44. How do we encounter Christ at the Lord’s Supper?
Those who rightly, worthily, and in faith eat the broken bread and drink the blessed cup partake of the body and blood of Christ in a spiritual manner until he comes.
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The sacrament is not in danger of becoming less special because it is celebrated more frequently, but it does require of us, each and every time, active and purposeful engagement. Christian teachers have counseled thoughtful preparation and attentiveness when approaching the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. The bread and the cup are offered not as magical substances but as vehicles by which we can more readily grasp and internalize the promises that adhere to the same. Thus to eat and drink “rightly, worthily, and in faith” means to do so, first, trusting in these promises and desiring their full realization in our lives and experience. These include the promise of the new covenant itself—the forgiveness of our sins and the awareness of the new standing we have before God (see Jer. 31:31–34; Matt. 26:27–28; 1 Cor. 11:25); the promise of being knit together into a new covenant people, and thus the importance of laying aside all sources of disunity and division as we approach the table together (1 Cor. 10:16–17; 11:17–32); and the promise of Christ’s coming again “for the deliverance of those who eagerly await him” (Heb. 9:28 DST).
The catechism says nothing more about how we encounter Christ in the sacrament beyond acknowledging that it occurs “in a spiritual manner.” This is in keeping with the Protestant rejection of the Roman Catholic doctrine that the bread and wine are physically transformed (at the level of underlying substance rather than physical appearance and taste) into the flesh and blood of Christ. The spiritual encounter is, however, no less real an encounter. As the celebrant offers the bread and the cup and speaks the words of institution (Matt. 26:26–28; Mark 14:22–24; Luke 22:19–20; 1 Cor. 11:23–25), the horizons between our present moment and Jesus uttering the same words to his disciples are merged and our Lord becomes present to us as well. And though we were not present with him in that upper room, we were present in his heart and intentions as he went to the cross and we experience that, indeed, he died not just “for many” but “for me.”
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But they urged him strongly, saying, “Stay with us . . .” So he went in to stay with them. When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?” (Luke 24:28b–32)
Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be answerable for the body and blood of the Lord. Examine yourselves, and only then eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For all who eat and drink without discerning the body, eat and drink judgment against themselves. (1 Cor. 11:27–29)
See also John 6:53–58; 1 Cor. 11:23–26; CoF VI
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This is an excerpt from Christian Faith and Doctrine: An Annotated Catechism for the Global Methodist Church. Seedbed is pleased to partner with The Global Methodist Church to offer this companion resource to A Catechism of Christian Faith and Doctrine for the Global Methodist Church.
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