Church Year – What Does This Mean?

Remember that You Are Dust…

Encore Post: Ash Wednesday works like a kind of speed bump in the lives of Christians. After celebrating the birth of Jesus, listening to how God revealed himself in the person of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, seeing him in his full glory on the Mount of Transfiguration, we’re tempted to bask in the glory of God’s grace and love. Yet still our stubborn Old Adam or Old Eve clings to us and threatens to take over our lives. Lest we forget, Lent comes to help us discipline ourselves, repent of our sin and live life, trusting in God and his promises. Ash Wednesday greets us with the words God spoke to Adam — and to us — when imposing the curse that resulted from the first sin: “Remember that you are dust and to the dust you will return.” (Genesis 3:19)

This phrase is a part of the ancient discipline of remembering mortality. (Memento mori — “Remember death”) It is the conscious meditation on the cold, hard truth that all the pleasures and blessings of life are temporary and that death comes to all of us, often suddenly. Ash Wednesday calls on us to stop what we are doing, consider the damage our sin does in our lives — both now and eternally. The collect for the day sets the tone: “Almighty and everlasting God, You despise nothing You have made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent. Create in us new and contrite hearts that lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness we may receive from You full pardon and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.”

Repentance is more than saying you’re sorry. The Greek word the New Testament uses for repentance is μετάνοια means “to completely change your mind.” It includes recognizing your sins, being sorry for them and to stop doing them. All of this is only possible for Christians because it is the work of the Holy Spirit that makes us holy. Ash Wednesday wakes us up, reminds us how to use the disciplines of fasting, prayer and meditation, gives us the forgiveness of sins through confession, absolution and the Lord’s Supper. It sets the tone for our forty-day meditation. It marks our sorrow with the ashes of the palms from the previous Palm Sunday and with the sign of the Holy Cross, reminds us of the redemption that is ours in the passion, death and Resurrection of Jesus.

May God grant you a blessed meditation on the suffering and death of Jesus that you will be well prepared to celebrate with joy the coming Easter celebration.

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 Season of Lent

Encore Post: “Mardi Gras” — “Fat Tuesday” or “Carnival” — “Farewell to meat” — are names given to the days full of parties just before Lent. In Christian countries, people celebrated these days, knowing that with the beginning of Lent, they would spend forty days fasting. By the time of the Reformation, the season of Lent had become a very somber time of self-denial, where repentance, meditation upon the sufferings and death of Jesus, dominated the everyday life of Christians. In order to earn some merit before God, the serious believer would not only fast, but give alms to the poor, go on pilgrimages and do anything they thought would please God.

This way of looking at Lent differs greatly from the way it was seen during the Early Church. The season arose as a part of the process of becoming a Christian. A new convert to the faith spent forty days being taught the basic truths of God’s word, especially about the life, sufferings and death of the Lord Jesus. Forty days is the symbolic period of testing, fasting and discipline done to focus a believer’s mind on prayer and meditation on God’s word. Since the customary day to baptize new Christians moved early on from the day celebrating the Baptism of our Lord to the Vigil of Easter (Holy Saturday), catechumens (new Christians studying the faith) and their Catechists (teachers of the faith) would fast the forty weekdays prior to Easter each year. Since Sundays are always a celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus, they would not fast on the Sundays. They found the practice to be a great blessing and so the whole church soon began to fast with them. Ash Wednesday, therefore, begins Lent, which lasts until Holy Saturday.

Lutherans reformed the practice of Lent, so that rather than being a season of sorrow, it is a season of discipline. Beginning in repentance for sins with Ash Wednesday, it continues in quiet reflection on the basic teachings of the Christian faith. When the Church comes to Holy Week, then it turns to be a witness to the events of our salvation, leading us to Easter and the joy of the resurrection of our Lord and the promise of everlasting life it brings.

For the most part, we will use this Lent to talk about the basics of the faith, as Martin Luther explains it in the Small Catechism. May God bless you as you meditate and pray during this season of Lent.

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 Right Hand of God

Encore Post: [Twenty-Ninth in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism] In ancient palaces, a ruler exercised power in a very formal way. He would enter the throne room with a herald going before him. All would bow to him and yet watch his every move, every gesture and listen carefully to every word. His crown identified him as ruler. The session began when he sat down on his throne. In fact, the word “session” literally means “the time of sitting.” Those who stood near him were very powerful people. Only those of equal power would sit in his presence — especially at his right hand. So, the right hand of the ruler became a figure of speech that stands for his authority, glory, and honor.

When we say that Jesus “ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father almighty,” we confess that he is equal to the Father and is also almighty. (Matthew 28:18). This truth is precious to us for many reasons.

When Satan, the world and our sinful nature try to rule over us, we can tell them to get lost. They do not rule us — Jesus does. When we baptize and teach others God’s Word, it is not our talents, reputation, ability to impress others with our words that matter. The authority to do so comes from Jesus and power that changes hearts come from him and the Holy Spirit. When we feel lonely, we are not alone, because he is with us always, until the end of time itself.

Rev. Robert E. Smith

Concordia Theological Seminary

Fort Wayne, Indiana

Blog Post Series

Christ is Risen!

