“You might think that you are unworthy to have such a great gift as union with Christ. Remember, however, Christ shed his precious blood to redeem you. That precious blood will enable you to miraculously advance in holiness through your union with Christ.
Union with Christ is not a privilege you earn by your sincere obedience, or by your own attempts at holiness. Your union with Christ is not a reward of your own good works. Rather, union with Christ is a privilege that God gives to every Christian when they first become a Christian! Right when you enter into the Kingdom of God, you also enter into union with Christ!”
- Walter Marshall, The Gospel Mystery of Sanctification
“God did not create us to get the cosmic, infinite joy of mutual love and glorification, but to share it. We were to join in the dance. If we center our lives on him, serving him not out of self-interest, but for the sake of who he is, for the sake of his beauty and glory, we will enter the dance and share in the joy and love he lives in. We were designed, then, not just for belief in God in some general way, nor for a vague kind of inspiration or spirituality. We were made to center our lives upon him, to make the purpose and passion of our lives knowing, serving, delighting, and resembling him. This growth in happiness will go on eternally, increasing unimaginably (1 Corinthians 2:7-10 ).”
- Timothy Keller, The Reason For God (New York, NY: Dutton, 2008), 219.
“The ultimate reason that suffering exists in the universe is so that Christ might display the greatness of the glory of the grace of God by suffering in himself to overcome our suffering. The suffering of the utterly innocent and infinitely holy Son of God in the place of utterly undeserving sinners to bring us to everlasting joy is the greatest display of the glory of God’s grace that ever was, or ever could be. This was the moment—Good Friday—for which everything in the universe was planned. In conceiving a universe in which to display the glory of his grace, God did not choose Plan B. There could be no greater display of the glory of the Grace of God than what happened at Calvary. Everything leading to it and everything flowing from it is explained by it, including all the suffering in the world.” —John Piper, “The Purposes of God in Suffering,” Suffering and the Sovereignty of God, p. 82
The Lord’s Supper is not simply an ordinary meal among human beings — it is a fellowship with Christ, in his presence and at his table. We must avoid the idea that any automatic or magical benefit comes from sharing in the Lord’s Supper, whether a person participates in faith or not. But when a person participates in faith, renewing and strengthening his or her own trust in Christ for salvation, and believing that the Holy Spirit will bring spiritual blessing through such participation, then certainly additional blessing may be expected.
We must be careful here to avoid the mistake of overreacting to Roman Catholic teaching and maintaining that the Lord’s Supper is merely symbolic and not a means of grace. Paul says, “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not a participation (Gk. koinonia , “sharing,” “fellowship”) in the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not a participation[koinonia] in the body of Christ?” (1 Cor. 10:16 ).
Because there is such a sharing in the body and blood of Christ (apparently meaning a
sharing in the benefits of Christ’s body and blood given for us), the unity of believers is beautifully exhibited at the time of the Lord’s Supper. “Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread” (1 Cor. 10:17 ). And since we are participants at “the table of the Lord” (1 Cor. 10:21 ), Paul warns the Corinthians that they cannot participate in the Lord’s table and also participate in idol worship: “You cannot partake in the table of the Lord and the table of demons” (1 Cor. 10:21 ). There is a spiritual union among believers and with the Lord that is strengthened and solidified at the Lord’s Supper, and it is not to be taken lightly.
This is why the Corinthians were experiencing judgment for their abuse of the Lord’s Supper (1 Cor. 11:29-30 ). But if Paul says there will be judgment for wrong participation in
the Lord’s Supper, then certainly we should expect blessing for right participation in the
Lord’s Supper.
When we obey Jesus’ command , “Take, eat” (Matthew 26:26 ), and go through the physical activity of eating and drinking at the Lord’s table, our physical action pictures a corresponding spiritual nourishment, a nourishment of our soul that will occur when we participate in obedience and faith. Jesus says, “For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him” (John 6:55-56 ).
Certainly Jesus is not speaking of a literal eating of his flesh and blood . But if he is not speaking of a literal eating and drinking, then he must have in mind a spiritual participation in the benefits of the redemption he earns. The spiritual nourishment, so necessary for our souls, is both symbolized and experienced in our participation in the Lord’s Supper.
In a Theology course we are working through personal doctrinal statements; one of the first was on Jesus Christ. The inherent problem with black letters on white paper is they do not convey the infinite beauty and worth of the One being depicted. (That is my weakness, not Christ’s.)
Oh that I could state the supremacy of Jesus Christ with precision and passion in which John Piper does:
Today at Cornerstone School of Ministry we are studying perhaps the most important paragraph in all the Bible. It’s truths are so compellingly beautiful I can hardly contain myself; teaching God’s Word ignites my soul. Romans 3:21-26 is the paragraph in view, and verse 20 sets the stage.
“God created both soul and body, and the resurrection of Jesus shows that he is going to redeem both the spiritual and the material. Therefore God is concerned not only for the salvation of souls but also for the relief of poverty, hunger, and injustice.
The gospel opens our eyes to the fact that all our wealth (even wealth for which we worked hard) is ultimately an unmerited gift from God. Therefore the person who does not generously give away his or her wealth to others is not merely lacking in compassion, but is unjust.
Christ wins our salvation through losing, achieves power through weakness and service, and comes to wealth through giving all away. Those who receive his salvation are not the strong and accomplished but those who admit they are weak and lost. We cannot look at the poor and the oppressed and callously call them to pull themselves out of their own difficulty. Jesus did not treat us that way.”
The two Greek words de ("but") and Theos ("God") are the first two words of Ephesians 2:4: "But God, who is rich in mercy..."
Because of God's great love and grace extending to us in Jesus Christ, we are forgiven, redeemed and able to know, love + enjoy God more fully, ever-increasing and forever.
This site contains the thoughts and conclusions and journeys of the Patterson family -- Jeff, Kari and Dutch -- who have experienced the front-end of God's amazing grace, and continue to delight in His unfailing love.
Read more about us, and what we hold most precious.
“God created both soul and body, and the resurrection of Jesus shows that he is going to redeem both the spiritual and the material. Therefore God is concerned not only for the salvation of souls but also for the relief of poverty, hunger, and injustice.
