by Garrett Glende
Following our discussion on baptism, it is appropriate that we tackle the other ordinance that Jesus left for the church, the Lord’s Supper. Just like last week’s article, Richard has already written a four-part series on the issue and has covered it in much more depth than we will here. That being said, if you wish to get a more complete understanding of this ordinance, then head on over to those pieces. Nevertheless, if you don’t have the time to read four lengthy articles, then this is the place for you. We’ll take a brief look at the doctrine as the Bible presents it and then discuss how this should impact the way we live. (Editor’s Note: Read all of them; it will be good for you.)
The Lord’s Supper as we know it was instituted by Jesus in the upper room with the disciples on the night of His betrayal. Matthew 26:26-29 gives the following account:
“Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”
With this act, Jesus tells the disciples the meaning of this meal. It was to remember His death that brought them forgiveness of sins. Paul recounts in 1 Corinthians 11:24-26,
“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.” 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.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”
So we see more explicitly from Paul’s account that there were two main purposes for this ordinance: remembrance and proclamation. The symbol of the bread and wine being broken and poured represents the body and blood of Christ. Thus, as we partake in this communion we are to be reminded of the fact that Jesus dies on our behalf. The death that we were so deserving of, He willfully took on as He hung on the cross. Being covered by His blood, we are now declared righteous before God. Since this act is a symbol of the gospel message, every time we partake in it we are declaring to the world that Christ has indeed died for our sins. Communion is a proclamation of Jesus’ sacrifice and our union with Him. Just as baptism is a public declaration of our new life in Christ, so is the Lord’s Supper a sign of our continual life in Him.
Because of the many misunderstandings of this practice, it seems worth making note of a few. Most of the false teachings on the Lord’s Supper originate from the Roman Catholic Church. They promote the doctrine of transubstantiation, or the idea that the bread and wine are actually changed into the literal body and blood of Christ as the priest offers them up. During this ceremony there is an actual sacrifice for sins that takes place, according to the church. There are more intricacies to the argument, but it’s clear from the Bible that Christ has only died once for sins and there is no longer any sacrifice necessary. Hebrews 9:24-28 states this clearly:
For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.
Christ does not need to offer up any more sacrifices because it is already finished, as His own words on the cross indicate. This is an essential doctrine to the Christian faith because without it there would be no assurance at all that our sins have truly been covered. We must affirm that Christ has died once to bear our sins and that this one sacrifice was completely sufficient to pay for every single one of them.
The Lord’s Supper should be a time of great celebration for the Christian. We are reminded of the wonderful realities of our salvation and the tremendous price that was paid to secure it. One of the effects of Christ’s death is the reconciliation of rebellious sinners to a holy God. We were once enemies of God, but He has brought us near to Him through the cross. There was once war, but now there is peace. Having this in mind, there is no way that we can come to participate in communion if we have not been reconciled to our fellow brothers or sisters. How can we celebrate peace with God if there is no peace within the body? It would be hypocritical to do so. The taking of the bread and the cup outwardly signals that we have been reconciled to God, but if our hearts have not been reconciled to one another, then these actions are empty. This is one reason why we take the peacemakers pledge so seriously at LBC. A refusal to be reconciled to a brother or sister is not only harmful to our testimony as Christians, but it is contradictory to the very core of what we say is most important to us. Taking this a step further, I think it’s easy to hold grudges against people even when we’ve said that they’re forgiven. We may harbor bitterness or resentment and not even notice it, but we must recognize these attitudes when they creep up and then repent of them. For the church to really be unified, we must constantly be forgiving one another with a posture of humility. If this kind of spirit is fostered in every member of the church, then when we take communion together we can celebrate it in the fullness of its meaning, giving thanks to God for reconciling us to Himself.
