A growing trend among Reformed churches is the practice of admitting young children to the Lords Supper. In Children at the Lords Table?, Cornelis P. Venema provides an insightful analysis of the theoretical arguments used by advocates of this recent trend. After clarifying terms and explaining arguments often made in favor of paedocommunion, he considers the history of the churchs confessions, teaching, and practice regarding the proper recipients of the Lords Supper. Presenting a historical, exegetical, and systematic treatment of the subject, Venema demonstrates the validity and value of having covenant children partake of first communion subsequent to their personal profession of faith. This is an invaluable resource for every pastor within the Reformed tradition.

What age is it okay for a child to partake in the Lord's Supper? This book takes a constructive look at the doctrine of paedo-communion. Looking at this doctrine, these essays will provide food for thought across the various disciplines such as biblical, theological, historical and pastoral.

A growing trend among Reformed churches is the practice of admitting young children to the Lord’s Supper. In Children at the Lord’s Table? , Cornelis P. Venema provides an insightful analysis of the theoretical arguments used by advocates of this recent trend. After clarifying terms and explaining arguments often made in favor of paedocommunion, he considers the history of the church’s confessions, teaching, and practice regarding the proper recipients of the Lord’s Supper. Presenting a historical, exegetical, and systematic treatment of the subject, Venema demonstrates the validity and value of having covenant children partake of first communion subsequent to their personal profession of faith. This is an invaluable resource for every pastor within the Reformed tradition. Table of Contents: 1. Introducing the Question 2. Paedocommunion in Church History 3. Paedocommunion and the Reformed Confessions 4. The Old Testament Evidence Regarding the Participation of Children in Covenant Observances 5. The New Testament Evidence Regarding Paedocommunion 6. A Key Passage: 1 Corinthians 111:17-34 7. Concluding Observations and Evaluation Appendix: Covenant Theology and Baptism

"When he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, 'This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.'" —1 Corinthians 11:24 The Lord's Supper is more than a church tradition or a complex doctrinal controversy—it has practical importance to our daily lives. When Jesus instituted the Supper, it was meant to strengthen the faith of his followers by reminding them of his promises. God has always made promises to his people through covenants, and along with them given signs and meals to point to and confirm his blessings. Looking at the unity of the covenants throughout the Bible, this book will help Christians recover the practical importance of the Lord's Supper as both a sign and a meal of the new covenant blessings God has bestowed on believers in Christ.

Lord's Supper. Eucharist. Communion. Sacrament. Ordinance. While it's the meal that should unite us as followers of Christ, it sometimes appears we can't even agree on what to call it, let alone how we might share a common theological view of its significance. Even if we cannot reach full agreement, how can we better understand one another and t...

Every page in this book has been designed to help you mark a very important journey.Step by step it will help you to learn all about belonging to God's family. So it's aboutyou and God.You can fill in the pages by yourself, or with the help of a grown-up.If you are using this activity book as part of your church's Welcome to the Lord's Tableprogramme you will have the opportunity to offer it at your first Holy Communion as asign that you belong to God and are part of his family.

The sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper have played an important role in the church since its earliest days. There has also been much disagreement within the church about how to understand them. Pastors Thabiti Anyabwile and J. Ligon Duncan have teamed up to outline the Bible’s basic teaching about baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Speaking from different traditions, they bring perspective to the discussion while both observing that baptism and the Lord’s Supper should be fundamentally understood as pointing to something greater. This new booklet from the Gospel Coalition will bring clarity for those wanting to understand the importance of baptism and the Lord’s Supper. The authors offer a thoughtful explanation for point 12 of the Gospel Coalition’s Confessional Statement. The coalition is an evangelical renewal movement dedicated to a Scripture-based reformation of ministry practices.

The Lord's Supper has been the central and characteristic action of the church at worship. But there are still many ways of understanding it and many questions surrounding this meal... Who should participate in the Lord’s Supper? How frequently should we observe it? What does this meal mean? What happens when we eat the bread and drink from the cup? What do Christians disagree about and what do they hold in common? These and other questions are explored in this volume of the fair-minded, informative Counterpoints series. Contributors make a case for one of the following views: Baptist view (memorialism) Reformed view (spiritual presence) Lutheran view (consubstantiation) Roman Catholic view (transubstantiation) All contributors use Scripture to present their views, and each responds to the others' essays. Included are resources for understanding the topic further, such as: A listing of statements on the Lord's Supper from creeds and confessions Quotations from noted Christians A resource listing of books on the Lord's Supper Discussion questions for each chapter to facilitate small group and classroom use The Counterpoints series presents a comparison and critique of scholarly views on topics important to Christians that are both fair-minded and respectful of the biblical text. Each volume is a one-stop reference that allows readers to evaluate the different positions on a specific issue and form their own, educated opinion.

"The Word is for the engrafting; the Sacraments are for the confirming of faith. The Word brings us to Christ; the Sacrament builds us up in Him. The Word is the font where we are baptized with the Holy Ghost; the Sacrament is the table where we are fed and cherished. The Lord condescends to our weakness. Were we made up all of spirit, there would be no need of bread and wine. But we are compounded creatures. Therefore God, to help our faith, not only gives us an audible word but a visible sign. Things taken in by the eye work more upon us than things taken in by the ear. So, when we see Christ broken in the bread and, as it were, crucified before us, this more affects our hearts than the bare preaching of the Word."