Aphorisms of Christian Religion, Part
A SVPPLEMENT OR ADDITION, FOR THE CLEERING AND opening of the doctrine of the Lords Supper.
WHEREAS our Lord Ieſus Chriſt the 6. of Iohn ſaith in expreſſe words, that his flesh is aIoh. 6.55.meate indeed, & his bloud is drinke indeed. And againe, bIbid. v. 53.Vnleſſe ye eate the flesh of the ſonne of man, and drinke his bloud, ye hauehave no life in you: For the right vnderſtanding of theſe wordes and doctrine, which at the firſt ſight ſeemeth ſo ſtrange, and to the Capernaites (whom Chriſt then taught) moſt repugnant to all reaſon: and that the ſame may miniſter cōfort vntounto our ſoules, which is the right end and vſe of this celeſtiall veritie, two queſtions principally muſt be cōſidered. The firſt is, VVhat kind of meate the fleſh of Chriſt is? The ſecond, How or in what maner this meate is to be eaten? The ſame queſtion may be made alſo cōcerning the cup, as VVhat kind of drinke the bloud of Chriſt is? and in what maner muſt we drinke the ſame? Now then as concerning the firſt queſtion: If the fleſh of Chriſt bee meate indeede (as is before ſhewed) it muſt be either a corporall or ſpirituall foode. Corporall foode is that which nouriſheth him bodily that feedeth thereupon, and this (to ſpeake after the vſuall maner and properly) is called meate. Spirituall food, is that whereby the ſoule or ſpirit of him which eateth is fed and nouriſhed: and this is called meate improperly, tropically, metaphorically, becauſe it hath the likeneſſe of meat, properly ſo called. For like as by natural food ſo properly called, the bodie is nouriſhed and ſuſtained: ſo by that ſpirituall meate the ſpirit and ſoule of man is cheriſhed, & as nouriſhed. The ſame reaſon and deſcription may be giuen of the corporall and ſpirituall drinke. And now it is certaine, that neither the fleſh of Chriſt is a corporall food, nor his bloud corporall drinke: for that no bodily ſubſtance is fed & preſerued either by the fleſh or by the bloud of Chriſt: For, to effect this, the fleſh of Chriſt muſt bee eaten with the mouth, chewed with the teeth, ſwallowed vp, digeſted, and ſo turned into that nouriſhing *Chilus.iuyce in the ſtomach, whereof bloud is ingendred, and ſo deriued or ſent into all partes of the bodie, to be vnited thereunto, or altred and chaunged into the ſubſtance thereof, that the body may receiue his growth and preſeruation therby. And ſo in like maner, the bloud of Chriſt, if the bodie were to be nouriſhed thereby, muſt be drunke vp with the mouth, ſwallowed, &c. But theſe things are againſt all reaſon, and horrible to be ſpoken. And this was the verie cauſe, why the Capernaites did ſo tremble at the ſpeech of Chriſt, touching the eating of his fleſh, & tooke it ſo in euil part, ſaying; cIoh. 6.52.How can this man giuegive vsus his flesh to eate? and againe, dIbid. v. 60.This is an hard ſaying, who can heare it? For they vnderſtood Chriſt to ſpeake thoſe words of a bodilie food, which were to be taken with the mouth, for the nouriſhment of the body. Wherefore ſeeing that it is manifeſt by theſe abſurde conſequents, that the fleſh of Chriſt is no meate for the body: it followeth, that it muſt be a ſpirituall foode, and his bloud ſpirituall drinke, whereby the ſpirite and ſoule of man is fed and preſerued vntounto life euerlaſting, like as mans body is nouriſhed and kept in this temporall & fraile life, by corporall meat and drinke. And this Chriſt himſelfe ſeemeth to hauehave ſaid in theſe wordes. It is eIbid. v. 63.the ſpirite that quickneth, the flesh profiteth nothing, the wordes that I ſpeake vntounto you are ſpirite and life. And whereas the moſt of the beſt interpreters of theſe times expounde theſe wordes, of Chriſtes Deitie, as if the ſame were vnderſtood by the word ſpirite: ſo that Chriſtes meaning (as they ſay) is, that the power of quickning doth proceede from the Deitie of Chriſt: ſo that his fleſh hath power to quicken vsus, as it is the fleſh of the ſonne of God crucified for vsus. This expoſition no doubt is ſound and good, yet I thinke