Why Go to Church Every Sunday?

The late professor Martin Scharlemann said somewhere that a pastor’s job is “to interpret reality theologically.” Don’t we all want to understand what’s going on in our lives in light of God’s Word? And when we do, we’re better equipped to share our faith during the week, as Peter says, “being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15). If sermons and Bible studies don’t seize on some of what’s happening “out there,” then our faith easily gets compartmentalized to an isolated hour rather than engaging us with the Word for our vocations during the week.

Jesus seized on teachable moments all the time. In yesterday’s Gospel, Luke 4:31-44, He used illness and demon possession to attract people to His teaching about the kingdom. In next Sunday’s Gospel, Luke 5:1-11, He shows an empathy for Simon’s work that netted converts to His mission. Gospel lesson after Gospel lesson, Jesus uses the stuff of daily life to teach about the Kingdom of God. During the week you and I interact with the culture “out there.” Those encounters can stir up our emotions and we experience the feelings of others. The local and national news unsettles us. Our attitudes are subtly shaped through opinions shared on our devices, that’s peer pressure. All this and more throughout the week provide teachable moments for your congregation.  

Not to lay this only on the pastor. A congregation needs a culture of asking, “What does this mean? How do the dynamics of Law and Gospel, the two kingdoms, and the like illustrate what we’re experiencing in our lives and this American culture?” When the disciples didn’t get it, when they “couldn’t interpret reality theologically,” they asked Jesus. “Those around him with the twelve asked him about the parables.” “With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it. He did not speak to them without a parable, but privately to his own disciples he explained everything” (Mark 4:10, 33-34).

Compare how much time you’re in church to how much time you’re being influenced by things “out there.” If we don’t have reality interpreted theologically every Sunday in church, we’re more susceptible to being drawn away from the Word. It’s insidious and it’s scary. “Pay attention to what you hear” (Mark 4:24).

From the Meyer Minute, February 4, 2019
Rev. Dr. Dale Meyer
President, Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, M\issouri