CATECHESIS NOTES FOR THE WEEK—The Table of Duties Concerning Wives and Husbands--The passages of Holy Scripture in the Table of Duties concern the offices we have been given as Christians where our faith in Christ is lived out in this world. There is often great confusion about these two holy offices. Husbands are the head of their wives, but their headship is one of sacrificial love, teaching the Word of God, and forgiving sin. They are to be considerate of their wives who are placed in an office that requires them to submit to their husbands. Husbands are not to lord their authority over their wives. This is always a temptation for any Christian husband. Wives are to understand that their office of submission is patterned after Christ’s bride the Church. They are to expect their husbands to love them, teach them, and forgive them. Their beauty is not in outward adornment, but in the reception of their husband's love. “This is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful. They were submissive to their own husbands...” It is a beautiful and blessed thing when husbands love their wives as Christ loved the Church and when wives receive that love and trust in it.—Excerpted from Lutheran Catechesis
0 Comments
CATECHESIS NOTES FOR THE WEEK—To Husbands--Chief among the offices that God has established in the creation of man are the offices of husband and wife. A husband is a man, joined in love to his wife in marriage, who cares for her and “cultivates” life with her in the procreation of children. When the Apostle Peter directs, “Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers,” he is reminding husbands that their wives have been given an office by God that places them in a subordinate position to them. It would be very easy for the husband, corrupted by the sinful flesh as he is, to take advantage of his headship and the wife’s position of subordination to him. He is to “be considerate” of the position that God gave her and be husband to her in selfless love. Although they are not both in the same office, they are, nevertheless, equal “heirs of the gracious gift of life” in Christ Jesus. If he does not believe that, then his prayers, which include the ministration of his office as a husband, will be “hindered.” The essential disposition of the husband to the wife is contained in the passage from Colossians: “Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them.” Here the husband’s office is depicted as the office of Christ who cares for His bride the Church, as it is also in Ephesians 5:22-33. Christ loves His bride by laying down His life for her and by covering her sins with His blood. He is never harsh with her who is “bone of His bone and flesh of His flesh, but nourishes and cares for her as His own body.” The office of husband finds its identity in Christ, the Church’s Bridegroom.—Excerpted from Lutheran Catechesis, p.376
CATECHESIS NOTES FOR THE WEEK—Of Citizens--This section of the Table of Duties teaches us that citizens are not only to honor the civil government, but they are also to participate fully in the society. Christians, governed by the Word of God, their faith in Christ, and their understanding of the distinction between the two kingdoms, are encouraged to participate in civic discourse, run for public office, serve in the military, and volunteer in the community. Their faith in Christ manifests itself in acts of charity and mercy for the temporal support of their neighbors in need. In addition to paying taxes and obeying the laws of the land, Christians are called to pray for their rulers, participate in the general welfare of the nation, and “to be ready to do whatever is good.”—Excerpted from Lutheran Catechesis, p. 374
CATECHESIS NOTES FOR THE WEEK—Of Civil Government--We are reminded of the important role of the civil government in the secular kingdom every time we confess in the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds that Jesus was crucified under Pontius Pilate. The phrase “under Pointius Pilate” means “under God” because the governing authorities have been instituted by God. God works His will through them, even when they be evil. This requires faith in the Lord who promises to work His will, even though we may not understand why or how He will do it. Jesus submitted Himself to the governing authorities in His Passion. Although these authorities were evil and unbelieving, God accomplished His will through the administration of their office. Though Pilate did not believe in Christ, he nevertheless spoke on God’s behalf when he declared Jesus to be the innocent King of the Jews, and when he sentenced Jesus to death by crucifixion. Our salvation was won for us when the Son submitted Himself to the judgment of the Roman governor in the secular kingdom. Every time we confess that Jesus was “crucified under Pontius Pilate,” we should be reminded and strengthened by this to live faithfully under the civil authorities.
CATECHESIS NOTES FOR THE WEEK— The Table of Duties: Faith Active in Love--“The Table of Duties teaches the baptized ‘how to live where God has called them in the freedom of the forgiveness of sins, with faith in Christ and love to the neighbor.’ The Table of Duties answers the questions: ‘Where do I live out my faith in Christ? How do I live my faith in Christ as a Christian in this world?’ The life of faith in Christ is lived in love toward others in our vocation: ‘Are you a father, mother, son, daughter, husband, wife, or worker?’ (Confession). The Table of Duties addresses itself to these questions and the subject of ‘office’ or ‘vocation.’ An ‘office’ is authority extended to a person from God to function in this world in a particular way and for a particular purpose. Through this office he reflects Christ—the image of God—and His love to his neighbor. A Christian’s ‘vocation’ is the place or office to which God has called him to live out his faith in Christ. A Christian lives in his vocation or office by grace alone, and not by his own strength. His vocation is the calling to joyfully serve his neighbor in love, even as Christ laid down his life for him upon the cross. The strength to live faithfully in our vocations comes from the Gospel and sacraments of Christ, through which our faith in the forgiveness of sins is strengthened and the fruit of loving service toward others is born.” (Excerpted from Lutheran Catechesis, p. 9).
