THE WORD OF THE LORD INSTRUCTS THE FAITHFUL. Hear again the Word of God for this fifth Sunday after Trinity:

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1 IN NOMINE JESU THE WORD OF THE LORD INSTRUCTS THE FAITHFUL Hear again the Word of God for this fifth Sunday after Trinity: I bless the YHWH, Who to me gives counsel, yea, by night it instructs me thus, my heart. 1 Grace be unto you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ This is a busy Johntide Sunday at Catalina Lutheran Church. Soon, we will witness and participate in two public rites of the Church. We first will hear the good confession of the Faith in the Rite of Confirmation. Therein Cati and Nate will answer, I do by the grace of God, this question: Do you intend to continue steadfast in this confession and Church and to suffer all, even death, rather than fall away from it? 2 From the wording and context of that question, it is clear that it asks of one s intended fidelity to hold fast to the confession of Faith of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. It speaks of public confession in the visible Church. To teach otherwise, or to turn to another church body after having made that good confession of the Faith, does violence to that promise. If you have thought that a confirmand s promise to remain steadfast in this confession of the Faith and the Church which it confesses is to mean that one has freedom to hold to other than that held by 1 Psalm 16:7 2 Lutheran Service Book, 273.

2 congregations like this, repent. Turn, and believe the words of Scripture, the Small Catechism, and our doctrinally pure hymnbooks. Those, so many faithful people have clung to by God s grace, through His Faith, until they passed from life to life, suffer[ing] all, even death, rather than fall away from [them]. To hold you steadfast in such good works, Christ died while holding fast to His Faith. He firmly grasped the Faith. He did so that you might receive His faithfulness and confess it publicly on a day such as this. Even our Psalm reminds us of that which kept Jesus in the Faith, as it continues to proclaim: For You will not give up My soul to Sheol, Nor will You give to Your pious One to see (the) Pit. 3 That God in Christ Jesus realized the fulness of that promise, provides one divine reason among many that parents from this congregation spend so much time in catechizing their children in the treasures of the Scriptures, the Small Catechism, and the hymnbooks of the Lutheran Church. They desire that their offspring hear, remember, believe, and confess Jesus rightly with those whom God gathers at Christ s Altar Tables. Such right-confessors are found in congregations that hold to the 3 Psalm 16:10. 2

3 revealed treasures of the Faith, namely those wherein His Word is rightly preached and His Sacraments are administered according to Christ s commands while bringing His blessings. From all that, we remember that this is a busy day. It is a day filled with right public confession of Christ s Word, in His Church, in this place. Following the confirmands promises, another rite will be celebrated. That will be for the induction of this congregation s own dedicated third full-time Vicar in recent years. (It is a fact that two fulltime Vicars served in the Catalina area, sent from our mother Church, when this congregation was being established. Also, two summer Vicars served here consecutively a bit more than decade and a half ago). In a similar manner to that which those other vicars promised, Vicar Wirtz will soon give answer, I am, with the help of God, to this question: Are you prepared to serve as vicar in this congregation, undertaking your assignments as one who seeks training for the pastoral ministry and who serves under the blessing of God? 4 A Vicar is a baptized and confirmed man. The title, Vicar, which is our customary form of address for our vicars until we give them their first names back after their vicarage year, loosely means, representative of. As such, he is inducted into the service of the Lord in 4 Concordia Theological Seminary Supervisor s Manual, A Rite for the Induction of a Vicar, Fort Wayne, IN

4 this congregation to be a representative of his pastors. As it was for at least three men present this morning (occurring some five, twenty-two, and thirty-seven years ago), such a promise is humbling. It reminds the officeholders, and the members of the Church, of the solemn work God established and continues in Christ s giving the gift of the Office of the Holy Ministry to His Church. Many of you will recall that, The vicar is a theological student who is continuing his theological training by gaining supervised practical experience. 5 There will be many times in this next year, and as he returns to The Seminary, that this vicar will discover a need to return to the words of today s Psalm. This he will be free to do as he wrestles with difficult tasks, sermon phrasing, challenging people, all the while balancing work and family. For him, as for today s catechumens, and for you who are baptized, and also confirmed in the right confession of the Faith, today s Psalm theme verse is again proclaimed: I bless the YHWH which to me gives counsel, yea, by night it instructs me thus, my heart. 6 It is through hearing the Word of God, specifically that which proclaims Christ s suffering, crucifixion, death, resurrection, and ascension 5 Ibid. 6 Psalm 16:7 4

