Dear Family of Faith,

Over 500 years ago, Martin Luther was steaming mad!   He had made a pilgrimage to Rome and was incensed by a couple of things:

• First, was that a luxurious church state was beginning in the city.  A fundraising effort had begun to build great buildings and the focus was on purchasing an indulgence.  An indulgence was a certificate that provided an amount of forgiveness for an amount of money.  An indulgence could be for a living person, to kind of pay it forward, and for a dead person to move them from the bowels of purgatory faster and faster.  Luther was hopping mad as he walked from Rome, Italy, back to Wittenberg, Germany.
• The second thing he was struggling with was the press of guilt and pain this put on his conscience and the conscience of the people who were manipulated by guilt to somehow purchase peace with God.  So, on October 31, 1517, Luther took his disagreements public and nailed them to the door of the church in Wittenberg.  Luther put forward the statement that a man is saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone.  And, that Jesus and salvation are discovered from Scripture alone.  He became a wanted man.

Martin Luther was a prolific writer, teacher and pastor.  He was a man of great conviction, passion and influence.  He was man whose ideas reformed the entire church.  He affected issues such as a person’s place before God, literacy, freedom, democracy, music and singing and on and on.  Luther’s influence is felt even today, not only in our tradition, but in every tradition that speaks the Scripture and knows of Jesus’ love.

This weekend, we have special services, filled with excellent and appropriate music.  We will preach the Gospel.  We will gather at our Lord’s Table and we will celebrate our past, present and very bright future.  It’s going to be an exciting Sunday!  I hope you will attend a service and celebrate God’s grace and love as we have it,  500 years after Luther.

On Sunday evening, we have a celebratory dinner in the Walker Hall.  Dinner will be followed by a marvelous concert in the Sanctuary.  At this point, the dinner is sold out with over 400 people purchasing tickets.  I hope you can join us for the concert, which will be very inspirational and filled with outstanding music.

It is my hope you find appropriate pride and gratitude for our heritage, but even more, the legacy of people who are saved by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ.  I hope you will receive encouragement for your faith and life.  I hope you will take seriously and joyfully your walk with the Lord Jesus.  Jesus said in John 8, “you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.”  This love of Jesus and the truth of His kindness to us is the basis of our faith.  Our faith is that which brings confidence and drives our fear. 

God be with you and bless you in the Lord Jesus.

Pastor Timothy M. Klinkenberg

Cathedral Bells Spring Concert

Sunday, May 05, 2024, 4:00 PM
The Cathedral Bells, St. John’s premiere Handbell Choir, presents an inspiring concert. Alex Guebert - Director