Posted on 12/15/2010 5:09:09 PM PST by RnMomof7
In the sermon descriptively entitled, “That Hearing and Keeping the Word of God Renders a Person More Blessed Than Any Other Privilege That Ever God Bestowed on Any of the Children of Men,” Jonathan Edwards writes: The hearing and keeping the word of God brings the happiness of a spiritual union and communion with God. ‘Tis a greater blessedness to have spiritual communion with God and to have a saving intercourse with him by the instances of his Spirit and by the exercise of true devotion than it is to converse with God externally, to see the visible representation and manifestations of his presence and glory, and to hear his voice with the bodily ears as Moses did. For in this spiritual intercourse the soul is nigh unto and hath more a particular portion than in any external intercourse. ‘Tis more blessed to be spiritually related to Jesus Christ—to be his disciples, his brethren and the members—than to stand in the nearest temporal relation, than to be his brother or his mother. Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus, ed. Nancy Guthrie, 57.
In many basilicas and shrines there are side altars where one can light a candle for a special request. Saints have particular areas that are conferred in relation to the life or death of that saint.
The main altar is always reserved for Mass which is only celebrated at that altar. In the case of the main or Sacred Altar, it is where sacrifice is offered.
Altar in the case of side altars is derived from the Latin word ex-altus which means to exalt, lift up in praise.
There is never any question in a church which is the main altar where Mass is celebrated, and which are side altars dedicated to saints and, of course, Mary.
It is actually the end of a very long prayer offered at the time of the declaration of the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception.:)
God bless you and all those you love, FRiend, with His spirit of peace and kindness. May the coming year be overflowing with blessings and goodness, friends and family, joy and health for all of you. In His Goodness, may He prosper your efforts and fill your home with laughter.
In Christ’s Most Holy Name I pray, amen.
And yet, Jesus chose men to deliver His Gospel.
The Catholic believes, and rightfully so that it is only through the sacrifice of Jesus that we will be saved. But, Catholics also believe that Jesus uses humans to help spread that Good News.
All the light of the saints come from the one True Light and that light is ever bright enough to come through as many portals as the Lord God desires.
Cronos noted that Lutherans do not believe, teach or confess consubstantiation. In this he is absolutely correct. They believe in regard to the Lord’s Supper that there is a sacramental union of the body and blood of Christ with the bread and wine of which it is said, in Christ’s stead and at His command and promise, “This is My body ... This cup is the new testament in My blood, which is shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.”
In an earlier post, RnMomof7 asked:
“Now one more time..is the spiritual less REAL than the physical?”
With all due respect, RnMomof7, your question has nothing to do with what the Scriptures teach in regard to the Lord’s Supper. It is akin to asking, in regard to the composition of the road bed and surface on which one is driving whether the surface which one sees as one drives is more real than the road bed which one does not see.
The Supper of the Lord, by the inerrant testimony of the Lord and His apostles, consists both of that which is seen and that which is unseen, of that which is temporal and that which is eternal, of that which is of the creation and that which is of the Creator. It is something that by its very description and definition defies human logic and explanation. Nevertheless what Jesus says of it is to be believed. There is peril in calling Him a liar. Better than that is to say, “I’m not sure and I don’t understand, but I believe my Lord, who never lies to me or to anyone.”
So, the question is not, “is the spiritual less real than the physical,” but, “what did the Lord say of this which He instituted and commanded for our good and gracious blessing?”
If you want to detach your focus from the Lord’s Supper and ask as a general question, “is the spiritual less real than the physical?”, the answer is no ... providing you understand rightly what the terms physical and spiritual mean. This is no small consideration, for many who call themselves Christian do not properly distinguish these two things.
Gee, she sounds just like FRoman Catholics and the ones I worked with. The ones I worked with were just as gleeful about the prospect of non-Catholics eternal destiny. FRoman Catholics don’t come across as any different.
Christ was sacrificed once far all and is now sitting at the right hand of the Father.
He is NOT continually being sacrificed currently.
