Photo by...Photo by Peter Dlhy on Unsplash
Hello to all of you, both near and far, who are loved by the Lord.
Good news! Here in South Australia, with COVID19 restrictions easing, we may once again gather in large numbers. This is reason to rejoice and give thanks.
For the Church, the Body of Christ, it means we may get together to worship God in much larger groups than we’ve been doing for some months. A cause for celebration!
This message is especially for those who won’t be rushing to the church buildings on Sunday mornings. You can still be part of the church!
During the past months many of us experienced being church differently than we’ve ever known. We’ve explored resources on-line, in print and other media. Worshipped in pairs, families, with friends, neighbours, and in small groups. We’ve participated in worship with others in a diversity of ways.
It’s been a learning and growing time as we’ve faced fears and concerns for the world and also challenges presented by new experiences of being church in a radically different way. Discovering new aspects of technology and finding an abundance of resources to nurture our faith and facilitate our worship of God has been a steep learning curve.
In our need, we’ve turned our eyes to God and sought him for strength, comfort, guidance, and protection. We’ve leaned on Jesus, drawn closer to him, and prayed for the help of the Holy Spirit, only to find he was already there, drawing us into his embrace.
It’s been wonderful to hear of people feeling calm and peaceful, confident in God’s loving presence, and equipped to worship him and continue to grow in faith. We haven’t been separated from him or from one another. The Holy Spirit bonds us in unity and our sharing together in small units hasn’t diminished our belonging to Jesus or our being part of his Body, the Church.
We’ve still been Church, we’re still part of God’s Kingdom. If it seems good to you and the Holy Spirit, then there’s no reason why you can’t continue being Church in this way.
If you’ve been worshipping at home with your neighbour who wouldn’t attend the church building for a formal service but is thriving in your worship at home - or if you haven’t been in a church building for some time but are keen to keep worshipping on-line - or if you’ve been involved in church life but are feeling called to keep worshipping as part of a network of small churches scattered through the community - the great news is the Body of Christ, the Church, is beautiful and richly diverse. How wonderful!
Jesus never prescribed a one size fits all church. The last months do count. It wasn’t “pretend worship” while we waited for the “real thing” to resume. God’s been at work in us, with us, and for us, and continues to bless us.
We’d like to bless what God’s doing in your life. You’re part of the Kingdom of God and can also be part of the church in this place. We’d like to encourage and support you!
Our on-line and print resources will still be available, as will the wealth of material provided by our brothers and sisters in many other churches.
If you’d like to let us know who you are, we can stay in touch, pray for you, support you, and hear stories of what Jesus is doing in your life. You’re always welcome to come to a larger gathering to celebrate and worship from time to time, as seems good.
If you’d like to email, phone or meet up with us, we’d love to hear from you. Then we can explore how we might keep in touch and support you and your group in an on-going relationship with this church community.
The grace and peace of Jesus is with you.
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ALWayS for those forgotten
To be Lutheran is to preach Christ and him crucified!
by Bishop Paul SmithPrint Friendly, PDF & Email
Romans 1:16,17 says, ‘For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, “The one who is righteous will live by faith.”’
‘What is a Lutheran?’ and ‘How should we commemorate the Reformation?’
They say that ‘a picture is worth a thousand words’, and there is a famous picture from the history of the Reformation period that gives a simple but profound answer to these two good questions.
In the German town of Wittenberg, where Dr Martin Luther preached, taught and made his family home with his beloved Katie, there is a painting in St Mary’s Church by the artist Lucas Cranach the Elder. I have included a photograph that I took of this painting for you. It is a very large painting above the altar at the front of the church, and the painting was finished in the year 1547.
In this painting, we see Luther in the pulpit, looking towards the congregation. His right hand is raised, pointing towards the image at the centre of the painting between Luther and the congregation, showing our Lord Jesus Christ suffering and dying on the cross for the sins of the world.
If you look carefully at the way the artist has painted the figure of Luther, you can see that his other hand is placed firmly on an open Bible, with him in the pulpit.
In this painting, the artist has given a good explanation of what it means to be ‘Lutheran’. If you look at Luther, he will be pointing away from himself, saying, ‘Don’t simply look to me; look to Christ, your Lord and Saviour!’
A Lutheran studies the Scriptures and listens to the preaching and teaching of the Scriptures, to learn Christ and him crucified for the salvation of the world.
In recent times, some folk have added the word ‘Confessional’ to the word ‘Lutheran’ to distinguish between Lutherans. Many are uncertain whether or not they are ‘Confessional’. This Wittenberg painting gives a simple explanation of what is ‘confessed’. Confessional Lutherans are those who confess the good news of Christ and his cross, pointing away from ourselves to what the Lord has done for us. This good news is at the heart of all our Lutheran Confessional writings.
Finally, how does this painting from Wittenberg help us to discern how best to commemorate the Reformation? Reformation is the time of the church year when we recommit ourselves to be people of the gospel. We recommit ourselves to the mission that God gives us, to find good ways to share the good news of Jesus Christ with friends, neighbours, family members and work colleagues, with the heart that the Apostle Paul describes in his letter to the Corinthians:
To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though I myself am not under the law) so that I might win those under the law. To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law) so that I might win those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, so that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, so that I might by any means save some (1 Corinthians 9:20–22 NRSV).
God bless your Reformation reflections and your community’s commemorations, that the light of the gospel would shine to the ends of the earth as we confess with one voice, ‘Jesus Christ is Lord.’
I have included two prayers for your reflection. The first is from our church’s liturgical resources for the Commemoration of the Reformation. The second is a prayer for the unity of the church by William Laud.
Almighty and eternal God, in mercy you give the light of your gospel to your church. Keep us in sound teaching, so that we may firmly believe and faithfully follow your saving Lord, and finally, with its holy comfort, die in peace and joy. We ask this through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Gracious Father, we humbly pray for your holy universal church, fill it with all truth; in all truth with all peace. Where it is corrupt, purge it; where it is in error, direct it; where it is superstitious, rectify it; where in anything it is amiss, reform it; where it is right, strengthen and confirm it, where it is in want, provide for it; where it is divided and torn apart, reunite it, O Holy One of Israel. Amen. – William Laud 1573–1645
Pastor Paul Smith
Bishop of the Lutheran Church of Australia and New Zealand