Tracts & Letters (Vol 2) - Calvin - VII - Chapter 8 (Mutual consent in regard to the sacraments)

Required reading
Tracts and Letters (Volume 2) by John Calvin (Available from Amazon or free here).  Read Chapter VIII (Mutual consent in regard to the sacraments). 

My summary
Today we read another treatise on the sacraments.

Firstly we read letters from Calvin and pastors of Zurich defending the need for the treatise.

Then we read the 'Heads of Agreement' which contains 26 statements of what they believe about the sacraments:
(i) the whole spiritual government of the church leads us to Christ;
(ii) a true knowledge of the sacraments from the knowledge of Christ;
(iii) nature of the knowledge of Christ;
(iv) Christ a priest and king;
(v) how Christ communicates himself to us;
(vi) spiritual communion - institution of the sacraments;
(vii) the ends of the sacraments;
(viii) gratitude;
(ix) the signs and the things signified not disjoined but distinct;
(x) the promise principally to be looked to in the sacraments;
(xi) we are not to stand gazing on the elements;
(xii) the sacraments effect nothing by themselves;
(xiii) God uses the instrument, but all the virtue is his;
(xiv) the whole accomplished by Christ;
(xv) how the sacraments confirm;
(xvi) all who partake of the sacraments do not partake of the reality;
(xvii) the sacraments do not confer grace;
(xviii) the gifts offered to all, but received by believers only;
(xix) believers before, and without the use of the sacraments, communicate with Christ;
(xx) the benefit not always received in the act of communicating;
(xxi) no local presence must be imagined;
(xxii) explanation of the words - "this is my body";
(xxiii) of the eating of the body;
(xxiv) transubstantiation and other follies;
(xxv) the body of Christ locally in heaven;
(xxvi) Christ not to be adored in the bread.

Then Calvin gives us an exposition of those 'heads'.

What grabbed me
Many good statements about the important benefits of communion: 'The spiritual communion which we have with the Son of God takes place when he, dwelling in us by his Spirit, makes all who believe capable of all the blessings which reside in him. In order to testify this, both the preaching of the gospel was appointed, and the use of the sacraments committed to us, namely, the sacraments of holy Baptism and the holy Supper.'

The sacraments testify to the communion that we already have, they don't create the communion.

Next week's reading
Commence Chapter IX (Second defence of the pious and orthodox faith concerning the sacraments, in answer to the calumnies of Joachim Westphal) by reading up to the paragraph commencing 'FIRST, Because I say, that Christ dwelling in us raises us to himself, and transfuses the life-giving vigour of his flesh into us...' (page 279 of the Banner edition).

Now it's your turn
Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.