Communion Sacrifice

One of the things that was a Big Deal during the Reformation (when a bunch of people finally got fed up with the Catholic church and started branching off) was Communion. Every church seems to have a slightly different take on this ceremony. No one can quite agree on the meaning of the ritual that every Christian group practices in one form or another.

Transubstantiation is the big long word that means the bread and the wine actually become the body and blood of Jesus. They go through this mystical change. Yeah, I thought it sounded really weird, but apparently it’s been a big idea in the Catholic church for over a thousand years. To take communion is to participate in Jesus’ sacrifice, to offer Jesus’ sacrifice again. You actually get spiritual nourishment direct from God just by taking communion.

Then there are the churches that say communion is a symbol. We sit and remember what Jesus did and we do this every week so that we keep it fresh in our minds. The bread and wine are reminders of the body and blood, to help us meditate better. We show that we are good Christians by going through the motions that Jesus laid out.

The Lutherans take the middle road with another big long word, consubstantiation. It means that the bread and wine don’t actually change, but Jesus is present in them. He reaches out to touch us when we take communion. Like, when the bread and wine pass over our lips, your getting a kiss from God. You’re remembering what Jesus did and he’s touching you the same way he touched his disciples.

Transubstantiation seems a little redundant. After all, Jesus died once for all, so there’s no need to re-offer the sacrifice. I don’t think God ever meant us to be dependent on ritual bread and wine for spiritual nourishment, we’re depended on the Spirit, not objects that mystically change. But the symbol route seems a little empty. We go through the motions, we remember, but there is no sense of connecting to God, or each other. I think consubstantiation is neat, but I’m not sure what Jesus really intended. Too bad he didn’t write up a nice neat catechism to explain it all.

As much as I reject the idea of transubstantiation and offering up Jesus’ sacrifice again, I think the Catholics are on to something with the idea of sacrifice in communion. We participate in Jesus’ sacrifice every time we take communion. I think this is what Paul was on about when he said ‘examine yourself’ before you partake.

Jesus gave up everything. His sacrifice wasn’t just to die, but to give up his life in every aspect. He didn’t do anything for himself, he did everything for God. When we die to ourselves and rise with Jesus, we must do the same thing. We must make the same sacrifice, and in communion we reinforce that sacrifice. We, as the body of Jesus, participate in his death on a spiritual level.

Our communion sacrifice is this. Search your heart, search your mind. What are you holding back from God? What have you kept for yourself, kept from bending to his will? What are you keeping of this world, of sinful desires that you need to put to death? When you drink the cup, you need to commit to change that. When you eat the bread, you need to let go of your desires and let God in. You can’t partake of Jesus, the Holy Spirit can’t enter your life and change you, until you give up everything else.

Being a Christian is a process of growth. Jesus offered the sacrifice once for all, to make things right between God and man. But we need a constant reminder, a constant re-examination until Jesus returns and purges the world of everything that can corrupt us. So the next time you take communion, remember that it is still about sacrifice. Join Jesus’ sacrifice. Give up everything you were so can become everything he wants you to be.