St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Bridgeport, NE

January Newsletter From the Pastor

2011-01-13T16:03:00.002-07:00

CHRISTMAS LEFTOVERS

The Christmas season has come and gone. The trees have been put up and are on their way down. We’ve heard the story of Jesus’ birth told from the pages of Scripture. Gifts have been given, some gifts exchanged, the gifts of money have been spent or saved, and gift certificates have been redeemed for valuable merchandise or tasty food. Some have had giant Christmas gatherings; others spent the season alone, lamenting the loss of their family.

After all the wrapping paper has been thrown away or recycled, after all the tears of joy or sorrow have been shed, what is left of this Christmas season?

For some, there is nothing left over. It has been just another time of the year to party or see long lost relatives. But now, it is back to everyday life, waiting for that next big time to get together, maybe Easter, or the 4th of July, or someone’s birthday. Some of us may feel that way, too. Sin has stripped everything that should be left over away. Gone is the Christmas refrain of “Joy to the World the Lord is come!” Gone is the Christmas peace of knowing that our Heavenly Father loves us so much He sent His only begotten Son.

Dear friends in Christ, that is precisely why Jesus came. He didn’t come to leave us with nothing once He had completed His task. He came to leave us with many leftovers! Not that horrible stuff that sits in the back of your refrigerator, but leftovers that are better than the best banquet feast. These “leftovers” are the peace that only God can provide, the joy of knowing that our Savior has not left us with nothing, but rather continues to provide all that we need to support this body and life, and the confidence that He has made everything right between God and us. Even though it may not seem like we have these valuable “leftovers,” it is most certainly true.

Do you have His Word? Have you heard His forgiveness? Have you been baptized? Do you eat His flesh and drink His blood? Then these “leftovers” are feeding and nourishing you! They are “left over” so that you may know that Christ has never left you. Continue to partake on them at every opportunity, for they will nourish you into eternity!

Enjoying “leftovers,”

Pastor Strawn

Christmas Worship Schedule

2010-12-20T16:56:00.000-07:00

Christmas Eve Candlelight Service with Holy Communion: Friday, Dec. 24 @ 7:00 p.m.
Christmas Day Service with Holy Communion: Saturday, Dec. 25 @ 9:00 a.m.
First Sunday after Christmas (2nd Day of Christmas) Service with Holy Communion: Sunday, Dec. 26 @ 9:00 a.m.
Children's Christmas Program: Sunday Dec. 26 @ 4:00 p.m.
Second Sunday after Christmas (7th Day of Christmas) Service with Holy Communion: Sunday, Jan. 2 @ 9:00 a.m.

Please join us for any or all of the celebration of our Savior's birth!

Confirmation and Midweek Begins!

2010-08-19T12:42:00.000-06:00

Our 2010-2011 Confirmation year will begin Wednesday, August 25 at 4:15p.m.

Our Midweek program for 4-6th grade will begin on Wednesday, September 8th at 4:15 p.m.

Please contact the church office for further details.

Pastor's Newsletter Column, July 2010

2010-06-29T20:57:00.000-06:00

Let Freedom Ring!
The sparklers sparkle and the firecrackers snap, crackle, and pop. All to celebrate our national independence. Historically speaking, “the rockets red glare” was to commemorate our freedom from the Throne of England, but has in recent years become a general celebration of patriotism, independence, and freedom; a favored and favorite hallmark of every individual in the United States of America. This freedom is so perfectly explained in the fourth stanza of the Star Spangled Banner:

O, thus be it ever when freemen shall stand,
Between their lov'd homes and the war's desolation;
Blest with vict'ry and peace, may the heav'n-rescued land
Praise the Pow'r that hath made and preserv'd us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust"
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

As we ponder the freedoms that God has granted us to have in our country, it is an appropriate time to also ponder how God, in His fatherly divine goodness and mercy sent His Son into human flesh to grant us freedom from the powers of sin, death, and the devil. As Paul has written in his letter to the Romans, “we know that our old self was crucified with Him… that we should no longer be slaves to sin—because anyone who has died has bee freed from sin.” (Rom. 6:6-7)

Sin no longer rules our life imposing itself on us. We are no longer bound to sin for sin no longer has any mastery over us. Instead, “you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.” (Rom.6:18) We are no longer bound to sin, instead we are bound to righteousness. As Jesus proclaims to His followers in St. Matthew 11:30 “My yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Our will is now bound to do the Father’s will, receiving His goodness and mercy freely. Bound to live in righteousness all the days of our lives. Freed from sin, bound to Jesus.

