Truth We Can Touch: How Baptism and Communion Shape Our Lives

by Tim Chester, Sinclair B. Ferguson (Foreword)

Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are more than just water, bread, and wine. They are God’s promises to us in physical form. What is happening when someone passes through the waters of baptism? What’s the significance of eating bread and drinking wine together as a church on Sunday mornings? What’s the point of these physical substances? Tim Chester guides us through the Bible, explaining how the sacraments, embodying the promises of God in physical form, were given to us to strengthen our faith and shape our lives. The physical bread, wine, and water are a confirmation of our union with Christ. Chester aims to help us treasure baptism and Communion and approach them rightly, so we can receive the full benefit God intends them to physically bring us.

Genres: Theology, Christian, Ecclesiology, Church, Christianity, Christian Living

176 pages, Paperback

Published January 21, 2020

About the author

Dr Tim Chester is involved in The Crowded House, a church planting initiative in Sheffield, UK. He was previously Research & Policy Director for Tearfund UK, and has been published widely on prayer, mission, social issues and theology. He is married to Helen and has two daughters.

Reviews

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written and filled with helpful illustrations.

[Matthew Manchester · Rating 5 out of 5]

I needed this book >10 years ago.
I need this book today.

SUMMARY

This book is probably the best in-depth summary of baptism and communion that I've read. Less than 200 pages, this book packs a lot of meat and gospel truth in it.

Note: I think I should mention, both for my review and for people looking into this book, that the author takes a paedobaptist position. If you're a credobaptist, there are some things you will disagree with. However, the Tom Schreiner (hardline-SBC) heartily endorsed this book. This should speak to the quality and unifying tone of this book. Regardless of your conviction, this book will both encourage you and challenge you.

THE GOOD

This book is brilliant. It is also crazily quotable.

I thought his section on guarding the table was his most controversial and possibly his best section.

The first two chapters contain most of the book's premise. It's simple yet I loved the depth he went into.

God in his kindness, knowing how frail we are, knowing how battered by life we can be, has also given us his promise in water, bread, and wine.

Simple items, crazy significance.

THE CHALLENGES

The biggest issue is the lack of any talk about paedocommunion. In fact, the way he casts baptism and communion, I thought for sure he would have to deal with it in some way, but he doesn't mention it at all.

While I don't believe in paedocommunion and believe the idea is rooted in a wrong view of baptism, it still is a growing belief (usually among the "ultra-Reformed.") I would have liked to see some words about it.

Side-note: This omission kept me from saying that this is a 5-star book. I honestly wanted to give it 4 stars, because that's how big of a hole this feels like. But the book is incredible, so I can't take off more than a half a star.

CONCLUSION

I mentioned at the start that I needed this book 10 years ago. I say that because it would've helped my journey from Pentecostal --> Reformed to be quicker and more enjoyable. The sacraments are what makes us look into spiritual mystery. This book would've made me mostly Presbyterian pretty quickly.

This book is now on my list to give to new Calvinists. I'm going to get a gift set together. Add this book to the list with Humble Calvinism and The Joy Project: A True Story of Inescapable Happiness.

4.5 stars.

[Mark Linton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has strengthened my understanding of the ordinances and my love for the Lord himself. "Christ in his kindness, knowing how battered by life we can be, has given us water, bread and wine as physical signs of his spiritual presence."

I appreciated his explanation of the role of the ordinances in gospel assurance for pastors and counsellors, since "Baptism is the embodiment of our union with Christ... The Lord's Supper is the embodiment of our communion with Christ." We are a "baptized people" who live a "baptized life."

Perhaps the most remarkable concept for me, having been always wary of anything that sounded too Roman Catholic, was that the Lord is spiritually present with us inviting us to commune with him. This should be obvious given that Matthew 28:20 promises that he is with us always. But because I am saved, I am spiritually seated with him (Ephesians 2:6) in hope of his future physical presence. This concept will transform my attitude in taking the Lord's Supper from a simple memorial of Christ's sacrifice into a real spiritual participation in the life of my Lord, enacted by physical reminders. Chester's clarification of the differing perspectives of Aquinas, Zwingli, Luther, and Calvin was particularly helpful at this sometimes controversial stage. He could have used a lot more Scripture here instead of confessions of faith though.

I am always grateful to an author who introduces me to incredible hymns, and here I was not disappointed. Joseph Hart's hymn Come Ye Sinners, Poor And Needy is a great expression of Christ's invitation to sinners. My favourite two verses describe my suffering and ascended Saviour. This understanding will shape my life the "shape of the gospel." Christ will suffice.

"View him prostrate in the garden,
on the ground your Maker lies!
On the awful tree behold him,
hear him cry before he dies:
“It is finished!” “It is finished!”
Sinner, will not this suffice?

Lo, the incarnate God, ascended,
Pleads the merit of his blood.
Venture on him, venture wholly;
Let no other trust intrude.
None but Jesus, none but Jesus
can do helpless sinners good."

[Matthew Le Croissette · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderfully encouraging book. Tim Chester set out to make me love the sacraments more, to value them as a gift to help us trust the Lord in our weakness, and for me he succeeded. This book has given me so much to think about, and while I’d have preferred to see some more of his workings on communion come direct from scripture as opposed to reformed catechisms, I’m convinced that decision was for clarity, brevity and appreciation of brothers and sisters who’ve thought lots about these things rather than anything more sinister! Chester is always gracious and gentle, making it so much easier to hear about my own weakness and need for repeated reminders of God’s promises (of truth I can touch). This book is a gem, and is worth reading whatever your sacramental theology - indeed what first stuck out to me was Sinclair Fergusson commending/writing the foreword of a book on baptism and the lord’s supper written by an independent-minded Credobaptist! Highly recommended.

