What is the Liturgy? The Service of the Word – Part One

We continue our simple study of the Divine Liturgy, and how it is the Word of God for you.  Remember, the Liturgy is straight from Holy Scripture – the right Scripture, in the right order, for the right purpose.  We learned last month that the Liturgy consists of two main portions, the Service of the Word, and the Service of the Sacrament.  This month, we’ll take a closer, first look at the Service of the Word:

The INVOCATION:

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

“Invocation” is Latin for “call upon.”  The Pastor calls upon the one true God to be present for His people for forgiveness, life and salvation.  He calls upon God with His Baptismal Name.  Also with the Invocation, you are being told that this Service is for the baptized.  During the course of the Service, the baptized of God enjoy all the benefits of being His beloved child.  Though everyone is most welcome to attend the Divine Service, its purpose is to feed and nourish faith in the baptized members of the parish.  It is not a “seeker” service; it is not meant to be a time to convince anyone that they should join our church.  Certainly, members of our Parish are to be friendly and welcoming to visitor (that’s what a baptized Christians do).  But more than anything, the members of Immanuel, the family of God gathered here, may know that this service is for them, in Christ Jesus.

The CONFESSION and ABSOLUTION:

I forgive you in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Here the truth of your Baptism is renewed, strengthened and proclaimed once again.  Here you may know that Christ – who speaks this forgiveness – took all your sin into His Body, so that when He died on the Cross, all your sin died with Him.  Your sin is dead, it no longer exists, and you are fully free for each and every sin.

The Confession and Absolution portion of the Service was originally not part of the Divine Service Liturgy.  Originally, Confession and Absolution took place privately, with the Pastor, at some point prior to the Service.  As Lutherans came to America, and (at first) had fewer pastors to serve them, they had to forego Private Confession and Absolution, and instead employ the more general Corporate (congregational) Confession. 

Sadly, by the 1920’s, when pastors became more plentiful, and congregations were able to have their own, full-time pastors, Private Confession had become misunderstood and rejected, because the Lutheran Church had gone so many years without it’s practice, and due to lack of teaching about it. Corporate Confession became then became the norm.

It is important to note, however, that the Lutheran Confession of the Faith has never rejected Private Confession and Absolution, but rather has sought to keep it, and to encourage its use among the people of the Parish.  More and more current-day Lutherans are employing its use, and enjoying its benefits of Peace and Joy in Christ.

Next time, we’ll continue with the Service of the Word, and discuss the Introit, the Gloria in Excelsis, and the Collect of the Day.

What is Prayer?

And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli, and said, "Here I am, for you called me." Then Eli perceived that the LORD was calling the boy. Therefore Eli said to Samuel, "Go, lie down; and if he calls you, you shall say, Speak, LORD, for thy servant hears.'"

1 Samuel 3

When I ask people “what is prayer?” the answer is almost always, “Talking with God.”  And if it weren’t for human sinfulness, that might be a good answer.  But our sin turns us in on ourselves, making us think always from our perspective, not God’s…

So maybe it would be better to teach that prayer is not so much talking with God, but rather that prayer is what it was for Eli and Samuel: Because God is Our Father, He speaks first, and we listen…  And then, after we have listened, we speak, using the words Our Father has given us, and not our own.

That’s why we have the Liturgy – to teach us how to pray; that’s why a hymnal should be in every home - and spoken, sung and prayed often, each day – so that you may talk with God on His terms, as a child of a loving Father…

One of the most-often question I’m asked as a pastor is, “How should I pray?”  And I answer, pray the way Jesus has taught you.  Just as it’s been in thousands of homes for thousands of years, the Father teaches the children how to speak;  children learn to speak form being in their Father’s homes…  And so, for thousands of years, Christians have prayed the very words that are in our Lutheran Service Book.   

