Sermon -- Maundy Thursday (April 17, 2025)

HEBREWS 10:15-25

JESUS GIVES US A NEW AND ENDURING COVENANT.

In the name + of Jesus.

     The covenant that the Lord had established with Israel at Mt. Sinai was a holy arrangement between God and his redeemed people.  While the Lord was always faithful to his end of this covenant, God’s people were not.  Sinners proved themselves sinners—no matter how great the blessings were for obedience and no matter how harsh the punishments were for disobedience.  The Ten Commandments still carry blessings and curses.  In his explanation to the Conclusion to the Commandments, Martin Luther wrote, “God threatens to punish all who transgress these commandments.  Therefore we should fear his anger and not disobey what he commands.  But he promises grace and every blessing to all who keep these commandments.  Therefore we should love and trust in him and gladly obey what he commands” (Luther’s Small Catechism).  The threats do not keep us from sinning against his word, and the promises are not enough to have us willingly and consistently do the good God desires.  The old covenant was destined to fail—not on God’s part, but on ours.  A new covenant is needed if it is to endure and if we are truly to benefit from it.

     The old covenant also limited access to the Lord’s presence.  In some respects, we have such limitations today.  Our president is a servant of the people, but no citizen can just walk into the Oval Office to speak with the president.  You need to have an appointment, go through a background check, and endure a slew of security measures if you would even have a chance to see the president.  A senator would have easier access than a mayor, and a mayor would have easier access than you.  But there are limits on all people.

     In a similar way, access to God was granted only as God directed.  Non-Israelites were kept the farthest out—restricted to the outer courtyard of the Temple.  Israelite women could get a little closer.  Israelite men could enter the area where the altar was.  Priests could enter the temple itself.  But a thick curtain prohibited entrance into the Holy of Holies. They couldn’t even peak inside of it.  Sewn into the curtain were two cherubim which guarded the way into the Holy of Holies just as cherubim guarded the way back into the Garden of Eden.  That curtain preached its own sermon: Sinners cannot stand in God’s holy presence.  The curtain declared physically what Isaiah proclaimed verbally: “It is your guilt that has separated you from your God” (Isaiah 59:2).

     The only one who was ever granted access to the Holy of Holies, the very presence of God, was the high priest.  He was restricted to one day a year, and he was not allowed behind the curtain unless he came with a sacrifice of blood.  If access to the Lord was so restrictive where God chose to dwell with people on earth, how could people hope to dwell with God in his heavenly presence?  A new covenant would be needed if it is to endure and if we are truly to benefit from it.

     Jesus gives us a new and enduring covenant.  The writer to the Hebrews goes on at length to explain how everything about Jesus is superior to the old covenant.  That is what the whole letter is about.  Regarding access to the Lord, he writes, “we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place through the blood of Jesus.  It is a new and living way he opened for us through the curtain, that is, his flesh.  We also have a great priest over the house of God” (Hebrews 10:19-21).  Jesus is our great high priest who entered into the very presence of God.  He did not take the blood of goats or bulls; rather, Jesus entered heaven itself with his own blood.  Jesus is both the high priest and the sacrificial victim.  He presented his own holy, precious blood which was shed in his innocent sufferings and death on our behalf.  This perfect sacrifice is pleasing to the heavenly Father, establishing peace with him and securing us a place with him. 

     Jesus gives us a new and enduring covenant.  The barrier that had stood between us and our Lord was our sin.  Remember: “It is your guilt that has separated you from your God” (Isaiah 59:2).  But our Lord Jesus has taken away the sin of the world.  Listen to what St. Matthew records about the death of Jesus.  “After Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.  Suddenly, the temple curtain was torn in two from top to bottom” (Matthew 27:50-51).  That curtain which had forbidden access to the Holy of Holies was rent in two the moment Jesus died.  Now no barrier stands between us and our Lord.  All sins were punished and purged by Jesus’ death.  Since sin has been taken away, there is nothing to prohibit your access to God anymore.  There is no pecking order in our access to God’s presence.  Whether man or woman, lay person or clergy, young or old, single or married, Jew or Gentile—all have the same access to God.  For, all have the same Savior, and all live under the same, enduring covenant.  Jesus grants us eternal access to the Father.  Jesus gives us a new and enduring covenant.

     So, why would this new covenant endure where the old covenant failed?  It is because the Lord has not made any demands of you for this covenant to be fulfilled.  He does not ask you to contribute anything.  Jesus fulfilled the Law for you with his perfect obedience.  Jesus took up your sin to suffer its curse for you.  Then Jesus overcame death by his resurrection and opened up heaven to you.  He has done it all and delivers the blessings to you.  Since it is all God’s work, this is the new covenant endures through all ages and in all circumstances. 

     But isn’t there anything for us to do?  What about faith?  What about repentance?  What about good works?  Aren’t these conditions to be met?  Don’t we need to do something to set us apart from the rest of mankind which is perishing?  Some suggest or insist that we must make some contribution toward our salvation.  They argue that our part proves why we are saved but others are not.