[Vincent Lemieux · Rating 5 out of 5]

4,5 ⭐️

One of the great pastoral and experiential introduction to the sacraments I’ve read. It is not a book trying to add something to the debate within the Church ; the book is written with the goal of demonstrating the importance, the beauty and the grace of the sacraments. Tim Chester is really writing with members of locale churches in mind, and he does it with a really pastorale heart. It would probably be the first book I’ll would give to someone who desire to know what the sacrements is all about.

And for those who wonders, Chester is following Calvin, and the book can be read and enjoy by paedobaptists and credobaptists alike.

I recommend.

[Tim Sandell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent. A wonderful, rich, yet very readable, book on the sacraments. Tim Chester writes in his usual engaging and understandable manner, showing us how baptism and communion help us keep going in our Christian walks and help us keep loving the Lord. There’s a wealth of helpful biblical theology and historical theology in this short book.

[Dr. David Steele · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two lessons I learned early in my Christian life concern the ordinances of baptism and communion. Over the years, my understanding of these “gospel portraits” has grown and expanded. Tim Chester’s latest work, Truth We Can Touch is the most recent tool that the Lord has used to add deep insight into baptism and communion.

Chester makes his aim clear at the outset: “Above all, I want us to learn to appreciate baptism and Communion.” In less than 200 pages, Chester succeeds at every level. The author unveils baptism and communion through the authoritative lens of Scripture. He also alerts readers to the controversies that have arisen in church history.

One highlight that summarizes this excellent book is the distinction between the two ordinances:

Baptism is the embodiment of our union with Christ.

The Lord’s Supper is the embodiment of our communion with Christ.

Chester adds, “Along with the preaching of the word, it is the chief means God has given us to enable us to understand who we are in Christ.”

But the most helpful aspect of Truth We Can Touch is the way that Chester navigates between the various views of Luther, Zwingli, and Aquinas. Since we live hundreds of years later, worldviews have morphed, leading to a wide range of emphasis in local churches. The closed universe model has affected believers in our generation, even solid believers. Chester includes this insight that beautifully summarizes the arguments in the book:

“But what we as Christians need to emphasize is that we still live in a world in which God actively and routinely intervenes. He intervenes through natural causes (and occasionally apart from natural causes through miracles). We need to see natural causes as the instruments of God. We need to see the world as a providential cosmos. That allows us to re-enchant the world.”

I encourage readers to explore Chester’s arguments in Truths We Can Touch. But greater still, I encourage readers to revisit the great gifts of baptism and communion and allow them to shape their lives. May we gospel afresh in the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

[Judith Koene Henderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an incredibly helpful book which I devoured in two days. It talks about extremely important truths regarding both baptism and the Lord's Supper which often (might I dare say most of the time) are forgotten. After reading this book I see the importance of both baptism and the Lord's Supper in a new light with this book helping me to better understand Scripture passages on the topic.

I strongly recommend for all Christians to read this book. It will bring to light the importance of both baptism and the Lord's Supper, help you to have a better understanding of why they are important, what they mean, what is actually happening through them. Thank God for the gifts of the sacraments he has given us so we can actually physically touch, smell, feel and taste the gospel.

[Micah Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent accessible, lay level treatment of the sacraments. Chester shows that there is a thoroughly biblical and historically attested high view of the sacraments in reformed protestantism.

[Avery Heaton · Rating 4 out of 5]

super good read! man i feel humbled and just ready to bow before the King of Kings. what a gracious, loving, intentional, and pure Father we have.
“if youre not ready to express your connection to Christ in baptism, then you are not ready to express your commitment to Christ in communion”
as someone who didnt get baptized for two years after salvation (long story) it was so revealing to just see why baptism is so important to the believer and to the Redeemer. Tim asked how often we think about our baptism and honestly not super often?? but how sweet that now i can put that on my prayer list and be intentional with reflecting on the day that i declared my faith to the church and before God. super excited to chat about this with a cg girl who is contemplating baptism. i cant wait to tell her all the goodness that i learned about God and the things He continually provides for us.

[Thaddeus · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good!! This is a much needed book for a lot of evangelicals who have never deeply considered the significance of the sacraments Christ has given us... Too often evangelicals can dismiss any deeper meaning beyond mere 'memorial' to mysticism or Roman Catholicism... Yet there is a deep reformed heritage of biblical meaning and significance to the sacraments waiting for evangelicals to recover should they spend the time to study and meditate on it deeply.

This is a topic I'd been passionate about and wanting to do more writing and teaching on it... This book is a great introduction to provoke deeper thought on such important aspects of Christian faith - baptism and communion - truths we can touch! I'll most surely be recommending this book to others.

Definitely a worthwhile read!

