PART 2
After the death of the traitor, Judas Iscariot, Peter was adamantly intent on filling the vacant position with a qualified person and personally deemed it necessary that there must remain 12 Apostles, no more and no less (Acts 1:15-17, 20-22). In a detailed manner, he lays out exactly what the replacement's qualifications must be. For a person to actually become an Apostle, they had to physically (not spiritually) have met one or all of the following requirements:
1. Been an eyewitness and be with Jesus during the whole three years that Jesus was among them (Acts 1:21).
2. Been an eyewitness of Jesus' baptism when the Heavenly Father validated Jesus and His work (Acts 1:22).
3. Directly heard Jesus speak and been an eyewitness to His healings and other miracles (John 17:6; Acts 1:22).
4. Been an eyewitness to Jesus' sacrifice on the Cross (Acts 1:22).
5. Been an eyewitness to Jesus walking, talking, and eating among the disciples again after His resurrection (1 Corinthians 9:1; Matthew 10:1-4; Hebrews 2:3-4).
6. Needed to have been selected and appointed by God directly (Mark 3:14-15, 6:40; Acts 1:24–25; 9:15, Rom 1:1).
7. Their calling was authenticated "by signs and wonders and miracles" (Acts 2:43, 8:6-7; 2 Corinthians 12:12.)
However, the Apostle Peter, in his usual defining impetuousness, proceeded to step out in front of God after being commanded by Jesus to "wait" (Gk: "kathizó' = sit down, to tarry without activity) for the Holy Spirit who will empower them to do His will (Luke 24:49). Peter had previously done the same thing on the Mount of Transfiguration when he offered plans to build three altars, and said "Let's see which of these God has chosen" by using an Old Testament, pre-Pentecost method of hearing from God, rather than from Him through the direct inspiration of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:12-26).
Peter also foolhardily told Jesus he would never be killed on the Cross (Acts 1:12-26; Matt 16:23). Jesus responded by calling him satan, which, of course, he was not, but the point being made was that the authoritative will of God takes precedence over feelings and emotions. Even Paul, at one time, had to rebuke Peter for his fleshly reactions (Galatians 2:11-14).
The remaining Apostles also chose not to obey Jesus and wait for the Holy Spirit. It is evident that the Apostles were genuinely sincere in desiring for the Lord to make the final choice between the two men by the casting of lots. They were very familiar with the Priest's use of Urim and Thummim to determine God's will under the Old Covenant, as well as the story of Jonah and the terrified sailors who cast lots for God to show them who was the source of their problems.
The other Apostles joined Peter and fell back on the ways of the Law and Old Covenant and did the equivalent of picking a name out of a hat by choosing a replacement for Judas, who was considered to be numbered among them' (Gk: 'kateerithmeeménos') which means counted or figured as. Yet, Jesus had just commanded them not to do ANYTHING but WAIT for the Holy Spirit, whom He was sent to lead and guide them into all truth, at the Day of Pentecost.
There were 120 disciples with the remaining Apostles, yet only two made the cut for consideration. They were Joseph, called Barsabas, surnamed Justus, and Matthias (Acts 1:23-26). Matthias ended up being picked to replace Judas Iscariot as one of the 12. Many in the church still consider him to be the only 12th office holder of Apostle. Yet, after that day, there is absolutely zero mention of Matthias from that point on in the Scriptures or history as well.
Some say that James also held the office of Apostle. That would make him the 13th Apostle. Paul did refer to James, who worked beside him, as an apostle like himself; even though he said that he was not worthy of being one, he met the requirements of also being numbered among the 12 (Acts 9:1-19; Galatians 1:19).
Jesus had appeared to James, His brother, by Joseph and Mary, who was doing the work of an Apostle just like Barnabas (1 Corinthians 15:7). James probably wrote the Epistle of James, but he is not one of the 12 Apostles listed as those Jesus personally hand-picked (Matthew 13:55-56; Mark 6:3). He became a firm Born-Again Believer and follower of Jesus, as well as the leader of the Jerusalem church (1 Corinthians 9:5; Galatians 2:9).
