Every piece of the traditional Lutheran Divine Service depicts Jesus coming to us. The opening Confession of sins is focused on acknowledging our week full of trespasses in thought, word and deed. This acknowledgement of our sin is followed by the pastor speaking the powerful words of absolution in the stead of and under the authority of Christ. This is immediately followed by the congregation sharing the “peace of Christ” with their neighbors. This sharing of God’s peace is us rejoicing in Christ’s pardon. Then we acknowledge our need for this mercy again in the Kyrie. More forgiveness. Each hymn we sing, each psalm we chant, sets this amazing pardon to music. Then the sermon! Every good Lutheran sermon builds on the gospel goodness that flows to us from Calvary. The Lord’s Prayer repeats that cry for our heavenly Father to erase our debts and for us to extend our forgiveness to those who have wronged us. Then, finally, we celebrate Jesus’ blood-bought forgiveness which we receive by eating and drinking the Lord’s Supper. Holy Communion is not merely a remembrance of Jesus on the cross—but our actual partaking of Christ’s true body and blood.

Christians have made the sign of the cross since the earliest centuries. Martin Luther taught that crossing yourself was simply a way to remind yourself of your baptism. You will notice that some of us cross ourselves throughout the Divine Service, others of us don’t. It’s entirely optional.

The Apostles Creed

I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth. And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord; Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell; The third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit; the holy Christian Church, the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.

The Nicene Creed

I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of His Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, Very God of Very God, Begotten, not made, Being of one substance with the Father, by Whom all things were made; Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead; Whose kingdom shall have no end.

And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of life; Who proceeds from the Father and the Son, Who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified, Who spoke by the prophets. And I believe in one holy Christian and Apostolic Church. I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins, and I look for the resurrection of the dead and life of the world to come. Amen.

The Athanasian Creed

Whoever will be saved shall, above all else, hold the catholic faith. Which faith, except it be kept whole and undefiled, without doubt, one will perish eternally. And the Catholic faith is this, that we worship one God in Trinity and Trinity in Unity, neither confusing the Persons nor dividing the substance.

For there is one Person of the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy Spirit. But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit is all one; the glory equal, the majesty coeternal.

Such as the Father is, such is the Son, and such is the Holy Spirit. The Father uncreated, the Son uncreated, and the Holy Spirit uncreated. The Father infinite, the son infinite, and the Holy Spirit infinite. The Father eternal, the Son eternal, and the Holy Spirit eternal. And yet there are not three eternals, but one eternal; just as there are not three uncreated, nor three infinites, but one uncreated and one infinite.

Likewise, the Father is almighty, the Son is almighty, and the Holy Spirit is almighty. And yet there are not three almighties, but one almighty. So, the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. And yet there are not three gods, but one God. Likewise, the Father is Lord, the Son is Lord, and the Holy Spirit is Lord. And yet there are not three lords, but one Lord.

For as we are compelled by the Christian truth to acknowledge every Person by Himself to be both God and Lord, so also are we prohibited by the Catholic religion to say that there are three gods or three lords.

The Father is made of none, neither created nor begotten. The Son is of the Father alone, not made nor created but begotten. The Holy Spirit is of the Father and of the Son, neither made nor created nor begotten but proceeding. So there is one Father, not three fathers, one Son, not three sons, one Holy Spirit, not three holy spirits.
And in this Trinity none is before or after another; none is greater or less than another; but all three Persons are coeternal together and coequal, so that in all things, as said before, the Unity in Trinity and the Trinity in Unity is to be worshiped. Whoever will be saved is compelled thus to think of the Holy Trinity.

Furthermore it is necessary for everlasting salvation that one also believe faithfully the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ. For the right faith is that we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and Man; God of the substance of the Father, begotten before the worlds; and Man of the substance of His mother, born in the world; perfect God and perfect Man, of a rational soul and human flesh subsisting. Equal to the Father as touching His Godhead and inferior to the Father as touching His manhood. Who, although He is God and Man, yet He is not two but one Christ; One not by changing of the Godhead into flesh, but by taking the manhood into God; One indeed, not by confusion of substance, but by oneness of person. For just as the rational soul and flesh is one man, so God and Man is one Christ; Who suffered for our salvation, descended into hell, rose again the third day from the dead. He ascended into heaven, He is seated at the right hand of the Father, God almighty, from whence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. At whose coming all will rise again with their bodies and will give an account of their own works. And they that have done good will enter into life everlasting; and they that have done evil into everlasting fire. This is the catholic faith; whoever does not faithfully and firmly believe this cannot be saved.

These beautiful, historic creeds are recited by our church throughout the year. The Athanasian Creed is generally only recited once every twelve months.

Yes and no. You don’t have to be a member of our congregation to receive Holy Communion. But you do need to confess and believe in the real presence of the body and blood in this most holy sacrament. This comes from a place of love and concern. The cover of our service bulletin further explains this restriction:

Notice for guests concerning the Lord’s Supper: As Lutherans, we at Concordia confess the traditional Christian understanding of the Sacrament of the Altar, that it is the true body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ under the bread and wine, instituted by Christ Himself for us Christians to eat and drink. In this Sacrament, we receive the forgiveness of sins that He won for us through His glorious death and resurrection, and along with that forgiveness, the gifts of life and salvation. If you have not been instructed in this understanding of Holy Communion, or if you presently belong to a church that does not share this confession, we respectfully request that you remain in your pew at that point in the service or come forward and cross your arms over your chest, to indicate that you wish to receive a blessing. If you have questions, objections, or would like to learn more, the pastor will be happy to speak with you after the service.

Thank you for honoring this policy.

My, my. You ARE in the weeds, aren’t you?

No worries, so are we. And if you must know, we are definitely ‘Team 3 Year’.

Look at what all you get:

In year A, the Gospel readings are mostly found in Matthew, year B is mostly Mark, and year C is mostly Luke. The Old Testament reading is selected to reflect a theme from the Gospel passage. The Psalm and the Epistle readings often do the same.

If you happen to prefer the One-Year Lectionary, there are good reasons for that too, so we‘ll assume that’s why.