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the introduction: Thought Experiment 1 Imagine your church stopped celebrating Communion. Nothing is announced. It just stops happening. Everything else goes on as before. You gather each Sunday to sing God’s praises and hear his word. You meet midweek to study the Bible and pray together. You get involved in evangelistic initiatives and serve your local community. But Communion doesn’t happen. How long do you think it would be before you noticed? What difference would it make to your life? To your life together as a church? Would you miss it? All good experiments have a control sample, and this one is no exception. As a control, imagine what would happen if your church stopped singing. Again, no announcement is made. But next Sunday there’s no music group or organist; there are no hymn numbers or songs on the screen. The Bible is read, prayers are offered, a sermon is preached. But there’s no music. Same questions: How long do you think it would be before you noticed? What difference would it make to your life? To your life together as a church? Would you miss it? Here’s my hunch. In the no-singing scenario there would be an uproar after the very first meeting. A group of people would surround the leaders demanding to know what was going on. People would be pointing in open Bibles to Colossians 3:16. Veiled threats would be made. But what about the no-Communion scenario? I fear that many Christians could skip Communion without missing very much, and perhaps without even noticing for some time.

Truth We Can Touch is about TWO church sacraments: baptism and communion. Is the book necessary? Do we really, truly need yet another book about communion and baptism? The author would argue YES. Because both are vitally misunderstood OR undervalued in terms of priority. The truth is that Christians often find communion and baptism to be confusing--and most books are so focused on the HOW or even HOW OFTEN that the WHY or SO WHAT is lost altogether.

This is not your typical book about the sacraments. This isn't a book about sprinkling or immersion, infant baptism or believer's baptism. Nor is it an argument about wine or grape juice. What should communion MEAN to believers? How should taking communion impact your life? What should baptism MEAN to believers? Should having been baptized change your life on the day-to-day?

So what is the purpose of this one? He writes, "I want to argue that our primary focus when we think about baptism should not be on our faith, but on the object of our faith—Jesus Christ. I think this is consistent with both an evangelical paedobaptist position and a Reformed credobaptist position. If you’ve grown up in the kind of Baptist circles where the focus is all on the commitment we make in baptism, then this emphasis may initially appear unfamiliar. But I hope you will see that, while it is true that baptism is in part a sign of faith, first and foremost it points us away from ourselves to the promises of God and the work of Christ. As we recognize this, we will discover how God uses baptism and Communion to strength our faith and reassure our hearts. I want us to learn to appreciate baptism and Communion. Christ gave them to us to nurture our faith. I want us to understand how we can approach them so they do this. They do more than simply work on our minds to teach or remind us—otherwise Christ would merely have given words to say or truth to remember. Working out what the “more than” involves is the theme of this book. What is the added value of physical acts? Or, to put it another way, why water, bread, and wine? Why not just thoughts and words?"

I think he does a MARVELOUS job answering these questions.

I don't usually seek out books about baptism and communion. First because I don't want to be lectured. Second because they tend to go technical and theoretical. But this one does neither. It is a book that is ENTIRELY practical and further more grounded in Scripture. By focusing on the WHY and the SO WHAT, instead of being dry and scholarly, it becomes relevant and personal.

My absolute favorite chapter was "Enacted Grace" in which he tells the HISTORY OF THE WORLD IN TWELVE MEALS.

1. Creation and the Menu for Mankind: The Story of God’s Generosity
2. The Fall and Another Menu: The Story of Humanity’s Sin
3. The Passover Meal: The Story of God’s Redemption
4. Manna from Heaven: The Story of God’s Provision
5. A Meal on the Mountain: The Story of God’s Covenant
6. The Bread of Presence: The Story of God’s Presence
7. The True Happy Meal: The Story of God’s Home
8. Exile and Famine: The Story of God’s Judgment
9. Another Meal on a Mountain: The Story of God’s Feast
10. Levi’s Party: The Story of God’s Grace
11. The Feeding of the Five Thousand: The Story of God’s Future
12. The Last Supper and the Lord’s Supper: The Whole Story in One Meal

Of this last meal, he writes:

It is a meal that echoes all the other meals and points to their fulfillment. The Lord’s Supper looks back to the Passover meal. Luke is at pains to point this out in his account of the Last Supper, mentioning the Passover in Luke 22:1, 7, 8, 11, 13, and 15. The Passover meal told the story of redemption from slavery through the blood of a lamb. The Communion meal tells the story of redemption from sin through the blood of Jesus, the Lamb of God. The Sinai covenant and its sprinkled blood find their fulfillment in the cross. This is God’s complete and permanent solution for sin. All who come to Christ are cleansed by his blood and welcomed to his banquet. We are invited to eat in the presence of God. At the Last Supper, Jesus said, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood” (Luke 22:20). The cup represents the new covenant, a new relationship-forming agreement through which we become God’s people and he becomes our God. The Communion meal embodies the grace of God to needy sinners. Paul would later say we “proclaim the Lord’s death” every time we eat it (1 Cor. 11:26). Here in this meal we encounter the heart of our salvation. And we do not just see it or hear it. We eat it! It becomes part of us. We enact what Jesus said in John 6:51, 54–56: I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh. . . . Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. This is a meal at which Jesus is the host. He tells Peter and John to “go and prepare the Passover” (Luke 22:8). But the point of their mysterious encounter with an apparently random man carrying a jar of water is to show that Jesus has made everything ready (Luke 22:7–13). It is a powerful picture of the way Jesus prepares the eternal banquet by dying in our place. He takes the judgment we deserve so we can come to eat in the presence of God. At the cross Jesus experiences exclusion from God (like Adam from the garden) and exile from God (like Israel in Babylon) so we can come close to God. The Lord’s Supper also echoes the feeding of the five thousand. That miracle involved four verbs: taking, thanking, breaking, giving (Luke 9:16). The same four verbs in the same order describe Jesus’s consecration of the bread in Luke 22:19: “And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them.” Here is Jesus providing bread from heaven to satisfy his people, except that now this bread is his own body, which we feed on by faith as we consume the Communion bread. The Lord’s Supper also points forward to the final eternal banquet promised by Isaiah. Luke’s account of the Last Supper is bookended by references to Christ’s return (Luke 22:14–18, 28–30).

