#6.

The Lord's Supper is a Sign

Matthew 26:2628 While they were eating, Jesus took some bread, and after a blessing, He
broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is My body. 27 And when He had
taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, Drink from it, all of you; 28 for this is
My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.
Another reason to take the Lord's Supper is because it is designed to function for us as a
sign. That is to say that it is a visible and tangible representation of invisible, spiritual realities
and as such, can make those things more understandable and more real to us. No sign properly
fulfills its function that draws attention to itself - rather, a sign is intended to point away to the
destination or the goal.
The Lord's Supper is a very rich sign, representing many different and valuable spiritual truths to
us. In his "Systematic Theology", Louis Berkhof mentions the following:
In the first instance, the broken bread and poured-out wine are visible representations of the
death of Jesus on the cross. In the words used to institute the meal, the nature of His sacrifice as a
substitute for His people is clear - His body was broken, His blood was shed "for us," "for
many."
Second, as we have seen previously, the Supper symbolizes the believers participation in and
union with the crucified Christ, as he or she receives and feeds upon the bread and the wine. In
the same way, the benefits of Christ's sacrifice are appropriated spiritually and by faith as we
receive Christ and feed on Him in our hearts.
Third, this meal represents to us the fact that our souls are nourished and strengthened by Christ,
who is their life, just as our physical bodies are sustained and invigorated by bread and wine.
Finally, the Lord's Supper is also a sign of the union of believers with one another. Each
believer, being joined to the Lord Jesus Christ, is a member of His body. Consequently, each is
joined to the others by virtue of a common union with the Head - they are members one of
another (Romans 12:5). At the Table, this spiritual reality is represented by the fact that the
congregation eats the same bread and drinks the same wine.
We need to be careful, when we take the Supper, that we understand all that it signifies to us and
that we reflect on all these things. In this way, our hearts will be warmed and encouraged not
just by remembering that Jesus died for us, but by tracing out the many benefits that His death
has secured for us - union with Him, life and strength in Him and union with all those who are
members of His body. What an encouragement to us to take the Lord's Supper!
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