On Wednesday, March 25, Good Shepherd was pleased to host the choir from Michigan Lutheran Seminary of Saginaw, Michigan. Their 32-voice choir kicked off a mini-tour in the metro-Detroit area.
Thursday, March 26, 2026
Update from Good Shepherd (March 26, 2026)
Greetings!
REGULAR SCHEDULE
Divine Service is Sundays at 10:00 AM.
Sunday School is Sundays at 9:00 AM.
Adult Bible Class is Sundays at 9:00 AM.
Bible Matters will resume on Wednesday, April 8 at 6:30 PM.
CALENDAR: For a calendar of events and meetings, click here.
HOLY WEEK
Palm
Sunday March 29, 10:00 AM
Private
Confession & Absolution April 1,
7:00-9:00 PM
TRIDUUM:
Maundy Thursday April 2, 7:00 PM
TRIDUUM:
Good Friday April 3, 7:00 PM
TRIDUUM:
Easter Dawn April 5, 7:00 PM
Easter
Breakfast April
5, 8:45-9:45 AM
Easter
Festival Service April
5, 10:00 AM
Private Confession and Absolution will be available to any who are grieved by their sins and seek relief. It will be offered on Wednesday, April 1. You may stop in without appointment between 7:00-9:00 PM. For those who are not familiar with the practice or the reasons for it, please refer to this blog post.
HOLY WEEK DEVOTIONS
Martin Luther College is offering devotions throughout Holy Week. They will be available to you through daily emails. If you would like to receive them, you can register for them here. They are written under the theme: "Of First Importance: Christ's Death and Resurrection for Us." Feel free to share this link with anyone.
EVERY MEMBER VISITS
Every four years or so, the pastor conducts visits at the homes of all the members. It is intended to stay connected with everyone and to allow people to address any issues that may bother them or confuse them. A sign-up sheet for Every Member Visits in April is posted at church to allow people to schedule their visit. You can also sign up through the Sign-Up Genius link here.
ADULT BIBLE CLASS
Why do we sing what we sing? Beginning on April 12, our Sunday morning Bible Class will consider the hymns of the Church dating all the way back to the earliest songs of praise which were rendered to our Lord. Hymns can be judged as good, medium, and bad. How is that judgment determined? Why does the pastor select the hymns he does? We will explore these questions and others as we give careful attention to the songs we sing in worship. Adult Bible Class meets at 9:00 AM on Sunday.BIBLE MATTERS
A new series will begin on Wednesday, April 8 at 6:30 PM. Our series will be entitled, "Who Are These People? Lessons on Lesser-Known People of the Bible."
GOOD SHEPHERD ON YOUTUBE
Services are uploaded to YouTube each week. Feel free to share the videos. Here is the Divine Service from March 15, 2026: Good Shepherd Novi, Divine Service, March 15, 2026CHURCH COUNCIL HIGHLIGHTS (March)
> The postcards to invite people to our Easter Festival Service on April 5 have arrived! Be sure to take as many as you can to invite friends, family, and coworkers to our Easter services.
> We approved spending up to $25,000 to get the windows replaced above the altar and the organ pipes. The windows will have a bronze hue on the outside. The windows above the altar will have frosted glass on the inside; the windows above the organ pipes will be clear glass on the inside. Installation will take place after Easter, particularly when the lawn is not too soggy.
> Ladies of Good Shepherd, mark your calendars for our annual Ladies Brunch. The men of Good Shepherd will be pleased to serve you brunch on Saturday, May 2 at 10:00 AM. You are welcome to invite other ladies to join us for this event.
REGULAR OFFICE HOURS
For the most part, the pastor will be observing formal office hours (Monday-Thursday, 9:00 AM – Noon). Occasionally, duties will take him away from the office during these scheduled times, so you will still want to call or text to confirm any meetings with the pastor (248-719-5218).
INTRODUCTION VIDEO FOR GOOD SHEPHERD LUTHERAN CHURCH
Here is a video to introduce people to Good Shepherd Lutheran Church of Novi. Share it as much as you can.
INTRODUCTION VIDEO FOR GOOD SHEPHERD LUTHERAN CHURCH
Here is a video to introduce people to Good Shepherd Lutheran Church of Novi. Share it as much as you can.
DO YOU LIKE US?
Look for Good Shepherd on Facebook. Then “LIKE” us for updates and other postings. Be sure to share posts with friends.
SHARE THIS POST!
