Second Helvetic Confession, Chapter 21
Of the Holy Supper of the Lord
THE SUPPER OF THE LORD
The Supper of the Lord (which is called the Lord's Table, and the Eucharist, that is, a Thanksgiving), is, therefore, usually called a supper, because it was instituted by Christ at this last supper, and still represents it, and because in it the faithful are spiritually fed and given drink.
THE AUTHOR AND CONSECRATOR OF THE SUPPER
For the author of the Supper of the Lord is not an angel or any man, but the Son of God himself, our Lord Jesus Christ, who first consecrated it to his Church. And the same consecration or blessing still remains among all those who celebrate no other but that very Supper which the Lord instituted, and at which they repeat the words of the Lord's Supper, and in all things look to the one Christ by a true faith, from whose hands they receive, as it were, what they receive through the ministry of the ministers of the Church.
A MEMORIAL OF GOD'S BENEFITS
By this sacred rite the Lord wishes to keep in fresh remembrance that greatest benefit which he showed to mortal men, namely, that by having given his body and shed his blood he has pardoned all our sins, and redeemed us from eternal death and the power of the devil, and now feeds us with his flesh, and gives us his blood to drink, which, being received spiritually by true faith, nourish us to eternal life. And this so great a benefit is renewed as often as the Lord's Supper is celebrated. For the Lord said: "Do this in remembrance of me." This holy Supper also seals to us that the very body of Christ was truly given for us, and his blood shed for the remission of our sins, lest our faith should in any way waver.
THE SIGN AND THING SIGNIFIED
And this is visibly represented by this sacrament outwardly through the ministers, and, as it were, presented to out eyes to be seen, which is invisibly wrought by the Holy Spirit inwardly in the soul. Bread is outwardly offered by the minister, and the words of the Lord are heard: "Take, eat; this is my body"; and, "Take and divide among you. Drink of it, all of you; this is my blood." Therefore the faithful receive what is given by the ministers of the Lord, and they eat the bread of the Lord and drink of the Lord's cup. At the same time by the work of Christ through the Holy Spirit they also inwardly receive the flesh and blood of the Lord, and are thereby nourished unto life eternal. For the flesh and blood of Christ is the true food and drink unto life eternal; and Christ himself, since he was given for us and is our Savior, is the principal thing in the Supper, and we do not permit anything else to be substituted in his place.
But in order to understand better and more clearly how the flesh and blood of Christ are the food and drink of the faithful, and are received by the faithful unto eternal life, we would add these few things. There is more than one kind of eating. There is corporeal eating whereby food is taken into the mouth, is chewed with the teeth, and swallowed into the stomach. In times past the Capernaites thought that the flesh of the Lord should be eaten in this way, but they are refuted by him in John, ch. 6. For as the flesh of Christ cannot be eaten corporeally without infamy and savagery, so it is not food for the stomach. All men are forced to admit this. We therefore disapprove of that canon in the Pope's decrees, Ego Berengarius (De Consecrat., Dist. 2). For neither did godly antiquity believe, nor do we believe, that the body of Christ is to be eaten corporeally and essentially with a bodily mouth.
Scripture references for paragraph 4
Berean Standard Bible. Public domain text and source credits.
John 6:1-711After this, Jesus crossed to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (that is, the Sea of Tiberias).
2A large crowd followed Him because they saw the signs He was performing on the sick.
3Then Jesus went up on the mountain and sat down with His disciples.
4Now the Jewish Feast of the Passover was near.
5When Jesus looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward Him, He said to Philip, “Where can we buy bread for these people to eat?”
6But He was asking this to test him, for He knew what He was about to do.
7Philip answered, “Two hundred denarii would not buy enough bread for each of them to have a small piece.”
8One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him,
9“Here is a boy with five barley loaves and two small fish. But what difference will these make among so many?”
10“Have the people sit down,” Jesus said. Now there was plenty of grass in that place, so the men sat down, about five thousand of them.
