Roman Catholics today are commanded to believe the following concerning taking their ‘Eucharist’ in the form of a ‘communion wafer’ (which incidentally excludes the wine) as a religious ‘rite’ that they also call ‘communion.’ They believe;

“The whole substance of the bread and wine is CONVERTED into the actual and real entire body and blood of Christ.”

They call this unbiblical process “Transubstantiation.”

Catholics are commanded to believe in this RCC doctrine of ‘Transubstantiation’ because it was stated at the Council of Trent (11 October, 1551) and that this doctrine was Essential for Salvation. They pronounced curses on anyone who would deny it.

Yet, the fact is that this “Transubstantiation” is unbiblical and there is no saving merit in their so-called communion for anyone. In fact, Paul tells us there are no external physical doings to serve religious rites or rituals, no sabbaths, and no special food restrictions in effect today, under today’s Gentile “dispensation of the grace of God.” (cf. Col 2:16)

However, at the original Lord’s Supper, Jesus was seated in an upper room with and speaking to Israel’s remnant of Messianic believers. In fact, Jesus said He had come to address only “the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matt. 15:24). The Biblical Lord’s Supper is to be a repeated event for Israel only – it is not for Christians of today’s Gentile church called “the body of Christ.”

Of course, we as believing Gentiles of today’s age of “the dispensation of the Grace of God” know that we are saved freely and simply by our FAITH in Christ and His Cross-work… dying for us, for of sins and salvation. Our one “Apostle to the Gentiles,” Paul, wrote;

“… Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved…” (Acts 16:31)

“For By Grace Are Ye SAVED THROUGH FAITH; and that Not of Yourselves: It Is the Gift of God: ⁹ Not of works [it cannot be earned], lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Back to transubstantiation; Paschasius Radbertus was the first to formulate the doctrine of transubstantiation in the ninth (9^th) century. He was opposed by another Catholic, Ratranmus, a contemporary monk at the monastery of Corbie. Ratranmus wrote: “The bread and wine are the body and blood of Christ in a Figurative Sense.” Yet, Catholics today still support this error by taking the literal interpretation of Jesus words in Matthew 26:26-29.

“²⁶ And as they [Jesus’ disciples] were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, EAT; this is my body. ²⁷ And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; ²⁸ For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. ²⁹ But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of THIS fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.” (Matthew 26:26-29 (KJV)

Symbols Are Not Literal

Consider these reasons why the bread and wine were mere symbols of Christ’s body and blood, to be partaken as “in remembrance” only (1Cor. 11:24). There was no material conversion of the bread into the physical body, nor of the wine to the physical blood of Christ.

1. It was After saying “this is my blood” in Matthew 26:28 that Jesus said;

“²⁹ But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of THIS Fruit of the [grape] Vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.” in Matthew 26:29.

The word “THIS Fruit of the Vine” in the verse above indicates that the grape wine they were to drink was STILL WINE and as He was speaking, the wine had NOT been changed to blood.

2. Jesus often referred to Himself in metaphorically, by symbols. So why should we see Him as literal in the symbolic context He often used, as seen below?  

John 10:7 “I am the door.” Did Jesus mean he was literally wooden? No.

John 14:6 “I am the way.” Did Jesus mean he was literally a road? No.  

John 15:5 “I am the vine.” Did Jesus mean he was literally a tree? No.

John 8:12 “I am the light.” Did Jesus mean he was literally a torch or a sun? No.  

John 6:48 “I am the bread of life.” Did Jesus mean he was literally a loaf of dough? No.  

Here below Jesus states clearly that He was speaking ‘Spiritually,’ Not ‘Literally’:

“The Words that I speak unto you, they Are Spirit and they are Life.” (John 6:63)

Luke 22:19 states clearly that Israel’s Lord’s supper is for ‘remembrance’ purposes: “This do in remembrance of me.”

The bread and wine are metaphors, where one thing that is said… is to be seen as another thing… because of its similarity. A metaphor is a figurative use of terms without indicating their figurative nature; for example, “he shall eat his words.”

3. The bread and wine obviously did not become Christ’s body and blood because:

a) Note that Jesus was still present sitting right there with them. Otherwise, Christ would have had 2 bodies.

b) And, for and Israelite to drink blood was FORBIDDEN throughout the Scriptures, and as seen below.

