Today's Reading: Sacrament of the Altar: How can eating and drinking do such great things? (quote portion below)
Daily Lectionary: 2 Samuel 7:18-29; 1 Corinthians 10:23-11:16
How can bodily eating and drinking do such great things? Certainly not just eating and drinking do these things, but the words written here: "Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins." These words, along with the bodily eating and drinking, are the main thing in the Sacrament. Whoever believes these words has exactly what they say: "forgiveness of sins." (Small Catechism, the Sacrament of the Altar)
In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Catechism teaching on the Lord's Supper gives Christians the simplest, clearest, and most powerful answer to all silly questions and arguments: Christ's Word! Perhaps you have friends who belong to churches where it is taught that the Lord's Supper is just a “symbolic” or “memorial” meal that just shows our obedience to Christ's “ordinance.” (This amounts to saying that we do it, not because it does something, but just because Jesus said we had to do it!) But Christ doesn't give us things to do just for the heck of it.
Jesus' own words tell us what this Sacrament gives: “Given and shed for you, for the forgiveness of sins.” Is it our action that makes the forgiveness of sins happen? No. It's Jesus' words. When we receive Christ's Body and Blood at the altar, we are not saying that we're doing something to show our obedience to Jesus. We're receiving something that Jesus gives to forgive and save us! It's a gift from our Lord Himself. It's a gift that IS the Lord Himself!
This is the great joy of Jesus' words. They do what they say and accomplish what they declare. And what Jesus says isn't “Given and shed for you to prove your loyalty or faith.” He says, “Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. “That means that to eat and drink His Body and Blood is to receive from Jesus the forgiveness of all of our sins. Why? Because Jesus says so!
The same Lord who was nailed to the tree for our salvation makes sure there is no uncertainty that His salvation is given to us. He leaves us in no doubt that this forgiveness is ours. Do you have forgiveness? What do the Lord's words say? “Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.” Yes, you do! In the Name of Jesus. Amen.
Give us who share this wondrous food, Your body broken and Your blood, The grateful peace of sins forgiv'n, The certain joys of heirs of heav'n. (LSB 623:2)