--- title: 'At the Table of the Lord: Jacob J. Janeway''s Meditations on the Lord''s Supper' type: video hasMedia: true requiresPurchase: false authors: - 'Jonathan Master' date: 2026-05-26 collection: 'Dead Presbyterians Society' subcollection: 'Season 3' topics: - 'Sacraments' - 'Meditation' - 'Atonement' url: https://confessional.org/dead-presbyterians-society/season-3/at-the-table-of-the-lord-jacob-j-janeways-meditations-on-the-lords-supper --- # At the Table of the Lord: Jacob J. Janeway's Meditations on the Lord's Supper In this episode of the Dead Presbyterians Podcast, we explore J.J. Janeway’s classic work Meditations on the Lord’s Supper. Drawing from Scripture and the Westminster Larger Catechism, Janeway guides believers in reverent self-examination, joyful communion with Christ, and renewed obedience after coming to the Table. A rich, pastoral resource for anyone seeking to approach the Lord’s Supper with greater faith and devotion. [Watch](https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/1195680844) ## Transcript How do you view the Lord's Table? Has it become for you just a common thing, a mere ritual? Or do you recognize that when you come to Christ's Table, you are meeting with Jesus Christ by the means of the Holy Spirit? Greetings from the past. Welcome to Dead Presbyterian Society. My name is Jonathan Master. I serve as president of Greenville Seminary. Have you ever paused before the Lord's Table, before you come to communion, and asked yourself the question, am I ready to meet with Jesus Christ today? The Apostle Paul warns that whoever eats this bread and drinks this cup of the Lord unworthily shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. The supper is no casual ritual. It's a covenant meal in which the Lord Jesus Christ meets with his people around his table. That's why the Westminster Catechism contains questions like this. How are they that receive the sacrament of the Lord's Supper to prepare themselves before they come unto it? To aid in this kind of preparation, we're going to turn our attention today to Jacob Jones Janeway. He was a faithful Presbyterian minister, and his meditations on the Lord's Supper continue to stir believers to holy reflection and deeper communion with Christ. Janeway's meditations were not first composed for publication. He didn't intend initially for these to be read by all, but they were born out of his own soul's wrestlings and his own devotional life. Prayers before, during, and after the sacred meal. From these private reflections came a volume overflowing with pastoral warmth and theological depth. It was originally titled the Communicants' Manuals, published in 1848, and the work has been revived for modern readers under the title Meditations on the Lord's Supper. Before exploring the work itself, let's look at the man behind it. He was born on November 20th, 1774 in New York City to George and Effie Ten Eyck Janeway, and he was raised in the Dutch Reformed tradition. His family fled New York during the British occupation in 1776, so this is at the time of the American Revolution. They returned to New York City in 1783, and Janeway studied at Columbia College, graduating in 1794 with honors. Janeway spent some time in uncertainty. He wasn't sure exactly what he would do. He was in a state of spiritual uncertainty as well, and he was moved in 1798 to embrace Jesus Christ. There was a sermon that was preached, and it moved him greatly, and the Lord used that to open his eyes and to bring him to saving faith. He was mentored then by John H. Livingston, and he was ordained as a minister by the Presbytery of Philadelphia in 1799. He served alongside Ashbel Green at Second Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia for 13 years, and then after that took up the post as president of the College of New Jersey that's in Princeton in 1812. He was later the moderator of the Presbyterian General Assembly in 1818. He was a professor of theology at Western Theological Seminary from 1828 to 1829, and then he was a pastor in New Brunswick and vice president of Rutgers College from 1833 to 1839. He was a leader in Presbyterian writings on missions and education, and he was the author of doctrinal and devotional works, including a memoir, actually, of his wife, which was published in 1851. He died in 1858 in New Brunswick, New Jersey, and his funeral sermon was delivered by none other than Charles Hodge, and we have highlighted Hodge's work before on Dead Presbyterian Society. There was a biography written by his son, which was published in 1861. Now, this little book, Meditations on the Lord's Supper, as I mentioned, was published under a different title in 1848. It was republished in 2022, and it offers 29 meditations, 19 meditations before the Lord's Supper, one during, and nine after communion, and each is designed to guide believers in thoughtful preparation and prayer. Janeway regarded the supper as a precious means of grace, and of course, that's the language that's used throughout the Presbyterian tradition, including in the Westminster Standards, and he believed in preparing his congregation for weeks in advance for their coming to the Lord's table, and he urged both ministers and especially communicants to approach the supper with solemn reflection and quiet devotion. Now, the Westminster Larger