This Is My Body: How We Understand the Lord’s Supper

It may surprise some people to know that former President Bill Clinton was not the first person to suggest that a lot can hinge upon what one’s understanding of the word “is” is!  When Jesus says, “This is my body,” what does “is” mean?  How are we to understand Jesus when he refers to the bread as his “body” and the cup as his “blood” in instituting the sacrament of the Supper (Mat. 26:26-27)? On the third Sunday of every month, the congregation at New Life celebrates the Lord’s Supper, but what exactly is happening when we partake of the bread and the cup?  There is, undoubtedly, mystery involved in the Lord’s Supper, but just what that mystery precisely is has been an area of debate in the church, especially since the time of the Protestant Reformation.

There have been basically four ways of understanding Jesus’ words of institution. Some understand the Lord’s Supper to be merely a memorial that recalls the death of Jesus for sinners in the giving of his body and the shedding of his blood.  This view regards the bread and the cup as purely symbolic and rejects the notion that by receiving the elements one partakes of Christ himself.

Over against this “memorialistic view”, others argue for the real presence of Christ in the sacrament.  For example, the Roman Catholic Church teaches that Christ is physically present – really and truly – as the elements of ordinary bread and wine are transformed through priestly consecration into the literal body and blood of Jesus.  Though outwardly the elements still look like, taste like, and smell like bread and wine, they are, in reality, the physical body and blood of Christ.  This view is referred to as transubstantiation.  Martin Luther rejected this view at the time of the Reformation and the Lutherans eventually formulated a view that has come to be called consubstantiation, in which the ordinary elements of bread and wine are not transformed into the body and blood of Christ but the physical body and blood are mysteriously “added” to the elements so as to be “in, with, and under” them.

Contrary to common assumptions, the historic Reformed position, following John Calvin’s interpretation of Jesus’ words, does not deny the real presence of Christ in the Lord’s Supper and does not regard the sacrament as merely a memorial.  Instead, the Reformed position argues that while the elements are not transformed into the physical body and blood of Christ, nor is the physical body and blood of Jesus “added” to the elements, Jesus is spiritually present – really and truly – in the sacrament.  So while we do not feed upon Christ with our mouths and teeth, we do feed upon Christ – really and truly – by faith to the nourishment of our souls.  As surely as our bodies are nourished and sustained physically by the bread and the cup, we can be certain that our souls, too, are nourished and sustained as we feed upon Jesus spiritually in the sacrament by faith.

One of the important implications of this view is that by receiving the bread and the cup, we are not simply pledging our consecration to God, but we are receiving God’s continuing work for us and in us as He nourishes us and our faith by drawing us into union with Christ and the saving benefits of the cross.  In other words, observing the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper isn’t primarily about us doing something for God; it is about God doing something for us. For this reason, many, including Calvin, have maintained that the Lord’s Supper should be observed and celebrated as often as possible.

In His Abounding Grace,

Brian

Imagine the Possibilities If Christians Simply Tithed

Two weeks ago, I delivered a sermon on the subject of wealth, particularly with regard to the teaching in Proverbs on the way Christians should handle money. One of the questions I submitted for discussion in Life Groups during the following week was this: imagine that all people at New Life were willing to give 10 percent or more of their income to the church. What could we do with that kind of money?

My hope is that your imaginations ran wild, and that you considered the various ministries that could be started, the missionaries we could support, the seminary students whose tuition we could supplement, the number of poor people in the community and in our church we could help, the single mothers we could assist, the aid we could provide to the Muncie Mission, the churches we could start planting, the mortgage debt that could be relieved, the plans we could make to expand our crowded sanctuary — all if Christians simply tithed.

The word “tithe” actually means 10 percent. It is commanded in various places in the Scriptures. For instance, Deut. 14:22 says: “Be sure to set aside a tenth of all that your fields produce each year.” The prophet Malachi spoke bluntly about the failure of God’s people to tithe: “Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me! But you ask, ‘How do we rob you?’ In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse — the whole nation of you, because you are robbing me.” (Mal. 3:8–9)

I personally have no knowledge of how much any of you gives to the church, and I plan to keep it that way. So I don’t have anyone in mind as I write this article. But I do know that tithing provides a great opportunity for you to tangibly demonstrate that you trust God, not your money, to meet your needs. Tithing is an act of faith, a counter-cultural declaration that you are willing to part with your wealth for the sake of God’s kingdom. Tithing is not just for the benefit of the church — it is for your own personal spiritual enrichment.

Donald Whitney put it simply: “The more we believe God will provide for our needs, the more we are willing to risk in giving to Him. And the less we trust God, the less we will give to Him.”

Some of you might like to give 10 percent of your income, but you feel it is currently impossible. Let me suggest that you increase your giving incrementally. If you give 2 percent of your income, try giving 5 percent. Then keep increasing your giving over time until you reach 10 percent. Better to do this incrementally than not at all.

You might feel the sting of sacrifice in this life when you give of your wealth, but when you meet Christ in glory in the next life, I assure you that you will not regret anything you have given to Jesus’ beloved church.

My love to you

In Christ

Bob

Finding Joy in the Kingdom

“Do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you. Do not be afraid, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.” ~Luke 12:29–32

This passage in Luke is often used for dealing with stressful situations. And rightly so, it is a charge to have faith in God and His work and provision in our lives. However, it can be easy to focus on the promise of God’s provision and miss the promise of the kingdom and our charge to seek it first in our lives. A couple of weeks ago I had the privilege of
visiting a church and experiencing a group of people truly excited and rejoicing in the spreading of the kingdom.

On October 10 Jessy and I and three of the girls from the Youth Group, Jessie Jordan, Jenna Bergman, and Kelsey Johnson, traveled to Tennessee. The purpose of this trip was to attend the Missions Conference at First Presbyterian Church in Chattanooga. For the past three years New Life has partnered with First Pres on the Mexico missions trips, and it has been so exciting to see the relationships that have formed between New Life and First Pres.

First Pres has a tremendous heart for and history with missions. The church was actually planted in 1838 by missionaries that came to witness to the Native Americans. Every year they have a weeklong missions conference where they invite over twenty missionaries to come and speak to the congregation, meet with the small groups and Bible studies, and share what God has been doing in their lives and ministries. It was exciting to see so many missionaries from all over the world and hear their exciting stories of God working and how the kingdom is growing. But it was also really exciting and encouraging to see a church body excited and focused on the work of the kingdom.

The girls and Jessy and I instantly felt welcomed and appreciated by the congregation. Not only did we receive a warm welcome and generous hospitality from our brothers and sisters at First Pres, but they also showed such joy and enthusiasm in our ministry and what God was doing at New Life. The girls mentioned that at times they felt like they were being treated just like the missionaries, because the congregation was so excited to hear from them too.

The church has several rooms that are dedicated to supplying missionaries with anything they might need like clothing, travel accessories, and luggage. One of the missionaries shared a story about how all of her luggage had been stolen, but because of the church’s passion for the kingdom God used them to meet all of her needs. This is a vivid example of the passage in Luke 12 at work. It was through First Pres’s kingdom focus and sacrifice that God provided for His people.

As we enter the holiday season and prepare for a time of thanksgiving, let us focus our hearts first on the kingdom trusting in God’s provision for us and looking for how He might use us to provide for others.

In Him,

Adam