We said in a previous article that the human being, created in the image of God, is one being made up of three parts: body, soul, and spirit, as this verse in the New Testament confirms:
1 Thessalonians 5:23 (NIV)
“May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
However, there must be no misunderstanding: there is no separation between these three parts of our being. The soul and the body are on earth. Our spirit is seated with Christ in the heavenly realms. Yet all three form one indivisible unity, existing simultaneously.
Every action that takes place in any one of these parts of our being—whether in the spirit, the soul, or the body—affects the other two at that very same moment. We truly are one.
To make the point as clear as possible, let us take the illustration a little further: when a preacher, after proclaiming the Gospel, asks those whose hearts have been deeply moved to raise their hand or stand up as an outward expression of their desire to give their lives to Christ, the Good Shepherd, what is actually happening?
Those who raise their hand or stand up on earth are also doing so in the heavenly realms. For those of you who have experienced this, do you remember how your arm suddenly seemed to weigh ten tons, and how such a simple, ordinary gesture suddenly became almost impossible?
That day, you truly felt the weight of your heavenly decision upon your earthly arm.
When Jesus cried out to Lazarus to come out of the tomb, do you think His voice was directed at the physical ears of a dead man whose body had already begun to decay? As Jesus was crying out a command on earth, Lazarus was hearing, from the heavenly realms, the command to return to his body.
John 11:39–44 (NIV)
“Take away the stone,” he said.
“But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.”
Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”
So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.”
When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!”
The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.
Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.”
Every word spoken on earth also resounds, at that very same moment, in the heavenly realms. And when it is a word spoken with authority—look at the result!
You understand the principle. Now comes the extraordinary truth:
At the Lord’s Supper, when my body drinks the wine, or the fruit of the vine, from the cup, because of the indivisibility of my being, it is my entire being that drinks. Although my soul can perceive only what is happening on earth, we must remember that there is no separation: the spiritual part of our being—our spirit—is also drinking.
The whole person is drinking from the cup!
The soul, whose body is drinking the fruit of the vine, KNOWS, through the instruction it has received and through the very words of Jesus, that by doing this, the whole person is proclaiming the death of Jesus until He comes again. And in proclaiming the death of Jesus, we are also proclaiming everything that His death has accomplished—and will bring about—in our lives: salvation, healing, redemption, freedom, and prosperity in every area of life.
The soul realizes that, at that very same moment, in the spirit, it is bringing to the lips of its spiritual being—to continue with the imagery—the ultimate drink: a powerful and very real drink, with profoundly regenerating and transforming effects. In the spirit, it is bringing to its lips the blood of Christ, that precious blood with which Jesus entered the heavenly realms.
The Word tells us that Christ entered the Most Holy Place, in the heavenly realms, with His own blood. This is not without effect for us here on earth!
Hebrews 9:12 (NIV)
“He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption.”
This is what makes the Lord’s Supper, when received in faith and with understanding, one of the most powerful sacraments Jesus has given us, to truly renew, strengthen, and heal our whole being.
Have we not been redeemed—completely—by the blood of Christ? And are we not healed through what He accomplished for us?
1 Peter 1:18–20 (NIV)
“For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake.”
1 Peter 2:24 (NIV)
“He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.”
Christ entered the tabernacle with His blood—blood that carries healing and deliverance, blood that testifies that in Him is found the “Yes” and the “Amen” to every prayer and proclamation on earth that sings in harmony with eternal Truth. Jesus is the Truth.
2 Corinthians 1:20 (NIV)
“For no matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘Yes’ in Christ. And so through him the ‘Amen’ is spoken by us to the glory of God.”
John 14:6 (NIV)
“Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’”
In Jesus Christ—that is, for every person who is united with and grafted into Jesus Christ, for the new creation—the heavenly realm and the earthly realm are now and forever joined together.
This is part of the divine and eternal plan that the Father had purposed in Himself before the foundation of the world, before anything had been created. This plan to bring the heavenly and the earthly together in Jesus Christ was put into effect through the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Our spirit in heaven, and our soul and body on earth, have been brought together in Jesus Christ. They are therefore united at this very moment, as you read or hear these words. They are permanently united and indivisible.
Ephesians 1:9–10 (NIV)
“He made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.”
John 15:5 (NIV)
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”
The role of instruction is to awaken the soul to the reality of truths that cannot be perceived by the earthly part of our being, because these invisible truths become powerfully active when enlightened faith moves us to act.
Thus, when I drink the cup on earth—which, on earth, is only wine—I cause my spirit in heaven, in perfect synchronization, to drink from the supreme and true cup. My spirit drinks the blood of the One who has redeemed us from every sin, every curse, and every sickness.
When I partake of the Lord’s Supper with my body, I cause my spirit to drink Life—with a capital L. Each time I partake of the Lord’s Supper on earth, my spirit drinks the life of the One who is, and will remain for all eternity, the way, the truth, and the life.
John 14:6 (NIV)
“Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’”
This is what makes the Lord’s Supper so powerful here on earth, and it is surely one of the main reasons why the early Christians partook of it every day. This is why frequently partaking of the Lord’s Supper, with knowledge and faith, accelerates our healing and the restoration of our whole being.
And at the very moment when my earthly body eats the bread on earth—which, on earth, is only bread—through my faith enlightened by the Word and by the Spirit of God, my spirit, in perfect synchronization, feeds on the body of Christ, which is true food for the spirit. My spirit feeds on the spiritual flesh of the One who became a life-giving spirit—that is, the One who gives life!
My whole being is eating!
The Pharisees in Jesus’ time could not understand these mysterious words of Jesus, which for us can now become so clear:
John 6:55–57 (NIV)
“For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me.”
John 6:63 (NIV)
“The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life.”
The Lord’s Supper, when received with understanding and simplicity of heart, with a clear grasp of what has just been explained and with enlightened faith, enables us to receive into our whole being all the blessings that are in Jesus Christ: peace, health, renewal, and prosperity.
Nourish your spirit as well by partaking of the Lord’s Supper. Our part is simply to partake of it as often as possible. God, who is faithful, then nourishes our whole being—spirit, soul, and body—with the very best He has for us. He has given us a simple, free, and accessible way to strengthen ourselves!
1 Thessalonians 5:23 (NIV)
“May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
It is therefore not surprising that this sacrament has been so subtly attacked, to the point that in some churches it is celebrated only once a month, for obscure logistical or other reasons. The early church broke bread every day in their homes, and it grew in strength and wisdom.
Acts 2:46–47 (NIV)
“Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.”