Madisonville Church of Christ

Decades ago, Professor D.R. Dungan wrote his definitive work on the subject of Biblical Hermeneutics. On page 353 of an unnumbered and undated edition published by the Gospel Light Publishing Company, he wrote, "'This is my body,' 'This is my blood,' etc., is metaphorical language, but the bread and wine are symbols of the body and blood of the Saviour." This observation about the Lord's Supper was made because, as Prof. Dungan put it, "a symbol is in action or being what a metaphor is in speech." He documented that the Lord's Supper is replete with symbolism. If we, as members of the body of Christ, can come to a proper understanding of the symbolism in the Lord's Supper, then we shall be better able to partake of it "worthily," and to worship God "in spirit and in truth" (I Cor. 11:27-29; John 4:23,24).

In Matthew 26:26-28, the Bible says, "And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; for this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins." The unleavened bread eaten in the Lord's Supper is meant to represent the body of Jesus (Luke 22:1,7,19). The lack of leaven in the bread represents the lack of sin the Savior's life (I Cor. 5:6,7; Heb. 4:15). The breaking of the bread represents the breaking of His body, on our behalf (I Cor. 11:24; Acts 20:7). The wine consumed in the Lord's Supper is meant to represent the blood of Christ (Mark 14:23,24). The Bible identifies this "wine" as "fruit of the vine" (Mark 14:25), a substance that is better known to us as "grape juice." Its color and texture is meant to provoke thoughts of the shed blood of Jesus, which cleanses us from our sins (Rev. 1:5). Together, theses two powerful symbols are meant to help us remember the great sacrifice that the Lord made for all humanity (John 3:16).

However, we must remember that the bread and wine are only symbols. There are those in the modern "religious" world who believe the doctrine of transubstantiation, which affirms that, when the bread and wine are properly "blessed," they literally become the body and blood of Jesus Christ. But, as we have already observed, the act of communion is entirely symbolic. It employs unleavened bread and fruit of the vine as symbols of the body and blood of the Lord, and not a literal manifestation of those things. The doctrine of transubstantiation is not supported by the Bible, and must be rejected as false doctrine.

Also, it should be noted that emblems used in partaking of the Lord's Supper do not have the power to absolve the sins of those who partake. There are some, even among our own brethren, who have gotten the idea that the communion service has some kind of power to absolve sins, but the Bible teaches us that such is not the case. As a matter of fact, many Bible scholars believe that I Corinthians 11:27-29 teaches us that those who partake of the Lord's Supper must make sure that their sins are dealt with before they partake, lest they be found "unworthy" of the living memorial. There is just no substitute for repentance and confession, when Christians are seeking forgiveness for their sins (I John 1:9).

Symbolism in the Lord's Supper