There's a section of Luther's Small Catechism that most people — even lifelong Lutherans — have never read. It's not because it's hidden. It's right there in many editions of the catechism, and in the Lutheran Service Book on pages 329 and 330. But it doesn't get much attention, and a lot of people who grew up going through confirmation class never encountered it.
It's called Christian Questions and Their Answers. And it was written specifically to prepare you to receive the Lord's Supper.
A Little Background
When Luther published his Small Catechism in 1529, these questions weren't part of it. Luther died in 1547, and this document — apparently something Luther himself had written — was added to the catechism in 1551. The people who added it recognized what it was: something genuinely valuable and helpful for anyone preparing to come to the altar and receive Holy Communion.
If you grew up in the Lutheran church, you likely went through catechism classes for a couple of years, usually in seventh and eighth grade. And during that time, you covered a lot of ground on the Sacrament of the Altar. What is it? Where is it in the Bible? What do you receive there? How should you approach it?
But Christian Questions and Their Answers — those 20 questions designed to help you actually prepare in the moments before you receive — may have been skipped over. And that's worth revisiting.
What We Already Know About the Lord's Supper
In confirmation class, there are some essential questions that get covered about the Sacrament of the Altar. What is it? It's Jesus' body and blood, given for the forgiveness of sins, received in, with, and under the bread and wine. The words of institution — the words Jesus spoke when he established this sacrament — are recorded in Matthew, Mark, and Luke, in the accounts of that night Jesus was betrayed. And in 1 Corinthians 11, Paul gives an extended account of those same words and what they mean for how we receive the sacrament.
We learn that in the Lord's Supper, we receive forgiveness of sins. And where there is forgiveness of sins, there is also life and salvation. The Holy Spirit strengthens our faith when we receive. These are real gifts, given by Christ himself through these very humble, ordinary-looking elements of bread and wine.
One of the questions that comes up in catechism — and one worth thinking about — is how bodily eating and drinking can do such great things. And the answer is that it's not really about the physical act itself. It's about God's promise. When you eat the bread and drink the wine that have been connected to God's Word and promise, you are receiving what Jesus said you are receiving: his body and blood, for the forgiveness of sins.
What Does It Mean to Receive Worthily?
There's a question in the catechism about who receives the sacrament worthily. And the answer is worth sitting with: fasting and bodily preparation are fine outward things, but the one who receives worthily is the person who truly believes the words "given and shed for you." Because those words require all hearts to believe.
This matters because of what 1 Corinthians 11 teaches — that receiving the Lord's Supper in an unworthy manner, not recognizing the body and blood of Christ, brings judgment. That's a serious thing. And it's why the church takes care around who is welcomed to the altar.
Sometimes people feel a little uncomfortable when a church says that not everyone should receive the Lord's Supper — that if you haven't been catechized, if you haven't been prepared, there may be a reason to wait. It can feel unwelcoming, even standoffish. But that caution is actually an act of love. If receiving unworthily brings harm, then protecting someone from receiving before they're ready is caring for them, not excluding them.
In, With, and Under
One of the distinctively Lutheran ways of talking about the Lord's Supper is the phrase "in, with, and under the bread and wine." It's worth pausing on this because different Christian traditions explain the Lord's Supper differently.
Some traditions believe that the bread and wine become Jesus' body and blood in such a way that the bread and wine are no longer there — that a complete transformation takes place. Lutherans don't teach that. You can look at the bread and clearly see that it's bread. Same with the wine.
But Lutherans also don't believe the Lord's Supper is merely symbolic — a remembrance in the sense that we're just calling to mind something that happened a long time ago. We genuinely believe that when we eat the bread, we are eating Jesus' body, and when we drink the wine, we are drinking his blood, just as he said.
The phrase "in, with, and under" is really a way of saying: we don't fully understand how this works, but we trust what Jesus said. He promised that this is what we're receiving. And so we take him at his word — that when we come to that altar and eat and drink, we are receiving his body and blood for the forgiveness of sins, for life, for salvation.
So How Do You Prepare?
With all of that as the backdrop — the incredible gift being offered, the real stakes of receiving unworthily, the mystery of what God is doing in these humble elements — the question becomes: how do you prepare to receive this?
That's exactly what Christian Questions and Their Answers is designed to help with. There are 20 questions in this section, and they're not abstract or academic. They're deeply personal. Here are a few of them:
- Do you believe you are a sinner?
- How do you know this?
- Are you sorry for your sins?
- What have you deserved from God because of your sins?
- Do you hope to be saved?
- In whom do you trust?
You can see what these questions are doing. They're not a checklist to make you feel worthy. They're placing you in an honest relationship with God — pointing you to your need, your sin, and your only real source of hope. The answer to "In whom do you trust?" isn't complicated. There's only one answer: our dear Lord Jesus Christ.
The full list of 20 questions can be found in many editions of Luther's Small Catechism, and in the Lutheran Service Book on pages 329 and 330. Here is a link to all 20 questions.
An Invitation to a Different Kind of Preparation
The next time you come to church and prepare to receive the Lord's Supper, consider taking some time before the service to prayerfully go through those questions. Read them slowly. Think about them. Sit with the ones that require honest answers.
Not so that you can arrive at the altar feeling like you've earned something, or like you've finally made yourself worthy. That's not the point. The Lord's Supper isn't a reward for the spiritually prepared — it's a gift from Jesus, given to people who know they need it.
The point of those questions is to move you from distraction, from the noise of the day, from going through motions — to a real, personal encounter with Christ. To help you arrive at that altar aware of your need and aware of the gift being given. To come forward not because you've checked all the boxes, but because Jesus himself has invited you, and because his promises are for you.
As you consider the wonder of what God is doing in those humble forms of bread and wine, the hope is that you'll come forward with a real sense of awe — and with joy. Because what you're receiving there is not a symbol. It's Jesus, giving himself to you, for the forgiveness of all your sins.
These questions are a tool to help you think about those things and to receive this gift well. Take a few minutes with them before you come forward. You might find it changes the way you experience the Lord's Supper entirely.
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