     What does the writer to the Hebrews say?  “The Holy Spirit also testifies in Scripture to us, for first he said: This is the covenant I will make with them after those days, says the Lord.  I will put my laws on their hearts and I will write them on their mind” (Hebrews 10:15-16).  In other words, the faith that trusts God’s promises and receives his salvation—this faith God has worked in you.  The Holy Spirit has given you new life in Christ, and he sustains it in you.  He has put God’s law in your heart so that you not only believe it, but you also live according to it.  The repentance God calls for, he works in you so that you turn from sin and strive for holiness. 

     To be sure, there is something that sets you apart from the rest of mankind which is perishing: The Holy Spirit has set you apart.  He works repentance in you.  He sustains a living faith within you.  That is why this new covenant endures.  It is God who works in you to will and to work according to God’s good purpose.  And that is why God does not throw it back into your lap, as if God had left something undone.  The writer to the Hebrews declares God’s promise: “I will not remember their sins and their lawlessness any longer.  Now where these sins are forgiven, there is no longer any sacrifice for sin” (Hebrews 10:17-18).  You might remember your sins.  Even if you try to suppress the memory, the devil will dredge up the past.  He will accuse and convict.  You will try to find ways to forget and to eliminate the feelings of guilt.  But it is not necessary.  The only one who can condemn you for your sins is Jesus, and he has taken them away.  Instead, the Lord calls to remembrance the sacrifice he made once and for all.  Therefore, no more sacrifice is needed.  No conditions still need to be met.  Salvation has been secured.  Your access to God is unrestricted.  Jesus gives us a new and enduring covenant.

     To make you partakers of this new and enduring covenant, our Lord has given sacraments to his Church.  Once again, these are not acts that you do.  These are God’s gracious acts through which he delivers forgiveness of sins, new life, and salvation to you.  In your baptism, you were cleansed of all sin.  You were united to Jesus in his death and resurrection.  The sinner was put to death, and the Lord raised up a saint. 

     Tonight, we especially remember the sacrament which the Lord gave to his church on the night he was betrayed.  In it, he makes us partakers and beneficiaries of his atoning sacrifice.  “He took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body, which is given for you.  Do this in remembrance of me.’  In the same way, he took the cup after the supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is being poured out for you’” (Luke 22:19-20).  We not only remember the death of Jesus Christ, we also are in communion with it so that we receive forgiveness through it.  And our Lord remembers his covenant with us—that we are redeemed and reconciled to the Father through the blood of Jesus. 

     Jesus gives us a new and enduring covenant.  This is why the writer to the Hebrews urged his fellow Christians: “Let us hold on firmly to the confession of our hope without wavering, since he who promised is faithful.  Let us also consider carefully how to spur each other on to love and good works.  Let us not neglect meeting together, as some have the habit of doing.  Rather, let us encourage each other, and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (Hebrews 10:23-25).  The only way we could nullify this covenant is if we abandon it.  Many Christians have wandered from the saving faith for one reason: They stopped gathering to hear the word and receive the sacrament.  But if we are faithful in receiving his gifts, he will be faithful in strengthening and keeping us in the saving faith.

     Jesus gives us a new and enduring covenant.  He entered the Most Holy Place with his holy, precious blood to gain access to God’s presence for us.  Then he gives us his holy, precious blood in the sacred feast to sustain us in the saving faith and to purify our spirits.  So, let us approach the throne of grace with confidence, knowing that we have access to God’s presence.  When our last hour comes, he will send his angels for us.  The angels who had guarded the way to Paradise will usher us into Paradise to dwell in the very presence of God.  Then the covenant will endure.  For, as St. John promises, “God’s dwelling is with people. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people.  God himself will be with them, and he will be their God” (Revelation 21:3).

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Worship Notes: The Triduum - 2025

INTRODUCTION TO THE TRIDUUM

The enormous significance of Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection has always been the central focus of Christian worship.  Prior to the fourth century, Easter Day itself included all three emphases, but thereafter they were distributed over three days of special observance, which Augustine called “the most holy Triduum of the crucified, buried, and risen Lord.”  These days have long been understood as the climax of the Church’s year.

Since the last half of the 20^th century, Lutherans have been rediscovering the richness of the ancient Triduum (pronounced TRIH-doo-um) and adapting the traditional services associated with it for use in Evangelical-Lutheran worship.  In keeping with their origins, the Triduum services are closely connected with one another.

We observe the Triduum as a single service that extends over the “three holy days.”

MAUNDY THURSDAY (April 17, 7:00 PM)

The theme of Maundy Thursday, best expressed by the Gospel of Jesus Christ according to St. John, is the novum mandatum or “new command” of Jesus that his disciples “love one another.”  The institution of the Lord’s Supper sets forth the depth of Jesus’ love and gives power to the Church to live out his command.  For the Triduum, Maundy Thursday marks the end of Lent proper.  The service begins with the sermon and an exhortation regarding the end of Lent.  This unusual arrangement allows the minister to explain the meaning of the Sacrament and the liturgical actions that are to take place so that they may proceed uninterruptedly and vividly from this evening through Good Friday to the Easter Vigil.  The action of ceremonially stripping the altar prepares the chancel and the congregation for Good Friday.