Get yourself a hymnal, and learn to pray as the Church always has…

God speaks, and we listen…  And so our Old Testament reading gives us a good example of this: Samuel was brought to the house of the Lord as a young boy. But even though Samuel was in the house of the Lord every day, he was not taught how to recognize the Lord, or how to answer when He calls. So when the Word of the Lord came to Samuel, he didn’t know it was the Lord, and didn’t know how to answer. And so he went to Eli, his teacher and spiritual father – 3 times, in fact. And Eli taught the boy how to answer - that is, how to pray.  Eli gave Samuel a Liturgy…

Many people believe that they never hear God, because they think that they need to do all kinds of extraordinary things in order to hear God and to learn what He wants. 

But because human beings are very much centered on themselves, they forget that when God speaks, the first thing to do is be still, and stop trying to make something happen, or to feel something extraordinary.  God has a way of talking to you, and it’s very quiet, and it’s very un-extraordinary… But it is sure, and very blessed; it is His Word, in the Liturgy.

The Liturgy is the Word of God, and the Word of God is living.  Your Faith in Christ always receives the Word of God, and your Faith is always fulfilled by it – whether you feel it has or not.  The hard thing to remember is that Faith in Christ receives God’s Word and, quite often, you won’t know it or feel it.  And that’s a tough thing to trust for us 21^st Century Americans, who are always being told: “Listen to your heart”…

But the heart is selfish and short-sighted, so it’s always changing, and always unsure.  But God’s Word never returns to Him empty; it always accomplishes the purpose for which He sends it.  And even though we know this, we still choose to trust our hearts…

But it’s then that God shows how merciful He is.  Because, while we doubt, our Faith in Christ is always believing.  When we forget Gods’ Word, our Faith in Christ always remembers; - and this is why Jesus tells us to partake of His Body and Blood often in remembrance of Him – because in receiving Christ in His Sacrament, you participate in His faithfulness, and His strength – which is so much better than regretting your failure, your weakness, and the broken promises you’ve made. 

This is the lesson for today: We are not the power behind a life lived for God – Jesus Christ is, and He does all things well, and He does them for you, because He loves you. 

Let us always strive to learn Our Father’s Word as its given here in our Church home – this sanctuary from the troubles of this life, and a home of grace and love in Jesus Christ our Lord. 

Happy New Year: Remember Your Baptism...

The beginning of a new year is a time of reflection – a time to look back at what you’ve done. It's a time to look at where you are now. And it’s a time to think seriously about where you’re going – about what you want your life to be – what direction you’ll take.

The year 2011 is gone.  As you face the changing of yet another year, what sort of things should you consider? How should you, a Christian, be thinking? 

The life of a Christian is a constant cycle of "out with the old, in with the new."  The Christian often thinks about where he’s gone wrong, and what mistakes he’s made.  As you consider God's Law, His Ten Commandments, you see that you don’t at all measure up…  And at first, this kind of thinking may seem negative, and unproductive.  And for the unbeliever, it is. 

But not you.  You’re baptized… You’re a new creation.  For you, considering your sin is a blessing – a blessing that comes from your Baptism – in which you lost the love of sinning.  So now, regret and repentance are common for you…  And thank God that they are.

Because in Baptism, "the old is out and the new is in."  As baptismal waters wash away your sin, they cause new life to be born in you.  And if it all stopped right there, what a perfect life you’d live.

But while Baptism makes you a new creation in Christ and drowns the old Adam of sin, the devil and your human nature still constantly attack you.  The Old Adam tries again and again to resurface from his drowning.  Dr. Martin Luther once said, "The Old Adam is a very good swimmer"…  And so, the life of a Christian is a constant rhythm of "out with the old, in with the new."  Daily you sin, and so daily you need to put out the old, and bring in the new.  Sin needs to be removed from you and put to death, and Christ’s forgiveness and righteousness need to be granted to you.

But how does this happen?  By remembering your Baptism.  What does it mean to “remember your Baptism”?  Many of you could never actually remember the day you were baptized – you were an infant, with no memory of it at all.  For those baptized older, who may remember the actual event, you still don’t exactly know what you’re supposed to recall…  This is not what God means when He teaches you to remember your Baptism.  God gives you to remember your Baptism in His way: through the gifts of His Church.