this be the moſt ſimple and naturall ſenſe, if by the word ſpirit we vnderſtād the holy Ghoſt, that the meaning ſhould be thus: my fleſh which I ſaid muſt be eaten, to attaine eternall life, profiteth nothing to effect this, if ye eate the ſame corporally, as you Capernaites vnderſtand me: but it is the ſpirit which quickneth, that is, the holy Ghoſt quickneth the harts of the faithfull, and nouriſheth them vntounto life euerlaſting, by working in them effectually to beleeue in me, and ſo to eate my fleſh and to drinke my bloud ſpiritually, that is, by faith, whereby they are well aſſured that my fleſh was crucified for them, and my bloud ſhed for them for the remiſſion of their ſinnes. The wordes, therefore (ſaith he) which I ſpeake vntounto you, of the neceſſitie of eating my fleſh to attaine eternall life: theſe wordes I ſay are ſpirite and life, that is, muſt be vnderſtood of the effectuall working of the holy Ghoſt in the harts of the elect, to worke eternall life in them, euen by faith.
Moreouer, for the better vnderſtanding of this point, in what ſenſe, the fleſh of Chriſt is, and may truly be ſaid to be our ſpirituall foode: we muſt expreſſe alſo in what manner it is made meate for vsus. And this Chriſt taught vsus in very plaine wordes, in that Sermon, where he ſaith, I am that fv. 51.liuing bread (that is, the quickning bread, or that bread that giueth life) which came downe from heauen: If any man shall eate of this bread, he shall liue for euer, and the bread that I will giuegive, is my flesh, which I will giuegive for the life of the world. In theſe laſt wordes, which I will giuegive for the life of the world, Chriſt ſheweth in what maner his fleſh ſhould be foode for vsus, and that is, in that he will giuegive it vntounto the death, for our life, that is, to merite for vsus life euerlaſting, offring it as Prieſt himſelfe, a holy ſacrifice to God his father. And that this is the naturall ſenſe of this relatiue *Quam ego dabo.which in this place: as if the Lord had ſaid, quatenus cam dabo, in that, or for that I ſhall giuegive it, it is verie manifeſt by the matter it ſelfe, which is handled in that place. For if we ſhall not ſo vnderſtand thoſe wordes, as tending to declare the former maner of that thing which is here intreated: then that word muſt note ſome diuiſion of a generall into ſpecials, as if Chriſt had two kindes of fleſh, of which the one he would giuegive for the life of the world, the other he would not giuegive. But this interpretation is manifeſtly falſe, and contrary to the articles of our faith wheron we ground the truth of Chriſtes incarnation. Therefore that expoſition of the relatiue which in this place is verie true and natural, and vſed to declare the forme and manner of that thing, which is there propoſed or diſputed vponupon. And the very ſame interpretation is there of the words of the Lord in the inſtitution of his holy Supper, where, of that bread broken, he ſpeaketh on this wiſe; This is my bodie, which is giuen, or broken for you, that is, in *Quatenus.aſmuch as, or for that it is broken or giuen for you. For that holie bread, or as Paule calleth it, that bread of the Lord, is not ſimplie the Sacrament of the Lordes bodie: that is, doth not ſimplie ſignifie and teſtifie that the Lord hath a true bodie: but ſignifieth and teſtifieth, that the Lords body is broken or giuen for vsus, that is, was offred on the Croſſe with the feeling of Gods wrath, to make ſatisfaction for our ſinnes. And in like manner muſt we ſpeake and thinke of the other wordes, which the Lord pronounced, of the holy cup or wine: ſaying, This is that my bloud of the new Teſtament or couenant, which is shed for you and for manie, for the remiſsion of ſinnes: that is, in aſmuch as, or for that it is shed, &c. By the premiſſes, it is now manifeſt, that the fleſh of Chriſt hath in it the nature of meate, not ſimplie but in a certaine reſpect: that is, in aſmuch as, it was crucified for vsus. Like as the body is ſaid to be viſible, in reſpect of the colours thereof.