Encore Post: [Twenty-Eighth in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism] From ancient times, Christians first greet each other on Easter: “He is risen!” or “Christ is risen.” The words of the angel to the women at the tomb (Mark 16:6) are still joyful to this day. In Lutheran churches it is common for pastors to open sermons throughout the Easter season with these words. The greeting is repeated at the end of Lutheran burial services, reminding us of the resurrection. So, why does the resurrection strike such a chord with Christians? After all, the full price for our salvation was completed when Jesus died on the cross.

The reasons we cling to the Resurrection of Jesus are many. The most important is that the resurrection of our bodies is tied to it. In baptism, we die with Christ and when he rose, we rise to new life. (Romans 6:3-4) If Jesus did not rise from the dead, we would remain in our graves. We would have believed in a lie. But Christ did rise from the grave, the first harvest of God’s children. (1 Corinthians 15:20) His resurrection broke the seal of the grave. On the last day, we will rise, body and soul, to live with Christ forever.

The resurrection of our Lord also fulfilled all the promises of God’s word and the predictions of Jesus himself. When he rose, he demonstrated that God’s promises are kept. The three days in the grave — Friday afternoon, Saturday and Sunday evening — fulfilled these in great precision. So, with the Church of all times and places, we confess, “on the third day, he rose from the dead,” knowing that it makes our resurrection a sure and certain hope. So, we can face death, knowing it has no sting any longer.

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

Transfiguration

Encore Post: At the Transfiguration, Jesus appeared to his disciples in his full glory as God. It ends the season of Epiphany where it began, with a theophany — an appearance of God. At the Baptism of Jesus, the Father spoke over his Son from heaven and the Holy Spirit appeared as a dove. Now the Father speaks from the Cloud of God’s Presence and with him is the Holy Spirit.

But that is not all. With Jesus appeared the two greatest witnesses of the Old Testament — Moses and Elijah. God used Moses to lead his people out of Egypt and gave the Law to them through him. God buried Moses when he died. Elijah was the great and fearless prophet, whom God carried into heaven in a chariot of fire. God promised the Messiah to Moses, calling the Messiah a prophet like him. The prophets predicted Elijah would return to witness to the Messiah on the day the Messiah would come.

Now on the mountain of Transfiguration, Moses and Elijah discussed with Jesus his Exodus — his departure. As Moses led Israel through the Red Sea to freedom, Jesus would bring us all through death to everlasting life by his death on the cross. Not knowing what to make of it all, Peter offered to set up tents like the people used in the wilderness wanderings. As usual, Peter missed the point.

So the Cloud of God’s Glory appeared on the mountain. In that cloud, the Angel of the Lord led the people by day through the wilderness and showed God’s presence in tabernacle and temple. From this Cloud, God the Father speaks a second time. “This is my Beloved Son,” he said, “listen to him.”

The message of Transfiguration is that Jesus is God, yet He set aside His glory to die for our sins. We should serve God by doing what He says and serving one another.

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

St. Titus, Pastor and Bishop

Encore Post: Titus was a gentile who came to faith through the preaching of St. Paul early in the apostle’s ministry. He accompanied Paul and Barnabas on several trips to Jerusalem and with Paul on his missionary journeys. He was presented to the apostles in Jerusalem as a test case. Did he have to be circumcised to be a Christian or would faith in Christ be all he needed? They decided he did not need to perform the rite.

Titus was a skilled mediator and trusted by Paul to bear his letters to the Corinthian Church, where he brought peace and reconciliation with the Apostle. Later he would be entrusted with bringing order to the church in Crete, where he would serve as bishop into his old age.

The Lutheran Church remembers this faithful pastor and bishop on January 26.

Rev. Robert E. Smith

Pastor Emeritus

Fort Wayne, Indiana

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

The Conversion of St. Paul

Encore Post: On January 25th, the week after the celebration of the Confession of St. Peter, the Lutheran Church gives thanks for the Conversion of St. Paul. This miracle brought to faith one of the most important missionaries, theologians, and pastors in church history.

Saul of Tarsus was born to a well-to-do Jewish craftsman. His father made leather and canvas goods such as sails and tents. His father was a Roman citizen, a status inherited by his children. His home city had a good reputation, which served him well. His father was a faithful Pharisee and provided his son with both a first-rate classical Greek education and the best training for eventually becoming a rabbi. Like many of his educated countrymen, he had both a Hebrew name — Saul and a Greek name — Paul.

Paul became a disciple of one of the greatest rabbis in the history of Judaism, — Gamaliel. He excelled in these studied and may well have served in the Sanhedrin. He was so zealous for his religion that he became a persecutor of the followers of Jesus and a witness of the stoning of Stephen, the first martyr.

Intent on arresting every Christian in Damascus, Saul set out with a warrant from the Chief Priest. Along the way, Jesus appeared to him in a light so bright it knocked him off his mount and blinded him. Jesus identified himself and commissioned Paul to go to the Gentiles. He directed Paul to Ananias, who forgave his sins and baptized him. Paul’s sight was restored.

