Will the Real Jesus Please Stand Up?
In 1 Corinthians 11:23-31 St. Paul states that “For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body, eats and drinks judgment on himself.” How does Jesus and St. Paul require us do that, after all, we don’t want to bring judgment upon ourselves? Who has been given authority by Jesus to “Do this in remembrance of me” as clergy, to change the Communion bread into the real and true body of Jesus? There are some certain criteria that we need to listen to and follow because Jesus commands us to.
Background
We’ll start with a little background. St. Paul recounts the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday in this passage. This is the earliest written account of the institution of it in the New Testament. Jesus’ action of self-giving expressed in His words over the bread and cup and His command to repeat his own action is emphasized in the account. St. Paul also repeats the words of Christ “This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” Notice Jesus does not say this is a symbol of my body, He said “This IS my body.” Also, He commands that the apostles that night “Do this in remembrance of me.” Yes, we need to partake of the Lord’s Supper but what were His intentions toward the apostles? This is the night that Jesus instituted the ordination of priests and was giving them the command to “feed His sheep” by “doing this (feeding His flock His body) in remembrance of me.”
Warning to Discern
Right after St. Paul reminds us of Jesus’ words and command, he gives us a dire warning that a person should examine himself and “anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body, eats and drinks judgment on himself”. In order to discern the body (of Christ), we need to know what are the requirements of the body that we have to discern first.
Priests and the Lord’s Supper are Inseparable
Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday, the night He was handed over. He knew He was to be betrayed by Judas. He instituted the Lord’s Supper with greatest importance before His suffering and death. He really meant His words because of this and because He instituted it during the Passover supper, which was sacred to Jesus. He would have taken this extremely seriously. “This IS my body…this cup IS the new covenant in my blood.” By ordaining His priests that night and giving them the command to “do this in remembrance of me”, now we can know that the two go together and cannot be separated. He gave them the authority, through Him, to change the bread to His body and to change the wine to His Blood.
If Jesus Was Speaking Symbolically Then the Covenant Is a Lie?
Jesus was under pain of death that night. Why would He be speaking symbolically? Jesus spoke symbolically regarding many of His parables; however, He is not telling a parable in this situation. He is not giving us a lesson in a story to follow; He is giving us a command. He is giving us as a church a command, but He is also giving the apostles, ordained priests, a new command of authority that is separate from us as laypeople. If Jesus did not mean it literally when He spoke these words “This IS my body…this cup IS the new covenant in my blood.” Then that makes the whole covenant fall apart. If we do not take His words literally then that makes Jesus a liar and the covenant a lie. Think of the ramifications of that! That makes the whole religion of Christianity fall apart. That would be like saying Jesus never rose from the dead.
Real vs. Symbol
Would we be facing judgment by not discerning a symbol of Jesus’ body? Not at all. To give an example, think of a baby doll laying on a table in front of you. Next to it is a real flesh and blood baby. If you pick up the doll, you can discern that it is made of plastic and symbolic of a real baby but is not the same. Little kids will even carry around the doll by the leg, which you would never do with a real baby. It does not require you to feed it, care for it, love it, adore it, etc. It represents a real baby but is not in reality the same at all. The real baby will smile, coo, cry, cuddle, love, etc. You must be careful with the baby, change its diaper, hold, and feed the baby. It’s a real human being, unlike the plastic symbolic doll. The same goes for the Lord’s Supper, you have to discern between a blessed symbolic Communion wafer or piece of bread, and the real consecrated Eucharist that is His Real Presence, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Christ, instituted by Christ.
Where Do They Put the Leftovers?
How do you know which is which? Well, what does the church do with the leftovers after Communion? Does it go back into the cellophane bag? In the garbage? Cooked with? Put into a Tabernacle for veneration? I know of a woman who brought home the remaining Communion loaf and made grilled cheese sandwiches out of it then told me that it had to be consumed because it was blessed. Yes, it is blessed, like when we say grace at the dinner table and should be consumed; however, the pastor did not have any more authority through heaven than to bless the loaf like a layperson. It did not become the Body of Christ. I have seen other churches place the Communion bread in the garbage after the service. That would never happen if it truly was the Body of Christ, as it should be venerated and honored.
Apostolic Succession is Heaven’s Authority
The authority given by Jesus to the apostles to make them ordained priests is passed down through an unbroken chain called apostolic succession. This succession is passed down from St. Peter to the unbroke line of 266 popes, then to the bishops of the Catholic Church. This authority from heaven has not been given to anyone else or any other church. Pastors from other churches were ordained by men without authority. The continuation of authority has been broken. Martin Luther was a priest, but not a bishop so he was unable to pass down this authority passed down from Heaven, leaving the Lutheran Church without the authority to change the bread to the Body of Christ. This lack of authority from Christ is why all other churches can only bless the bread/cracker and wine/grape juice. It can never be changed into what we are truly searching for, the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist.