Now concerning the ſecond queſtion in what maner, we eate the fleſh of Chriſt, and drinke his bloud: I anſwer: Such as the meate and drinke is, ſuch muſt be the maner of the eating and drinking thereof: but the fleſh of Chriſt is ſpirituall meate, and his bloud is ſpirituall drinke, as is aforeſhewed. Therefore the fleſh of Chriſt is eaten ſpiritually or in a ſpirituall manner, and his bloud is drunke alſo in the ſame manner. Now to eate the fleſh of Chriſt and to drinke his bloud ſpiritually, is to eate with the mouth of the ſpirite, that is, of the ſoule, to wit, by faith. Again, to eate the fleſh of Chriſt by faith, and to drinke his bloud, is nothing elſe but to beleeue in Chriſt, or to beleeue that the fleſh of Chriſt is crucified for thee, and that his bloud is ſhed for thee, for the remiſſion of thy ſinnes. This Chriſt himſelfe ſheweth in the ſame Sermon, where he propoundeth two propoſitions or ſentences ſignifying one thing: which are theſe: he that beleeueth gv. 47.in me hath eternall life, and hv. 54.he that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my bloud hath eternall life. The matter alſo, and argument there handled requires this interpretation of the words of Chriſt: for if he meant by that phraſe of eating his fleſh one thing, and by that of faith another thing: then this conſequent would follow, we muſt hauehave not one, but two wayes to life euerlaſting: one by eating the fleſh of Chriſt, the other by faith. But the way to eternall life is but one, which is Chriſt alone receiued by faith, or faith in Chriſt our Sauiour, both come to one effect. And yet the better to vnderſtand this point, conſider a little what the nature of faith is. And this is knowen by his next and proper obiect, which is the Goſpell, or that teſtimonie which God hath giuen vsus of his louelove and grace for and through Ieſus Chriſt, for faith reſteth vponupon the Goſpell as the bleſſed and infallible teſtimonie of God. And the Goſpell teſtifieth of Chriſt, that is, of his perſon and office, and of all his benefites towardes vsus: that is to ſay, that Chriſt is the only begotten ſonne of God, which for our ſake and for our ſaluation came downe from heauen, and was made man of the virgine Marie: that he liued an holy life according to the law of God, and hath brought vntounto vsus from the boſome of his father the counſell of God concerning our ſaluation: who being righteous ſuffered for vsus that are vnrighteous vnderunder Pontius Pylate, was crucified, dead, &c. And like as the Goſpell teſtifieth theſe things vntounto vsus; ſo the Sacramentes alſo teſtifie the ſame, for they are ſeales of the Goſpell, and as it were, a Goſpell ſeene and a Goſpell felt. He therefore that beleeueth theſe holy teſtimonies of God, in ſo doing, he ſpiritually feedeth vponupon the bodie of Chriſt & ſpiritually drinketh the bloud of Chriſt. And thus doth Auguſtine,De doctrina Chriſt. Lib. 2. cap. 16. expounde this place of Chriſt. Vnleſſe (ſaith he) ye eate the flesh of the ſonne of man, and drinke his bloud, ye hauehave no life in you. He ſeemeth to commande a horrible fact, and a thing moſt deteſtable: It is a figure commanding vsus to communicate with, or to become partakers of the Lordes paſsion, and to lay vp ſweetely and comfortably in memorie, that his flesh was crucified and wounded for vsus: thus ſaith Auguſtine. After the ſame maner doth Mr Iohn Caluin, that famous diuine of our age, lay open thoſe wordes of Chriſt, in his booke of Inſtitutions the 4. booke Chap. 17. ſect. 5.
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End of the text · John Calvin, Aphorisms of Christian Religion (1596)