The Hymn # 334 - Let Me Be Thine Forever - Selnecker, Concordist
The Confession of Sins
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16
Say unto my soul, I am thy Salvation: The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth.
He delivereth them out of their troubles: He is their God forever and ever.
Psalm. Give ear, O My people, to My Law:
incline your ears to the words of My mouth.
The Gloria Patri
The Kyrie p. 17
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Salutation and Collect p. 19
O almighty and most merciful God, of Thy bountiful goodness keep us, we beseech Thee, from all things that may hurt us, that we, being ready, both in body and soul, may cheerfully accomplish those things that Thou wouldst have done; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, who liveth, etc.
The Epistle and Gradual
Let my prayer be set forth before Thee as incense:
and
the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
V. Oh, sing unto the Lord a new song: for He hath done
marvelous things. Hallelujah!
The Gospel
Glory be to Thee, O Lord!
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
The Sermon Hymn #370 My Hope Is Built
Your Sins Are Forgiven
The Communion Hymn #376 Rock of Ages
The Preface p. 24
The Sanctus p. 26
The Lord's Prayer p. 27
The Words of Institution
The Agnus Dei p. 28
The Nunc Dimittis p. 29
The Benediction p. 31
The Hymn #261 Luther - Lord Keep Us Steadfast
- Cancer, therapy - Mary Howell, Kermit Way, Maria Way
- Pastor K and Doc Lito Cruz - dealing with diabetes.
- Seizure treatment: Gavin; Callie.
- Lutheran Christina goes to the final editor today.
KJV Ephesians 4:22 That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; 23 And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; 24 And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. 25 Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another. 26 Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: 27 Neither give place to the devil. 28 Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.
KJV Matthew 9:1 And he entered into a ship, and passed over, and came into his own city. 2 And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee. 3 And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth. 4 And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts? 5 For whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and walk? 6 But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house. 7 And he arose, and departed to his house. 8 But when the multitudes saw it, they marvelled, and glorified God, which had given such power unto men.
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| Books by Norma A. Boeckler |
Your Sins Are Forgiven
Background
Only God can forgive sins, which is why the opponents were so angry with Jesus. This forgiveness of sin can only be obtained through faith - not through regret, not from making up for the past (Luther called it mending and patching our good works), not because of giving (Rome still has "reparation" giving, which means paying for the sins with money). The two things required are the Gospel Word and faith to receive it. We know the Spirit is at work in the Word and opens people up to receive this priceless forgiveness from God. For this to continue means maintaining that trust in God by making the Word of God central in our lives.
The world sees works as the great expunger of sin, so we are surrounded by people hectoring us about every possible fault of mankind - except the failure of man to believe in Jesus Christ the Risen Savior. Works are so much in control that Glide Memorial Church, San Francisco, does not permit Christian worship services at its location. It is said that the endowment fund runs the congregation and makes the rules.
The works blessed by God are those which come directly from the believing heart. They are not the cause of forgiveness of sin but the result. That is why the works-saints are always angry and never satisfied with their results. No matter how much we shovel coal to keep the fires of Hell lit, they are not happy with the works they force upon us. But where the Gospel is dominant, all kinds of evil disappears from the power of God's Word and the peace given to people from His grace and the ultimate example of that grace, Jesus Christ.
KJV Matthew 9:1 And he entered into a ship, and passed over, and came into his own city. 2 And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee.
If we start at the public ministry of Jesus Christ, which lasted three years, we can see that His various miracles and His teaching established His divinity before He was crucified and risen from the dead. This established believers in many areas before His death and resurrection, and these became the initial points of the Christian Church.
The Left-wingers, like Walter Rauschenbusch, who kidnap the Gospel for their Social Gospel activism, have no concept of this. It is as if Jesus did all these things to form the Marxist groups and spread their joy.
God might have willed that all the benefits of Christ could have been taught in writing without His suffering, without the hardship of giving sermons and being opposed. But that would have have given us - who forget so easily - the wealth of Gospel passages and their predictions in the Old Testament, binding Old and New Testaments together. The Old Testament has vast areas of teaching that only make sense with New Testament fulfillment. The New Testament cites many Old Testament passages which form an enormous jigsaw puzzle putting everything together, Old and New Testaments.
So each miracle is for our faith, to build up and fill in what we need to know and believe. That leaves many sitting on the curb, complaining that the Gospels do not give them what they demand. Jesus expected and predicted that.
Jesus, seeing their faith, said to the palsied man, "Be of good cheer. Your sins are forgiven."
This is the man who was lowered from the roof by his friends, after removing roof tiles, so his arrival was dramatic and loud. Some object and say, "Why their faith? What about his faith?" Naturally, it took faithful friends to carry their burden to Jesus, showing their faith and love, then to climb on the roof with their burden, and then to open the roof and let down their friend. It required faith to go on this journey and the friends doubtless encouraged him with stories of the miracles of Jesus. The palsied man had to have faith to go along with this, because it had to be an arduous and jostling ride with no proof he would even see Jesus, no proof he could get near Jesus, no proof he could be healed.
The response of Jesus was ideal for inciting the wrath of the Pharisees. It was dramatic with the healing. Only God can forgive sins, and yet this healer is talking about forgiveness and inflaming them, which makes for an ideal Gospel lesson. Jesus knew the man had faith even if his neurological problems kept him from speaking in a smooth and urbane way.
