Kieth: It strikes me that we ought to follow the implications of our confessions. The catechism is clear: sacraments are 'lesser-than' the word of God preached. Ipso-facto sacraments ought to have a lower threshold of qualified participants than those allowed to hear the word of God preached. The sacraments are means of grace, as is the preaching of the word of God. The sacraments are covenantal in nature. The covenant community is invited to join the celebration of it's relationship with the savior. It isn't a potluck social. The logic of infant baptism is covenantal in nature (we baptize the infants of believers even if only one parent is such). The logic of communion must be the same. With regard to "discerning the body" the issue is this: we turned discerning the body to mean "faith in Jesus". That's not what the apostle is calling attention to. The body that is referred to is the "church" or the "congregation" in Corinth. The leadership had permitted a division in the body where there isn't supposed to be one. That failure would incite the judgment of God since they allowed the unity of the body to be compromised/splintered.
So again, I urge all of our congregations to be thoroughly consistent and open the sacraments to members of the covenant community.
Kieth: I don't think I've implied anything of the sort. Every time the word of God is preached it demands a response from those who heard it. The hoped for response is submission in faith to the God whose word was just heard. So, in essence, every Sunday is preparation Sunday. Every week we're all faced with the responsibility to be reconciled to each other if need be. Our congregation celebrates communion on the first Sunday of every month. Members know when it's coming up. Our guests/visitors are specifically invited to reflect on who they are before God's throne of grace and to meditate on the shed blood of Christ for the forgiveness of sins.
Posted in: Peppermints, Mentos, and Communion With Children
Kieth: It strikes me that we ought to follow the implications of our confessions. The catechism is clear: sacraments are 'lesser-than' the word of God preached. Ipso-facto sacraments ought to have a lower threshold of qualified participants than those allowed to hear the word of God preached. The sacraments are means of grace, as is the preaching of the word of God. The sacraments are covenantal in nature. The covenant community is invited to join the celebration of it's relationship with the savior. It isn't a potluck social. The logic of infant baptism is covenantal in nature (we baptize the infants of believers even if only one parent is such). The logic of communion must be the same. With regard to "discerning the body" the issue is this: we turned discerning the body to mean "faith in Jesus". That's not what the apostle is calling attention to. The body that is referred to is the "church" or the "congregation" in Corinth. The leadership had permitted a division in the body where there isn't supposed to be one. That failure would incite the judgment of God since they allowed the unity of the body to be compromised/splintered.
So again, I urge all of our congregations to be thoroughly consistent and open the sacraments to members of the covenant community.
Posted in: Peppermints, Mentos, and Communion With Children
Kieth: I don't think I've implied anything of the sort. Every time the word of God is preached it demands a response from those who heard it. The hoped for response is submission in faith to the God whose word was just heard. So, in essence, every Sunday is preparation Sunday. Every week we're all faced with the responsibility to be reconciled to each other if need be. Our congregation celebrates communion on the first Sunday of every month. Members know when it's coming up. Our guests/visitors are specifically invited to reflect on who they are before God's throne of grace and to meditate on the shed blood of Christ for the forgiveness of sins.