The Holy Communion is the special meal that Jesus instituted before going to the cross. He said, “Do this in remembrance of me“ (Luke 22:19).

In other words, through this statement, Jesus teaches us that this meal is directly tied to His person. But how should we understand this unsettling statement? Jesus Himself provides the answer when He says:

“My flesh is real food, and my blood is real drink“ (John 6:55).

Jesus further clarifies the nature of this special meal:

“Then he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.’ In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you’“ (Luke 22:19).

The physical body and blood of Jesus are thus associated with the special meal of the Holy Communion. Notice what Jesus said:

• The bread = His body
  The bread represents Jesus’ body, given for us. This is explicitly declared by Jesus Himself. Has bread ever been called someone’s “body” before?
• The cup (i.e., the fruit of the vine) = covenant in His blood
  The cup, representing the fruit of the vine, is also declared to be a new covenant in His blood. How can the juice of a fruit be declared “a new covenant in His blood”?

How should we understand these statements? To unravel this mystery, we must consider two biblical truths:

1. God’s people are distinct because they walk by faith.
2. God leads certain prophets to use prophetic acts.

The mystery in this statement can only be resolved through biblical faith. The Bible says in Hebrews 11:1 that “faith is the evidence of things not seen.” We do not see Christ’s flesh in the bread or His blood in the cup, yet Jesus clearly states, “This is my body… This is my blood.”

The Christian walks by faith, not by sight. In the context of the Holy Communion, Jesus invites us to participate, believing His declaration regarding the bread and wine, which symbolize His body and blood. A true believer accepts what the Bible says as truth and knows that Jesus is the gateway to eternal life. They know that every word spoken by Jesus is true.

The mystery in these declarations is also explained by the fact that Jesus is a prophet within the lineage of those who perform prophetic acts. A Christian who walks by faith also recognizes Jesus as not only the Son of God but also a prophet (John 4:19).

The Bible teaches us that a category of prophets performed prophetic acts. These acts were imbued with power and carried out using an object (any given item) that appeared to be ordinary in the natural realm but held spiritual significance.

The Bible demonstrates that the use of such objects often had profound spiritual implications.

Case Study:

Take, for instance, the prophet Moses, who used a staff. The staff was just a staff. But because God had instructed Moses to use it, the staff carried spiritual weight. It became powerful through God’s will. Let us not forget that God is almighty and can do as He pleases, such as making a donkey speak (Numbers 22:28), turning water into wine, or even causing stones to cry out.

Thus, we understand that God can use anything He chooses and imbue it with spiritual power. If He turned water into wine (John 2:7-9) without objection, we should accept that God can transform bread into the body of Christ and wine into blood, whether we like it or not, because God is sovereign, and we must walk by faith.

Jesus is the Son of God but also a prophet who performed prophetic acts. Recall some of His most extraordinary acts, in addition to instituting the Holy Communion: He walked on water (Matthew 14:25), commanded the wind (Mark 4:39), and raised Lazarus from the dead (John 11:43-44).

Every child of God must accept the prophetic dimension of Jesus, the Son of God. Otherwise, many truths about Jesus contained in the Bible will remain misunderstood. If everything God does is explainable through natural, logical reasoning, we no longer need to walk by faith, nor do we need Jesus as God’s prophet.

➢ Who is above all that exists? It is the Son of God.
➢ Who knows the Father better than anyone? It is the Son of God.
➢ Who does nothing without first seeing the Father do it? It is the Son of God.

This means that the institution of the Holy Communion comes from God, and the work of the cross is His plan to save humanity from sin through Jesus. When Jesus declares something, we must accept it as true: “The bread is His body, and the fruit of the vine is His blood.”

This text is an excerpt from the book “The Seven Dimensions of the Holy Communion“ written by Maryse-Abygaïl DANIEL.

We invite you to read the following article: “Divergent Interpretations of the Holy Communion.“