Dear redeemed ones by the blood of Christ,

Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday.  Lent begins.  How shall you and I approach it and embrace it?  The answer is clear: THE WORD OF GOD IS SUPREME.  The Holy Scriptures of the both the Old and New Testament were written by men under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.  “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16 ESV).  Because the Scriptures were given by the Holy Spirit, it is without error, and it is infallible, and it shall remain forever.  God gives us His Word that by it we are blessed in Jesus’ name.  By listening to the words of the Bible, we listen to God.  It is His Word to us. It is the sole, governing authority for the Christian faith and life.  God’s Word is SUPREME.  It is in its entirety God’s Word of truth.  And the entire Scriptures point us to Christ; the Scriptures are about Christ.  Furthermore, as we confess in our Lutheran confessional writings (The Book of Concord of 1580, The Formula of Concord, Solid Declaration, 3, as taken from An Explanation of the Small Catechism, CPH, 1991, p. 53): “We pledge ourselves to the prophetic and apostolic writings of the Old and New Testaments as the pure and clear fountain of Israel, which is the only true norm according to which all teachers and teachings are to be judged and evaluated….”

Orthodox Lutherans believe the Bible is the Word of God.  And we believe that it can be clearly understood.  We follow Scriptural and confessional principles for interpreting the Bible.  Some of those principles are: 1.) Scripture interprets Scripture; 2.) The Old Testament is to be understood in light of the New Testament;  3.)  Less clear passages are to be understood in the light of clearer passages;  4.)  Every single Bible passage has only one intended meaning.  Also, we follow the grammatical/historical method of interpreting the Bible.  We examine context, historical circumstances, the grammar used–following the rules of grammar, and use reason as a servant of the text, in humility, not seeking to lord it over the text and approaching it critically.  Truly, we rely on the Holy Spirit who works through the Word to give us proper understanding.  So, it is not a matter of one’s own personal opinion and that “This passage means this to me.”

Pastors in the evangelical Lutheran Church unconditionally subscribe to the Lutheran Confessions (The Book of Concord of 1580) as a correct exposition of Holy Scripture.  It is part of their ordination vows.  So, we Lutherans have as a valuable resource our confessional writings of the Book of Concord as a helpful instruction book for proper understanding of Christian doctrine as drawn from the Bible.

(Side note:  It remains my desire for our immediate future to begin a study of The Book of Concord as a regular, ongoing Bible study in our congregation.  I continue to wrestle with when to do it.  But it is essential that we work through this book.)

All this having been said, my final point is this: as we begin and as we embrace Lent, listen to Jesus.  Listen to His Word.  We will have opportunity to do that as we hear Him speak to us in Revelation chapters 2-3: The Seven Letters to the Seven Churches.  Our Lenten Theme is: Seven Deadly Sins.  Christ identifies seven sins that often plague His people.  We must hear these as our own sin and repent, as Christ calls us to do.  Repentance is all about renewal.  The Holy Spirit works this renewal in us by Christ’s Word.

Ash Wednesday Divine Service is tomorrow evening at 7:00PM.  Midweek Lenten Evening Prayer follows each Wednesday at 7:00PM.  Next Wednesday, February 25th, we begin our Lenten suppers at 6:00PM.  Our first supper is being hosted by the Ladies of Holy Trinity.  Please sign up for any of the other suppers using the Sign-Up Sheet on the bulletin board in the fellowship hall.  Team up with other members to host a supper.  Plan for 25-30 people.  A free will offering is collected to help offset any expenses.

A blessed Lenten season to you in the name of Jesus.

Pastor Kotila               

ANNOUNCEMENTS

The Congregational Meeting was cancelled this past Sunday due to the weather and the light attendance and will be held this coming Sunday, February 22 at 10:30AM.

Jr. Confirmation class this evening at 6:30PM.

Prayer Shawl group will not meet this evening.

Wednesday:  10:00AM  Bible Study

                        7:00PM  Ash Wednesday Divine Service with the Imposition of Ashes

Thursday:        7:00AM  Emmaus Walkers Men’s Bible Study at Immanuel Parish Center

                        6:00PM  Bible Study

                        7:00PM  Choir

Sunday:           9:00AM  Divine Service (First Sunday in Lent)

                       10:30AM Congregational Meeting

Look for the special LIFE PACKAGE in your mailbox this Sunday.

SERVING THE LORD THIS WEEK:

Ushers:   Tom Wollenberg

                Dan Wollenberg

Elder:       Brian Lassy

Altar:        Laurie Sonstroem

Acolyte:    Desiree Lafontaine

Coffee:     D/E Wollenberg

Have a blessed week in the Lord!

Pastor Kotila