The Cross-Marked Life!
We were marked with the cross of Christ Jesus in our Baptism. Through the washing and regeneration of Holy Baptism God adopted us into His family called the Holy Christian Church. As baptized believers, God continues to faithfully feed us through Word and Sacrament in the Divine Service. What a privilege we have to come and receive the “gifts of God,” and rejoice in the “forgiveness of our sins.”
Resolution 4-01 was passed at the Synodical Convention in July of 2010. The third resolve of this resolution states: “That the Synod and its districts promote the Lutheran understanding of biblically based stewardship principles with emphasis on (1) gratitude for God’s gifts, (2) the need of my neighbor, and (3) trust that “I will never be without.” The final resolve simply asks “that each district president lead his district in a stewardship renaissance using the resources that are available to him within the Synod.”
The Cross-Marked Life is the title of the Bible study which I authored in response to that resolution. It is available at no cost on the District Website at www.lcms.org. All that we have is truly a gift of God. Our lives in Christ Jesus express thanksgiving for that which He has blessed us with. Most especially we are thankful for the “forgiveness of sins,” which Christ Jesus has earned for us through His suffering, death, and resurrection. It is in gratitude that we share these gifts through our offerings in our local congregations.
The needs of our neighbor are always going to be in front of us. How do we respond to them as individuals and corporately as the body of Christ in a given community? These needs are of a physical or spiritual nature. As we attempt to meet the physical needs through “acts of mercy,” we may be given the opportunity to “proclaim Christ Jesus.”
Martin Luther wrote: “The greatest of all services is to free him [my fellow man] from sins, to liberate him from the devil and hell. But how is this done? Through the Gospel, by preaching it to him and telling him that he should cling to the works of Christ and firmly believe that Christ’s righteousness is his and his sins are Christ’s. This, I say, is the greatest service I can render my fellow man. Cursed be the life that a man lives only for himself and not for his fellow man. On the other hand, blessed be the life in which a man does not live for, and serve, himself but his fellow man.” What Luther Says, Vol. III, p. 1282.
Finally we live in the assurance that “we will never be without.” Too often we trust in our selves and our own feeble means and forget that God’s supply-house is endless. He has promised that “He will never desert us, nor forsake us.” St. Paul wrote: “And my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”
Phil. 4:19. May this Bible study be a blessing to your congregation as you gather together around God’s Word!
