"In the eight place, when the ancients disputed concerning the participation of unworthy communicants in the Supper, they very clearly showed what the ancient church thought regarding the substance of the Lord's Supper, that is, what is present and distributed in the celebration of the Lord's Supper together with the bread and the wine, and that this is not received only spiritually by faith but also in the mouths of the participants. For those who eat unworthily eat judgment to themselves, and it is certain that their soul is not spiritually through faith eating the body and drinking the blood of Christ. For to eat and drink spiritually is to embrace Christ by faith, so that we draw life from Him and thereby became participants in Christ and in all His benefits unto righteousness and salvation. The question therefore is what is distributed to the unworthy in the Lord's Supper, and what they receive when they eat, since it is certain that they are not spiritually eating the body and blood of Christ. Many of the adversaries feel that only the external signs are distributed to the unworthy and only the elements of bread and wine are taken into their mouth. But Calvin and his followers see that the words of institution very strongly oppose this notion. For Christ did not make a twofold institution of His Supper, one for the worthy and another for the unworthy, so that to Peter the words do indeed mean: 'Take, eat; this is My body,' but to Judas the words are different, namely: 'Take, eat; this is only plain bread.' But He says in general to all who come to the Supper: 'Take, eat; this is My body.'Thus when Paul writes to the Corinthians, among them there were many who were eating and drinking judgment to themselves, he does not vary the words of institution, so that he says to the unworthy: 'Take, eat and drink; these are only bare symbols of bread and wine.' And Calvin concedes that in the use of the Lord's Supper not only are the external symbols of bread and wine offered to all who eat, both worthy and unworthy, but at the same time also the body and blood of Christ. But he holds that the body and blood of Christ are not received by all, but only by the believers. Now if this is understood to refer to the spiritual reception through faith unto salvation, then it is true. But Calvin extends this also to the sacramental reception, so that what those who eat unworthily in the Lord's Supper receive in their mouth is not the body and blood of Christ but only bread and wine.
But the words of institution in no way sustain this meaning. For if because of the words of distribution Calvin is forced to concede that in the sacramental distribution the body and blood of Christ are offered to all the participants in the Supper together with the symbols, then it is most manifest that in the institution there are, so to speak, not only words of distribution but also words of reception or participation: 'Take, eat, drink.' And these words: 'This is My body, this is My blood,' do not refer only to the words of distribution ('He gave it to them') but more properly pertain to the words of reception: 'Take, eat, drink; this is My body, this is My blood.' Therefore the Son of God says in general to all who partake of this Supper, whether they eat worthily or unworthily: 'What you are receiving, eating, and drinking, this is My body and My blood.' For the genuineness and integrity of the sacraments does not depend on the worthiness or unworthiness of either those who distribute or those who receive, but it rests solely on the divine institution. Therefore in 1 Cor. 10, where Paul is disputing about those who provoke the wrath of God because they participate at the same time at the table of the Lord and the table of demons, he is saying in a comprehensive way that the cup of blessing which we bless is the communion of the blood of Christ and that the bread which we break is the communion of the body of Christ. Moreover, in this passage Paul speaks very clearly not only of the distribution but also of the reception or participation. Therefore the substance of the Lord's Supper, which does not consist only of the external symbols but also of the very body and blood of Christ, as it is offered and distributed to all who partake at the Supper, whether worthy or unworthy, is thus also received by all. For the distribution and reception are joined together: 'He gave it to them saying, 'Take, eat, drink; this is My body, this is My blood.'' But the salutary use or benefits accrues only to the believers. The unworthy eat judgment to themselves, as Mark says, namely, that they all drank from the cup concerning which Christ pronounced: 'This is My blood,' but not all of them did this in memory of Christ. For Judas drank judgment to himself."
Martin Chemnitz, The Lord's Supper, p.171-173
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