The Small Catechism – part 233
All of our religious devices will never set us free from sin and death. Prayer will not do it, nor will Bible reading, Sunday School, or going to church.
Tahoma Lutheran Church Proclaiming the Forgiveness of Sins in Jesus' Name
We are a small house church in Maple Valley, WA that believes in the forgiveness of sins on account of Jesus Christ and his cross. We are gathered every Sunday around the preaching of the Word of Jesus Christ and the sacraments of the Lord’s Supper and holy baptism.
All of our religious devices will never set us free from sin and death. Prayer will not do it, nor will Bible reading, Sunday School, or going to church.
I would sit in the pew, trying to decide if I had been good enough in the past week to receive the bread and the wine. Of course, I was not good at all, nor would I ever be good.
We cannot read the law with veiled hearts and expect to find the grace of God. All we sense is God’s displeasure. So, we cannot expect the law to come to our rescue.
The struggle to be righteous is a desperate effort. There have been times when considering my life—my thoughts and actions—I nearly despaired.
How solitary sits the city, how lonely and desolate. This is the lament of Jeremiah over Israel. Jesus grieves similarly over the people because they are without a shepherd.
Be sure you do not get caught out in the field with your cattle. God’s forgiveness is abundantly available—even to pharaohs, even to sinners. Just come in from the storm.