11Then Jesus took the loaves and the fish, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted.
12And when everyone was full, He said to His disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over, so that nothing will be wasted.”
13So they collected them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.
14When the people saw the sign that Jesus had performed, they began to say, “Truly this is the Prophet who is to come into the world.”
15Then Jesus, realizing that they were about to come and make Him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by Himself.
16When evening came, His disciples went down to the sea,
17got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was already dark, and Jesus had not yet gone out to them.
18A strong wind was blowing, and the sea grew agitated.
19When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the sea—and they were terrified.
20But Jesus spoke up: “It is I; do not be afraid.”
21Then they were willing to take Him into the boat, and at once the boat reached the shore where they were heading.
22The next day, the crowd that had remained on the other side of the sea realized that only one boat had been there, and that Jesus had not boarded it with His disciples, but they had gone away alone.
23However, some boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the people had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks.
24So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor His disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum to look for Him.
25When they found Him on the other side of the sea, they asked Him, “Rabbi, when did You get here?”
26Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, it is not because you saw these signs that you are looking for Me, but because you ate the loaves and had your fill.
27Do not work for food that perishes, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on Him God the Father has placed His seal of approval.”
28Then they inquired, “What must we do to perform the works of God?”
29Jesus replied, “The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent.”
30So they asked Him, “What sign then will You perform, so that we may see it and believe You? What will You do?
31Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”
32Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread from heaven.
33For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
34“Sir,” they said, “give us this bread at all times.”
35Jesus answered, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to Me will never hunger, and whoever believes in Me will never thirst.
36But as I stated, you have seen Me and still you do not believe.
37Everyone the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will never drive away.
38For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but to do the will of Him who sent Me.
39And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I shall lose none of those He has given Me, but raise them up at the last day.
40For it is My Father’s will that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.”
41At this, the Jews began to grumble about Jesus because He had said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.”
42They were asking, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How then can He say, ‘I have come down from heaven?’”
43“Stop grumbling among yourselves,” Jesus replied.
44“No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.
45It is written in the Prophets: ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from Him comes to Me—
46not that anyone has seen the Father except the One who is from God; only He has seen the Father.
47Truly, truly, I tell you, he who believes has eternal life.
48I am the bread of life.
49Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died.
50This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that anyone may eat of it and not die.
51I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And this bread, which I will give for the life of the world, is My flesh.”
52At this, the Jews began to argue among themselves, “How can this man give us His flesh to eat?”
53So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of Man, you have no life in you.
54Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.
55For My flesh is real food, and My blood is real drink.
56Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood remains in Me, and I in him.
57Just as the living Father sent Me and I live because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on Me will live because of Me.
58This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your fathers, who ate the manna and died, the one who eats this bread will live forever.”
59Jesus said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.
60On hearing it, many of His disciples said, “This is a difficult teaching. Who can accept it?”
61Aware that His disciples were grumbling about this teaching, Jesus asked them, “Does this offend you?
62Then what will happen if you see the Son of Man ascend to where He was before?
63The Spirit gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.
64However, there are some of you who do not believe.” (For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray Him.)
65Then Jesus said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to Me unless the Father has granted it to him.”
66From that time on many of His disciples turned back and no longer walked with Him.
67So Jesus asked the Twelve, “Do you want to leave too?”
68Simon Peter replied, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words of eternal life.
69We believe and know that You are the Holy One of God.”
70Jesus answered them, “Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!”
71He was speaking about Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. For although Judas was one of the Twelve, he was later to betray Jesus.
SPIRITUAL EATING OF THE LORD
There is also a spiritual eating of Christ's body; not such that we think that thereby the food itself is to be changed into spirit, but whereby the body and blood of the Lord, while remaining in their own essence and property, are spiritually communicated to us, certainly not in a corporeal but in a spiritual way, by the Holy Spirit, who applies and bestows upon us these things which have been prepared for us by the sacrifice of the Lord's body and blood for us, namely, the remission of sins, deliverance, and eternal life; so that Christ lives in us and we live in him, and he causes us to receive him by true faith to this end that he may become for us such spiritual food and drink, that is, our life.
