Church Word #12: Omnipresent

Church Words: Omnipresent

[Fourteenth in a series of posts on church words] Encore Post: In most non-Christian religions, God is seen as very far away. He is the High God, who made the world and left it to others to cope as best they can. Even in popular American culture, we think of God as tucked away up in Heaven. Our songs tell us “God is watching us… from a distance,” “And the three men I admire most The Father, Son and the Holy Ghost They caught the last train for the coast…” Ever since Adam and Eve fell into sin, people have imagined they could hide from God. (Genesis 3:8)

All these concepts are mistaken. God is omnipresent — he is everywhere. God is not far away, he is very near. He fills the heavens and the earth. (Jeremiah 23:23-24) No one can hide from him. (Ps 139:6–12) No one can escape his judgement or is beyond his care.

Yet he is not a part of his creation, as the Hindus, Buddhists and others believe. For them, we are god, we just do not know it yet. God is a separate, distinct being. God is not a man (Numbers 23:19), either as these Eastern religions teach or as one of many physical being that grew into Gods, as the Mormons believe. He is busy endlessly maintaining his creation, supporting it with his power, directing the course of events, working through his word and his church to seek and to save the lost, and making new creatures — including each and every new human life.

But that is not the end of the ways God is present. In the Son of God, God became one of us. Jesus is in every way human, except without sin. He is Emmanuel — God with us. He lived a perfect life for us, suffered and died for us, rose and ascended to Heaven for us. And yet he has, in a mysterious way, not gone away at all. He is “by our side upon the plain (the field of battle) with his good gifts and spirit.” When we gather for worship, even two or three of us, he is there among us.

And yet, Christ is even more present in a way so personal we cannot begin to understand it. In the Lord’s Supper, he is really present, in the flesh and blood sacrificed for us. This body he gives with bread for us to eat and this blood he gives with wine for us to drink. In this way, he is with us so that we cannot miss him. So, God’s omnipresence is a very good thing for us. It means we are never alone, from the day we are conceived to the day we enter his eternal presence and finally see his face.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Church Words: Evangelical

[Fifth in a series of posts on church words] Encore Post:

The phrase “Evangelical Lutheran” may sound strange to your ears. When you think of the word “Evangelical,” you think of Baptists, revivals, altar calls, accepting Jesus as your personal Savior, the rapture, and many similar notions, measures, and cultural traditions. Like F. C. D. Wyneken, you might think: “I don’t know whether it is of God or the Devil, but it is certainly not Lutheran!” You’d be right! This kind of evangelicalism is not Lutheran at all.

You might be surprised that Lutherans actually coined the word “Evangelical.” It comes from the New Testament Greek word: εὐαγγελίον (euangelion, evangel). It means “good message, good news” — the gospel! At first, Lutherans did not call themselves “Lutheran” at all. Their enemies made that term up to suggest that Lutherans were not catholic or orthodox, but were heretics. Lutherans wanted to be known as gospel-oriented. Their faith was founded on the teaching that salvation is by faith alone through the grace of God alone, for Christ’s sake alone. For centuries, they preferred to be called Evangelical — and until the 1800s, when someone in Europe used the name Evangelical, Evangelisch, they meant Lutheran.

Like the word “Protestant,” which also used to mean “Lutheran,” other non-Catholics really liked the sound of it. Many of them also cherish the gospel of salvation by the sacrificial death of Jesus on the cross. They even like the phrase: “salvation by grace or faith alone.” So, even though they believe very different things from Lutherans, they call themselves Evangelical. Since there are far more Christians in this tradition than Lutherans, they are the ones who come to mind when people say “Evangelical.”

Unlike the word “Protestant,” however, Lutherans refuse to give up this word, because it summarizes what we believe so well. So, you will notice, we put the word in our church names, include it in our Baptism and Confirmation services, and at other times. For the Good News is that it is not God’s will that sinners like us perish forever. So in the person of Jesus Christ, our Lord, he set aside all his power and authority, was born a man in the womb of Mary, bore our sins on the cross, paid their price by his suffering and death and rose again so that our sins might be forgiven, we might rise on the last day from the grave and live with him forever. All that is packed into the simple word, “Evangelical.” So we use it proudly, but add the word “Lutheran” to keep from being confused with others.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Holy Week Overview

Encore Post: On Palm Sunday, Jesus deliberately went to his death in Jerusalem. He could have called upon the countless armies of heaven to save Him, but He did not. Knowing full well what was ahead, He went willingly. Down the road used to bring the lambs for the Passover into Jerusalem, the Lamb of God went to the slaughter. Just as King David rode into the city on a donkey 1000 years earlier, Jesus chose a donkey as his mount. When the crowds acclaimed him Messiah, he received their greeting.

