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Galatians 1:3-12
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Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel - not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.
For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.
For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man's gospel. For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. (ESV)
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Our Own Worship?
St. James the Elder, Apostle
25 July 2012
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Every word of Scripture carries with it Christ. Attention to every syllable is a hallmark of faithful listening to the Word. Luther counsels this careful listening when he lectures on Galatians 1:4, "Who gave himself for our sins." Christ is the payment for our sins. How easily the devil worms himself in to our consciences, leading us to be puffed up about our own works. This can happen by something as seemingly pious and holy as "our own worship." This rears its ugly head when worship becomes something I offer to God, instead of worship being what God intended it to be, His giving me his very self in preaching and sacraments.
This self-satisfaction in worship can be seen in modern and unbiblical prayer formulas, "I just wanna (praise, lift your name, whatever)...." The question is what does God want our worship to look like, not what do "I just wanna" do. Martin Luther points us to the grace of Christ, so that we focus on what God has done for us in Christ, rather than all the great things we are going to do for Him (yeah, right!). He gave Himself for us. Our every syllable needs to have that in focus. That is true worship. Where Christ does all, the devil cannot worm his way in to our consciences. |
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Martin Luther
"In a sense Paul treats the argument of this epistle in every word. He has nothing in his mouth but Christ. Therefore in every word there is a fervor of spirit and life. Note how precisely he speaks. He does not say: 'Who has received our works from us' or 'Who has received the sacrifices required by the Law of Moses-acts of worship, monastic orders, Masses, vows, and pilgrimages.' Instead, he says: 'Who has given.' Has given what? Neither gold nor silver nor cattle nor Passover lambs nor an angel, but 'Himself.' For what? Neither for a crown nor for a kingdom nor for our holiness or righteousness, but 'for our sins.' These words are a true thunderbolt from heaven against every kind of righteousness, as is the statement: 'Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world' (Jn 1:29)! Therefore we must pay careful attention to every word and not look at it casually or pass over it lightly; for these words are filled with comfort, and they give great encouragement to timid consciences."
Martin Luther, Lectures on Galatians, 1.4
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Prayer
Lord Christ, You have done all, taking my sin on Yourself that my conscience might be free from the burdens of self-generated worship. Let me praise and extol only what You have done in true spiritual worship, so that I might receive forgiveness of sins from You. Amen.
For the Lutheran Malaria Initiative, that there would be support necessary to free Africa from the scourge of Malaria
For the pastors of the Lutheran Church of Nicaragua, that they may be upheld in every good work
For all health care workers, that the Lord Jesus would support them in all their labor
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Art: DÜRER, Albrecht The Adoration of the Trinity (1511)
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 © Scott R. Murray, 2012
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