CHRIST AS OUR FOOD SUSTAINS US IN LIFE
For even as bodily food and drink not only refresh and strengthen our bodies, but also keeps them alive, so the flesh of Christ delivered for us, and his blood shed for us, not only refresh and strengthen our souls, but also preserve them alive, not in so far as they are corporeally eaten and drunken, but in so far as they are communicated unto us spiritually by the Spirit of God, as the Lord said: "The bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh (John 6:51), and "the flesh" (namely what is eaten bodily) "is of no avail; it is the spirit that gives life" (v. 63). And: "The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life."
Scripture references for paragraph 6
Berean Standard Bible. Public domain text and source credits.
John 6:5151I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And this bread, which I will give for the life of the world, is My flesh.”
CHRIST RECEIVED BY FAITH
And as we must by eating receive food into our bodies in order that it may work in us, and prove its efficacy in us -- since it profits us nothing when it remains outside us -- so it is necessary that we receive Christ by faith, that he may become ours, and he may live in us and we in him. For he says: "I am the bread of life; he who comes to me shall not hunger, and he who believes in me shall never thirst" (John 6:35); and also, "He who eats me will live because of me...he abides in me, I in him" (vs. 57, 56).
Scripture references for paragraph 7
Berean Standard Bible. Public domain text and source credits.
John 6:3535Jesus answered, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to Me will never hunger, and whoever believes in Me will never thirst.
SPIRITUAL FOOD
From all this it is clear that by spiritual food we do not mean some imaginary food I know not what but the very body of the Lord given to us, which nevertheless is received by the faithful not corporeally, but spiritually by faith. In this matter we follow the teaching of the Savior himself, Christ the Lord, according to John, ch. 6.
Scripture references for paragraph 8
Berean Standard Bible. Public domain text and source credits.
John 6:1-711After this, Jesus crossed to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (that is, the Sea of Tiberias).
2A large crowd followed Him because they saw the signs He was performing on the sick.
3Then Jesus went up on the mountain and sat down with His disciples.
4Now the Jewish Feast of the Passover was near.
5When Jesus looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward Him, He said to Philip, “Where can we buy bread for these people to eat?”
6But He was asking this to test him, for He knew what He was about to do.
7Philip answered, “Two hundred denarii would not buy enough bread for each of them to have a small piece.”
8One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him,
9“Here is a boy with five barley loaves and two small fish. But what difference will these make among so many?”
10“Have the people sit down,” Jesus said. Now there was plenty of grass in that place, so the men sat down, about five thousand of them.
11Then Jesus took the loaves and the fish, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted.
12And when everyone was full, He said to His disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over, so that nothing will be wasted.”
13So they collected them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.
14When the people saw the sign that Jesus had performed, they began to say, “Truly this is the Prophet who is to come into the world.”
15Then Jesus, realizing that they were about to come and make Him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by Himself.
16When evening came, His disciples went down to the sea,
17got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was already dark, and Jesus had not yet gone out to them.
18A strong wind was blowing, and the sea grew agitated.
19When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the sea—and they were terrified.
20But Jesus spoke up: “It is I; do not be afraid.”
21Then they were willing to take Him into the boat, and at once the boat reached the shore where they were heading.
22The next day, the crowd that had remained on the other side of the sea realized that only one boat had been there, and that Jesus had not boarded it with His disciples, but they had gone away alone.
23However, some boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the people had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks.
24So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor His disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum to look for Him.
25When they found Him on the other side of the sea, they asked Him, “Rabbi, when did You get here?”
26Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, it is not because you saw these signs that you are looking for Me, but because you ate the loaves and had your fill.
27Do not work for food that perishes, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on Him God the Father has placed His seal of approval.”