It has also been said that the disciple Barnabas held the office of Apostle because he was also seen doing the work of an Apostle (Acts 14:4). That would make him the 14th Apostle. Luke describes Barnabas as an individual who was distinct from the 12 Apostles (Acts 4:36; 9:27; 15:2,22).
Barnabas and James were called 'apostles' in the sense that they were working like an Apostle to proclaim the Gospel with Paul (Acts 13:1-3), just like there are those who do the spiritual work of an Apostle today, such as a church planter, missionary, or denominational overseer.
Paul states that Andronicus and Junia were "well known among the apostles" (Romans 16:7). Some have interpreted this to mean they held the office of Apostle, with Junia as the only female Apostle. That would make them the 15th and 16th Apostle. It must be noted that the common name Junia is "Iounian" in Greek and is accusative, which means that 'Junia' could be a woman or 'Junias' could be a man.
Silas has been called by some to be an Apostle because he was referred to as one who was with Timothy and Paul (Thessalonians 1:1, 2:6). That would make him the 17th Apostle. He also performed the functions of an apostle as Paul's companion in his second missionary journey (Acts 15:40).
Timothy is also considered to have held the office of Apostle. That would make him the 18th Apostle. However, he is only called a "brother" when Paul refers to himself as "an apostle of Christ" (2 Corinthians 1:10). Timothy performed many of the functions of an Apostle in the commissioning of Paul in both the first and second books of Timothy. However, Paul refers to him as his "son" in the faith (1 Timothy 1:1-2,18; 2 Timothy 1:2, 2:1).
Apollos has been said to have held the office of Apostle because he was included among "us apostles" along with Paul and Peter. That would make him the 19th Apostle (1 Corinthians 4:9; see also: 4:6, 3:22, and 3:4-6).
The Scriptures say that Jesus "appeared" to more than five hundred disciples at one time who were working to promote the Gospel (Luke 10:1-24). Jesus also sent out 70 to work in the apostolic ministry. The Eastern Church calls them Apostles and not disciples because the meaning of the words is virtually the same (1 Corinthians 15:6). Does that mean there are a total of 589 first-century Apostles?
In the broad usage of the term, an Apostle was a first-century evangelist who bore witness to the resurrection of Christ and an itinerant missionary sent by Him to make disciples of all nations. Being well-known within a circle of leaders and working alongside them does not make a person a fellow leader, just as a staff member of a politician is not the actual chosen/elected politician. It would seem to be pretty clear that God did not select Matthias, James, Barnabas, Andronicus, Junia, Silas, Timothy, Apollos, or the other 570 to be one of the 12 Apostles.
It would also seem logical that the only clear choice by God to hold the office of an Apostle vacated by Judas was Saul of Tarsus, later to be called Paul, who identified himself with the Apostles and humbly said that Jesus personally chose him to be an Apostle (See Romans 1:1; 1 Corinthians 1:1,9:1-2, 15:9; 2 Corinthians 12:12; Galatians 1:1; Ephesians 1:1, Colossians 1:1; 1 Timothy 1:1, 2:7; 2 Timothy 1:11; Titus 1:1).
Paul proved his qualification by being the central figure in the propagation of the Gospel, especially to the Gentiles. He wrote more than half the books in the New Testament; He took the Gospel on at least three missionary trips throughout the world. He was stoned, drowned, beaten, imprisoned, starved, hated, and loved. He even raised (through God's power) a young man who fell to his death in a church meeting. In short, Paul made full proof of his apostleship.
PENTECOST
The single event that clearly and definitively separated the Old Covenant from the New Covenant is the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, which is the birth of the universal Church, the Bride of Christ, because Jesus came to reside/dwell within those that become Born-Again (1 Corinthians 6:19). As stated previously, Jesus had commanded the Disciples not to do anything but to wait for the promised gift of the Father (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:4).
ABSOLUTION
"Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld” (John 20:21-23 ESV).
Jesus did not breathe on all the Apostles because Thomas and the traitor Judas, who committed suicide, were not there, which negates the idea that all future people who are proclaimed an Apostle can forgive sin. There were only 12 people that held the office of Apostle, which, according to the Bible has been closed since the end of the first century.