Acts 15:20, 29 “We write unto them, that they Abstain From pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from BLOOD.”

Deuteronomy 12:16 “Only ye shall NOT eat the blood.”

4. In 1Cor 11:24 (below), the tense of the Greek verb “EAT” could be considered in the AORIST tense, indicating a ‘ONCE-FOR-ALL point action’ on that day, NOT CONTINUAL.

“And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, EAT: this is [as] my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.” (1 Corinthians 11:24 (KJV)

Paul, “the Apostle to the Gentiles,” by contrast, pronounced a double curse on anyone who preached a gospel different from the all sufficiency of Christ’s death, burial and resurrection to save us from our sins. To add any ritual practices to God’s grace in the Cross of His Son were an offense to the sufficiency of Christ’s Cross-work. Galatians 1:6-9 puts a double curse on “any other gospel” which would include the RCC’s claims of transubstantiation for salvation. We need to listen to our Apostle for this grace age.

“If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I [PAUL] write unto you are The Commandments of The Lord.” (1 Corinthians 14:37)

5. Before Christ ascended to heaven, He promised to come again to His believing remnant of Israel, His “little flock” (Luke 12:32), NOT in the sacrifice of the RCC MASS.

1. He returned first as the Holy Spirit (John 14:16-18) as The Comforter:

“He [the Father] shall give you another Comforter ... even the Spirit of truth ... I will not leave you comfortless: I WILL COME TO YOU [Israel].”

2. Christ Will Later LITERALLY RETURN TO EARTH a Second Time Visibly in wrath to Save Israel at the end of the 7-year Tribulation and to set up His Millennial Kingdom. This is what is meant by;

“²⁶ For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death TILL HE COME. 1 Corinthians 11:26 (KJV)

Note: This means that Christ does not come literally and visibly as the wafer in the RCC Mass.

By contrast, He will come for us Gentile Christian grace believers of this age “to the air” as seen in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, 1Cor. 15:51-55, and then… approximately 7 years later He will return to Israel on earth in His 2^nd coming, to save Israel and set up His Millennial kingdom on earth.

6. Note that Catholics today only get the wafer, NOT the wine and this is why. At their manmade religious Council of Constance in 1415, it was agreed to withhold the cup from the congregation lest the wine be spilt. This then contradicts 1 Corinthians 11:25-29 where ALL the Messianic Jewish Corinthian believers drank of the wine:

“Whosoever [any of you] shall eat this bread and drink this cup …” v.27.

Drinking the cup is mentioned six times in five verses.

It is clear that “Transubstantiation” is not a mystery, but an absurdity; not a difficulty but a contradiction with Scripture.

QUESTION: Okay then, “How then does one we eat His flesh and drink His blood?”

ANSWER: It is through reading and study that we take in “The WORD OF GOD” by faith.

John 6:63 “The WORDS that I [Jesus] speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.”

John 1:14 Of Jesus it is written; “And the WORD was made flesh.”

John 5:24 “He that heareth my WORD and BELIEVETH on him that sent me, has everlasting life.”

The scribes of Israel who knew the Scripture and understood the idea of receiving God’s WORD INTO ONE’S INNER BEING... into the heart and mind of their souls.

“I will put my law [the written WORDS of the LAW] in their inward parts,” (Jeremiah 31:31-34)

“Thy WORDS were found and I DID EAT THEM; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart,” (Jeremiah 15:16)

Peter as the “Apostle to the circumcision [Israel]” got the message, while others planned to desert Jesus, saying to Jesus;

“Thou [You, Jesus] hast the WORDS of eternal life.” John 6:68.

“Being born again ... by the WORD of God.” 1 Peter 1:23-25.

Peter knew that Jesus was speaking about the WORD of God, and not about literal flesh and blood.

Question: If this RCC doctrine of transubstantiation only arose in the 9th century, and if it is so necessary to Roman Catholic salvation, then what happened to those who lived before the 9^th century not believing this doctrine? Did they all go to hell?

Question: What about ‘the thief on the cross’ who repented and never took the wafer? Did he go to hell? 

