
4 November 2009
Tracts for our Times, weekly devotion from Grace Church
Today we conclude our look at Sacrament of Holy Communion, as we consider…
Real Presence
Matthew 26:26-29 (New Living Translation)
26 As they were eating, Jesus took some bread and blessed it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take this and eat it, for this is my body.”
27 And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them and said, “Each of you drink from it, 28 for this is my blood, which confirms the covenant[a] between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many. 29 Mark my words—I will not drink wine again until the day I drink it new with you in my Father’s Kingdom.”
By real presence, we mean that Jesus meets us at the Table. He is there every time the Bread is broken, the Wine is poured out, and his presence invoked.
When we come to the Table to take Communion, Jesus meets us there. This does not mean that Jesus cannot be encountered in other ways and places; but the Communion Table is one of those places where he has promised to meet us. At the Table we experience his presence in a profound way. And, we can count on meeting Christ there, again and again, each time we approach the Table. Though human hands may act as the instruments, serving the Bread and Cup, it is Jesus who stands as the true Host, meeting us with his grace each time we take the Sacrament.
This is why it is proper to invite all who are willing to come by faith to come to the Table. Even a small child or mentally-challenged-adult may meet the requirement of faith, for faith is about trust and is far more basic than cognitive understanding. Even a very small child or someone with a very low IQ can express trust, even if they cannot articulate why they trust someone.
We bring our children to the Table, believing that Jesus will meet that child with his grace. We bring our loved ones who are suffering from dementia, believing that Jesus can touch them in ways to deep to be expressed by words.
But, real presence means more than Jesus being host at the Table. We also believe that he is really present in the elements themselves; in the Bread and in the Wine. Now, it is very easy to mock this notion, thinking of the pieces of Bread as being parts of his Body. We might, for example, think that one piece of bread is perhaps a toe. Such a crass expression misses the whole point. As we partake of the Bread and Wine, we partake not of a part of his Body, but of the whole. Through the gifts of Bread and Wine, Jesus offers himself and his grace to us. We connect with him in a very powerful way and partake of the spiritual nourishment we most need.
Some traditions try to deny this idea, saying that the Bread and Cup only represent his Blood and Body in purely symbolic way. But notice Jesus’ own words: “This is my Body…This is my Blood.” Nowhere in the text does the word “represents” appear; and to insert it is to add something alien to the Holy Scripture.
Jesus extends to us the gift of his very real presence through some of the most common things imaginable, a dinner cup and our daily bread. If he can do such an amazing work through such common items, imagine what he can do through us, who cleansed through his redeeming blood, are called to be his Body in the world.
Eddie Bromley, pastor of Grace Church, a United Methodist congregation
You can now listen to the weekly devotion online at http://www.graceumchurchky.com/
Tracts for our Times, weekly devotion from Grace Church
Today we conclude our look at Sacrament of Holy Communion, as we consider…
Real Presence
Matthew 26:26-29 (New Living Translation)
26 As they were eating, Jesus took some bread and blessed it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take this and eat it, for this is my body.”
27 And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them and said, “Each of you drink from it, 28 for this is my blood, which confirms the covenant[a] between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many. 29 Mark my words—I will not drink wine again until the day I drink it new with you in my Father’s Kingdom.”
By real presence, we mean that Jesus meets us at the Table. He is there every time the Bread is broken, the Wine is poured out, and his presence invoked.
When we come to the Table to take Communion, Jesus meets us there. This does not mean that Jesus cannot be encountered in other ways and places; but the Communion Table is one of those places where he has promised to meet us. At the Table we experience his presence in a profound way. And, we can count on meeting Christ there, again and again, each time we approach the Table. Though human hands may act as the instruments, serving the Bread and Cup, it is Jesus who stands as the true Host, meeting us with his grace each time we take the Sacrament.
This is why it is proper to invite all who are willing to come by faith to come to the Table. Even a small child or mentally-challenged-adult may meet the requirement of faith, for faith is about trust and is far more basic than cognitive understanding. Even a very small child or someone with a very low IQ can express trust, even if they cannot articulate why they trust someone.
We bring our children to the Table, believing that Jesus will meet that child with his grace. We bring our loved ones who are suffering from dementia, believing that Jesus can touch them in ways to deep to be expressed by words.
But, real presence means more than Jesus being host at the Table. We also believe that he is really present in the elements themselves; in the Bread and in the Wine. Now, it is very easy to mock this notion, thinking of the pieces of Bread as being parts of his Body. We might, for example, think that one piece of bread is perhaps a toe. Such a crass expression misses the whole point. As we partake of the Bread and Wine, we partake not of a part of his Body, but of the whole. Through the gifts of Bread and Wine, Jesus offers himself and his grace to us. We connect with him in a very powerful way and partake of the spiritual nourishment we most need.
Some traditions try to deny this idea, saying that the Bread and Cup only represent his Blood and Body in purely symbolic way. But notice Jesus’ own words: “This is my Body…This is my Blood.” Nowhere in the text does the word “represents” appear; and to insert it is to add something alien to the Holy Scripture.
Jesus extends to us the gift of his very real presence through some of the most common things imaginable, a dinner cup and our daily bread. If he can do such an amazing work through such common items, imagine what he can do through us, who cleansed through his redeeming blood, are called to be his Body in the world.
Eddie Bromley, pastor of Grace Church, a United Methodist congregation
You can now listen to the weekly devotion online at http://www.graceumchurchky.com/






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