Blood of Christ

“… it also deserves to be pointed out that the first words of Jesus to have been written down anywhere (as far as we know) were not the Sermon on the Mount or any parable or even the Lord’s Prayer, but the words of institution of the Eucharist, which are also the words of consecration: ‘This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.’ and ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me’ (1 Cor 11:24-25); they were written down by Saint Paul, addressing the church at Corinth, before the composition of any of our Gospels, at any rate in their present form.” (Jaroslav Pelikan)

“When the Scriptures speak of Christ’s atoning sacrifice, as in Hebrews and 1 John, His self-offering on the Cross is seen in these same terms of the removal of sin and purification from its stain by sacred blood, though with Christ as ultimate fulfillment. Christ bears the sins of the people, taking them outside of the city and removing them (Heb. 13:12) Christ’s blood purifies not only an earthly sanctuary in the midst of the world but the whole world (1 John 2:2).” (Fr. Stephen De Young) 

“It seems to me not surprising that the penal substitution theory of the atonement has had such a cultural popularity over the centuries. It became at home in a penal culture – one of debts and punishments. The good, the industrious, the diligent and the frugal, prosper and reign. The sluggard, the weak, and the slothful fall ever further into poverty, driven by their own sin. There are many things that ameliorate this model in modern culture, but it remains at the structural heart of our lives. The truth of the atonement, Christ’s death and resurrection, does not have a place within such a structure. His death is not a payment within a world of payments – an ultimate sacrifice that we could not afford. It is rather the trampling down of the whole world of payments, demolishing the greatest debt of all: death. The sacrifice of Christ is not like the blood of bulls and goats, only human. It is Life poured out on death, thanksgiving triumphing over necessity. Every act of thanksgiving is a communion in the death and resurrection of Christ. It is for that reason that the thankful are capable of salvation – for the giving of thanks makes manifest the true fundamental shape of salvation.” (Father Stephen Freeman)

“Fr. Alexander Schmemann encouraged us to partake weekly of the Eucharist. He saw our life through the week as first being thankful for the Eucharist we just received on the previous Sunday which nourishes us through the week, and then being preparation for receiving the Eucharist on the coming Sunday. Daily life for a Christian is thus always lived between our reception of the Body and Blood of Christ. We receive the Eucharist as a medicine to help us get through the week in dealing with temptations and our passions. And because we are preparing for the next reception of Communion, we keep our eyes on Christ as we continue our spiritual warfare each week.” (Fr. Ted Bobosh)

“The third mark of apostasy (and probably the most common, although it generally goes unrecognized) is when we serve the “foreign gods in [our] land” (Jer 5:19). The term foreign, which means “alien” or “strange,” does not seem immediately applicable to the activities we find congenial. However, from God’s perspective, anything whatsoever that dilutes or denies our humanity, or seeks to impose itself between us and God, is foreign. We are talking about such things as money, food,…power, and popular ideas – these are the gods of death. The Lord poured out His life-giving blood to save us from such alluring demons, that we might walk in His ways, “for if a man do those things, he shall find life in them.” (Dynamis 2/15/2022)

#JaroslavPelikan #FrStephenDeYoung #FatherStephenFreeman #FrTedBobosh #Dynamis