Christ Memorial was a church plant of Salem Lutheran in Affton in 1948. Our history is God “sowing seeds” and “bearing fruit.” What will he grow in the next 75 years? Martin Luther once said, “Even if I knew the world would end tomorrow, I would still plant my apple tree today.” We continue to plant seeds for coming generations of gospel multiplication. More people loved in Christ, more people sent into the world.
Invocation
Make the sign of the cross, and say,
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Invitation Prayer
“Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” (Matt. 5:7) You are the great Giver of mercy. Move me to show your mercy. Amen.
Word: Acts 11:26
“And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians.”
Meditation
Who Are You? by Megan Roegner
Have you ever been a part of a mission and vision committee? I’ve been a part of several, including the group of people who decided to call Reliant Reliant. Having been through this process, I like to imagine the earliest believers sitting down together in Antioch with some chart paper, workshopping their new name. OK, Barnabus and Simon the Magician, why don’t you draw a picture that represents the future of the church?
Part of a mission and vision process is figuring out who you are as a group, what’s important to you, and where you’re going (or would like to go). The people who became Christians struggled with this even though there were people among them who actually knew Jesus. As the first Jewish believers were going through the process of realizing that God’s plans for the church were much more global than they initially thought, there were factions, even an unfortunately monikered “circumcision party.”
I guess disagreements about what it means to be a follower of Jesus have been a part of our legacy as believers since about 30 AD. Homoousians versus Arians. East versus West. Protestants versus Catholics. Mainline Protestants versus Evangelicals. LCMS Lutherans versus ELCA Lutherans.
It’s too easy to search for our identity in who we are against. Now that we’re living in what many call a “post-Christian” society, I think that many Christians feel like it’s us versus the world.
In reading up on the origin of the Biblical Hermeneutics Stack Exchange (as is my wont), I learned that for the Greek and Latin speakers of the first century, the “-ianus” or “-ian” suffix would indicate belonging. Many would have understood the name “Christian” as an insult, slaves of Christ. Those early Christians, though, embraced this term. What is better than belonging to our Savior?
When I think of the future of our church, and the Church in general, I don’t want us to be defined by who we are against. Our mission and vision need to be centered on who we are for. We are for Jesus. We are for the God who tells us “to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8). More importantly, he is for us.
Christ, help us remember what it means to be a Christian. Keep our identity centered in you. As the world changes, let us remember that you never do. Amen.
Prayer for Neighbors
· For my immediate geographical neighbors.
· For my community, neighborhood, town/city.
· For neighbors hurting from broken families, addiction, violence, abuse, poverty, sickness.
· For the eyes of the Good Samaritan, to see and help my neighbor in need.
Closing Prayer
O God of mercy, teach me to be merciful. O Humble Lord, show me the way of humility. You are the exalted King over all things. I worship you alone. Amen.