Seeing Christ in Word and Sacraments
Seeing is believing. Those were the words Thomas essentially said when the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” Thomas had not seen, so the skeptic in him did not believe. As I reread the Gospel lesson for this past Sunday (John 20:19-31) I am reminded that we do see Christ in Word and Sacraments and there receive all the benefits of His death and resurrection — forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation. We hear the Word read and preached. We put on the baptismal waters that made us His. We touch the bread of life that was wounded for us. We taste the blood of Christ poured out for us. Like Thomas, our faith is strengthened by the word of the Lord and we respond with a joyous “My Lord and my God!”
Model Theological Conference – Worship MP3
Two months ago the LCMS held its Model Theological Conference on Worship. While I wasn’t there, I enjoyed reading the insights of conference participants via Southern Lutheran Kantor, Fine Tuning, Liturgy, Hymnody, and Pulpit Quarterly Book Review, and Necessary Roughness.
The LCMS Commission on Worship just posted the MP3 files of the conference speakers on their website. While certainly not a substitute for being there, these MP3s do allow for greater distribution and review of the topics. Yet another opportunity for exploration.
Helping Your Congregation Sing
Sometimes church musicians get so caught up with making music, whether that be choral or instrumental, that they neglect or minimize (often unintentionally) their primary responsibility — leading and encouraging the people’s song in psalmody, liturgy, and hymnody. I remember being told (by my father no less) that while I might be able to play a very nice prelude, I should strive to be a good leader of hymn singing.
Mark Lawson, president of MorningStar Music, reflects on the importance of congregational song to Richard Proulx and Richard Hillert in the March edition of their e-newsletter. Special thanks to MorningStar Music for granting permission to post this article.
Gerhard on the Lord’s Supper
A few years ago I “discovered” Johann Gerhard through Meditations on Divine Mercy and got hooked on his writings. This past week I received a new addition for the bookshelf — “An Explanation of the History of the Suffering and Death of our Lord Jesus Christ” — which I’m reading through this Lenten season. Today’s reading had this to say about the Lord’s Supper.
Worship Treasures: Past and Present
Each week as I prepare for the upcoming worship services, I’m continually reminded of the rich worship and musical heritage we have in Christendom and Lutheranism. Yet, do we appreciate and understand this treasure?
A Blessed Epiphany
Blessings to you on this feast of the Epiphany of Our Lord when we commemorate “God in man made manifest.” Lutherans usually associate Phillip Nicolai’s “O Morning Star, How Fair and Bright” (LSB 395) — the queen of the chorales — with this day.
It is a hymn full of comfort and devotional thought. Jesus the bright Morning Star. God’s blessings in the midst of life’s difficulties. Those blessings being the gifts God gives us in His means of grace that sustain us. Then strengthened and nourished, we go forth and proclaim the story as we wait for the feast to come.
Another Christmas Season Ending
As the twelfth night of Christmas comes to a close, I’m organizing the Christmas sheet music back into the music filing cabinet and reminded of favorites played, new found friends, and much that will await another year. So many wonderful hymns. So many instrumental pieces that sing these hymns. But more important, I am comforted by the Word made incarnate in the flesh for us, the Word in worship for us, and the Word that will come again for us.
LSB Lectionary Summaries
The beginning of the new Church Year is quickly upon us. In preparation for this, the LCMS Commission on Worship appears to be initiating a weekly series of lectionary summaries on both the one-year and three-year LSB lectionaries for use in the parish. Take a look.
Soaked, Scrubbed, & Washed in Christ’s Blood
When your pastor says “Amen” at the close of his sermon, are you soaked in Christ’s blood?
Rev. Steven Cholak wrote a blog post for Concordia TheoBLOGical Seminary in April 2008 about pastors soaking their flock with Christ’s blood as they preach Christ and the forgiveness of sins. It is a short essay I reread frequently, but recently found that it is no longer available on the seminary blog. Pastor Cholak has graciously given me permission to repost his essay here.
Singing With All the Saints
During the Divine Service you probably hear your pastor say or chant these words: “Therefore with angels and archangels and all the company of heaven we laud and magnify Your glorious name, evermore praising you and saying . . . ” Have the import of those words sunk in? What follows, the Sanctus, is not just a hymn sung by your congregation, whether large or small. It is not limited to the churches spread across the globe. No, it is far more than that.
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