Lutheran Essentials meets in the undercroft of the church on Wednesday evenings after the midweek Lenten service. 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. Our current study is on “The Spirituality of the Cross” by Gene Edward Veith Jr. If you do not have a copy we are providing them for free. We are also continuing to provide the Book of Concord for free.
There is no psalm this week as we have a preceding midweek service. The Small Catechism lesson is the First Part on Holy Baptism.
We will read the fifth chapter on Living in Two Kingdoms: The Sacred and the Secular. We will read about Confusing the Two Kingdoms (pg. 128-132) and talk about what happens when the sacred and secular get confused. We will then talk about how this is all lived out in our Everyday Spirituality (pg. 132-135). We will close this chapter by singing “Before You, Lord, We Bow” (LSB 966).
Finally we will read the sixth chapter Conclusion: Worshiping God. In the Introduction (pg. 137-138) we will discuss how the traditional liturgy is grounded in all the theology we have discussed in this book. Next we will dig deeper into The Mystery of Holiness (pg. 138-140) and discuss why it is important that worship be reverent, sacred, and holy. Finally in Heaven on Earth (pg. 140-143) we will discuss the Divine Service and what it means in general, leaving a deeper discussion for a future study on Klemet Preus’s book “The Fire and the Staff”. We will close our study by singing “Jesus Christ Our Blessed Savior” (LSB 627). Our next study will be on The Smalcald Articles and The Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope starting on March 25th.
As always new people are always welcome to this study at any point during the class. Please talk to the Pastor, Elders or Paul Edmon if you have any questions.