On Thursday evening, Jesus gathered with his disciples to celebrate the Passover. They remembered the night when the Angel of Death passed over the doors of the people of Israel, marked by the blood of the lamb. That night, when he gave us the Lord’s Supper, Jesus became our Passover, giving us his body to eat in the bread and his blood to drink in the wine.

Later, he would be led to trial before the Sanhedrin, which met in the Temple of Solomon. Here, the Lamb of God was condemned to die. On the cross, when He said, “It is finished,” God completed the sacrifice for our sins.

What the women found when they arrived at the tomb the next Sunday morning changed everything. The stone was rolled away; the guards had run away, and an angel greeted them. “He is not here! He is risen!” Once it sank in, the disciples went from sadness to joy. For Christians, the day of worship shifted from the Sabbath to the Lord’s Day. The very people who ran away and hid for fear of arrest would face arrest, torture, and eventually death themselves to proclaim the good news of salvation because of the death and resurrection of Jesus the Messiah. Today we still proclaim the same good news. Now we were redeemed, forgiven, and restored to fellowship with God.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Forgiveness of Sins, Life and Salvation

Encore Post:

[Sixty-second in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]

The Lord’s Supper is a great gift to us. With bread and wine, Jesus gives us his Body and Blood to eat and to drink. This gift would be precious, even if that was all there was to it. But God gives us much more in this sacrament. He meets our greatest need, to be forgiven of our sins.

The greatest disaster that comes from Adam and Eve’s disobedience is that it separated them — and us — from God. Cut off from the source of life itself. It brought death to all of us. By giving his body on the cross and shedding his blood there, he paid the price for sin, earning us the forgiveness of sins and reconciling us with God. With the reason for our eternal death removed, the seal of the grave is broken. We are saved and will live with him eternally.

In Baptism, God applies these benefits to us. Yet our sinful nature remains in us. “The old Adam is a good swimmer,” the old quip goes. (No, Martin Luther likely did not say it!) Constantly harassed by the world and its temptations, the sweet lies of Satan, and the lure of our passions, we sin often. The Lord’s Supper forgives our sins and assures us of God’s love for us. It is communion with Jesus in the most intimate way. It is as the ancient liturgy for anointing the sick, “bread for the journey.”

So, we receive this precious gift often. After all, Jesus is really present there. And where he is, there we also want to be.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

The Lord’s Supper is Christ’s Supper

Encore Post:

[Sixty-first in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]

The Lord’s Supper is really very simple. At his last Passover meal, Jesus took bread, broke it, gave it to his disciples, and said, “This is my body,” and took a cup of wine and said, “This is my blood.” When we eat this bread, we also eat his body, and when we drink this wine, we drink his blood. From the day the Lord instituted this sacrament until the Reformation, all Christians believed that these words did what they said. They also realized this was a mystery that human reason cannot possibly begin to understand.

Because we cannot understand how this can be true, the Reformed and Evangelical traditions believe that Jesus did not mean these words literally, but that the sacrament is a meaningful symbol that reminds us of Jesus’ death on the cross for the forgiveness of sins. They argue that a human body can only be in one place at a time. Since Jesus is now in Heaven, the literal body and blood of Jesus cannot be in the elements of Holy Communion. This way of interpreting the words of Jesus, however, relies not on Holy Scripture but on our capability to make sense of them.