GOOD FRIDAY: THE SERVICE OF THE CROSS (April 18, 7:00 PM)

As the middle service of the Triduum, Good Friday is prepared for by Maundy Thursday.  In turn, it leads into the Easter Vigil.  The absence of a benediction the previous evening and again on Good Friday underscores the connectedness of the Triduum service.  Good Friday is not a “funeral” for Jesus, but an austere celebration of the Lamb and his sacrifice.  The bare altar, symbolic of Christ, is the focus along with a large, rough finished wood cross.  The Service of the Cross consists of two parts: 

                I. The Word and
                II. The Meditation on the Cross.

The service is highly meditative in nature and is celebrated simply and not hurried.  The Service of the Cross is intended as the primary Good Friday service and his historically been observed sometime during the “hours of the cross,” between noon and three o’clock.  It may also be used in place of the Service of Darkness (Tenebrae) as an evening service, as is the case at Good Shepherd.

EASTER VIGIL (April 20, 7:30 AM)

The climax of the Triduum comes in the Vigil of Easter, a service of watching and waiting which utilizes prayer, Scripture, and hymns.  The Vigil is composed of four parts.

            I. The Service of Light focuses on the Paschal Candle, the representation of the unconquered life of Christ.
            II. The Service of Lessons uses Old Testament texts that foreshadowed our deliverance and rescue by Jesus.
             III. The Service of Holy Baptism emphasizes our baptismal connection to the crucified and risen Christ.
             IV. The Service of Holy Communion proclaims the risen Savior and our blessed reconciliation to God.

In the ancient Church, the Vigil began on Saturday and continued through to Easter Dawn.  It was at dawn that the cry rang out: “Alleluia!  Christ is risen!  He is risen indeed!  Alleluia!”  We honor the spirit of the Vigil, beginning our Easter Vigil at an early hour on Easter Sunday.  With the service of Easter Dawn, we conclude the Triduum.  

Our Festival celebration is held at our regular hour of Divine Service, 10:00 AM.

May the Lord bless us as we observe these “three holy days,” the Triduum.

Holy Week -- 2025

HOLY WEEK SCHEDULE

Palm Sunday
April 13 – 10:00 AM



Private Confession & Absolution
April 14 – 7:00-9:00 PM

Maundy Thursday
April 17 – 7:00 PM



Good Friday
April 18 – 7:00 PM

Easter Dawn

April 20 – 7:30 AM

Easter Breakfast (8:45 - 9:45 AM) 

The Festival of the
Resurrection of our Lord

April 20 – 10:00 AM

Sermon -- Maundy Thursday (March 28, 2024)

1 CORINTHIANS 10:16-17

THIS IS OUR BLESSED COMMUNION.

In the name + of Jesus.

     On the eve of Passover, families around Israel would gather in Jerusalem for a communal meal.  There was a course of unleavened bread and bitter herbs, followed by a lamb which had been roasted over a spit.  Each course was interspersed by a cup of wine.  The master of the house would say a blessing over the cup and then pass it around to everyone.  The Passover meal was an expression of fellowship within the family.  But mainly, it was a commemoration of God’s deliverance of his people.

     Part of the evening included catechetical instruction.  This festival meal was never intended to dissolve into a family buffet.  To keep the significance of the meal forefront, family members had a role to play.  The youngest at the table would ask a question to be answered by the head of the house.  This is in accord with the instruction given through Moses.  “When your children say to you, ‘What do you mean by this service?’ you shall say, ‘It is the sacrifice of the Lord's Passover, for he passed over the houses of the people of Israel in Egypt, when he struck the Egyptians but spared our houses’” (Exodus 12:26-27). 

     This annual celebration of God’s deliverance was a commemoration.  It was not an annual deliverance.  They did not mark their door posts with the blood of the lamb, and no angel passed over their homes.  The deliverance happened once, and the people rejoiced over it.  The meal was a reenactment to remember that first Passover.

     When Jesus met with his disciples on the night he was betrayed, he repurposed the Passover meal.  The meal of the new covenant was not to be a reenactment of a one-time deliverance.  This meal had a promise attached to it.  Those who ate and drank the meal of the new covenant would receive blessings through it.  This is our blessed communion.

     At the Passover meal with Jesus, his disciples feasted on the body of the lamb.  But Jesus repurposed the eating.  Rather than feasting on a lamb roasted over fire, we feast on the Lamb of God who was roasted in God’s righteous judgment.  His body is in communion with the bread which we consecrate for this sacred purpose.  In the days of Moses, the blood of the lamb marked the doors of the Israelites and delivered them from death.  Jesus repurposed the blood.  Rather than brushing the blood of a lamb on door posts, the blood of the Lamb is given to Jesus’ disciples to drink.  It is in communion with the wine we consecrate for this purpose.  This is our blessed communion.

     This blessed communion, however, is no mere reenactment.  Listen to Jesus’ words:  “‘Take; this is my body.’ And he took a cup, and … said to them, ‘This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many’” (Mark 14:22-24).  Jesus tells us exactly what we are receiving in this sacrament.  “This is my body.”  “This is my blood.”  And he tells us why we eat and drink it.  “For the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28).  There is no reason to doubt Jesus’ words. This was a solemn occasion in which Jesus was leaving a gift to his Church.  Solemn occasions are no time for puzzles to be solved or vague declarations.  Jesus meant what he said and said what he meant.  This is our blessed communion.

