Psalm 95:1-11

O come, let us sing unto the LORD: Let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, And make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.

For the LORD is a great God, And a great King above all gods. In his hand are the deep places of the earth: The strength of the hills is his also. The sea is his, and he made it: And his hands formed the dry land.

O come, let us worship and bow down: Let us kneel before the LORD our maker. For he is our God; And we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.

To day if ye will hear his voice, Harden not your heart, As in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness: When your fathers tempted me, Proved me, and saw my work. Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, And said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways: Unto whom I sware in my wrath That they should not enter into my rest.”

Voices from church history on the canonicity of the books commonly called apocrypha.

There is a common, worldly kind of Christianity in this day, which many have, and think they have enough—a cheap Christianity which offends nobody, and requires no sacrifice—which costs nothing, and is worth nothing.

—JC Ryle

This is true religion, to approve what God approves, to hate what He hates, and to delight in what delights Him.

—Charles Hodge

Westminster Confession of Faith

Of The Lord’s Supper

Our Lord Jesus, in the night wherein he was betrayed, instituted the sacrament of his body and blood, called the Lord’s Supper, to be observed in his church, unto the end of the world, for the perpetual remembrance of the sacrifice of himself in his death; the sealing all benefits thereof unto true believers, their spiritual nourishment and growth in him, their further engagement in and to all duties which they owe unto him; and, to be a bond and pledge of their communion with him, and with each other, as members of his mystical body.

Calvin’s Institutes

Chapter 17, Section 19

First, Let there be nothing derogatory to the heavenly glory of Christ. This happens whenever he is brought under the corruptible elements of this world, or is affixed to any earthly creatures. Secondly, Let no property be assigned to his body inconsistent with his human nature. This is done when it is either said to be infinite, or made to occupy a variety of places at the same time.

But when these absurdities are discarded, I willingly admit anything which helps to express the true and substantial communication of the body and blood of the Lord, as exhibited to believers under the sacred symbols of the Supper, understanding that they are received not by the imagination or intellect merely, but are enjoyed in reality as the food of eternal life. For the odium with which this view is regarded by the world, and the unjust prejudice incurred by its defence, there is no cause, unless it be in the fearful fascinations of Satan.

What we teach on the subject is in perfect accordance with Scripture, contains nothing absurd, obscure, or ambiguous, is not unfavourable to true piety and solid edification; in short, has nothing in it to offend, save that, for some ages, while the ignorance and barbarism of sophists reigned in the Church, the clear light and open truth were unbecomingly suppressed. And yet as Satan, by means of turbulent spirits, is still, in the present day, exerting himself to the utmost to bring dishonour on this doctrine by all kinds of calumny and reproach, it is right to assert and defend it with the greatest care.

I will not retract any post or meme I have made here implying that the Eucharist is more than a rote memorial.

As is affirmed by historic Presbyterian/Reformed doctrine—we truly do partake of Christ’s body and blood spiritually.

This is not to say that we believe in consubstantiation or transubstantiation; but that the sign and the thing signified are truly being presented to us in the sacrament… as Calvin says, there is a “true and substantial communication of the body and blood of the Lord” in the Lord’s Supper.

We cannot be so focused on being anti-Romish that we discard the fullness of the Reformed faith.

Grace and Peace,

Adam

Happy Reformation Day!

Neo-Pagans have sometimes forgotten; when they set out to do everything that the old pagans did, that the final thing the old pagans did was to get christened.

—G. K. Chesterton

When life’s trials press in, it’s easy to wonder, “Why is this happening to me?” But God uses your trials to shape you and bring you closer to Him. Without these trials, you wouldn’t fully grasp the depth of God’s Word. It’s through struggle that you come to know the strength and comfort of His promises.

Remember, real gold fears no fire. Whether you are facing sleepless nights, bitter inlaws, woke bosses or a financial strain, remember that God is leading you more into the likeness of His son. Don’t try and escape it, rather walk with God through it.


"Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness." — James 1:2-3

—The Forge (Daily Dose #0056)

All of us this morning.

In Christ, we behold the wisdom, goodness, love, grace, mercy, and power of God, all working together for the great work of our redemption and salvation.

—John Owen

The devil, though he is an enemy to all saints, is a conquered enemy. The Captain of our salvation has defeated and disarmed him; we have nothing to do but to pursue the victory.

—Matthew Henry

Job 19:25-27

For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. My heart faints within me!