When Jesus said that, he had not yet given up his life. The Bible says it was the fruit of the vine in the cup. Why do you not believe that it was symbolic, when you know, Jesus did not die yet, and when you know the Bible says it was fruit of the vine.
Where in the Bible does it say Christ’s body and blood are present at Communion?
Q: What verses in Scripture can be cited that teach "that BOTH bread and wine AND Christ's true body
and blood are present in the Lord's Supper?
A: All three accounts of the institution of the Lord's Supper in the Gospels (Matthew 26:26-29; Mark
14:22-25; Luke 22:14-23) explicitly state that Jesus took BREAD, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to his
disciples saying, "Take, eat; this [i.e., this BREAD, which I have just blessed and broken and am now
giving to you] is my body." Jesus uses similar language in referring to "the cup" (of wine) as "his blood."
A plain and straightforward reading of these words leads to the conclusion that BOTH bread AND body,
BOTH wine AND blood are present in the consecrated elements of the Lord's Supper.
Perhaps the most explicit expression of this truth, however, is found in 1 Cor. 10:16-17, where Paul
writes: "The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that
we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many
are one body, for we all partake of the one bread." Paul clearly says here that we all "partake" of
"BREAD" when we receive the Lord's Supper--even as we also partake of and "participate in" the true
body of Christ. And he says that we all "partake" of the wine (the cup), even as we also partake of the
true blood of Christ. Similarly, in 1 Cor. 11:26, Paul says: "For as often as you eat this bread and drink
the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes." Paul expressly states here that when we receive
the Lord's Supper we are "eating bread" and "drinking the cup" (wine), but he goes on to say that those
who eat this bread and drink this cup are also partaking of the true body and blood of Christ.
So "real" is this participation in Christ's body and blood, in fact, that (according to Paul) those who
partake of the bread and wine "in an unworthy manner" are actually guilty of "profaning the body and
blood of the Lord" (1 Cor. 11:27). (Partaking of the Lord's Supper "in a worthy manner," of course, is not
something that we "do" or "accomplish" on the basis of our "personal holiness" or "good works." It
means receiving God's free and gracious gifts of life and forgiveness offered in the Lord's Supper in true
repentance produced by the work of the Spirit through God's Law and in true faith in Christ and his
promises produced by God's Spirit through the Gospel).
Usage: We urge you to contact an LCMS pastor in your area for more in-depth discussion.
Published by: LCMS Church Information Center
©The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod
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