In part 1, I explored the implications of our union with Christ’s body in his life, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension for our physical bodies. Chief among these implications are Christ’s perfect understanding of the human experience, his endurance of excruciating physical pain on our behalf, his defeat of the power of sin and suffering, and his promise of a resurrected body in the Father’s presence. While each of these truths, powerfully portrayed in the Lord’s Supper, are relevant for our souls, they are especially meaningful for our bodies. For the embodied sufferer, then, the Supper becomes an essential source of comfort and sustenance.
A Foretaste of the Feast to Come
In addition to providing real fellowship with Christ, for those who partake by faith, the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper provides a foretaste of an eschatological meal that awaits them in heaven. As wonderful as the sacrament of the Lord’s Table is, Scripture tells us that it is a temporary practice. We will partake of Christ’s body and blood only “until he comes” on the last day (1 Cor 11:26). In the meantime, one of the sacrament’s most astounding functions is to transport its guests, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to the age to come. The Lord’s Supper “pulls back the curtain” to reveal the eschatological realities that are ours in Christ Jesus and, rather than bringing Christ down to earth, raises us up to be with him in heaven. Calvin describes this phenomenon as being “lifted up to heaven with our eyes and minds” for the purpose of beholding Christ in the glory of his kingdom.1 In the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, those who partake by faith are elevated to the heavenly places to catch a glimpse of the reality that awaits them there.
But how is this significant for our physical bodies? What happens in the eschatological kingdom that might encourage us now? Three components of the coming kingdom, in particular, provide hope for our embodied lives on earth. First, we will have resurrected bodies. While Scripture does not provide every detail about what our resurrected bodies will look like, what it does say is exceptionally encouraging. In Romans 8:23, Paul speaks of the redemption (ἀπολύτρωσιν) of our bodies as a key component of our eschatological hope. By using the noun ἀπολύτρωσις, the apostle includes our physical bodies in the lineup of things that will be set free from the effects of sin in the consummated kingdom. Thus, having been released from the curse of sin, our glorified bodies will enjoy pain-free, disease-free, and disability-free existences in heaven. Elsewhere Paul describes the resurrection of the dead as involving the exchange of perishable bodies for imperishable bodies (1 Cor 15:53), indicating that our existence in the new heavens and new earth will endure for all eternity. As if all of this were not wonderful enough already, the apostle also teaches that the Lord Jesus himself will affect the resurrection of the dead and recreate us in his likeness, transforming our lowly bodies to be like his glorious one (Phil 3:20–21). Given the magnificence of this truth, it is no wonder that John Murray sees the resurrection of the dead as the linchpin of glorification, providing “the concreteness and realism of the Christian hope.”2
The promise of a glorified body is perhaps the most meaningful for those who very acutely feel the effects of the fall on their earthly bodies. As they partake of the Lord’s Supper, they are reminded that the body with which they now eat the elements will one day be transformed into one that is wholly untouched by the stain of sin. Whatever ails them now—whether a chronic pain, deadly disease, or a mental disorder—cannot touch them in heaven, and their glorified bodies will be the perfect vehicle for their lives of worship in the new heavens and new earth. This is the hope that Job clung to in the midst of his immense bodily pain, proclaiming, “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God” (Job 19:25–26, emphasis added).3 Afflicted from head to toe with sores and still surrounded by the skin he had scraped off with pieces of broken pottery, Job looked specifically to the resurrection of the dead as his only hope. He not only awaited a release from his earthly body but the bestowal of a new body with which he would behold the living God. This same embodied vision awaits those who participate by faith in the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. For, as our Savior says plainly, “Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day” (John 6:54).
Not only will we receive glorified bodies in the consummated kingdom, but we will feast with those bodies. Scripture does not depict our resurrected bodies as “standing around” in the new heavens and new earth; rather, it consistently associates heaven with feasting. Isaiah promises that those who come to the Lord’s mountain (a symbol of the consummated kingdom) will enjoy “a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine” (Isa 25:6), and Joel prophesies that the mountains will drip with new wine on the day of the Lord (Joel 3:18). Christ himself compares the kingdom of heaven to a wedding feast in Matthew 22:1–14, while in Luke 22:30 he promises that the disciples will sit at his table in heaven and judge the twelve tribes of Israel. Recognizing this theme in both the Old and New Testaments, Jonathan Edwards uses the image of a wedding feast to describe the joy that Christ and the church will share in heaven.4 Taking their cue from Scripture, Reformed theologians have often seen the age to come as a time of joyous feasting.
