https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83128684766?pwd=raq4DBAC0bvNYaR3oJJGVoH3qsTbmK.1
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16
The Kyrie p. 17
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Salutation and Collect p. 19
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
The Sermon Hymn #90 Come, Your Hearts
Those Who Died in the Faith - Martyrs - Like John the Baptist
The Hymn #87 Joy to the World
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 #85:10 - 15 From Heaven Above to Earth I Come
- December 22nd - Norma Boeckler's 90th Birthday...today!
- Corey and Abby's 10th wedding anniversary
- This week's services will be Wednesday at 7 PM, Christmas Eve at 7 PM, and Sunday (Boxing Day) at 10 AM.
- The laptop will monitor the live service in the chapel, and another blog will have this service (without the live Vimeo) on the big screen in the chapel.
- Tuesday, Christmas Eve Service, 7 PM.
Fourth Sunday In Advent
Lord God, heavenly Father, it is meet and right that we should give thanks unto Thee, that Thou hast given us a more glorious baptism than that of John the Baptist, and hast therein promised us the remission of sins, the Holy Spirit, and everlasting life through Thy Son, Jesus Christ: Preserve us, we beseech Thee, in such faith in Thy grace and mercy, that we may never doubt Thy promise, but be comforted by the same in all temptations: and grant us Thy Holy Spirit that we may renounce sin, and ever continue in the righteousness bestowed upon us in baptism, until by Thy grace we obtain eternal salvation, through the same, Thy beloved Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.
***
KJV John 1:19 And this is the record [GJ - witness] of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? 20 And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed [GJ - homiletics, preaching], I am not the Christ. 21 And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No. 22 Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself? 23 He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias. 24 And they which were sent were of the Pharisees. 25 And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet? 26 John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not; 27 He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe's latchet I am not worthy to unloose. 28 These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing.
Those Who Died in the Faith - Martyrs - Like John the Baptist
KJV John 1:19 And this is the record [GJ - witness] of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? 20 And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed [GJ - homiletics, preaching], I am not the Christ.
At this time in the calendar year, we have John the Baptist as the main point, but in a special way. Everyone at the moment is thinking - Away in the Manger - but the Gospel is John and the almost unknown Jesus.
But this is the thunder and storm, the way Israel and Rome were awakened. All the signs/miracles were beginning to be understood. Just imagine this - we have been waiting a thousand years, going back to William the Conqueror, 1066 AD, defeating Harold the Usurper! That is the difference between Isaiah 40 and the birth of Jesus. So John the Baptist's preaching and defying his opponents - that has been in the written Scriptures for 10 centuries. OK, Isaiah was about 800 years earlier. We cannot comprehend that enormous length of waiting.
A lot can be said about Isaiah 40:1 being the turning point in Isaiah, plus the sign of the Good Shepherd, yet to come -
KJV Isaiah 40:10 Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.11 He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.
I took Christina to Handel's Messiah at Augustana College, and that is where she received her engagement ring. The Messiah was the big event every single year.
John the Baptist was the final miraculous sign of the Messiah. The Wise Men came from the East and the Star of Bethlehem led their way. Astronomers used to make fun of this miracle, but now it is so well accepted that atheist astronomers object to it being used to draw attention to their very expensive planetariums. (We went to the Adler Planetarium to see the Star of Bethlehem portrayed vividly.)
20 And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed [GJ - homiletics, preaching], I am not the Christ.
The irony is that anxious religious leaders were focused on John the Baptist. He is the pointer to the Messiah, the anointed King. So this is why we are so anxious about Jesus Christ, His Virgin Birth, the Wise Men, the shepherds. John threw the politicians and religious leaders into fear, because this was long-expected prediction. John's denial made the preaching in the desert that much more terrifying. Those with the most power have the most fears, as predicted in John's Gospel that Jesus' raising Lazareth from death would bring the Roman Army to Jerusalem and tear down everything (which they did, later).
21 And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No. 22 Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?
We were all smart-alecks in Introduction to Greek, Augustana, 1966. We started with the Gospel of John in Greek, and that seemed repetitive, starting almost at once with John the Baptist. But what goes first? the journalism and English teachers asked. Aha! The most important, the theme for the entire work.
The Gospel of John has the most important lessons for us to learn -
- About Creation by the Word and the Word being Christ
- John the Baptist as the promised Fore-runner of Christ
- The Father/Son relationship
- The importance of the Holy Spirit (note the Greatest Sin)
- The many miracles
- The Crucifixion, actual rising from the Tomb, and post-resurrection.
Norma has provided an almost unlimited supply of beautiful Christian art for everyone to enjoy, and to use for my publishing work.
She and I had a great laugh from a Missouri Synod pastor, now retired, asking me, "How did YOU get to know Norma Boeckler?" He was startled that Norma was a member of Bethany Lutheran Church.
Everything we do in publishing at Bethany is non-profit.
