Daily Bible Readings October 7-13, 2012

Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church

Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod

32946 Route 4

Girard, IL 62640

Pastor Keith GeRue

Office: (217) 965 – 4816

Cell: (217) 725 – 8137

“Tender Evangelical Loving Care

http://www.tlcgirard.org

The Eighteenth  Sunday After Trinity October 6–7, 2012

Saturday, October 6, 2012                           Worship Service 5:30 p.m.

Sunday, October 7, 2012          Sunday School & Bible Class 9:00 a.m.

Sunday, October 7, 2012                            Worship Service 10:00 a.m.

SUNDAY’S DIVINE SERVICE– JESUS IS THE FULLFILLER OF THE LAW The Pharisees ask a Law question. Jesus asks a Gospel question. The Pharisees seek to trap Jesus in His own words. Jesus seeks to “trap” them in the saving reality of who He is as the Messiah (Matthew 22:34–46). The Law requires you to “fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul” and to “love the stranger” (Deuteronomy 10:12–21). Failure to keep the Law perfectly brings judgment. On the other hand, the Gospel brings the grace of God given by Jesus Christ, that you may be blameless in the day of His return (1 Corinthians 1:1–9). Jesus is David’s Son yet David’s Lord, true God and true man. He is Love incarnate who fulfilled all the demands of God’s Law on our behalf, that we might be saved from the Law’s condemnation and sanctified in the Gospel’s forgiveness. Thereby we see that “God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” — Lutheran Service Book Notes

LWML

·         October is LWML Month

·         During October our LWML will have a door collection for mites.

·         Midstate Fall Rally October 7, 5:30p.m. Zion Lutheran Church, 1301 N.  State St., Litchfield.  Speaker will be Diane Grebing. See bulletin board.

Coffee Break Bible Study

Coffee Break Bible Study meets on Sunday mornings at 9:00 for a lively discussion. Today, we will begin our Study on Lutheranism 101.

Please Pray For: Joe Worth, Elena Howarth, Emily Rodenbeck, Phyllis McElroy, Dorothy Robison, George Van Huss, Crystal Ray, Ruth Hedrick, Walt Hedrick, Erna Van Winkle, Mary Kay Schmidt, Dorothy Schroll, Kathy Schmidt, John Haynes, Bill Uchtman, Colin Starks, George Shepherd, and Katie Ketchum.

Military: Please keep in your prayers all Military persons.

Hospitalizations: Please notify Pastor GeRue about any sickness or hospitalizations.

Happy Birthday This Week: Erin Miller

Happy Anniversary: None

LUTHERAN HOUR "Proper Perspective"
Speaker Emeritus of The Lutheran Hour: Rev. Dr. Ken Klaus
Why did Jesus say the kingdom of heaven belongs to the likes of children? Pastor Ken Klaus thinks he may have discovered the answer.
(Mark 10: 13-16)

WLUJ              Springfield, IL    89.7 FM                  Sunday 3:00 pm

WLLM             Lincoln, IL          1370 AM Sunday 7:00 am & 7:00 pm
WSMI              Litchfield            1540 AM                Sunday 9:30 pm

Lutherans for Life – www.lutheransforlife.org

         Life Thought: In God’s perfect world, one thing remained “not good.” “It is not good that the man should be alone” (Genesis 2:18). God created a perfect woman for His perfect man. Then He ordained the perfect cornerstone upon which to build and promulgate civilization—marriage between man and woman. So perfect an institution that God uses it to picture Christ’s relationship to His Church (Ephesians 5:32). Those who redefine marriage not only erode this cornerstone, they defame this picture.

        Life Quote: “How can we speak of the termination of a pregnancy when what we really mean is the destruction of a human life? How can we talk of therapeutic abortion when pregnancy is not a disease needing therapy and what abortion effects is not a cure but a killing? How can we talk of abortion as a kind of retroactive contraception when what it does is not prevent conception but destroy the conceptus? We need to have the courage to use accurate language. Abortion is feticide: the destruction of an unborn child. It is the shedding of innocent blood, and any society that can tolerate this, let alone legislate for it, has ceased to be civilized.” John Stott, English Christian leader and Anglican cleric

