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What is the Lord's Supper? When we consider the Lord's Supper, we need to ask the same question that we asked of Baptism -- what is it? Luther, in the Large Catechism, answers: "It is the true body and blood of the Lord Christ in and under the bread and wine, which Christ's Word commands us to eat and to drink. We said that Baptism is not mere water; just so we say here that this sacrament is bread and wine, but not mere bread and wine such as is otherwise served at table. Rather, it is bread and wine surrounded by God's Word and connected with it." Many people in Luther's day were troubled by the question: Could a wicked priest administer the Lord's Supper? In other words, what would happen if you found out that your pastor was actually an unbeliever? Would this mean that the sacraments that he had administered were invalid? Would it mean that they had no value because all along the pastor was a hypocrite and did not truly believe the words that he was speaking? Luther responds to this question in the Large Catechism, "Our firm conclusion is this: even though a scoundrel receives the Sacrament or administers it, it is the true Sacrament, that is, Christ's body and blood, exactly the same as when someone uses it in the most worthy manner possible. For the validity of the Lord's Supper is not based on man's holiness, but on God's Word." Notice that the chief thing with both sacraments is God's word. God's promise turns ordinary water, and bread and wine, into great treasures. They are of great value whether we believe this or not. And they are great treasures whether we use them properly or not. Just as with Baptism, many Christians treat the Lord's Supper as merely something we do. Certainly, we do remember our Lord and the sacrifice that He made (Luke 22:19). And as Paul said, when we participate in the Lord's Supper, we proclaim the Lord's death until He returns (I Corinthians 11:26). Yet it is what the Lord is doing that is of first importance. He gives Himself to us for the forgiveness of our sins (Matthew 26:28). Christ in His word declares that when we partake of the bread and the wine in the Lord's Supper we are sharing His body and blood (I Corinthians 10:16). How this is so we cannot understand. But this is nothing new. There are many things that God's word declares are true, which we cannot understand. For example, the Bible teaches that God is triune (three distinct persons yet one God) and it teaches that Jesus Christ is true God and true man. Even though we cannot understand these things, we are to believe that things are the way God says they are. Some reject the idea that Christ is present in the Lord's Supper outright. They would say that the bread and wine are only symbols; they remind us of the Lord like an object lesson in a children's sermon. Others are more subtle. They would say that the Lord is present, but only for those who believe. They teach that through faith we ascend to heaven and have fellowship with the Lord. But as I emphasized earlier, what we do and what we believe does not create a sacrament. It is God's word that creates a sacrament. Whether we believe it or not Christ's body and blood are truly present in, with and under the bread and wine. Therefore, all who come forward and eat the bread and drink the wine receive the body and blood of the Lord. Whether we believe or not we receive what Christ our Lord has place there in the bread and wine. However, if we do not believe, then this sacrament does us no good. Certainly, faith is needed to take hold of the benefits of the Supper. If we do not believe the promise that our Lord has attached to the bread and wine, then we are discarding the great treasure that is present in the Sacrament. |
