Worship Helps for All Saints Day

Art: The Triumph of Christianity Over Paganism (1868)

Artist: Gustave Dore

Dore portrays Christ, carrying a cross, surrounded by a host of angels, forming a circle, swords ready to attack, sweeping above pagan gods of every kind. It is through the victorious Christ that His saints can rest securely – both on earth and in heaven.

Worship Theme: All Saints’ Sunday -  We Look Forward to Life after Death

Our relationship with Christ does not end in death, but continues into eternal life. We will live with the Lord forever. Effects of sin like death and crying will be “the former things.” They will be long forgotten, counted among the casualties of the new heavens and new earth. We will see our Savior’s face, and he will take joy and delight in us!

Old Testament: Isaiah 26:1-4, 8-9, 12-13, 19-21 The Song of Judah

In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: We have a strong city; God makes salvation its walls and ramparts. ² Open the gates that the righteous nation may enter, the nation that keeps faith. ³ You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you. ⁴ Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord himself, is the Rock eternal. ⁸ Yes, Lord, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for you; your name and renown are the desire of our hearts. ⁹ My soul yearns for you in the night; in the morning my spirit longs for you. When your judgments come upon the earth, the people of the world learn righteousness. ¹² Lord, you establish peace for us; all that we have accomplished you have done for us. ¹³ Lord our God, other lords besides you have ruled over us, but your name alone do we honor. ¹⁹ But your dead will live, Lord; their bodies will rise— let those who dwell in the dust wake up and shout for joy— your dew is like the dew of the morning; the earth will give birth to her dead. ²⁰ Go, my people, enter your rooms and shut the doors behind you; hide yourselves for a little while until his wrath has passed by. ²¹ See, the Lord is coming out of his dwelling to punish the people of the earth for their sins. The earth will disclose the blood shed on it; the earth will conceal its slain no longer.

1. What is the “strong city” in verse 1? Who alone will live in that city? (verse 2)

2. The people of Isaiah’s day tried to find peace of mind in the strength of their city walls. What alone gives perfect peace? (verses 1,3,4)

3. What is the desire of the believer’s heart? (verses 8,9)

4. Critics of the Bible say that the Old Testament does not teach the resurrection of the body. Where is the resurrection taught in this chapter? What are some other Old Testament references to the resurrection that you can think of?

Epistle: Revelation 7:9-17 The saints coming from the tribulation

⁹ After this I looked, and there was a vast multitude from every nation, tribe, people, and language, which no one could number, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were robed in white with palm branches in their hands. ¹⁰ And they cried out in a loud voice: Salvation belongs to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!

¹¹ All the angels stood around the throne, the elders, and the four living creatures, and they fell facedown before the throne and worshiped God, ¹² saying: Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and strength be to our God forever and ever. Amen.

¹³ Then one of the elders asked me, “Who are these people robed in white, and where did they come from?” ¹⁴ I said to him, “Sir, you know.” Then he told me: These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. ¹⁵ For this reason they are before the throne of God, and they serve Him day and night in His sanctuary. The One seated on the throne will shelter them: ¹⁶ They will no longer hunger; they will no longer thirst; the sun will no longer strike them, nor will any heat. ¹⁷ For the Lamb who is at the center of the throne will shepherd them; He will guide them to springs of living waters, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.

5. What is the focus of worship throughout these verses?

6. Note the seven words of praise the angels, the living creatures, and the elders give God in verse 12. Compare these words of praise with those in 5:12. Which word is different? Can you venture a guess as to why they made this change?

Gospel: Matthew 5:1-12 The Beatitudes

When He saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain, and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. ² Then He began to teach them, saying: ³ “The poor in spirit are blessed, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs. ⁴ Those who mourn are blessed, for they will be comforted. ⁵ The gentle are blessed, for they will inherit the earth. ⁶ Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness are blessed, for they will be filled. ⁷ The merciful are blessed, for they will be shown mercy. ⁸ The pure in heart are blessed, for they will see God. ⁹ The peacemakers are blessed, for they will be called sons of God. ¹⁰ Those who are persecuted for righteousness are blessed, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs. ¹¹ “You are blessed when they insult and persecute you and falsely say every kind of evil against you because of Me. ¹² Be glad and rejoice, because your reward is great in heaven. For that is how they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

7. Look at each beatitude. What is the nature of each Christian blessing?

Answers:

1. The Israelites would have thought of Jerusalem, where God lived among them. In the context of God’s victory, it is the New Jerusalem, made up of all who trust in the Lord.

2. God’s salvation is our wall and rampart. If we trust in him, we will enjoy perfect peace.

3. The believers eagerly await the Lord to reveal his name and make great his “renown.” In general, the believer waits for the Lord to reveal himself in his acts of salvation.