You remember your Baptism first in the Confession of Sins, where you confess that you have sinned against God in thought, word and deed – by what you have done and haven’t done.  In confessing sin, you’re speaking the truth (that’s what confession means) and this pleases your heavenly Father.  Once you confess your sin, Christ Himself - through the pastor, grants you Holy Absolution – the absolute washing away of all your sin, again and again, in the same Name by which you were baptized: Father, Son & Holy Spirit.

Holy Communion is the Sacrament of the Altar by which you also “remember your Baptism.”  The old is out and the new is in – literally, sin is removed from you bodily as Christ Himself goes bodily into you, His precious blood also.  This Sacrament is very much the way Christ Jesus takes out the old of sin and put in the new: Faith in Him.

It’s still Christmas. Jesus was born into this world to signal that the OLD was going OUT, and the NEW was coming IN.  His birth in a manger, His first shedding of blood when He was circumcised, His perfect life, and the final time He shed His Blood in His crucifixion – all this did away with the Old, and brought forth the New.

And that Newness is Jesus living within you.

And so you are made new, even as you look forward to the new year.  And as far as the new year goes, the Christian's started six weeks ago, with the First Sunday in Advent, the beginning of a new Church Year…  Now, before you write off the Church Year as being secondary in importance to the calendar year, remember that what starts January 1st is the world’s new year; what began with Advent is Our Lord’s New year.  Which do you – as a baptized new creation – belong to: the world or Christ? Which one that matters in your daily struggle against sin and death?  Which calendar will you follow this year?  Pray it is the one that shows you the Life of Christ.

Remember your Baptism.  From this time forward, whenever you hear the phrase “Out with the old and in with the new,” recall Christ’s promise of forgiveness, life and salvation – not by opinions and feelings, but in receiving His Word and Sacraments, His Means of Grace, because it is these gifts that take out the Old Adam of sin, and bring in the New Creation of Christ…

Advent has prepared you, and Christmas has gifted you; baptismal grace goes with you; and you have the promises of a still new Church Year.  And so, out with the old, and in with the new, and all through Christ Jesus Our Lord…

Because He makes all things new.

What is the LITURGY? An Introduction

Over the past 40 years or so, many, many Christians have abandoned formal orders of worship. Instead, they’ve adopted various man-centered, feelings-oriented worship practices.  With an emphasis of emotion over faith, most Christians nowadays engage in free-form, informal events that more resemble concerts and “motivational” speeches.  Sadly, even many Lutherans have gone this route, forsaking their rich liturgical heritage – which was theirs from the earliest days of Christianity.

But in authentic, historic Lutheran Churches, worship is the same now as in the time of the Apostles, and even back to Old Testament times: it is liturgical.  Our Lord speaks to us through the Liturgy; it’s literally the Word of God.  All that God would have us know is in the liturgical words He gives us to hear, speak, and sing. 

The Liturgy is not simply one way to worship among many.  It is not just a “style” of worship.  The Liturgy is worship – worship in the only way that Scripture has given us.

The Liturgy is Scripture – but not just any Scripture.  Take a quick look at the order of the liturgies in our hymnal, and you’ll see that even though the music and words are slightly different, all our liturgies follow the same order.  In other words, they each use certain Scriptures, in a certain order, each for a certain purpose.

Lutherans have a unique perspective on the question “What is worship?”  The Lutheran understanding of worship is expressed in the term Divine Service.  Divine Service is not just a fancy name for “worship”.  The times when God calls us together in our Sanctuary is more properly called “Divine Service” – not because it sounds more formal or impressive, but because it truthfully defines what God says should happen in Church:

               Divine = God

               Service = Giving What is Needed

“Divine Service” is God giving His people what they need – what they can’t give themselves: Forgiveness, Life and Salvation.   And Divine Service is God’s work, not ours; we’re receivers, “For the Son of Man [Jesus Christ] did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His Life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). 

We also know that “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). We’re dead in our trespasses, and cannot come to God. God comes to us in the Divine Service and – quite literally – gives us His Life.  Dead men can do nothing – least of all praise God.

Once God has served us with forgiveness, life and salvation, only then can we worship Him.  Worship is our response to Divine Service – we praise and thank God for taking our death and giving us His Life.  Worship can’t happen without Divine Service happening first; it can only come after God brings us back to life.

