YouTube -- Holy Trinity (June 4, 2023)

Here is the Divine Service from Sunday, June 4, 2023.  The guest preacher is retired pastor, Rev. Mark Porinsky.

Hymn Notes -- Summer 2023

With our new hymnal, we will encounter many new hymns.  This post will enable you to preview some of them in order to get acquainted with them.  I intend to not introduce more than one new hymn on any given week, but a few goofs may have made it into the hymn selections.  In addition, a few hymns which appear to be familiar by looking at the title have had their tunes either altered or changed entirely.  I will do my best to limit the surprises.

Below is a list of new hymns which we will encounter throughout the summer months.  The YouTube versions of these hymns are generally much more elaborate than we will hear on Sundays here.  They are professional recordings rather than congregational hymns.  The purpose of this post is to make you aware of the melodies so that, if you choose to view them, they will be somewhat familiar when you come on that particular Sunday.

We will still be encountering new Psalm settings.  I hope to have more challenging settings introduced by members from choir.

Here you go.

July 2 -- Beneath the Cross (710) by Keith & Kristyn Getty

July 9 -- I Run to Christ (833) by Chris Anderson

July 30 -- Your Kingdom, O God, Is My Glorious Treasure (859) by David W. Rogner

August 6 -- Across the Lands (549) by Keith Getty & Stuart Townend

September 3 -- Afflicted Saint, to Christ Draw Near (867) by John Fawcett; refrain by Constance Dever

Update from Good Shepherd (June 1, 2023)

Greetings!

SUMMER SCHEDULE

Divine Service is Sundays at 10:00 AM.  

For a calendar of events and meetings, click here.

CHURCH COUNCIL HIGHLIGHTS

> Several sample images of LED signs were presented.  We are debating about one or two-sided signs and which direction(s) the sign(s) should face.  So far, no estimates have been given.  If you are willing to do some research, speak with Dan Rauchholz.

> There are quite a few trees around the church property which are dying or will be dying.  A virus is killing many blue spruces in Novi.  We have been advised to cut them all down and replace them with other trees or shrubs.  (The city of Novi has given us a list of suggested plants.)  We will need to remove 28 trees.  Some can be done immediately; most will wait until the fall.  If we try to do the work ourselves (cutting trees, putting the cuttings through a wood chipper, planting replacement trees and shrubs), we will save a great deal of money.  We will be discussing our options at our Open Forum on Sunday, June 11.  If you can’t wait until then, please speak to Bob Wozniak.

>  If you have friends who are not attending a church or with whom you have had conversations about spiritual matters, ask them if they would like to meet your pastor.  Meetings can take place at your home, at church, at a coffee shop, or other venues. 

EVANGELISM & STEWARDSHIP COMMITTEE MEETINGS
          The Evangelism & Stewardship Committees have charted out a tentative schedule for events through the summer. These events serve both to unite our own members better and to connect with people from our community. Look for ways that you can help out to make each event a success. Let’s make the most of the opportunity for each event.
     JUNE 9 –  Putt-putt golf & go-karts
     JULY 27 – Yard games at Good Shepherd with a food truck (alternate date: July 20)
     AUG 4 –    Detroit Tigers vs. Tampa Bay Rays
     SEPT 10 – Church Picnic

OPEN FORUM (VOTERS’ MEETING TO FOLLOW) 

          On Sunday, June 11, Good Shepherd will be having an Open Forum to discuss the future plans of our congregation. In order to accomplish as much as possible, we all get to play a role and to participate in the working of the congregation. The Open Forum provides a way for you to see how and where you can be active in the work we do together. It also allows you to ask questions about Church Council discussions and to offer input and suggestions for the benefit of our congregation. All confirmed members are welcome to participate.
          The Voters’ Meeting will meet immediately following the Open Forum. All men who are members in good standing and over the age of 18 are encouraged to attend.

