![]() ![]() What a gift we have in worship! We meet God in a profound way through communal gathering, scripture and the preached word, and the sacramental Body and Blood. If, however, the preaching and the sacraments are considered works that make a believer righteous before God, they are to be condemned for then they no longer serve the Gospel.” The Word, whether preached or embodied in the sacraments, must point the believer always towards the gospel, that is, towards God’s free gift of forgiveness, reconciliation, and new creation. Luther explains how the words are also seen and tasted, how they are received through and in the body. The gospel expressed in words (preaching) presents only half the picture because God’s Word also comes to the worshiping community through non-verbal means. Therefore, Luther continually argued for the maintenance of the bond between Word and sacrament as constitutive of the liturgy. Sacrament was not to be equated with sacrifice, but with a gift from God. Though the sacraments, particularly the Sacrament of the Altar (or Holy Communion) was misused, Luther did not reject the sacrament per se but sought to re-establish a correct interpretation. The liturgy is not displaced or replaced by preaching the Word alone. Proclamation happens within the liturgical order. ![]() The Word of God (as something “heard,” for example, in preaching) does not negate or replace the ritual of worship but the Word is encountered both in the preaching and in the rites (sacraments). Jamboree Apartments and Townhomes 10950 Church St Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730 2-3 Beds 2-2.5 Baths 1,079-1,632 sqft 1 Review 2,994 - 3,733/mo Local Information Map Schools Shop & Eat © Google - mins to Commute Destination Description (657) 215-2588 Guided Tours and Virtual Tours are available at all of our Lewis Communities. In his reform of the liturgy, Luther argued that the liturgy is both about the word and the rites. These means disrupt, confront, create, renew, and re-orient faith and love. God comes to the believer and the community in worship through means (that is, through preaching and the administration of the sacraments). It de-centers the community from an inward, self-sufficient, closed-border understanding of identity. Gospel-centered worship necessarily de-centers the individual in his or her own quest for fulfillment or meaning. “Martin Luther’s reform of worship centers on gospel proclamation in its various manifestations. I invite you to take in these profound thoughts: One of my Luther Seminary professors, Dirk Lange, has written extensively on Martin Luther's views of worship. It is always such a pleasure to gather together with you in worship. And that he might not give further occasion for divisions and sects, he appointed in return but one law or order for his entire people, and that was the holy mass” – Luther in A Treatise on the New Testament, That Is, the Holy Mass “Christ, in order to prepare for himself an acceptable and beloved people, which should be bound together in unity through love, abolished the whole law of Moses. ![]()
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