May we always thank God for the freedoms He has given to us in our country. May we always see that He has granted us a greater freedom; a freedom freely given to us to live eternally with Him through our Savior Jesus.

Lenten Series on the Catechism

2010-03-05T00:15:00.001-07:00

Lenten Series on the Catechism

3^rd Chief Part- The Our Father

When you pray, say…

Our Lenten services of preparation and repentance this year will follow with these themes drawn from the 3^rd Chief Part of the Catechism. Our order of service for the Lent Services will be Vespers, beginning at 7:00 p.m.

February 17^th Ash Wednesday Our Father, Who Art In Heaven

Imposition of Ashes and Divine Service with Holy Communion

February 24^th Lent 1 Hallowed Be Thy Name

March 3^rd Lent 2 Thy Kingdom Come

March 10^th Lent 3 Thy Will Be Done

March 17^th Lent 4 Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread

March 24^th Lent 5 Forgive Us Our Trespasses

April 1^st Maundy Thursday Lead Us Not Into Temptation

Divine Service with Holy Communion and the Stripping of the Altar

April 2^nd Good Friday Deliver Us From Evil

Tenebrae Service

April 4^th Easter Amen! Death Destroyed

Please join us for our Lenten meals and fellowship at 5:30 p.m. Then be nourished by God’s Holy Word as we focus on When You Pray Say…. May the Lord bless your Lenten journey this year.

Directions to St. Paul's

2010-02-01T23:30:00.000-07:00

St. Paul’s is located at the crossroads of 4 highways; Nebraska 26, 88, 385, and 92. We are 45 minutes from Scottsbluff and Sidney. For those touring west, we are on the intersection of multiple historic, scenic trails. We are also on the direct route to Yellowstone National Park (approx. 9 hours).

The Word of God

2010-02-01T22:37:00.006-07:00

We believe that the Word of God is living and active.The Bible is God’s Word, it doesn’t just contain God’s Word. To properly understand God’s Word, we must always distinguish the Law and the Gospel rightly. The main purpose of the Bible is not to live right or how to be saved. The main purpose of the Bible is to show us our Savior, Jesus. All of the Old Testament points forward to Him. All of the New Testament points back at Him. Since God’s Word is living and active, whenever we spend time in God’s Word, hearing it preached or taught, or study it, it will always convict us of our sin or show us our Savior, or both!

The Lord's Supper

2010-02-01T22:28:00.002-07:00

The Lord's Supper is celebrated at this altar in the confession and glad confidence that, as our Lord says, He gives into our mouths not only bread and wine but his very body and blood to eat and to drink for the forgiveness of sins and to strengthen our union with Him and with one another.
(1 Cor. 10:16) Our Lord invites to His table those who trust His words, repent of (turn from) all sin, and set aside any refusal to forgive and love as He forgives and loves us, that they may show forth His death until He comes again.

Because those who eat and drink our Lord's body and blood unworthily do so to their great harm,
(1 Cor. 11:23-29) and because Holy Communion is a confession of the faith, which is confessed at this altar, any who are not yet instructed, who are in doubt, or hold a confession differing from that of this congregation and the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, and yet desire to receive the Sacrament, are asked first to speak with the pastor on a day prior to the celebration of the Lord's Supper. We thank you for respecting our practice.

For your personal study:
Matt. 5:23f; 10:32f; 18:15-35; 26:26-39; 1 Cor. 11:17-34

AN EXPLANATION OF CLOSED COMMUNION
By Rev. Paul T. McCain
(taken from Communion Fellowship: A Resource for Understanding, Implementing, and Retaining the Practice of Closed Communion
in the Lutheran Parish)

The Lutheran practice of "closed communion" is often a thorny issue in our church. It is bound to cause problems when a member asks the pastor if a friend or loved one of another denomination may take communion and the pastor says no. It seems down-right rude! The reaction may be, "Who do you Lutherans think you are anyway! Are Lutherans better Christians than other people?" Unfortunately, the practice of closed communion is not very well understood. This leads to upset and frustration when the doctrine is put into practice. The best way to overcome these difficulties is with knowledge and understanding of what the practice of closed communion is really all about. It is important to understand first what Lutherans believe about communion, and then we can begin to understand the practice of closed communion.

