Larry Devich
Friday, July 28, 2006
On Communion
In the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod we practice "Closed Communion" which puts some people off I know. I came across this statement that one LCMS church has in their bulletin and I think it is an excellent explanation:
Today we celebrate Holy Communion. As a member congregation of the¶ 7/28/2006 10:01:00 AM 0 Comments
Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, we confess with the saints of all ages, that
in the Holy Supper, Jesus Christ comes to us; in, with, and under the bread
and wine, for the forgiveness of sin and the strengthening of faith. We
practice 'close(d) communion' as an expression of our unity in doctrine;
believing that when individuals partake of the Sacrament of the Altar they
are at the same time making confession of their agreement with the doctrines
of the "hosting congregation" or church body.
Because most denominations no longer believe that the body and blood of
Christ are truly present in, with, and under the bread and the wine, but
confess that He is only present in a symbolic or representative way, we
cannot expect others to make such a commitment, nor do we want anyone to
compromise their own conscience, and the teachings of their home church.
Therefore, our practice of 'close(d) communion' admits only those in
doctrinal agreement with the Confessions of the Lutheran Church-Missouri
Synod.
Further, the Holy Sacrament requires a mature faith and participation, which
includes self-examination. Holy Scripture also warns against 'unworthy
reception' due to impenitence or unbelief, which would bring the wrath of
God's judgment, rather than the intended blessing; (*1 Cor. 11:27-29). It
is, therefore, out of loving concern for the good of all people and a
commitment to Holy Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions that we practice
'close(d) communion."
We pray that no one may be offended by our practice and commitment, for that
is not our intent, and we thank you for your respect of our beliefs. Please
do not worry, we are not denying your Christianity. Rather, we are inviting
you to learn about our Lord's Supper and other topics and then join us in a
common confession of faith before the Lord's Altar.
* Therefore, whoever eats the bread and drinks the cup of the Lord in an
unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the
Lord. A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks
of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of
the Lord east and drinks judgment on himself. 1 Corinthians 11:27-29
On Life
While I don't say much about it, I am in what is called the "Pro Life" camp on the abortion issue. I agree with Dietrich Bonhoeffer when he says in a quote I found in the latest Notes for Life from the LCMS:
Destruction of the embryo in the mother's womb is a violation of the right to live which God has bestowed upon this nascent life. To raise the question whether we are here concerned already with a human being or not is merely to confuse the issue. The simple fact is that God certainly intended to create a human being and that this nascent human being has been deliberately deprived of his life. And that is nothing but murder.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Ethics. Edited by Eberhard Bethge (New York: Macmillion, 1965): 175-176.
To tell the truth, I don't like the "Pro Life" label. It's far too polite. This is not the sort of issue that calls for politeness, there are not two sides that are both reasonable. One side is for murdering children and I'm against murder, which is what abortion most certainly is.
¶ 7/28/2006 09:41:00 AM 0 Comments
Destruction of the embryo in the mother's womb is a violation of the right to live which God has bestowed upon this nascent life. To raise the question whether we are here concerned already with a human being or not is merely to confuse the issue. The simple fact is that God certainly intended to create a human being and that this nascent human being has been deliberately deprived of his life. And that is nothing but murder.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Ethics. Edited by Eberhard Bethge (New York: Macmillion, 1965): 175-176.
To tell the truth, I don't like the "Pro Life" label. It's far too polite. This is not the sort of issue that calls for politeness, there are not two sides that are both reasonable. One side is for murdering children and I'm against murder, which is what abortion most certainly is.
¶ 7/28/2006 09:41:00 AM 0 Comments
Johann Sebastian Bach, Kantor
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) is acknowledged as one of the most famous and gifted of all composers past and present in the entire western world. Orphaned at the age of ten, Bach was mostly self-taught in music. His professional life as conductor, performer, composer, teacher and organ consultant began at the age of nineteen in the town of Arnstadt and ended in Leipzig, where for the last twenty-seven years of his life he was responsible for all the music in the city's four Lutheran churches. In addition to his being a superb keyboard artist, the genius and bulk of Bach's vocal and instrumental compositions remain overwhelming. A devout and devoted Lutheran, he is especially honored in Christendom for his lifelong insistence that his music was written primarily for the liturgical life of the church to glorify God and edify his people. [From "Commemorations Biographies," Lutheran Service Book, LCMS Commission on Worship]
¶ 7/28/2006 09:23:00 AM 0 Comments
Friday in the 7th week of Pentecost
Daily readings
Numbers 24:1-13
Romans 8:12-17
Matthew 22:15-22
Numbers 24 continues on with the story of Balaam blessing Israel, much to Balak's chagrin since he had gone to great expense and effort to get this well known local prophet of the LORD to curse them and make them go away.