     Nevertheless, most Protestant denominations regard the Lord’s Supper as a reenactment.  They know the words of Jesus.  It is not a matter of translation.  The grammar is simple, and the words are clear.  “This is my body.”  “This is my blood.”   But when human reason enters the room, it declares, “This does not make sense!  How can Jesus, who is in heaven, be on every altar on earth?  How can this sliver of bread and sip of wine contain the infinite God?  When we consecrate the elements, it still looks, smells, and tastes like bread and wine.  How can it be Jesus’ body and blood?”  If we force God to submit our human understanding, we will conclude that Jesus could not mean what he said.  “Jesus must have meant that these represent his body and blood.  That I understand!”  But if that is the case, then you are not receiving anything from Jesus.  Then the benefits are only as lofty as your own meditation.  Worst of all, the reason we would celebrate this sacrament is because Jesus said, “Do this.”  That makes this sacrament a law, something we are doing for God, not what he is doing for us.  If it is a law, it carries a threat rather than a blessing.

     But what did Jesus say?  Jesus said, “This is my body” and “This is my blood”, and we are in no position to correct him.  Jesus does not give us his words to critique them, but to believe them.  Therefore, the sacrament is what he says it is.  And it is what he says is for: “For the forgiveness of sins.”  If that is what it is for, then that is what it delivers.  It comes with a promise, not with a threat.  The sacrament is what the Lord Jesus does for us, not what we are doing for him.  This is our blessed communion.

     St. Paul wrote, “The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ?  The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ” (1 Corinthians 10:16)?  When St. Paul asks these questions, the grammar tells us that he expects the answer, “Yes.”  Yes, we do participate in the blood of Christ when we drink from the cup.  Yes, we do participate in the body of Christ when we eat the bread.  These are in communion with each other, and then they are given to be in communion with us. 

     The body which bore our sins and was given into death to pay for them is given to us.  So, we don’t just think of the forgiveness of sins won by Jesus, we are in communion with his atoning sacrifice.  The blood which was shed to redeem us is given to us for our redemption.  We don’t just think about God’s blessed deliverance, we are in communion with it.  The blood of the Lamb hits the roof of our mouth and death passes over us.  We are the beneficiaries of the atoning work of Jesus.  This is our blessed communion.

     There are some Christian churches which summon the members of their congregations to the altar with the declaration, “The holy things for the holy ones.”  Of course, what holier things are there in the church than the body and blood of our Lord?  If the Lord Jesus is present, this is the most holy thing we handle.  These most holy things are intended only for the holy ones.  St. Paul tells us why: “Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord” (1 Corinthians 11:27).  If our church is accused of being loveless for our practice of closed communion, let the just-quoted verse be the reason why.  To deliver the body and blood of the Lord to anyone who is unworthy is to feed them with God’s judgment.  Love first seeks to honor God and his word.  Then love seeks to do good to our neighbor.  Therefore, we handle the most holy things with utmost care—both for God’s honor and for the good of others.

     Even God’s people can be disturbed by this verse.  We have heard how God has dealt with people who have treated his word with contempt.  The earth swallowed Korah alive.  Fire from heaven consumed the soldiers who tried to arrest the prophet Elijah.  The Flood destroyed the entire population of the word, save Noah and his family.  And the Lord killed the firstborn male of the Egyptians at the Passover.  We know that we do not deserve the title, “the holy ones.”  We are acutely aware of our sins.  If you are not bothered by your sins, then you have not taken the word of the Lord very seriously.  If you are bothered by your sins, repent.  If you are not bothered by your sins, pinch yourself to see if you are still alive and repent.  For, “if the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner” (1 Peter 4:18)?

     Who, then, is worthy to participate in the body and blood of the Lord?  Consider the Israelites at the first Passover.  The Lord had declared that his judgment was going to fall upon all of Egypt.  The firstborn in every house was to be put to death.  However, the Lord provided a refuge for the people of Israel.  Every Israelite was told to slaughter the lamb and to smear its blood on the doorposts of their homes.  God did not select a few who were worthy.  God extended the promise of deliverance to all—whether they were noble and upright or shifty and sleazy.  God’s deliverance depended upon his promise, not on the honor of the people.  Whoever believed God’s word put the blood of the lamb on his doorpost and was delivered.  It was faith in God’s promise that saved them.  There is no other way to salvation.

     So, perhaps you have had a bad week.  Perhaps there were some words that came out of your mouth that made you sound like a heathen rather than a Christian.  Maybe the shows you watched would force Jesus to leave the room.  Maybe you looked on other people with contempt because they are captive to sin and live like it.  And so, you are not holy, and you proved it.

     But just as God’s promises at the first Passover did not depend on the righteousness of the people of Israel, so also God’s promises of forgiveness do not depend on how righteous you have been.  The Lord has cleansed you in the blood of the Lamb through your baptism.  Your status as a saint is based on God’s decree, not on your performance.  Therefore, if you believe his words—that this is the body and blood of Jesus, that it is given and shed for you, and that it is for the forgiveness of your sins—then come to the feast.  The most holy things are for you, God’s holy ones who have been purified by Jesus Christ.  This is our blessed communion.

