Wendelin's "Christian Theology": Doctrine of the Lord's Supper, Part 5

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THESIS XVIII:  Hitherto the matter of, or from which, the Lord’s Supper.  The matter concerning which follows:  the receiving subject, which is any Christian, furnished with these three requisites; (1.)  an adult:  (2.)  imbued with the doctrine of the Christian faith, and devoted to the same:  (3.)  zealous of a holy life.

EXPLANATION:  Therefore, from the use of the Holy Supper are excluded:

(1.)  Infants:  who are not to be admitted to the Lord’s Supper.

1.  Because they are not able recollect the memory of the death of the Lord.

2.  Because they are not able to prepare themselves for a worthy use of this sacrament.  But both are required of communicants, 1 Corinthians 11:24-29.  However, ancient doctors, by Apostolic Tradition, which they alleged, judged that the Lord’s Supper was also necessary to infants for salvation.  Let the testimonies of Dionysius, Cyprian, Innocent I, Ambrose, and Augustine be considered in Perkins, Tome I, page 298.

(2.)  Those ignorant of Christian Doctrine, or strangers to it.

Because this sacrament was instituted only for the members of the Christian Church, those sharing the same faith, who embrace and profess the doctrine of the Gospel.  For, as to those that know nothing of Christ, or are manifestly strangers to the Evangelical Doctrine, as long as they are such, nothing is promised in the Gospel, but rather the wrath of God is denounced:  So also nothing is sealed, and so they are not to be admitted to the seal of the promise.

(3.)  Those manifestly profane and impious, and that for these three reasons:

1.  Because by their profanity and impiety they profane the Lord’s Supper.

2.  Because they eat and drink unworthily, and so bring judgment upon themselves.

3.  Because the Church admitting such provokes the anger of God against itself, when it casts its pearls and what is holy to dogs and swine.[1]

THESIS XIX:  But, so that you might worthily enjoy the Lord’s Supper, preparation internal and external is necessary.

THESIS XX:  Internal preparation consists in the searching of oneself, which is the internal examination of conscience, unto which there is to be a response to three questions:

(1.)  Do you acknowledge the magnitude of your sins, and because of them judge yourself worthy of eternal death, and heartily detest them?

(2.)  Do you heartily believe that all your sins have been forgiven you because of Christ, such that you by faith acquiesce in Christ alone?

(3.)  Do you propose to yourself earnestly to abstain from sins, and to progress more and more in holiness of life?

EXPLANATION:  Whose conscience answers in the affirmative to these individual questions, he is a worthy guest of Christ.

Others say, that this preparation consists in three actions, according to the prescription of the Apostle, 1 Corinthians 11:27-29:  (1.)  The discernment of the Lord’s body, (2.)  The searching of ourselves, (3.)  A worthy disposition.

The discernment of the Lord’s body consists in the right understand and judgment of this sacrament’s nature, use, and necessity, and of the other rudiments of the Christian religion concerning sin, misery, Christ’s grace, and our duty, namely, gratitude, and obedience towards God.

The searching of ourselves consists in earnest examination, whether we be disposed in such a way that we are able to make use of this Sacrament with fruit.  The Norm of this examination is the word of God; to the extent that it has regard to this sacrament.

A worthy disposition consists in the renewal of repentance, in the sense of a thirsting and hungering after the grace of Christ, in the exercise of faith to apprehend the promises of the Gospel, and in the humble and devout reception of the seals of grace.

THESIS XXI:  The external preparation consists in external exercises of piety, of which sort are:  (1.)  the painstaking reading of books, which explain the mystery of this sacrament.  (2.)  The hearing and heeding of preparatory preaching.  (3.)  The public confession and detestation of sins.  (4.)  Prayer for the remission of sins.  (5.)  The casting away of all hostility.  (6.)  The liberal distribution of alms.

EXPLANATION:  I.  At this point, the Papists concerning the confession of sins torture consciences, since they rigidly exact from those about to communicate private and particular confession of all sins and each (which confession they commonly call auricular, because it is spoken into the aures/ears of a priest), under the threat of the denial of absolution, if even the least should be left unsaid, which they could remember.  We disapprove of this confession for the following reasons:

(1.)  Because there is no precept, no example, of this extant in the sacred books.

(2.)  Because it tortures consciences:  for consciences continually waver, whether they have specified all their sins and each, and so, being uncertain of absolution, are ever in suspense and anxious.

(3.)  Because remission of sins is dependent on a sufficient enumeration made to a man, which is foreign to the doctrine of the Gospel.

(4.)  Because this is a means of fishing for the secrets of kings and princes, and of revealing the same to the hurt of mankind.

II.  On behalf of their confession the Pope-worshippers object:

(1.)  Those that were baptized by John confessed their sins, Matthew 3:6.

Therefore, auricular confession of all sins and each is necessary.

Response:  The consequence is denied.  The antecedent only speaks of general, and public especially, confession of sins.

(2.)  Christ commanded the healed leper to show himself to the priest, Matthew 8:4.

