When we come to the Table of the Lord like this, we are not coming to receive any kind of reward. This is not the laurel crown for winners at the end of the race. This is the meal you eat before the race. And all are invited equally to partake of this meal—indeed, since, …
Can’t Even See the Tablecloth
The eating of this meal is annexed to a great promise made by Jesus Christ. He says that unless we eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink His blood, we have no life in us. Conversely, if we partake, then Jesus Christ promises to raise us up at the last day. “This …
The Aisle of Heaven’s Cathedral
The glory that is developing at this Table is far greater than any mortal man can imagine. We do not know the height, or breadth or depth of it—although the apostle prays that we might begin our lessons. He prays that the saints would be able to know that which surpasses knowledge, to grasp the …
They Shall All Be Taught of God
Our Lord quoted the prophets, saying that it is written there that “they shall all be taught of God.” Jesus interpreted this as meaning that everyone who had heard, and has learned from the Father, comes necessarily to Jesus Christ. This is not to be taken as meaning that anyone can just snap their fingers …
Christ In All
When Jesus taught that He was the bread of life, come down from heaven, His listeners grumbled at Him. How was this possible, they asked? This was Jesus, after all, and they knew Joseph and Mary. How was it possible that He came down from heaven? Jesus answered them as said that they should not …
Koinonia or Conflict
The Lord Jesus is seated at the head of this Table, in His resurrected triumph, and yet this is also a meal where His body and blood are on the Table. Not only this, but He teaches us that we are His body, we are of His flesh and of His bone. We are one …
Getting the Direct Object Right
Jesus said that it was the Father’s will that He, Jesus, lose no one that had been given to Him. He said further that it was the will of God that such individuals be raised up at the last day. Who receives this gift? Jesus said that it applied to everyone who sees the Son …
The World Is Full of Losers
The world is full of losers, and there is no one who is not a loser. And yet, left to our own devices, we always construct religious systems based on work, striving, earning, winning. Perpetual losers, bred to the bone losers, we insist on devising and pursuing the calculus of success and winning. Jesus is …
Believing Is Seeing
After Jesus told His followers that they must believe God since this was the work of God, they immediately asked for a sign. They were asking for a sign when the one signified by any possible sign was standing right there in front of them. And from this we learn that without possession of the …
Grace in a High Chair
When Jesus taught His disciples that they should not labor for the meat that perishes, their response was to ask what work they should do in order to work the works of God. Jesus replied that the work of God was that they would believe on the one whom God had sent. They asked what …