GOOD SHEPHERD ON YOUTUBE

          Services are uploaded to YouTube each week. Feel free to share the videos. Here is the service from Sunday, May 28: (155) Good Shepherd Novi, Divine Service, May 28, 2023 - YouTube

PROMOTIONAL VIDEO
          Hope Christian Academy (formerly Huron Valley Lutheran High School) has put together a five-minute informational video. Check it out at the link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1EPfzzwmpUKM6cZi1iZQlIJQrv_6g3qZr/view?usp=drive_web

SUMMER OFFICE HOURS

          The pastor will try to maintain regular office hours are Monday – Thursday, 9:00 AM - Noon. However, the nice weather may lead him to read outside on his deck rather than sit in his office. To ensure the pastor’s availability, it is best to make an appointment. He is available by phone or text (248-719-5218). You may also email (welsnovi@aol.com), but the response may be slower.

 

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.

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          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
DIVINE SERVICES are on Sundays at 10:00 AM.
Sunday School, Adult Bible Class, and Bible Matters will resume in September.

GOOD SHEPHERD’S WEBSITE
www.GoodShepherdNovi.org

PASTOR SCHROEDER’S BLOG
www.LutheranSubject.blogspot.com

Worship Notes: The Athanasian Creed

            The Athanasian Creed is one of the three catholic creeds.  The word catholic means universal, as in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.  The word creed comes from the Latin word credo which means “I believe.”  Luther said of this creed, “I doubt whether the New Testament church has a more important document since the Apostolic age.”

            Although named for Athanasius, the bishop of Alexandria (ca. 296-373), it is almost certain that he did not write it.  Neither Athanasius nor his contemporaries ever refer to it.  But even if Athanasius did not write the creed, he certainly would have ascribed to it.  Athanasius was one of the bishops at the ecumenical Council of Nicaea (A.D. 325) which opposed the heresy of Arius (ca. 250-336).  Arius denied the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, teaching that he is of a similar substance to God the Father, but not of the same substance.  In essence, Arius claimed that Jesus Christ is not the eternal God.  This belief has resurfaced in modern-day cults such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses and Mormons.  The Council of Nicaea adopted the Nicene Creed to affirm that Jesus is “God from God, Light from Light, true God from True God” and “of one being with the Father.”

            The Athanasian Creed first appeared in Gaul (France) late in the 5^th century.  Early in that century, Europe was invaded from the east by barbarian tribes, notably the Vandals and Goths.  This event marked the beginning of the Dark Ages.  During this time, the people and the clergy lapsed into illiteracy and ignorance of the Scriptures.  In addition, some of the invaders were Arian in their beliefs.  Out of this confusion came the need for a clear statement of faith.  The result was the Athanasian Creed.

            The Athanasian Creed quickly assumed an important role in the orthodox church.  (Much of the visible church was overrun with Arianism.)  Emperor Charlemagne (ca. 742-814), in order to preserve the true Christian faith, decreed that all churchmen had to learn this creed and to be able to teach it to the laity.

            The second portion of the Athanasian Creed reaffirms the Nicene Creed regarding the person of Jesus Christ.  However, it begins with a most excellent presentation on the doctrine of the Holy Trinity.  It says no more and no less than Scriptures say, letting the paradox of God’s nature stand (i.e., God is one; God is three).

            Confessors of the creed should not be put off by the second to last article which says: “Those who have done good will enter eternal life, but those who have done evil will go into eternal fire” (cp also John 5:28,29).  The article does not teach salvation attained by human works, but simply reflects that our good works (or lack thereof) are evidence of God-given faith (or unbelief).  When we remember that our good works are actually God’s work through us, then we will understand this article correctly (cf Ephesians 2:8-10).  In addition, we remember that are judged based on Jesus’ merits, not our own.  We have been given the credit for Christ’s righteousness.  Therefore, we are heirs of eternal life.

            This creed ought to bring us great comfort, as it speaks clearly about our God and his plan for our salvation.  Its clearness and boldness are refreshing in this age of doctrinal confusion.  This is no wishy-washy confession.  It states what the Scriptures teach – there is no God but the Lord revealed in the Scriptures, and there is no salvation outside of the name of Jesus Christ.  All who deny this deny the truth; and all who deny the truth forfeit salvation.

YouTube -- Pentecost (May 28, 2023)

Here is the Divine Service for Sunday, May 28, 2023.

Summer Reading: Reading Scripture with the Church Fathers

This book has been in my shelf since 2007.  Actually, it sat on my desk for the past couple of years because, "I am going to read this.  Really.  I mean it."

