Grace Evangelical-Lutheran: April 2024

Sunday, April 28, 2024

Revelation 15,2-4. Cantate

Revelation 15,2-4 3024

Cantate 40

Vitalis of Ravenna, Italy. Martyr 171

28. April 2024

1. ℣ Sing to Yahweh a new song:

℟ For He has done wonderful things. (Psalm 97,1a vul mas).

О Jesus, dearest Friend, Your resurrection brings us a three-fold comfort: the resurrection of Jesus is our victory. Now our sins can no more condemn us. By the blood and wounds of Christ, by Your resurrection, we have obtained forgiveness of all our sins, no matter how many or how great and grievous they may be. Amen. (Stark 515-16 © 1852; English 89).

2. »And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire—and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands. And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying: „Great and amazing are Your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are Your ways, O King of the nations! Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify Your Name? For You alone are holy. All nations will come and worship You, for Your righteous acts have been revealed.“«

3. When the Apostle John received his revelation, imperial persecution against Christians were still fresh in the Church’s memory. Nero’s persecution of Christians began in Rome, and reached to other provinces; it lasted from ad 64-68; the Apostles Peter and Paul (ad 67/68) were martyred in Rome and the Evangelist Mark, now a bishop, was martyred in Alexandria (ad 68). The Church also commemorates 3 Christians who were martyred under Nero: Anastasia, Basilissa (ad 66) and Pudens (ad 64-68). Then Domitian’s persecution martyred more Christians and lead to John’s imprisonment on Patmos (circa ad 95), which is where he received his revelation. When Domitian died in a 96, so did the persecution of the Church, temporarily. Numerous Christians had been persecuted and martyred. In this terrifying conflict, though they are conquered by the beast and its image (Revelation 13,5-7), through death and martyrdom they come out of the struggle victorious, just as their Lord did on their behalf (Revelation 19,15; Isaiah 63,1-6) (Brighton 400).

4. Tertullian (115-220) wrote: Plures efficimur, quotiens metimur a vobis: semen est sanguis Christianorum (Apologeticus L.13). The more we are mown down by you, the more we spring up in greater numbers: the blood of Christians is the seed. The Church on earth is always the Church militant; more often than not the Church suffers and is persecuted; through it all the Church testifies to Jesus and the gospel of His crucifixion and resurrection. Iubilatemus et cantatemus. We rejoice and we sing. Sometimes we sing laments; other times we sing imprecations, i.e. for justice; we always sing praises to Jesus, for salvation belongs to our God who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb! (Revelation 7,10).

5. Since the Holy Spirit convicts the world in regard to righteousness, then the prince of this world has been judged (John 16,8.11). In his revelation, John sees the victorious saints standing before the throne of God, singing a song of praise to the Lord. This is a song of victory, for they have conquered the beast and its image through the blood of the Lamb. This victory is not their own, but it is the victory of Christ Jesus, who has conquered sin, death and the devil through His death and resurrection.

6. Jesus is our Rock, our Fortress and our Might; He is our Captain in the well fought fight; in the dreary darkness, Christ is our one, true Light (lsb 677,2). To Jesus who is the Lamb that was slain we sing hymns and songs rejoicing in His victory over every earthly and spiritual power that seeks to enslave and control us.

7. The Christian life is one of agonizing struggles (Anfechtungen, tentatio; Bayer xiii). Such agonizing struggles are not pleasant, but our Lord Jesus Christ uses them to strengthen us as persons and Christians. Meditate upon the words of the Apostle Paul concerning the thorn in the flesh Jesus had put in his life: »But Jesus said to me: „My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.“ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong« (2. Corinthians 12,9-10). Paul can say this because he knows that »Jesus is gentle and lowly in heart, and in Him we find rest for our souls« (Matthew 11,29).

8. So when agonizing struggles bear heavy upon your body and soul, turn to Jesus, let Him take upon Himself your struggles, for His yoke is light and His shoulders are more than capable of bearing your soul-wrenching struggles and tribulations. Do not bear such things by yourself. Jesus is here for you, and he wants to bear your burdens. You are not bothering Him when you pray and ask Him to take your troubles upon Him. Jesus wants to do this for you. He bore all your sins upon the cross; He can handle whatever struggles you are over-burdened with.

9. Iubilate Deo, omnis terra; cantate, et exsultate, et psallite (Psalm 97,4 vul). Rejoice in God, all the earth; sing, rejoice and make music. Christ is risen!! Alleluia!

9. O people, heed this lesson wise,

It will be useful in your task:

Do not be fooled by the disguise

Of the world’s alluring mask.

