A New Church Year
On Sunday, November 29th, the Church begins its new year.
The Sundays of Advent, unlike the secular calendar of January 1st, don’t focus on renewed personal efforts or resolutions for a “new year … new you”.
Rather, this penitential season warns against any spiritual confidence in human potential. They turn us away from our works of righteousness and point us to the works of Jesus, the Righteous One!
Like a harbinger of the end times, the appointed Scripture readings for Advent sound the call of repentance, a spiritual awakening and a sacred preparation for the three “comings” (“advents”) of Jesus, the Christ.
- His “fulfilled coming in the flesh” at the appointed time in Bethlehem
- His “future coming in judgment” at the end of time
- His “present and continual coming” to His Church through His Word and Sacraments
Just as Jesus is the same “yesterday, today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8), so also, Advent combines and compresses the “three comings” of Christ into one plea, for all people, in all places, for all time …
“Come, Lord Jesus!”
Weekly Vlog Cast, Daily Readings and
the Psalm 119 Prayer Cycle
In order to prepare for the “comings” of Jesus and to continually receive His gifts, I’d like to provide you with some resources to daily hear, read, study, memorize and meditate upon His Word.
As with any discipline (physical or spiritual), consistency is key. Resistance to anything good and godly takes many forms …
- an unclear “WHY?” and no deep “YES!” (no clarity of purpose)
- a failure to say “NO!” (distraction and divided attention)
- an overly complex or confused “HOW?” (no clear process)
- a undetermined “WHEN?” (no set schedule or “rhythm”)
- a lack of “US” (no community to encourage)
- no “WHO?” (no guide to help and lead the way )
The Triune God has many gifts to give to us in Jesus. Though the devil, as Martin Luther says, is “the master of 1000 arts”, the Triune God and His Word are “master of 100,000 more”. As we begin this new Church year, I’d like to offer some resources so that we might “teach the devil to death”.
Each week I’ll post the following:
- vlog cast, notes, thoughts centered on the Scripture readings appointed for each Sunday
- a daily reading schedule for sections of the Old Testament and New Testament
- daily guidance, resources and step by step directions to help you implement the 12 “stations” of the Psalm 119 Prayer Cycle over the course of the week
- in January of 2021 I’ll host a 12 week course on “The Receptive Life” in the “eXPlain it” portal
Two Platform Options
I’m working on two different ways for you to access the vlog cast and daily readings. I want to make the materials readily available and easy to reference but I just haven’t decided what platform would be best. In a few days I’ll post a video and give you a tour of each platform.
- materials hosted in a “vlog” post (click here)
- materials hosted on the “eXPlain it” portal in the “ekklesia” course (click here)
The Lord bless and keep us and grant us His peace! We belong to Christ!
Come, Lord Jesus,
Paul