Congregation at Prayer

Catechesis Notes for the Week — Baptism and the Life of Confession and Absolution—In Holy Baptism we become Christians.  The Lord gives us the gift of the Holy Spirit and faith.  Our sin is forgiven for Christ’s sake, and we are rescued from eternal death and condemnation. Baptism happens once, but its benefits and privileges endure forever.  Baptized Christians are called to live in their baptism daily.  This means that we are called to daily contrition and repentance for sin that we might return to the promise of our baptism for the forgiveness of sins and the renewal of our faith and life.  This makes confession and absolution not only a regular part of the Christian faith and life, but a glorious return to our baptism wherein God made us His children and clothed us with the righteousness of His Son.  We should learn to believe that Holy Baptism gives us the rights and privileges of children.  In Baptism we are declared to be sons of God through Christ and have the privilege of access to our heavenly Father for Jesus’ sake.  Because of the ongoing struggle with sin, we are tempted to doubt that we are God’s children, that God still loves us, and that it is possible for us to be forgiven.  Baptism declares that it is not only possible to be God’s Children, but that forgiving our sin is His will for us in Christ.  We have the right and privilege to confess our sins daily AND to believe that for Christ’s sake our sin is forgiven and that we rise to newness of life precisely because we have been baptized into Christ and are saved from our sin through faith in Him.

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — He Was Raised for Our Justification —“Christ was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification” (Romans 4:25).  “When I look at my sins, they slay me. Therefore I must look upon Christ, who drew my sins upon Himself and has become a blessing. Now they lie no longer on my conscience but on Christ, and they seek to slay Him.  Let us see, then, how they get on with Him.  They cast Him down and kill Him. O, Lord God, where is now my Christ and my Redeemer? Then God comes and brings Christ forth and makes Him above, and not only alive, but He sets Him in heaven and lets Him rule over all things. Now where is sin? It is on the gibbet. And when I hold on to this and believe it I have a joyful conscience, like Christ, for I am without sin. Now I dare death, the devil, sin, and hell to do me harm. Inasmuch as I am a descendant of Adam they can harm me; I must shortly die. But now that Christ has laid upon Himself my sin, and has died for it, and been slain for it, they can do me no harm, for Christ is too strong for them. They cannot hold Him. He breaks forth and smites them to the ground, and ascends into heaven, binds and fetters sin and sorrow, and rules over them eternally. Therefore I have a good conscience, I am joyful and blessed, and fear those tyrants no longer, for Christ has taken my sin away from me and laid it on Himself.  But they cannot remain on Him.” – Martin Luther

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — “Fishers of Men” — In this week’s Gospel Jesus extends the call into the ministry to four men who had become His disciples through the ministry of John the Baptist.  Like all of us, after their baptism they returned to their vocation as fishermen in the town of Capernaum on the Sea of Galilee.  When Jesus said, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men” He was calling them to leave their vocation and enter into the Office of the Apostolic Ministry in which they would no longer fish in the way they had, but would now “fish for men” through the preaching of the Gospel.  We are all called to bear witness to our Lord in whatever vocation God has given us, but there is the office of the Holy Ministry in which men are called to full time service in the preaching of the Gospel and administration of the Sacraments.  The Church includes both the witness of laymen in their earthly callings and the witness of her ministers in fulltime service to the Church and the world.

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — “Behold! The Lamb of God Who Takes away the Sin of the World!” Believe it or not, there are certain Christian denominations that believe that Jesus did not die for everyone but only for certain people.  For example, some teach that He only died for the elect, those predestined to salvation.  Not true!  Some teach that He only died for those who would come to faith in Him.  Not true!  The words of John after Jesus’ baptism make it clear that He died for the sins of the whole world.  This is an enormous source of comfort because it means that God really does love everyone, even though many reject Him.

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — The Baptism of Our Lord — Christians should look to their Baptism every day for their identity and strength.  Our Baptism means that we are the children of God; Christ’s death for sin and resurrection for our justification is ours; Christ’s righteousness clothes us and makes us acceptable to the Father; the Holy Spirit has been poured out into our hearts through Christ; and faith has been created in our hearts.  What God has made us and given us in our Baptism also becomes the strength by which we live our lives, repent of sin, resist Satan, and enjoy the testimony of a clean conscience.

