Grace Notes 2023-01-25

Wednesday, January 25th 2023

One of the temptations in sharing the good news of the Christian Faith with another is the attempt to try to sell it for the comfort and good that brings. And I do mean ‘sell it’. This is a temptation and a mistake. It risks getting off to a bad start. It subtly puts the burden on our persuasion and can take some of the spotlight off the authentic message itself.

May I hasten to say, Christianity is of the greatest imaginable benefit and comfort to us. But here’s the rub, its comfort is not always of the sort that we think we need. We often cannot imagine any comfort better than being well liked, living painlessly, having an abundance of material blessings, and having endless pleasure.

The temptation for us will be to water down our presentation and to peddle temporal benefits that just aren’t true.

It is far more important that we share the Christian Faith because we believe it to be true. To admit, as Scripture so amply teaches, its truth is sometimes like a bitter medicine that we need to take and of which we must patiently trust in its unseen benefits. And there is no escaping the fact that the Gospel-Light we bear witness to and reflect is not always welcomed. The light exposes. And there is much we wish to have remained hidden.

A demonstration of genuine love and caring is the most compelling aspect of reaching out to others. And then the concentration must be on the faithful transmission of what God has revealed in His Word. The Word itself is the power of God onto salvation (Ro 1:16). Saving is what the Savior does, not us. And the faithful message boldly convicts and condemns before it offers pardon and consolation. Moreover, the consolation is most fully realized at the resurrection on the last day, and upon our inheritance of the kingdom. This is our citizenship in the new heavens and earth.

 

Since You Asked…

Why is the Triune Name of God repeated so frequently in our worship services?

The mystery of the Trinity is one of the most distinctive elements of our Christian Tradition. Christianity is not alone in claiming to be monotheistic (belief in one Supreme Being, one god). But Christianity holds that this One, True God has revealed himself to us as God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Scripture teaches that God the Father has revealed himself through God the Son and in God the Spirit. Only the Son can be seen, and only through the Spirit are we enabled to believe in the Father and the Son. And so we often invoke the name of the Triune God in the mystery of our faith.

Current Calendar

Download the most up-to-date listing of this month's events.

Latest Newsletter

Keep up with all that is happening at Gift of Grace, and hear a word from our Pastor.

Daily Devotions

Download devotions for the week, including Scripture readings, and lessons from our Lutheran teaching guide, the Small Catechism.

Reading Guide

A reading guide through the Scriptures for the current month.