The ROAD TO REFORMATION In preparing for the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we have presented a brief survey of the life of Martin Luther leading up to the posting of the Ninety-Five Theses.… Life of Luther—1517 “Just leave me alone!”
A SLICE OF LIFE IN THE CLC SNAPSHOTS OF CONGREGATIONS FROM AROUND THE CHURCH OF THE LUTHERAN CONFESSION This month’s unique “Slice of Life in the CLC” is the testament to God’s grace that is… St. Stephen Lutheran Church of the San Francisco Peninsula—Mountain View, California
TLH = The Lutheran Hymnal, 1941; WS = Worship Supplement 2000; LSB = Lutheran Service Book, 2006
Date Verse Reading Comments
Sept 1 TLH 483, LSB 749; Jeremiah 23:33-40 If prophets or preachers speak words that contradict what the Lord has already said, you know them to be false.
Sept 2 WS 758 Ezekiel 34:1-10 The shepherds of Israel failed to take care of the flock, but the Lord would not abandon His people. He would step in Himself to rescue His flock.
Sept 4 TLH 648, LSB 558 ; Ezekiel 34:11-16 The Lord Himself shepherds His people. He calls them, gathers them, tends them, and brings back the lost. What a Shepherd you have in Jesus!
Sept 5 TLH 485 Ezekiel 34:17-24 God’s people were being “trampled” by the strong, but they find peace and hope in David’s greater Son, Jesus Christ, Who shepherds them to life eternal!“BREAD OF LIFE” READINGS September 2017
COVER STORY – CHRISTIAN EDUCATION
It’s just a loaded, emotive phrase, isn’t it? “Back to school.” Individual reactions vary wildly, depending on your station in life and how you are wired. Kids who love school get excited, those that don’t, not so much. Some parents tend to hear the phrase with relief, others with a sense of regret, even guilt—“Where did the summer go? We should have carved out more family time.” Teachers get that old familiar knot in their stomachs and, like pretty much every other occasion in life, retailers hear cash registers.
“Back to school” also means something else.
To go “back” means that you first had to step away. Have you ever wondered how or why our current custom of summer vacation started? The standard answer is that it was agrarian-based; school went into recess for three months in the summer because children were needed on the farm. Anyone with any association to farming knows that obviously wasn’t the reason. The busiest times on the farm are planting and harvest (spring and fall) when kids are back in school.
A HYMN OF GLORY LET US SING (TWENTY-SECOND IN A SERIES)
Contrary to the oft-repeated cant1 of collectivists, it does not “take a village” to raise a child; it takes parents. God entrusts parents—not society in general, not educational or governmental institutions, and not villages—with the responsibility of the proper upbringing of children. This responsibility is frequently enjoined upon parents throughout both Old and New Testaments. For example, “You shall teach them [God’s Words] to your children, speaking of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.” (Deuteronomy 11:19) and “And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.” (Ephesians 6:4)Christian Education—Hymn 630 “ Ye Parents, Hear What Jesus Taught”
GEMS FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT “Then the men of Israel took some of their [the Gibeonites’] provisions; but they did not ask counsel of the Lord.” (Joshua 9:14) After forty years of wilderness wanderings, the Israelites… The Gibeonite Deception
NOTES FROM THE FIELD In this series, thoseinvolved with CLC foreign missions profile one aspect of our overseas endeavors. Three-and-a-half hours of pure and unbridled joy and thankfulness as only our brothers and sisters in… Graduation in Togo
A SLICE OF LIFE IN THE CLC SNAPSHOTS OF CONGREGATIONS FROM AROUND THE CHURCH OF THE LUTHERAN CONFESSION St. Stephen Lutheran Church of the East Bay is a small collection of friendly and faithful members… St. Stephen Lutheran Church of the East Bay—Hayward, California
ILC Newsletter Every other month we get an update on what’s been happening at our Immanuel Lutheran High School, College and Seminary in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Back to the Future is more than the name… Youth Camp at ILC 2017
What, would you say, is water worth?
There’s no question that, as an element necessary for life, it is of great value. And yet, its prevalence on earth makes it relatively inexpensive. On a rainy day it’s even free.
There are, however, versions which do fetch a higher price. The bottled variety, for example. A liter can sell for around a dollar. And, according to the bottlers, with good reason. Labels often identify it as water that has been “purified.”
So what about the value of water which is even more special? If a dollar is a fair price for water that is purified, what is the value of water that is purifying? Purification, after all, is something desperately needed by everyone, since every person is born impure and has sinned.CW Hymn 147, TLH Hymn 207 “For Your Baptism Which Has Saved Me”