Not Moses’ Manna Anymore
One Bible passage in particular, is extremely important to analyze. The passage John 6:22-71 is called the Bread of Life Discourse because it is about the Eucharist, the Bread of Life. This passage is not so neatly wrapped up about sharing with others. It shows that the Eucharist is a replacement of the Manna in the desert. In John 6:30-33, 35-36, the crowd asked Jesus “What sign can you do that we may see and believe in you? What can you do?” Jesus said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave the bread from heaven; my Father gives you the true bread from heaven.” “For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” Jesus said to the crowd, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst.” At this point the crowd does not believe what He is saying. Jesus continues, “For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life and I shall raise him on the last day.” John 6:40. This passage makes sense if you could see the Eucharist, know and believe that it is Jesus, and receive Jesus in Communion. “Amen, amen I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died. This is the bread that comes down from Heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world” John 6:47-51. The Jews quarreled among themselves several times asking “…how can this man give us his flesh to eat?” They understood what Jesus meant about actually eating his flesh and rejected the idea of it. Did Jesus recant and say no I was just talking symbolically? No, he continued on with the same doctrine. “Amen, amen. I say to you, unless you eat thee flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever.” John 6:53-58 This does not sound like anything symbolic; he is not speaking in parables. Jesus is speaking about something that is important and true. This is about something revolutionary and different than anything else ever. He means what he says about eating His true body. When someone says that they believe in Jesus, what does that really mean? It means you believe that Jesus rose from the dead and saved us, but it also means that we believe that Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist, and we discern Him there and receive Him so we can have eternal life.
“This saying is hard. Who can accept it?”
Did the Jews follow Jesus and take symbolic communion bread? No, they rejected everything Jesus had taught about the Bread of Life being his true flesh and true food saying, “This saying is hard; who can accept it?” but Jesus asked them “does this shock you?” He doesn’t recant, instead He stays firm in His teaching. “But there are some of you who do not believe (in this teaching of the Eucharist). Jesus knew from the beginning the ones who would not believe and the ones who would betray him. And he said, ‘For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by my Father.’ As a result of this, many (15,000+) of his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him. Jesus then said to the Twelve, ‘Do you also want to leave?’ “ John 6:60-61, 64-67 Jesus let the 15,000+ disciples walk away from him because they rejected his teaching on the Bread of Life. This is the only place in Scripture where that many disciples left him because of a teaching. Another interesting fact is it happens in John 6:66. Why would so many people leave Jesus if He was only speaking symbolically.
Proof From Heaven of His Presence
The next thing we need to look at as proof of the Real Presence of Jesus is Eucharistic Miracles. There have been hundreds of miracles with incredible stories attached through the centuries since 33 AD. Many have had blood flowing from the Eucharist, levitation of the Host, the face of Jesus show on it, light emanate from it, Jesus’ voice speaks from it, and the list goes on. Jesus has let us know that He is truly present in the Eucharist. Science has also proven that it has the anatomical qualities of a human heart that is still alive, striated heart muscle tissue (this tissue is not found anywhere else in the body), has been under severe stress (as from the crucifixion), has AB blood type along with components of human blood still fresh as within 15 minutes of death, and much more. The samples are sent to different labs without disclosure of their origin. When the scientists are told of the origin after they test the samples, most are converted from lifelong atheism. Jesus is trying to show us and prove to us that He IS the Eucharist. His heart is truly beating for you and waiting for you to discern that it is really Him. If Jesus can change water to wine, cure the ill, multiply loaves and fish, calm the weather, walk on water, and raise from the dead, then He sure can change a humble piece of bread and cup of wine into His Holy Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity. There have not been any documented or substantiated Eucharistic Miracles in any church other than the Catholic Church. That speaks volumes that He is not present in those church’s Communion.
Make Ourselves Worthy to Receive Him
Another requirement we need to be careful of is to not approach Communion with mortal (serious) sin on our soul. If we examine ourselves and find that we have serious sin, we need to show repentance, go to Confession/Reconciliation if Catholic and clean our souls. Even Catholics refrain from Communion until we can go to Reconciliation if we have a serious sin. We need to be worthy of His presence and worthy to receive Him. We also need to be in unity with the Church Jesus founded and the belief that the Eucharist is the Real Presence of Jesus before we receive. This is why persons who are not in unity with the Catholic Church cannot receive because they do not believe it is Jesus. They are actually being saved from judgment by being denied Communion when they are not in union with the Catholic Church. If you do want to receive the Real Presence in the Eucharist, if He is calling you to himself, become Catholic and in union with Him.
