The Eucharist (Updated)

The Eucharist to me is like the bike in the window I can only view from the outside. When I look at what the church teaches, I can't help but be frustrated when I can't receive it.

As Catholics, the Eucharist is the true body and true blood of Christ. It is not only a receiving of Jesus; it is a sacrifice and tribute to Him. Jesus is the sacrificial lamb. He died on the cross at 3:00. The same time the priests were offering sacrifices in the temple. When we view his body and blood upon the altar it is only natural to recall what he did for us.

As a Protestant, the Eucharist is bread and wine with Christ present. To them there is no such thing as transubstantiation. The ritual is no longer about receiving Jesus physically. Faith alone is the purpose. I say to you, to what then will be your source of manna?

Jesus is the Manna


"Then said the Lord unto Moses, 'Behold I will vain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate everyday, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law or no.'" -Exodus 16:4

"And when the dew that lay was gone up, behold, upon the face of the wilderness there lay a small round thing, as small as the hoar frost on the ground And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another It is manna: for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, This is the bread which the Lord hath given you to eat." -Exodus 16:14


This manna of the old covenant was both a gift and a test of faith from God. The people of Israel were claiming complete dependence on Him by choosing to eat only the bread they were presented each morning. The bread was described as small, white and tasting like honey.

Then God presented us with an even greater gift. That gift is Jesus the true bread from heaven.

"I am the bread of life, Your forefathers ate the manna, in the desert, yet they died. But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which a man may eat and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread I shall give is My flesh which I shall give for the life of the world. -John 6:48

"The Jews therefore quarreled among themselves, saying, 'How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?' Then Jesus said to them, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you.'" -John 6:52

I don't understand how Jesus wasn't clear.  He presents himself as the true bread. He then tells them that his flesh and blood needs to be consumed if they want life in them. First off, if you read some of the writings of Paul and John, the word "sarx" is seen being used for two reasons: To explain physical flesh or to describe the sinful nature of man. If you put it in this context Jesus is either literally telling them to eat his flesh or he is telling them to eat his sinful nature. That doesn't make sense. Keep in mind that Jesus did not actually speak Greek, but this was written within the lifetime of the apostles.

The argument could then be made that Jesus just chooses not to correct their mistake and he didn't mean his actual flesh. Just like how he didn't correct the ones that mistook his body for the actual temple.  Actually he does correct them; corrects them in that it was what he actually meant. "Most assuredly, I say to you". He is basically saying I didn't stutter.

Also, men naturally didn't understand the wisdom He had. His disciples questioned why he presented everyone with parables. Jesus explains to them the reason. He does not say things that are meant to confuse people.

Jesus Goes to Heaven. Now what?

"And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying 'This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me' Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant which is shed for you.'" -Luke 22:19

During the last supper, Jesus and his disciples were celebrating the Jewish feast of Passover. The meal consists of blessing the bread. Jesus says "This is my body". He blesses the bread as his body. "Do this in remembrance of me." He is telling them to bless the bread as his body in memory of him.

Combine what he says at the last supper with what he says about him being the bread of life. Jesus just established the source of spiritual life after he goes up to heaven. He just established transubstantiation. He just established communion.

Miracle in Naju, Korea 2005

"It is the spirit that gives life; the flesh profits nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." -John 6:63

In this context, Jesus is not talking about his own flesh. He is talking about the things of this world. If you look at the last part you can see that it can be argued both ways. Is he talking about our faith in Him as the true source to salvation? Or is He explaining the words he presented us in reference to eating his flesh and blood?

Try to look at Jesus as a short-lived gift of grace.  He had the power to forgive sins while on Earth.


"Then they came to Him, bringing a paralytic who was carried by four men. And when they could not come near Him because of the crowd, they uncovered the roof where He was.  So when they had broken through, they let down the bed on which the paralytic was lying. When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, 'Son, your sins are forgiven you.'" -Mark 2:3

Here we see that Jesus forgives the sins of the paralytic because of their faith. But, you have to realize the intent of the Eucharist.

The Eucharist is not a tool that forgives sins; God forgives sins. That is why there is confession. The body and blood of Christ is more like spiritual food. It is the source of sanctifying grace that He so graciously rewarded us with. In fact, Catholics aren't even supposed to receive it if they have not confessed their sins.

"The son of Man indeed goes just as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the son of Man is betrayed! It would of been good for that man if he had not been born." -Matthew 26: 24

If believing in Jesus was all that was needed to achieve salvation then what would be the point of the commandments? What would be the point of His words? I would be a hypocrite if I believed forgiveness was given the moment I said "I believe in you Jesus".  Jesus not only saved us from original sin. He gave us the ability for all our sins to be forgiven. Going to The Eucharist is like how my friend Josh points out. It is just like how we would want to meet Jesus in heaven.

I am not bashing faith. Faith is the key part to our relationship with God. I just think this needs to be revisited by Protestant leaders.  Our relationship with God consists of three key things: the sanctifying grace we gained from Jesus through baptism, our love for the Lord, and our hope for life in heaven.  Sanctifying grace is not something we have gained naturally or even deserved. Adam lost it the moment he betrayed God. The source of our spiritual connection to God needs to be constantly revisited. It is a spiritual food different from faith and hope because we don't feel its affects. Like when we eat food for our physical body, we don't see what it does within our body, but our hunger is satisfied if only a moment.