28Then they inquired, “What must we do to perform the works of God?”
29Jesus replied, “The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent.”
30So they asked Him, “What sign then will You perform, so that we may see it and believe You? What will You do?
31Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”
32Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread from heaven.
33For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
34“Sir,” they said, “give us this bread at all times.”
35Jesus answered, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to Me will never hunger, and whoever believes in Me will never thirst.
36But as I stated, you have seen Me and still you do not believe.
37Everyone the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will never drive away.
38For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but to do the will of Him who sent Me.
39And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I shall lose none of those He has given Me, but raise them up at the last day.
40For it is My Father’s will that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.”
41At this, the Jews began to grumble about Jesus because He had said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.”
42They were asking, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How then can He say, ‘I have come down from heaven?’”
43“Stop grumbling among yourselves,” Jesus replied.
44“No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.
45It is written in the Prophets: ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from Him comes to Me—
46not that anyone has seen the Father except the One who is from God; only He has seen the Father.
47Truly, truly, I tell you, he who believes has eternal life.
48I am the bread of life.
49Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died.
50This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that anyone may eat of it and not die.
51I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And this bread, which I will give for the life of the world, is My flesh.”
52At this, the Jews began to argue among themselves, “How can this man give us His flesh to eat?”
53So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of Man, you have no life in you.
54Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.
55For My flesh is real food, and My blood is real drink.
56Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood remains in Me, and I in him.
57Just as the living Father sent Me and I live because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on Me will live because of Me.
58This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your fathers, who ate the manna and died, the one who eats this bread will live forever.”
59Jesus said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.
60On hearing it, many of His disciples said, “This is a difficult teaching. Who can accept it?”
61Aware that His disciples were grumbling about this teaching, Jesus asked them, “Does this offend you?
62Then what will happen if you see the Son of Man ascend to where He was before?
63The Spirit gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.
64However, there are some of you who do not believe.” (For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray Him.)
65Then Jesus said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to Me unless the Father has granted it to him.”
66From that time on many of His disciples turned back and no longer walked with Him.
67So Jesus asked the Twelve, “Do you want to leave too?”
68Simon Peter replied, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words of eternal life.
69We believe and know that You are the Holy One of God.”
70Jesus answered them, “Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!”
71He was speaking about Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. For although Judas was one of the Twelve, he was later to betray Jesus.
EATING NECESSARY FOR SALVATION
And this eating of the flesh and drinking of the blood of the Lord is so necessary for salvation that without it no man can be saved. But this spiritual eating and drinking also occurs apart from the Supper of the Lord, and as often and wherever a man believes in Christ. To which that sentence of St. Augustine's perhaps applies: "Why do you provide for your teeth and your stomach? Believe, and you have eaten."
SACRAMENTAL EATING OF THE LORD
Besides the higher spiritual eating there is also a sacramental eating of the body of the Lord by which not only spiritually and internally the believer truly participates in the true body and blood of the Lord, but also, by coming to the Table of the Lord, outwardly receives the visible sacrament of the body and blood of the Lord. To be sure, when the believer believed, he first received the life-giving food, and still enjoys it. But therefore, when he now received the sacrament, he does not received nothing. For he progresses in continuing to communicate in the body and blood of the Lord, and so his faith is kindle and grows more and more, and is refreshed by spiritual food. For while we live, faith is continually increased. And he who outwardly receives the sacrament by true faith, not only receives the sign, but also, as we said, enjoys the thing itself. Moreover, he obeys the Lord's institution and commandment, and with a joyful mind gives thanks for his redemption and that of all mankind, and makes a faithful memorial to the Lord's death, and gives a witness before the Church, of whose body he is a member. Assurance is also given to those who receive the sacrament that the body of the Lord was given and his blood shed, not only for men in general, but particularly for every faithful communicant, to whom it is food and drink unto eternal life.
