Q&A 75 How does the Lord's Supper remind you and assure you that you share in Christ's one sacrifice on the cross and in all his gifts?

In this way:

Christ has commanded me and all believers

to eat this broken bread and to drink this cup.

With this command he gave this promise:¹

 

First,

as surely as I see with my eyes

the bread of the Lord broken for me

and the cup given to me,

so surely

his body was offered and broken for me

and his blood poured out for me

on the cross.

 

Second,

as surely as

I receive from the hand of the one who serves,

and taste with my mouth

the bread and cup of the Lord,

given me as sure signs of Christ's body and blood,

so surely

he nourishes and refreshes my soul for eternal life

with his crucified body and poured-out blood.

 

¹ Matt. 26:26-28; Mark 14:22-24; Luke 22:19-20; 1 Cor. 11:23-25

Q&A 76 What does it mean to eat the crucified body of Christ and to drink his poured-out blood?

It means

to accept with a believing heart

the entire suffering and death of Christ

and by believing

to receive forgiveness of sins and eternal life.¹

 

But it means more.

Through the Holy Spirit, who lives both in Christ and in us,

we are united more and more to Christ's blessed body.²

And so, although he is in heaven³ and we are on earth,

we are flesh of his flesh and bone of his bone.⁴

And we forever live on and are governed by one Spirit,

as members of our body are by one soul.⁵

 

¹ John 6:35, 40, 50-54

² John 6:55-56; 1 Cor. 12:13

³ Acts 1:9-11; 1 Cor. 11:26; Col. 3:1

⁴ 1 Cor. 6:15-17; Eph. 5:29-30; 1 John 4:13

⁵ John 6:56-58; 15:1-6; Eph. 4:15-16; 1 John 3:24

Q&A 77 Where does Christ promise to nourish and refresh believers with his body and blood as surely as they eat this broken bread and drink this cup?

In the institution of the Lord's Supper:

 

"The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed,

took bread, 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, after supper he took the cup, saying,

'This cup is the new covenant in my blood;

do this, whenever you drink it,

in remembrance of me.'

For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup,

you proclaim the Lord's death

until he comes."¹

 

This promise is repeated by Paul in these words:

 

"Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks

a participation in the blood of Christ?

And is not the bread that we break

a participation in the body of Christ?

Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body,

for we all partake of the one loaf."²

 

¹ 1 Cor. 11:23-26

² 1 Cor. 10:16-17

 

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