No one looks forward more fervently to this coming eschatological feast than those for whom feasting feels more laborious than enjoyable, whether due to food allergies, disease-related restrictions, eating disorders, or other bodily afflictions. As they partake of the Lord’s Supper, those who suffer from these conditions can take heart that even as sin racks their body right now, one day they will partake of the eschatological feast completely unencumbered by it. The bread and the wine that they now enjoy are simply an appetizer for a much greater feast to come.
Finally, not only will believers feast with glorified bodies, but they will feast in good company. As our earthly experience proves, part of the joy (or lack thereof) of gathering for a meal is the people with whom you will share that meal. If this is the case, then the eschatological feast that awaits us will be the most joyful meal we could imagine. Matthew 8:11 promises that those who are granted the kingdom of heaven will “recline at table” with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, placing new covenant believers alongside the heroes of the faith. Not only will the patriarchs be our tablemates, but Christ himself will be our host, who enjoys with his saints “the marriage supper of the Lamb” in Revelation 19:9. The coming heavenly feast will have the best guest list imaginable.
As believers gather on the Lord’s Day to partake of the Supper, they rehearse what will be their everlasting reality, that all of God’s people will enjoy an eschatological feast together. The Supper is not a single-portion meal but rather a family-style feast, where God’s people as one body partake of the Lord’s body. Paul takes pains to communicate this in 1 Corinthians 10:17 when he says, “Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread.” United to Christ its head, the church acts out its unity by partaking of the sacrament together. According to Calvin, the church’s unity is so strong that no member can suffer without the other members suffering with it: “No part of our body is touched by any feeling of pain which is not spread among all the rest,”5 he says, echoing Paul’s sentiment in 1 Corinthians 12:26. This is incredible news for those with bodily ailments. If they belong to the covenant community, they no longer bear those ailments alone, and their communal participation in the Lord’s Supper is a perfect expression of this.
Thus, we see how the Lord’s Supper provides a glimpse of the blessings that await believers in heaven, including resurrected bodies, a glorious feast, and a vast community with whom to enjoy that feast. The certainty of these realities charges the sacrament with an eschatological current, encouraging partakers to lift their eyes toward the consummated kingdom even as they partake of the elements in the present evil age. Those who come to the Table with aching or diseased bodies come away from the Table having tasted of their inheritance in the new heavens and new earth, leaving them eager to partake again soon.
Conclusion
As soon as the bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper hit the partaker’s bloodstream, they provide him or her with a handful of calories and a slight spike in blood sugar. But they do so much more for physical bodies than this. By the power of the Holy Spirit, these elements provide a real fellowship between the body of Jesus Christ and the body of the believer, and their union with him at every stage of his incarnate redemptive mission ensures not only that he understands them completely but also that they will enjoy all the blessings that his mission accomplished. The Supper is also a miraculous foretaste of the eschatological meal that awaits believers in heaven, and the certainty of this coming meal provides encouragement and hope while their body remains on earth. While the Reformed tradition has done well to highlight the Supper’s feeding of our souls, when its doctrine of the Lord’s Supper is fully worked out, the sacrament’s power to nourish our bodies is unmistakable. Those who are acutely aware of the brokenness of their earthly bodies need only remember these two words—fellowship and foretaste—in order for this gracious sacrament, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to begin to have its full effect.
Notes
- Calvin, Institutes, 4.17.18.
- John Murray, Redemption Accomplished and Applied (Eerdmans, 1955), 181.
- Referenced by Michael Horton, The Christian Faith: A Systematic Theology for Pilgrims on the Way (Zondervan, 2011), 915.
- Jonathan Edwards, “The Church’s Marriage to Her Sons, and to Her God,” in Thy Word Is Truth: Some Thoughts on the Biblical Doctrine of Inspiration, ed. Edward J. Young (Eerdmans, 1957), 317.
- Calvin, Institutes, 4.17.38.