CATECHESIS NOTES FOR THE WEEK—A Pledge of the Resurrection of the Body—The Lord’s Supper was, since ancient times, called “the medicine of immortality.” In the Lord’s Supper we receive Jesus’ true body and blood. This is the same body and blood that was born of the Virgin Mary and that was given and shed for us for the forgiveness of all our sin. “Where there is forgiveness of sins, there is also life and salvation.” It is precisely because the body and blood of Jesus delivers to us Christ’s forgiveness, that His body and blood becomes the source of restored life with God, the resurrection of our bodies, and eternal life, incorruption, and immortality. When we receive Jesus’ true body and blood in faith, we are receiving the very pledge from our Savior that on the last day we shall be raised bodily from the dead, and our mortal flesh will put on immortality and incorruption.
CATECHESIS NOTES FOR THE WEEK–This is My Body–In the Lord’s Supper Jesus gives us His body to eat and His blood to drink. The Sacrament of the Altar rests upon the Word of God. Jesus’ words give what they say. The power and benefits of the Sacrament are given through the Word. Take away the Word and there is no Sacrament. With the Word, there is a Sacrament, namely, “the true body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, under the bread and wine, instituted by Christ Himself, for us Christians to eat and to drink.” What role does faith play in the Sacrament? Faith receives what the Word says. Faith believes in what the Word gives. Faith rests upon the promises of God. The essence of the Sacrament, that is, “what it is,” is determined by the Word. This gives faith its certainty. We know we receive the body and blood of Christ for the forgiveness of all our sins, because the Word says so. Faith knows no other certainty but the promises of the Gospel.
CATECHESIS NOTES FOR THE WEEK—Martin Luther Teaches Concerning Private Confession and Absolution--"If anybody does not go to confession willingly and for the sake of absolution, let him just forget about it. Yes, and if anybody goes about relying on the purity of his confession, let him just stay away from it. We urge you, however, to confess and express your needs, not for the purpose of performing a work but to hear what God wishes to say to you. The Word of absolution, I say, is what you should concentrate on, magnifying and cherishing it as a great and wonderful treasure to be accepted with all praise and gratitude." (Large Catechism, “A Breif Exhortation to Confession,” Tappert Edition)
CATECHESIS NOTES FOR THE WEEK—“A Lover’s Word”—This week we begin two weeks of meditation on Confession and the Office of the Keys. These headings from the Catechism might sound dry and sterile to some, but these sections are all about receiving “a Lover’s Word.” Jesus’ Word of forgiveness is a Lover’s Word—the Word of Him who loved us, His bride, so much that He laid down His life in death to cover the ugliness of our sin and rebellion against God. Just as the words of our beloved in marriage strengthen our relationship with our spouse, so the words of absolution from our Lover Jesus strengthen our relationship with Him. Even more than this, His Word of forgiveness makes us beautiful, strengthens faith against sin and temptation, and gives us comfort. What woman doesn’t want to hear the word of him who loves her? This is how we should view the absolution, and why we should learn to value it and long to hear it from our pastors.
CATECHESIS NOTES FOR THE WEEK—The Baptismal Life--What is the “baptismal life”? According to the catechism Baptism has daily significance in the life of every Christian. It defines who we are: Sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. But it also teaches us that we have the Old Adam, our sinful flesh, constantly about us who is an enemy of this faith. The Old Adam must be drowned and die. The New Man, Christ Himself, must rise up in us. This happens through the ministry of the Word, the preaching of repentance and the forgiveness of sins. The Old Adam is killed each time we hear the Law and say “Amen” to it: this is the sinner I am. The New Man arises in us each time we, as broken and contrite sinners, hear the Word of Absolution and believe it. When we hear that our sins are forgiven we are taken back to the central truth of our Baptism. This truth is not merely repeated as a bit of information, it is the power of God in our lives each day. This is what it means to live in our baptism daily.
|
Luther's Small CatechismClick the button below to download a copy of the Enchiridion of Luther's Small Catechism:
Categories
All
Archives
February 2017
|