The Greek word translated as 'you might forgive' is 'aphiémi' and is in the imperfect three-person plural and means to send away, leave alone, permit. The Greek word for "retain" is 'krateó' which only appears here in the Gospels and is also in the imperfect two-person plural and means to be strong, prevail, to rule, to be powerful, to lay hold of, to place under ones' grasp and continue to hold. These words are plural and indicate community rather than an individual class of people who are given the power to forgive and not what must always or ought to be the case but what generally is.
When exegeting the Bible, the rules of Hermeneutics must be followed because a word can only mean what the original writer intended it to mean in its grammatical and historical context. Then, its meaning must be verified by how it is used throughout Scripture.
Only God can forgive all sins, just as only a creditor can forgive the debtor. Jesus gave the 10 Apostles authority to discharge people of the guilt of their sins if their repentance and trust in Jesus is true because He has forgiven their sins by His shed blood.
As with the 10 Apostles, every Born-Again Christian is filled with the Holy Spirit at the moment of salvation and forgiven of all their past, present, and future sins. They are to preach the Gospel message to everyone they meet that Jesus died to forgive their sins, and when a person repents and receives Him as their Lord and Savior through repentance, they appropriate His remission and forgiveness of sins (Mark 16:16; Luke 24:47). However, if they do not, the eternal consequences of their sin of rejecting Jesus remains.
Peter asked Jesus about forgiveness, "Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven' (Matthew 18:22 KJV). Seventy times seven equals 490. There are 1,440 minutes in a day and 60 minutes in an hour. That means you must forgive others for what they have done to you every three minutes until you have actually forgiven them. Some translations say 77 times, but the meaning is still the same – forgive as you have been forgiven.
In any literal and authoritative sense in the Greek text, the power to forgive was never exercised by one of the 10 Apostles, who never taught they possessed any extraordinary power to forgive sins. The Bible clearly states that God alone has the power to forgive sin and did so on the Cross, one and for all.
ROYAL PRIESTHOOD
EVERY Born-Again Christian has been given the ministry of reconciliation. They must forgive because they have been forgiven; otherwise, they can experience severe discipline from God. They are a member of the Bride of Christ, which is THE Church (John 3:3-5,29; Ephesians 5:25-27; Revelation 18:23, 9:7, 21:2, 22:17).
The Bible does not say that only those 10 Apostles were ordained as priests for Jesus. The New Testament speaks of bishops (Gk: 'episkopos' = overseer), deacons (Gk: 'diakonos'= servant, minister) but it does not speak of a special class known as 'priests.' What it does tell us is that every Born-Again Christian is to present their bodies as "a living sacrifice" and that they are "a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices" (Romans 12:1;1 Peter 2:5).
Even though the New Testament Scriptures mention Apostles, they do not provide the church with a list of duties for that position, as they do for the office of Evangelist, Pastor/Shepherd/Bishop/Elder (Acts 1:20-26). If God intended for there to be a modern-day office of Apostles, He would have provided the list of duties in the NT Scriptures 2000+ years ago.
The ministry gifts of the Apostle still exist today. However, the foundational office of the Apostle in the first generation of the Church is no longer needed (Ephesians 2:20,3:5). It was in a separate category from the ongoing offices of Evangelist and Teaching-Pastor/Shepherd/Bishop/Elder which still exist today because they are those who preach, teach, and lead the church as the Scriptures attest (Ephesians 4:11). The Bible provides very explicit instructions and requirements for those continuing offices but none for Apostles which infers they were not intended to continue.
The New Testament urges Born-Again Christians to avoid false doctrine by remembering what the Apostles ALREADY said in the Bible, and not by listening to what new self-ascribed apostles say today (2 Peter 2:1; 3:1-2; Jude 3-4,17). Special revelations that conflict with, or add to, the Scriptures are to be rejected (1 Thessalonians 5:19-22).
There are only 12 thrones and foundational walls of the New Jerusalem, with the names of the twelve Apostles of the Lamb written in them (Matthew 19:28; Revelation 21:14). One could confidently surmise that the name of the traitor, Judas Iscariot, is not one of them.