The Mass from beginning to end is Biblical and filled with Scriptures. Why do I need to bring a Bible when all that I see and hear is straight from it?
In order to easily follow the readings, it is all laid out for us in our missal. Each Scripture is noted for you to reference at home if you like.
Ah, but that matters not, Cronos, as the protestants have decided to reinterpret what the Angel Gabriel says to mean highly favored one, instead of full of grace.
It’s a necessary change as they can hardly argue against Mary if that is allowed to stand.
It is not a different sacrifice, it is not a different sacrifice, it is not a different sacrifice............
it is one and the same as...........
The once and for all sacrifice of Christ made present for those who are not and did not live when He walked the earth.
Isn’t God incredible? I think so and I am eternally grateful that our Lord and Savior Jesus made it possible for me to share in the very same sacrifice that He offered on Calvary. Glory to God in the Highest
Only to those whose vision in time-bound and carnal, who are ignorant of Eternity and “the Lamb slain since the foundation of the world” (Rev 13:8):
Two scriptural references regarding the Paschal Lamb are significant in emphasizing the eternal sacrifice of Christ. One is that of St. Peter who refers to the sacrifice of the precious blood of Christ as of a spotless unblemished lamb. In this context, Peter refers to the reality that Christ was made known before the foundation of the world (cf., 1 Pt 1:18). The other is in the Book of Revelation where St. John refers to “the Lamb slain since the foundation of the world” (Rev 13:8). This text from Revelation is one that is not often noted, but is the actual wording of the Greek. Both of these references allude to the mystery that the sacrifice of Christ, the Paschal Lamb, has no beginning and no end.The Mass is eternal in so far as it transcends time and space and brings the entire Church into the saving action of Christ. It is also eternal in so far as it reflects of the sacrificial attitude of Christ in relation to his Father even before the creation of the world. When Christ was crucified, he gave us a glimpse of this glorious eternal attitude which is the very love of God. For all eternity, Christ celebrates this Eucharist and gives himself over to his Father. The cross is the moment of that giving in time. When we celebrate Mass and enter into the hour of Christ, we experience in time the eternal giving of the Son in complete joy. Christ’s sacrifice on the cross was but a detail of the eternal sacrifice of the Lamb slain since the foundation of the world. The Catechism of the Catholic Church expresses well this mystical reality when it states, “It is in this eternal liturgy that the Spirit and the Church enable us to participate whenever we celebrate the mystery of salvation in the sacraments” (CCC, 1139).
Another choice morsel from the same source:
“In the Old Testament, under some Davidic kings, the gebirah, the “Great Lady”, usually the Mother of the King, held great power as advocate with the king. Cf. 1 Kings 2:20, where Solomon said to his Mother Bathsheba, seated on a throne at his right: “Make your request, Mother, for I will not refuse you.” Here is a sort of type of Our Lady.”
“a sort of type”??!!! Lettuce examine this thought. Bathsheba commits adultery and becomes pregnant as a result, conspires in the death of her husband, marries the man that arranges the death of her husband and bears him a second child.
“a sort of type”???
Just as in Jesus God and Man meet, the Mass is where Heaven and Earth meet.
I thought that was the horizon.
People also forget that in the miracle of the loaves and fish, the Apostles gather up the leftovers to be distributed to those who were not present. This is not an insignificant detail to those who receive the Holy Eucharist as we know that in that miracle, Jesus reveals His eternal offering to the world and shows that He is quite capable and happy to feed all comers, present and future.
It is also not insignificant that the leftover offerings came from the Apostles.
To quote a famous Protestant proclamation: My God is an awesome God:)
Exactly! :)
In the desire to be cute, you seem to have confused the heavens with Heaven. Please feel free to contribute more profound thoughts at any time.
“As for me, I’m going to go with the tax collectors (yes, I know one) the sinners, and the rest of the rabble and sit by the cradle of Baby Jesus, and watch Mary’s smile as she looks at him by Starlight”
That was lovely.
The Last Supper was actually the Last “passover “ and the 1st Lords Supper.