Catechism, which I've already referred to, answers many of the most important questions about the Lord's Supper in questions 168 through 177. I would commend to your attention those questions in the Larger Catechism for a full-orbed understanding of the Lord's Supper and how to prepare for it, but I want to look at question 168 before we look directly at Janeway's meditations. Question 168 asks this question, What is the Lord's Supper? And here's the answer, The Lord's Supper is a sacrament of the New Testament, wherein, by giving and receiving bread and wine according to the appointment of Jesus Christ, his death is showed forth, and they that worthily communicate feed upon his body and blood to their spiritual nourishment and growth in grace, having their union and communion with him confirmed, testify and renew their thankfulness and engagement to God and their mutual love and fellowship, each with other as members of the same mystical body. Now, using that as a definition for the Lord's Supper, what is the Lord's Supper? Janeway builds on this with three key themes, and the themes are these, the person, atoning work, and sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ. He believes that that primarily needs to be meditated upon. Secondly, the right manner of partaking the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, another meditation of Janeway's. And then thirdly, the blessing of grace received at the to go forward with renewed faith and obedience in the Christian life. And you notice that all three of those are elements in the Westminster Larger Catechism's definition or answer to the question, what is the Lord's Supper? So, let's look at these three themes in order from Janeway's meditations. First, the person, atoning work, and sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ. Janeway begins his meditations by turning our attention quite appropriately to Jesus Christ. He recognizes that the Lord's Supper is not just a church custom, but it is an ordinance instituted by Jesus Christ on the very night of his betrayal. With full awareness of his approaching sufferings, the Savior appointed this holy meal for the edification and comfort of his disciples till the end of time. This is Janeway. In such circumstances, he took bread and wine as memorials of his broken body and shed blood and commanded them to be used as such in remembrance of his sufferings for us and his love to us. Now, when you read these words from Janeway and the expansions he makes upon them, you can see that he is writing as one who is deeply moved by this divine appointment. Think about it for a moment. The Lord Jesus Christ, on the night in which he was betrayed, does not tell his disciples to look back on what they might have considered the high points of his ministry. No, he establishes, he institutes the Lord's Supper particularly as a memorial to his coming suffering and death. And Janeway recognizes this and he sees in the supper not only communion with Christ, but also fellowship with his saints. Here's how Janeway puts it, how precious this ordinance when we consider who are the invited guests. They are the disciples of Christ, the ransomed of the Lord, the saints of God, his children, the sons and daughters of the Almighty, the heirs of heaven, the expectants of crowns and kingdoms there. What a privilege, what an honor to sit with them at the same table of our common Lord. Think about it when you look around, when you're participating in the Lord's Supper, that these are people who with you are disciples of Christ, ransomed by Christ and expectants of crowns and kingdoms. Yet Janeway goes on to say this, the great treasure of the Lord's Supper is that it is a covenant meal, a visible seal of divine grace between our Redeemer and his people. Here's how Janeway puts it, the supper of our Lord is precious also on account of the covenant engagement it seals. This cup is the new testament in my blood which is shed for you, Luke 22 20. The elements are seals to this covenant for both parties. I seal my engagements with God and God seals his promises to me. Amazing transaction, what astonishing condescension and grace on the part of God. And therefore when the believer comes to the table, Janeway insists that faith must look beyond the symbols to the reality that they signify. Christ crucified for sinners. Here's how Janeway puts it, nothing less than the son of God nailed to the accursed cross, dying in shame and ignominy, bearing our sins and the wrath of the almighty. What attractions in the cross of my Redeemer, Janeway says, gaze my soul at it with wonder and delight. Look at it again and again, never lose sight of it. He goes on to talk about this in the cross of Christ. How does the glory of God shine? The glory of God, his wisdom, justice, and love shine forth in the cross of Jesus Christ, his own son. Janeway wants us to gaze at the cross and see the wisdom and power and righteousness of God displayed in the crucifixion of the son of God. But Janeway of course doesn't want our vision to rest on the cross alone. Faith, he points out, must also contemplate the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. Not simply his work, but his person. Here's how he puts it, who is my Redeemer? He is just what the exigencies of my condition require. He is God and man in one divine person. As