Why Not Bible Alone?
Did Jesus come to institute a Bible? No, He never commanded the apostles to write anything. The Bible itself does NOT teach Sola Scriptura (Bible Alone). Nowhere in Scripture does it say what the inspired Canon (list) of Books should be, so how did we know what should be in there? The Bible wasn’t compiled until approximately 397 AD and the Catholic Church, which was already in existence since 33 AD, figured out what books were inspired and how to put it together because it was in several scrolls and some were false, like the Book of Judas. We also need the authority of the Catholic Church to teach and interpret what the Scriptures/Bible says and means, giving us unity in Scripture and Doctrine. If we interpret it ourselves, we come up with thousands of different meanings and can lead us to error. This is why we have thousands of different church denominations because they all interpreted the Bible differently without the direction and teaching of the Church. You can’t have the Bible without the Catholic Church to teach us correctly what it means.
Authority of the Catholic Church and Why it Matters
Jesus came to institute a Church, the Catholic Church. He instituted the Sacraments of Ordination of the priesthood with authority, the Eucharist, Baptism, Marriage, Anointing of the Sick, Confirmation, and Reconciliation. Yes, He came to die as the Lamb of God as a sacrifice for our sins to open the gates of Heaven, that’s true, but Jesus came with Authority from God and granted it to His Church and Bishops giving them the Keys to the Kingdom (of Heaven’s Authority). This Authority gives the priests the authority to change the bread and wine to the Real Presence, forgive sins, among others. This Authority is also given to the Catholic Church, “Whatever you bind on Earth is bound in Heaven and whatever you loose on Earth is loosed in Heaven.” Matt 16:19. This is incredible Authority from Heaven! We need to listen to this Authority from Heaven and not say we can do it on our own. Don’t push God out and follow man’s institution, follow what God instituted, through His Son. I’ve heard many times before, “It doesn’t matter what church you belong to, as long as you believe in Jesus.” This is wrong thinking. YES, it does matter what church you belong to. Jesus wants you to belong to His Church, the Catholic Church. Many say that their sole authority is the Bible, but while the Bible is the Word of God, Jesus didn’t institute the Bible, He instituted the Catholic Church and in this church is the only place that can be found the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, not a symbol or substitute.
These are the criteria that we have used to discern the Body and Blood of Christ.
- “This is my body. This cup is the new covenant in my blood.” Jesus’ words taken literally. If Jesus’ words are symbolic, then the Covenant is a lie.
- Institution of priesthood with Jesus’ authority to change the bread/wine into the Body and Blood of Jesus, through the Holy Spirit.
- What does the church do with the leftovers? Are they venerated, adored, loved and placed in a Tabernacle? Or are they thrown in the trash, cooked with, or put back in the bag, if so, then they are not Jesus, even if they are blessed. The remainder should be venerated in a Tabernacle after Communion. These can also be given to the sick at the hospital or their home.
- Unleavened bread and wine are what Jesus used.
- Does the clergy have authority through Christ to change the bread and wine to Jesus’ Body and Blood? If not, then it is blessed but not Jesus.
- Eucharistic Miracles are proof that it actually IS the Body of Jesus, The Real Presence. Science has proven it. Check out the website realpresence.org for a list of miracles that have been verified through the Church.
- Examine ourselves and make ourselves worthy to receive of His presence. If it is only symbolic, then there is no need to examine ourselves. If it is symbolic, then why is St. Paul warning us?
- Be in union with the only Church Jesus founded in 33 AD. Then you will be able to receive the Holy and Blessed Sacrament in the Eucharist. (You mean I have to be a Catholic??? Yes, you have to be in union with the Church to receive the Eucharist. Come join us in the Real Presence of Jesus.) You don’t have to be Catholic though to go to Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament (Eucharist) in the Church.
- Realize and follow the true teaching authority that was granted only to the Catholic Church by Jesus himself, not man and not the Bible. We need that authority to direct us and teach us the truth.
- Rejection of the Doctrine of the Bread of Life in John 6—Not symbolic because 15,000+ left him over it in John 6:66. John 6 is a Biblical Discourse regarding the Eucharist Doctrine that Jesus taught and was rejected for.
- The Catholic Church put the Bible together and you can’t have the Bible without the Catholic Church and it’s teaching authority.
Now that we know what the criteria is for discerning the Body of Christ, tell me, does your Communion in your church fit this criterion? This is not meant to put down or disregard other churches, but we have a duty to ourselves and our salvation to find the truth and follow it. Are you hearing Jesus calling you to the Eucharist so you can have eternal life?
FINDING THE ONE TRUE CHURCH 