Faith in Christ really makes people angry, though some hide it remarkably well by deflecting the main point - faith in the Son of God.
Lenski pointed out - Jesus said first - Be of good cheer. The Savior addressed the man's inward condition and addressed his need of contrition and forgiveness. He knew what was in the man's heart.
3 And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth. 4 And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts?
Some of them whispered among themselves, thinking Jesus could not hear them, but He knows the thoughts and plans of men. He answered what they were thinking, which must have disturbed them. "Why does this strike you as evil?"
Nothing creates more anger than faith in Christ, more so today as we head toward the End (whether that is in two years or two centuries). That anti-faith attitude is often found in the outwardly religious, who have long robes and say all the prayers. I have found it common that those who are fanatical about the forms and styles of worship - and their clothing - are indifferent about doctrine (teaching) the only thing that matters.
The recent arrest of an ELCA pastor noted that he was a member of their high church fraternity - STS - the Society of the Holy Trinity. He was also a member of the ALPB Online Discussion Board, with 10,000 posts.
In similar news, the most radical Christian denomination, the United Church of Christ, is so shrunken they are selling their headquarters. Name the radical Left fad and they were first. They have gone from 2 million members to 800,00 members.
5 For whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and walk? 6 But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house. 7 And he arose, and departed to his house.
This catches the opponents in a double-bind. The palsied man is healed and forgiven. Which is easier? asks the question of whether His divine power healed the man or that power absolved him of his sins. Which is more offensive to the opponents? The man walked away praising Jesus Christ.
12. Forgiveness of sins is nothing more than two words, in which the whole kingdom of Christ consists. There must be sins, and if we are conscious of them, we must confess them; when I have confessed them, forgiveness and grace are immediately present. Before forgiveness is present there is nothing but sin. This sin must be confessed that I may feel and know that all that is in me is blindness; otherwise forgiveness of sins could not exist where there is no sin. However, there is no lack of sins to confess, but the lack is in not feeling and knowing our sins to confess them; then only forgiveness of them follows. But it is quite a different thing when God forgives sins, than when one man forgives another. One man forgives another his sins in a way that he thinks of them again tomorrow, or casts them up to him. But when God forgives sins it is quite a different thing than when man forgives. For God condemns no more, he banishes all wrath from him, yea, he no more thinks of the sin, as he himself says in the prophet Isaiah, 43:25. Now if this wrath is gone, then hell, the devil, death and all misfortune that the devil may bring with him, must also disappear; and instead of wrath God gives grace, comfort, salvation and everything good that he himself is.
13. Sin is pure unhappiness, forgiveness pure happiness. The divine majesty is great, great is also that which it forgives. As the man is, so is also his forgiveness. But you must know in your heart how great these words are in which you know how to trust, yea, for which you can cheerfully die. But only few rightly receive these words, therefore there are but few true Christians.
Luther had much to say about this, because he was tortured by the Medieval practice of paying for his sins through suffering and more suffering. Someone who is overly sensitive, as Luther was, has trouble getting away from the guilt and remorse.
But the guilt and remorse machine do not pay for sins. No works can do that. I believe a lot of the self-harm that happens among teens is from this erroneous concept of hurting being absolving. That is why Rock of Ages is so powerful a hymn. It keeps repeating "No tears, no anguish, no suffering will take my sins away. I can give nothing to pay for them." Christ has done this, which is the meaning of the Atonement. He is the Lamb sacrificed for the Exodus, spotless and innocent. His blood has paid, so the Gospel Word calls out this truth to those (even babies) in converting them and then in refreshing doubts when they falter, waver, and turn back to unChristian kinds of repentance.
These words can be repeated to ourselves. As Lenski says, the word is "child" rather than son. It shows the tenderness of Jesus.
Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee.
Child, stop being miserable and rejoice, because your sins are all forgiven, drowned in the ocean of God's grace.
You were a self-centered jerk at 16, or 14, 12? I confirm you were at 2 - and even worse at 4. All children are. Friends and family and the Gospel guide the maturing individual and God sets that person on a new path. Difficulties make us stronger - and fears are extinguished by faith.
God through Christ has given us a life of wonderful experiences - through forgiveness. It is a great blessing to be forgiven and a great blessing to forgive. In our relationships, especially husband wife, we have a chance to practice forgiving every day, because we marry our opposites. I did the A-B test with a dozen couples and they were evenly divided between A and B, opposite habits, like being early or late, or practicing "one good turn gets most of the blanket."
This expands outward to children and siblings, but it really begins with the husband wife.
7 And he arose, and departed to his house. 8 But when the multitudes saw it, they marvelled, and glorified God, which had given such power unto men.
People enjoy the blessings of others. They praise God for all the miracles that become evident among believers. I mentioned before a young lady whose entire life has been one of seizures, no matter what was done. The news always pained me because I saw that in our girls, and no medicine helped.
I saw a new post. This girl has finished high school so successfully that she is getting top offers for scholarships in her chosen field. It is a wonderful opportunity, so I passed on my knowledge about how to leverage offers for the best outcome. (I gave approvals to a certain number of potential Yale undergrads from St. Louis, long ago. One thanked me from her new dorm room. I thought, "I knew she was the type!")
Luther said, "You have as much laughter as you have faith." If we are not laughing a lot, especially with our spouse, we should take another look at forgiveness, receiving it through Christ and practicing it with those closest to us.
