The Lord’s Supper has been universally practiced by all Christians for all time. This involves the communal eating of bread and drinking of wine (or grape juice) to, at a bare minimum, remember the death of Christ with the breaking of the bread symbolizing the breaking of Christ’s body and the wine symbolizing His blood.
Unlike baptism, the Lord’s Supper has multiple names that are commonly used such as Eucharist and Holy Communion. The Lord’s Supper is from kuriakon deîpnon (κυριακόν δεῖπνον), meaning an evening meal belonging to the Lord. “Therefore when you come together it is not to eat the Lord’s Supper (κυριακόν δεῖπνον)” (1 Cor:11-20). Eucharist is from Eucharistia (εὐχαριστία), meaning thanksgiving. “[A]nd when He had given thanks” (ευχαριστήσας)” (1 Cor:11-24). Holy Communion is from the Latin communio, itself a translation of the Greek koinonia (κοινωνία), meaning to share in common. “[S]haring (κοινωνία) in the blood of Christ” (1 Cor:10-16).
In understanding the Lord’s Supper as a sacrament, it is helpful to examine all of the verses that directly address the Lord’s Supper. These include the following:
- Now while they were eating, Jesus took some bread, and after a blessing, He broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is being poured out for many for forgiveness of sins (Mt 26:26-28);
- While they were eating, He took some bread, and after a blessing He broke it, and gave it to them, and said, “Take it; this is My body.” And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. And He said to them, “This is My blood of the covenant, which is being poured out for many (Mk 14:22-24);
- And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body, which is being given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup, which is poured out for you, is the new covenant in My blood (Lk 22:19-20); and
- [T]he Lord Jesus, on the night when 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 He also 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 (1 Cor 11:23-26).
Just from these verses, the following points are clear regarding the Lord’s Supper: (1) Jesus refers to the bread as His body and the wine as His blood; (2) Jesus refers to His blood as being a covenant that is poured out for the forgiveness of sins; (3) Christians are to continue this practice (“For as often as you…”); and (4) we are to partake in Holy Communion as a way to remember Christ (at a minimum).
It should be recognized that the first Lord’s Supper took place at the Paschal meal, where Jews remember and celebrate the Passover event (Ex 12) by sacrificing and then consuming a Paschal lamb. In instituting the Lord’s Supper, Christ, the Lamb of God, is substituted for the Paschal lamb. In this way, the Lord’s Supper substitutes the remembrance of Christ for the remembrance of Passover. But most theologies attribute more to Holy Communion than simply being a remembrance. This is primarily based on the following verse:
“So Jesus said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves. The one who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. The one who eats My flesh and drinks My blood remains in Me, and I in him. Just as the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, the one who eats Me, he also will live because of Me. This is the bread that came down out of heaven, not as the fathers ate and died; the one who eats this bread will live forever.’” (Jn 6:53-58)
In addition to Jesus saying “this is My body” of the communion bread and “this is My blood” of the communion wine, he also attributes supernatural effects to those who eats His flesh and drinks His blood. But this verse from John is in response to the Pharisees questioning Jesus when referring to Himself as the Bread of Life, which is clearly metaphorical. Jesus is obviously not a literal loaf of bread. It seems likely that Jesus is also speaking metaphorically when responding to these doubts, and that eating His flesh and drinking His blood refers to internalizing His Gospel message. In any case, various theological systems view baptism in very different ways. This makes baptism perhaps the largest area of theological difference in any major doctrinal area. The following are summaries of the major theological views of the Lord’s supper.
Roman Catholic. Roman Catholicism famously believes that the bread and wine used in Eucharist literally become the body and blood of Christ, a process referred to as transubstantiation. Although the bread and wind do not change their material properties, the smallest piece of bread and the smallest drop of wine are Christ in His entirety. The Catholic Catechism states, “At the heart of the Eucharist celebration are the bread and wine that, by the words of Christ and the invocation of the Holy Spirit, become Christ’s Body and Blood.”[i] Catholics that consumes the bread and wine receive the fruits of Holy Communion. This includes a strengthened union with Christ, a renewal of the grace received at baptism, a cleansing of past venial sins, and a preservation from future mortal sins.
Lutheran. Lutherans believe that there is a real presence of Christ in the consecrated bread and wine of the Lord’s supper, referred to as the sacramental union. This is commonly referred to as consubstantiation, although many Lutherans object to this term. Someone who partakes in the Lord’s Supper both consumes the bread and wine in addition to the body and blood of Christ. Therefore, the Lord’s supper is much more than a symbolic ritual in Lutheranism. In addition to being a communal expression of faith, the actual consumption of Christ’s body and blood results in a strengthened union with Christ, spiritual sustenance, and renewal.
Reformed. Reformed theology teaches that there is the spiritual presence of Christ in the consecrated bread and wine of the Lord’s supper, but not a real presence in the sense of transubstantiation or consubstantiation. Although Reformed theologians differ on the specifics, they generally understand the Lord’s Supper as a sign, a seal, and a means of grace. In addition to being a sign of Christ’s death, the partaker participates in the crucified Christ, experiences the impact of Christ’s death, and experiences the union of believers with one another. It seals the partaker to Christ’s love, to the assurance of salvation, and to faith in the redemptive power of Christ. In terms of grace, partaking in the Lord’s Supper results in a closer fellowship with Christ and in spiritual strengthening. This is the same type of grace that is received by the Spirit through Scripture but adds to its effectiveness.
Arminian/Wesleyan. The Arminian view is that the Lord’s Supper is strictly a ritual to remember Christ. It has no supernatural efficacy. However, it was a practice commanded by Christ and is therefore obligatory for Christians to practice. Jacobus Arminius writes,
“[B]by the legitimate external distribution, taking, and enjoyment of bread and wine, the Lord’s death is announced, and the inward receiving and enjoyment of the body and blood of Christ are signified … The matter is, bread and wine; which, with regard to their essence, are not changed, but remain what they previously were … The end is two-fold: The first is, that our faith should be more and more strengthened towards the promise of grace which has been given by God, and concerning the truth and certainty of our being engrafted into Christ. The second is, (1) that believers may, by the remembrance of the death of Christ, testify their gratitude and obligation to God; (2) that they may cultivate charity among themselves; and (3.) that by this mark they may be distinguished from unbelievers.”[ii]
The views of John Wesley on the Lord’s Supper are essentially identical to Arminius. He viewed the Lord’s supper as a sacrament instituted by Christ for the purpose of remembering His death. It is particularly important to regularly partake in the Lord’s Supper because this was Christ’s last instruction to his followers before His death. Wesley writes:
“The first reason why it is the duty of every Christian so to do is because it is a plain command of Christ. That this is his command appears from the words of the text, “Do this in remembrance of me:” by which, as the Apostles were obliged to bless, break, and give the bread to all that joined with them in those holy things, so were all Christians obliged to receive those signs of Christ’s body and blood. Here therefore the bread and wine are commanded to be received, in remembrance of his death, to the end of the world. Observe, too, that this command was given by our Lord when he was just laying down his life for our sakes. They are therefore, as it were, his dying words to all his followers.”[iii]
[i] Apostolic Constitution Fidei Depositum; on the Publication of the Catechism of the Catholic Church; Prepared Following the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, 1982: 336.
[ii] The Works of James Arminius: The London Edition, James Nichols (tr.), Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1986: Disputation LXIV: On the Lord’s Supper.
[iii] John Wesley, Sermon 101: The Duty of Constant Communion: §I.1.
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