A blog of the Evangelical Lutheran Liturgy
The Epistle for the Fifth and Sixth Days of Christmass, December 29 & 30: Titus 3:4-7
“When the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us…”
Read MoreOut of Egypt the God and Father of our dear Lord Jesus Christ calls you to be His own dear child. He calls you through the waters of Holy Baptism into the Resurrection and the Life everlasting. He opens your mouth to show forth His praise in both life and death, by placing on your tongue and on your lips the “new song” of the Cross. So are you called to follow the Lamb wherever He goes, and so do you follow Him through suffering and death into the Promised Land of heaven.
Read MoreMerry Christmas, dear readers, brothers and sisters in Christ! At last, this festival day has once more come, and we reflect upon the mystery of the Incarnation of our Lord, and we connect His manger with His cross, and we celebrate Christ’s Mass as He continues to come to us in His Word and Sacrament: the Gottesdienst.
Read More…of St. John Chrysostom:
Nature here rested, while the Will of God labored. O ineffable grace!
Read MoreThere is something diabolical in us that fears John the Baptist will ruin Christmas. He disrupts things. John is not here to help you have fun. Rather, he is trying to help you prepare for the last day.
Read MoreThe image above is taken from our 11:00am Divine Service this past Sunday - the second try for our livestream of the day. At the 9:30am Divine Service, the one we usually stream on Sunday mornings, we had “technical difficulties”.
Read MoreWhatever it is in you that would oppose or prevent the coming of the Christ, the preaching of the Forerunner removes. Where you are arrogant and exalt yourself, he humbles you. Where you are doubtful and afraid, he silences your unbelief and quiets your fears, that he might speak the tender mercies of God to your troubled heart. For the Lord is at hand to visit and redeem His people, and this Word of salvation comes to all who fear God — not in terror, but in the reverence of faith.
Read MoreSome may think the Church doesn’t need to bother condemning sin and false teaching in the world. We should just focus on the sins we have right inside the Church. It’s true that judgment must BEGIN at the house of God (1 Peter 4:17), but that does not mean we turn a blind eye on the world or cease to warn our people to avoid the false teaching that surrounds them. An occasion presented itself for me to do so this past Sunday.
Read More… According to St. John Chrysostom
Read MoreIn a comment to an earlier post, a Gottesblog reader asks:
Read MoreThe Eucharist was established as part of an annual observance over which the head of the household presided, and in which children took part. About 130 years later it had become a observance over which only an ordained minister was allowed to preside, one which was observed weekly and even more frequently, and from which children, at least in the West, were banned. Could anyone point me to a book which documents how these changes came about?
Whether or not you are joined to a husband or wife here on earth, you have been joined to Christ in the waters of your Holy Baptism, and you are knit together with Him as one flesh in the Holy Communion of His Body and His Blood. Thus are your body and life redeemed and sanctified in His Body. You live and die with Him who is your Savior and your Head. And you confess Him with all of your words and actions as you go about your days and fulfill your duties here on earth.
Read MoreWe’re trying something new to see how it goes. You’ve all seen those posts where the scroll bar is so short you know you need some time to sit down and focus on it. Often our immediate reaction is TLDR.
Read MoreIn his Examination of the Council of Trent, Martin Chemnitz carefully goes through the writings of the Council and exposes the voluminous errors contained therein.
Read MoreChristians and those of Judeo-Christian principle have been far too well behaved in the recent past.
Read MoreOne of our anti-traditional baby-boomer LCMS pastors posted one of those "Ten Ways Church Services Will Soon Change" (yawn) blogs from a fellow-traveler.
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