It was a great way to reveal the BIG PICTURE of the Bible. Sadly, many are lacking this big-picture context. So books that include a way of conveying the whole story of the Bible in just a chapter or two are desperately needed.

[Olivia Iles · Rating 5 out of 5]

The sacraments are beautiful physical pictures of God’s promises to His people, given to us out of His kindness because we are forgetful people in need of physical signs of His covenantal promises!!! Tim Chester explains these concepts very thoughtfully with so much biblical wisdom.

“But God in his kindness, knowing how frail we are, knowing how battered by life we can be, has also given us his promise in water, bread, and wine.”

“We do not get a different or better Christ in the sacraments than we do in the Word… But we may get the same Christ better, with a firmer grasp of his grace through seeing, touching, feeling, and tasting as well as hearing.”
- Sinclair Ferguson

I’ve had so many questions surrounding both baptism and communion (why water, eyes open or closed, level of emphasis, how present is His body and blood, etc). This book has helped me process through a lot of that! He doesn’t discuss paedobaptism vs credobaptism - more so focuses on the history behind both sacraments and the significance of them in a Christian’s life. Highlyyy recommend, the sacraments are a gift from God for the people of God and oftentimes the church today participates in both without understanding the why! There’s so much beauty in knowing God’s purpose behind the sacraments!!!

[Alex McEwen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Eucharistic Meditation

This is one of my favorite books. I’ve read it once a year for the past three years. Just as we return to the Lord’s Supper every week because we are a forgetful people, I return to this work to be reminded. I’ve reviewed it well in the past, so I won’t review it again. But let me say this: it’s a wonderful read that cannot be missed by anyone who treasures the sacraments. Instead of a proper review, I’ve written a brief reflection on the Eucharist, inspired by this work over the past few days. Perhaps next year, I’ll reflect on Baptism instead.

Growing up, Sunday dinners were one of my favorite family rituals. About once a month, my Nonna would make a massive lasagna and invite the entire family to feast. All the aunts, uncles, and cousins would gather in her small home, and so many people would come that my grandpa had to set up smaller tables throughout the living room just to seat everyone. My grandma, a little old Italian woman, always seemed to find stray Italians to join her table. Her house was an Italian community center in a city that didn’t have one. At her table, everyone was welcome. This is something I’ve carried into my own life. I love food, wine, and the fellowship of friends, and I want to be someone who welcomes all to my table. Come to the table and find friendship, rest, and nourishment.

But this isn’t unique to me or my cultural background. It’s something that belongs to the human condition. There’s something innately human about wanting to be in fellowship with others and enjoying a meal together. In every culture, time, and place, we find traditions of people gathering to feast. This is also found throughout the sacred scriptures. In the beginning, we find man enjoying fellowship with God. And in that fellowship, God spread out a feast, allowing man to eat from every tree that bears fruit, and from the Tree of Life itself. Then the ancient deceiver, the original foe of man, appears. That ancient wyrm tempts man over a shared meal; a feast of lies and death. In response to man’s disobedience, God casts him out of the Garden, for his own safety. In the Garden, there is eternal life, which man cannot attain in his fallen state. Man was removed from the fellowship of God and, by extension, from that glorious everlasting feast. And as a consequence, from that day onward, he would have to toil for his food.

Cast out from the Garden, man was no longer in the presence of God and would eventually face death. However, that wasn’t the end of the story. Despite man’s inability, God continued to make ways to share fellowship meals with His people. God dined with Abraham and Sarah at their table; in the wilderness, the people of God ate the Passover meal, which pointed to a greater meal to come; and through the peace offering in the sacrificial system, man was able to eat in the presence of God. Man may not have been in the constant presence of God, but it was God’s intention to share a meal with him. Sharing a meal with others and with God is part of the fabric of our human identity.

The Old Testament ends its discourse on meals with a great prophecy from the Prophet Isaiah:

On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples
a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine,
of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined.
And he will swallow up on this mountain
the covering that is cast over all peoples,
the veil that is spread over all nations.
He will swallow up death forever;
and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces,
and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth,
for the Lord has spoken.
(Isaiah 25:6-8)

And that prophecy has come to pass, at least in part. The Lord took on flesh and was put to death. On the very night He was betrayed, He set out a meal for His disciples; a meal we partake in every week. O how sweet it is to dine in the presence of the Lord! He has indeed set a feast before us. Unlike the feasts of the Temple, this is a feast for all peoples. As we partake in this feast, we remember the death and resurrection of our Lord. But we also look forward to His swift return, when He will truly wipe away every tear forever, and death will be no more.

At our church, we partake in the Lord’s Supper every week. We leave our seats and come up to the table as family groups, and an elder administers the elements. Just last week, my wife and I went up to the table with a family that had a toddler. As the elder passed out the wine, the toddler instinctively reached for it, drawn to what was naturally before him. His father kept the wine away for his own safety, and as is the way with toddlers, he was sad when he couldn’t have what he wanted, even though it was for his benefit.

