In the natural realm, one is first born, and afterwards is continually in need of food in order to grow and be strengthened. This is also true in the spiritual realm: A person is first born again, and afterwards he is continually in need of nourishment. The Word of God is the means for both, and the Lord has also given signs and seals in addition to that Word. The first sacrament is baptism which seals regeneration, the washing away of sin, and the incorporation into Christ and into His church. We have discussed this in the previous chapter. The second sacrament is the Lord’s Supper, by which the spiritual life received in regeneration is nourished and strengthened. We shall now consider this sacrament.
The Scriptural Names for the Lord’s Supper
Scripture denominates this sacrament as the Lord’s Supper: “… this is not to eat the Lord’s supper” (1 Cor 11:20). It is called a supper since it was instituted in the evening. The Passover lamb had to be killed between two evenings and between light and dark, this being the latter part of the previous day and the beginning of the next day. This, according to Jewish calculations, began at sundown. By the time it was prepared and eaten, it would already be far into the evening. Upon having eaten the Passover (that is, the Old Testament sacrament), the Lord Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper. It could not have been instituted any earlier since the Lord’s Supper replaced the Passover, and two sacraments of identical nature could not have been observed at the same time. It could also not have been instituted later, for the Lord Jesus was captured that very night and put to death on the next day. Therefore, the chronological circumstances have nothing to do with the essence of the matter. The early church frequently celebrated the Lord’s Supper in the evening, as formal meals were then served in the evening. (Cf. Matt 25:12-13, etc.; Acts 2:15; 1 Thess 5:7.) Furthermore, persecutions later forced them to gather during the night. Then they would have their ἀγάπαι (agapai or love meals), at which time they partook of this sacrament (1 Cor 11). These love meals—due to the increase of the congregation and abuses which had crept in—were discontinued, and only the use of the sacrament remained.
The apostle also refers to this sacrament as the table of the Lord (1 Cor 10:21), signifying the food which one placed on it for consumption. The celebration of the Lord’s Supper is referred to as the breaking of bread (Acts 2:46), and the cup is referred to as the cup of thanksgiving (1 Cor 10:16). These denominations are indicative of the loving and familiar fellowship of believers among each other, and with Christ, for the nourishment of spiritual life. The soul’s inner communion with Christ is therefore also expressed by the word “supper” (cf. Rev 3:20; Luke 14:24; Rev 19:9).
The Papists, not being satisfied with this scriptural designation, use an unscriptural word for their unscriptural fabrication: the mass. We shall let them quarrel among each other as to the origin of the word “mass”; we shall hold to Scripture. In our consideration of this sacrament we shall maintain the same order as we did with the previous sacrament.
The Lord’s Supper: Instituted by the Lord Jesus Christ
The first matter to be considered is the Author of this sacrament; He is the Lord Jesus Christ (cf. the historical record in Matt 26, Mark 14, and Luke 22). The apostle repeats this institution in 1 Cor 11:23-27. We must note Christ’s actions and His words relative to this.
The actions of Christ are four:
(1) He took the bread into His hands, and after this the cup.
(2) He blessed and gave thanks, as all nourishment must be sanctified by prayer (1 Tim 4:5). As Christ blessed the nourishment which He distributed to others (Matt 14:19), He likewise has also blessed this bread and this wine—and thus also gave thanks for it—so that the efficacy for the communicants would be such as was intended by its institution. In doing so, that bread and that wine are set apart from common bread and wine for sacred use.
(3) He broke the bread, whereas we cut our bread; however, in those countries (which is still true in many countries) the bread is broken with the hand when it is eaten. When instituting this sacrament, the Lord likewise took bread and broke it, and thus gave such a fragment to every disciple.
(4) He gave it to His disciples; that is, not into their mouths, but into their hands, as is customary at ordinary meals.
The words of Christ are both imperative and expository in nature. The imperative words are three in number:
(1) Take, that is, extend your hand, take hold of it, and help yourself.
(2) Eat, that is, I give it to you—not to preserve it, or to recline with it as having been sufficiently satisfied by the eating of the Passover, but I give it to you to eat it in the presence of everyone.
(3) Do this in remembrance of Me, that is, do this individually; and as I have commissioned you to preach and to baptize, I likewise obligate you to commit this sacrament to My church and to command her to keep it, so that My suffering and death may thus be continually depicted before her eyes, and she keep in remembrance My merits on her behalf and My love toward her. Maintain this practice.
The expository words (which simultaneously yield the motive for compliance) are, “this is My body,” and “this cup is the new testament in My blood.” It is the symbol and representation of My suffering and death, and a seal that My body has thus been broken for you, and that My blood has in this manner been shed for you for the forgiveness of your sins.
These words, “this is My body,” are not the essence of the institution itself; rather, the entire history related to it constitutes the institution. These words also do not have a sanctifying influence, much less do they change the bread into Christ’s body—a matter to be discussed further on. The sacraments are rendered sacred by thanksgiving and blessing. Thanksgiving is expressed toward God for the work of redemption on the basis of Christ’s suffering and death. The blessing upon the bread and the wine occurs by way of prayer—the prayer being that God would impress these signs as seals upon the heart of believers in order that they may be strengthened and encouraged thereby. This prayer of thanksgiving and blessing implies the consecration of the common bread and wine for holy usage so that they may be signs and seals. However, the benediction and the blessing had already been pronounced prior to Christ expressing the words, “this is My body,” for Christ did not say this until after He had taken, broken, and given, or was taking, breaking, and giving the bread. Also, these words are neither a prayer nor a benediction, nor are they of an imperative or ordaining nature, but they are narrative and expository in nature. They convey the manner in which this bread and wine must be viewed and used: as signs and seals of His suffering and death for believers. The text itself also contradicts the Papists, since the word “for” is not found in the text—they have added this. If this word had been uttered by Christ, then the words “this is My body” would give the disciples reason to take and eat the same, so that the bread would already have been Christ’s body prior to expressing these words.
Moreover, if these words “this is My body” had the power to bring about a change, one would have to relate them as Christ did—and thus not add a word as they do by adding the word “for.” Also, the words which pertain to the cup are recorded variously by the evangelists. Matthew says, “… for this is My blood”; Mark omits the word “for,” and Luke says, “… this cup is the New Testament of My blood.” It is thus evident that the power to bring about change is not inherent in the usage of these words—indeed, no essential change occurs in the Lord’s Supper. In the entire Bible there is not one word to be found about such a change.
From this institution it is also evident how the ministers of the Word must administer the Lord’s Supper today, and must consecrate the bread and wine. This is not to be done by muttering under one’s breath and by pronouncing the words “for this is My body” while blowing and hissing as the wizards do. “… Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter” (Isa 8:19); in this they are imitated by the Papists. Rather the act of consecration, that is, setting wine and bread apart for sacred use, occurs by way of benediction and blessing, thereby requesting that God, who in His great goodness has given Christ, would also bless these signs so that they may be efficacious to the sealing and strengthening of true faith. After this the minister breaks the bread, and gives and distributes it to the communicants, doing likewise with the cup thereafter.