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Preparing for Coming Worship
Understanding The Lord's Life
Originally, Ash Wednesday began the preparation of those people desiring the Lord’s Baptism
Lent’s Forty Days recall the Forty Day Flood in the time of Noah, Moses’ Forty Days on Mount Sinai, the Lord’s people wandering in the wilderness Forty Years, Elijah’s Forty Days as he went to the Lord’s mountain and Jesus’ Forty Days in the wilderness
The people in the Early Church who were desiring Baptism observed these Forty Days by curbing the excesses in their lives and by studying the Church’s teachings
The practices during this time included the expulsion of penitents from the Church (temporary excommunication)
Those taking part in the discipline went through several stages:
Such penitents were admonished, prayed for and given the Laying-On of hands, but could not take part in the Lord’s Supper until their discipline was completed by Easter Day
In the Church’s life today, the lines of such practices are blurred or forgotten
However, there is a growing awareness and recapture of the Forty Days as preparation for year’s holiest Week and the year’s greatest Day
This sense of preparation began to surface after Christianity was legalized in 313 AD and has proceeded with varying degrees of intensity to this time
The Forty Days ready us for the mystery of redemption which will unfold on Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday
In these Forty Days we notice the sharp distinctions between the world’s life and the Life of Baptism, and we re-commit ourselves to the Lord’s Life
This distinction between the two lives is expressed in the long Confession spoken on Ash Wednesday
This Confession stretches over the Forty Days; the words of Forgiveness in response to that Confession will be heard on Maundy Thursday
The distinction between the world’s life and the Life of Baptism is also expressed in the ashes we choose to receive on our foreheads
The ashes (reaching back into the Old Testament) remind us of the Lord’s judgment, His condemnation of sin and our humiliation
They also reflect our total dependence on the Lord God for Life and of the need for repentance
The ashes (made from the burning of last year’s Passion Sunday’s palm branches) also suggest cleansing and renewal
Thus, they have been understood as a penitential substitute for water as a sign of Baptism
As water drowns and makes alive, so the ashes speak of death and Life
As Lutheran Christians faithfully understand, the Lord’s Life pours into the world through his holy places of Baptism, Scriptures, Supper and Forgiveness. What is critical is that the lives of His people be criss-crossed by those holy places. This is where our understanding gets fuzzy and corrupted by the world’s life. We acknowledge those holy places to be the carriers of the Lord’s Life, but we don’t view the criss-crossings to be that critical. It’s rather like being a Carolina or Clemson fan. We can claim that status without physically going to any sports event of those schools. The unholy trio loves to apply that same reasoning to our understanding of the Lord’s Life. We will recognize the vitality of the Lord’s holy places, but we will claim to be the Lord’s people, even when His holy places are not criss-crossing our lives. Now, from the Lord’s perspective that may be true, but from our perspective, that may be dangerously untrue. If we are the Lord’s sons and daughters, how can we stay away from His holy places? Aware of the chaos which the unholy trio works in our lives, wouldn’t we be seeking every opportunity to have our lives criss-crossed by the Lord’s holy places? Remember that we are more than fans of the Lord God, we have been rescued by Him and are sustained by Him!
LentIntroduction To Lent
Weepers stood outside the church doors, asking the prayers of those who entered
Hearers were allowed into the narthex
Kneelers were required to get into that posture while the worshipers stood
Standers were in that posture with the worshipers, but had to leave before the Lord’s Supper
Holy WeekThe Lord graces us with a Great and Holy Week both rich and deep. The first of those Days is Maundy Thursday, the Day when we remember the origins of the Lord's Supper. It is also the Day when we strip the altar of its vessels and paraments as the Liturgy closes. This is a vital Day, one that should be blocked out by the baptized so they can take part in it. Yes, for many it involves changing our accustomed routines, but it is vital we make the effort. Those of us who are not hindered by work schedules or illness should think twice before we absent ourselves from it. Parents, whose children are in elementary school, should involve them in the worship of that Day. This year Maundy Thursday will be observed on 5 April beginning at 6 p.m. Mark the date! Plan to be a part of it! Such participation is what we were rescued to do!
The second of those Days is Good Friday , the Day when we remember the Lord's Death. This second of the Three Great Days demands the most adjustment in our daily routines because it cuts into the work day. Since most work places no longer see it as a holy Day , it requires those who desire to worship to ask for the time off or to make arrangements so the work responsibilities are met. This drive to worship can be a powerful witness to our fellow workers. Those of us who are not hindered by work schedules or illness should think twice before we absent ourselves from the Day . Parents, whose children will not be in school, should involve them in the worship of that Day . This year Good Friday will be observed on 6 April beginning at 3 p.m. Mark the date! Plan to be a part of it! Such participation is what we were rescued to do!
The third of those Days is Holy Saturday , the Day when we observe the Easter Vigil. This is one of the oldest liturgies of the Church. Originally it began around midnight and ran into the early morning hours. It was the Liturgy in which all Baptisms were scheduled. It was a Liturgy shaped by the fasting and teaching of the Lenten season. The Liturgy is unique because it begins in darkness and finishes in light. Since it is not practical for our parish community to observe the original hours, we have begun the Liturgy at 6 p.m. The Liturgy continues to revolve around actual Baptisms or in the renewing of baptismal promises. Those of us who are not hindered by work schedules or illness should think twice before we absent ourselves from the Day . Parents should involve their children in the worship of that Day . This year Holy Saturday will be observed on 7 April. Mark the date! Plan to be a part of it! Such participation is what we were rescued to do!
Confession and ForgivenessAware that the world’s prince, Satan, is steadily working on the baptized to dry off the Lord’s waters of Life it is alert to raise the following questions every week or two. When is the last time I confessed my sin and received the Lord’s Forgiveness? When is the last time I heard the Scriptures or read them or studied them? When is the last time I participated in the Lord’s Supper? When is the last time I traced the baptismal cross on my body or spoke its words? It is frightening how quickly Satan can separate us from these holy places. They are the only source of real Life. If our answers to these questions show that a separation is occurring, may we be quick to return to them. The Lord is always desiring to re-immerse the lives of the baptized into His own.
Worship PosturesThere are worship postures and actions from the Church's history and life which can be practiced by members of the Lutheran community. They include:
High awareness that worship takes place in the presence of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit Kneeling for prayer before the Liturgy begins and at its conclusion Signing one's chest and head with our Lord's Cross at the Invocation and Benediction as well as before and after participation in the Lord's Supper Bowing one's head whenever the Persons of the Holy Trinity are sung or spoken as well as during the Creeds when our Lord's Passion (suffering, dying and burial) is mentioned Raising one's head while the Creeds are being spoken Reacting to printed directions in the Liturgy on one's own rather than waiting for pastoral direction Speaking and singing in the Liturgy strongly, passionately and confidently