Celestial Communion 太空圣餐
Dexu Xia
Whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. 1 Corinthians 11:26
hen Apollo 11’s Eagle lunar module landed on the moon’s Sea of Tranquility on July 20, 1969, the space travelers took time to recover from their flight before stepping onto the moon’s surface. Astronaut Buzz Aldrin had received permission to bring bread and wine so he could take Communion. After reading Scripture, he tasted the first foods ever consumed on the moon. Later, he wrote: “I poured the wine into the chalice our church had given me. In the one-sixth gravity of the moon the wine curled slowly and gracefully up the side of the cup.” As Aldrin enjoyed this celestial Communion, his actions proclaimed his belief in Christ’s sacrifice on the cross and the guarantee of His second coming.
The apostle Paul encourages us to remember how Jesus sat with His disciples “on the night he was betrayed” (1 Corinthians 11:23). Christ compared His soon-to-be sacrificed body to the bread (v. 24). He declared the wine as a symbol of “the new covenant” that secured our forgiveness and salvation through His blood shed on the cross (v. 25). Whenever and wherever we take Communion, we’re proclaiming our trust in the reality of Jesus’ sacrifice and our hope in His promised second coming (v. 26).
No matter where we are, we can celebrate our faith in the one and only risen and returning Savior—Jesus Christ—with confidence.
What has kept you from prayerfully taking Communion in remembrance of Christ? How does it make you feel to know that a fellow believer took Communion to honor Jesus on the moon?
Jesus, please help me live boldly for You until You come again!
你们每逢吃这饼，喝这杯，是表明主的死，直等到祂来。—哥林多前书11章26节
在1969年7月20日，阿波罗11号的鹰号登月舱降落在月球的宁静海。几个太空人并没有马上踏上月球表面，因为他们需要一点时间从飞行中恢复过来。在等候期间，太空人伯兹 · 艾德林（Buzz Aldrin）拿出他事前获准带上月球的饼和酒，预备守圣餐。他读完圣经后，品尝了人类首次在月球上享用的食物。后来，他写道：“我把酒倒进了我们教会给我的圣餐杯中。因月球的重力是地球的六分之一，所以酒是慢慢地、优雅地卷曲在杯壁上。”艾德林在外太空守圣餐，以具体的行动表明他相信基督在十字架上的牺牲，并且相信耶稣会再来的应许。
使徒保罗劝勉我们，当谨记耶稣如何“在被卖的那一夜”（哥林多前书11章23节）与门徒一同坐席。席间，基督将祂即将献上为祭的身体比作饼（24节），并宣告那葡萄汁是“新约”的象征，透过祂在十字架上所流的血，我们获得了赦免和救赎（25节）。无论何时何地，我们领受圣餐，就是宣告我们相信耶稣牺牲的事实，以及我们对祂将会再来的盼望（26节）。
无论我们身在何处，都可以满怀信心地称颂我们所信靠的耶稣基督，祂是唯一从死里复活，并将再来的救主。
有什么会阻止你虔诚地藉着领受圣餐来记念基督？知道有人在月球上领圣餐荣耀耶稣，你有什么感受？让我们在上帝的同在里欢庆颂扬，感谢祂美好的恩典。