NO! Jesus said ‘the thief on the cross’ will one-day go to paradise. That will occur with “the first resurrection” of Israel’s Dead Believers at the end of the 7-year Tribulation Period (cf. Revelation 20:6), for them to reign with Christ in the Millennium.

“Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.” Revelation 20:6 (KJV)

Roman Catholics today are commanded to believe the following concerning taking their ‘Eucharist’ in the form of a ‘communion wafer’ (which incidentally excludes the wine) as a religious ‘rite’ that they also call ‘communion.’ They believe;

“The whole substance of the bread and wine is CONVERTED into the actual and real entire body and blood of Christ.”

They call this unbiblical process “Transubstantiation.”

Catholics are commanded to believe in this RCC doctrine of ‘Transubstantiation’ because it was stated at the Council of Trent (11 October, 1551) and that this doctrine was Essential For Salvation. They pronounced curses on anyone who would deny it.

Yet, the fact is that such “Transubstantiation” is unbiblical and thus it has no saving merit in their so-called communion for anyone. In fact, Paul tells us there are no external doings to serve religious rites or rituals, no sabbaths, and no special food restrictions are in effect today under today’s Gentile “dispensation of the grace of God.” (cf. Col 2:16)

However, at the original Lord’s Supper, Jesus was seated in the upper room with and speaking to Israel’s remnant of Messianic believers. In fact, Jesus said He had come to address only “the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matt. 15:24). The Biblical Lord’s Supper is to be a repeated event for Israel only – it is not for Christians of today’s Gentile church called “the body of Christ.”

Of course, we as believing Gentiles of today’s age of “the dispensation of the Grace of God” know that we are saved freely and simply by our FAITH in Christ and His Cross-work… dying for us, for of sins and salvation. Our one “Apostle to the Gentiles,” Paul, wrote;

“… Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved…” (Acts 16:31)

“For By Grace Are Ye SAVED THROUGH FAITH; and that Not of Yourselves: It Is the Gift of God: ⁹ Not of works [it cannot be earned], lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Back to transubstantiation; Paschasius Radbertus was the first to formulate the doctrine of transubstantiation in the ninth (9^th) century. He was opposed by another Catholic, Ratranmus, a contemporary monk at the monastery of Corbie. Ratranmus wrote: “The bread and wine are the body and blood of Christ in a Figurative Sense.” Yet, Catholics today still support this error by taking the literal interpretation of Jesus words in Matthew 26:26-29.

“²⁶ And as they [Jesus’ disciples] were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, EAT; this is my body. ²⁷ And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; ²⁸ For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. ²⁹ But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of THIS fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.” (Matthew 26:26-29 (KJV)

Symbols Are Not Literal

Consider these reasons why the bread and wine were mere symbols of Christ’s body and blood, to be partaken as “in remembrance” only (1Cor. 11:24) There was no material conversion of the bread to the body, nor of the wine to the blood of Christ.

1. After saying “this is my blood” in Matthew 26:28 Jesus also said

“²⁹ But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of THIS Fruit of the [grape] Vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.” in Matthew 26:29.

The word “THIS” in the verse above indicates that the grape wine they were to drink was STILL WINE and had NOT been changed to blood.

2. Jesus often referred to Himself in metaphorically, by symbols. So why should we see Him as literal in the symbolic context He often used, as seen below?  

John 10:7 “I am the door.” Did Jesus mean he was literally wooden? No.

John 14:6 “I am the way.” Did Jesus mean he was literally a road? No.  

John 15:5 “I am the vine.” Did Jesus mean he was literally a tree? No.

John 8:12 “I am the light.” Did Jesus mean he was literally a torch or a sun? No.  

John 6:48 “I am the bread of life.” Did Jesus mean he was literally a loaf of dough? No.  

Here below Jesus states clearly that He was speaking Spiritually, Not Literally:

“The Words that I speak unto you, they Are Spirit and they are Life.” (John 6:63)

Luke 22:19 states clearly that the Lord’s supper is for remembrance purposes: “This do in remembrance of me.”

This is a metaphor, where one thing that is said… is to be seen as another thing… because of its similarity. A metaphor is a figurative use of terms without indicating their figurative nature, for example, “he shall eat his words.”

3. The bread and wine obviously did not become Christ’s body and blood because:

a) Note that Jesus was still present sitting right there with them. Otherwise, Christ would have had 2 bodies.

b) To drink blood was FORBIDDEN throughout the Scriptures, and also in Acts 15:20, 29.

