Lutherans Believe That Every Christian Has A Part In Administering God’s Grace In The World

We’re two lessons into our Sunday morning adult ed class on “Grace,” and already it is changing my perceptions and opening up fresh perspectives. The class is called DOWN + OUT – Where Grace Takes You.

The class consists of a six-part DVD discussion by several distinguished faculty members at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, MN. The supporting pedestals of the conversation were discussed in the first lesson: Justification and Vocation. We contemplated the idea that, through grace, God has justified us to serve – that is, to serve him in and through our vocation.

In yesterday’s lesson, we moved from the “up and down” concepts of the previous week to the “in and out” ideas of congregational life. We talked about the “priesthood of believers” (one of the basic concepts in the Reformation) and what our purpose is as we meet together for worship. And we learned the nuances of “vocation” and “call.”

If I’m understanding the course material correctly, I’m discovering that the grace of God leads us into a wonderful, freeing existence of becoming what he has created us to be. As our batteries are “recharged” by Word and Sacrament in congregational worship each week, we are empowered to live out our vocations as service to God – at home with the family, on the job at work and in our spare time with our friends.

Each of our actions in these various milieus is an expression of God’s grace at work in the world. For some strange reason he has chosen us to be the propitiators of his abounding grace. And he has done so in spite of our human frailties.

This prayer of Wendell Frerichs, from our class material, says it well:

Lord, what a curious way you have of bringing life and hope into your world, of working peace and justice, of showing compassion and love for all of your creatures. No hands but the hands of us, your servants; no feet but ours; no protection but such as we provide; no money but ours; no friends unless it be we; no shelter except we build it; no institutions unless we found them. Since it does seem to be so: Lord, be in our minds and in our understanding; Lord, be in our hearts and give us compassion; Lord, be in our feet to run your service; Lord, be in our eyes and be our insight; Lord be in our plans and be our hope; Lord, be in our present and give us a future. Amen