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Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup.

1 Corinthians 11:28, ESV

“I can take care of my sin myself,” were the final words of a man just before he went to take the body and blood of Christ, and they chilled me to my soul. What we receive at the altar is not just some bread and wine, but our Lord’s body and blood that are tied to His Word and a promise. The promise is the forgiveness of our sins. Not an act we complete, but a gift given to us through our Lord’s death on a Cross. Paul reminds us in his letter to the people of Corinth that we are to examine ourselves. Not because we can do anything about it, but to prepare our hearts by letting go of any sins that are troubling our spirits and letting the forgiveness given to us by Jesus Christ reign in us. The promise we receive in the body and blood is first the forgiveness of our sins, but also the promised kingdom of God. The issue at hand has little to do with our actions, but it is centered on our belief and the submission we have before Christ as our Lord, who leads us into His peace.

Let us pray. I thank you, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, your dear Son, that you have kept me this night from all harm and danger, and I ask you to protect me this day also from sin and every evil, that in all I do today, I may please you. For into your hands, I commend myself, my body and soul, and all that is mine. Let your holy angel watch over me, that the wicked foe have no power over me. Amen.