This scene has stayed with me all week. Taking the supper every week is an immense grace. A pastor in New Braunfels once told me, “We partake once a week because it would be impractical to partake every day.” That’s so true! There is a real transference of grace in the supper, and we need that grace desperately. However, doing it so regularly makes it easy to forget its significance. When was the last time I truly thought about the supper? When was the last time I desired it as much as that toddler did? If I missed church for any reason, would I miss the supper? Would I feel bereft if the cup passed me by?

Gathered at the table of the Lord, everyone is welcome. The feast has been laid before us, and we’ve been invited to partake. Will we take the offered cup? Will we be nourished on the bread? Or will we settle for lesser meals, as our first parents did?

[Ezra]

The best book I've never finished. It was free on audible until it wasn't :(

Chester is a legend though. Every paragraph drooped with ripe tasty fruit of profundity, and I appreciated the historical-confessional tying in he did, drawing on well-formed words of the past again and again.
If anyone's got this, I'd love to borrow it to finish up sometime!

[Jake Preston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Baptism and the Lord's Supper are physical reminders of God's love and grace. Baptism represents our union with Christ while the Lord's Supper represents our ongoing communion with Christ. In baptism, we are totally passive, a recipient of God's generosity as we become part of his family. By partaking regularly in the Lord's Supper, we are active, engaging in a loving relationship with God only possible through Jesus' death and resurrection.

This book is an excellent reminder of the beauty of the sacraments. God has provided baptism and communion as physical memorials of his saving work in our lives and of his covenant with the church. We need more than words to continue following Jesus and the sacraments are gracious physical reminders of God's kindness. Highly recommend.

[Pat]

I listen to audiobook and now I need to read an e-book in order to study more these concepts.

[Cameron Ritter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Doctrinally and scripturally based, this is a great overview of communion and baptism and the different angles that some theologians have taken to explain what happens during each sacrament.

[Amber Thiessen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Water. Bread. Wine.

These are the signs and symbols of our Christian faith.

What impact do they have on us? ...if any at all.

We find ourselves in this strange season, entering Holy Week, knowing that celebration will look different this year, and aching in our hearts for the community with which to fellowship. Will we miss our practices? Will the sacraments be something we long for?

"I fear that many Christians could skip Communion without missing very much, and perhaps without even noticing for some time"

Would you find that true for yourself?

I remember the very first days church planting in rural Africa. There was a stumbling beginning, as we learned culture and language, trying to navigate what church life would look like; both as a team and among an indigenous church. We questioned how we would incorporate the sacraments into our team life, and - in the future - of a local church.

These symbols of our beliefs needed to be a part of the faith we were living among those who did not believe. They became essential to our identity. They distinguished us from other religions around us.

Water. Bread. Wine.

Symbols that we feel. The rush of water over us as we remember the death of our old life and the rise of the new. The texture of the bread sustaining us, the vivid red color of the wine reminding us of blood. Not just symbols, but visual, tangible elements of the Gospel as we participate in the sacraments, these that we see, touch and taste.

Tim Chester writes a new book on these symbols, called "Truth We Can Touch: How Baptism and Communion Shape Our Lives." He writes to remind believers of the value we find as we participate in the sacraments of baptism and communion and to show us how the grace of God visits us every single time.

In his book, he points out how baptism and communion remind us:

Of God's Promises. Maybe especially now in the middle of a pandemic, we need to be reminded of God's promises to us. Through baptism we remember that the Gospel saves us; it is a promise - we are saved. As we participate in communion, we remember that God promises us forgiveness, adoption, and resurrection. These, and more, are the promises God has given to us, as we grow in our covenant relationship with Him. In the midst of all we face in our day-to-day.

Of God's Grace. We have done nothing to earn or achieve salvation. It is the gift of God alone. It is His work in our lives alone. We receive the water, the bread and the wine by faith and our souls are nourished and strengthened. We are assured of our position in Christ because of all that He has done and all He continues to do in us.

Of God's Presence. "Christ in his kindness, knowing how frail we are, knowing how battered by life we can be, has given us bread and wine as physical signs of his presence." God's spiritual presence is with us. He has not left us. The Spirit within us guides us, teaches us and leads us. We are not alone, even in our isolation at home; oh that these times be refreshment to our souls and deeper learning to hear His voice.

Of Our Need to Remember. The bread and wine, the baptisms we celebrate, actively engage our memory, sometimes transporting us momentarily back to our first communion, or the day of our own baptism. When we forsake the sacraments, we take a risk of forgetting, and "obedience falters when memory fails." By the symbols God has given us, we remind ourselves, and each other of the Gospel, and our covenant relationship with God. We remember what He has done, propelling us into gratitude and renewed commitment to Him.

Of A New Life. Baptism changes our status. We confirm our obedience to Christ by the symbolic act of baptism. We affirm the covenant established with God, and communion is how our covenant with Him is reaffirmed. We live in our newness of life, dying to our selves and living into Christ.

Of Our Community. The church is a baptized people. Our community is is created by the death and resurrection of Christ. We are reminded as we take communion of our sin. We are reminded that we participate in this meal together as a family. Celebrating privately may be for a short season, I pray it stirs inside us a deeper longing and joy as we hope for the day when we will celebrate it together as the covenant community of Christ.

The sacraments are distinguishing features of the Christian faith. We have many times been guilty of not treasuring them enough, by not recognizing the value of these symbols that God has given us, to remind us of the Gospel and a life centred around Christ. This strange season doesn't lend to our faith practices, but it can stir inside us this hope in Christ that we will celebrate together again in person, and also the day we will celebrate the wedding feast with Jesus in heaven.

