Bethany Lutheran Church
New Year's Eve, 7 PM, Holy Communion
Pastor Gregory L. Jackson
The Hymn # 110 Across the Sky the Shades of Night
The Confession of Sins
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16
Introit
O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is Thy name in all the earth: who hast set Thy glory above the heavens. What is man that Thou art mindful of him: and the Son of Man that Thou visitest Him? Psalm. Thou, O Lord, art our Father and our Redeemer: Thy name is from everlasting.
The Gloria Patri
The Kyrie p. 17
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Salutation and Collect p. 19
Collect
Almighty and everlasting God, from whom cometh down every good and perfect gift, we give Thee thanks for all Thy benefits, temporal and spiritual, bestowed upon us in the year past, and we beseech Thee of Thy goodness, grant us a favorable and joyful year, defend us from all dangers and adversities, and send upon us the fullness of Thy blessing; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, who liveth, etc.
The Epistle and Gradual
Gradual
All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God: make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth.
V. The Lord hath made known His salvation: His righteousness hath He openly showed in the sight of the heathen. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
V. God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in times past unto the fathers by the prophets: hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son. Hallelujah!
The Gospel
Glory be to Thee, O Lord!
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
The Sermon Hymn # 123 Our God, Our Help
The Law - Our Schoolmaster Until...
The Hymn # 126 Arise and Shine in Splendor
The Preface p. 24
The Sanctus p. 26
The Lord's Prayer p. 27
The Words of Institution
The Agnus Dei p. 28
The Nunc Dimittis p. 29
The Benediction p. 31
The Hymn # 552 Abide with Me
Announcements and Prayers
- Christmas Day - Parsonage wedding - Larrisa and Cody Boyd. God's blessings to the whole extended family.
- Ongoing medical care - Lori Howell, Pastor Jim Shrader, Chris Shrader, Kermit and Maria Way, Doc Lito, Alicia Meyer.
The Epistle
KJV Galatians 3:23 But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. 24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. 26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. 27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.
The Gospel
KJV Luke 2:21 And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called Jesus, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived in the womb.
St. Stephen's Day, December 26th
KJV TEXT: ACTS 6:8-14, AND ACTS 7:54-60.
8 And Stephen, full of grace and power, wrought great wonders and signs among the people. 9 But there arose certain of them that were of the synagogue called the synagogue of the Libertines, and of the Cyrenians, and of the Alexandrians, and of them of Cilicia and Asia, disputing with Stephen. 10 And they were not able to withstand the wisdom and the Spirit by which he spoke. 11 Then they suborned men, who said, We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses, and against God. 12 And they stirred up the people, and the elders, and the scribes, and came upon him, and seized him, and brought him into the council,13 and set up false witnesses, who said, This man ceaseth not to speak words against this holy place, and the law: 14 for we have heard him say, that this Jesus of Nazareth shall destroy this place, and shall change the customs which Moses delivered unto us. 54 Now when they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth. 55 But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, looked up steadfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God,56 and said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God. 57 But they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and rushed upon him with one accord; 58 and they cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 And they stoned Stephen, calling upon the Lord, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. 60 And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
The Law - Our Schoolmaster Until...
KJV Galatians 3:23 But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.
Galatians should be read and studied because it is short and also the most abused book in the Bible, if we count it by words. No other book has so much Gospel and yet is so brief. That should make Galatians especially powerful to people, but the opposite seems to be true. Nothing else in the Bible is opposed with such force.
There are many ways to oppose Galatians - all of them wrong, of course. The central message is Justification by Faith, which is the essence of the Gospel. Grace comes to us only through faith in Jesus Christ (Romans 5), so it is not a vague concept but a very clear one. Through faith in Jesus our sins are forgiven daily - completely. That is a constant effect of the Gospel. The Spirit is at work teaching us and showing us what we need to know.
The Church of Rome repudiated Justification by Faith at its Council of Trent, which was organized to oppose the Reformation. The Eastern Orthodox agree with Rome. It is easy to find non-Lutheran Protestants who avoid this central, Biblical doctrine, and many supposed Lutherans who also hate Justification by Faith. One error is constantly repeated on a daily basis - "Everyone in the world is already forgiven, without faith, without Christ." If that is not repugnant enough, "Everyone in Hell is a forgiven saint."
Christina struck up a conversation with a nun, about grace, and the nun seemed quite agreeable. That is the strange thing about the use of grace - everyone is for it, nobody is against it. However, the nun meant grace plus works. "Faith alone" means that grace comes to us without earning bonus points. Grace requiring works - that is a never ending pursuit of works unto death and even beyond death (Purgatory).
When there is no faith, which is often the problem, there can only be the Law. People have many variations in the Law, so they like to think their Law is sufficient. When we are children, the Law is imposed so that in time we learn to do what is right because of the Gospel.
The Antinomians (anti-Law) say "There is no Law. It is abolished." That is a very popular poison today. I have seen several pastors repudiate the Faith because they slipped more and more against the Scripture.
24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
The Law is not bad or evil, but brings us to Christ so we are forgiven through faith in Him. Grace is never going to arrive through works, though billions have tried. The only access to grace is faith in Jesus the Savior, not Buddha or Confucius. The difference with the Gospel is that - through the Law - we no longer think of "have to" but "want to." That makes all the difference.
How could the Law of God be obsolete when it is the result of God's Creation? As Luther wrote, Moses borrowed the Ten Commandments from Adam. They were there at the beginning and observed. The stone tablets codified all of human behavior in 10 Commandments. My 4th grade teacher challenged us to find a single law that was not a reflection of the 10 Commandments, which she had on the wall of her classroom.
The child asks "Do I have to?" and grows into "I want to." Mothers look at their little children crying and pooping and puking and say, "Aww. I will clean you up." The babyfood is wiped from the tiny face and the baby grins. Big rewards from ceaseless labor and love.
25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. 26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
KJV Galatians 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.
Galatians 2:16 is one of three very clear passages about the faith belonging to Jesus Christ. The KJV is correct and the others glide past this clear phrase. The Incarnation means He has Two Natures, divine and human, never one without the other. So yes, He believed. So He is our example of living and acting by faith. He knew what He was facing and He trusted in God - "not My will but Thine."
That has been the great motivator of good works done in the Name of Christ - wanting to do whatever helps others and teaches the Gospel.
27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.
Putting on Christ means the symbolic robe of righteousness. Just as wedding guests put on their best clothes for a great feast, so do Christians put on the robe of Justification by Faith.
Notice that Paul invoked Abraham faith in this passage. Too many shorten the impact of his trust in having his own son. Abraham's trust was not just in having a son or even a tribe and kingdom. Even with countries of a billion or more today, there is nothing equal to the stars of the sky in number or the sands of ocean. Abraham's trust in God made him the beginning of an almost endless stream of believers like him, and his son was just the beginning.
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