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MY BODY, MY BLOOD
LORD’S DAY, MARCH 13
Mark 14:22-25

Hebrews 9:22-28

 

“…this is my body…

This is my blood…”

 

MY BODY, MY BLOOD
 
The Passover pointed towards the cross-work of Christ. The Lamb of God Himself was about to be slain, and shed His blood for the remission of sins. By the once-for-all shedding of blood by the True Lamb, the old bloody types and symbols of the Old Testament must cease to give way to the new bloodless ones. The Lord’s Supper which is the sacrament of a better covenant points back to the cross-work of Christ.
 
Two elements are involved in the Lord’s Supper: the bread and the cup. They symbolise the body and blood of Christ respectively (cf. John 6:26-63). The bread is still bread, and the wine is still wine. They do not magically become the actual flesh and blood of Christ as taught by the Roman Catholic Church which is idolatrous. Neither are the actual flesh and blood present “in, with, and under” the bread and wine as supposed by Lutherans. The elements are also not to be adored or worshipped. The bread and the cup merely represent the body and the blood of the Lord, and the partaking of them is for the purpose of commemoration (cf. 1 Cor 11:23-25). Jesus said, “this do ye… in remembrance of me.” We are called to remember what Jesus did in His flesh which points to His life as well as His death. In the flesh, He fulfilled the Law perfectly and flawlessly so that by the time of His sacrifice, He was truly the Lamb of God that was without spot and blemish (1 Pet 1:18,19). For His death to be effective, He must bleed for “without shedding of blood is no remission” (Heb 9:22). The blood is important. His blood is powerful to deliver a man from sin (Acts 20:28).
 
The whole ceremony is not only a memorial service but also a spiritual exercise. Christ is not present physically but spiritually in the bread and wine. And our souls are spiritually nourished when we partake of the bread and cup by faith.
 
THOUGHT: A regular spiritual and faithful partaking of the Lord’s Supper is good for the soul.

PRAYER: I thank Thee, Lord, for saving my soul.

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