Trust not in the power and grace

Of princes, for they too, in the end,

Are nothing but a haze, a trace,

No more than a fleeting trend.

(Du meine Seele, singe elkg 583,2 2021 Paul Gerhard 1653 nach Psalm 146).

This is most certainly true.

10. Et pax Dei, quæ exuperat omnem sensum, custodiat corda vestra, et intelligentias vestras in Christo Jesu. The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4,7). Amen.

11. Let us pray. O Lord Jesus Christ, who hast promised in Thy Holy Gospel that Thy disciples shall know the truth and the truth shall make thee free, give us, we pray Thee, the Sprit of truth, sent by Thee and leading to Thee, that we may find the truth in finding Thee, who art the Way, the Truth and the Life, forever and ever. Amen. (Cantate, Vespers Collect 2. The Daily Office. Copyright © 1965 Concordia Publishing House.)

To God alone be the Glory

Gode ealdore sy se cyneþrymm

✠

All Scriptural quotations are translations done by The Rev. Peter A. Bauernfeind using the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, 4. Edition © 1990 Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart, Septuaginta, Vol. I and II 2. Revised Edition © 2006 Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart and the Novum Testamentum Graece, Nestle-Aland 28. Revised Edition © 2012 Deutsch Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart.

Monday, April 22, 2024

2. Corinthians 4,16-18. Jubilate

2. Corinthians 4,16-18 2924

Jubilate 39

Anselm of Canterbury, Archbishop ✠ 1109

21. April 2024

1. ℣ Rejoice in God, all the earth:

℟ Sing a psalm to His Name; give Him glorious praise (Psalm 65,1b-2 vul lxx).

Give more light to our intellect so that we may know You and the ways in which we must go. Grant our will a greater conformity to Yours. Implant in our hearts a better and more sincere intention to do everything for Your glory. Amen. (Pieper 158; English transl. 92).

2. »So we do not lose heart. Though our outer man is utterly corrupt, our inner man is being made new day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are temporary, but the things that are unseen are eternal.«

3. Lutherans are often fond of paradoxes. One of Martin Luther’s most well-known ones is: Sic homo Christianus simul iustus et peccator, Sanctus prophanus, inimicus et filius Dei est. That a Christian is simultaneously righteous and sinner, holy and profane, an enemy of God and a son of God (WA 40,368.26-27).. Thus a Christian man is righteous and a sinner at the same time, holy and profane, an enemy of God and a child of God (AE 26,232). Every Christian suffers a daily struggle to desire and live holy, sanctified lives pleasing to That a Christian is simultaneously righteous and sinner, holy and profane, an enemy of God and a son of God. Daily we fail in some way, but we resolve with the help of the Holy Spirit to keep our feet on the path of Christian discipleship.

4. The Small Catechism teaches the basics of the new life and discipleship in Christ: how do we live, what do we believe and how do we pray? The 10 Commandments show us our sinfulness, convince us we need Jesus as our Savior and instruct us how to live under God’s will. The Apostle’s Creed teaches that the Triune God creates and preserves us, justifies us and sanctifies us all out of His merciful steadfast love. The Lord’s Prayer teaches us the words to petition our Heavenly Father for His will to be done and for His gifts to be received in the face of all dangers (Small Catechism 231 2017). Christians are baptized in the Name of the Triune God and receive the Lord’s Supper for their forgiveness. Confession of our sins disciplines us to live a Christian life that is one of repentance as we look at our daily responsibilities and wrongdoings, but we do not despair because of the assurance of forgiveness for Jesus sake that God gives to His servants through absolution (Small Catechism 307 2017). These means of grace bring us the gospel and keep our faith grounded and focused upon our Lord Jesus Christ, the Author and Perfecter of our faith. The central pillar of our faith is the suffering, crucifixion, resurrection, ascension and 2^nd advent of Christ Jesus.