We desire as many as possible to rejoice in the Gospel which we proclaim and confess. Share the information from our weekly email blast, links to our web page, and even to the pastor's blog to let others know that we have a space in our congregation for them!
In Christ,
Pastor Schroeder
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REGULAR SCHEDULE
Sunday School -- Sundays at 9:00 AM
Adult Bible Class -- Sundays at 9:00 AM
DIVINE SERVICES -- Sundays at 10:00 AM.
GOOD SHEPHERD’S WEBSITE
www.GoodShepherdNovi.org
PASTOR SCHROEDER’S BLOG
Wednesday, March 25, 2026
YouTube -- 4th Sunday in Lent (March 15, 2026)
Here is the Divine Service from Sunday, March 15, 2026.
Worship Notes: The Triduum (The Three Days)
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.
MAUNDY THURSDAY
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GOOD FRIDAY:
THE SERVICE OF THE SEVEN WORDS
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 Seven Words is a service that reviews the seven times in which Jesus spoke at his crucifixion. Each reading is interspersed with silence for meditation, prayers, and hymns. The Service of the Seven Words 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
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, at 10:00 AM.
May the Lord bless us as we observe these “three holy days,”
the Triduum.
Tuesday, March 24, 2026
Holy Week 2026
Holy Week Schedule at Good Shepherd for 2026
THE TRIDUUM (The Three Days)
Maundy Thursday
April 2, 7:00 PM
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Good Friday
April 3, 7:00 PM
Easter Dawn
April 5, 7:30 AM
Easter Breakfast -- 8:45 - 9:45 AM
Easter Festival Service -- 10:00 AM
Monday, March 23, 2026
Private Confession & Absolution -- Wednesday, April 1 (7:00 - 9:00 PM)
Private confession and absolution will be available at church from 7:00 - 9:00 PM on Wednesday, April 1. No appointment is necessary. Just stop in. If this rite is new to you (and it is for many who attend here), the pastor will walk you through the rite so that you understand and appreciate it more. Private confession and absolution is always available by appointment throughout the year.
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The answer follows:
When Lutherans hear someone speak of Private Confession and Absolution, the response is usually a knee-jerk, "That's Roman Catholic!" Though that may be a common perception, the perception is because either it was taught wrongly or understood wrongly. Consider what the Lutheran Confessions teach about Private Confession and Absolution.
Our churches teach that private Absolution should be retained in the churches, although listing all sins is not necessary for Confession. For, according to the Psalm, it is impossible. "Who can discern his errors?" (Psalm 19:12) -- Augsburg Confession, Article XI
What is Confession?
Answer: Confession has two parts: the one is that we confess our sins; the other is that we receive Absolution, or forgiveness, from the confessor, as from God Himself, and in no way doubt, but firmly believe that our sins are forgiven before God in heaven by this.
What sins should we confess?
Answer: Before God we should plead guilty of all sins, even of those that we do not know, as we do in the Lord's Prayer. But before the confessor we should confess only those sins that we know and feel in our hearts. -- Luther's Small Catechism, Part V
These are basic confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. They are catholic, insofar as they are Christian. But they are not Roman, insofar as the penitent is not obligated to orally confess every sin in order to be forgiven of it and insofar as one's forgiveness is not dependent upon some action on the part of the penitent. The forgiveness is based on Jesus' sufferings and death for the penitent who has been baptized into his name.
Since the practice of Private Confession and Absolution is a Lutheran practice, it would be good for Lutherans to practice it. It is good for the penitent who is grieved by a particular sin to confess it so that he can hear Christ say through the mouth of his minister: "I forgive you." It would be good for the one who is burdened to be relieved of his burden by Holy Absolution. It would be good for this practice, though foreign to many in my corner of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, to be restored.
Private Confession and Absolution has always been available to all members by appointment. In order for this practice to be restored and perhaps put to better use, there will be dates on the calendar set aside for anyone who would like to drop in and make use of this means of grace. These will be set up about 4 times per year. Private Confession and Absolution will still be available by appointment in addition to these scheduled times.
It is anticipated that Private Confession and Absolution will roughly follow this regular schedule.
A day around Epiphany (Epiphany is always January 6)
A day during Holy Week
A day around Labor Day weekend
A day after Thanksgiving weekend
The next scheduled date and time for Private Confession and Absolution will be Wdnesday, April 1, 7:00 - 9:00 PM. Appointments are not necessary. You need only drop in. All participation is voluntary, as Absolution cannot be forced upon anyone.