     The body and blood of Jesus are in communion with the bread and the wine, just as the word of God says.  The Lord Jesus Christ is in communion with us.  He makes us participants in his atoning sacrifice so that we receive its benefits, just as the word of God says.  We are in communion with one another, fellow saints who share the same need of God’s mercy, forgiveness, and salvation.  “Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread” (1 Corinthians 10:17).  We share a common faith and rejoice in a united confession.  We all have the same need, the same Savior, and the same hope. 

     The holy things for the holy ones.  This is our blessed communion.  Come to the feast. 

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen. 

Sermon -- Maundy Thursday (April 6, 2023)

1 CORINTHIANS 11:23-28

REPENT: TURN TO JESUS.

Receive A Special Assurance Of Your Forgiveness.

In the name + of Jesus.

     The city of Corinth was a godless city, which is to say that the worship of the true God was practically non-existent before St. Paul arrived.  It is not to say that there were no gods honored in Corinth.  Corinth was a major trade center.  There were people from all over who acknowledged all kinds of gods.  Even if they did not worship them all, each one would have been considered a valid option.  So, when St. Paul arrived and began to preach there, his message would have been regarded as just another preacher who promoted just another god.

     Paul, however, taught that there are no other gods.  Already back in the Old Testament, the Lord declared, “I am the Lord, and there is no other, besides me there is no God” (Isaiah 45:5).  Jesus Christ did not change that declaration.  Rather, Jesus is the Lord who came in the flesh.  Now, the people in Corinth were sophisticated people.  They are similar to people in our city—multi-cultural and well-educated.  They would demand to know: “Why is the Lord the only true God?  Why should we dismiss all others?”  These are valid questions; we should not pretend that they don’t deserve an answer.  And we don’t want to give the impression that we’ve never given them any thought. 

     The answer is found in Jesus Christ.  Jesus claimed to be God.  This gives us one of two options: Jesus is God or he is not.  There is no middle ground on this.  Either Jesus is God and we fear, love, and trust in him above all things, or Jesus is a crackpot worthy of scorn.  In addition to claiming to be God, Jesus said this: “The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him, and he will be raised on the third day” (Matthew 17:22-23).  And then he did it.  Jesus died for sinners, and then he rose from the dead.  This verifies that he is the Lord, as he said.  This verifies that your sins have been paid for, as he said.  And this is why we are convinced there is no other God.

     This is the message St. Paul delivered to the Corinthians, and it is the message which the Church still delivers today.  This is the message that reveals God’s mercy to sinners.  Jesus’ sacrifice reveals that you do not need to live under the guilt of sin.  Jesus’ resurrection assures you that you do not need to be consumed by the fear of death.  There is no reason to avoid God or even to wonder if God cares about you.  The Lord God is a Savior God.  Jesus gives you full pardon for your sins.  Jesus is your refuge from death and hell.  No other god gives you salvation, because no other god saves. 

     While this good news delights our hearts, we still become fearful.  We still have doubts about our forgiveness, about God’s love, and about the finality of death.  When we feel our mortality, we wonder if our faith is strong enough.  When our conscience bothers us about the sins we continue to do, we wonder if we are really forgiven.  If our lives and our thoughts are still not pure, we wonder if our faith is real.  We have God’s promises to cling to, but our grip is not always as tight as it should be.  The good news is that it is God who holds you in his care.  And more good news: God does not limit himself to urging you to take his word for it. 

     At the first Passover, the Israelites were told to take the blood of a spotless lamb and to mark the doorposts of their homes with it.  The Lord told them that, when the angel saw the blood of the lamb, he would pass over their homes.  The blood of the lamb would deliver them from death.  Now, God could have simply said, “I will not put anyone in your home to death.”  Instead, the Israelites had something they could see.  God gave them something tangible to comfort them—blood they could see, touch, and smell. 

     Likewise, the blood of the Lamb of God, a lamb without spot or blemish, was shed to save you.  Now, wouldn’t it be wonderful if the Lord was able to give that blood to you?  And of course, he does!  The blood of the Lamb is given to you from this altar again and again as a special assurance of your forgiveness.

     When St. Paul delivered the Gospel in Corinth, he did not restrict himself to words.  St. Paul delivered gifts which Jesus himself had left for his Church.  These gifts are given in ways that we can see and smell and touch and taste.  St. Paul taught the Corinthians: “I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, ‘This is my body, which is for you.  Do this in remembrance of me.’  In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood.  Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me’” (1 Corinthians 11:23-25).  

     The sacrament of the altar is no mere reenactment of Jesus’ last supper.  If it were, it would be up to us to stir up our imaginations to find any benefit from it.  It would be like going to a Civil War battle at Greenfield Village.  Watching the people in their blue and grey uniforms firing blanks at each other is pretty cool.  Some pretend that they got shot and fall down as if dead.  But after several volleys, someone declares the battle over.  The people on the ground get up and return to their units.  Nothing was really accomplished except to stir up your imagination. 

