriptures on brotherly love for reflection- 

• Romans 12:10: “Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honour giving preference to one another”.
• Hebrews 13:1: “Let brotherly love continue”.
• 1 Peter 1:22: “…love one another with a pure heart fervently”. 
• Leviticus 19:18- You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbour as yourself: I am the LORD.
• 1 Thessalonians 4:9- Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another.

Hope you enjoyed my blog and it uplifted your faith. Feel free to share your thoughts on this topic in the comments section. Be abundantly blessed as you partake of the Lord’s Table!