At one time nearly all of the Lutheran church bodies in America (and indeed, most other Christian churches) practiced closed communion. Among Lutherans today only The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and a few other smaller Lutheran bodies retain this practice. In our church and others, only those persons who have been properly instructed in the meaning, use, and benefit of the Sacrament may receive the Sacrament. Practically speaking, this means that Holy Communion is offered only to those persons who are confirmed members in good standing of LCMS congregations and those church bodies in full pulpit and altar fellowship with us. It should be noted also that communion is not to be given to the unrepentant nor unbelievers. With this in mind it is to be understood that participation in Holy Communion is never a "right" to be "demanded" but rather a privilege which we receive with thanks and great joy. The pastor of the local congregation is responsible for deciding who is to receive communion and who may not receive communion at the congregation's altar, by virtue of his office as a called and ordained servant of the Word. Missouri Synod Lutherans will not wish to receive communion at non-Missouri Synod Lutheran churches for the same reasons that members of other church bodies should not want to receive communion at a Missouri Synod congregation.

Lutherans believe that Holy Communion is a sacrament-a very special gift from our Lord Jesus Christ. On the basis of Holy Scripture, we believe that Jesus Christ gives us his actual body and actual blood to eat and to drink, under the bread and wine, in this Sacrament. (See Mt 26:17ff; Mk 14:12ff; Lk 22:7ff; 1 Cor 11:23ff). We do not believe that the bread and wine are only symbols of Christ's body and blood, or that they merely represent Christ's body and blood. We take the Scriptures at face value and believe that the bread is the body of Christ and that the wine is the blood of Christ because Jesus said, "This is my body," and "This is my blood." We call this belief the doctrine of the Real Presence. We believe that when we receive the body and blood of Christ, under the bread and wine, God forgives our sins. This awareness causes us to be very careful in our celebration of the Sacrament. We know that those who do not discern the body of Christ in the Sacrament do so at their own risk. In other words, persons who are members of church bodies which do not confess the Real Presence of Christ in the Lord's Supper are better off not receiving it at our altar. In His Word, God says, "Whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord" (1 Cor 11:27).

The Sacrament of Holy Communion is not simply a personal, individual act. The celebration of Holy Communion is also a public act of confession. In other words, it testifies to our unity in the" teaching of the Apostles" (cf. Acts 2:42). When you receive the Sacrament at a church's altar, you are giving public testimony that you agree with that church's doctrinal position. This is why we believe, teach, and confess that Holy Communion is the highest expression of church fellowship. We believe that to agree about the Gospel is more than agreeing to some generalities concerning Jesus or the Bible. There is no such thing as a "generic" Christianity. When we commune together we testify to our agreement in the Gospel and all the articles of the Christian Faith. Holy Communion, in this sense, is a mark of confessing the Christian Faith.

When we decline to give Holy Communion to persons not of our church body, we are not doing so because we think they are "bad people" or because they are "not Christians." We practice a "closeness" at our communion rail because we sincerely believe that this is what the Word of God teaches and what God would have us do with his Son's precious body and blood. Closed communion is not meant to be a judgmental practice, in the sense that we are condemning people. It is a practice which preserves and upholds the truth and power of the Sacrament. It is a practice which we Lutherans feel protects those who do not believe the same things as we do. It is a practice which recognizes that a person's church membership does mean something. To belong to a church means to confess what that church believes and confesses. To commune at a church's altar is the highest expression of confessing oneness with what that church teaches. A person must determine for oneself if what one's church teaches is what the Word of God teaches. We respect each individual's decision in this matter, but we cannot in good conscience create the impression that differences between churches are of no significance. Because the differences between churches concern the Gospel of our Savior Jesus Christ, we know that the differences are important and do matter. This is why we choose to practice closed communion, a practice which is found in the historic, orthodox Lutheran Church since the time of the Reformation and a practice which can be traced back to the very early years of the Christian church. We hope that our beliefs will be respected by those who differ with us. We certainly do not intend to offend anyone or do we wish to create ill-will and hurt feelings. Hopefully, this brief explanation will help you or someone else understand that our love for the Sacrament, and our love for the individual, are the motivations for our practice of closed communion.