     That is not what Jesus told us to do, because the holy sacrament is no reenactment.  Jesus tells us: “This is my body, which is for you” (1 Corinthians 11:24).  Why does it matter that this is Jesus’ body?  St. Peter wrote, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed” (1 Peter 2:24).  Jesus gave his body into a real, cursed death.  That lifeless body was laid in a grave, and then rose from the dead.  Jesus’ body has paid for sin, sanctified the grave, and overcome death.  This is what he gives to you for the forgiveness of your sins, for deliverance from death, and to make you a partaker of eternal life.  Turn to Jesus for a special assurance of your forgiveness.

     “In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood.  Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me’” (1 Corinthians 11:25).  These words of Jesus were much more shocking than saying that the bread is his body.  Going all the way back to the days of Noah, when God first put meat on the menu for mankind, God had forbidden the consumption of blood.  The Lord told Noah after he left the ark: “Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. And as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything.  But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood” (Genesis 93-4).  This was prohibition was made even stronger under the Law through Moses.  The Lord forbade his people from eating meat with the blood still in it.  He gave this reason: “For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life.  Therefore I have said to the people of Israel, No person among you shall eat blood” (Leviticus 17:11-12).

     Now, Jesus told his disciples, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:27-28).  Why?  Because the life is in the blood.  Jesus poured out his life-blood at the cross to make atonement for our sins—the death of Jesus for the life of the world.  But we do not feast on a dead Savior.  Jesus is risen from the dead.  He not only claimed, “I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25), he proved that he is.  And therefore, he gives us the cup to drink, and the life is in the blood.  We receive the life that strengthens and keeps us in the one true faith unto eternal life.  Turn to Jesus for a special assurance off your forgiveness.

     If we were merely reenacting the events of Holy Thursday, we would ultimately receive nothing from our Lord.  If we served from this altar nothing but bread and wine, we would gather around a snack rather than the heavenly feast.  If all of this only represents what Jesus gave into death for us, then we are all just actors in a play.  Some celebrate this sacrament for one reason: Jesus said, “Do this.”  They do this to show Jesus that they are serious about being his disciples because they obey his commands.

     However, this is not what Jesus says about Holy Communion.  Jesus’ command, “Eat and drink,” is not about our act of obedience.  It is an invitation, like telling a man who was rescued from an avalanche, “Eat this soup.  It will warm you up.”  He does not eat it to show his obedience, but to live.  This is why we heed Jesus’ invitation to the banquet.  We need it to live.  He makes that clear when he says what this feast is for: “for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28).  We do not come to this altar to prove anything.  We come because there is life in the blood.  Turn to Jesus for a special assurance of your forgiveness.

     St. Paul says, “As often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes” (1 Corinthians 11:26).  So, the Lord’s Supper is a visible sermon.  The Lord Jesus, crucified and risen, delivers himself immediately to our bodies in the eating and the drinking.  We acknowledge that the forgiveness of sins comes through the body which bore our sins and the blood which was shed at the cross.  Jesus makes us partakers of his death which atones for all sin and guilt.  He gives a special assurance of the forgiveness of sins for sinners who crave God’s boundless mercy.

     We believe in one God, because there is only one God.  The Lord God is the Maker of heaven and earth.  He is also the one who has reconciled his creatures to himself by becoming one of us.  And to assure us that we are his, and that we will be forever, he delivers to us the body and blood which were given to save us.  Since Jesus’ body and blood have overcome death, so do those who receive it.  And so, we will live and reign with the one true God, and we will feast with him in the heavenly banquet—here, for a moment; there forevermore.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Worship Notes: The Triduum

INTRODUCTION TO THE TRIDUUM

                The enormous significance of Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection has always been the central focus of Christian worship.  Prior to the fourth century, Easter Day itself included all three emphases, but thereafter they were distributed over three days of special observance, which Augustine called “the most holy Triduum of the crucified, buried, and risen Lord.”  These days have long been understood as the climax of the Church’s year.

               Since the last half of the 20^th century, Lutherans have been rediscovering the richness of the ancient Triduum (pronounced TRIH-doo-um) and adapting the traditional services associated with it for use in Evangelical-Lutheran worship.  In keeping with their origins, the Triduum services are closely connected with one another.   We observe the Triduum as a single service that extends over the “three holy days.”

MAUNDY THURSDAY

APRIL 6, 7:00 PM

              The theme of Maundy Thursday, best expressed by the Gospel of Jesus Christ according to St. John, is the novum mandatum or “new command” of Jesus that his disciples “love one another.”  The institution of the Lord’s Supper sets forth the depth of Jesus’ love and gives power to the Church to live out his command.  For the Triduum, Maundy Thursday marks the end of Lent proper.  The service begins with the sermon and an exhortation regarding the end of Lent.  This unusual arrangement allows the minister to explain the meaning of the Sacrament and the liturgical actions that are to take place so that they may proceed uninterruptedly and vividly from this evening through Good Friday to the Easter Vigil.  The action of ceremonially stripping the altar prepares the chancel and the congregation for Good Friday.