Gods intervention to end the slavery of His people by the Egyptians held many types that pointed to Christ’s death .
We see as a prime example the final plague God brought on the Egyptians.
Every 1st born was to die at the hand of Gods avenging angel.
God gave specific orders on how the jews were to be protected from that sword of death.
They were to have a perfect Lamb and to slaughter him. They were to spread the blood of that lamb over the drop posts ( in a shape similar to a cross) When the angel saw that blood he would pass over that home and the people inside were preserved from the plague.
God gave specific instructions on how to eat that Lamb, that passover meal was to be a ritual that would be celebrated in remembrance of the grace and salvation of God for His people.
That meal prefigured Christ, on the night Jesus was betrayed they celebrated the meal that prefigured His coming .
Christ OUR PASSOVER LAMB would be slain, and many would be saved that were under His blood.
There was a piece of matzo broken into 3 parts.
One pieces was broken and the hidden piece it was wrapped in white linen ( as Christ dead body was in the tomb ) it is called the aphikomen
When the meal is finished the host breaks off olive-size pieces of matzoh from the aphikomen and distributes them to all. They each eat it, in a reverent manner. Sometimes there is a blessing, “In memory of the Passover sacrifice, eaten after one is sated.”
It was at THIS point during the Last Supper Jesus broke the bread and passed bits to His disciples; however, Jesus added the significant words given in Luke 22:19),
Luk 22:19 And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake [it], and gave unto them, saying,[b] This is my body which is given for you:[/b] this do in remembrance of me.
The symbolic broken matzo wrapped in white linen was the symbolic body of Christ revealed in the passover meal. Jesus was revealing the prophetic nature of the passover and the passover meal.
Consider that Jews had a probation against the eating of blood, yet not one disciple asked Jesus what He meant. That is because they understood when he took the APHIKOMEN into his hands, this broken Matzo that had been hidden in a linen wrap was symbolic of HIM.
Matzo has no leaven, leaven is a sign of sin. Jesus was sinless.
The Matzo had been broken as His body would be broken .
It was wrapped in linen as He would be and be hidden for a time.
This is the exact spot where Jesus proclaimed “This is my body which is given for you.” as he held that broken Matzo
The next step of the ritual meal is drinking from the wine-goblet called the “Cup of Redemption.” That’s when Jesus said,
“This cup is the New Testament (Covenant ) in my blood, which is shed for you.”
The Passover meal was a REMEMBRANCE of the deliverance of the Jews. Just as the passover was a type of Christ so is the Passover meal.
Jesus was telling them this, and He was telling them NOW instead of the remembrance of the passover, their eyes were opened and the meaning revealed NOW they were to do the mean in remembrance of HIM, of His blood, the blood of the Lamb of God.
As He held that bread He was revealing the mystery that the symbolism held.
Think of the words the apostles used
1Cr 11:24 And when he had given thanks, he brake [it], and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.
The broken matzo was a type of Christ, who’s body would be broken for them.
Then in the passover tradition
The host now takes the third cup of wine, “the cup of redemption,” or “the cup of blessing,” and offers the main table grace blessing. (In Jewish tradition, the main blessing comes after the meal.) Then they all drink from the third cup.
Luke 22:20,
“Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you’.”
Here is what the apostles and disciples said at the Lords table
1Cr 10:16 The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?
The were recalling “remembering” the PASSOVER ritual. THEY understood that Jesus was revealing a spiritual truth about the passover being a prophetic meal that prefigured HIM.
The Passover was fulfilled on the day that Christ died, and so from that day forward that meal not longer held a prophetic promise of a future savior, but it was now a remembrance of the completed work of salvation at the cross.
I believe the Lords Supper is both a symbolic remembrance and the real presence of Christ spiritually to those that believe.
http://bbhchurchconnection.wordpress.com/2010/11/14/do-lutherans-believe-in-consubstantiation/
And Earth with earth?
“Please feel free to contribute more profound thoughts at any time.”
O.K., I will if you will. But I kinda liked “horizon”.
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