Luther Reed - A Classic in Liturgy - Alec Satin - Lutheran Library

 

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Lutheran Library Publishing Ministry Weekly Updates May God bless you now and always. From your Lutheran Librarian, 📅 NEW PUBLICATIONS AND UPDATES The Lutheran Liturgy by Luther Reed “Public worship… is the privilege and responsibility of the Church. It must be ordered and administered. It is not an abstraction; it is a solemn transaction. It is faith in action. Times, place, forms, and musical settings must be provided. Reverence, dignity, beauty, and efficiency can best be attained by appropriate formality. The Church has thought much about these matters.” - From the Introduction: The Mind of the Church Level of Difficulty: Intermediate: Some prior subject matter ... Read more Consolation: Discourses to the Suffering Children of God by James Alexander The whole of Divine Truth may be regarded as a comfort to Christian disciples… We help the disheartened by… setting before his mind those great everlasting truths, the acceptation of which lays the basis for joy and peace. - From the Preface" Level of Difficulty: Primer: No prior subject matter knowledge needed. Contents About the Lutheran Library Titlepage Contents Preface 1 God’s Everlasting Mercy a Source of Consolation 2 The Providence of God a Ground of Consolation 3 The Same Subject ... Read more The Augsburg Confession: A Brief Review and Interpretation by Juergen Ludwig Neve “The main stress in the book… is upon the interpretation of its text… It is prefaced by a chapter with simple talks on confessional questions… The second part… tell(s) the story of the Confession in a readable way.. The third part, with its interpretation of the articles of the Confession, forms the main part of this book… the effort has been made to write in such a way that a layman… can follow the discussions.” -from the Preface by J L Neve. Level of Difficulty: Primer: No prior subject ... Read more Life's Golden Lamp: A Treasury of Texts from the Words of Christ by Robert Offord This daily devotional is made up of short messages based on Scriptural texts. Each has been written by a different minister of the Gospel. ‘May the Lord whose words are the vital portion of the book grant that as these are read from day to day… they may not return to him void!’ - from the Preface Level of Difficulty: Primer: No prior subject matter knowledge needed. Contents About the Lutheran Library Title page Preface These Sayings of ... Read more An Easy Guide to Scripture Animals by Vernon Morwood “An Easy Guide to Scripture Animals, being a description of all the animals mentioned in the Bible, with the Scripture References, numerous anecdotes, etc. For home use and for day and Sunday schools.” Level of Difficulty: Primer: No prior subject matter knowledge needed. Contents About the Lutheran Library Original Cover Titlepage Presented to Frontispiece Preface Contents Vocabulary Scripture ... Read more How I Found the True Faith by Samuel McGerald “The story of a remarkable conversion from Roman Catholicism, with additional chapters on subjects vital and fundamental.” Level of Difficulty: Primer: No prior subject matter knowledge needed. Contents About the Lutheran Library Titlepage What’s said about the book by Distinguished Men of Both Continents Autograph Frontispiece Epigraph Contents Foreword 1 My Early Years 2 Boyhood Experiences 3 Coming to America 4 A Turning Point in My Life 5 Reading the Sealed Book 6 The Word Winning Its ... Read more 🚀 SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS Liked this week's issue? Don't forget to spread it out!

Reformation Seminary Lecture - John 14 - Part 2

 

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KJV John 14 - Part 2

14.14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.

15 If ye love me, keep my commandments. [or - guard, protect]

16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; [emphasis on the Holy Trinity and on the Spirit]

17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

18 I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

19 Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also.

20 At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.

21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.

22 Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world?

23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

24 He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me.

25 These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you.

26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

28 Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.

29 And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye might believe.

30 Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.

31 But that the world may know that I love the Father; and as the Father gave me commandment, even so I do. Arise, let us go hence.

Daily Luther Sermon Quote - St. John the Evangelist - "The very same way the bishop and spiritual prelates also act, who should feed the sheep of Christ and follow Christ, and even suffer death for their sake; instead, they observe their seven canonical hours for prayers, hold mass, and then allow themselves to be called pious people. But if one of the bishops enters heaven then a different heaven must be created. All bishops at present are nothing but fire works of hell, in that they do not administer their office, not even a hair’s breadth of it."

 

St. John the Evangelist, Juan Ribalta

Complete sermon here -> 

Luther's Sermons - John 21:19-24.
St. John the Evangelist

DAY OF ST JOHN THE EVANGELIST.



TEXT:

John 21:19-24. Now thus he spake, signifying by what manner of death he should glorify God. And when he had spoken this, he saith unto him, Follow me. Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved following; who also leaned back on his breast at the supper, and said, Lord who is he that betrayeth thee?

Peter therefore seeing him saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do? Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me, This saying therefore went forth among the brethren, that that disciple should not die: yet Jesus said not unto him, that he should not die; but, If I will that he tarry till I come, ,what is that to thee?

This is the disciple that beareth witness of these things, and wrote these things: and we know that his witness is true.

