God desires that we worship Him in spirit and in truth (John 4:23-24). The Bible teaches that the church is to assemble upon the first day of the week to observe the Lord's Supper (Acts 20:7, 1 Cor. 11:33). What is the Lord's Supper, and how can we be sure that we are observing it correctly (in spirit and in truth)? Consider the following instructions penned by the apostle Paul:

23. For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread;
24. and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me."
25. In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me."
26. For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes.
(1 Cor. 11:23-26)

1. A Memorial To Jesus. "Do this in remembrance of Me." God gave His people a number of memorials in the Old Testament. However, He has only given one to the church. It is the memorial of His Son's death - the Lord's Supper. A memorial is an opportunity to remember, which is what we are to be doing as we partake of the Lord's Supper. As we eat of the beard, we are to remember the body of our Lord and the pain that He went through on the cross. As we drink the fruit of the vine, we are to remember that the Lord shed His blood for the remission of our sins (Matthew 26:28). The Lord's Supper is not a time to let our mind wander. It is a time to focus upon the death of our Lord.

2. Proclamation of the Lord's Death. "...you proclaim the Lord's death..." The Lord's Supper is more than a memorial, it is also a time for us to express our faith. As we partake of the Lord's Supper, we are proclaiming, not only that we believe that Jesus died on the cross, but also that we believe that His death is the event that has made our salvation possible.

3. Anticipation of the Lord's Return. "...till He comes." Our faith not only looks backwards to the cross in memorial; it also looks forward to the Lord's return in hope and anticipation. Because of the Lord's death we can look forward to His return.

4. Communion With Christ and Believers. Earlier in the letter of First Corinthians, the apostle Paul taught that the Lord's Supper was a time for communion. "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread" (1 Cor. 10:16-17). The word communion means "sharing." Those who partake of the Lord's Supper are sharing with the Lord (in the salvation made possible by His shed blood), and with one another (they are all recipients of this salvation).

5. An Opportunity For Self Examination. Paul continued his instructions to the Corinthians, "But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup" (1 Cor. 11:28). The Lord's Supper gives us an opportunity to examine ourselves in the light of His suffering and death. How do the trials and sorrows of our life compare to His agony upon the cross? How does our conduct compare to the price that was paid for our souls? What can we do to live a more godly life in the coming week? These kinds of questions are appropriate to ask oneself during the Lord's Supper.