Drink Ye All of It

Taking communion in church today drew my mind back to what I think was my most meaningful communion service. More precisely, it reminded me of what had happened with the grape juice in that service. No, it had not miraculously transubstantiated into wine, but it did take on a new meaning for me that day. 

It all began with a mistake. Our church was on its annual church retreat at a local camp called The Variety Club. We were going to have communion during the Sunday service, but someone forgot to bring along the grape juice and the cups. I'm not even sure that they are any longer available, but some resourceful person went to a local market and found these tiny cans of Welches grape juice. They must have only been about a 3 oz. size. They bought enough so that all the people taking communion could have one. At the appropriate time in the service, each person was given their own can and we were going to all "drink it together."

It was at that point, with the little, unopened can poised in my fingertips, that a sudden realization came to me. There was juice in that can -- good juice, life-giving juice -- but it was unavailable until the can was pierced. Jesus' blood, the covering for our sins, was also unavailable until His body was hung on the cross. He needed to have His body pierced so that we could access that cleansing blood.

And then when the time came to drink the cups, one could hear the pops around the congregation as each person opened their can. Another realization came to me as I started to drink from that pieced can. Unlike the draught from the typical communion cup that barely is enough for one swallow, these cans contained abundance; way too much to swallow in one gulp. It took time to drink it all. There was enough in that can satisfy the thirst and refresh the body. 

There was special significance that lay in those realizations that day. I was glad to be reminded of them as I lifted the little cup to my lips today in church. 

While we are on the subject of Welch's grape juice, I would recommend that you look into the amazing story of how this brand of grape juice came to be. It is fascinating to discover that it grew out of the confluence of the temperance movement, the discovery of pasteurization and the right people in the right places. Charles Welch summed up his dad and his life's work in his will:

Unfermented grape juice was born in 1869 out of a passion to serve God by helping His Church to give its communion “the fruit of the vine,” instead of the “cup of devils.”

You can find more at the link: http://www.umc.org/who-we-are/methodist-history-controversy-communion-and-welchs-grape-juice