Bible Verses About Communion

30 Powerful Bible Verses About Communion (With Commentary)

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Communion, also known as the Lord’s Supper, is a significant practice in Christianity that commemorates Jesus’ last meal with His disciples and His sacrificial death. The act of Communion involves partaking of bread and wine (or juice), symbolizing the body and blood of Christ. This sacred tradition reflects unity, remembrance, and the proclamation of Jesus’ death until He comes again. Below are 30 Bible verses about Communion, each accompanied by a brief commentary.

30 Bible Verses About Communion

Matthew 26:26-28

“While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, ‘Take and eat; this is my body.’ Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.'”

Jesus institutes the Lord’s Supper, symbolizing His body and blood given for the forgiveness of sins. This act becomes a central ritual of Christian faith.

1 Corinthians 11:23-25

“For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, ‘This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.’ In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.'”

Paul recounts Jesus’ instructions for Communion, emphasizing remembrance of Christ’s sacrifice and the new covenant established by His blood.

Luke 22:19-20

“And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.’ In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.'”

Luke’s account of the Last Supper highlights the symbolic nature of the bread and wine as Christ’s body and blood, given for believers.

John 6:53-54

“Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.'”

Jesus emphasizes the necessity of partaking in His body and blood for eternal life, pointing to the spiritual significance of Communion.

1 Corinthians 10:16-17

“Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all share the one loaf.”

Paul highlights Communion as a means of sharing in Christ’s body and blood, fostering unity among believers as one body.

Mark 14:22-24

“While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, ‘Take it; this is my body.’ Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and they all drank from it. ‘This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many,’ he said to them.”

Mark’s account emphasizes the communal aspect of Communion, with all disciples partaking in the bread and wine symbolizing Jesus’ sacrifice.

Acts 2:42

“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

The early church devotedly practiced Communion, alongside teaching, fellowship, and prayer, highlighting its importance in Christian community life.

1 Corinthians 11:26

“For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”

Paul states that partaking in Communion proclaims Jesus’ death and anticipates His return, making it a continual act of faith and remembrance.

John 6:35

“Then Jesus declared, ‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.'”

Jesus presents Himself as the spiritual sustenance for believers, fulfilled in the symbolic act of Communion with bread and wine.

1 Corinthians 11:27

“So then, 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.”

Paul warns of the seriousness of partaking in Communion unworthily, emphasizing the need for self-examination and reverence.

Bible Verses About Communion

Matthew 26:29

“I tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”

Jesus looks forward to the future fulfillment of the Kingdom, where He will again share in the communion with His followers.

Hebrews 10:19-20

“Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body.”

Through Jesus’ sacrifice, symbolized in Communion, believers have direct access to God, entering His presence with confidence.

1 Corinthians 10:21

“You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord’s table and the table of demons.”

Paul instructs believers to exclusively partake in the Lord’s table, rejecting any association with pagan rituals or idolatry.

John 6:51

“I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”

Jesus identifies Himself as the living bread, emphasizing the life-giving and sacrificial nature of His flesh, represented in Communion.

Luke 24:30-31

“When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight.”

After His resurrection, Jesus reveals Himself to the disciples in the breaking of bread, highlighting Communion as a means of recognizing Christ.

1 Corinthians 5:7-8

“Get rid of the old yeast, so that you may be a new unleavened batch—as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Therefore let us keep the Festival, not with the old bread leavened with malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.”

Paul connects Christ’s sacrifice to the Passover, urging believers to partake in Communion with sincerity and truth, free from sin.

John 13:1

“It was just before the Passover Festival. Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.”

Jesus’ final acts of love before His sacrifice set the stage for the institution of Communion, reflecting His deep love for His disciples.

Acts 20:7

“On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight.”

The early Christians regularly gathered for Communion, signifying its central role in worship and community life.

1 Corinthians 11:28

“Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup.”

Self-examination is crucial before partaking in Communion, ensuring a worthy and reflective approach to this sacred act.

John 15:5

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”

Jesus’ analogy of the vine and branches underscores the need for continual communion with Him to sustain spiritual life and growth.

Mark 14:25

“Truly I tell you, I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”

Jesus anticipates the future celebration in God’s Kingdom, where He will once again share in the communion with His followers.

John 6:56

“Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them.”

Jesus promises an intimate, enduring relationship with those who partake in His body and blood, symbolized in Communion.

1 Corinthians 10:3-4

“They all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ.”

Paul draws a parallel between Israel’s sustenance in the wilderness and the spiritual nourishment provided by Christ in Communion.

Revelation 19:9

“Then the angel said to me, ‘Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!’ And he added, ‘These are the true words of God.'”

The ultimate fulfillment of Communion is depicted in the heavenly wedding supper, symbolizing eternal union with Christ.

1 Corinthians 11:29

“For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves.”

Discerning the significance of Christ’s body is essential in Communion, as neglecting this brings spiritual consequences.

John 6:57

“Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me.”

Jesus emphasizes the life-giving nature of feeding on Him, symbolized in Communion, as believers draw spiritual life from Him.

1 Corinthians 11:24

“And when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, ‘This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.'”

Jesus’ command to partake in Communion in remembrance of Him ensures that His sacrifice remains central to Christian worship.

John 6:58

“This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.”

Jesus contrasts the temporary sustenance of manna with the eternal life offered through Him, symbolized in the bread of Communion.

1 Corinthians 11:20

“So then, when you come together, it is not the Lord’s Supper you eat.”

Paul rebukes the Corinthian church for their improper practice of Communion, stressing the need to observe it reverently as the Lord’s Supper.

John 13:4-5

“So he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.”

Jesus’ act of washing His disciples’ feet during the Last Supper exemplifies humility and service, key attitudes to embody in the practice of Communion.

 

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