Readings for the Week of 18th Sunday after Trinity

Oct 7              Jeremiah 42:1-44:23,2 Timothy 2:1-21,Psalms 92:1-93:5

Oct 8          Jeremiah 44:24-47:7, 2 Timothy 2:22-3:17, Psalms 94:1-23

Oct 9          Jeremiah 48:1-49:22, 2 Timothy 4:1-22, Psalms 95:1-96:13

Oct 10                Jeremiah 49:23-50:46, Titus 1:1-16, Psalms 97:1-98:9

Oct 11                            Jeremiah 51:1-53, Titus 2:1-15, Psalms 99:1-9

Oct 12                   Jeremiah 51:54-52:34, Titus 3:1-15, Psalms 100:1-5

Oct 13                                    Looking Forward to Reformation Sunday

                            Genesis 28:10-17; Ephesians 4:22-28; Matthew 9:1-8

CALENDAR

Saturday, October 6           5:30 pm                                 Divine Service

Sunday, October 7             9:00 am                                       Bible Class

                                          10:00 am                               Divine Service

                                          5;30 pm         LWML Zone Rally, Litchfield

Monday, October 8                                                          Columbus Day

Tuesday, October 9           10:26 am                                                      Lutheran High Chapel

                                          4;00 pm          Unity Finance Board Meeting

Wednesday, October 10    5:30 pm                                   Confirmation

                                          7:30 pm                                                   AA

Friday, October 12                                                   Pastor’s Family Day

Saturday, October 13         5:30 pm                                 Divine Service

Hayride, Bonfire and hot dog roast

On Sunday, October 28^th, we will have a Bonfire, Hot Dog Roast, Hay Ride, and more.

Where: David and Debbi Ray Farm 12958 Leadline  Road,  Auburn,

When: October 28, 4:00pm – whenever

Bring: yourself, your family and friends and a dish to pass.

NEXT WEEKS LESSONS:

THE NINETEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY

Genesis 28:10–17, Ephesians 4:22–28, Matthew 9:1–8

Jesus’ Incarnation Secures for Us Life, Forgiveness, and Healing

The Lord does not require us to ascend to Him; in mercy He descends to us (Genesis 28:10–17). The ladder in Jacob’s dream was not for climbing; it was the means by which the Lord came to bless Jacob. This event finds its fulfillment in Christ who descended from His throne to save and bless us. By His incarnation He is the eternal bridge between heaven and earth. “The Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins” (Matthew 9:1–8). The Lord was present in the flesh to absolve the paralytic. Jesus also healed and restored this man’s body. “For where there is forgiveness of sins, there is also life and salvation” (Small Catechism). The Lord still has power on earth to forgive sins. In holy absolution He raises up the new man (Ephesians 4:22–28) and bestows the healing medicine which will bring about our resurrection on the Last Day. Thus we say with Jacob, “This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!” (Genesis 28:17)

Trinity 18 October 6-7, 2012 Sermon

Trinity 18        Matthew 22:34-36      October 6-7, 2012

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Seeking to trap Him, they ask a Law question, and so their answer is of the Law: "What is the greatest commandment? Love God and man perfectly, without fail, without lapse, without exception." If someone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also.

They sought to trap Him in the Law and wound up trapped themselves. Hatefully seeking to bind Him, they were bound by their own pettiness and philosophical games, by their hate. They were guilty. In the greatest to the least of the commandments they had failed, for they had not acted in love. They envied His glory. They had paraded themselves. They were puffed up, behaved rudely, sought their own, thought evil. For as nice as the concept of love is, as noble and high and lofty, as obviously good and decent - despite the fact that no one can be against it, that everyone acknowledges, "Yes, love is good. That is the right way." Nonetheless, love is an impossible command and standard. We cannot satisfy or keep it. We have not loved perfectly, but have behaved selfishly - again and again and again. We know love is right. But that doesn't save us. It can only We say damn us.

But Christ, Our Lord offers an escape to those who are caught by the Law's unbending and unrelenting, impossible demands. He asks: "What do you think of the Christ? Whose Son is He?" "David's Son," they say. Indeed, David's Son, a man like us, but more: David's Son, our neighbor, AND David's Lord, our Creator, a Priest forever in the order of Melchizadek, the first and the last, the Redeemer-Kinsman come to save us. The two things that the Law demand we love, God and neighbor, are embodied in Him who has loved us. In this the Love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is Love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. . . . God is Love.

Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends

For his friends. Greater love has no God, no Baal, no Allah, no Buddha, no Great Spirit in the sky, than this: that He lay down His Son's life for His enemies, for His enemies! That He lay down His Son's life for His enemies, that He forsake His Son, disown Him, damn Him, visit His wrath upon Him that He might shower His love upon those murderers whom He adopts as new sons! Greater and more perfect love hath no one than He is who is Love.

Our Lord Jesus Christ is the Ram caught in the thicket, our scapegoat who takes our sins off into the wilderness, our sacrificial lamb who dies in our place. He is the fulfillment of the Law, perfect Love in the Flesh. He has done what we could and would not, and that for us. He has loved us perfectly without fail, without lapse, without exception. His enemies, those incarnations of hate, the devil, death, and Hell have been conquered by the Heel they bruised. They are under the Foot that crushed them. They are held fast so that there is no one to accuse you, no prison to hold you, no threat or punishment left. You are free, forgiven, clean, pure, righteous, perfect, for you are loved in, and by, Him.

This Christ, David's Son and David's Lord, is a Priest forever in the Order of Melchizadek, that King of Righteousness from the City of Peace. That great and holy Priest, whose Body pierced and enlivened once again is the very Temple that He rebuilt so that it is the House of Prayer for all people by Grace, whose reign never ends, that great and holy Priest has offered up Himself as the Sacrifice that makes us lovable, and makes us His. The Law has no more to ask, no more to demand. It has been satisfied, fulfilled, completed. Love, Our Lord, Jesus Christ, never fails. The Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, (is the Christ), God abides in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the Love that God has for us. God is Love, and he who abides in Love abides in God, and God in him. Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world.

Love in the Flesh, a priestly food, a heavenly banquet, is offered to you this very day: His Body and Blood, the new Temple that cannot be destroyed. Eat of Him. Be loved. Live. Have Him placed inside of you that you would be a Temple of His Holy Spirit, that He would abide in you and you in Him, that you would be as He is, so that you would have boldness in the day of judgment for you are His, so that His love is completed and perfected in you, His beloved. David's Son is your Lord, your Christ. Thanks be to God!

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Sermon Trinity 17 September 30, 2012

Trinity 17         Luke 14:1-11   September 29-30, 2012

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

I'd rather be the man with dropsy, in pain and humiliated, than the Pharisees at this dinner party. The man with dropsy knows what he is. He can feel it and see it. And the world knows what he is, too. He can't fake it. He is not one of the beautiful, popular kids. He is a loser. He is alone. He is afraid.

But Jesus steps in and offers relief. He asks the Pharisees if it is lawful to heal on the Sabbath. They are silent. They won't answer the question because the answer is obvious and they don't like it. It is like asking certain people if it is okay to pray to Allah. They don't like the question because it exposes the viciousness their philosophy has done to God's Word.

The man with dropsy is silent too. But his silence is different. He is not being rude or combative. He is listening. Every word that proceeds from the Mouth of God is precious. He is waiting. Jesus heals him and lets him go. He is like an ox that had fallen into a pit. He is like a dog on a chain that has wrapped himself around a tree and can't get loose. The Pharisees figure it is just a sign of his own stupidity, that that dog brought it on himself and deserves to pull at a chain that is effectually a foot long. They don't even try to guide him back around the twisting way he came. It is too far gone, too late. But Jesus steps up and unhooks the chain with no fuss at all. The man with dropsy neither has to live with it nor go back and undo it himself. He is unhooked, set free, in an instant.

Thus the state of fallen man: We go twisting round and round the tree searching for a moment's pleasure while tied to the Law. The Law is not bad. It keeps us from getting hurt. It keeps us safe. But it can't untangle us. It can't make us free. In these delayed days, while waiting for the end, some have thought that the Law was the answer. The idea is that if we could learn to live with the Law we could fix our lives and find favor with God. It seems to work. There are principles and benefits within the Law. Treat your neighbors kindly, don't steal, don't cheat on your wife, and your life will be smoother. You will even be respected, to some degree, by the other dogs. But you won't be free. And make one mistake, show one instant's weakness, and you'll be tangled up again with the Pharisee's mocking your stupidity. It can't be that something is wrong with their program, so there must be something wrong with you.

