What Did Jesus Mean When He Said ‘This Is My Body, This Is My Blood’?

Jesus’ words ‘this is My body...this is My blood’ have been debated for centuries. In this brief clip, Keith Mathison explains how we can make progress in understanding what Jesus meant.

[daniellennox]

St. Ignatius of Antioch (110AD):

“I have no taste for corruptible food nor for the pleasures of this life. I desire the Bread of God, which is the Flesh of Jesus Christ, who was of the seed of David, and for drink I desire His Blood, which is love incorruptible.”

“Take note of those who hold heterodox opinions on the grace of Jesus Christ which has come to us, and see how contrary their opinions are to the mind of God. . . . They abstain from the Eucharist and from prayer because they do not confess that the Eucharist is the flesh of our Savior Jesus Christ, flesh which suffered for our sins and which that Father, in his goodness, raised up again.”

St. Augustine:
“What you see is the bread and the chalice; that is what your own eyes report to you. But what your faith obliges you to accept is that the bread is the body of Christ and the chalice is the blood of Christ.”

[bengoolie]

Actually, the Church has not been arguing over the meaning of those words since the day Jesus said them. For two thousand years, the Church has taught that at the moment of consecration, ordinary bread and wine become the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ, Second Person of the Most Holy Trinity. Exactly as Jesus spoke them.

[DV]

He lay His life down for all. The Ultimate sacrifice. Broken and crucified for our sin. Take the sacraments in remembrance of me... The death burial and resurrection of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ

[Molly-svyn]

He was speaking literally. Those who walked away found it too difficult to believe

[garyh]

Paul seemed to think it had some amazing power:
1 Cor 11, "27 Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. 28 Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. 30 That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died."

[randallblann]

You see his body and his Blood and in the Spirit give eternal life.

[salvificdeputy]

In the description you write the following Jesus’ words ‘this is My body...this is My blood’ have been debated for centuries. In this brief clip, Keith Mathison explains how we can make progress in understanding what Jesus meant. The word of Jesus where neve debate over 1600 years everyone Christian since the reformation understood it for being the eucharist

[andreperait]

I strongly believe that Jesus did not mean the bread and wine was taken to be literally His flesh and blood. During His ministry the Lord used alot of parables and the like rather than direct speeches as per recorded in the gospels and I believe this was not the exception. The bread and wine He gave the disciples at the last supper did not literally become flesh and blood and neither has it during Paul's day and neither today!... but to make the occasion to remember Him and His sacrifice..

[ramonpalacios]

I agree. However, the text can (and in my opinion should) be read literally especially in context of the Bread of Life discourse. No reason to commit to only one interpretation.

[randallblann]

The body and the blood of Christ is healing and forgiveness.

[ronmortimer]

I believe Jesus was embuing the eucharist or communion with spiritual power and solemnity as only He could do. It brings to our rememberance His whole purpose for coming to earth which was to offer His life for our sins. And by ingesting those blessed symbols we are partakers of His life and death in a spiritual sense. We are warned not to partake unworthily. If Jesus had not said those words there would be no communion service in the church today and hence no formal rememberance of His death which is our salvation. Anyway I hope this helps and wasn't too preachy.

[randallblann]

My body is quickened in the Holy Spirit.

[mr.lutheranguy]

Symbolic?! Absurd! How can one sin against mere bread and wine? “Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged.”
(1 Corinthians 11:27-31)

[randallblann]

By his stripes we are healed by his wounds.

[joeyfeliciano]

That is a clear picture of what Jesus'meant!!!
Cool🤗

[tstjohn]

What I find interesting is the comments by many, is the focus on Jesus saying eating my flesh and drinking my blood.
If you read in the context of the chapter. The emphasis is believing who Christ is. Towards the end and throughout the New Testament It is all about believing abiding and walking in the Spirit.
Even in 1Cor. 11 when speaking to of the Lord's table. It says " in remembrance of Me" This means as we recollect the crucifixion of Christ on the cross and the shedding of His blood for our sins and the reconciliation with our Father and God through it.
Jesus says this is My body which is broken for you. Just by the terminology, you can see He is not speaking of His physical body. Then He says, Do this in remembrance of Me.
Would He not say, take this is My body eat it and you will have Me in you. No, He says it symbolically in order for us to recollect His sacrifice till He returns.
Throughout the New Testament, we are taught that we are in Christ, that we are sealed by the Holy Spirit. We don't eat His flesh and drink His blood in a literal way. That is just unit biblical.

[villarrealmarta]

1Cor. 10:16 is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation IN THE BLOOD of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation IN THE BODY of Christ?
1Cor.11:24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.”

[randallblann]

The body and Blood to me is the Word of life.I am the Bread of life Jesus said.I came down not to do my will but the will of my Father.Those who eat my body and drink the cup of the blood have eternal life.

[danrugbyman]

John 6:51-55. You have to do some mental gymnastics to misinterpret this. Why are so many Christians so quick to explain away the power of God? So God can do all things except turn bread and wine into his suffering Son's body? Symbolism? No. Jesus repeated Himself and clarified and reclarified - He said we must gnaw on, munch, feed on his flesh to have life within us and eternal life. He clarifies this, initially, off putting idea (especially to Jews) to the point that the masses of crowds turned away from Him. Actually, among early Christians, there was no debate or misunderstanding about the bread and wine physically becoming the Body and Blood of Christ until the 1500's. The idea that the Eucharist is a symbol is a relatively new heresey.

[reformedcatholic]

Definitely not teaching the Romanist view of transubstantiation, not biblical nor taught by the fathers until centuries later. A few of the fathers even held different views, so that tells you something.

I may have similar views as St. Ignatius who states the Eucharist is the flesh and blood of Christ but does not describe what he means, Calvin states the same thing, in his Geneva catechism but then goes on to explain what he means by it.