How have baptism and communion been truth you can touch?

Thank you to Crossway for the complimentary copy of this book, and the opportunity to post an honest review!!

#TruthWeCanTouch #crosswaybooks

[Wade · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent, encouraging book about not just taking the sacraments, but (more fully) experiencing the sacraments… experiencing God’s grace in the sacraments. Our baptism preaches the gospel to us; it is a truth we can touch. Baptism and communion are God’s covenantal promises in physical form.

Chester does a great job of setting the efficacy of the sacraments on God’s grace, Christ’s work, and the Spirit’s application. These embodied promises find their power in the One who makes the promises, not the one who can muster up the ability to reflect on those promises. What freedom. What grace. The sacraments are about God acting first, God promising first, and God securing His promises first.

One thing I loved was what Chester had to say about Christ hosting us at the Lord’s table:
“When the plate or the bread is put in your hands, think quietly, ‘Jesus himself is giving me this bread. He is the host of this meal. This is his gift. This is a sign of his love. This is his embrace.’ Using the hands of the person serving you, Christ passes the bread and wine to you because he wants to have communion with you and because he wants to reassure you of his love. He offers you an invitation to taste and see that he is good… The Spirit connects us with Christ. He brings us into the presence of Christ. This is what you have to see in your imagination with the eyes of faith. By asking you to imagine, I do not mean to pretend, as if this were not real. I mean see by faith the spiritual reality that is taking place.”

One critique:
I appreciated early in the book when Chester chose to not address the debate of infant baptism. I think it’s a great debate to dive into, but he simply said that was not the intent of the book. I’m accustomed to theological books trying to overturn every stone on a theological topic, then all of a sudden you look up and you’re 450 pages deep; so, I appreciated him (basically) saying, “That’s not the point of this book… there’s a lot of other great books that address that debate… that’s not what we’re doing here. Moving on.” Great. That said, at the end of the book he makes the point that all baptized people should take communion. The main body of the book ends on page 158 (pages 159-64 are a brief conclusion). On page 157 he says, “all those who have been baptized are to participate” in communion. He gives no further argument on this point. He is clearly making a profoundly paedo communion argument, without addressing the argument whatsoever. By sweeping aside those who take paedo baptism and credo communion seriously, I think he did a bit of a disservice by casting a broad paedo communion blanket (for the baptized children in our midst) without giving any argument for, or any counter against, it.

That said, that is one critique on what is, essentially, the penultimate page of the book. I was so encouraged by reading this book. As much as it looks like a theological survey on the surface, this is book is worshipful… devotional. My experiencing the sacraments is, and will be, deeply impacted by reading (and experiencing) this book. I am very grateful for Pastor Chester’s loving work to help us experience the Lord more deeply in these truths that we can touch that He has self-sacrificially given us.

[Ryan Bates · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best, most accessible book helping people understand the sacraments. It enables you to appreciate these fantastic physical signs that God has given us. In the evangelical church, many people have too low a view of baptism and communion. This is understandable given the Protestant response to the Catholic Church's doctrine of transubstantiation (the bread and wine become the literal body and blood).

Martin Luther held to a more literal view but still distinguished himself from the Catholic Church with a view called consubstantiation. This is the idea that Christ is "in, with, and under the bread and cup"--the way water is to a sponge.

The Swiss reformer Ulrich Zwingli went entirely in the other direction and interpreted the Lord's Supper purely symbolically. Because of this, he only led his church in taking communion a couple of times a year. This is the view that most evangelical churches hold today. To his credit, he pushed against the Catholic Church (and was drawn and quartered for his communion beliefs).

In between these two was John Calvin, who helped to establish what became accepted as the Reformed view of communion. Calvin said there isn't a literal, physical presence in the Supper, but it's more significant than mere symbols. He said the sacraments are not symbols but signs pointing to greater transcendent realities. There is a real presence in the Supper--a spiritual presence.

This book falls into the Reformed category without going into all the details and getting sidelined by theological sacramental debates. Using many word pictures, metaphors, and analogies, the author reestablishes the significance of the sacraments without falling into the Catholic or Lutheran fallacies. From now on, this is the book I'll be giving to my church members who want to dive deeper into baptism and communion. I originally picked it up to read and recommend it to someone who had a lot of questions about communion, why we do it, and how it works. I wholeheartedly recommend it.

[Carlos Córdova · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have to be honest. When I read the title of this book I wasn't very excited nor convinced to even get the book and start reading it.
The main reason that I can identify now is that there is some sense of self contentment in christians (me included) of what we know about the sacraments. We see them as important symbols that we need to practice, and in the best case, as some sort of reminders of the realities of our faith.

I decided that I would go against my prejudices against the book and its topic, and to my surprise, I started to realize almost from the begining, literally, from the first two pages, how wrong I was.

This book is certainly not a profound nor academic writing on the sacraments, but it treats many typical misconseptions with the right measure of simplicity that is actually needed for the church today. It is a book that you can hand to a whole congregation, and surprisingly to me, being a book written by a paedobaptist, it has been skillfully writen in a way that enables it to reach and teach almost seamlesly paedobaptists and credobaptists alike.

For me, the most important highlight of this book is that it deals beautifully with a much needed understanding in the christian life, and that is that our faith is not something only spiritual, it is not secret and private, it is not untouchable, and the sacraments are there to be that Truth we can touch.