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — Epiphany — “Epiphany” means “to be revealed.”  During the Epiphany season, Jesus is “revealed” to be the Son of God and the Savior of all people, Jew and Gentile alike.  Throughout this season we see the divinity of Jesus revealed in the Holy Gospel readings and the glory of God shining through the flesh of the eternal Son who is both “the Father’s beloved” and “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — “‘I have been crucified with Christ…Christ lives in me!’ It is in our baptism that we have been crucified with Christ, so that Christ now lives in us. Since we have been crucified with Christ, the Law has been fulfilled for us, sin has been atoned for, and the gift of new life is ours. This new life begins now by faith in Christ the crucified. Victory over sin, death, and the power of the devil is never by the strength of our own will but solely by the merits of Jesus’ crucifixion. Faith receives Christ’s victory and lives in Him. Sin, death, and hell cannot destroy Him and, therefore, they cannot destroy us because He lives in us. This means that each day of our lives as Christians is lived by faith in the Son of God who loved us and gave Himself for us. Christ’s sacrifice of love for us upon the cross is always before our eyes. This means that ‘the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me,’ is not only the object of my faith, but also the source and strength for living the Christian life. Day by day, moment by moment, our life in the flesh—with all its struggles, weaknesses, and failings—is lived by faith in the Son of God who loved us and gave Himself for us.” — Excerpted from Lutheran Catechesis, p. 230c, used by permission.

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — “Creation and redemption are equally impossible for man to accomplish, but not for God.  ‘With God nothing will be impossible,’ not even the incarnation of His Son for the salvation of His fallen world. He is the actor, the Savior, and the Lord, who descends to our human flesh and joins Himself to our weaknesses, becoming like us in every way, except without sin, so that He might take our sin to Himself. When His Word sounds forth to announce His salvation, it can only be received and believed, for it carries with it all the saving benefits it proclaims. Mary received this Word, and the life of the world was conceived in her womb. Every Christian receives this Word too, through the call of the Gospel, and it brings to us the same Christ and the same salvation who was born of Mary. Therefore, our confession of faith is the same as Mary’s, ‘Let it be to me according to your word.’” — Excerpted from Lutheran Catechesis, p. 90, used by permission.

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Catechesis Notes for the Week— Joseph, the Guardian of Jesus, and Christian Vocation (Read Matthew 1:18-25): Joseph, the Guardian of Jesus as he is often called, had a difficult vocation. He was called to be Mary’s husband and Jesus’ earthly father. This calling meant a life of suffering and self-denial. This is always what true faith calls us to: a life of sacrificial love in which we deny ourselves. This is the shape of our lives as Christians because our life is lived by faith in the God and Savior who lived in selfless love for us. The Child conceived in Mary’s womb was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit. Mary was not an adulteress. His name would be called “Jesus” because He is the Lord who would save His people from their sins by becoming one with them in their flesh and blood. All this was done to fulfill the Scriptures, “Behold, a virgin shall be with child and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel.” This means that God is with us in the poverty and humiliation of our human condition in order to redeem us by the sacrifice of Himself. Joseph had no strength to fulfill his vocation within himself, but he was strengthened by the Holy Spirit through the promises of the Scriptures and the message of God’s selfless love for him and for all his people. This is our strength too in our vocation. The Gospel not only saves us from our sins, but it also strengthens and keeps us in the love of Christ in the earthly vocations to which our Lord has called us.

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Catechesis Notes for the Week— Repentance Is at the Heart of Advent — “I’m tired of hearing talk about our sin!” This is often the response of those who hear the call to repentance. “Sin is a downer!  Can’t we get on with something else?”  Yes, we can go on.  That’s what repentance is all about—going on, confessing sin, turning from it to Christ, finding our relief, comfort, and strength in His forgiveness.  The message of repentance is not only the knowledge of our sin, but also the proclamation that there is nothing that Jesus hasn’t done to save you from your sin and to give you new life and freedom now!  The message of repentance always brings relief when it finds its rest in Christ, our righteousness.

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