The absolute foundation of the universal Church is the Word, Jesus Christ. No one can lay a foundation other than that which is already laid (1 Corinthians 3:11). Modern so-called Apostles, as well as Prophets, Evangelists, and Pastor-Teachers, were not used to build the foundation of the Church (Titus 1:5-9; 1 Timothy 3:1-7; 2 Timothy 2:2; 1 Peter 2:7, 5:1-4).
Either we are 100% submitted to the sovereign, supernatural work of the Holy Spirit and wait wholly upon Him to make decisions to lead and guide us, or we pick pieces of paper out of a hat or roll the dice to decide what we should do next in our lives or ministry.
There are no "new" doctrines or "secret revelations" hidden from the Church (See 1 Timothy 1:3-4; 2 John 1:9-10). The enemy wants Born-Again Christians to believe that they need new visions and revelations given by self-proclaimed modern 'apostles' and 'prophets' because it denies the sufficiency of the Bible (See 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Corinthians 11:13-15). Ultimately, all prophecies will cease (1 Corinthians 13:8-12).
It was through the Prophets and the 12 hand-picked Apostles that the New Testament Scriptures were given for all generations to come. The term 'apostle' is never used again in the book of Acts after Chapter 16. When the last of the 12 Apostles died, other offices besides apostleship, not requiring an eyewitness relationship with Jesus, would carry on the work.
The works-based religious caste system of the "apostolic-prophetic" governmental authority teaching is confusing at best and most often theologically contradictory, illogical, and intellectually incongruent. Jesus taught that a house divided against itself would not stand (Matthew 12:25). God "is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints" (1 Corinthians 14:33 KJV).
When the New Testament was completed, the office of Apostle and Prophet, who helped in conveying the authoritative words from God for the founding and building of the Church, was replaced by the written Word of God, the Bible, which is the final and absolute authority in the life of a Born-Again Christian, to equip "the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes" (Ephesians 4:12-15 ESV). The "building up" of the Church, and not its foundational construction, will continue until it is mature (v.12).
PARADISE Vs. PURGATORY
The Catholic Church teaches that there is a place where the soul of a person goes to after death to be cleansed of their sins that were not worked out / satisfied on Earth (See 1 Corinthians 3:15). The place is known as 'Purgatory' which is "a place or condition of temporal punishment for those who, departing this life in God's grace, are not entirely free from venial faults, or have not fully paid the satisfaction due to their transgressions" (Catholic Encyclopedia).
Sadly, it is not understood by many that the Born-Again Christian was already forgiven, redeemed, cleansed, declared righteous, reconciled, and sanctified by the perfect and sufficient sacrificial death of Jesus, and when they die, they will immediately be at home with Him (John 1:1,14; 1 Corinthians 15:2; 2 Corinthians 5:6-8; Phillippians 1:23; 1 John 2:2).
"Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw — each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire." (1 Corinthians 3:12-15 ESV)
The Bible does not say or imply that the Born-Again Christian will escape through the "fire" of Purgatory or be cleansed by it. Meritorious works do not contribute to salvation because it is contrary to what the Bible teaches: that the death of Jesus was totally sufficient to pay the penalty for all of our sins (See Ephesians 2:8-9).
Per the Bible, Paradise is not Heaven or Purgatory. The Rabbis called it Abraham's Bosom (Luke 16:22-31). It was that part of the "prison" of Hades / the grave, the realm of the dead, which Jesus held the keys to (Revelation 1:18), and where the righteous were held separate and apart from the place of torment waiting for the resurrection (Matthew 24-25). When Lazarus died, he was placed in Abraham's Bosom, and the rich man was placed in torment in Tartarus / Hell. The grave / Hades could not hold Jesus, and He was resurrected on the 3rd day (Matthew 17:23; Acts 2:24).
VENERATION AND PRAYER TO THE SAINTS
To 'venerate' someone is to regard them with great respect or awe due to their value or greatness, according to the Bible. Prayer is communicating with the Creator of all things and not with the created. When a person prays, they are to go into their room, shut the door, and pray to the Father alone who is in secret and He will reward them (Matthew 6:6). A Born-Again Christian does not need to solicit the goodwill of God because He is great and good all the time and only wants the best for them because they are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28).
