Grace Notes 2024-12-18

Disciples of Christ participate in the Mission of Christ. His Mission is to reclaim and redeem the world that has rebelled against God and is lost in sin. One way of summarizing His Mission is that He is making disciples of all nations (cf. Matt 28:19-20). That puts us as His disciples in the Discipleship Business.

There are a lot of clever and creative ways we might try to attract followers and to market the Kingdom. And yet, Christ our Lord has already determined the means for reaching lost sinners. This too can be summarized as “Word and Sacrament” ministry. From the aforementioned passage in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus said that we are to baptize and catechize (teach).

The Apostle Paul writes it this way: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (Rom 1:16). A little later in his letter to the Romans the Apostle says this: “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ” (Rom 10:17). In short, it is the message that we deliver that does the work in an unbeliever’s heart to bring him or her to faith.

We become most effective in this enterprise as we are sufficiently and consistently catechized in God’s Word. The better we know the message the more clearly and faithfully we can share it. The more we are formed by Scripture, the more likely our lives will become illustrations of saving faith. There may be some room for creativity and winsomeness, but not at the expense of the dispensing with, or the distorting of, the message!

There is a sense that we can only share what we have received. We must not despise preaching, the sacraments, and learning God’s Word. Instead, we must hold these things as sacred and gladly hear and learn from them. Are you gladly hearing and learning God’s Word? Have you joined a Bible study? Do you trust in the transformational power of His Word?

Since You Asked…

What is the significance of the Season of Christmas?

The season of Christmas begins on the evening of December 24, the Eve of the Nativity of Our Lord, and continues through January 5. The feast day is December 25. On the octave (an 8-day period beginning with the festival day) of Christmas two festivals occur: the Circumcision of Our Lord and the Name of Jesus. Depending on the day of the week on which Christmas falls, there may be two Sundays after Christmas. In most years, however, there is only one. Because of the nature of this singular event in the history of the world and its meaning for our salvation, the festival and season of Christmas is a time of great joy. (drawn from the Altar Guild Manual, published by Concordia Publishing House)