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Faith, accordingly, is the indispensable requisite for the reception of the sacrament. Granted, the truth of the sacrament does not depend on faith. For just as in the case of the Word, so in the case of the Supper, God has obligated himself truly to bestow Christ and all his benefits on everyone who believes. But the unbeliever, in the nature of the case, receives only the sign, just as in the case of the Word that one hears only the sound and does not receive the thing denoted by the Word. Needed—to receive the promises and benefits of Word and sacrament—therefore, is a working of the Holy Spirit in the heart of a person; and it is precisely this working of the Spirit that effects and maintains this communion with Christ, both apart from and in the Lord’s Supper.