I'm not going any more on the details because I know it is tempting to read a short description of the content of the book and feel that we know what we need to know. I really want everybody in the evangelical church to read this book and to recover that phisical aspect of our Christian faith.

The sacraments are not those two "traditions" that we can spare or live without. The sacraments are the necesary phisical aspect of the Truth that enables us to touch it.

Highly recommended reading!

[J. Rutherford · Rating 3 out of 5]

Within the circles I grew up in, there was no strong doctrine of the sacraments—at least in comparison with the Reformed tradition. Since adopting the Reformed tradition (as much as a Baptist can), I have thought occasionally about the theology of the sacraments and have come to recognize their significance. However, I have often struggled to appreciate their importance in my own life. I was eager to receive Tim Chester's new book Truth We Can Touch through the Crossway Blog Review Program for the opportunity to think through this more practical and personal side of the sacraments. In many ways, Tim delivered. The book is well written, and Tim has a way with illustrations.
Truth We Can Touch is organized into six chapters. The first four chapters consider four aspects shared by Communion and Baptism: Chester argues that these sacraments are each an enacted promise, grace, presence, and memory. The last two chapters consider the importance of baptism as conveying a status change that shapes our life, discussing the nature of a "Baptized Life" and "Baptized People."
I found Chapter 1 particularly insightful and helpful for thinking about the practical significance of Baptism and Communion. The following chapters follow a standard Reformed understanding of the sacraments, arguing that they are indeed significant and full of meaning. Addressing any view that makes the sacraments pure symbolism, Chester argues that the sacraments do not only have subjective meaning but have meaning found in what God does in and through them. They are meaningful in the context of God's overall redemptive work and the specific context of the gathered church. Thus, they are truly means of grace. The applications presented in these chapters are the practical outworking of the Reformed theology Chester presents.
However, these chapters lacked a persuasive Biblical argument for the theology underpinning their application. That is, Chester presented lots of Reformation-era evidence for his views—citing Luther, the Formula of Concord, Cranmer, Calvin, Turretin etc.—but did not show why the positions he presented are Biblical. I am not suggesting he does not use Scripture; as the Biblical index will reveal, this is far from the case. Some of the sections are quite helpful in connecting the sacraments with the Biblical witness, such as his "History of the World in Twelve Meals" (56-67).
However, when it comes to debatable issues, Chester does not give the reader good Biblical reasons to accept, for example, the Spiritual presence of Christ in communion (Chapter 3). I am not sure—generally nor after reading the book—what it means that the "signs convey the reality they signify without becoming the reality they signify" (73). That is, what does it mean for "grace," the thing signified, to be conveyed through the sacraments? If grace is a freely given gift or God's kind mercy, how is it "conveyed" but not identified with sacrament? This language found throughout the historical discussions of the sacraments, but it is not Biblical language for them (as far as I can tell). Chester does not give good Biblical reasons for viewing them in this manner.
Additionally, I am not convinced that baptism is what unites us to Christ, brings us into the New Covenant, and makes us part of the Church, for which Chester argues in the last two chapters. Chester does not draw a clear distinction between the Church universal and the church local, which muddies the waters. Further, the picture is oversimplified. In the New Testament, baptism is presented as an aspect of conversion, alongside faith/repentance and regeneration. References to baptism often encompass the whole (an instance of the literary device called a synecdoche, where a reference to the part indicates the whole). Thus, though our entrance into the Church universal happens when we believe and our belief is itself entrance into and a product of being part of the New Covenant, and though regeneration is the precondition of faith, baptism is associated with each of these.

Because theology and the Bible are my areas of study, I have drawn attention to several issues I had in these regards. However, I do not want to give the impression that Truth We Can Touch is a write-off. I enjoyed reading the book and was encouraged to think again about these gifts we call the sacraments. Read it and hear a call to recapture the enchanted world we live in and to find value in symbols. Don't settle for a "mere symbolism." Use this book as a starting point and conversation partner in turning to Scripture and hearing what Jesus and the apostles have to say about baptism and the Lord's Supper. This book has the potential to get us, Evangelicals thinking once again about these doctrines. For that, I am thankful.

[Jeanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The gospel sacraments seal the gospel promises, as a ring confirms the covenant of marriage. It is an act of faith.

A text that strongly advocates the blessing of Baptism and Communion. It is not a text that argues or debates over differences of the sacraments but encourages the believer (those that want to walk by faith)to participate in the sacraments. It is important to know the difference between what the Catholic and the Protestant view the meal as it relates to worship and ultimately the gospel. "we are saved by grace of God" and not by the sacraments in of themselves. The sacraments only lead us to the gospel and are a profession of faith. If you struggle with this tension of salvation, this text will make clear of what Baptism and Communion mean.

Another interesting part with Baptism and Communion is that the sacraments are meant for community. A church event that brings believers united to the gospel. It is relational and meant to be celebrated. It truly touches all of our senses that we strengthen by it. The sacraments are a gift to us to identify with Christ and his promise. I have belonged to a church body that only practiced communion maybe once every quarter because of time constraint, however, after being part of a community that practices Communion every Sunday and the liturgy of worship, I cannot fathom of only doing it once a quarter. I truly believe we are brought into the presence of Christ as we share the bread and wine and remember with this body...Communion and Baptism is for our good and ultimately for God's glory.

A Special Thank you to Crossway Publishers and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review.