And even then, our worship must be faithful.

When we worship God, shouldn’t it be with the best words possible (after all, Our Lord did give us eternal life when all we deserved was eternal condemnation)? When it comes to praising and thanking God, we have a choice: we can use our words, or God’s.  Faithfulness says we use the best there is: God’s Word – which the faithfully provides us in the Liturgy.

Prepare the Way of the Lord: Repentance

“The voice of one calling in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord.”

You know it’s Advent when John the Baptizer shows up.  There he is in all his “wilderness” glory: clothed in camel’s hair, shaggy hair and beard, the strange diet of bugs and the wild honey he’d grab – bare-handed – from the beehive…

John the Baptizer is one of those characters in the Bible that makes you just a little nervous.  He’s very intense, very driven, and very, very outspoken… John made a lot of people nervous; not everyone liked John… 

But what if John showed up in your church or home – in his camel’s-hair clothing, chewing on a grasshopper, with all his wilderness odor?  Would you be comfortable with that? 

Probably not; you’d wish he hadn’t come.  You’d be very uncomfortable if the real John the Baptizer came to where you were… But the real reason you’d be uncomfortable is not his wild, un-tamed appearance. Not even John’s outspokenness would have bothered you – except that he would preach to your sins… 

You see, John’s preaching calls you to repent… and most people don’t like that.  In fact, the preaching of repentance is one of the main reasons some people stay away from the Church. 

But John came preaching repentance towards a Baptism of Forgiveness.  Now, the people could easily have said, “Nah, we don’t need repentance, we’re God’s people – God already forgives us,” – the way some people nowadays say, “We don’t need the Church or the Sacraments; we believe in Jesus, that’s enough.”


But that’s not what Faith says. Christ’s gift of Faith never thinks that way.  Faith in Christ can’t get enough of His Word and His Sacraments – the things that give you more and more repentance, more and more forgiveness, more and more… Jesus.  You can’t have Jesus – or His forgiveness – without repentance.

John’s message was: Repent; the kingdom of God is at hand…  To repent means to turn around - to stop going the wrong way. To repent means to come to a new mind, a new way of thinking.  John was calling Israel out of their comfortableness with their sin.  He did this by calling them out into the wilderness.

And that was the point. John was preaching repentance to those whom God had brought out into the wilderness, just like repentance is preached in the Divine Service, so that we may be brought out of our comfort with your sin – and into a wilderness we’re not familiar with, where one has only Christ – not his strengths, priorities, or choices… Only Jesus…

John’s preaching of repentance led directly to him baptizing the people, so that they were prepared for the coming of Christ.  And Our Lord’s preaching repentance to you, here, leads you to baptismal forgiveness, so that you’re prepared for Christ’s second coming.

Today you’re being called to see repentance in a new and different way – the same way baptism was new and different to the people of John’s day.  The Church’s preaching of repentance is not a burden; it’s a Gift of God – a holy release from the bondage and tyranny of the Satan and his lies.  Repentance is the gateway to forgiveness and new Life.

Repent of your comfortableness with your sin.  Repent of your self-centeredness, which makes Christ and His Church one of the lowest priorities in your life…  Repent of worshiping your idols of popularity, sporting events, and your reputation – they’ve become your religion…  Repent of your all-consuming dedication to the shallow, temporary things of this world, and of your casual attitude toward Christ's Holy Sanctuary and its Altar.

Come out into the wilderness where God reforms His beloved People – on His terms and not your own. Dare to be forgiven as a filthy sinner in need of cleansing. Avail yourself to the very reason Jesus came as a Child to Bethlehem: To come down among sinners… 

And save them from their sin.

“Prepare the way of the Lord.”  That means nothing other than “Repent” – nothing other than letting Christ preach to your sins, that you may see your Savior.  That’s what Advent is for… The Day of the Lord is coming – sooner and quicker than you can prepare for yourself.  In the meantime, let Jesus prepare you, by His Gift of repentance. 


He will do so here, by His Word and Sacrament, and He will do so well, and completely.. to your Life Everlasting. 

Come, Lord Jesus.  Come quickly to save us!  Amen.