UNBELIEVERS TAKE THE SACRAMENT TO THEIR JUDGMENT
But he who comes to this sacred Table of the Lord without faith, communicates only in the sacrament and does not receive the substance of the sacrament whence comes life and salvation; and such men unworthily eat of the Lord's Table. Whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord, and eats and drinks judgment upon himself (I Cor. 11:26-29). For when they do not approach with true faith, they dishonor the death of Christ, and therefore eat and drink condemnation to themselves.
Scripture references for paragraph 11
Berean Standard Bible. Public domain text and source credits.
1 Corinthians 11:26-2926For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.
27Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.
28Each one must examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup.
29For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body eats and drinks judgment on himself.
THE PRESENCE OF CHRIST IN THE SUPPER
We do not, therefore, so join the body of the Lord and his blood with the bread and wine as to say that the bread itself is the body of Christ except in a sacramental way; or that the body of Christ is hidden corporeally under the bread, so that it ought to be worshipped under the form of bread; or yet that whoever receives the sign, receives also the thing itself. The body of Christ is in heaven at the right hand of the Father; and therefore our hearts are to be lifted up on high, and not to be fixed on the bread, neither is the Lord to be worshipped in the bread. Yet the Lord is not absent from his Church when she celebrates the Supper. The sun, which is absent from us in the heavens, is notwithstanding effectually present among us. How much more is the Sun of Righteousness, Christ, although in his body he is absent from us in heaven, present with us, not corporeally, but spiritually, by his vivfying operation, and as he himself explained at his Last Supper that he world be present with us (John, chs. 14; 15; and 16). Whence it follows that we do not have the Supper without Christ, and yet at the same time have an unbloody and mystical Supper, as it was universally called by antiquity.
Scripture references for paragraph 12
Berean Standard Bible. Public domain text and source credits.
John 14:1515If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.
John 14:1616And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to be with you forever—
OTHER PURPOSES OF THE LORD'S SUPPERS
Moreover, we are admonished in the celebration of the Supper of the Lord to be mindful of whose body we have become members, and that, therefore, we may be of one mind with all the brethren, live a holy life, and not pollute ourselves with wickedness and strange religions; but, perservering in the true faith to the end of our life, strive to excel in holiness of life.
PREPARATION FOR THE SUPPER
It is therefore fitting that when we would come to the Supper, we first examine ourselves according to the commandment of the apostle, especially as to the kind of faith we have, whether we believe that Christ has come to save sinners and to call them to repentance, and whether each man believes that he is in the number of those who have been delivered by Christ and saved; and whether he is determined to change his wicked life, to lead a holy life, and with the Lord's help to persevere in the true religion and in harmony with the brethren, and to give due thanks to God for his deliverance.
THE OBSERVANCE OF THE SUPPER WITH BOTH BREAD AND WINE
We think that rite, manner, or form of the Supper to be the most simple and excellent which comes nearest to the first institution of the Lord and to the apostles' doctrine. It consists in proclaiming the Word of God, in godly prayers, in the action of the Lord himself, and its repetition, in the eating of the Lord's body and drinking of this blood; in a fitting remembrance of the Lord's death, and a faithful thanksgiving; and in a holy fellowship in the union of the body of the Church.
We therefore disapprove of those who have taken from the faithful one species of the sacrament, namely, the Lord's cup. For these seriously offend against the institution of the Lord who says: "Drink ye all of this"; which he did not so expressly say of the bread.
We are not now discussing we what kind of mass once existed among the fathers, whether it is to be tolerated or not. But this we say freely that the mass which is now used throughout the Roman Church has been abolished in our churches for many and very good reasons which, for brevity's sake, we do not now enumerate in detail. We certainly could not approve of making a wholesome action into a vain spectacle and a means of giving merit, and of celebrating it for a price. Nor could we approve of saying that in it the priest is said to effect the very body of the Lord, and really to offer it for the remission of the sins of the living and the dead, and in addition, for the honor, veneration and remembrance of the saints in heaven, etc.
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