The Holy Spirit would inspire Paul to write 1/4 of the New Testament. He would take the gospel to the ends of the Roman world, including Spain. The Apostle to the Gentiles fulfilled his mission well.

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

St. Timothy, Pastor, Bishop, Friend of St. Paul

Encore Post: Timothy of Lystra had a blessed childhood. His grandmother and mother were Jews who came to Christ. Even in the womb, he heard the Holy Scriptures, and was raised loving God, even though his father was a Gentile. He may have been already a Christian when he first met St. Paul, or came to faith through his preaching of the Gospel. A kind, mature and reserved young man, he impressed everyone — including St. Paul. So, Paul had him circumcised and bought him on his missionary journeys. Called as a pastor, he soon became Paul’s trusted and effective assistant. When Paul was near martyrdom, he called for Timothy to come to be with him. After Paul’s death, Timothy served as the Bishop of Ephesus. Church tradition reports that he was martyred in his old age.

On January 24th, the Lutheran Church gives thanks to God for St. Timothy and all pastors. God sent them to proclaim the Gospel, to care for his children, to bring to them the gifts of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper, to forgive their sins when they repent and to be present with them in all the days of their lives. The Scriptures urge us to study their lives, learn from them and imitate their faith. We do this not because they are holier than us. They are not. It is because they are just like us. Since they lived trusting in Jesus, we, too, can live trusting in him. After all, Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. (Hebrew 13:7-8)

Rev. Robert E. Smith

Pastor Emeritus

Fort Wayne, Indiana

to: The Confession of St. Peter | Conversion of St. Paul

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

The Confession of St. Peter

Encore Post: In Northeast Israel, at the base of Mount Hermon, a giant spring gushed water out of a cave that flowed into Huela Marsh, the headwaters of the Jordan River. During the centuries following the death of Alexander the Great, Syria’s Greek rulers built a shrine there to the god Pan. During the earthly ministry of Jesus, Herod the Great’s son Philip built a town nearby and named it after Tiberius Caesar and himself. His father had added a temple to Caesar Augustus, to the previous shrine, to Pan. A major trade road, “The Way to the Sea” ran through the town on its way to the Sea of Galilee and the Mediterranean Sea. At the end of his ministry in Galilee, Jesus took his disciples to this location to prepare them for his final year of ministry, suffering, death, and resurrection. (Matthew 16:13-28)

At this place, Jesus asked his disciples who people thought he was. They replied people said he was a prophet, maybe even John the Baptist or Elijah. Jesus then followed up. “Who you say I am?” St. Peter replied, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God.” God the Father had revealed this to Peter, but it became clear quickly that he really did not know what a Messiah was to do. Jesus explained to the disciples that he would soon suffer, die for the sins of the world, and rise from the dead in three days. Peter tried to scold him. It could not happen to him — he was the Messiah, after all. Jesus replied by calling Peter Satan. Anyone that would be his disciple would need to take up his own cross and follow Jesus.

Even though Peter was badly mistaken, Jesus praised his confession that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of God. The confession was so important that Jesus gave him the name Peter — little rock. The confession itself is the rock on which Jesus builds his church. Even hell itself cannot destroy that church. So, since the early years of the Twentieth Century, the Lutheran Church has celebrated this confession on January 18th, a day always in the season of Epiphany, when it meditates on the ways that God the Son reveals himself to us.

Rev. Robert E. Smith

Pastor Emeritus

Fort Wayne, Indiana

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

Jews and Gentiles

Encore Post: The Greeks saw the world as made up of two kinds of people — Greeks and Barbarians. For the Romans, it was Romans and Pagans. In the 1960s, we saw the world as Americans versus Communists. The Communists saw the world as Communists and Capitalists or Imperialists. For the Jews, it was Jews and Gentiles.

Of course, for them, God was the source of this separation. He called Abraham out from the Sumerian culture and the serving of multiple gods to the service of the one, true God. He set him aside from the rest of the world to be a blessing to it. He grew the nation from the descendants of Abraham and Sarah. He freed them from slavery in Egypt, gave them his law, formed them in the desert and gave them the land of promise.

But there the other nations — the gentiles — worshiped other gods and lived in great immorality.Not the least of that evil was that they would sacrifice their children for favors from their gods. So God commanded the people of Israel to kill them all and destroy all their possessions. The Israelites did not do this perfectly. Those people tempted God’s people to wander from him and sink into their immorality. God punished them with exile in Babylon. Except for 150 or so years, they lived as the subjects of pagan nations.

They learned the lesson. The Jews — at least the pious ones — tried to keep the law so perfectly they invented their own laws and traditions. Among those was strict separation from Gentiles, to the point of not even eating with them. In the temple, they would not allow gentiles to enter the temple proper and punished transgression with death.

The celebration of Epiphany marks how the coming of Christ changes this once and for all. Jesus died on the cross for the sins of both Jew and gentiles. The reason for the division is destroyed, demonstrated when the temple curtain tore in two from top to bottom. Now, as Isaiah prophesied, the nations come to God through Christ and meet God’s people there. Together we praise him who called us both out of darkness into his marvelous light.

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