[Matthew Lloyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

In my experience, most Christians do not see a connection between communion and baptism. The act of baptism is a once and done situation where they may have felt little difference in their life except for being wet from water. Communion is something that they partake of only on the fifth Sunday as required by church tradition and they give no thought to the little wafer and cup of vine that they drink. Tim Chester has sought to change these sacraments from things we rarely consider to ones that are enshrined in our minds and events that help to center our lives.

Truth We Can Touch is a book that outlines the connection between the tangible and the spiritual aspects of these sacraments. Instead of viewing these are something that have little bearing on our daily lives, they should be something that will cause us to consider as the days pass. The terminology can get deep at times describing the theological ideas behind these things, but it does not dive too deep that would hinder someone from grasping the concepts.

I am sure that approach baptism and communion different than Chester and that is alright. I am content knowing that he has a great appreciation for these supernatural events and while we may view the nuances differently, we both agree that they are important to the life of a follower of Christ.

If you are looking for a short book about how and why communion and baptism are practiced the way they are in your church, this book can help. While you may have differences, you can still obtain knowledge of why your church practices these sacraments in the manner in which they do.

This book was provided to me for a fair and honest review. I write these words without undue pressure and greatly support the message of this book.

[E · Rating 4 out of 5]

Effective, even powerful, look at the sacraments as means of grace. Chester is an Anglican but he does not get into whether infants/children should be baptized. Nor does he talk much about admission to the table, and when he does it's weak (he just says you need to be a Christian, but says nothing about public profession or church membership; this is not unexpected coming from that church tradition).

Chester is not afraid to speak of how God works objectively through the sacraments. This does not make him a Catholic or a sacerdotalist; it makes him biblical. This is probably the strongest part of his book (it's chapter 2, "Enacted Grace"). He also writes a chapter dedicated to the "memorial" aspects of both sacraments. He believes that it is both God and the believer who does the remembering, especially at the table. This is very rare, but needed, in an evangelical understanding. After all, it is a covenant meal, and our God is faithful to remember his covenant promises.

Another chapter address how these sacraments ought to have a subjective impact on our sanctification. In other words, we've got to engage our hearts and brains, not merely at the moments of laving and dining but at all times in light of what we have done. And he also addresses corporate dimensions of these two acts, although he could have spent more time here.

The test is simple: do we believe, as Chapter 27 of the WCF states, that grace is "really exhibited and conferred" in baptism and in the Lord's Supper? Is anything actually happening at the moment? Chester will help you understand why the answers must be yes. Otherwise why bother with these rites at all?

[Gavin McGrath · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent study on the two sacraments. Chester is, in my view, one of the very few English conservative evangelicals to provide this brief but eminently clear work. Why? Because he is trusted and respected across the tribal spectrum on the basis of his many other writings. Additionally he holds a Baptist’s view of credo-baptism but is judicious and generous to paedo-baptist positions. And, here’s the splendid thing: he shows a thorough commitment to asking what the Bible teaches while simultaneously listening to the Reformers. He models a biblical theology with a systematic and historical theology. I think it is feature which contributes to this book’s admirable argument.

His repeated thesis: “Christ in his kindness, knowing how frail we are, knowing how battered by life we can be, has given us bread and wine (and water) as physical signs of his promise (baptism) and presence (communion in Calvin’s sense of real presence)”. We are enfleshed and physical beings, not simply brains on sticks.

This latest may not answer all questions or please everyone but it is by far one of the best accessible works!

[D · Rating 5 out of 5]

One may disagree with Chester’s view that Jesus is spiritually present in the Lord’s supper through the Holy Spirit (although I find myself leaning this way). I also wished he spent more time explaining why he thought 1 Cor. 12:12-14 is referring to water baptism and not Spirit baptism.

However, to me, this book is still worth five stars. Chester is an excellent writer and he writes in a way that is easy to understand/follow yet is very enjoyable and he still writes in great depth. Aside from his excellent writing, the content is wonderful.

I hope this book falls into the hands of many and brings us to enjoy God‘s goodness and grace in baptism and communion. I feel like baptism and communion are treasures that the church today has left in the chest (too much emphasis on the individual's decision in baptism, and communion--from my experience--is obsolete). Baptism/communion has so much to do with who we are as Christians and what we do as Christians.

[J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want to read one book in this year, pick this book! Tim Chester needs no introduction. His teaching has been tested again and again and has proved to be very faithful.

Its unfortunate that many consider that the reformed theology diminished the value of visible sacraments. In reality, the reformed theology clarified its true meaning. Tim Chester seeks to pull evangelicals from the rut of modernism to the true reformed doctrine of the sacraments. He shows us again and again that the Lord has appointed two sacraments: the Lord's Supper and Baptism for a very good reason. They are not optional extras.

So if you want to better understand the 'Truth We Can Touch', if you want to know how sacraments fit in our worship 'tolle lege', pick up and read.!

[Landon Butler · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best book I’ve read on the sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. This may be the best Christian book I’ve read in a long time. It clearly shows the way in which modern evangelicalism has neglected the sacraments, and then gives a full bodied Biblical and theological exposition of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. While the book is deeply biblical, it is also eminently practical. Each chapter explains not only what the sacraments are, but also why we need them, and why they are essential to the life of the whole Church and each individual Christian. It left me with a deeper appreciation of the gifts God has given his Church and with a deep desire to faithfully participate in the Sacraments Christ has instituted. This is a must read for every Christian!