Blessed Sacrament Lutheran Church

06/11/2026

“Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!” ~Luke 14:15

In the Collect for the Second Sunday after Trinity we pray:
O Lord, since You never fail to help and govern those whom You nurture in Your steadfast fear and love, work in us a perpetual fear and love of Your holy name; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Therein, we are reminded of God’s vigilance in work for us and in us. He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep, writes the Psalmist (Ps. 121:3b–4). He works for us in that He not only helps and governs–that is, provides for and upholds–the needs of the body by giving us our daily provision, but He does likewise for the eternal needs He knows that we have.

He daily and richly forgives our sin, and the sin of all believers in Christ and weekly, as He gathers us to the banquet (about which we will hear in the Gospel for this Sunday) to feed us with good things. He quenches the thirst of every sinner with the pure spiritual milk of the Word, which we are to desire as newborn infants. He satisfies the hunger of the righteous through the precious body and blood of His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.

Our gracious Lord also works in us, as the Collect acknowledges. Through His Word of Law, God works in us fear. For, we come to know ourselves as ones who have fallen short of the glory of God. Yet, through His precious Gospel, God also works love in us, for we love because He fi rst loved us in His Son, Jesus Christ, whose love is evidenced to us in that He laid down his life for us. Through His Word and by the power of the Holy Spirit, God is ever at work stirring in us a contrite heart, but, likewise, one that trusts in His unfailing love. May it be, dear Christians, that we rejoice to be gathered to His banquet hall and receive the good He gives.

Source: Pastor William's Parish Pfarrbrief for June 14, 2026, Second Sunday after Trinity.

05/30/2026

For the Feast of Holy Trinity we pray this Collect:
"Almighty and everlasting God, You have given us grace to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity by the confession of a true faith and to worship the Unity in the power of the Divine Majesty. Keep us steadfast in this faith and defend us from all adversities; for You, O Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, live and reign, one God, now and forever."

Therein it is acknowledged that faith in and confession of the Holy Trinity results from God’s gracious revelation. We would not know that God is One in Trinity and Trinity in Unity absent His own self-disclosure to us. We do not infer the Trinity from reason and sense, but through the revelation of God’s Word. We do not understand God as Trinity through rational or philosophical argumentation, but we rest upon what God discloses about Himself to us, both in
His Word, but principally through the revelation of the Son in the flesh.

The incarnate Son of God that discloses the Most Holy Trinity in clear and unequivocal terms when, at the end of the Gospel of Matthew, He commands that Baptism is to be in the name of
the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. We adore and believe in the Most Holy Trinity more than we understand the dogma.

In this Tri-unity of persons we see evidenced an eternal love, which also extends to usward. For love begets and gives life. Thus, the eternal God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, creates and gives life, redeems and gives eternal life, sanctifies and gives the holiness of life. We confess that the Father is unbegotten, the Son begotten of the Father, and the Holy Spirit proceeding from Father and Son. In this way, we declare not only their eternal relations and their unity, but, likewise, their distinctions as Three Persons. May God continue to bless and keep us in this one, true faith, even as He works to bring and to keep us in communion with Himself.

Source: Pastor Williams' Pfarrbrief for May 31 & June 7, 2026

05/24/2026

In the Collect for the Feast of Holy Pentecost we pray: "O God, on this day You once taught the hearts of Your faithful people by sending them the light of Your Holy Spirit. Grant us in our day by the same Spirit to have a right understanding in all things and evermore to rejoice in His holy consolation; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever."

Therein we pray for the light of the Holy Spirit, which He works through the light of revelation, namely, the Sacred Scripture. The Psalmist writes, In your light do we see light (Ps. 36:9). Christ comes into the world to enlighten every man, and is through the glorifi cation of the Son of God and promulgated the Son’s words that the Holy Spirit further accomplishes this labor of love from our gracious God.

Thus, in the Small Catechism, Luther associates the Holy Spirit, in particular, with our conversion and ability to believe the precious Gospel of our salvation. It is not by our reason or strength whereby we believe, but by the Spirit’s work. The Augsburg Confession echoes this when it states, [Through the Gospel and the Sacraments], as through means, [God] gives the Holy Spirit, who works faith, when and where he pleases, in those who hear the Gospel (AC V.2).