The problem with this approach is that it causes all kinds of other difficulties. Human wisdom is limited because we are creatures and God is our creator, and because we are sinful and God is holy. We can never know for sure that we are right when we depend on our reason. So, Lutherans are content to use our reason to understand what God’s word says and then believe it, even when we cannot put it all together. We let the Bible be the master of our minds and not our minds the master of the Bible. (theologians call these approaches the ministerial and magisterial uses of reason) When we alter the meaning of Scripture based on reason, we end up with all kinds of unintended problems. For example, if Christ’s resurrected body can be in only one place at a time, Heaven, then how can he be as he promised, “with us always until the end of time” (my paraphrase of Matthew 28:20)

Since all the passages which report the institution of the Lord’s Supper are simple reports of the historical events and none of them have poetry, teaching or preaching in them, we take them at face value. They mean exactly what they say. When Jesus says “this is my body” and “this is my blood,” we believe that is exactly what the Lord’s Supper is: Bread together with the body of Christ and wine together with the blood of Christ. We wonder at the mystery of it all and thank God for the gift of his own flesh and blood to us, uniting us to him now and forever.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Who is the Lord’s Supper for?

Encore Post:

[Sixty in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]

Baptism is for everyone — every person of any place, color, class, race, country, or age. God wants to save everyone. The Lord’s Supper, however, is for Christians only. (1 Corinthians 10:14-22) St. Paul tells us that sometimes even Christians should not receive this sacrament. (1 Corinthians 11:27-32) So… who is the supper for?

Sincere Christians have often worried much over whether they are worthy to receive the Lord’s Body and Blood. Did they sin too much? Did they forget to apologize for something or to forgive someone? Should they go to the altar or not?

Martin Luther takes this up in his Catechisms (Small Catechism 6.5, Large Catechism 7.75): “he is truly worthy and well prepared who has faith in these words: Given, and shed for you, for the remission of sins. But he that does not believe these words, or doubts, is unworthy and unfit; for the words For you require altogether believing hearts.” If you realize that you are a sinner, in need of forgiveness, believe that Jesus offers you that forgiveness with his body and blood and the bread and wine of the Supper, then it is for you.

St. Paul’s warning is for those who are sinning in the process of going to the Sacrament. If you really do not want forgiveness for some or all of your sins, watch out. You are, at best, treating trivially the very Body and Blood of your Savior, sacrificed on the cross for you. At worst, you mock the Lord’s Supper. This you would do to your peril.

This is why Christians take a moment to prepare to receive Holy Communion. Luther’s Christian Questions and Their Answers are very helpful for this. Remember your sins, your need for forgiveness, and that Jesus desires to forgive you. Then joyfully go to the altar to receive the sacrifice he made for you, being united with him and your brothers and sisters in Christ.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Names for the Lord’s Supper

Encore Post:

[Fifty-Nineth in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]

God gives his grace to us through the means of grace — the Gospel, Baptism, the Lord’s Supper, and Absolution. The Lord’s Supper is unique because it is known by several names. Each emphasizes a different aspect of this great gift to us.

The name the Lord’s Supper reminds us that this sacrament belongs to our Lord Jesus, who instituted it and whose Body and Blood we eat with the bread and wine. The Lord’s Supper is both very simple and yet completely beyond our understanding. We trust the Lord who gives it to us and so call it his supper.

When we call the Lord’s Supper the Sacrament of the Altar, we focus on the sacrifice of Jesus. Following his command, we remember that he offered up, once and for all, the body that we eat and the blood that we drink as a sacrifice for our sins. The blessings this sacrament gives — forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation — are ours because of this sacrifice.

We speak of Holy Communion because the Lord unites us with himself and with our brothers and sisters in Christ in this meal. (1 Corinthians 10:16-17) The Lord’s Supper brings together bread with his body given for us and wine with his blood shed for us. When we eat it, we are united with him in the same way that baptism unites us with his death and resurrection. We are also brought together as one body with Christians of all times and places, and are united with them.

We call the service of worship in which the Lord’s Supper is offered the Eucharist, which is from the Greek word εὐχαριστήσας, which means thanksgiving. It refers to our thankfulness for the gift of this precious sacrament.

It is sometimes called the Mass (yes, even by Lutherans!), a name derived from the Latin words that conclude the liturgy: “Ite, missa est” (“Go, you are sent”). It reminds us we are sent by God into the world. Most frequently, however, Lutherans prefer the term Divine Service (from the German word Gottesdienst). This term reminds us that two things happen in worship. God serves us by giving us the gifts of his word and sacraments, and we serve God by returning to him our thanks and praise for his mercy.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

What is Absolution?