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Kendall Moore
Kendall Moore is a student at Westminster Seminary California pursuing MAs in Biblical Studies and Theological Studies. She and her husband Noah live in Escondido and attend New Life Presbyterian Church.
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Should one partake of the Lords supper while visiting an open congregation when their home church practices closed communion? Is this a matter of conscience, or should you respect the authority of your home church?
JP,
This is an interesting question. Some preliminary thoughts:
Thanks, some food for thought. We are in a bit of a conundrum, as our church is moving towards a non-fenced supper (a move we disagree with) but on the other have, we have participated in communion at an open church. Our reasoning was the Lord is calling us to His table, can we refuse? On the other hand, we feel that it is a great responsibility of consistory to fence participants.
Found this, it is a response to a paper published by dissenters about this and other issues. I think it explains things quite well.
The Lord’s Supper and the Authority of the Church
The discussion paper also raises concerns about the way the Lord’s Supper is administered in the Canadian Reformed Churches. In particular, it criticizes the practice of elders supervising admission to the Lord’s Table and suggests that this oversight effectively turns the consistory into a kind of “gatekeeper” or “bouncer.” According to the paper, the biblical responsibility for examining oneself belongs primarily to the individual believer, and the practice of barring individuals from the table risks usurping Christ’s role as the host of the meal. It is certainly true that Scripture calls every believer to examine himself before participating in the Supper. Paul explicitly commands this in 1 Corinthians 11: “Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup” (1 Cor. 11:28). Self-examination is therefore an essential element of participation in the sacrament. But it does not follow from this that participation in the Supper is purely a matter of private decision. The Lord’s Supper is not a private devotional exercise; it is a sacrament entrusted by Christ to his church. Throughout the New Testament Christ entrusts the oversight of the church to its office-bearers. Elders are appointed to shepherd the flock and guard the life of the church. Paul exhorts the elders of Ephesus: “Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers” (Acts 20:28). Peter likewise commands elders to “shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight” (1 Pet. 5:2). This pastoral oversight necessarily includes the administration of the sacraments that Christ has given to his church. In fact, every other aspect of the church’s life assumes this principle of pastoral oversight. No one simply admits himself into the church. When someone desires to join the congregation, the elders examine that person’s confession of faith and admit him to membership. The same is true of the sacraments generally. They are administered within the fellowship of the church under the oversight of those whom Christ has appointed to shepherd his people. For this reason it would be strange to treat the Lord’s Supper as the one area of church life governed entirely by private decision. If admission to the church itself takes place under pastoral oversight, and if the administration of the sacraments belongs to the church rather than to individuals acting independently, then participation in the Lord’s Table necessarily falls within that same sphere of responsibility. The Reformed churches have historically described this responsibility as the “fencing of the table.” This practice does not assume that elders can see into the hearts of those who approach the sacrament. Only God knows the heart. Rather, it recognizes that the church has a responsibility to ensure that the sacrament is administered within the bounds of the church’s confession and discipline. Those who openly reject the gospel or who persist in unrepentant sin cannot simply be admitted without concern. Scripture itself teaches that the life of the church carries a corporate dimension. The actions of individuals affect the whole body. Paul rebukes the Corinthian church for tolerating open sin in its midst: “And you are arrogant! Ought you not rather to mourn? Let him who has done this be removed from among you” (1 Cor. 5:2). He explains the danger in striking terms: “Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump?” (1 Cor. 5:6). The same principle appears in the discussion of the Lord’s Supper itself. When the Corinthian congregation treated the Supper carelessly, Paul did not treat the matter as a purely individual problem. He warned the entire church that unworthy participation had brought divine discipline upon the congregation: “That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died” (1 Cor. 11:30). The misuse of the sacrament therefore carries consequences not only for individuals but for the whole body. Because the church bears this corporate responsibility, it cannot treat admission to the Lord’s Table as an entirely private decision. Hebrews reminds believers that their leaders “keep watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account” (Heb. 13:17). That watchfulness necessarily includes guarding the life of the congregation and the administration of the sacraments. The language of “bouncers” used in the discussion paper therefore misrepresents the nature of this responsibility. The elders do have a duty to guard the sanctity of the sacrament. Their task is pastoral oversight: ensuring that the sacrament is administered within the confession and discipline of the church Christ has entrusted to their care.
JP,
I agree with this.