4. The Lord will raise his people from the dead (verse 19). Other passages that teach this are Isaiah 25:8; Job 19:25-27; and Daniel 12:2.

5. The throne of God and the Lamb.

6. The word thanks is substituted for the word wealth. Considering that this vision portrays the end of God’s plan of salvation and the final victory of the saints in heaven, the word thanks is very appropriate. Note its position in the verse—at the very center.

7. a. Christians have given up pride in their own goodness and wisdom. Yet they are infinitely rich, because theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

b. They mourn over their sins and the suffering God’s people must endure; yet God himself will comfort them.

c. They let people step all over them and allow others to take their possessions and honor because in the end they will inherit the whole world.

d. The world hungers and thirsts for wealth, honor, and pleasure. For the sake of the kingdom of God, the believer gives up all of this. The world will never receive all it wants. But the believer will be filled.

e. The members of God’s kingdom show mercy to others. They will receive mercy from the Lord.

f. Members of the kingdom have hearts not clouded with lust or ambition, strife or envy. They live in the clarity of love and compassion because they know God’s love and compassion for them. They alone will see God.

g. Members of God’s kingdom make peace because they have experienced God’s peace. They imitate their Father and will be called children of God.

h. Members of God’s kingdom endure persecution for the sake of their faith. Yet even if they lose everything, they still have the kingdom.

i. All who endure suffering for the sake of the kingdom should rejoice and be glad, because great is their reward in heaven.

Putting your faith into action

Here’s a quotation from the Apology of the Augsburg Confession about honoring the saints:

"Our Confession approves honors to the saints. For here a threefold honor is to be approved. The first is thanksgiving. For we ought to give thanks to God because He has shown examples of mercy; because He has shown that He wishes to save men; because He has given teachers or other gifts to the Church. And these gifts, as they are the greatest, should be amplified, and the saints themselves should be praised, who have faithfully used these gifts, just as Christ praises faithful business-men, Matt. 25:21, 23. The second service is the strengthening of our faith; when we see the denial forgiven Peter, we also are encouraged to believe the more that grace truly superabounds over sin, Rom. 5:20. The third honor is the imitation, first, of faith, then of the other virtues, which every one should imitate according to his calling. These true honors the adversaries do not require. They dispute only concerning invocation, which, even though it would have no danger, nevertheless is not necessary." (Apology of the Augsburg Confession XXI.4-7)

A reading from the Book of Concord for All Saints Day

Regeneration is the beginning of eternal life as Paul says, “If Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness”. And, “Longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked.”  We certainly require good works, since we teach that faith arises in repentance and is bound to increase in repentance.  The godly can understand this better than the adversaries’ teaching about contemplation or perfection.  However, just as justification applies to faith, so also eternal life applies to faith.  Peter says, “Obtaining the outcome [or fruit] of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”  The justified are children of God and coheirs of Christ.  Afterward, because works please God on account of faith, they earn other bodily and spiritual rewards.  For there will be distinctions in the glory of the saints.

The adversaries call eternal life a reward, therefore, it is merited in a wholly deserving way by good works.  We reply. Paul calls eternal life a “gift”, because by the righteousness presented for Christ’s sake, we are made at the same time sons of God and coheirs of Christ.  John says, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life.”  Augustine says, “God crowns His gifts in us.”  Elsewhere it is written, “Your reward is great in heaven.” – Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Article V, Love and Fulfilling the Law (paragraphs 231-235)

728  Jerusalem the Golden

1  Jerusalem the golden, With milk and honey blest—

The sight of it refreshes The weary and oppressed:

I know not, oh, I know not What joys await us there,

What radiancy of glory, What bliss beyond compare:

To sing the hymn unending With all the martyr throng,

Amidst the halls of Zion Resounding full with song.

2  Oh, sweet and blessed country, The home of God’s elect!

Oh, sweet and blessed country That eager hearts expect,

Where they who with their leader Have conquered in the fight    

Forever and forever Are clad in robes of white.

Jesus in mercy bring us To that dear land of rest

Where sings the host of heaven Your glorious name to bless.

3  The Christ is ever with them; The daylight is serene.

The pastures of the blessed Are ever rich and green. 

There is the throne of David; And there from care released,

The shout of them that triumph, The song of them that feast.

To God enthroned in glory The Church’s voices blend,

The Lamb forever blessed, The Light that knows no end.

This twelfth century hymn, first conceived by Bernard of Cluny, depicts an idyllic, heavenly scene.  The hymn is gloriously set to the English folk tune THAXTED.

Text: Bernard of Cluny, 12^th century