One of those traditions has been that the elements must be served by church officials, whether priests, pastors, elders or deacons. The Bible says nothing about this. It tells us only that as often as we eat this bread and drink this cup we are to do so "in remembrance of Him." My blessing of the loaf does not change it into Christ's flesh. He was sacrificed once for all time. Our single unlevened loaf reminds us that we are all one in Christ.

As a believer in Christ, you are a priest unto God (see Rev. 5:10). There is only one mediator between you and God, and that is the man Christ Jesus (1 Tim. 2:5). You need no church official to serve the Lord's Supper for you, but you do need to acknowledge your "fellow priests" as being equally qualified. You, just as they, must come to this table only by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ, and not on the basis of any good works or feelings of worthiness you may have. No one but Christ is truly worthy. Partaking in an unworthy manner occurs when you refuse to humble yourself, confess your sins and acknowledge others in Christ (see 1 Cor. 11:27-34).

Therefore, in keeping with our church's emphasis on "the priesthood of the believer" and to show support for our conviction that the household is the basic unit of ministry in the church, we welcome the believing heads of each household to serve the bread and the cup(s) to the born-again members of their own families, as well as to fellow church families and to visiting guests. Children need not have been baptized to partake. Our goal is to make it as meaningful to everyone as God intended it to be.

In order to do so, always maintain an attitude of gratefulness to Christ and use this time to examine yourself. Confess your sins to God and renew your relationships with one another by asking their forgiveness and forgiving them of any offenses that have occurred during the week. If you are attending alone, or if you are a visitor, you are encouraged to join with an established member or family to partake.

If you have never served the Lord's Supper before, or if you are uncertain as to how it should be done, the following seven guidelines may be helpful. I offer them, not as rules, but as my own family's example:

1. Continue in worship until an usher directs you to an open table. Stay together as a family, asking older children to assist the younger.
2. The large blue "Common Cups" are for entire families. When a member is ill, he or she may use an individual cup. I ask my spouse or an older child to hold my cup until I need it. Break off a piece of bread large enough to serve a small piece to your entire family and any guests. Then move away from the table to a place where you can partake together. You are free to go out into the lobby, into the back hall, or outside when weather permits. The point is to be able to hear one another without too much distraction.
3. With my own family I first ask if there is any offense that needs to be dealt with before we partake. I can often lead by my example by apologizing to my wife or children for whatever sins I am aware of against them (e.g. speaking harshly, stubbornness, failing to keep a promise, etc.). Allow each member time to confess sin, express an apology and be forgiven, but don't feel that you have to pry things out. Examine yourself, not others. Take as much time as you need.
4. When everyone is ready, I begin by quoting (or paraphrasing) the following passages of Scripture. "For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "This is My body, which is for you;..." (1 Cor. 11:23-24) While I am saying this, I am breaking off small pieces of bread and giving them to each member of my family or group. Then, when everyone has his piece of bread in hand, I will say, "Do this in remembrance of me." and we will all eat the bread at the same time.
5. I will then take the cup and say, "In the same way He took the cup also after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me." (1 Cor. 11:25) With the Common Cup, I will serve others first and then finish the cup by drinking last. Please, don't leave any juice in your cup! With the individual cups, we all drink together.
6. After partaking, we have hugs all around. We look into one another's eyes and smile with real gratitude! We are family and friends in God's eternal family!
7. We then return our empty Common Cup, discard any individual cups in the receptacles and return to our seats to worship the Lord "in spirit and in truth."

Family heads, remember that this is not a "performance". You needn't feel nervous. Your ability to serve your family will improve with practice. For everyone else, be supportive. Grow together in Christ and rejoice!

--G.H.