BJ Bear
Well-known member
Consider Abraham's faith, childlike faith. Initially, his faith wasn't exactly childlike. He believed God, but still listened to the counsel of his wife.
Later, after Isaac was born, God asked hin to sacrifice his son. Even though it was a tough ask [edited to add: Please forgive the slang, a tell isn't a command in slang.], it was against the law of God, thou shalt not kill (Gen 9:6), and it was against the promise, or Gospel, the everlasting covenant would be with Isaac and his seed, Abraham was still willing to sacrifuce him. And so God said, now I know you fear me..., Gen 22:12. (The preceding was based on an example of faith from Scripture found in The Lord's Supper, written by Martin Chemnitz, (c)CPH.)
The point being that Abraham's faith didn't allow him to look for a figure of speech in God's:word where there clearly was not one.
In the same way, the Christian faith doesn't allow the Christian to look for a figure of speech in the words of God, the words of institution because there is clearly no figure of speech in, Christ blessed the bread, took the bread and broke it, and said, "Take and eat. This is my body given for you...."
The Christian knows this by answering some simple questions. For example, what were the disciples to take and eat? Answer: the bread which Christ blessed and broke.
What does the Lord say this bread is? It is His body which is given for them. It works out in the same way with regard to the cup, the wine, and the blood.
Looking at the first one, John 6, because Roman Catholics mistakenly sometimes use it in defense of their view of the supper, it is clear that if Jesus is the bread from heaven, the bread of eternal life, etc. then it isn't being used as a figure of speech because there is no earthly counterpart. There is no earthly bread from heaven or earthly bread of eternal life for His listeners to recognize it as being used as a figure of speech. His listeners were befuddled.
On the other hand, Jesus is not saying, "I am an earthly symbol, whoever eats this earthly symbol has eternal life." I know that it is not your intention to say that because you have other qualified terms, but that is the meaning if a person reads it consistently with the idea that Jesus is saying that He is an earthly symbol.
Later, after Isaac was born, God asked hin to sacrifice his son. Even though it was a tough ask [edited to add: Please forgive the slang, a tell isn't a command in slang.], it was against the law of God, thou shalt not kill (Gen 9:6), and it was against the promise, or Gospel, the everlasting covenant would be with Isaac and his seed, Abraham was still willing to sacrifuce him. And so God said, now I know you fear me..., Gen 22:12. (The preceding was based on an example of faith from Scripture found in The Lord's Supper, written by Martin Chemnitz, (c)CPH.)
The point being that Abraham's faith didn't allow him to look for a figure of speech in God's:word where there clearly was not one.
In the same way, the Christian faith doesn't allow the Christian to look for a figure of speech in the words of God, the words of institution because there is clearly no figure of speech in, Christ blessed the bread, took the bread and broke it, and said, "Take and eat. This is my body given for you...."
The Christian knows this by answering some simple questions. For example, what were the disciples to take and eat? Answer: the bread which Christ blessed and broke.
What does the Lord say this bread is? It is His body which is given for them. It works out in the same way with regard to the cup, the wine, and the blood.
If a person doesn't confuse categories then it is necessarily true that some words are used in a new and different way. For example, even though they aren't about the Supper, which makes them irrelevant to a right understanding of the words of institution in the Supper, you chose some of Christ's proclamations of deity as examples of figures of speech.
Looking at the first one, John 6, because Roman Catholics mistakenly sometimes use it in defense of their view of the supper, it is clear that if Jesus is the bread from heaven, the bread of eternal life, etc. then it isn't being used as a figure of speech because there is no earthly counterpart. There is no earthly bread from heaven or earthly bread of eternal life for His listeners to recognize it as being used as a figure of speech. His listeners were befuddled.
On the other hand, Jesus is not saying, "I am an earthly symbol, whoever eats this earthly symbol has eternal life." I know that it is not your intention to say that because you have other qualified terms, but that is the meaning if a person reads it consistently with the idea that Jesus is saying that He is an earthly symbol.
See above.
The assertion is incomplete and the conclusion is false. You've been denying and continue to deny the body and blood of Christ given for you which the partakers of the Supper receive both orally and spiritually in the Supper, a cause of the Christian's remembrance of Him.
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