Midweek Advent Service, 7 PM.

 

Tonight's Zoom Link Will Be Here

Midweek Lenten Service, 

7 PM Central Standard Time

Pastor Gregory L. Jackson

The Hymn #479          Zion Rise                                 
The Order of Vespers                                             p. 41

The Psalmody                   
The Lection                            The Passion History

The Sermon Hymn # 657            Beautiful Savior                      

What Does Beautiful Savior Mean?

 
The Prayers

The Lord’s Prayer

The Collect for Grace                                            p. 45

The Hymn #49        Almighty God Thy Word Is Cast

What Does Beautiful Savior Mean?

A trio finished My Good Shepherd, which is already on Kindle - Norma Boeckler, Janie Sullivan, and I. The titles of Jesus are many, and so I took one list from someone wise enough to use the KJV. Norma put her graphics to work on each and every one, and Janie (long-time helper in completing books) worked on the delicate act of pleasing MS Word. One could list 50 or even 100, because there are so  many references and descriptions of divinity throughout the Bible. When the book comes out, it will sent to everyone, with extra copies for those who need them.

     Beautiful Savior is a wonderful, all-inclusive description of Jesus, because He went through the worst turmoil, torture, and death to give us the knowledge and the path of forgiveness of sin. Out of His torment came our salvation. 

    This is essential in knowing and revering Jesus the Son of God. Those who reject this simple statement of truth are busy hardening themselves against the greatest gift to mankind. The basics are clear - He was born of a Virgin, as predicted in Isaiah 7. He healed many different people and raised the dead. He did nothing wrong at all, but that made the works peddlers angry and the Romans afraid. In fact, one of the key passages in John is about the Jewish clergy afraid of losing everything if the Romans chose to march in and end what was left of Judaism. Their fear became a reality only 40 years after the death and resurrection of Christ,

    I think many of the self-appointed intellectuals are very much like the establishment 2,000 years ago - afraid and trying to cover their fears with arrogance and abuse. We can expect that to grow, because the Christian denominations are far away from the most basic tenets of our Faith. They want to be broad-minded, open to all ideas and all religions, free of any declarations of truth in the Bible, and that after study their unfocused, edited down, paraphrases. 

    So it is very important to maintain the sovereign nature of Jesus Christ, His miracles, His teaching, and His suffering for us. That is central to the Faith. Explaining away what makes them uncomfortable is a repudiation, not a wise and understanding position.

    This is very important - to recognize that Jesus is all-forgiveness, all-love, all-understanding. The Middle Ages loved to portray Jesus as the angry judge and Mary as the comforting, gentle intermediary. But that is a horrible distortion of the Scriptures and the source of many donations and gifts to honor the mother while neglecting the Son.

    Forgiveness of sin is central. My sales partner said that when he got in fights with pals at his Catholic school, the nuns told him to slug the brick wall of the school. "Harder, harder!" they said. He told me, "Those nuns were really mean." I am sure it greatly affected his life, because when people think they can do nothing good, they tend to go the wrong way in life. That is a message of never-good-enough, not one of compassion and forgiveness, love and grace.

    By now, the readers of the blog know the central message of the Scriptures - faith in Jesus Christ as the source of all things good, blessed, and fruitful. Luther's Sermons never vary from this and always present the truth in the best way. Someone recently said, "Calvin never laughed, and Luther's humor always comes out in his writing." That is difference between Law dominance and Gospel foundations.

    There is no law that will every satisfy  or appease wrong-doing. Lawyers will even say, "The Law is a jackass." What some wise men put down as the rules for everyone will always fall short, because wise men (solons) fail, even with the best of intentions. 

    We have access to the grace of Jesus Christ through faith in Him. No faith means no access, no grace, no matter how often they sing Amazing Grace. God gives us in the Holy Scriptures a thousand examples of faith, grace, forgiveness, and bearing spiritual fruit.

    Jesus even promised His disciples that He would send the Spirit to guide them in giving us the truth about all He did and said. And it is all in harmony, not only within the New Testament but the Old Testament as well. 

    We have many sorrows and tragedies, but the Beautiful Savior shows us how it all works and where we are going in faith. My neighbor saw me in the grocery store, and showed me her youngest baby, full of smiles and even laughing. The baby already knew she was the beloved, with two sisters, a mom and dad. 

    Everything in our world is Law, but everything about the Savior is grace, love, comfort, and forgiveness. 

    

1. Beautiful Savior, King of Creation,
Son of God and Son of Man!
Truly I'd love Thee,
Truly I'd serve Thee,
Light of my soul, my Joy, my Crown.

2. Fair are the meadows,
Fair are the woodlands,
Robed in flowers of blooming spring;
Jesus is fairer,
Jesus is purer;
He makes our sorrowing spirit sing.

3. Fair is the sunshine,

Fair is the moonlight,
Bright the sparkling stars on high;
Jesus shines brighter,
Jesus shines purer,
Than all the angels in the sky.

4. Beautiful Savior,
Lord of the nations,
Son of God and Son of Man!
Glory and honor,
Praise, adoration,
Now and forevermore be Thine!