Here are some thoughts about the communion service. In the church today, most Christians participate in communion during Sunday worship as something that all Christians should do, but many don’t benefit from what Christ intended us to experience. Even in the reformed tradition, which broke from the Catholic Church idea of transubstantiation (the elements actually turn into the body and blood of Christ), there was significant disagreement by the early church leaders in what happens when we take the elements during the Eucharist.

Luther believed that during communion we experience the real presence of Christ.

Zwingli believed that the elements were simply symbols or a sign, in which we memorialize Christ’s death. We use these symbols to remember, often called the Memorial view.

Calvin believed that we can experience the spiritual presence of Christ during communion. He said that is as if we are transported to heaven and can be brought closer to Christ by the taking of the elements.

C.S. Lewis, after becoming a Christian, viewed the taking of communion with a special reverence and would take communion as often as it was offered.

Lewis described this moment as one in which the other world–the one where Jesus sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty– is so close that it’s like the hand from “the other country” reaches through and touches our hearts and our minds.

C.S. Lewis also wisely noted that “The command [of Jesus] after all, was ‘Take and eat,’ NOT take and understand.’”

The Westminster Confession, which is the doctrinal statement that the PCA church adheres to, says this: “Worthy receivers, physically partaking of the visible substances of this sacrament, do then also by faith actually and in fact, but not physically or bodily spiritually receive and feed on Christ crucified and on all the benefits of his death. The body and blood of Christ are not then bodily or physically in, with, or under the bread and wine; but they are actually spiritually present to the faith of believers in the administration of this sacrament, just as the bread and wine are physically present.

Even though we may not fully understand this sacrament commanded by Jesus, we do know that if we come to a communion service with our hearts turned toward and tuned to the Holy Spirit, it becomes a meal like no other. Because Christ asks us to do this often in remembrance of Him, it must be because this simple act of obedience brings us closer to Jesus.

Always praying for the glory of God,