Acts 15:20, 29 “We write unto them, that they Abstain From pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from BLOOD.”

Deuteronomy 12:16 “Only ye shall NOT eat the blood.”

4. In 1Cor 11:24 [below], the tense of the Greek verb “EAT” could be considered in the AORIST tense, indicating a ONCE-FOR-ALL point action, NOT CONTINUAL.

“And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, EAT: this is [as] my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.” (1 Corinthians 11:24 (KJV)

Paul “the Apostle to the Gentiles,” in contrast, pronounced a double curse on anyone who preached a gospel different from the all sufficiency of Christ’s death, burial and resurrection to save us from our sins. To add any ritual practices to God’s grace in the Cross of His Son were an offense to the sufficiency of Christ’s Cross-work. Galatians 1:6-9 puts a double curse on “any other gospel” which would include the RCC’s claims of transubstantiation for salvation.

“If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I [PAUL] write unto you are The Commandments of The Lord.” (1 Corinthians 14:37)

5. Before Christ ascended to heaven, He promised to come again to His believing remnant of Israel, His “little flock” (Luke 12:32), NOT in the sacrifice of the RCC MASS.

1. He returned first as the Holy Spirit (John 14:16-18 as The Comforter:

“He [the Father] shall give you another Comforter ... even the Spirit of truth ... I will not leave you comfortless: I WILL COME TO YOU [Israel].”

2. Christ Will Later Literally Return to Earth a Second Time Visibly in wrath to Save Israel at the end of the 7-year Tribulation and to set up His Millennial Kingdom. This is what is meant by;

“²⁶ For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death Till He Come. 1 Corinthians 11:26 (KJV)

Note: This means that Christ does not come literally and visibly as the wafer in the mass. He will come for us Gentile Christian grace believers of this age “to the air” as seen in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 and… and approximately 7 years later He will return to Israel on earth in His 2^nd coming, to save Israel and set up His Millennial kingdom on earth.

6. Catholics today only get the wafer, not the wine and this is why. At their manmade religious Council of Constance in 1415, it was agreed to withhold the cup from the congregation lest the wine be spilt. However, this contradicts 1 Corinthians 11:25-29 where ALL the Messianic Jewish Corinthian believers drank of the wine: “Whosoever [of you] shall eat this bread and drink this cup …” v.27. Drinking the cup is mentioned six times in five verses.

Transubstantiation is not a mystery, but an absurdity; not a difficulty but a contradiction with Scripture.

QUESTION: Okay then, “how then does one we eat His flesh and drink His blood?”

ANSWER: It is through the “WORD OF GOD.”

John 6:63 “The words that I [Jesus] speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.”

John 1:14 Of Jesus it is written; “And the Word was made flesh.”

John 5:24 “He that heareth my Word and believeth on him that sent me, has everlasting life.”

The scribes of Israel who knew the Scripture and they understood the idea of receiving God’s Word Into One’s Inner Being... into the heart and mind of their souls.

“I will put my law [the written WORDS of the LAW] in their inward parts,” (Jeremiah 31:31-34)

“Thy WORDS were found and I DID EAT THEM; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart,” (Jeremiah 15:16)

Peter as the “Apostle to the circumcision [Israel]” got the message, while others planned to desert Jesus, saying to Jesus;

“Thou [You, Jesus] hast the WORDS of eternal life.” John 6:68.

“Being born again ... by the WORD of God.” 1 Peter 1:23-25.

Peter knew that Jesus was speaking about the WORD of God, and not about literal flesh and blood.

Question: If this RCC doctrine of transubstantiation only arose in the 9th century, and if it is so necessary to Roman Catholic salvation, then what happened to those who lived before the 9^th century not believing this doctrine? Did they all go to hell?

Question: What about ‘the thief on the cross’ who repented and never took the wafer? Did he go to hell? 

NO! Jesus said ‘the thief on the cross’ will one-day go to paradise. That will occur with First Resurrection of Israel’s Dead Believers at the end of the 7-year Tribulation Period (cf. Revelation 20:6) for them to reign with Christ in the Millennium.

“Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.” Revelation 20:6 (KJV)