How to Defend the Real Presence and Have Fun Doing It

By Rev.Tim Pauls

“You actually believe that Jesus is really present in bread and wine?” A couple of issues back, we noted that a lot of our fellow Christians don’t understand why we baptize babies, so we provided a few answers to their arguments. Another topic of contention is our doctrine of the Real Presence, that in the Lord’s Supper Jesus gives us His Body and Blood in, with, and under the bread and wine. That’s what makes Holy Communion a holy communion after all. But along the way, you’re likely to be challenged for this doctrine, so here are a few of the common criticisms and suggestions on how to respond.

Tedious Grammatical Arguments Made Funner. Oops. I Mean,More Funner.

1. “When Jesus said,‘This is My body,’ He meant, ‘This represents My body.’”

Response: “Ah. So when Jesus said, ‘This is My body,’ He really meant, ‘This is not My body?’” Reason: Can “is” really mean “is not?” They sure sound like opposites to me. In fact, while I’ve often heard that “‘is” doesn’t always mean “is,” my quick check of online dictionaries couldn’t find a definition where that’s true. This clarifies how bad the argument against you is—it turns the word “is” into its opposite. You could always follow up with, “When God said,‘ Let there be light,’ did He mean ‘Let there not be light’?”

2.“When Jesus said, ‘This is My body,’ He meant, ‘This symbolizes My body.’ The bread and wine are just symbols or signs.”

Response #1: Same as above.

Response #2: “If you’re at the mall, and you see a sign with a fire extinguisher on it, what else do you find?”

Reason: You find a fire extinguisher—not a poster that tells you that the extinguisher is with you in spirit. This may sound dumb, but it’s important. This argument is that the bread and wine are symbols because Jesus’ Body and Blood aren’t there. But signs and symbols are often found exactly where things are—to announce a presence! Lutherans have sometimes referred to the bread and wine as signs, but only because they announce the Savior who is present but unseen.

Response #3: Why didn’t Jesus just say what He meant?

Reason: The arguments against the Real Presence must always try to change the simple words, “This is my body” into what Jesus “really meant.” So why didn’t the Savior say what He really meant? Why allow centuries of strife among Christians when He could have prevented it in the first place? Unless, of course, Jesus really meant what He said, which is “This is My body!”

3. “Jesus said,‘I am the door’ (John 10:9). But Jesus obviously isn’t a door. Therefore, ‘is’ doesn’t always mean ‘is.’”

Response: “So Jesus symbolizes some door?”

Reason: This one is tedious, but be ready anyway. The argument so far has been that “is” means “represents” or “symbolizes.” In this case, it should mean that when Jesus says, “I am the door,” He really means, “I symbolize the door.” Except that it doesn’t make sense: the door symbolizes Jesus, not the other way around.Therefore, Jesus must really mean,“I am symbolized by the door.” He really meant to use a passive verb, but He used an active one instead.

Logically, “am” hasn’t changed its meaning in “I am the door.” It still means “am,” not “am symbolized by.” “Door” can also mean “doorway” or “entry.” Jesus is saying, “I am the entry [into the sheepfold],” just like He says elsewhere, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life” (John 14:6). (We could even say that Jesus is the Door and sets the standard for all doors—and every door you ever use should remind you of Him.)

4. “Jesus can’t be present in all that bread and wine, because His body was a finite thing, and His body is at the right hand of God. Aren’t you denying that Jesus was human?”

Response: “When Jesus walked on water, was He wearing pontoons?”

Reason: Human bodies can’t walk on water, but Jesus did. He walked on water even though He was fully man because He was also the Son of God. The risen Jesus appeared to His disciples in a locked room (John 20:19): human bodies can’t just materialize like that either. The Lord can do whatever He wants. The Real Presence doesn’t deny that Jesus is human. Rather, it affirms that He is also God.

Dreary Philosophical Rationales

5. “The Son of God is infinite. Bread and wine are finite. You can’t fit something infinite into something finite. Aren’t you denying that Jesus was God?”

Response: “How could Jesus be a baby inside Mary’s womb?”

Reason: This objection is good physics but crummy theology. The Lord has a long history of occupying finite spaces, like the burning bush, the Holy of holies in the temple, Mary’s womb and a human body. Could Jesus be present in bread and wine? Yes, if He wills. The Real Presence doesn’t deny the divinity of Jesus. Rather, like the Incarnation, it affirms His humanity.

6. “Wouldn’t this make y’all cannibals at your church?”

Response #1: “Yes.That’s why I invited you.” (If possible, hold up a fork and stare creepily.)

Response #2: “When Jesus rose from the dead, did He teleport out of the tomb?”

Reason: Ok, Response #1 might not get you very far.The point of Response #2 is this: Jesus left the tomb before the stone was rolled away. He clearly got His body out of there in a way that violated the laws of physics—like through the wall. As Luther noted, this shows that Jesus can be really, physically present in something without occupying space in it. How? We don’t know, but He does. Likewise, Jesus is physically present in the bread and wine without occupying space in those elements.When the Body and Blood of Jesus go into one’s mouth, the teeth bite something that occupies space—bread and wine. Faith receives Jesus’ physical body and blood.

Lutherans have always condemned the accusation that we actually chew the Lord’s Body. If you’re accused of being a cannibal, though, you’re in good company. Early Christians were persecuted because they were rumored to be cannibals for the same reason. (Hey, wait a second! How come those early Christians didn’t make sure everybody knew that Jesus really meant to say, “This represents my Body but really isn’t?” They could have avoided a whole lot of suffering, but they believed in the Real Presence, so much so that they were willing to die for it.)

You get the idea. Rather than try to figure out what Jesus really meant or make Him obey the laws of physics, rejoice in this simple truth: when Jesus said, “This is My body,” that’s exactly what He meant to say. In the Lord’s Supper, you find Jesus’ Body and Blood, given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins just like He said.

Pastor Tim Pauls is the associate pastor of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Boise, Idaho. He is also the editor of Higher Things Magazine.