Of course, this will be new to pretty much any member who decides to make use of it. If you happen to come in, the pastor will walk through the rite with you and explain the various parts of it, especially including the "private" part, namely, that this confession is to Christ and, therefore, remains his business alone. The pastor will not report any confession or even the names of those who come for confession. Finally, the point of this is not for a pastor to learn everyone's dirty, little secrets. (His life is easier if he remains ignorant. But God's people do not call a pastor to be ignorant; they call him to absolve in the name of Jesus.) The point is for the guilty and the grieved to find relief and receive forgiveness, or absolution.
Sunday, March 22, 2026
Sermon -- 5th Sunday in Lent (March 22, 2026)
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THIS MAN HAS POWER OVER DEATH.
JOHN 11:17-27,38-45
In
the name + of Jesus.
When Jesus entered the world to be our Savior,
it was not just to deliver us from hell.
The goal is not just to evade punishment. Think of it this way. A man steps out of a tavern, having had way
too much to drink. He gets in his car to
drive home. But he crashes through a fence,
runs his car into a house, smashes into the living room, is severely injured and
severely injures others. When the man
goes to trial, the case is dismissed because of some technicality. The man goes free, breathes a sigh of relief,
and says, “Thank God I am not going to jail!”
Nevertheless, the damage he did remains.
The home is still damaged. The
car is still totaled. And everyone still
faces surgery, hospital stays, physical therapy, and counselling. Would anyone conclude there was a happy ending
because the man avoided jail, fines, and a criminal record?
In the same way, if Jesus had done nothing
but deliver us from hell, we would find some relief. We might say, “No eternal punishment. That’s good.”
But the damage done by sin would still affect our lives. The world is still broken. Hearts are still corrupt. Words are still cruel. Bodies still suffer pain, disease, and
disorders. And death still claims us
all. It is almost impossible to underestimate
how much went wrong back in the Garden of Eden.
So also, it is almost impossible to underestimate how much Jesus does as
our Savior. Jesus has come to restore
all things. This man takes away the sin
of the world. This man will deliver us
from all evil. This man has power over
death.
Jesus got word that his friend Lazarus was
ill. In the days before modern medicine,
even a fever could be life-threatening.
The message was an appeal for Jesus to bring the healing he had brought
to so many others. But Jesus delayed,
and Lazarus died. In Jewish culture,
they did not waste time with burial. Lazarus
was wrapped in grave clothes and placed in a cave by that evening. Lazarus’ body was already decaying by the time
Jesus had arrived at Bethany. Nevertheless,
Jesus came for Lazarus because this man has authority over death.
Death is cruel. When Jesus came to the grave of Lazarus, he
wept. He felt the pain death inflicts on
loved ones. That pain is bad enough, but
death is more cruel than that. It does
not care what schedule or responsibilities you have. It does not respect feelings or friendships or
fame. Lazarus had two sisters, Martha
and Mary. It seems that they were both single. If so, then Lazarus was responsible for their
care and protection. Lazarus’ death meant
their lives would become a lot harder. For
Martha and Mary, Lazarus’ death was not merely the loss of a loved one; that
was bad enough. But now they had responsibilities
thrust upon them that they were not prepared for. Anyone who has had to pick up the pieces after
the loss of a loved one can appreciate this.
Death of a loved one produces not only grief, but also additional burdens.
“When Jesus arrived, he found that
Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. …When Martha heard that
Jesus was coming, she went to meet him… Martha
said to Jesus, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died’”
(John 11:17,20-21). It does not seem
that Martha was trying to lay a guilt trip on Jesus, as if to say, “Jesus, you
failed us.” Rather than an accusation,
it was a confession. “Lord, you have healed
many people in Galilee and Judea. I am
sure that even with Lazarus at death’s door, you could have restored him to
health.”
Martha’s confession continued, “‘Even
now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Your brother will rise
again.’ Martha replied, ‘I know that he
will rise in the resurrection on the Last Day’” (John 11:22-24). Martha confessed what we all confess: “We
look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come”
(Nicene Creed). We confess that
because that is what our Lord tells us.
He has promised: “This is the will of him who sent me: that I should
lose none of those he has given me, but raise them up on the Last Day. For this is the will of my Father: that
everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life. And I will raise him up on the Last Day” (John
6:39,40). This man has power over
death.
Jesus gave Martha a different
promise. “Jesus said to her, ‘I am
the resurrection and the life. Whoever
believes in me will live, even if he dies.
