The Cause of Many Weak and Sickly 1 Corinthians 11:30

Paul the apostle told the church members “he that eats and drinks” of “the Lord's supper”, “unworthily, eats and drinks damnation to himself”, and he added those who did this were “not discerning the Lord's body”. In chapter eleven and verse thirty of First Corinthians, Paul shared with the Corinthian church members the reason why, “many are weak and sickly among” them, where we read:

For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.

The verse begins, “For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, ...”. Paul began with the word, “for” which means “even as, indeed, no doubt, seeing then, verily and therefore” “this cause” or “the reason of many eating and drinking unworthily of the Lord's supper” “many are weak” which means “a large amount are infirmed and feeble” “and sickly” which means “without strength and sick” “among you” or “with the church members”. According to Paul, the reason “many” of the church members were “feeble and sick” among them was because they “ate and drank” of “the Lord's supper” in an “unworthy” manner.

The verse goes on to say, “... and many sleep.” Paul added the words, “and many” which means “a large number of the church members” “sleep” or “died”. Not only did “eating and drinking” of “the Lord's supper” in an “unworthy” manner cause “sickness” among the church members, but some of them actually “died” from it.

When we consider these words from Paul, we see how “ominous” “eating and drinking” of “the Lord's supper” in an “unworthy” manner can be. The church members in Corinth suffered “sickness” and “death” because they failed to give the proper “reverence” to the “communion” sacrament. Paul's emphasis was to persuade the Corinthians concerning the value of Jesus' sacrifice for sins, and because “the Lord's supper” represents Jesus' “body and blood” which was offered as payment for those sins, all who partake of it must “reverence and be in awe of” the meaning it portrays. Let us realize the importance of “the Lord's supper” and be certain we do not receive it in an “unworthy” manner.

Next time Paul tells the church members, “if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

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