“And as they 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” (Matt. 26:26). As Jesus was instituting this Supper among His disciples, note in particular what He did with the bread. He picked it up, and then He …
Doctrines on a Page
Let us never overlook the obvious. The Lord feeds His people. He does not call out a people from the world in order to let them starve. His grace is all-sufficient, and He loves to feed us in remarkable ways, and in remarkable places. The wilderness is no barrier for Him—water flows from the Rock, …
Everyone Loves a Parade
We know that formal liturgy is required by God, and that Paul told the Colossians that he rejoiced to hear of their good order. We also know that He has fashioned the creation in such a way that liturgy of some sort is inescapable. Every congregation of Christians in the history of the world has …
Need As Our Glory
Eating is one of the enormous mysteries of life, and one of the greatest aspects of this mystery is how readily we drift into assuming how ordinary it is. But there is nothing ordinary about eating at all—not even with non-sacramental eating. How is it possible for life to be sustained by this means? As …
Reading Or Eating?
God has given us this meal as a sign and seal of the unity we have with Him, and consequently of the unity we have with one another. But, not surprisingly, we have responded like a nation of dufflepuds, using the meal of unity as one of the principle points of disunity. We have read, …
More Thanks
The predominant emotion that should be present as we partake of the Lord’s Supper should be gratitude and thanksgiving. One of the ancient names for this meal is that of the Eucharist. This comes from the Greek word for thanksgiving, eucharisto. In fact, if our holiday of Thanksgiving were to be given a Greek name, …
The Companionship of Saints
In taking part in this meal, we are the Lord’s companions. The word companion originally meant to share bread together with someone. The com means together, and panis is the word for bread. We are the Lord’s companions. This sounds wonderful to us, but there is a hitch. Everyone else who comes to this Table …
The Context of the Institution
We know that the Lord Jesus is the one who established this meal, but when did He do so. He did this in the general context of the Passover meal, but there is also a distinction made. Luke tells us that He presented the cup of the new testament “after supper” (Luke 22:20). But He …
No Diminishment of the Word
The sinful heart is prone to error, even in necessary corrections. While many Christians have overemphasized the Word, to the neglect of the sacraments, if we are seeking to correct this, we must guard against an over-correction. Many assume that we cannot honor the Table unless we minimize the Word. But the Word preached is …
Wine or Ditch Water
There are only two tables in the world. The one is the Table of the Lord, the true Table, the place when life is offered and served. The other is the table of demons, the table of death. God has established a complete antithesis between the two, the difference between life and death, heaven and …