When a person repents of their sin and receives Jesus as their Lord and Savior, they become Born-Again and are immediately sanctified positionally for all eternity. They were bought at a high price of Jesus' blood and are to honor, glorify, worship, and praise the Triune God, who alone is great and worthy to be praised (Romans 1:24; 1 Corinthians 6:20,7:23; 2 Corinthians 11:31; Revelation 5:13). The Bible does not instruct the followers of Jesus to offer worship, veneration, adoration, or anything similar to anyone but God. Nor does the Bible speak of any follower of Jesus worshiping, venerating, or adoring anyone other than God. Twice in the Book of Revelation, John the beloved starts to worship an angel, and the angel instructs him, "Worship God!" (Revelation 19:10; 22:8) Mary and the saints of God (those becoming Born-Again) who have gone to Heaven before us would say the same thing: "Worship God!" True worshipers worship God alone in spirit and truth. When Jesus was born, the people who came to see Him fell to the ground and venerated Him alone. The Bible is very clear that we are to 'venerate' the Triune God alone.
COMMUNION AND TRANSUBSTANTIATION
"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever." (John 6:53-58 ESV)
Catholic doctrine affirms that a literal interpretation of the phrases "feeds on my flesh" and "drinks my blood" demands it by literal wording. By the inference, Paul draws from it that it is a sin against the "body and blood" of Christ (1 Corinthians 11:27), and by the normal use of the word "is" in Jesus statement, "This is my body" (see Ludwig Ott, Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma, 375).
In the first three Gospels, Jesus is represented as saying, "this is my body" and "this is my blood" about the bread and wine at the Lord's Supper (Matthew 26:26,28; Mark 14:21,24; Luke 22:19,21 – also 1 Corinthians 15:24). Roman Catholics base their doctrine of Transubstantiation, which is that the bread and wine are transformed into the literal body and blood of Jesus even though they still look, taste, and smell like typical bread and wine.
One of the Rules of biblical Hermeneutics is that a historical-grammatical interpretation of the Bible that is literally true does not demand that everything be taken literally because not everything in the Bible is true literally. The literal sense allows for figures of speech such as speaking of Jesus as "the Bread of Life" which should be eaten (John 6:32-33), and immediately precedes this discourse on "eating his flesh" (James 6:52-71).
I remember getting it drilled into my head that context, context, context is everything in Bible interpretation. The context provides evidence that Jesus did not intend His statements to be taken literally. If "eating his flesh" is to be taken literally, then everyone, including unbelievers who partake of Communion, are saved since Jesus said all who partake of it are given "eternal life" (John 6:55). The Bible is clear that simply taking Communion is not the condition for receiving the gift of eternal life, but instead belief is. Jesus said that "everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life (John 3:14-18), and I will raise him up in the last day" (John 6:40). He also said a person must be Born-Again to be saved (John 3:3-7) but did not say they needed to be baptized or partake of Communion.
The word "eating/eat" is a familiar biblical figure of speech for believing in God and ingesting spiritual nourishment from Him (Psalm 34:8; Isaiah 55:1; Ezekiel 3:2-3; 1 Peter 2:2-3). Jesus was speaking of Himself as the Bread of Life, which, like the manna in the wilderness was eaten daily (John 6:32-33). The Greek verb 'meno' in John 6:56 means to abide and expresses continual mystical fellowship between Jesus and the Born-Again Believer (John 15:4-7; 1 John 2:6,27-28; 3:6,24; 4:12,16). There is no reference to the Lord's Supper but simply to mystical fellowship with Jesus.
The word "body" has both a physical meaning as well as a spiritual meaning in other places in the New Testament (Example: 1 Corinthians 12:13). Every Born-Again Christian is a member/part of the spiritual body of Christ. A sin against them is a sin against Jesus (Acts 9:5). The regular use of the word "is" is often employed in figures of speech such as Jesus is the vine (John 15); the water of Life (John 4), and the door (John 10).
