The Lutheran Way - It Makes A Difference? (Series 8 of 9)

(Building and Liturgy, part 4)
 

We have practiced what we have preached, and our preaching has informed our practice. What else is there? Again, going back to our entrance into the church building, the sanctuary as it is often called, the first thing we see is the cross of Christ, the focal point of our Divine Service. We see the focus of the Means of Grace as we see the Baptismal font, the altar, the pulpit and the communion rail. We see the separation of the nave, the main body of the church, with the chancel area, the place where the Means of Grace are most present.
 

What we do not see is anything that might confuse us as to what is happens in our Divine Service. We do not see anything in front of the altar, or Baptism font, or pulpit. We do not see anything in front of the cross. We do not see anything that draws our attention away from the Means of Grace and the cross of Christ. We do not see anything that might make us think we have come to be entertained or that there is any other purpose for our being in this place except to come and be given the gifts of God through the means that He has given to us to be given those gifts.
 

We may have even notice our pastor covers himself with either an alb or a cassock and surplus so that he himself is not the focus of attention. As we listen to the music, we have noticed it does not get in the way of the great depth of the hymns themselves. We may have noticed the accompaniments are just that: they are there to enhance and not draw attention to themselves. Nothing draws our attention away from our purpose for being in this place at this time, to come and be given the gifts of God so we may be or are strengthened in our faith so that we may be or are able to go out into the mission field and share what we have learned and what we believe to the rest of the world in the mission field.
 

When the Children of Israel were rescued from their bondage of slavery in Egypt, even before they entered the promised land and while they were wandering in the wilderness, the Lord gave them instructions in how to be about being His people. His instructions were often given, not to be a burden, but to distinguish His people from the pagan nations that surrounded them, as well as, how they were to inflict His righteous judgement. His instructions were often given to live and do the opposite of those around them so there would be no doubt that they were His people. Now, while we would not say Christians in other denominations are unbelievers or non-believers or even pagan, we would understand that very often what we as Lutheran Christians do, how we practice what we preach does set us off as being different, and well it should because there are many differences in our belief that do set us apart as is seen in our practice of the Divine Service. It is these differences which are seen in how other denominations practice their own beliefs. Indeed, if we were to adopt their practices, our beliefs would be seen to be the same as theirs, and often, while they may not be condemned for such, their beliefs are not necessarily completely in line with what we believe and with what God tells us in His Word.
 

Next time we will look at how this comes together in our daily lives, especially in how we speak to others, how we invite them to be a part of our confession of faith, in other words, the practical application of our faith.