There is no question that First Corinthians 11 contains a warning about dire consequences for unworthy partaking of the Lord’s Supper.

No argument there.

However, typically, when someone is justifying putting a scary warning in front of the Lord’s Supper, the following passage is used to defend the practice:

26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.27 Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. 28 Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. 30 That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. 31 But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.

But what if we widen the quotation a bit?

20 When you come together, it is not the Lord’s supper that you eat. 21 For in eating, each one goes ahead with his own meal. One goes hungry, another gets drunk. 22 What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I commend you in this? No, I will not. 23 For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. 27 Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. 28 Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. 30 That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. 31 But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world. 33 So then, my brothers, when you come together to eat, wait for one another

Does this sound like a text designed to justify exclusion or be used to ensure that fewer Christians take part incommunion?  It looks to me like Paul is saying that unworthy participation in the Lord’s Supper is precisely the practice of excluding other believers from participation.

And consider other what we read in chapter 8 of Nehemiah:

And all the people gathered as one man into the square before the Water Gate. And they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses that the Lord had commanded Israel. 2 So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could understand what they heard, on the first day of the seventh month. 3 And he read from it facing the square before the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women and those who could understand. And the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law. 4 And Ezra the scribe stood on a wooden platform that they had made for the purpose. And beside him stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah on his right hand, and Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam on his left hand. 5 And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was above all the people, and as he opened it all the people stood. 6 And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and all the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground. 7 Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, the Levites, helped the people to understand the Law, while the people remained in their places. 8 They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly, and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading.

9 And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people wept as they heard the words of the Law. 10 Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” 11 So the Levites calmed all the people, saying, “Be quiet, for this day is holy; do not be grieved.” 12 And all the people went their way to eat and drink and to send portions and to make great rejoicing, because they had understood the words that were declared to them.

“The joy of the Lord is our strength.”  According to Nehemiah, God’s holiness means that it is a sin to exclude oneself from God’s feast because one is grieved by one’s sins. Warning people against participation is simply unthinkable.  That is not to say the two passages, are incompatible.  They are totally compatible.  They are submerged in gallons of compatibility.  “Send portions to anyone who has nothing ready.”  Imagine what Ezra and Nehemiah would have said if they found out that the congregation was excluding some members (say, their children for example) from participating in the Lord’s Supper.  I think not a few beard hairs would be blowing in the wind.

Someone may respond: But obviously the passages address different situations so maybe the Corinthian passage is more applicable.

OK, but where is the argument for that generalization?  Isn’t it the case that we simply assume First Corinthians is more generally applicable because we are more familiar with First Corinthians than with Nehemiah? In fact, I think it is prima facie obvious that the situation in Corinth is quite idiosyncratic while the situation in Nehemiah 8 presents us with common experiences of guilt and grace.  What is the deal?

It even gets weirder when we ask, “What if the Corinthians had been doing the offering wrong?”  The Corinthians abuse the Supper and are warned against abusing it.  But we know other aspects of worship can be deadly (ask Ananias and Sapphira about the offering).  So why not read a warning before hearing the sermon?  Or before the call to worship? (This, in my opinion, would be much more reasonable, though I’m presupposing weekly communion.)  Where in First Corinthians do we get any hint that, out of all the elements of worship, only unworthy participation in the Lord’s Supper is dangerous and only it requires a special warning–while it is fine for us to invite unbelievers to sing hymns to God as if he had adopted them already?

So, 1) First Corinthians doesn’t justify a warning against participation but rather demands universal participation among professing Christians; 2) other passages are just as relevant and warn us against using the passage in Corinthians the way we do; and 3) nothing in the text of First Corinthians 11 singles out the Lord’s Supper as in need of a unique warning as opposed to other aspects of the worship service.

What are the Biblical responses to these three challenges?