Well, now we are hitting the summer lull in the schedule, so I will be plowing through it.  I hope it will be easy plowing. 

An early quotation: "My counsel is to surround your entrance into the world of the fathers with humility, self-awareness, a listening ear, prayer and a sense of humor.  It is better to chuckle at the periodic patristic quirk than to allow our self-righteous anger wall off their insights." (Page 36)

Sermon -- Pentecost (May 28, 2023)

JOHN 7:37-39

THE HOLY SPIRIT QUENCHES OUR GREAT THIRST.

In the name + of Jesus.

      The feast at which Jesus spoke the words of our Gospel lesson was the Feast of Booths.  It was a commemoration of the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness until the Lord brought his people into the Promised Land.  The people spent the week living in Jerusalem under tents made from the boughs of various trees.  Each day sacrifices were offered at the temple.  The priest would also take a golden pitcher which was filled with water from the Pool of Siloam and pour it out at the altar.  It was a ceremony which anticipated the fulfillment of God’s word in Ezekiel 47.  There, Ezekiel was shown a vision of waters flowing from the altar of the temple.  The Lord told Ezekiel, “Wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish.  For this water goes there, that the waters of the sea may become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes” (Ezekiel 47:9).  This water would grant life to the world. 

     On the last and greatest day of the Feast of Booths, Jesus was in the temple.  Perhaps he even interrupted the ceremony of the priest as he was pouring out the water at the altar.  “Jesus stood up and cried out, ‘If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.  Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, “Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water”’” (John 7:37-38).  Jesus boldly decreed this to everyone at the feast.  Jesus was saying, “This festival and this ceremony find their fulfillment in me.  I am the living water.  I am the true temple.  I am God who has come to dwell with his people.  Whoever believes in me will be saved.  Whoever thirsts for righteousness will be quenched.” 

     So, why do we thirst?  We thirst when our bodies become dehydrated.  We need water to live.  We thirst spiritually because we are lacking what we need to live in peace before God.  We lack a pure heart and the good works that spring forth from it.  God’s word tells us what a good heart is and what a good life looks like.  A good heart is pure in its motives and intentions.  It views people as someone to love, not to use.  It rejects any spirit of falsehood, jealousy, or revenge.  It does not assume evil about anyone but looks upon people with mercy and patience.  A good life puts these thoughts into action.  Because a pure heart is devoted wholly to God and his word, the pure heart will demonstrate love and kindness to all people, even to the wicked. 

     Jesus taught us, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’  But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.  For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.  For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have?  Do not even the tax collectors do the same?  And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others?  Do not even the Gentiles do the same?  You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:43-48).  This is what a good heart does and what a good life looks like because this is what God is like.  But God’s Law shows us that we are not like God, and we are not good—certainly not as good as we like to think we are.  Repent.

     Our guilt produces our longing thirst.  It grieves us to know that we fall short of God’s goodness and that we have earned God’s judgment.  Therefore, we pant for mercy from God.  We want to escape our wretched condition.  So, we promise that we will do better, but we don’t.  We mean to, but we can’t.  We commit to being patient and honest and chaste and generous and content.  But we fall back into the same sins we have been accustomed to.  We blame others.  They drove us to it.  We blame our circumstances.  We had no choice.  We blame God.  I could keep God’s commandments better if my life were easier.  Because we fail to live up to all our promises, efforts, and intentions, our guilt only increases.  We are like people who are on an island surrounded by the ocean.  There is water everywhere, but if we consume it, it will kill us.  If we trust in our intentions to do better, it will kill us.  All our efforts only result in a greater thirst for relief. 

     Jesus said, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink” (John 7:37).  The only problem is that Jesus has ascended into heaven.  How can we go to him?  How can we drink if we cannot reach him?  Jesus addressed that with a promise.  He promised to send his Holy Spirit.  When Jesus promised, “Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water,” (John 7:38), he was speaking “about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive” (John 7:39).  By the Spirit, Jesus comes to us.  We hear God’s word, and through it the Holy Spirit supplies the peace and the hope we crave.  He reveals the love of the Father who sent Jesus to atone for our sins.  He reveals Jesus who suffered for our sins and died the death we deserve so that we are pardoned.  He gives us the hope of life everlasting that endures even in the face of sickness, sorrow, and death.  The Holy Spirit quenches our greatest thirst.

