«　WEEK 3　DAY 6　»

　　1 Cor. 10:16-17 "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the fellowship of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the fellowship of the body of Christ? Seeing that there is one bread, we who are many are one Body; for we all partake of the one bread."

　　Around the globe there is only one Christian fellowship—the fellowship of the apostles with the Triune God. This fellowship is expressed at the Lord's table. When we eat the bread, we participate in the fellowship of the body of Christ, and when we drink the cup, we participate in the fellowship of the Lord's blood (1 Cor. 10:16). The Lord's body and blood are unique, and the fellowship of Christ's body and blood is also unique. By partaking of the one bread, we have become the mystical Body of Christ (v. 17). Therefore, this universal fellowship is the fellowship of the Body of Christ. It is the fellowship passed on to us by the apostles. Hence, it is the apostles' fellowship, and this fellowship is with the Triune God. Such a fellowship must be universal. In administration the churches are separate locally, but in fellowship they are united to be one universally. (CWWL, 1984, vol. 4, “Vital Factors for the Recovery of the Church Life, ” pp. 495-496)

　　In 1 Corinthians 10:16 fellowship refers to the believers' communion in the joint participation in the body and blood of Christ. This makes us, the participants of the Lord's blood and body, one not only with one another but also with the Lord. We, the participants, make ourselves identified with the Lord in the fellowship of His blood and body.

　　In verse 17 Paul speaks a strong word concerning the one bread and the one Body, saying that we are one bread, one Body, because we all partake of the one bread. Our joint partaking of the one bread makes us all one. This indicates that our partaking of Christ makes us all His one Body. The very Christ of whom we all partake constitutes us into His one Body.

　　If we isolate ourselves from the fellowship of the Body, we are not qualified to partake of the Lord's body, because the loaf on the table in the Lord's supper signifies the entire Body of Christ. To be sure, the loaf signifies the Lord's physical body sacrificed for us on the cross. This is one aspect of the significance of the bread. Another aspect of this significance is that the bread signifies the one Body. Hence, when we come together to partake of the Lord's table, we need to realize that the bread, the loaf, signifies all the churches. If the church in our locality or the churches in a particular region are isolated from the fellowship of the Body of Christ, we lose the ground and also the right to partake of this loaf. Whenever we come to the Lord's table, we come to practice the fellowship of the Body. The Lord's table is not simply a remembrance of the Lord; it is also a testimony that we who belong to Christ are one.

　　The fellowship of the Body of Christ is expressed and practiced in our partaking of Christ's blood and body at the Lord's table (1 Cor. 10:16, 21). As we partake of the table of the Lord, we need to realize that this partaking is a fellowship, a participation, in the fellowship of the Lord's Body. We drink the cup of the Lord and partake of the table of the Lord. The cup, which is the cup of blessing, is a fellowship of the blood of Christ, and the bread is a fellowship of the body of Christ. Christ, the all-inclusive One, has given His body for us to eat and His blood for us to drink that we may enjoy Him. As such an all-inclusive One presenting Himself to us for our enjoyment, Christ is the embodiment of the processed Triune God who through death and resurrection has become the life-giving Spirit. Today the One who presents His body and blood to us is Christ as the life-giving Spirit. As we enjoy Him in partaking of His blood and body at His table, we express and practice the fellowship of the Body of Christ, the unique fellowship among the churches. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 2180-2181, 2184)

　　Further Reading: CWWL, 1984, vol. 4, “Vital Factors for the Recovery of the Church Life, “ch. 4; The Conclusion of the New Testament, msg. 203; Life-study of 1 Corinthians, msgs. 49, 53-54