When Jesus said, "this is my body," everyone present knew it was not literally His real body but a piece of bread being held by His real body (hand). The communion service in the first-century church was a memorial of Jesus' death and was not a reenactment and partaking of His literal physical death but a proclamation of His death and spiritual participation with other Born-Again Believers (1 Corinthians 10:16; 11:25-26).
The Bible is filled with metaphors (see Psalm 18:2). The word describing Jesus' "flesh" as "true food" (John 6:55) does not mean it must be physical but points to the fact that it was "real" (Gk: 'alathas'), that is a spiritual reality, not ordinary physical flesh.
Jesus often spoke in metaphors and figures of speech that can only have a spiritual meaning. If the consecrated communion elements are really His body, then it can be worshipped, which is idolatry. Jesus sacrificed Himself once and for all in His death on the Cross (Hebrews 10:12).
When Jesus spoke about Communion, He said, "The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life" (John 6:63). He often used figures of speech, as noted in the Book of John, to describe Himself such as "water" (vs. 4:14), "bread" (vs. 6:35), "light" (vs. 8:12), the "door" (vs 10:7, 9), and the "vine" (vs 15:1). A literalistic approach makes no sense in any of these cases.
The Bible is the final authority for doctrine, not the church Fathers. It is clear that heresy and false doctrines began early (John 21:20-23;1 Timothy 4:1; 1 John 4:1-6; Colossians 2:8-23). The earliest Church Fathers can be used to support a biblical doctrine, but belief in the doctrine should be based on God's direct revelation in the Bible. Most of the Church Fathers in the first few centuries did not explicitly speak of transubstantiation but, at best, a real presence of Jesus and the symbolic nature of Communion. No council of the early Church affirmed transubstantiation until the Fourth Lateran Council (A.D. 1215) and later at the Council of Trent (A. D. 1551).
The time of the institution of Communion is found in John 13 after the Passover, not in John 6 after the sermon on the Bread of Life; that is an entirely different time and context. The Last Supper occurred one year later than the incidents recorded in this chapter.
There is a close parallel between John 6:40 and John 6:54 that reveals they are referring to the same thing. The phrases "whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood" and "everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him" have eternal life are a direct parallel, and the former is the symbolic way of referring to the latter. The language used is so utterly unqualified that if its primary reference is to Communion, we must conclude that the one thing necessary for eternal life is participation at the Lord's Table. That would contradict the earlier parts of the discourse, which affirms that belief in the Son is the only necessary condition for receiving eternal life (John 3:16;18,36;6:40).
When Jesus gave the command that they should "eat" his flesh, the crowd reacted negatively (John 6:52, 60,66). However, He did not retract the promise, try to change their understanding of His words or try and explain He had been speaking poetically or metaphorically.
Jesus did not always correct the Disciples' misunderstanding directly or immediately (See John 2:19-22). He corrected their literalistic misinterpretation of His words. He said, "The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life (John 6:63), and "The flesh is of no help at all" in understanding His words (John 6:63). He equated "eating" his flesh with one who "believes in him" and thereby "has eternal life" (John 3:16,18,36). Peter did not depart on hearing Jesus' words, and said that it was because "we have believed and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God" (John 6:69).
The Bible shows that eating physical objects metaphorically does not always mean destroying them (See Psalm 27:2; Isaiah 9:20). In a positive context, it means ingesting the spiritual reality that God has provided (See Psalm 37:4; Isaiah 55:1; Ezekiel 2:8-9; 1 Peter 2:2-3).
The actual Communion Service instituted by Jesus is recorded four times in the New Testament (Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:14-13; 1 Corinthians 11:17-26). The text indicates that Jesus' words are not to be taken literally because "eating" His "flesh" would have cannibalistic overtones to Jews who were strictly forbidden by the Law of Moses to eat blood (Leviticus 17:14). Jesus said, "this is my body" (Gk: ‘soma’), not "this is my flesh" (Gk: ‘sarx’). Logically, if Communion was in mind in John 6, it is more likely that the word "body" would have been used. Nowhere in Scripture is Communion spoken of as eating the flesh and drinking the blood of Jesus (Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:14-22; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26).