Encore Post:

[Fifty-Seventh in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]

Lutherans cherish absolution as a way that the forgiveness of sins won by Jesus on the cross is applied to Christians when they confess their sins. It is a form of preaching the Gospel that takes what God has promised to all who believe in him and announces it to specific individuals. All Christians may assure their brothers and sisters that their sins are forgiven, but ordinarily it is pastors who hear confessions of sin and pronounce forgiveness to specific individuals or congregations. This is done for the sake of good order and for the assurance of troubled souls that their sins are really forgiven. Pastors are men that God calls through a local congregation to preach the Gospel and administer the sacraments on their behalf and as an instrument of their Lord Jesus.

The form that Lutheran pastors use to absolve sins sounds odd to many Protestants and even offensive to some. Yet they do so at the command of Jesus, who instituted absolution and gave the church the power to forgive sins or retain them. (Matthew 18:18-20, John 20:21-23, 2 Corinthians 5:19-21) This power Jesus gives is called by theologians the Office of the Keys.

Confession and Absolution come in two forms: Private Confession and General Confession. Private Confession is available, especially when you commit a sin that you cannot shake, that Satan uses to accuse you, and that you feel God cannot possibly forgive. When he is ordained, a pastor promises before God that he will never reveal what is confessed to him — even to his wife. This seal of the confessional is absolute, unless the person who confesses the sin releases the pastor of the obligation. When you share the deepest of your sins, and the pastor forgives you, you can be at rest. Jesus promised you can believe this as if he himself spoke these words — because it is Jesus who is speaking through your pastor. (Luke 10:16)

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Stay Calm and Remember Your Baptism

Encore Post:

[Fifty-Fourth in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]

While Baptism is a one-time event, its blessings last a lifetime. Baptism is an event outside of us, observed by witnesses and recorded in books. Especially when we are baptized as children, there is no question that God loves us, that he adopted us as his children, and that we will live with him forever. When we are baptized, we realize that we are not seekers, but that God sought us and found us. We can be sure that we are saved and that we will live with God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit forever.

In our sin-filled world, where we are at war with the world, the devil, and our flesh, life can get confusing very fast. As we are confronted with our sinful nature, we may wonder how God can love us, whether we please him, or can ever measure up to his standards. At times like these, we can remember our baptism. No matter what happens, this is the central fact of our lives. I am baptized.

St. Paul reminds us that in baptism, we are united to Christ in his death. (Romans 6:3-11) Christ bore our sins on the cross, suffered, and died to pay the full penalty we deserved for them. Because we are baptized, when he died, we died. When He rose from the dead, we rose to new life. Now we can face anything that comes our way.

Each day, we can prepare ourselves in prayer. We can make the sign of the cross, remembering that we are baptized, thank God for his mercies, and remember that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:37-39)

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Baptism Saves You

Encore Post:

[Fiftieth in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]

Perhaps the point of greatest conflict between Lutherans and the Evangelical movement is our confidence that the Bible teaches that baptism saves you. As I noted in another post, most Protestants think of Baptism as a simple ceremony in which a Christian declares that he puts his faith in Jesus as his personal savior. They think of baptism as something we do, and so think that to say that baptism saves us, that it is the same thing as saying salvation is something we earn by what we do. Yet the Bible clearly says, “Baptism saves you” (1 Peter 3:21-22) and “unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5)

If Lutherans believed that baptism was something we do, we also would reject the teaching that it saves. After all, the heart and center of the Lutheran confession is that salvation is by grace alone through faith alone for the sake of Christ alone. But we believe what the Scriptures teach, that salvation is God’s work, not ours. God the Father saved us, not by what we have done, but by washing us and renewing us in baptism by the Holy Spirit. (Titus 3:4-7) Jesus gave himself for the church, cleansing us by the water and the word. (Ephesians 5:25-27) In Christ, through faith, God has buried us with Jesus in baptism and made us alive with Christ, forgiving our sins. (Colossians 2:11-14) So, when we say we are saved by baptism, we are saying that God saves us by baptism.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana