Upcoming and continued services and Bible study at Trinity:
Worship and Bible Class:-Women’s Bible Class: Occurs Monday’s at 2:30PM @ Trinity. Pastor Basel is covering women of the Bible and is currently reviewing Sarah’ life and service to the LORD.
-Bible Study and Sunday School: 8 AM each Sunday.
-Lent Midweek Services: Wednesday, Feb 21st and March 13th. Dinner at 5 PM and Service at 6 PM.
-Good Friday Service: Friday, March 29th at noon. No Holy Communion
-Easter Service: Sunday, March 31st at 9 AM. Easter coffee/snack hour and Easter Egg hunt afterward.
Today we begin a new church year. It might surprise us that a new church year begins roughly a month before the calendar new year. Yet, the Christian church year always begins before Christmas, starting with the season of Advent.
Also, we light the first candle on our Advent wreath known as the Prophecy Candle. This candle reminds us that the light of God’s prophecy kept burning brightly on the pages of the Old Testament in preparation for the birth of our Savior. The word Advent itself comes from a Latin word meaning “he comes.” The Advent season has a two-fold focus: it prepares us for Jesus’ first coming in His birth at Bethlehem, while at the same time there remains a focus on His second coming on Judgment Day at the end of the world’s history (The latter is the case for today’s readings).
Notice, too, that the colors of the church’s vestments change. The appropriate colors of blue or purple symbolize repentance and royalty respectively. The colors remind us that it’s necessary to be prepared to meet our royal King Jesus through repentance and faith in His forgiveness. Advent assures that Jesus came as our Savior to give us forgiveness and will one day bring about our final redemption as He takes us to heaven. The Scripture readings for this new church year will now follow the ILCW B series.
For today’s “Hymn of the Day” we will sing “God Moves in a Mysterious Way” (CW 420). John Newton (author of “Amazing Grace”) first published this hymn of William Cowper in 1774, originally entitled, “Light out of Darkness.” The title evidently referenced Cowper’s mental afflictions, but highlights Bible-based meditative thoughts to strengthen Christians, when God’s ways are mysterious.
Truly, our God works in (humanly speaking) “mysterious” ways. According to human logic, one “doesn’t get something for nothing.” But with our gracious God, He saves us entirely by His grace through Jesus.
Christians well know how Paul stressed this truth, when he wrote, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9) [EHVTM]. Perhaps a better “mystery” would be: “Why did God save anyone, when all sinners deserved His everlasting punishment?”
How wonderful to hear the assurance of the gospel, “that God was reconciling the world to himself through Christ, not counting people’s sins against them” (2 Corinthians 5:19) [EHVTM]. As God’s people, we rejoice in that comforting and powerful message of salvation.
Jesus told His disciples and naturally us as His modern-day disciples: “In this world you are going to have trouble. But be courageous! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33, EHVTM). Due to a world soiled by sin, troubles come upon Christians in the form of persecution because of the Christian faith. Yet, Jesus has assured that He “overcame” this world of sin and persecution.
In fact, when experiencing the crucible of temptations and trials, Jesus relates how His overcoming the word applies to us. He promises us through Paul: “God is faithful. He will not allow you to be tested beyond your ability, but when he tests you, he will also bring about the outcome that you are able to bear it” (1 Corinthians 10:13, EHVTM). That “Way” out is Jesus who is “the Way, the Truth and the Life” (John 14:6, EHVTM).
Truly, God graces us with His word and sacraments to forgive our sins and strengthen our faith in all situations. Through the word and in spite of trials, we engage others with Jesus in keeping with St. Peter’s instruction: “But regard the Lord, the Christ, as holy in your hearts. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who ask you to give a reason for the hope that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15, EHVTM). The good news of the gospel makes us bold to give that divinely, hope-filled answer…to confess Jesus.
Today we officially “close” the Easter season. Yet, in all our preaching and teaching…in all our worship services we never stop proclaiming Jesus’ resurrection. Jesus’ rising from the dead is the heartbeat of our faith. St. Paul stresses: “…if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is pointless, and your faith is pointless too… But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep” (1 Corinthians 15:14, 20).
This past Thursday, the Christian Church officially celebrated our Savior’s ascension into heaven. Although Jesus has removed His visible presence from us, He is still with us personally until “the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). Jesus has promised to send the Holy Spirit, which we remember especially as Pentecost approaches. Today, Jesus sends the Holy Spirit through His word and sacraments to carry out His Great Commission. We hear our Savior prayer for His believers as they carry out His will to witness Him to all.
Blessed Mother’s Day to our mothers gifted with a child(ren) through physical birth, adoption or those who are mothers-at-heart! What a virtue mothers have as they nurture lambs to follow the Lamb of God and serve as God-pleasing Christian role models to lead others to Jesus!
In fact, Christian mothers can be a visible representative of our risen and ascended Savior. Today’s gospel reviews Jesus’ conversation with His disciples on Maundy Thursday evening, revealing how He would be betrayed and handed over to be crucified. Jesus’ death would create a “temporary” absence until His resurrection.
But we remember, too, that Jesus would remove His visible presence from us at His ascension—occurring forty days after His resurrection. Since Jesus would be with His disciples “only a little while longer” (John 13:33), He left them and us comforting promises as we remain on this earth to carry out His gospel work while awaiting His return.
The Fourth Sunday of Easter is traditionally known as “Good Shepherd Sunday.” The Scriptures direct our faith to focus on Jesus as our Good Shepherd, who laid down His life for us as His sheep also remembering His continued shepherding through His Word and Sacraments (Baptism and the Lord’s Supper). As Jesus’ sheep, we gladly hear and recognize His voice in His Word among all the false voices that would lead us astray. Our Good Shepherd promises to continue leading us with the “rod and staff,” that is, the law and gospel of His holy Word.
Many earthly celebrations are brief. But God’s divine festival of Easter inspires an ongoing afterglow. God’s grace burns ever brighter as each Sunday after Easter continues to build our Christian faith and sure hope on our Savior’s rising.
As mentioned last Sunday, the book of the Acts of the Apostles replaces our Old Testament lessons during this Eastertide. Therefore, we miss some prophecies pertaining to our Savior’s resurrection and their related gospel gems of truth. The Book of Acts, however, offers us glimpses of the practical application of our Savior’s resurrection. Built on the foundation of our Savior’s resurrection, God’s people proclaim the risen Savior to build God’s Church.
In fact, St. Paul reminds us that Jesus’ resurrection must remain central to our Christian faith. In his words, “…if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is pointless and so is your faith…but in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep… Therefore, my dear brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the Lord’s work, because you know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord” (1Corinthians 15:13, 20, 58, EHVTM).
As we continue to celebrate our Savior’s Easter victory over sin and death, we note how, for the remaining “Sundays after Easter,” our first Bible reading switches from the Old Testament to the New Testament book of the Acts of the Apostles. In that reading from Acts, God’s word pictures the believers filled with the Holy Spirit and boldly proclaiming the risen Savior of the world. The passion, death and resurrection are not chance history but occurred “by God’s set purpose and foreknowledge” fulfilling HIStory in Scripture.
In our second Scripture lesson, Peter writes how Christ’s resurrection from death gives us new birth into a living hope. Although Jesus is not visible to our physical eyes, faith gives us spiritual sight and fills us with daily, applicable confidence and joy.
Finally in our gospel lesson, John chronicles the Easter evening appearance of our risen Savior to His disciples in Jerusalem. He bids them peace and confers on them the power of the keys. Absent Thomas only expressed skepticism about Jesus’ rising from the dead. Graciously, Jesus appeared to them a week later with Thomas present. Our Lord pointed “doubting Thomas” to God’s word for certainty on our Savior fulfilled prophecy pertaining to His death and rising.
