communion

Fed by the Father’s Love

by Ben Zornes · Nov 16, 2022

If you knew of a father who refused to feed his children, you might be inclined to consider him a delinquent father. Perhaps you’d confront him, rebuking him for not caring for his children. Then imagine he replied, “I express my love for my children every day, I tell them I’m proud of them, and I assure them that I always will.” He tells you that he’s certain his feelings of love are sufficient for the nourishment, and growth of his children.

Once you picked your jaw up off the floor, you’d be right to intervene for the sake of his children. God, of course, isn’t such a father. God feeds His children. He knows the feebleness of our faith, and so He nourishes it with the visible signs of baptism & the Supper. As one Scottish preacher (R.M. M’Cheyne) once said, “Your faith is like a bruised reed. He will strengthen you with might, so that you shall hold Christ, and not let Him go.”

Though the Bible declares God’s great love for us, for His beloved children, He also gives us a meal to nourish our faith; instead of leaving you to somehow strengthen & grow your faith apart from Him. God doesn’t merely tell us of His love for us, or of the forgiveness we have in Him. God shows us. He feeds us, with incarnate Love.

Our comfort in life and death is that God sent His Son to be our Savior. The child of God is built up in his faith by feeding upon Christ, laying hold on Christ, being shown Christ. This Supper, which we partake of “until he comes”, was instituted to ensure that through each age the saints might hold, and see, and taste the bread of heaven, the wine of relief; the nourishing Love of God in bread & wine.

So come in faith and welcome to Jesus Christ…

Our Point of Unity

by Ben Zornes · Nov 1, 2022

There’s a common tendency for mankind to desire unity, but to seek for it outside of God Himself. Ecumenical movements try to thread a needle and appear united under some generic, Christ-less, spirituality. Politicians bloviate about “finding common ground”. The media chant their familiar mantras about how we all need to come together. Well, let me break some news, we have here in this sacrament what they all want.

The Saints have unity. We are made one with our Head. We are one body with each other. The same Spirit dwells in the whole. It isn’t a divided Spirit, but the Holy Spirit, who unites us to Christ our head. But this unity is the result of a Broken & Bloody Christ. This is the only basis for true unity.

By this union we become more & more like Christ, shunning our sins ever more vehemently, laboring all the more earnestly to do God-glorifying works, and seeking to keep the unity which Christ’s Spirit has imparted. The truth we confess at this table is that of a whole Christ. He is ascended bodily to the Father’s right hand, He is the head of the church, and as such, His Spirit fills all in all.

This means for each of us, that you aren’t left to live a Christian life without Christ. You live out the Christian life because He has joined you to Himself and to His body, and He’s sent forth His Spirit to dwell richly in you and every other saint. And because He dwells in us richly, our songs our loud. Our praise is hearty. Our joy in Him and our fellow saints is overflowing. The only point of unity for mankind is to come here. Come to Christ. Come taste the broken bread. Come drink this cup of wine. And nevermore hunger or thirst.

So come in faith and welcome to Jesus Christ…

A Loaf & A Cup

by Ben Zornes · Oct 26, 2022

All the glory of heaven, all the blessing of God’s presence, all the joy contained within the Godhead, all the love which flows from Father, to Son, to Spirit is yours to enjoy. And the sign that the Lord chose to assure you that this is true is a loaf & cup.

Though Christ wears the crown, the sign He gives us of our union with the Triune God is a loaf & a cup. Though Christ is the Word, and from His mouth goes forth that conquering sword of His everlasting kingdom, the sign of our welcome as true citizens of that Kingdom is a loaf & a cup. Though Christ suffered the shame of the cross, the sign of partaking with Him is a loaf & a cup. Though Christ is seated upon heaven’s throne, the sign of His rule in our midst is this visible word in these tokens of a loaf & a cup.

Men have imagined many vain ways to ascend to heaven. They think wars of conquest, seeking out mystic knowledge, or the construction of glorious ziggurats will allow them to come boldly into the blazing glory of God’s holy presence. But Jesus shows us that to come to God, you must come and partake of Him by this loaf and this cup. Not by the wisdom or might of men, but by the humble faith which lays hold of Christ.

When you take this Supper, your hands lay hold of Christ’s body broken, and His blood shed. But it does you no good if you do not take hold of Him by humble faith. A humbled faith is content with this humble sign. True faith sees a loaf of bread and cup of wine and comprehends the mystery. By the Holy Spirit this loaf & cup state that all of Christ is given to You.

So come in faith and welcome to Jesus Christ…

Divine Frankness

by Ben Zornes · Oct 18, 2022

We live in a time when the words of men are cheap. Our politicians say one thing, while we can all tell they mean another. The News Media carry water for the secularist agenda. We’re told lie after lie, and the Babylon Bee ends up being closer to the truth than the NY Times.

The words of men are full of deceit and nuance. Man’s word is easily broken. We are swift to equivocate, explain away, redefine, and twist words. The promises of men are feeble. There is no final assurance in the words spoken by men.

But this Word, this word in the sign of bread & wine, is a certain word. God doesn’t stutter here. There is no wordplay here. Here is blunt truth. Here is divine frankness. The sure word which is spoken to us here is the eternal Word. In the midst of all the lies we tell and hear daily, this Word stuns us with its holy directness.

This Word is the Living Word which begets new life. This Word is the Gospel Word, it says, “You’re a great sinner, but He is such a Savior. You have an eternal debt incurring the blazing heat of God’s just wrath, but all that wrath has been satiated in the death of the Son of God. You are free. You are forgiven. You are righteous. Not because of your doing, but by His.”

