Thoughts which carry this broken Christian to Jesus, and to the Cross:

“The teaching I gave you is the same teaching I received from the Lord: On the night when the Lord Jesus was handed over to be killed, he took bread and gave thanks for it. Then he broke the bread and said, “This is my body; it is for you. Do this to remember me.” In the same way, after they ate, Jesus took the cup. He said, “This cup is the new agreement that is sealed with the blood of my death. When you drink this, do it to remember me.” Every time you eat this bread and drink this cup you are telling others about the Lord’s death until he comes.” (1 Corinthians 11:23–26, NCV)

40 In Dr. Luther’s Small Catechism we read: “I believe that by my own reason or strength I cannot believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to him. But the Holy Spirit has called me through the Gospel, enlightened me with his gifts, and sanctified and preserved me in true faith, just as he calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian church on earth and preserves it in union with Jesus Christ in the one true faith.”

For the children who are here brought to Thee in holy baptism, we pray Thee, maintain them mightily in Thy covenant of grace. For their elders we pray: grant them true repentance and, by Thy grace, grant them true absolution from sin; and, cause them to receive the most holy Sacrament of the true body and blood of Christ unto the renewal of their oppressed souls, and the strengthening of their weak faith.

If the sacraments are abandoned, genuine Christian life disappears. Yet we should realize that particularly today there are many people who seem to forget about the sacraments and who even scorn this redeeming flow of Christ’s grace. It is painful to have to speak of this sore in a so-called Christian society, but we must do so for it will encourage us to approach these sources of sanctification more gratefully and more lovingly.

The decline of the church in America is a grievous fact, whether we talk about any denomination or the church as a whole. Seminaries have been in decline, though some like to rejoice that the rate of decline is descreasing. It is still in decline, which means as Boomer pastors finally retire, there won’t be enough, for there are few of us GenX pastors, and we need thousands of pastors in the future. (not to mention church musicians, youth workers, teachers, etc.

I think this is not a theological issue, nor is an issue of worship style and practice–as we consider traditional versus contemporary, liturgical versus less structured worship. I think the issue has to do with the fact we are robbing our churches of the great comfort and enlightenment found in the sacraments, especially the sacraments of Baptism, Confession and Absolution and the Eucharist (aka the Lord’s Supper/Communion)

I think I am not alone in this, as I saw in my readings this morning. Luther, Loehe’s prayer and St Josemaria all note the critical importance of these sacraments. Their reasoning is far more pragmatic than it is abstract.

Luther notes that in these gifts, the Holy Spirit enlightens His people–the whole Christian Church–as they see God at work in their lives. There is something about seeing God’s work revealed in our hearts, souls and minds that is amazing, that should be treasured. Not because of our role in a pietistic ritual, but because of God making sure His promise to us, in a tangible way that we can depend upon in the crazy broken world.

Loehe’s prayer likewise keeps a focus there, that we beg God to help us all stay in the covenant we enter in baptism. This isn’t just a thought, the statistics on who was baptized prior to 18 and still are in the church at 30 are a grievous tragedy. The same for the prayer for those of us who are older, as we need to hear we are absolved and forgiven of our sin, and we need to have our souls, so oppressed by the world, renewed. Some might declare their faith is not weak, and therefore this passage doesn’t apply. To them I ask what faith is, is it knowledge you can defend on Twitter. Faith is being sure we can depend on God for the healing of our brokenness that will find its completion when Christ returns. And that kind of faith is nourished at the altar, it is put in our hands as we eat and drink His body and His blood.

We need this enlightenment; we need this renewal (or my preferred word – healing); we need our faith empowered. St. Josemaria see this, as he grieves–almost 100 years ago–at the possibility of the sacraments being abandoned. Either removed from the service–or making them less that the sermon or the prayers, and never re-instructing people as to their use – to provide this comfort, to provide peace, to assure people that God is with them, working with great intent and diligence in their lives. To remove the sacraments, to even diminish their importance, removes one of the marks of the church, part of the means of grace, and it weakens what should be our refuge.

It is our refuge, not because the buildings were built with human hands, but because God has put His name there, for us to be able to locate Him, for us to be able to interact with Him, for us to receive His gifts and the promises He would pour out on us. So we who lead need to make sure our people realize those promises, and the presence of God who would bless us….

As people learn to treasure God and His gifts, and they realize there is no limit, then they will share them, and then others will desire to distribute them… and help people find what they need!

——

“The Formula of Concord: The Solid Declaration: Free Will or Human Powers” Tappert, Theodore G., ed. 1959. The Book of Concord, the Confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. Philadelphia: Mühlenberg Press.

Lœhe, William. 1914. Seed-Grains of Prayer: A Manual for Evangelical Christians. Translated by H. A. Weller. Chicago: Wartburg Publishing House.

Escrivá, Josemaría. Christ is Passing By (p. 123). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.