Romans 8 has this exciting news: you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!" 16The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
We are the adopted children of God! What fantastic news that is! God has come down to earth, in the person of His only begotten Son, and has adopted us as His own. When you are adopted you don't really have anything to do with it, it's an act of the one adopting, it's all up to Him, and He has declared us to be his children and heirs. That just makes me want to grin and rejoice and shout Amen! :-)
Matthew tells the story of the Herodians and the Pharisees, deadly enemies most of the time, uniting in an attempt to trap Jesus. Naturally they failed. Jesus gives us the teaching of the two kingdoms here I think. The kingdom of the natural world, where man rules and the kingdom of God. I'm not up on this much, and that is probably because I have so many questions about it, which rulers do we obey? At what point does a rebel government become the "legitimate" government? Ah well, one day the Lord will make all of that clear to me I trust.
There is a good post about the Theology of Glory vs the Theology of the Cross on Gene Edward Veith's blog called Theology of the Cross for Dummies. It is well worth reading, especially check out the link to the chart that compares the two ideas. ¶ 7/28/2006 08:47:00 AM 0 Comments
Numbers 24:1-13
Romans 8:12-17
Matthew 22:15-22
Numbers 24 continues on with the story of Balaam blessing Israel, much to Balak's chagrin since he had gone to great expense and effort to get this well known local prophet of the LORD to curse them and make them go away.
Romans 8 has this exciting news: you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!" 16The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
We are the adopted children of God! What fantastic news that is! God has come down to earth, in the person of His only begotten Son, and has adopted us as His own. When you are adopted you don't really have anything to do with it, it's an act of the one adopting, it's all up to Him, and He has declared us to be his children and heirs. That just makes me want to grin and rejoice and shout Amen! :-)
Matthew tells the story of the Herodians and the Pharisees, deadly enemies most of the time, uniting in an attempt to trap Jesus. Naturally they failed. Jesus gives us the teaching of the two kingdoms here I think. The kingdom of the natural world, where man rules and the kingdom of God. I'm not up on this much, and that is probably because I have so many questions about it, which rulers do we obey? At what point does a rebel government become the "legitimate" government? Ah well, one day the Lord will make all of that clear to me I trust.
There is a good post about the Theology of Glory vs the Theology of the Cross on Gene Edward Veith's blog called Theology of the Cross for Dummies. It is well worth reading, especially check out the link to the chart that compares the two ideas. ¶ 7/28/2006 08:47:00 AM 0 Comments
Thursday in Week 7 of Pentecost
Ahem, well, better late than never I suppose.
Daily Readings
Numbers 23:11-26
Romans 8:1-11
Matthew 22:1-14
In Numbers 23:19 we find this comforting passage about the nature of our God:
19God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?
A reminder that God is faithful and just, always and forever. Amen.
Romans 8 is an encouraging word for us sinners. Following closely behind the "wretched man" of Romans 7 it gives us a glimpse of the glory that is to come:
9You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. 10But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
Even though in the flesh we remain sinners until the end of our lives and are never able to perfectly obey the law of God, yet even so we are righteous before God through the death of our Lord Jesus Christ. We have been baptized into His death and we will rise with Him at the last day.
The Parable of the Wedding Feast. What do we make of this story? I know I've heard a number of sermons on it but for the life of me this morning my mind is blank. The man without the wedding garment being cast out. Who is he? Why is he cast out? I think he is the man who comes before God in his own right, wearing his own righteousness. The idea being that the king provided wedding garments to the guests and this man decided his own clothes were better than that provided by the king. So, here we have the man in his own clothes, wearing he own righteousness, probably thinking he is is a "good man" being cast out because he was not wearing the clothes provided by the king, meaning that he was not clothed in the righteousness of Christ.
Oh, I guess my mind wasn't quite blank after all :-) ¶ 7/28/2006 08:18:00 AM 0 Comments
Daily Readings
Numbers 23:11-26
Romans 8:1-11
Matthew 22:1-14
In Numbers 23:19 we find this comforting passage about the nature of our God:
19God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?
A reminder that God is faithful and just, always and forever. Amen.
Romans 8 is an encouraging word for us sinners. Following closely behind the "wretched man" of Romans 7 it gives us a glimpse of the glory that is to come:
9You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. 10But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
Even though in the flesh we remain sinners until the end of our lives and are never able to perfectly obey the law of God, yet even so we are righteous before God through the death of our Lord Jesus Christ. We have been baptized into His death and we will rise with Him at the last day.
The Parable of the Wedding Feast. What do we make of this story? I know I've heard a number of sermons on it but for the life of me this morning my mind is blank. The man without the wedding garment being cast out. Who is he? Why is he cast out? I think he is the man who comes before God in his own right, wearing his own righteousness. The idea being that the king provided wedding garments to the guests and this man decided his own clothes were better than that provided by the king. So, here we have the man in his own clothes, wearing he own righteousness, probably thinking he is is a "good man" being cast out because he was not wearing the clothes provided by the king, meaning that he was not clothed in the righteousness of Christ.
Oh, I guess my mind wasn't quite blank after all :-) ¶ 7/28/2006 08:18:00 AM 0 Comments
