Isenheim Altarpiece, Matthias Grunewald, 1512 Trust in the Lord and Look upon the Savior God delivers us through the blood of Jesus Christ He ordains the angels to lift us up He intentionally directs us to walk in danger for the sake of our faith After Absalom killed Amnon he fled. Joab directed a theatrical scene between David and a pretend widow, in order to convince David to welcome Absalom back to Jerusalem. In this dramatic scene, the actress recites a powerful line: “ We must all die; we are like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again. But God will not take away life, and He devises means so that the banished one will not remain an outcast. ” What a rich illustration she uses of water spilled on the ground. Two other times in the book of Samuel water is poured on the ground. Once when Samuel is judge, after the ark has returned to Jerusalem, he pours water upon the ground as a sign of repentance. A second time David pours the water on the ground when his m...
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A Mighty Fortress!
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Our Learn by Heart Hymn at church for the month of October is A Mighty Fortress by Martin Luther. The hymn is based upon Psalm 46, which begins with: "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." It's been commonly referred to as the battle hymn of the reformation, but it's not only that, it's also a battle hymn of this Christian life.
Life in this sinful world is a battle against Satan. Our evil foe is constantly attacking us with his holy sounding lies. If at anytime we feel as though we're not in a battle, then the foe has indeed taken the upper hand in our lives, since he's managed to convince us to stop fighting against him. Dear Christian, wake up from your slumber! Take up the shield of faith and sword of the Word, and return to the Fortress!
From the fortress you can see the valiant One, Jesus Christ, fighting for you upon the plain! The world is filled with devils, eager to devour you, but the little Word incarnate crushes the serpent's head. That little Word of God remains, even though the world desires to silence it.
Over the past 7 months especially the world has fought hard to silence the little Word by shutting down churches. The foe knows that he's lost, but that if he can separate the soldiers of the cross from the mighty fortress, if he can prevent the Christians from hearing and feasting upon the little Word, then He can bring those souls with him to Hades.
Dear Christians, be strong and courageous in the Lord! Christ is by our side, upon the plain with His good gifts and Spirit! We Christians are protected in the fortress, but still fighting the demons upon the plain together with Christ! Sure, the devils may take our life, goods, fame, child, and wife. We may lose everything in this life. Covid may kill us. The constitution may be lost. Tyrants may rule us. Marxism may come. But have courage! Our victory has already been won! We shall inherit the kingdom of heaven!
In the meantime, wake up! Take up the sword of the Spirit, the little Word of God, and fight! Don't be a fool and fight by yourself, but join other Christians in the battle! Christ goes before you into battle, and other Christians go with you! Don't let a virus scare you away from the church. Don't let death frighten you away from other Christians. Don't let some governmental tyrants make you tremble in your boots and prevent you from receiving the medicine of immortality in the sacrament.
The church is essential. The sacraments are essential. Christian friendship, face to face, in the flesh, is essential. Be unafraid! A mighty fortress is our God! Sing it from your homes and your sanctuaries!
1 A mighty fortress is our God, A trusty shield and weapon; He helps us free from ev'ry need That hath us now o'ertaken. The old evil foe Now means deadly woe;
Deep guile and great might Are his dread arms in fight; On earth is not his equal.
2 With might of ours can naught be done, Soon were our loss effected; But for us fights the Valiant One, Whom God Himself elected. Ask ye, Who is this? Jesus Christ it is, Of Sabaoth Lord, And there's none other God; He holds the field forever.
3 Though devils all the world should fill, All eager to devour us. We tremble not, we fear no ill; They shall not overpow'r us. This world's prince may still Scowl fierce as he will, He can harm us none. He's judged; the deed is done; One little word can fell him.
4 The Word they still shall let remain Nor any thanks have for it; He's by our side upon the plain With His good gifts and Spirit. And take they our life, Goods, fame, child, and wife, Though these all be gone, Our vict'ry has been won; The Kingdom ours remaineth.
A Defense of Headcoverings in the Lutheran Church by Rev. John Henry Koopman “ Now I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions even as I delivered them to you. But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God. Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head, but every wife who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, since it is the same as if her head were shaven. For if a wife will not cover her head, then she should cut her hair short. But since it is disgraceful for a wife to cut off her hair or shave her head, let her cover her head. For a man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God, but woman is the glory of man. For man was not made from woman, but woman from man. Neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. That is why a wife ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, ...
Resurrection of the Flesh , Luca Signorelli, 1502 The Resurrection of Man Intro The body/soul composition of man Death is the unnatural separation of the body from the soul The intermediate state of man Resurrection is the reunion of the body and soul “ There came to Him some Sadducees, those who deny that there is a resurrection. ” Just as today among God’s people, at the time of Jesus there were divisions and distinctions amongst the Israelites. Most well known to us are the Pharisees and Sadducees. Today we see in particular the group known as the Sadducees. The Sadducees were a Jewish sect that flourished right around the time of Jesus. They were wealthy and powerful individuals, primarily made up of high-priestly families and aristocrats who controlled temple worship. Additionally, they were friendly to the Romans and worked with Roman authorities. While the Pharisees were lovers of man-made laws, the Sadducees were more interested in their family heritage. The Sadducees were also...
The Resurrection of Christ , Giovanni Battista Moroni, circa 1545-1548 This is the night When the Pascha is not merely celebrated but enacted in us by faith To borrow a phrase from T. S. Elliot’s epic poem about time, tonight is a “still point in the turning world.” The Creation of the world, from darkness to light, and chaos to order; the Exodus out of Egypt, in which the angel of death passed over the faithful and the Israelites passed over the Red Sea on dry ground; the Passion of our Lord, instituting His Supper, His betrayal in the garden, the unjust trial and His bloody crucifixion; the Resurrection from the tomb; your Resurrection on the final day. All this, the past and the future of redemption is right now. This, your redemption, is not merely celebrated like a birthday or an anniversary, but it is relived in us by faith this very night. At the Passover meal the Israelites did not merely remember the historical event of the Exodus, but they relived the Passover as their own de...
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