man he could obey and suffer, and as God he could sustain his human nature under any amount of sufferings. In preparing for the Lord's Supper, Janeway insists, the believer must remember the sufferings and death of my blessed Lord. It is his broken body and his shed blood he puts into my hands at the sacred feast and bids me eat the one and drink the other. Oh and then Janeway insists as well that we must direct our gaze not only at the sufferings of Christ and the person of Christ, but the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. With what confidence may I rest in the assured faith that my Lord and Redeemer, who was crucified for my sins, arose from the dead on the third day. As he arose and triumphed over death, let me rejoice in the pledge thus given, that my body and the bodies of all his people shall be raised in glory hereafter, fashioned like to his most glorious body, contemplating the love of Christ so rich in its benefits to them. Well may the redeemed exclaim with John, behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called sons of God. One of the highlights of the year for us at Greenville Seminary is to meet together with other brothers who are engaged in the work of ministry at the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in America. We hope you'll join us for our luncheon at this year's PCAGA. The luncheon is going to be Wednesday, June 24th at the Kentucky International Convention Center in Louisville and this gathering offers all of us an opportunity to reconnect with one another, to enjoy great fellowship, and to hear a little bit more about what's going on at the seminary. This year I'll be presenting and Pat Daly will be presenting on the work of the seminary. We also have a special speaker planned for that luncheon and don't worry for all who attend there will be plenty of Greenville Seminary merchandise that we'd love to give away to you. Space is limited this year so register early. You can register at gpts.edu slash events. Now after meditating on these aspects of the Lord Jesus Christ and his work on the cross and his work in defeating death once for all, Janeway then moves into the right manner of partaking of the Lord's Supper. As the time of the sacrament draws near, Janeway turns the believer's attention to the solemn work of preparation. Echoing the Apostle Paul's exhortation which goes like this, So Janeway calls for careful prayerful self-scrutiny before approaching the Lord's table. He believes that the communicant, the one who will come and commune with Christ at the table, must come, here's what he says, before the omniscient and heart-searching God, pleading for the Spirit's aid, quote, But if I am a renewed creature, help me to ascertain and determine that fact that I may rejoice in my filial relation to thee my God. Hear me for Christ's sake. Amen. These are Janeway's own words that he encourages those who come to the table to echo for themselves. Janeway reminds us that true preparation includes honest confession. Here's a quote, I can call to mind particular and great sins for which I ought especially to humble myself before God. That humble dependence, Janeway believes, that humble confession leads to a renewal of God's covenant love. Quote, Admiring thine infinite condescension and sensible of my great unworthiness, I come, invited by thee, to renew that covenant in which I have taken the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost to be my God and my portion forever. I engage in this wonderful transaction, relying on thy grace to help me to fulfill my engagements. And then when the Sabbath arrives, having meditated on Christ's amazing love, at last seated at the table, here's how Janeway puts it, you can hear his tone rising, Here I am seated at this sacred table to hold communion with my fellow disciples and with my Lord and Savior. What a privilege, what an honor, how thankful should I be for the grace that I have received. Now this leads us to an interesting question that many people have asked when participating in the Lord's Supper in Presbyterian contexts. Why is it that we fence the table? That's the language that's often used, fencing the table. Now again, I'll quote here from the larger catechism, How are they that receive the sacrament of the Lord's Supper to prepare themselves before they come into it? This is a question I asked at the beginning, but here's the answer that the larger catechism gives. They that receive the sacrament of the Lord's Supper are, before they come, to prepare themselves thereunto. And that's what Janeway's just been discussing. By examining themselves of their being in Christ, of their sins and wants, of the truth and measure of their knowledge, faith, repentance, love to God and the brethren, charity to all men, forgiving those that have done them wrong, of their desires after Christ, and of their new obedience, and by renewing the exercise of these graces by serious meditation and fervent prayer. And this is what Janeway is driving at. Before we come to the Lord's table, let us meditate on ourselves. Meditate on what Christ has done. Meditate on the great truths of His death and resurrection, and of what it will mean to actually sit at the table with Him. And that leads really to the third major meditation, which deals with the blessing of grace received at the