By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned. Romans 5:12
It was always hard explaining to confirmands that we commit sins of "omission" and "commission." All too often they thought sins of omission were sins we should have done, but didn't.
At long last I think I've stumbled on a story which explains the difference. It begins in Colorado Springs when, early on a Sunday morning Anthony Pettiford ran into the local 7-Eleven. Understand, going into the 7-Eleven was not Pettiford's sin of omission. Leaving his car unlocked, with his keys in the ignition, and his three-year-old son in the back seat was.
During the short time Pettiford was in the store, somebody did a deliberate sin of commission, when he stole Pettiford's vehicle, along with his child. The intentional sins kept coming when, four blocks later, the thief dumped the three-year-old at the side of the road. Generously, he also left the child's bag containing some soy milk, a sippy cup, two diapers, wipes and pajama bottoms.
The little boy carried the bag through the snow, up 14 stairs and knocked on Traci Gilbert's second-story apartment door. "Help me. I'm cold," the child said when Gilbert opened her door. Eventually, a policeman was flagged down, and the child ended up being reunited with his dad. Dad has not, as of this writing, been reunited with his 1995 white Chrysler New Yorker.
After reading that story the first thing I thought was are you kidding? Both these guys have done some things which are both dangerous and wrong. The second thing I thought was they're just like the rest of us.
Now we may not leave our child in the back-seat of our car, so he may be kidnapped; and most of us won't steal a car with a child in the back seat.
Even so, we all commit sins of omission and commission. Think a bit and you will find something which fits into both of those categories. And because that's so, as the Scripture verse for today says, "Death has passed upon all men."
Thankfully, there is a rest of the story.
The rest of the story tells how God, in spite of our sinful condition, sent His Son to take our place. We sin, but Jesus didn't. We transgress, but He refused. We get tempted, but He resisted. Jesus did the job so well, so completely, that when He gave up the ghost, He could say, "It is finished."
And the work of saving us was ... finished, that is.
Now to all who sin (which means all of us), the Holy Spirit extends an invitation of faith. It is an invitation that provides complete coverage of every sin and total forgiveness to every sinner who believes.
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, forgive my sins and grant me the forgiveness that comes through Jesus. In His Name. Amen.
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YESTERDAY'S QUIZ: According to Psalm 103, who is supposed to praise the Lord? "Praise the Lord, O My Soul!" "Praise the Lord, you His angels".... "All His heavenly hosts", and "all His works". (Good job Dianne!)
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TODAY'S QUIZ: What does the word "Hallelujah" or "Alleluia" mean?
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CATECHISM
Question: Do people still have the image of God?
Answer: No, the image was lost when our first parents disobeyed God and fell into sin. Their will and intellect lost the ability to know and please God. In Christians God has begun to rebuild His image, but only in heaven will it be fully restored.
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CHURCH CALENDAR
Thurs- National Day of Prayer Breakfast 6:30am; Prayer service 7am
Fri- Ladies Aid preparing for Saturday's luncheon all day; Also preparations for the tailgate and rummage sale
Sat- Tailgate and rummage sale 7am-1pm; Ladies Aid luncheon, craft, and bake sale 7am-1pm; worship 5pm
Sun- early Bible study 8am; worship 9am; Sunday school 10:15; worship 11am
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NEWS:
National Day of Prayer
Breakfast
St. John's Lutheran Church
950 South Hwy. 47
Warrenton, MO 63383
Thursday – May 3, 2012
Continental Breakfast: 6:30 AM – 7:00 AM
(overflow area of the church sanctuary)
Devotion and Prayers: 7:00 AM – 7:30 AM
Pastor Jeremy Klaustermeier
Organist: Mr. Gene Hilgendorf
(The church will be left open until 12:00 PM
for those wishing to come by and pray)
EVERYONE IS WELCOME!
RSVP would be appreciated 456-2888, but not necessary
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LADIES AID LUNCHEON, CRAFT, AND BAKE SALE THIS SATURDAY 9am-1pm!!!
Come and enjoy a wonderful lunch and buy some very tasty baked goods to take home!
Get your mom or grandma something very nice and homemade for Mother's Day!!
along with that there will also be a
TAILGATE AND RUMMAGE SALE THIS SATURDAY, MAY 5, 7am-1pm
This is held in conjunction with the Ladies Aid Craft and Bake Sale and Luncheon
Two ways you can help.
1. You can donate GENTLY used items to Little Lambs who will sell them under the pavilion that day. You can buy a parking spot or two or three for $10 a piece and sell your own things
Donations are going to the purchase of a "hands on" science lab and curriculum for Little Lambs.
Drop of dates are April 30-May 4.
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ALPHA CLASS CONTINUES THIS WEEK AND EVERY WEEK! TUESDAYS at 6:30pm!!! Bring a dish to share for the potluck!!
Everyone is always welcome even if you haven't been to a class yet! _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
HELP TO FEED HUNGRY KIDS IN WARREN COUNTY WITH OPERATION BACKPACK
In the preschool room there is a box that you can put food in to feed extremely low income children in Warren County. Many of these kids get fed every day at school for breakfast and lunch, but what about the weekend? What the food listed below does for many of these children is gets them through the weekend when food is especially scarce.
If you want more information about this program or you want to donate money to this causeyou can call Erin Waters at 359-9219 or email her at erinwaters@centurytel.net.
Here is the list of food you can bring
cereal (single serve sizes)
oatmeal (instant packets)
hot chocolate mix
juice boxes
peanut butter
jelly (squeezable bottles)
soup
spaghettios or beefaroni
mac and cheese
corn
green beans
granola bars
fruit snacks
pudding cup
raisin boxes
applesauce cups
fruit cups
cereal bards
pretzels
individually wrapped crackers or cookies
bread
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STEWARDSHIP SPOLIGHT FOR THE MONTH OF MAY IS LUTHERAN WORLD RELIEF AND HUMAN CARE
Lutheran World Relief is often the first to arrive when disaster strikes in this country and around the world. If you care to donate to this cause make your checks payable to St John's and clearly makr the designated envelope for Lutheran World Relief. As always these donations should be over and above your normal tithes and offerings.
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