In the reverberations of this Word, you need not linger on the fringes, because this Word invites you to the table. You need not be a wallflower at this banquet. Those who have trusted in Christ alone, as He is offered in the Gospel, are not unwelcome guests at this table. This Word is not shifty, sarcastic, satirical, or carrying secret message. This Word declares God’s love to you, and He means it.

So come in faith and welcome to Jesus Christ…

Not Empty Signs of Full Grace

by Ben Zornes · Oct 11, 2022

When Scripture says “God shall make all grace abound unto you” it simply means you aren’t left to try to produce a godly life apart from God’s grace. You aren’t a severed branch straining to bear fruit apart from the vine. What the Lord’s Supper affirms for you is that God’s grace to you isn’t some intellectual exercise for theological wonks. Rather, it’s a tangible sign of this abounding grace.

This bread was once grain ground into flour, then it was mixed with water & yeast, baked in an oven, and now set before us. This wine was once grapes on a vine, crushed, aged, and then poured out before us. God oversaw the grain & grapes which turned into this bread & wine. How then could you doubt His promise to supply all of your needs according to His grace?

This is bread & wine of grace. This sign confides to us that the mighty power of Christ dwells in us. It dwells there because he begot living faith in us. Just as bread strengthens you for your daily work, and wine cheers your heart to endure earthly sorrows, this table is laden with strengthening grace & intoxicating joy.

This bread & wine aren’t empty signs of full grace. Rather, these are overflowing signs of abundant grace. Grace to walk by faith when doubts assail. Grace to comfort when sorrows surround. Grace to rejoice in all things, and for all things. Grace to trust in Christ alone. Grace to persevere.

God knows the feebleness of our faith. And so, He gives you grace to hold in your hand, and pass to your brother. Grace to taste & drink. Grace upon your tongue, to assure You of grace in Your heart. The response to all this is to receive it all by faith, the faith which grace gave you in the first place.

So come in faith and welcome to Jesus Christ…

Word & Sacrament

by Ben Zornes · Oct 5, 2022

Churches can get lopsided and sidetracked quite quickly if there isn’t frequent instruction. Some churches get drawn into the mystery & symbolism of the sacraments. These begin to crowd out the Word as they become barnacled with more ornate traditions, customs, and requirements. The sacraments become more & more elaborate, and soon the thing they signify is hidden from view due to all the frivolous fanfare.

Other churches desire the appearance of sturdiness that comes with wooden hermeneutics, rigid doctrines, with so much precision that it can only be measured by intricate lab instruments. These churches preach verse by verse expository sermons; but often the Lord’s Supper is only observed quarterly, and to make sure nobody gets any Roman Catholic notions they preach another sermon before the supper just to drill it into everyone’s head that this is just to remind us of Jesus, but beyond that it doesn’t do anything.

But the Word and Sacraments must go together. Like skeleton & flesh. Like light & warmth. Like framing & furniture. Like covenant vows & covenant consummation. Our relationship with Christ isn’t like a contract stored in some heavenly filing cabinet. It’s personal, and the sacraments bring this reality to us. Bread you can touch and taste. Wine with potent sweetness. Water that spills down your head. But neither is our relationship with Christ a ritual which puts us in touch with a “higher power” to align our chakras. Our fellowship with Christ is objective, grounded in eternal truth, and this is what the Word preached brings to us.

God has revealed His promises to us in His Word, and then He substantiates His promises in signs of water, bread, & wine. So where Christ’s Word & Sacrament dwell together, there is Christ’s Church. Where His Word of promise is both proclaimed and tasted. The Word provides the firm ground, upon which our faith might partake of these gracious blessings.

So come in faith and welcome to Jesus Christ…

The Divine Art of Not Caring

by Ben Zornes · Sep 20, 2022

The world will hate you. Jesus tells us this (Jn. 15:18). The Apostle John tells us this (1 Jn 3:13). The prophets demonstrated this fact, often by their blood, exile, and torments. The Apostle Paul certainly endured the buzzsaw of the world’s contempt for Gospel heralds.

The world will call you all sorts of names. Christian Nationalists. Racists. Fascists. Bigots. Transphobes. Climate Deniers. Judgmental Pharisees. Sexual Abusers. Backwards Hicks. Right-wing extremists. Domestic Terrorists. And we could go on.

The saint’s response to this is to practice the divine art of not caring. When they slander, mock, and deride you, screaming their accusations about you, you must go around the corner, leap for joy, and thank the Lord. And then … you are to continue to go about your duty of loving God & your neighbor. You persist in worshipping God according to His Word, and doing unto others as you’d have them do to you. Continue stedfast in good works of charity and mercy and piety, no matter what the world says about you.

Here, on this table, is God’s love for you. Your sins washed away. Your deepest shame lifted off your shoulders. Your darkest guilt washed white as wool. He loved you first, and in our worship here in public and in private we return to Him the Love He’s lavished upon us.

But if this is indeed the love of God, it cannot help but fill the whole world. The Love which God showed you is too great a thing to be stuffed away in a corner of your heart. John tells us “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another (Jn. 13:35).” The Love of God towards you, spills over to your spouse, your children, your neighbor, and even your enemies. A love that is steadfast in the truth. A love that grieves over evil and rejoices in righteousness.

So come in faith and welcome to Jesus Christ…

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