Why We Left Lutheranism--Misinformed Us On the Lord's Supper
The Roman Catholic View: "The Church of Rome teaches that in this sacrament the communicate receives only the body and blood of the savior. They believe that when the priest consecrates the earthly elements in the Lord's supper, they cease to be bread and wine and by a sort of miracle are changed into the body and blood of Christ."
The Lutheran View: "We Lutherans insist that both the bread and wine and the body and blood of Jesus are received by every communicant at the Lord's Supper." (What Lutherans Believe, p. 149) "With and under the bread, with and under the cup, is the real body and blood of the Lord" (Luther’s Small Catechism, pp. 137-140).
The reason Catholics and Lutherans teach that the real body and blood of the Lord appears in the supper is because Jesus said, "this is my body," "this is my blood." (Matthew 26:26-28) If Jesus meant that it literally became His body and blood, what did Jesus mean in John 10:9, "I am the door?" Did He mean He was made out of two-by fours and one-by-twelves? Most assuredly not! What did Jesus mean when He said, "I am the true vine," that He was literally planted and leafed out in the spring? It would have to mean this if the other is literal in regard to the Lord's supper.
The truth about it is, though the Catholics teach "transubstantiation" and say it actually becomes His body and blood, though the Lutherans teach "consubstantiation" and make a sandwich out of it and say, "with and under" both have failed to see the figure of speech, personification. Jesus simply personified His body and blood in the bread and cup, as He did Himself in John 10 and John 15. The Lutheran church is divided on this very issue and we were never able to see their teaching on it, in the light of these other passages.
Former President Bill Clinton recently made news during his scandal-ridden administration when he sought to define whether "is means is."
Students of church history recognize this as an old argument--Luther and Zwingli had that very debate in the 1500's! And of course it lives on today. Mr. Guild asserts: "this is my body," "this is my blood." (Matthew 26:26-28) If Jesus meant that it literally became His body and blood, what did Jesus mean in John 10:9, "I am the door?" Did He mean He was made out of two-by fours and one-by-twelves? Most assuredly not! What did Jesus mean when He said, "I am the true vine," that He was literally planted and leafed out in the spring? It would have to mean this if the other is literal in regard to the Lord's supper.
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