The communion elements are called "bread" and the "cup" [of wine] or "fruit of the vine" (Matthew 26:29) after it is prayed over (consecrated) and they were eating it, not the body and blood of Jesus (1 Corinthians 11:23-28). Jesus offered Himself once and for all (Hebrews 7:27;9:7,26,28;10:10). His body is not offered over and over again each time Mass is given in the Catholic Church. Transubstantiation entails the worship of the Eucharist/Communion elements because it is the worship of created things and contrary to the prohibition of eating blood and against idolatry (Leviticus 17:14; Exodus 20:4-5; Romans 1:25).
IN REMEMBRANCE
"…do this in remembrance of me." (1 Corinthians 11:24-25 NIV)
The early Church considered the taking of Communion not as a ritual ceremony but as a holy act and treated it as such. It was at the forefront of every meeting and the elements were prominently displayed in the front of the church, be it an altar or table. It is vitally important that Christians partake of Communion in contemplative reverence to remember the broken body and shed blood of Jesus because it proclaims His death for the forgiveness of sin that brought reconciliation between humanity and God. When Christians receive the emblems of His body and blood, they partake of the power of God.
"For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." (1 Corinthians 1:18 NIV)
The blood is the power of the anointing that breaks every yoke. Taking Communion signifies that they have faith in His blood, the blood that was shed to forgive and save, and are continually being saved from things that can attack physically, mentally, and spiritually.
Whether Christians partake in Communion daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, or annually, they are to "examine" and judge themselves just as King David did.
"Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." (Psalm 139:23-24 KJV)
The failure of the Corinthian church was due to them not searching their hearts before partaking in Communion. It must not be done in only a few fleeting seconds during service as the elements are being prepared. People must first spend time on their knees before the Lord, seeking His face to search their hearts. Then, when the Lord reveals sin, such as unforgiveness, anger, rebellion, bitterness, fear, worry, anxiety, resentment, pride, envy, etc., in their life, they should acknowledge it, appropriate the blood to it and repent. If they hold something against another person, then they must make it right with them. Reconciliation is the ministry of EVERY Christian (See 2 Corinthians 5:18). If people do not examine themselves BEFORE they take Communion, and sin is present, they will bring God's correction.
"For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself not discerning the Lord's body. For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world." (1 Corinthians 11:27-32 NIV)
After decades of study, I firmly believe that this is the most significant reason why there is so much sickness and disease in the church. Pride and lack of trust opens the door for the immune system to go haywire. The importance of this can't be overstated. God's chastisement and judgment are by resisting the proud. It is designed to bring the Christian back into the right relationship with Him and is always to restore but never to destroy.
CONCLUSION
According to the Bible, every Born-Again Christian is a member of the Bride of Christ, which is THE Church (John 3:3-5,29; Ephesians 5:25-27; Revelation 18:23, 19:7, 21:2, 22:17). The New Testament speaks of bishops (Gk: ‘Episkopos’ = overseer), deacons (Gk: ‘Diakonous’ = servant, minister). Still, it does not speak of a special class known as 'priests' because Jesus is their High Priest (Hebrews 4:14-15; 5:6;10:21) What it does speak of is every Born-Again Christian must present their bodies as "a living sacrifice" (Romans 12:1) because they are "a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices" (1 Peter 2:5 ESV).
The straightforward, indisputable truth is the New Testament makes no mention of the Catholic church in the teachings of Jesus or His Apostles, nor is there any mention of the papacy, worship/adoration of Mary* (or the immaculate conception of Mary, her perpetual virginity, assumption, or as co-redemptrix and mediatrix), petitioning saints in Heaven for their prayers, apostolic succession, the ordinances of the church functioning as sacraments, infant baptism, confession of sin to a priest, purgatory, indulgences, or the equal authority of church tradition and Scripture.
*For a message on Mary, see https://sermoncentral.com/sermons/fifteen-facts-to-consider-about-the-immaculate-conception-of-mary-and-the-virgin-birth-of-jesus-dr-craig-nelson-sermon-on-incarnation-251794
