A Note from Pastor (Oct 2026)

As Joshua was preparing to lead the people into the promised land, the Lord encouraged them to, “be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you” (Joshua 1:7). Sadly, the people soon forgot the words of the Lord, became disobedient and “did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and served the Baals” (Judges 2:11). The Apostle Paul was well aware of this pattern of apathy and apostacy when he warned the elders of Ephesus that, “After my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things to draw away the disciples after them” (Acts 20:29-30). During the Reformation, spiritual laziness and false teaching was still afflicting the church when Luther observed that, “The deplorable, miserable condition that I discovered recently when I, too, was a visitor, has forced me to prepare this catechism, or Christian doctrine, in this small, plain, simple, form. Mercy! Dear God, what great misery I beheld! The common person, especially in the villages, has no knowledge whatever of Christian doctrine.” Now, five hundred years later, we dare not fool ourselves into thinking we are not in danger of history repeating itself. The devil loves nothing better than to lull the church into a false sense of security. But thanks be to God! Our Lord has assured us that His Word endures forever. When we hold fast to His Word as taught in the Small Catechism, our confessions, liturgy and hymns, we are being careful to do and believe all that the Lord has commanded. As we continue to teach what has been handed down to us from Jesus through Moses, Joshua, the Apostles, St. Paul and even Luther, we can rejoice that the truth of God’s Word is being taught among us. Therefore, as Luther taught in the Conclusion to the Lord’s Prayer, we can say, “Amen, amen means, ‘yes, yes, it shall be so.’”