Question about the Lord's Supper

[Maryek]

I'm new to the LCMS church (not a member yet but been attending for a while) and I'm struggling to understand the concept that the act of taking communion forgives sins if we obtain salvation through faith, not works/actions. Coming from an Anglican background, I understand the concept of the real presence, but I've never been under the impression that communion forgives sins even though I know this is something many Anglicans believe as well. Can someone help me understand this?

 

[Daniel9v9]

Hey, welcome!

Sure, that can be a difficult thing to grasp. There's a lot we can say about it, but very simply - the Eucharist is not our work. It's not what we do for God, but what God does for us. In it, God gives us His grace, which is unmerited. This is not for His own benefit, but for our benefit. It's God's promise of forgiveness of sins in the body and blood of our Lord, in the bread and the wine, and we receive the benefit of this promise through faith. In other words, forgiveness of sins is communicated to us when we trust in God's own promise in the Sacrament.

So where do we receive forgiveness of sins? We received it once and for all on the cross. We receive in Baptism, in the Eucharist, in our daily prayers, in absolution - we receive forgiveness both once and for all and every day, because God is merciful. We're not worthy of it, nor do we conjure it up, but God, being rich in love and grace provides it for all who are burdened by the weight of sin.

The peace of Christ +

 

[Maryek]

Thank you for answering! I do have one more question: How was Jesus able to give his disciples his body and blood for forgiveness of sins at the Last Supper when he had not yet shed his blood on the cross? From my understanding Christ's death is what justified us before God and allowed our sins to be forgiven.

 

[Daniel9v9]

Thank you for answering! I do have one more question: How was Jesus able to give his disciples his body and blood for forgiveness of sins at the Last Supper when he had not yet shed his blood on the cross? From my understanding Christ's death is what justified us before God and allowed our sins to be forgiven.

Sure, no problem. There's a few ways we can talk about this, but perhaps the easiest way of thinking of it this: In the institution, we do have all the elements - There are bread and wine, Christ is truly present, and His promise of forgiveness of sins is real and true. This is what makes a Sacrament.

In the institution, Christ is locally present according to His state of humiliation. However, after His death and resurrection, He is sacramentally present according to His state of exaltation. That is, in his earthly ministry He is locally present - He walked and talked among us. But in His glorified body, He fills all things, according to His divinity. He doesn't seize to be human, but is fully man and fully God forever. And in accordance with His exalted state, He can and is sacramentally present in every Eucharist in every location of all time.

It's certainly Christ crucified who brought about our salvation - and really, His whole earthly life. He fulfilled the Law in our place, walking in perfect obedience to the Father, even to the point of the cross, where He took our sins upon Himself and was nailed to the cross, and our sins were crucified with Him. But all of those preceding this event, such as the faithful people in the OT, looked forward to this promise in faith, and they were justified by it. And, likewise, all of us now who look back at this event and believe in it are also justified. So all are justified by faith, by God's grace.

Blessings +

 

[Roymond]

I'm new to the LCMS church (not a member yet but been attending for a while) and I'm struggling to understand the concept that the act of taking communion forgives sins if we obtain salvation through faith, not works/actions. Coming from an Anglican background, I understand the concept of the real presence, but I've never been under the impression that communion forgives sins even though I know this is something many Anglicans believe as well. Can someone help me understand this?

Luther told the radicals that Jesus said, "Given and shed for you for the remission of sins", and if Jesus said that about the Supper then it was so.
The ancient church called it medicine for our fallen condition, because as Luther put it, where there is forgiveness of sins there is life and salvation. Where Christ is present for us, there is not just forgiveness os sins but the victory He won for us over all enemies!