1. When Christ asked Peter three times whether he loved him, and Peter answered three times, “Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee,” he commended unto him three times his sheep and said: “Feed my sheep.”

Immediately afterwards he announced to Peter his death, and says: “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdest thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest; but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not.” Closely joined to this is to-day’s Gospel: “Follow thou me,” as if to say: Since this is to be your lot, ponder it well and follow thou me and yield willingly to death. It is evident enough that this following signifies his death, and all the disciples understood it so, and it is a lucid and easy Gospel.

2. However as some were greatly worried to know whether St. John was dead or still alive, the Evangelist shows clearly enough that Christ did not wish to let us know, therefore we should not pry into the matter. He says:

Jesus did not say he should not die, neither does he say that he should die.

He thus lets it hang in doubt. If Christ had said: I will that he tarry till I come, it might have been understood that he would die on the last day. But that he says, “If I will, that he tarry”, it is still much more in the dark, in that he does not say right out whether he will or will not.

3. But in doing thus Christ taught us a beautiful and touching lesson for the sake of which Christ dismissed Peter in this manner.

THE TEACHING OF THIS GOSPEL.

The teaching is as follows: Nothwithstanding the examples and lives of all the saints every person should attend to the work entrusted to him and guard the honor of his calling. Oh, this is truly a needed and wholesome teaching. “It is very misleading, and it is almost universal, that we so highly esteem the works and lives of the saints. If we wish to imitate them, we think it to be a very precious work to do so. The useless babblers aid and urge this, who preach the lives of the holy saints and present them to the people for examples in the wrong way.

4. Here Christ works and speaks against this very thing. Peter is a type of such wild wanderers; when Christ had commanded him at once to follow him, he turns about and looks after another, worries as to where he is going whom Jesus had loved. Just so these persons do, they let drop what has been commanded them, and look after the lives and works of those God loved, namely his saints, therefore Christ reproves Peter, and says:

What is that to thee, where he is wandering? Follow thou me, I will attend to him; how, if I wish him to tarry, wilt thou also tarry? Do you imagine I wish the same from you as from him? No, not so; you attend to your duties. I desire to have many kinds of servants, but not all to be at the same work.

5. Alas, many persons are found, who like Peter do everything except what is commanded them. Many a one hears that certain saints made pilgrimages, for which they are praised; then he like a fool starts off, leaves wife and children sitting, who are entrusted to him by God, and trots to St.

Jacob, or here and there, not knowing that his calling and mission are quite different from that of the saint he is imitating. In the same way they do with their bequests, fastings, clothing, holidays, priestcraft, monasteries and cloisters. All that is nothing but looking around to the saints Christ loved, and turning their backs to the commission and calling to follow Christ.

Then they boast they did well, in that they followed the saints.

6. Therefore take heed, that the way of God leads into the right road, First, it tolerates no human doctrine and way or command, secondly, it does not allow of any works, sought and devised by self. Thirdly, God’s way cannot recognize the examples of the saints; but its anxiety is to be faithful, as God leads, in what he requires of us; as the prophet says in Psalm 25:8-12: “God shall instruct him in the way that he shall choose.” Likewise: “And the weak will he teach his way,” etc.

7. Then you may reply: But how if I am not called, what shall I do then?

Answer: How is it possible that you are not called? You have always been in some state or station; you have always been a husband or wife, or boy or girl, or servant. Picture before you the humblest state. Are you a husband, and you think, you have not enough to do in that sphere to govern your wife, children, domestics and property so that all may be obedient to God and you do no one any wrong? Yea, if you had five heads and ten hands, even then you would be too weak for your task, so that you would never dare to think of making a pilgrimage or doing any kind of saintly work.

8. Again: are you a son or daughter, and do you think you have not enough work with yourself, to continue chaste, pure and temperate during your youth, obey your parents, and offend no one by word or deed? Yea, since the custom of honoring such commands and callings has been abandoned, people go and pray with their rosaries and do like things, not belonging to their station in life, and no one ever thinks he is not faithful in his state or station.

9. Again: Are you a domestic or servant, and do you think you would go idle if you were to serve your lord or mistress with all faithfulness as your station and orders require, and also keep your youth under control as with a bridle?

10. And again: Are you a prince, a lord, spiritual or secular; who has more to do than you, in order that your subjects may do right, preserve peace, and wrong is done by no one? Why, do you think, the proverb originated:

A prince or lord is a wild deer in the heavens? Only because they have their office and wish to rule far off when they cannot govern even themselves; afterwards they wish to atone for their folly by masses, bequests, rosaries, prayers and indulgences, as if God were a dealer in old clothes, or a child that permits himself to be fooled with a penny.

11. The very same way the bishop and spiritual prelates also act, who should feed the sheep of Christ and follow Christ, and even suffer death for their sake; instead, they observe their seven canonical hours for prayers, hold mass, and then allow themselves to be called pious people. But if one of the bishops enters heaven then a different heaven must be created. All bishops at present are nothing but fire works of hell, in that they do not administer their office, not even a hair’s breadth of it.