There are differing beliefs when it comes to celebrating the Lord’s Supper. Some Christians believe that the bread and wine “represent” the body and blood of Christ and that when they partake of it, they are honoring Jesus’ death and resurrection and his directive to “do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19).  

Other Christians believe that “in, with, and under the bread and wine” believers also receive the body and blood of Jesus. They base this belief on St. Paul’s reminder to his church in Corinth: “Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ?” (1 Corinthians 10:16).  

Both views come from a place of heartfelt reverence. The “representational” view, however, seems to leave out the comfort that the Lord’s Supper offers. It focuses on what we are doing for God more so than on what God is doing for us.  

Paul’s letter to the Corinthians implies that Christ’s body and blood are integrally linked to the bread and wine. This seems to suggest that every time we take Lord’s Supper we aren’t just “remembering” Jesus, but we are participants (or recipients) of something more.  

I don’t know about you, but I find great comfort in believing that every time I go to his table (even when my mind is elsewhere, which it sometimes is), Christ still comes to me, giving me a spiritual booster shot, if you will, to strengthen my faith and draw me closer to him.