Continous Discipleship - Sacraments

Prayer: God, through the sacraments you reach out to us and draw us into union with Jesus Christ. Thank you for these precious gifts. Quiet our minds and open our hearts as we explore your Word enacted through the sacraments of faith. Amen.

The Presbyterian Church, along with many other protestant denominations, joyfully celebrates two sacraments of the faith: Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. We believe that these sacraments are gracious gifts from God, instituted by Jesus Christ, to signify our adoption into the family of God and to nurture and strengthen our faith.

Why Do We Have Sacraments?
We believe the sacraments are outward signs of God’s faithfulness to the church. “Sacraments are often said to be ‘visible signs of an invisible grace.’  [They] are the ‘visible words of God’” (Presbyterian Questions, Presbyterian Answers, McKim). Through the sacraments we are able to “see” God’s love and experience his active grace in our lives. The sacraments help connect us to God’s Word and reveal God’s purpose for us. “Sacraments make the Word of God more clearly known by adding sight, taste, touch, and action to the mere hearing of God’s Word. In all of these ways, the sacraments are a means of grace” (Invitations to Christ). 

What Makes It a Sacrament?
For an act to be considered a sacrament it must have been instituted by Jesus and be available to all people of faith. Only Baptism and the Lord’s Supper meet both of these criteria. Some denominations recognize as many as 7 sacraments, but the PCUSA refutes many of them as either man-made ordinances or not available to all people.    

Baptism and the Lord’s Supper
Baptism is the sign of our incorporation into the Body of Christ and a seal of God’s redeeming grace. A person is baptized once, by the element of water, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Through our baptism, we experience God’s grace and we are marked for service as a disciple of Christ. The waters of baptism symbolize many things: the washing away of sins, rebirth, adoption into the Church, and being sealed by God’s spirit. Baptism is an act of commitment to God and a symbol of being united to Christ.

The Lord’s Supper is a gift from God that continuously renews and nourishes our faith and sustains us as disciples of Christ. The meal is shared frequently to remind us of the salvation we receive through Christ’s death on the cross. As we eat the bread and drink the cup we experience God’s grace in the fullness of time. We remember his death for our sins, we recommit ourselves to God’s service, and we anticipate the future reign of God. We are fed and nurtured at the table and, in turn, are sent out to share the Word of God. 

Gift and Call
“In baptism and the Lord’s Supper, we receive gifts from God and we give ourselves back to God; they are both a gift and a call” (Invitations To Christ). The gift of God’s grace is freely given, but as we receive the gift we are also called to serve God. In deep gratitude for the salvation we find in Jesus Christ, we are sent into the world to share the Good News, to make disciples, and “to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with [our] God” (Micah 6:8).

Prayer: Lord, we thank you for the gifts of water, bread, and wine. Through the sacraments, help us see your abounding grace and love, that we may share it with others. Amen.