Therefore, He commanded him to confess into the ear of the priest all his sins and each.

Response:  The consequence is clearly null.  To no other end did He command the healed leper to show himself to the priest, that that they might receive testimony of deliverance from leprosy.

(3.)  The priests have power of remitting sins, John 20:23.

Therefore, all and each are to recounted to them.

The rationale of the consequence:  because what is not made known to the priest by confession is not able to be remitted.

Response:  The consequence is denied; the proof is false.  For ministers of the word are able to proclaim to penitents the remission of all sins, even if they do not know all in particular.

(4.)  James commands the mutual confession of sins, James 5:16.

Therefore, confession of all sins and each is to be disclosed to the priest.

Response:  The consequence is denied:  James does not speak of the confession of all sins and each into the ears of priests:  but of sins that vex the conscience and long for the special consolation of another, to be disclosed to one’s neighbor, with consolation to be sought from him.

(5.)  A sick man is not able to be healed unless he exposes his disease particularly to his physician.

Therefore, sins are not able to be remitted, except those that are exposed particularly through confession.

Response:  The consequence is denied.  The rationale:  Because one and general is the medicine of all sins and each:  but the medicine of all diseases of the body is not one:  but various according to the variety of diseases.

III.  To those asking, Whether a quarrel, public or private, or hostilities, are just reasons to abstain from the Lord’s Supper? Theologians respond:

(1.)  There is not able to be any just reason why anyone would abstain from the use of the Lord’s Supper, except an awareness of unworthiness arising from his own sin.

(2.)  Quarrels, whether private or public, of themselves no more impede the use of the Lord’s Supper than pious prayers.

(3.)  Quarrels occasioned by the iniquity of others, if you yourself have not wronged another, and are not averse to reconciliation and peace, are not a just impediment to communion; because the fault of the other is not able to deprive thee of the benefits of Christ, or the privileges of Christians.

(4.)  Quarrels occasioned by one’s own iniquity, even if the soul is preoccupied with anger or a lust for revenge, ought not to detain anyone from communion:  but because of communion those are to be put off more swiftly, and anger and lust for revenge are to be cast aside:  lest by sinning twice the fault be increased, and you appear to make more of inordinate perturbation than holy communion with Christ.

THESIS XXII:  Hitherto the matter of the Lord’s Supper:  the form follows, which is the sacramental and relative union of the signs and things signified as hitherto explained, consisting in the signifying, sealing, and offer.

EXPLANATION:  Since the signifying, sealing, and offer concern believers alone, and indeed are applied to each individually:  it follows, that in the Lord’s Supper the things signified are not particularly signified, sealed, or offered to unbelievers.  For, as Gospel promises include the condition of faith, so also the sacraments do not seal the promise, except to believers.

THESIS XXIII:  The end of the Lord’s Supper is ἀνάμνησις/ remembrance, that is, the recollection of Christ, and that threefold:  of faith, of gratitude, and of love.

EXPLANATION:  I.  Christ Himself expresses this as the end of the Lord’s Supper, when He commands us to do what He Himself did in memory, or remembrance, of Him.

The threefold remembrance, of faith, of gratitude, and of love, is neatly called in German, Glaubensgedächtnis, remembrance of faith, Dankgedächtnis, remembrance of gratitude, Liebesgedächtnis, remembrance of love.

The remembrance of faith is our testimony to our communion and union with Christ, whereby we profess our faith concerning the gracious remission of sin and eternal life falling to us because of the death of Christ, and through external and visible signs we are rendered more certain concerning the imputation of the righteousness of Christ, and the bestowal of all spiritual benefits.

The remembrance of gratitude is the solemn giving of thanks for such benefits bestowed upon us by Christ, conjoined with the obligation to a sincere worship of God and piety of life.

The remembrance of love is the obligation to perform the mutual offices of mutual love.

* II.  Many others enumerate additional ends of the Lord’s Supper:

(1.)  That there might be the memory of the propitiatory sacrifice of Christ once accomplished on the cross, 1 Corinthians 11:26.

(2.)  That it might be a sign of the covenant of grace, continued and to be continued, Matthew 26:28; Luke 22:20; 1 Corinthians 11:25.

(3.)  That it might be a seal of our closest possible conjunction with Christ, 1 Corinthians 10:16.

(4.)  That it might be a bond of mutual charity among believers, 1 Corinthians 11:17.

(5.)  That it might be the sacrament of union with the church, and of the nurturing and preservation in the same, in which we were once engrafted by baptism, 1 Corinthians 10:17; 12:13.

(6.)  That it might divert us, having once and for all been united with Christ and the church, from all traffic with idolaters, 1 Corinthians 10:21.

(7.)  That it might keep us in the perpetual study of true piety, 1 Corinthians 11:27-29.

(8.)  That it might confirm to us the resurrection of our bodies through communion with Christ, John 6:54.

(9.)  That it might confirm to us the return of Christ in glory and His perpetual feeding of us with the spiritual food of souls, Matthew 26:29.

[1] Matthew 7:6; 15:26.