Theology That Bites Back
A common mistake with regard to the Lord’s Table is that of thinking that something is happening here that never happens anywhere else in the world. But it would be more accurate to say that the thing that distinguishes this Table is with whom it happens . . . not what happens. This is what …
The Holy Spirit is present with us here, now. As we come to this Table, He is the one who makes it all efficacious. Now He is always at work, regardless of our disheveled condition. He deals with us when we come prepared as we should have been prepared, and He deals with us when …
We are finite beings, limited and bounded. And yet, the way we were created, we expend energy. This means that we run down, like Double A batteries do. We run out. We get depleted. On the physical level, this is what food and drink do. They nourish us. They build us up. They strengthen us. …
A Performative Act The words of institution for this Supper are a performative act. They are not magic words that change the bread and wine into anything else, but yet, at the same time, we really do partake of the Lord Jesus by faith. That it is not a miracle can be seen in the …
Because we live in a time that does not understand covenants, and which makes personal choice the foundation of everything, we sometimes do not know how to respond to people who are on the verge of walking away from the most solemn commitments. We believe that our loyalties and our commitments are assigned to us. …
Because our church community is growing so rapidly, it is necessary for us to remind you of certain things from time to time, and this is one such reminder. If you are new to our community, as many of you are, you may have noticed that our children worship together with us, though the entire …
The Lord Jesus gave His followers a commission to disciple all the nations of the earth. These are the marching orders. This is why we are here, and not whisked straight off to Heaven. This is a tall order because the world does not want to be converted. The world loves its sin, and wants …
“And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19). Knowing and understanding are certainly important, but knowledge is built upon doing, not the other way around. In the verse I just read …
At this Table, God delights to feed us. But God does not just feed us, He prepares us to be fed. He undertakes the feeding, and He undertakes the preparation for feeding. Of course, the preparations began before the foundation of the world, when God the Father elected a people for Himself. And the preparations …
As we come to this Table, it is natural for us to think about what we are doing. We want to understand the meaning of the sacrament, we want to reflect on it as we come, we want to have departed from all known sin, and we want to look around so that we might …