And whoever lives and believes in me will never perish’” (John 11:25-26). Jesus said that he is the resurrection and
the life. He didn’t say someday she’ll
see it. He who is the resurrection and
the life was standing right in front of her.
This man has the power to raise up Lazarus from the dead. He not only could revive him, but he could renew
him from decay and restore him to his loved ones. He who created mankind can resurrect and
re-create mankind. This man has power
over death.
Out of compassion for those who were dear
to him, “he shouted with a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out!’ The man who had died came out with his feet
and his hands bound with strips of linen and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus told them, ‘Loose him and let him go’” (John
11:43-44). He is the resurrection and
the life. His word overrules the stench,
the decay, and the finality of death. This
man has power over death.
Although Lazarus was restored to his
sisters and was able to continue caring for them, this was a temporary
fix. Lazarus was restored to a broken world. He returned to a crooked and corrupt population. In fact, when Lazarus’ resurrection resulted
in more people believing in Jesus, the religious leaders deemed it necessary to
kill off Lazarus, too. Lazarus returned to
live as a sinner among other sinners. This
return to life was temporary. The grave
would hold him again.
For whatever reason, people are attracted
to the idea of reincarnation. Even
Christians think returning to this world in another life is appealing. But return to what? This would still be a world of disease and
disorder, corruption and chaos, war and poverty, trials and tears. What is so attractive about reliving these
things again and again?
God does not create people to be recycled. You are a unique creation of our Lord. You were placed in this world in a particular
time and place on purpose, with your own interests, abilities, and personality. God designed you to be you for eternity.
If there is anything about reincarnation we
would agree with, it is that all people will be judged at the end of life. The Lord who gives us life holds us
accountable for how we live it. Our Lord
created a perfect world and put holy people in it. Man’s sin has not changed God’s expectations. Our Lord’s judgment will not be about a
reboot so that we can try again to get it right, as if sinners will ever
achieve holiness. The Lord will call us
what we are, and his judgment will be final.
Jesus came to do more than give us temporary
relief from sin and death. While we are
grateful for momentary relief and for happy times, Jesus came to deliver to us
eternal joys and everlasting peace. He
came to rescue us from death and a damning judgment. In order to do that, Jesus had to address the
problem that started it all—our sinfulness.
If this man will have power over death,
then this man must also have authority to forgive sins. That authority was earned by Jesus taking sin
and death into himself. This man stood
in place of mankind to suffer what mankind deserves. The Bible testifies, “God made him, who
did not know sin, to become sin for us, so that we might become the
righteousness of God in him” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Jesus became our sin and, therefore, had to
suffer what sin brings—death and a damning judgment. That is what Jesus endured on the cross. When Jesus cried out from the cross, “My
God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46), it is because he
was absorbing the torments of hell for every sinner who has ever lived. No matter what disgrace has stood against you,
Jesus has paid the price for it. In turn,
Jesus washed you clean of every spot and stain of sin when you were baptized
into his name. Now you bear a holy
status. So, at the final judgment, Jesus
will call you what you are—a saint cleansed by his innocent blood.
This man has power over death. Jesus said, “Whoever believes in me will
live, even if he dies” (John 11:25).
Jesus is the resurrection. He
will raise you up on the Last Day, but not to come back to a world of sorrow, suffering,
and loss. The Lord Jesus will not only raise
your body to be forever flawless, he will also restore this whole creation back
to the Paradise he had intended it to be.
For, if sin is taken away, so are all the evils that come from it. Jesus will bring you a new and holy creation.
This man has power over death. Jesus is the life. Jesus already calls you what you are—a saint cleansed by his innocent blood. Therefore, consider this marvelous promise. Jesus said, “Whoever lives and believes in me will never perish’” (John 11:26). If you are cleansed of sin, then death cannot have you. Life on earth may come to an end, but life in God’s kingdom will go on without interruption and without end. For the Christian, death is but the gate to life in heaven. When you close your eyes in death here, you will open them to see Jesus. You will live with angels and archangels and all the company of heaven. You will take your place at the heavenly feast. You will enjoy peace in a sinless existence, and death will flee away. The man who has power over death gives you endless life. He will restore all that went wrong because of sin, and he will make it all right. Since it is almost impossible to underestimate what Jesus has done as our Savior, we will need eternity to rejoice in it and to sing in endless praise. Thanks to Jesus, you will have it.
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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