Lutheran Essentials meets in the undercroft of the church on Wednesday evenings at 7pm. You can reach the undercroft by going around to the back parking lot of the church and descending the staircase to the kitchen. Knock on the door if it is closed and some one will let you in. You can also join us remotely via our livestream. Our current study is on the Didache. We will using “The Apostolic Fathers in English Third Edition” by Michael W. Holmes as our text, which we are providing free of charge. We are also providing hard copies of the Book of Concord for free, as well as copies of the Lutheran Service Book.
We will open class with Psalm 105 and our catechism lesson will be on the Third Article of the Apostles’ Creed. We will start with reading Didache 14. We will discuss how the New Testament Church has always worshiped on Sunday as a celebration of the Lord’s Resurrection. We will also discuss the form of the Divine Service in the Early Church as well as how only the penitent were to approach the Lord’s Supper. We will then sing the hymn “Lord Jesus Christ, with Us Abide” (LSB 585).
We will then read Didache 15:1-2. We will talk about the roles of Bishops and Deacons in the Early Church. We will look at the Scriptural requirements for both of these offices and talk about how Deacons are given for the mercy work of the Church while Bishops are given for the spiritual life of the Church. We will close with singing the hymn “God of the Prophets, Bless the Prophets’ Sons” (LSB 682).
As always new people are always welcome to this study at any point during the class. Our next study on the Smalcald Articles and the Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope will start on July 25th. Please talk to the Pastor, Elders or Paul Edmon if you have any questions.
