Lord's Supper: Meditations for Disciples
Table of Contents

Preface 3
Table of Contents 5
Reprint Guidelines 9
References and Abbreviations 10
Introduction 13
  What Is the Lord´s Supper? 13
  When Did the Original Lord´s Supper Take Place? 13
  What Kind of Bread Was Used? 14
  What Kind of Wine Was Used? 14
  How Is Christ Present in Communion? 14
  Practices of the Lord´s Supper 15
1. My Body, My Blood – Literal or Figurative? 17
  The Words of Institution 17
  The Argument for a Literal Interpretation of the Words of Institution 18
  The Argument for a Figurative Interpretation of the Words of Institution 19
  The Body and Blood of the Lord 20
  Not “Mere Symbols” 21
  Actions on the Bread and Wine 21
  Words of Sacrificial Offering 22
  Verbs of Eating and Drinking 23
2. Remembering and Proclaiming Christ´s Death (Lk 22:19b; 1 Cor 11:23-26) 25
  The Command to “Do This” Continually (Luke 22:19b) 25
  Passover as a Memorial Feast 26
  In Remembrance of Me 28
  The Words of Institution in 1 Corinthians 11:23-25 28
  Proclaiming the Lord´s Death (1 Corinthians 11:26) 29
3. Being Sharers in the Sacrifice (1 Corinthians 10:16, 18) 31
  Participation, Communion, Koin?nia (1 Corinthians 10:16) 32
  Eating a Portion of the Sacrifice for Sin 33
  Sharers in the Altar (1 Corinthians 10:18) 33
  Sharers in the Cross 34
  Communion 34
4. My Body Given for You (Luke 22:19b) 36
  My Body which Is Broken for You (1 Corinthians 11:24b, KJV) 36
  Jesus´Body Given for You (Luke 22:19b) 37
  Jesus´Body as a Sacrifice 37
  Paintings of Christ´s Body – Pietà and Lamentation 39
  Jesus Gave Himself to Rescue and Ransom Us 40
  He Voluntarily Laid Down His Life to Defend Us 41
5. My Blood Poured Out for Many (Matthew 26:28) 44
  Blood Reserved for Atonement 45
  Blood Sacrifices in the Old Testament 45
  Sacrificing the Paschal Lamb 46
  Poured Out 47
  Poured Out for Many 48
  Christ´s Blood in the New Testament 48
  Depictions of the Blood of Christ 50
  Songs about the Blood of Jesus 50
  Poured Out for the Forgiveness of Sin 51
6. A New Covenant in My Blood (1 Corinthians 11:25) 53
  Covenants in the Old Testament 53
  Provisions of the Old Covenant 54
  God´s Promise of a New Covenant 55
  Provisions of the New Covenant 56
  Confirmation of the Covenant at a Meal 57
  The Lord´s Supper as Confirming the Covenant 58
  The Meal as Giving and Receiving Hospitality 58
  Invitation to the Covenant 59
7. The Cup of Blessing and the One Loaf (1 Corinthians 10:16-17) 61
  The Cup of Blessing 61
  We Partake of the One Loaf (1 Corinthians 10:17) 64
  Bread Making in Ancient Times 64
  The One Loaf as a Symbol of Unity 65
  It´s Me, O Lord 66
  The Scandal of Christian Divisions 66
8. Eating His Flesh, Drinking His Blood (John 6:53-57) 70
  Context, Themes, and Parables 70
  1. Jesus, the True Manna (6:27-34) 71
  2. Jesus, the Bread of Life (6:35-51) 72
  Flesh Given for the Life of the World (6:51b) 73
  3. Partaking of the Son of Man (6:52-59) 74
  Arguments for Taking the Passage Literally of the Eucharist 75
  What Does Jesus Mean about Eating His Flesh, Drinking His Blood? 75
  4. Reactions to the Teaching (6:60-71) 76
  The Spirit Gives Life, the Flesh Counts for Nothing (6:63) 77
  The Bread of Life Passage and the Lord´s Supper 78
9. The Lord´s Supper and the Great Banquet (Luke 22:16, 18; Matthew 26:29) 80
  Jewish Expectation of the Great Feast 80
  Jesus´Teaching on the Great Banquet 81
  The Marriage Supper of the Lamb 83
  The Lord´s Supper Looks Forward to the Great Banquet 83
  The Promise of Future Fellowship 84
  The Lord´s Supper as a Promise of the Future 84
  We Shall See His Face 85
10. Preparing Ourselves for the Lord´s Supper (1 Corinthians 11: 27-34) 86
  Divisions between the Rich and Poor in Corinth (11:17-22) 86
  Not Discerning the Body (11:29) 88
  Sinning against the Body and Blood of the Lord (1 Corinthians 11:27) 89
  Incurring Judgment and Discipline (1 Corinthians 11:29-32) 90
  Self-Examination (1 Corinthians 11:28, 31) 91
  Confession and Repentance 92
  How to Prepare for Communion 94
Appendix 1: A Brief Glossary of the Lord´s Supper 96
  Words for the Lord´s Supper 96
  Nouns Used to Refer to the Lord´s Supper 98
  The Presence of Christ in the Sacrament 98
  Celebrate, Perform, Partake 99
Appendix 2: A Brief History of the Doctrine of the Real Presence and Transubstantiation 100
  The Early Church Fathers 101
  Symbolic Vocabulary 101
  An Open Controversy 102
  The Reformers on the Real Presence 103
Appendix 3: Songs, Choruses, and Hymns for Communion 104
  Newer Communion Songs 104
  Older Communion Hymns 106
Appendix 4: Introduction to Textual Criticism 109
  Types of Copying Errors 109
  Autographs and Manuscript Families 110
  External Evidence: The “Earliest” Manuscripts 111
  Internal Evidence: Four Guidelines in Textual Criticism 112
  Does It Make Any Difference? 113
  Can We Believe the Bible? 114
Appendix 5: Handouts for Classes and Groups 115
  1. My Body, My Blood – Literal or Figurative? 116
  Brief Glossary of the Lord´s Supper 120
  2. Remembering and Proclaiming Christ´s Death (Luke 22:19b; 1 Cor. 11:23-26) 124
  3. Being Sharers in the Sacrifice (1 Corinthians 10:16, 18) 126
  4. My Body Given for You (Luke 22:19b) 128
  5. My Blood Poured Out for Many (Matthew 26:28) 130
  6. A New Covenant in My Blood (1 Corinthians 11:25) 132
  7. The Cup of Blessing and the One Loaf (1 Corinthians 10:16-17) 134
  8. Eating His Flesh, Drinking His Blood (John 6:53-57) 135
  9. The Lord´s Supper and the Great Banquet (Luke 22:16, 18; Matthew 26:29) 139
  10. Preparing Ourselves for the Lord´s Supper (1 Corinthians 11: 27-34) 141

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