Week 31, 2019

• Q76 What does it mean to eat the crucified body of Christ and to drink his shed blood? / Answer: First, to accept with a believing heart all the suffering and the death of Christ, and so receive forgiveness of sins and life eternal. Second, to be united more and more to his sacred body through the Holy Spirit, who lives both in Christ and in us. Therefore, although Christ is in heaven and we are on earth yet we are flesh of his flesh and bone of his bones, and we forever live and are governed by one Spirit, as the members of our body are by one soul.

• Q77 Where has Christ promised that he will nourish and refresh believers with his body and blood as surely as they eat of this broken bread and drink of this cup? /

Answer: 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 Cor 11:23-26).

This promise is repeated by Paul where he says:

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 (1 Cor 10:16, 17).

• Q78 Are then the bread and wine changed into the real body and blood of Christ? /