5. Christ’s atonement gives us the victory of life over death and light over darkness. In the Sacraments of Holy Baptism and the Eucharist we partake in this mystery of redemption, being united with Christ in His death and resurrection. As we partake of the Lord’s Supper, we taste the sweetness of the gospel. We are joined with the Church on earth and the hosts of heaven in a foretaste of the feast to come. Hold fast to the promise of our resurrection, for in Christ we have the sure hope of eternal life. Therefore, we do not lose heart. Though we face trials and tribulations, though our outer man decays, our inner man is renewed each day by the Holy Spirit through the gospel. In this Easter season, live in the joy of the resurrection, looking to the things that are unseen that is the eternal glory prepared for us in Christ. Let us give thanks to God for the renewal of the inner man, for the forgiveness of sins, and for the hope of eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

6. As Christians united in the one faith and believing in the same Lord Jesus, we aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with each other, live in peace and greet one another as brothers and sisters in Christ (2. Corinthians 13,11-12). „Holy Eastertide is a time of joy for Christians, for we rejoice from our hearts in our risen Jesus. We rejoice because our redemption is completed. For, after Jesus who had offered Himself to make satisfaction for us, has been raised from the dead, a complete ransom has been paid for us! God is reconciled and has accepted the death of His Son in place of our death and has granted us life for His sake…. We rejoice because we have received the seal and assurance of the gracious forgiveness of our sins, of our peace with God and know that we can fearlessly approach God and that He, in turn, will approach us“ (Starck 88). In this we hope and believe, yes, we have the certainty of forgiveness and salvation through Christ our Lord. Amen.

7. Ans. Misericordiam vero Dei quae tibi perire videbatur, cum iustitiam Dei et peccatum hominis considerabamus, tam magnam tamque concordem iustitiae invenimus, ut nec maior nec iustior cogitari possit. Nempe quid misericordius intelligi valet, quam cum peccatori tormentis aetemis damnato et unde se redimat non habenti, Deus Pater dicit: accipe Unigenitum meum et da pro te; et ipse Filius: tolle me et redime te? Quasi enim hoc dicunt, quando nos ad christianam fidem vocant et trahunt. Quid etiam iustius, quam ut ille cui datur pretium maius omni debito, si debito datur affectu, dimittat omne debitum. (Anselm of Canterbury Cur Deus Homo Bk II,20).

8. Ans. But the merciful steadfast love of God, which seemed to you to perish, when we considered God’s justice and man’s sin, we found so great and so harmonious with His justice, that neither greater nor more just can be thought of. For what can be understood more mercifully than with a sinner condemned to eternal torments and having no way to redeem himself, God the Father says: receive My Only-begotten who I gave for you; and the Son Himself says: receive Me for tour redemption? For it is as if They say this when They call and draw us to the Christian faith. What is even more just than that He to whom a greater price is given to pay the complete debt, if the debt is forgiven with affection. (Why God is Man Bk 2,20).

Ans. Now we have found the compassion of God which appeared lost to you when we were considering God’s holiness and man’s sin; we have found it, I say, so great and so consistent with his holiness, as to be incomparably above anything that can be conceived. For what compassion can excel these words of the Father, addressed to the sinner doomed to eternal torments and having no way of escape: „Take My Only-begotten Son and make Him an offering for yourself;“ or these words of the Son: „Take Me, and ransom your souls.“ For these are the voices they utter, when inviting and leading us to faith in the Gospel. Or can anything be more just than for Him to remit all debt since he has earned a reward greater than all debt, if given with the love which he deserves (Anselm of Canterbury Cur Deus Homo Book II, Ch. 20; Sydney Norton Deane 1903 transl.).

9. Praise God in every land,

Rejoice, O redeemed throng!

For the Lord is risen and stands,

Who for us died was also strong.

Jesus has by His power

Achieved redemption forever,

What He Himself adorns

Now that He came in human form.

(Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen elkg 456,6 2021 Erdmann Neumeister 1718)

This is most certainly true.

11. Let us pray. O God of hope, fill Thy children with all joy and peace in believing, that we and they may abound in hope in the power of the Holy Ghost; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (Jubilate, Vespers Collect 2. The Daily Office.)

To God alone be the Glory

Gode ealdore sy se cyneþrymm

✠

Monday, April 15, 2024

Genesis 16,1-16. Misericordias Domini

Genesis 16,1-16 2824

Misericordias Domini 38

Tiburtius and Valerianus, Martyrs at Rome 229

14. April 2024

1. ℣ The earth is full of the merciful steadfast love of Yahweh:

℟ By the Word of Yahweh the heavens were established. (Psalm 32,5b.6a vul lxx).

О Jesus, let us not only esteem very highly and prize above all else the gifts of grace that You impart to us and bestow upon us while we live in You, but let us also use them properly, so that we may reap the sweetest fruits from them. Amen. (Pieper 149 © 1900; English 87).