5 that God continues to grant His counsel to His faithful ones. Truly, words such as are proclaimed by today s centuries-old Psalm are the means by which the Word of the Lord instructs those who promise to be faithful confessors of the Faith. Psalm sixteen truly is one that declares the promise of the suffering and resurrection of the Christ. Many of you surely recognized the revelation of Christ as you heard words like these: For You will not give up My soul to Sheol, Nor will You give to Your pious One to see (the) Pit. You cause to show Me [the] path of life; fulness of joy [is before] Your Face, pleasures (are) in Your right Hand forevermore. 7 Those verses the Holy Spirit brought forth from the mouths of the Saints Peter and Paul (whose festival day just was commemorated on June 29 th ). 8 St. Luke informs the faithful that the words of today s Psalm came forth from the Apostles as they testified to others of God s completing the Psalm s promises in Christ Jesus. The Holy Spirit used the Word of God, which was surely planted into those faithful preachers in their homes and synagogues, to proclaim the true Christ to sinners. That, dear ones catechumens, vicar, and all you who will hear provides reason enough for you to be found regularly in the Lord s 7 Psalm 16: Acts 2:27; 13:35, etc. 5

6 services. It gives you the power of God to be daily hearing the Word of God in your homes. It is the Word of God from Scripture, Catechism, and hymns, at a minimum, that grants you confidence in the Lord that extends beyond the grave! 9 As you continue to hear words like these in your times of trial, preserve me, O El, for I take refuge in You, you will be given the power of God, in the Faith of Christ, to bear whatever may trouble you. 10 Through the power of God s proclaimed Word, you will continue to be given the Holy Spirit. He will continue to open your heart and mind to His truths. Those will sustain you, call you to repentance, forgive you your sins, and empower you to walk in newness of life. It is God s declared Word that gives you His power to live your lives in Christ-like manners. His proclaimed Word gives you His strength to hold fast to the good confession of the Faith and this Church, even if you face death for such good work. May you be found ever faithful as you hold fast to the Faith of Christ in making the good confession of the Faith with words such as these: I say to YHWH, O YHWH You are (mine); my good is not apart from You. 11 Concordia Publishing House, p Psalm 16:1b. 11 Psalm 16:2. 9 Commission on Worship, The Lutheran Church Missouri Synod The Lutheran Service Book, St. Louis: 6

7 Let it be known among us that true faith recognizes and confesses that the faithful may claim the One True God as their own. In the Faith, you may continue to declare that the God is your God. As you do so, you are free to recall that declaration comes from knowing that your sins are forgiven in Christ. In Christ, you are one of God s saints. This today s Psalm declares: As for (the) holy ones which are in the earth, they are the noble ones, in whom is all My delight. 12 Is it not wonderful that God delights in you? Just as the catechumens public answers today reveals them to be God s Holy Ones, His saints, so does the Vicar s public promise. So too, does the title, saint apply to you who have confessed your sins this day and freely received God s Word of Holy Absolution. This is a busy day in Johntide in the Church in this place. So, let this shorter sermon be sufficient for this day. After all, God s Good News for you has been declared to you that you might turn from your sins and walk in new life. From that, in Christ you are again named worthy of receiving and responding in His Faith to these inspired words: The peace which passes all understanding guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus Trinity V (LSB One-year series) 12 Psalm 16:3. 7

8 Psalm 16; I Kings 19:11-21; I Peter 3:8-15; Luke 5:1-11 July 1, 2018 Pastor Michael A. Morehouse Soli Deo Gloria 8