Our God is a god who speaks. In the book of Genesis, we find that, in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth with His Word (Gen. 1). In the beginning, God spoke, and in this spoken Word, He reveals to us the kind of God that He is (Rom. 1:19-20). And the God who spoke in the beginning reveals himself to us today in the Bible. As Lutheran Christians, we believe that the Scriptures are God’s inspired, infallible, and inerrant Word. And in the entirety of the Scriptures, God speaks to us His Word as both Law and Gospel.
We hear God’s Word of Law as He reveals Himself to His people in the book of Exodus where He gives the 10 Commandments (Ex. 20). And it is this Word of Law that Christ summarizes with His words: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” and “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matt. 22:37-39). In God’s Word of Law, the God of the universe speaks to us revealing
that He is a righteous God. God’s commands reveal to us that God is holy.
But God’s Word of Law also commands people like you and me to be holy and righteous, too (“Be holy, for I am holy” [Lev. 11:44]). When we encounter God’s Word as Law in the Scriptures, we hear God’s command to us that we must be righteous. And what we find is that God’s Word of Law not only reveals that God is holy, it also, like a mirror, reveals that we are not. We sin. We do not keep God’s commands as we should. God’s Word of Law reveals that we are sinners.
But thanks be to God that He speaks to us His Word of Gospel. The Law and the Gospel are not the same. And while the Law reveals what we ought but fail to do, the Gospel of the Lord reveals to us what God has done. For the Living Word, Jesus Christ came not to abolish the Law, but to fulfill it (Matt. 5:17-18). Christ came and was born of the Virgin Mary. He lived a sinless life for the sake of sinners, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell and on the third day He rose again. He ascended into heaven, and even now is seated at the right hand of the Father. All of this so that we might rest in the promises of Christ alone, granted to us by grace through faith.
This is the Gospel of the Lord. We encounter God’s Word of Gospel in the Scriptures when we hear God’s promises and what Christ has done for your sake. God speaks and reveals through His Word of Gospel that Christ has done what we could not so that sinners like you and me would be redeemed. This is the nature of God’s Word to and for you.
That He reveals to us who He is in Law and Gospel so that we might
find ourselves in Him. May we at Trinity hold to God’s Word as both
Law and Gospel. When you hear the Law in God’s Word, hold fast to
Christ’s promises we hear in the Gospel. And in that freedom, may
you love your God and neighbor, knowing that Christ has fulfilled all
righteousness for your sake. And this is certainly Good News.
You’re invited to the High Praise Youth Choir Concert on April 19th at 2pm! Enjoy music from the youth choir along with individual and small-group instrumental and vocal pieces. Donations will be accepted during the concert to support our group. Come be uplifted by these incredible young musicians!
Let’s learn a new game together! Has anyone ever played Flip 7? It seems easy enough—at least according to the girl who still can’t figure out Bunco—so let’s give it a try!
Every other Wednesday, Andrea Maggelet, the mother of two children attending our preschool, joins the afternoon class to introduce our students to the Spanish language. Through engaging activities and interactive learning, the children are gaining early exposure to new words, sounds, and cultural experiences in a fun and meaningful way. We are grateful for Andrea’s willingness to share her time and talents with our preschool community, helping to enrich our students’ learning and spark curiosity about the world around them.