Worship

2010-02-01T22:27:00.003-07:00

The Augsburg Confession says: "The Church is the assembly of saints in which the Gospel is taught purely and the sacraments are administered rightly." This sums up what worship at St. Paul’s is all about.

God comes to us through Word and Sacrament (Baptism, Absolution, Lord’s Supper) and we respond with thanks and praise. In this sense, what takes place here is Divine Service, that is, God doing the work.

The form in which this takes has been handed down throughout the time of Jewish worship in the temple and the early Christian Church. Many portions of the service date back over 2000 years.

These forms have been compiled in Lutheran Service Book, which guides the worship life of the people of St. Paul’s. We use the various Divine Service settings on a church season basis to aid in familiarity and memorization.

According to the Scriptures encountering Christ and receiving His gifts are the whole reason Christians gather together as a Church and is a participation in and a foretaste of heaven itself.

Because worship is all about receiving Jesus, everything that happens in the service focuses on the places where Christ is present with His blessings (Word and Sacrament). Every part of the liturgy, every action, what you see and hear are intended to point us to Him.

God and Man

2010-02-01T22:26:00.002-07:00

We believe in the Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as confessed in the Apostles’ Nicene, and Athanasian Creeds.

This God, created, buys back and makes holy.

We believe that God sent His Son, Jesus to die on the cross to take away the entire world’s sin.

The Holy Spirit works through means, the Word of God and the Sacraments, (Baptism and the Lord’s Supper) to bring that forgiveness to all who believe.

Mankind needs this forgiveness because the first humans, Adam and Eve sinned. This sin has remained with us even today. Not only that, we continue to sin in our thoughts, words, and actions.

Man can do nothing to earn this forgiveness, it is given to us by grace through faith as a free gift. Because of this free gift, we have eternal life with Jesus.

History

2010-02-01T22:16:00.002-07:00

A mother’s humble, yet magnificent plea marked the beginning of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Bridgeport, through a letter to the Mission Board of the Northern Nebraska District for a pastor to minister to the spiritual needs of her family. This living symbol of what firm religious convictions can accomplish was demonstrated by the appointment of a pastor for part time work in the Bridgeport community and the gradual growth of a congregation.

Her letter brought the Rev. George Weber of Scottsbluff to Bridgeport in the spring of 1943. In addition to maintaining his pastorate at Scottsbluff, Rev. Weber held weekly services on alternate Sundays at the homes of Walter Schmidt, Willie Batterman and Walter Loseke for about six months.

Increased attendance and interest made necessary the use of District C-14 school house. At this time Mrs. Herman Blome and family and the Forrest Turvey families joined the congregation.

In 1944, the congregation made arrangements to use the Episcopal church in Bridgeport for Sunday afternoon services. This arrangement continued until the completion of the first church building was dedicated.

In 1945, the congregation called its first resident pastor, Rev. Alfred Hinz. With his arrival the church grew in membership and organization. In March of 1946, Rev. Hinz accepted a call to a pastorate in Eastern Nebraska, and again Rev. Weber took charge.

It was during this period that plans were formulated, after much serious deliberation, to acquire the congregation’s own place of worship. Under the guidance of Rev. Weber, this plan had become a reality, and construction of the church building was started in the summer of 1947.

Culmination of the faith of the members of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, characterized by work and sacrifice, the first church was dedicated in November, 1947.

Taken from the 25th Anniversary folder

About Us

2010-02-01T22:04:00.001-07:00

St. Paul’s believes that the Bible is God’s Word and not man’s. It does not contain any errors. We receive that Word in public through worship and Bible Study and privately as we read the Bible in our homes.

St. Paul’s believes worship should not reflect a particular time or place and that what takes place at worship connects us with all who have gone before us and who will come after us. Therefore we use the orders of worship that have been handed down throughout the ages.