     Perhaps it sounds strange to hear the words in our Gospel: “As yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified” (John 7:37-39).  This is not to say that there was no Holy Spirit prior to Pentecost.  The Holy Spirit is already active in Genesis 1.  And the Holy Spirit spoke through the Old Testament prophets; for all Scripture is God-breathed.  But the day of Pentecost marks a definite shift in the way God interacts with his Church.

     Prior to Pentecost, if a person wanted to be in the presence of God, he had to go to the Temple.  That is where the Lord put his name.  That is where God said he would dwell with his people.  It was limited to one place.  But now, the Bible has you consider this: “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God” (1 Corinthians 6:19)?  The Holy Spirit dwells within you by faith.  He is with God’s people in all places, particularly when we gather in Jesus’ name to hear God’s word and to partake in the sacraments.

     After Jesus was glorified, the Holy Spirit was given to make each believer God’s temple.  The glory of Jesus was accomplished through his death, resurrection, and ascension.  By his death, Jesus has taken away your sins.  You are declared righteous by God for Jesus’ sake.  By his resurrection, Jesus delivers you from the power of death.  You will also be raised from the dead to eternal life.  By his ascension, Jesus reigns over all things for us.  But since he is no longer physically with us, he sends his Holy Spirit to dwell within us. 

     Jesus poured out his Holy Spirit upon the apostles on the day of Pentecost.  The apostles had the benefit of witnessing Jesus’ works and hearing Jesus’ words.  Since we do not have the same benefit, the Holy Spirit worked through these apostles who wrote down for us the words and works of Jesus.  The Bible reminds us, “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17).  Whenever we hear his word, the Holy Spirit is at work to create and to strengthen faith in us.  Everything we need to dwell in God’s kingdom the Holy Spirit gives in God’s word and sacraments.  By these, the Holy Spirit quenches our great thirst.

     The third article of the Apostles’ Creed confesses the Holy Spirit.  Following the Holy Spirit, we confess a series of other doctrines.  Perhaps they seem unrelated to the Holy Spirit: “I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Christian Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.”  These are not teachings that someone tacked on to the end just to make sure they got covered.  These confess the work of the Holy Spirit who quenches our greatest thirst.

     At Pentecost, the Holy Spirit began gathering people from all nations into the Christian Church.  He draws people into communities of common confession and unites us as one.  We often need to be corrected or enlightened by the word of the Lord for this unity.  He addresses our actions, our attitudes, and our understanding of doctrine.  Through God’s word, the Holy Spirit converts minds and hearts.  He reveals truth and exposes falsehood.  Unity is established by the Holy Spirit through God’s word.  He makes us a communion of saints, creating in us clean hearts and right spirits.

     The Holy Spirit quenches our great thirst for the forgiveness of sins.  While the payment for sin was made on Mt. Calvary by Jesus, it is not delivered there.  It is delivered by the Holy Spirit.  Whether the Spirit-inspired word is preached or applied to water or to bread and wine, there the Holy Spirit is at work to bring forgiveness of sins, new life, and salvation.  The Holy Spirit quenches our great thirst.

     The Holy Spirit also will carry out the resurrection of the body.  St. Paul wrote, “In (Christ) you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory” (Ephesians 1:13-14).  The Holy Spirit lives in you as a deposit of the life to come.  He has worked new life in you now, making you saints of God.  And the Spirit of Life will breathe new life into your body again at the resurrection.  He will raise you up from the dead and bring you into life everlasting.  The Holy Spirit quenches our great thirst for life, and he brings us to a life that will never end.

     Jesus said, “Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water’” (John 7:38).  The Holy Spirit not only quenches your great thirst, but he also makes you a source of that living water when you confess God’s word.  You get to confess the comfort that you yourself have based on God’s promises of forgiveness and salvation through Jesus.  You get to declare the confidence God has given you to stand before him at the final judgment.  You get to reveal the hope that endures through all of life’s hardships.  And by your confession, you can quench the great thirst of others.  We live in a world where many are dying without hope.  Only the Lord gives it; for only the Holy Spirit can quench our great thirst and deliver God’s salvation.

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