sacrament. That blessing that allows you to go forward with renewed faith and obedience in the Christian life. For Janeway, the Lord's Supper stands as both the summit of devotion and the source of strength for the Christian life that follows. The sacred meal is not simply an end in itself, but it is the means by which faith is fortified and love is rekindled. After partaking, the believer is called to quiet reflection. Here's how Janeway puts it, Was the communion sweet and pleasant to my soul? And have I reasoned to hope that my attendance on the ordinance was acceptable to my Lord? May I look for a blessing from my participation of the heavenly feast? And he instructs believers to give thanks as a result of this. We may ask God to pardon what was faulty in our partaking, and we may give thanks for His grace given to us, despite that which was lacking in our participation. Of course, none of us participate with a whole heart all the time. And so we come to God, and we repent for the way in which we didn't participate fully, but ask for His grace and His strength. And Janeway encourages us that we must not leave the supper unchanged. He writes this, In a word, I must follow Christ and be holy as God is holy, and endeavor to shine forth in all the heavenly graces and virtues that pertain to a perfect man in Christ Jesus. And he knew, of course, that the joy and love experienced at the table would very soon be tested. It always is tested for Christians, and they'll face sufferings and hardships and difficulties and temptations. And the Christian, he reminds us, must take up arms in spiritual warfare against the world and the flesh and the devil. But it strengthens us. The supper strengthens us for battle. In the face of fear at what might lie ahead, Janeway offers this assurance. When we consider that Jehovah Himself is on our side, surely we are authorized to dismiss every dispiriting fear, because our strength comes from the indwelling Spirit of God. Here's a quote, Not less dependent am I on the grace of the Spirit for sanctification. I received from His gracious power ability for holy action, faith and penitence, love, hope, and joy were wrought in my soul. And he reminds us that this will lead to rejoicing, because when the Spirit works, we rejoice in His goodness to us. And what Janeway is doing is he's reminding us that the grace received at the table is meant to cause us to grow and to bear fruit. It is a spiritual feast to give us strength for the task that lies ahead. It's not simply a memorial, although it is that. It is actually a nourishing meal for sanctification. The apostolic command, grow in grace, still stands. And Janeway, in this beautiful closing prayer, in his meditation, captures this lifelong pursuit. Listen to this, Oh my God, grant that I may ever feel the quickening influence of these great motives, so that my exertions being stimulated, I may make greater progress in the divine life. Let me never, I beseech thee, oh my God, lose sight of the great duty of growing in grace. May I constantly aim at it and strive to become more and more conformed to thy most holy image, crown my efforts with success, and at last, may an abundant entrance into thy everlasting kingdom be ministered unto me through Jesus Christ, thy son. This is how Janeway wants the believer to leave the table, to walk away strengthened and sanctified and filled with the joy of the Lord. As we survey Janeway's meditations on the Lord's Supper, we see that they are both a guide to preparing for the supper, but also they're a call to spiritual renewal in our lives. From self-examination to communion and from the table to the daily walk of faith, Janeway shows us that the supper is far more than a memorial, it's a meeting with Christ himself, a covenant meal where grace is given, hearts are strengthened. Remember what he said, when we consider that Jehovah himself is on our side, surely we are authorized to dismiss every dispiriting fear. We should walk away with that clear understanding that Jehovah is on our side as he has met with us at his table. Through reverent preparation, humble participation, and grateful reflection, believers are drawn deeper into the mystery of divine love. The same Savior who invites us to his table sends us forth to walk in holiness and joy. And so as we conclude, there are three things we might want to consider. First question is this, do you approach the Lord's table as a mere ceremony or as a sacred encounter with the risen Christ? Secondly, we might ask, has the grace that you've received when you meet with Christ at the table, has that transformed your heart? Is that transforming your heart toward holiness and love? Do you, as Janeway instructs, prepare for this holy meeting with Christ and with his children, with reverent awe? Or are you communing there with joy? Are you leaving with a heart that is strengthened for service? And as you wait for that final supper in glory, which Jesus promises to his disciples, are you growing daily in grace, the very grace that this meal so richly signifies? Janeway calls us to examine ourselves, to partake, and to go forth renewed in faith and love. The table of the Lord is a meeting place of covenant mercy. Sinners are humbled. Saints are strengthened. And the Lord Jesus Christ, the crucified and risen Savior, is exalted above all.