2. »The angel of Yahweh found Hagar by a spring of water in the wilderness, the spring on the way to Shur. And He said: „Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?“ She replied: „I am fleeing from my mistress Sarai.“ The angel of Yahweh said to her: „Return to your mistress and submit to her.“ The angel of Yahweh also said to her: „I will surely multiply your offspring so that they cannot be numbered for multitude. Behold, you are pregnant and shall bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael, because Yahweh has listened to your affliction.“ So she called the name of Yahweh who spoke to her: „You are a God of seeing,“ for she said, „Truly here I have seen Him who looks after me.“ And Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael. Abram was 86 years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.« (Genesis 16,7-11.13.15.16).

3. Ishmael. יִשְׁמָעַאל. God will hear. Elroi. אֵל רְָאִי. God who sees. In Hagar’s distress, Jesus, the Angel of Yahweh, sees and hears her cry. In our tribulations, Jesus sees us and hears our prayers.

4. 16 days ago we heard the Passion text where Jesus cried out: Ήλί ήλί λεμά σαβαχθάνι; Θεέ μου Θεέ μου, ίνατί με έγκατέλιπες; Deus meus, Deus meus, ut quid dereliquist me? (Matthew 27,46). This anguished plea has been uttered by many since Adam fell into sin. Jesus who is the Second Adam is Immanuel, God is with us, to such depths as to carry our sin and bear our distress. Isaiah proclaimed: »Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was pierced for our transgressions; He was crushed for our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with His wounds we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and Yahweh has laid on Him the iniquity of us all« (Isaiah 53,4-6).

5. The cross proclaims the merciful steadfast love Jesus has for every sinner. The soul that sins must die (Ezekiel 18,20), and thus Jesus, the Son of God, died to save us from death. We were baptized into Christ’s death and resurrection (Romans 6,3-4). A shepherd often marks his sheep with a red mark, so also Christ inwardly marks His beloved sheep with the Holy Spirit, who is the Seal of the Living G with which Christ’s beloved sheep are marked and sealed (Revelation 7,2-3) (Gerhard 376). Christ knows those who are His, and He also makes Himself known to us through His Word and Spirit (Gerhard 376). „Christ knows His own. He regards them as His own. He loves them from the bottom of His heart. Thus, in reciprocation, the beloved sheep also know Christ. They regard Him as their True, Faithful Shepherd, and love Him from the bottom of their heart. They let Him lead and guide them“ (Gerhard 377).

6. Jesus helps us walk on the path of righteousness; He supports us when Satan and sin oppress. We put all our trust in Christ, for our Lord Jesus Christ leads us (Lead Me, Guide Me v. 2).

7. „Let us enkindle our soul as a light. Let faith grow fervent in what it has believed. Let our desires grow eager for the things of heaven; and thus to love is already to go there. Let no adversity turn us away from the joy of this inward fulfillment. For when anyone has resolved to go to a chosen place, however rough the way, it does not alter their desire. Let no smiling, good fortune, entice us away. … Let the soul therefore long with desire for its heavenly home. Let it grasp at nothing in this world; for well we know that it will quickly let go. So, if we are truly sheep of the Heavenly Shepherd, if we do not linger attached to the delights of the way, we shall be filled to satisfaction when we shall arrive in the eternal pastures; by the help of our Lord Jesus Christ who with the Father and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns world without end“ (Gregory I of Rome, Sermon 14 for the Second Sunday after Easter; Oremus 428-29).

8. Christus nos audit et Christus nos videt. Christus suum cognoscit. Vere praesens est nobiscum in corpore et sanguine suo, dat nobis edendum et bibendum. Christus resurrexit!! Alleluia! Christ hears us, and Christ sees us. Christ knows His own. He is really present with us in His body and blood He gives us to eat and drink. Christ is risen!! Alleluia!

9. Thus the Lord knows His own,

As He always knew them,

The great and the least

In every people and country

By the work of the blossoming grace

By the strength of His spirit,

In faith, hope and love

As the work of His grace.

(Es kennt der Herr die Seinen elkg 282,5 2021 Philipp Spitta 1843).

This is most certainly true.

11. Let us pray. O Lord our God, grant us grace to desire Thee with our whole heart, that so desiring, we may seek and find Thee, and so finding Thee we may love Thee and loving Thee we may hate those sins from which Thou hast redeemed us. Amen. (Misericordias Domini, Vespers Collect 2. The Daily Office. Copyright © 1965 Concordia Publishing House.)

To God alone be the Glory

Gode ealdore sy se cyneþrymm

✠

Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church

Sunday, April 28, 2024

Revelation 15,2-4. Cantate

Monday, April 22, 2024

2. Corinthians 4,16-18. Jubilate

Monday, April 15, 2024

Genesis 16,1-16. Misericordias Domini