GOOD FRIDAY: THE SERVICE OF THE CROSS

APRIL 7, 7:00 PM

               As the middle service of the Triduum, Good Friday is prepared for by Maundy Thursday.  In turn, it leads into the Easter Vigil.  The absence of a benediction the previous evening and again on Good Friday underscores the connectedness of the Triduum service.  Good Friday is not a “funeral” for Jesus, but an austere celebration of the Lamb and his sacrifice.  The bare altar, symbolic of Christ, is the focus along with a large, rough finished wood cross.  The Service of the Cross consists of two parts: I. The Word and II. The Meditation on the Cross.  The service is highly meditative in nature and is celebrated simply and not hurried.  The Service of the Cross is intended as the primary Good Friday service and his historically been observed sometime during the “hours of the cross,” between noon and three o’clock.  It may also be used in place of the Service of Darkness (Tenebrae) as an evening service, as is the case at Good Shepherd.

EASTER VIGIL

SUNDAY, APRIL 9, 7:30 AM

               The climax of the Triduum comes in the Vigil of Easter, a service of watching and waiting which utilizes prayer, Scripture, and hymns.  The Vigil is composed of four parts.

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           I.                 The Service of Light focuses on the Paschal Candle, the representation of the unconquered life of Christ.

         II.               The Service of Lessons uses Old Testament texts that foreshadowed our deliverance and rescue by Jesus.

             III.             The Service of Holy Baptism emphasizes our baptismal connection to the crucified and risen Christ.

         IV.             The Service of Holy Communion proclaims the risen Savior and our blessed reconciliation to God.

               In the ancient Church, the Vigil began on Saturday and continued through to Easter Dawn.  It was at dawn that the cry rang out: “Alleluia!  Christ is risen!  He is risen indeed!  Alleluia!”  We honor the spirit of the Vigil, beginning our Easter Vigil at an early hour on Easter Sunday.  With the service of Easter Dawn, we conclude the Triduum.  Our Festival celebration is held at our regular hour of Divine Service, at 10:00 AM.

May the Lord bless us as we observe these “three holy days,” the Triduum.

Holy Week 2023

Holy Week schedule for 2023

Sunday, April 2 -- Palm Sunday (10:00 AM)

Tuesday, April 4 -- Private Confession & Absolution (6:30 - 8:30 PM)

Thursday, April 6 -- TRIDUUM: Maundy Thursday (7:00 PM)

Friday, April 7 -- TRIDUUM: Good Friday (7:00 PM)

Sunday, April 9 -- TRIDUUM: Easter Dawn (7:30 AM)

Sunday, April 9 -- Easter Breakfast (8:45 - 9:45 AM)

Sunday, April 9 -- Easter Festival Divine Service (10:00 AM)

Sermon -- Maundy Thursday (April 14, 2022)

LUKE 22:7-20

A NEW TESTAMENT IS GIVEN.

In the name + of Jesus.

     The Lord had made a covenant with the nation of Israel.  The old testament was a covenant of blessings and curses.  In this old testament, each party had obligations to keep.  That covenant, ratified in Exodus 24, is spelled out at length in Deuteronomy 28.  Here are a few verses which sum it up.  “If you faithfully obey the voice of the Lord  your God, being careful to do all his commandments that I command you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth.  And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, if you obey the voice of the Lord your God” (Deuteronomy 28:1-2).  “But if you will not obey the voice of the Lord your God or be careful to do all his commandments and his statutes that I command you today, then all these curses shall come upon you and overtake you.  Cursed shall you be in the city, and cursed shall you be in the field.  Cursed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl.  Cursed shall be the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock.  Cursed shall you be when you come in, and cursed shall you be when you go out” (Deuteronomy 28:15-19). 

     The curses should have been enough to deter anyone from violating the word of the Lord.  The blessings for obedience were compelling reasons to cling firmly to God’s word and to God’s ways.  Maybe the old testament sounds appealing to you—with the amazing blessings that God pronounces to the faithful.  But there was a major flaw with the old covenant.  It is with the word “If.”  The blessings come only if the people are faithful.  The curses come if the people do not follow the word of the Lord. 

     God demands obedience from his creation.  The wind and the waves obey him.  The planets orbit.  The seasons change.  The flowers bloom.  Nature submits to God, but people do not.  Our problem is not ignorance; God’s Law has been published in print and is embedded in each conscience.  Our problem isn’t motivation; the blessings for obedience are abundant and the curses for disobedience are horrible.  Our problem is that we are, by nature, sinful.  The most severe threats do not keep us from sinning.  The most gracious blessings do not make us obey.  When God’s word exposes us, our defense mechanism is to criticize it.  We deem God’s Law to be impractical, out of date, and cruel.  Rather than confess our sins, we want to rewrite God’s word so that it grants permission to sin or grants exemptions depending upon our circumstances.  This sin deserves all the curses God proclaims.

     When Jesus came to be our Messiah, he did not edit or eliminate any part of God’s word.  Jesus honored the old testament.  He perfectly kept the Commandments.  He fulfilled every sacrifice with his own sacrificial death.  Jesus’ obedience earned all the blessings of the old testament.  Jesus’ death suffered the full curse of the old testament.  In this way, Jesus did not nullify the Law; he fulfilled it.

     In its place, Jesus established a new testament.  This new testament is not like the old, in which each party has obligations to keep.  The new testament was established by Jesus’ bloody sacrifice for sinners.  He took up all sins and died for the disobedience of all people.  He won a full pardon for all your sins.  There are no conditions that you have to fulfill to ratify this.  Jesus’ death and resurrection secure all the benefits of this new covenant. 