They are right. There is something wrong with you: sin. The problem is not that you are basically a good person who sometimes does bad things or makes mistakes. The problem is that you are a bad person who is very good at covering it up.

The solution is easy. Repent. Confess your sins, your twisting self-seeking ways that have caused these problems, your shameful behavior and your lies. Quit yipping and begging. And let Jesus take it all away. Be lost in His self-sacrifice in your place. Die in His crucifixion. Be humbled in His atoning death. And be exalted in His resurrection, welcomed home by the Father, full of forgiveness and mercy. Kiss the nail pierced hand that unhooks the chain and live.

Find solace in His soothing words of love in the Holy Scriptures. Find confidence and hope in the Absolution. Find nourishment and strength in His Body and Blood, His self-uniting and opening of heaven to you in that Holy meal. He has not abandoned you or forgotten you. And you who are baptized into Him, you, are no dog. You are a son, a prince, an adored and beautiful Bride washed in Blood. Your scarred King, who was slain but who lives, who gave His life to rescue you from damnation, He awaits. He is eager for you. He loves you. You are free.

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Trinity 17         Luke 14:1-11   September 29-30, 2012

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

I'd rather be the man with dropsy, in pain and humiliated, than the Pharisees at this dinner party. The man with dropsy knows what he is. He can feel it and see it. And the world knows what he is, too. He can't fake it. He is not one of the beautiful, popular kids. He is a loser. He is alone. He is afraid.

But Jesus steps in and offers relief. He asks the Pharisees if it is lawful to heal on the Sabbath. They are silent. They won't answer the question because the answer is obvious and they don't like it. It is like asking certain people if it is okay to pray to Allah. They don't like the question because it exposes the viciousness their philosophy has done to God's Word.

The man with dropsy is silent too. But his silence is different. He is not being rude or combative. He is listening. Every word that proceeds from the Mouth of God is precious. He is waiting. Jesus heals him and lets him go. He is like an ox that had fallen into a pit. He is like a dog on a chain that has wrapped himself around a tree and can't get loose. The Pharisees figure it is just a sign of his own stupidity, that that dog brought it on himself and deserves to pull at a chain that is effectually a foot long. They don't even try to guide him back around the twisting way he came. It is too far gone, too late. But Jesus steps up and unhooks the chain with no fuss at all. The man with dropsy neither has to live with it nor go back and undo it himself. He is unhooked, set free, in an instant.

Thus the state of fallen man: We go twisting round and round the tree searching for a moment's pleasure while tied to the Law. The Law is not bad. It keeps us from getting hurt. It keeps us safe. But it can't untangle us. It can't make us free. In these delayed days, while waiting for the end, some have thought that the Law was the answer. The idea is that if we could learn to live with the Law we could fix our lives and find favor with God. It seems to work. There are principles and benefits within the Law. Treat your neighbors kindly, don't steal, don't cheat on your wife, and your life will be smoother. You will even be respected, to some degree, by the other dogs. But you won't be free. And make one mistake, show one instant's weakness, and you'll be tangled up again with the Pharisee's mocking your stupidity. It can't be that something is wrong with their program, so there must be something wrong with you.

They are right. There is something wrong with you: sin. The problem is not that you are basically a good person who sometimes does bad things or makes mistakes. The problem is that you are a bad person who is very good at covering it up.

The solution is easy. Repent. Confess your sins, your twisting self-seeking ways that have caused these problems, your shameful behavior and your lies. Quit yipping and begging. And let Jesus take it all away. Be lost in His self-sacrifice in your place. Die in His crucifixion. Be humbled in His atoning death. And be exalted in His resurrection, welcomed home by the Father, full of forgiveness and mercy. Kiss the nail pierced hand that unhooks the chain and live.

Find solace in His soothing words of love in the Holy Scriptures. Find confidence and hope in the Absolution. Find nourishment and strength in His Body and Blood, His self-uniting and opening of heaven to you in that Holy meal. He has not abandoned you or forgotten you. And you who are baptized into Him, you, are no dog. You are a son, a prince, an adored and beautiful Bride washed in Blood. Your scarred King, who was slain but who lives, who gave His life to rescue you from damnation, He awaits. He is eager for you. He loves you. You are free.

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.