Till He Come SAMPLE

Appendix: The Lord’s Supper as a Means of Grace
lays hold of the blessings on purpose. In each observance, we
should look forward to the confirmation of our faith, the
nourishment of our souls, our growth as Christians and as
churches, our deepened consecration for service, and the
enjoyment of Christ’s bond or pledge with us and of us with
one another. The Lord Jesus Christ who arouses our hopes for
such things will not dash them. Discerning Christians can
testify endlessly to receiving them.
Second, we should desire a frequent observance of the
Lord’s Supper and eagerly partake whenever we have the
opportunity. Walter Marshall wrote,
one reason why many do little esteem, and seldom, or never
partake of this ordinance, and do find little benefit of it, is,
because they falsely imagine, that God in it only holds forth
naked signs and resemblances of Christ and his salvation,
which they account to be held forth so plainly in Scripture,
that they need not the help of such a sign; whereas, if they
understood, that God doth really give Christ himself to their
faith, by and with those signs and resemblances, they would
prize it as the most delicious feast, and be desirous to, partake
of it on all opportunities. 13
The church where I serve as a pastor has gone through this
very reformation years ago. We had always practiced monthly
communion like many of our sister churches. Then as God
increased our appreciation for the Lord’s Supper, we began
weekly observance to be evaluated by the congregation after a
trial of a couple months as I recall. The proposal met with
some reservations in a few, but after the trial, not one single
member wanted to revert to the monthly schedule. I have also
13 Walter Marshall, ibid., p. 255.
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