Light for our path: Should I take Communion?

I was raised and confirmed WELS. Recently I had sex before marriage, and I feel awful. I’m incredibly guilty and do not want to do this again. Should I take Communion? 

James Pope

The type of question you asked could be answered yes or no. Let me explain why my answer to you is yes.

When could the answer be no?

In 1 Corinthians 11:27, the apostle Paul explains that it is possible for people to receive the Lord’s Supper to their harm and not their spiritual good: “Whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.” Imagine that—a person appears to be on the receiving end of God’s forgiveness by partaking of the Lord’s Supper, but instead the individual is actually sinning! How can that be? By partaking of the Lord’s Supper “in an unworthy manner.”

In the case of the Christians in Corinth, their unworthy reception of the Lord’s Supper consisted of abuses that took place in a meal preceding the celebration of the Supper (cf. 1 Corinthians 11:18-22). Unworthy reception of the Lord’s Supper can go beyond those abuses to include a denial of the real presence of the Lord’s body and blood, a denial of one’s sin, or a denial of Jesus Christ as Savior. If you had informed me of your sin and then defended it with the mind-set that “Hey, everyone else is doing that,” I would have advised you to refrain from being a guest at the Lord’s Supper until God changed your heart and you had the right attitude toward sin.

Why is the answer yes?

In your question and statements, I did not sense attitudes that would have resulted in unworthy reception of the Lord’s Supper. Rather than seeing a denial of sin, I recognized a confession of sin. I saw in your words the cry of a child of God: “God, have mercy on me, a sinner” (Luke 18:13).

God does not ignore a cry like that. The Bible says: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Through the Sacrament of Holy Communion, God offers and gives you the forgiveness of sins by giving you the very body and blood of your Savior in, with, and under the bread and wine. That forgiveness covers all sins.

You are bothered by your sin. What is important in preparing to receive the Lord’s Supper is our attitude toward sin. With that in mind, let me remind you of a resource that you likely came across in your confirmation instruction. Luther’s Small Catechism has a section titled “Christian Questions.” It consists of a number of questions that Christians can ask themselves prior to receiving Holy Communion. There is also a condensed version of those questions on page 156 in Christian Worship: A Lutheran Hymnal. Asking and answering those questions is a practical way of doing what Scripture says: “Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup” (1 Corinthians 11:28). Examining your heart will help you answer ­your question in the future.

Contributing editor James Pope, professor at Martin Luther College, New Ulm, Minnesota, is a member at St. John, New Ulm.

James Pope also answers questions online at wels.net/questions. Submit your questions there or to [email protected].

Author: James F. Pope
Volume 104, Number 02
Issue: February 2017

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