No matter how many times we hear this good news, it never stops being good news.
Our faith is precisely where Paul puts it, namely, in the blood of Christ.
Just as trick-or-treaters arrive at doorsteps as beggars, we come to the Lord’s table with nothing to offer but our sin and need for forgiveness.

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God uses the fifth commandment to protect us from selfishness, prevent us from only thinking about our needs, and to drive us to Christ and our neighbors.
It’s easy to slip into thinking about forgiveness solely in terms of our authority over it.
We now stand holy and blameless before our Heavenly Father as his own dear children, and we are set free to serve our neighbor in love.
Christians are in a unique position to show the world something truly other-worldly. We are free from living in our world as if it contained all there is.
The Gospel is gift, pure and simple. It is backwards. It is upside down. It is foolish. And as long as people are sinners, it is as relevant as ever.
Christ crucified is at the heart of both our freedom from sin and death and our freedom to serve and love our neighbor.
Our freedom as Christians is not a form of independence. Our freedom in Christ comes from our dependence on him.
You who would be a law unto yourself, Christ is the gospel unto you, proclaiming you forgiven.
This is an excerpt from Adam Francisco’s conclusion in “The Freedom of the Christian” written by Martin Luther and translated and edited by Adam Francisco (1517 Publishing, 2020). Pgs. 57-59.
What is it that the 13th session actually has to say about the Eucharist, and how does it compare to what Luther and the reformers confessed about the Lord’s Supper?
Understanding that I am completely free in Christ allows me to read the injunction to “love my neighbor as myself” as a promise instead of a threat.
As God in his mercy enacted his plan to redeem his loved ones, he took them step by step. In the process of redeeming every part of us, he sent us prophets like Moses.