     When the old covenant was ratified at Mt. Sinai, Moses took the blood of oxen which were slaughtered.  “And Moses took the blood and threw it on the people and said, ‘Behold the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words’” (Exodus 24:8).  Moses spattered the blood upon the people to mark them as participants of the covenant. 

     The blood of Jesus was shed at the cross to pay for all your sins.  But that blood was not collected to be spattered upon future generations who long for his forgiveness.  So, look at what Jesus has done for you.  He has established a new testament in his blood.  He presents it in a feast.  It is no longer a Passover Lamb, slain in an annual meal to commemorate the past.  Now the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world gives you his holy, precious blood in a new testament—a sacred meal which continually delivers to you that sacred blood and delivers you from death forever.

     “He took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body, which is given for you.  Do this in remembrance of me.’  And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, ‘This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood’” (Luke 22:19-20).  A new testament is given.  In this new testament, Jesus gives the blessings.  We simply receive them.  There is no “if” in Jesus’ sufferings and death.  He bore your sins.  He died in your place.  He secured your forgiveness.  He removes God’s wrath.  In this way, we cannot void out the new testament in Jesus’ blood.  Jesus’ sacrificial death atones for the sins of the world.  Even if people reject Jesus and refuse to repent, it does not change the fact that Jesus suffered and died for the sins of the world.  Those who reject him will not benefit from it, but the faithlessness of others does not make Jesus unfaithful.  A new testament in which Jesus brings forgiveness to sinners stands firm.

     Like any last will and testament, it is the testator who sets the terms.  A last will and testament is no place for riddles or cryptic language.  In plain terms the testator tells his benefactors what they will receive from him.  So, Jesus set the terms of his new testament in plain words.  “This is my body, which is given for you” (Luke 22:19).  “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28).  The body and blood which atone for sins are given to you.  And, as it is with any last will and testament, the benefits are given after the testator dies.  Without the death of Jesus, there is no forgiveness of sins.  Since Jesus’ body was slain and his blood shed, his new testament is enacted.  His death wins forgiveness of your sins, and his sacred meal delivers that forgiveness to you. 

     A new testament is given.  Jesus prepares the feast and urges us to do this, to keep on doing this, in his remembrance.  Throughout the Bible, it is God who does the remembering.  When God remembers, it means he is acting to bless and to save.  God remembered Noah on the ark.  God remembered the Israelites after years of slavery in Egypt.  God remembered Hannah and gave her a son, Samuel.  In the Lord’s Supper, we feast in Jesus’ remembrance.

     So, who is remembering whom?  In part, we remember Jesus whose body bore our sins and whose blood purifies us from all unrighteousness.  St. Paul reminds us, “As

often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes” (1 Corinthians 11:26).  In other words, Holy Communion confesses that salvation comes only by means of the bodily death of Jesus.  In Holy Communion, Jesus delivers that salvation to us. 

     But the Lord’s Supper is not merely a reenactment where we remember what Jesus did.  If the Lord’s Supper is about us remembering Jesus and if the benefits are only as good as how mindful we are, then we only benefit as much as the effort we put into it.  This makes the new testament dependent upon us, and it puts an “if” right back into our salvation.  But this is a testament.  The benefits of a last will and testament do not hinge upon how the beneficiaries feel about them.  The benefits are noted and distributed.  A new testament is given.  Let there be no doubt about what Jesus gives, what we receive, and why we feast.  Jesus sets the terms.  Jesus gives the benefits.  We gladly receive them. 

     Jesus gives us this sacred feast and tells us, “Do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19), or “Keep on doing this for my remembrance.”  Since remembrance in the rest of the Scripture has to do with the Lord acting to bless and to save, so then we conclude that in the Lord’s Supper Jesus remembers us.  “Do this for my remembrance” would mean, “Do this so that I remember you for your salvation.”  He says that this body and blood are for you, “for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28).  As we feast at his altar, Jesus is mindful of his own testament.  Jesus remembers us, saves us, and delivers to us the forgiveness he won for us. 

     A new testament is given, and Jesus graciously makes you the beneficiary of his work.  St. Paul wrote, “The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ?  The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ” (1 Corinthians 10:16)?  When you take Holy Communion, you are in communion with Jesus.  He takes all that is yours; he gives you all that is his.  The body and blood which purchased your forgiveness are given to you for your forgiveness.  The body and blood which have conquered death bestow everlasting life. 

     A new testament is given.  Although it was enacted by the death of Jesus, it has eternal value because of the resurrection of Jesus.  We are not in communion with a dead Savior, but with a living and reigning Savior.  And how gracious our Lord Jesus Christ is!  When he delivers to us forgiveness of sins, new life, and salvation, he does not make us grovel in shame.  He does not make it conditional, either.  He spreads a table before us even in the presence of our spiritual enemies so that we can feast with joy.  We are ransomed from the devil.  Sin is taken away.  Death passes over us.  Jesus remembers his promises.  He remembers that we are his.  And he joins with us in joyful celebration of our salvation. 

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.