On Holy Pentecost, we will witness two confirmands make the good confession of our shared faith publicly, before God and our congregation. Keep them in your prayers. But, all the more rejoice that the Holy Spirit has kept these young men in the true faith and is the One who will produce such gracious and life-giving confessions from their mouths. To Christ be all the glory in the Holy Spirit to the praise of God, our heavenly Father.

Source: Pastor Williams, Pfarrbrief for Holy Pentecost, May 24, 2026

05/24/2026

BSLC observes the practice of First Communion prior to Confirmation - that is, admitting baptized children, typically around seven or eight years old, to the Lord’s Supper before they are confirmed. Children who desire to commune and are presented by their families receive instruction from Pastor Williams over the course of several weeks. After instruction, pastoral examination, and absolution, a child may be admitted to the Lord’s Supper.

This preparation introduces formal catechesis earlier and establishes it as a lifelong practice. Confirmation then builds on this foundation as a mature affirmation of faith—a faith long nourished by Word and Sacrament. When practiced with pastoral care and theological integrity, First Communion prior to Confirmation is not a departure from the Lutheran Confessions but a faithful expression of them, affirming the gifts of Christ and the centrality of grace in the life of the Church.

The Rite of First Communion appears in Lutheran Service Book: Agenda, a resource prepared by the LCMS Commission on Worship. A link to it appears in the comments below.

05/11/2026

To Christ be the glory! As the Gospel is purely preached and the Sacraments rightfully administered this little parish continues to grow.

"Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." Matthew 28-19-20

05/08/2026

Our Divine Service is at 3 p.m. It’s not the most traditional time, but it does have its advantages.

04/26/2026

“Divine Service – A Guide” is a brief overview of the Lutheran Divine Service and is available for all visitors at BSLC. Please ask a greeter for a copy.

This booklet walks through the Divine Service from beginning to end, including biblical and historical background, and gives an overview of common Lutheran practices during worship.

04/19/2026

What is a quia subscription to the Lutheran Confessions?

The Latin word quia means “because.” In theological usage, a quia subscription affirms the authority of the Lutheran Confessions because they explain Scripture in a way that is careful, accurate, and consistent with what Scripture actually teaches.

It is often expressed as follows: because the Lutheran Confessions are “a pure, clear, and correct exposition of the divine Holy Scriptures” (FCSD, 2006), we believe, teach, and confess the doctrines contained in them. The Confessions are true, not because they possess an authority independent of scripture, but because they are judged to be true by Scripture.

Not all Lutherans hold a quia subscription. You may also encounter the term quatenus subscription. Quatenus is Latin for “insofar as” or “to the extent that.” In this view, the confessional documents may be respected and used, but are not fully binding as a doctrinal standard. This represents a conditional or qualified acceptance of the Lutheran Confessions.

In practice, this is not really a subscription at all, since it does not differ fundamentally from what one might say about any other writings. A Christian could subscribe to anything “insofar as” it agrees with Scripture. Thus, a quatenus subscription does not confidently maintain that the Lutheran Confessions should be upheld because they are a true and faithful exposition of the Word of God. These differences are not merely theoretical; they shape identity and have real consequences. They influence seminary training, clergy ordination, church fellowship, inter-church relations and much more.

To learn more follow the links in the comments below.

Works Cited
Formula of Concord. (2006). Solid declaration. In P. T. McCain (Ed.), Concordia: The Lutheran confessions—A reader’s edition of the Book of Concord (pp. –). Concordia Publishing House. (Original work published 1577). ISBN 9780758668349

04/08/2026

“Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” - John 20:27

In the Collect for Quasimodo Geniti (Easter 2) we pray: Almighty God, grant that we who have celebrated the Lord’s resurrection may by Your grace confess in our life and conversation that Jesus is Lord and God; through the same Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

The Collect beseeches God for a persistence of the joy of faith in view of the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is possible that even a Christian comes into the season of the resurrection beleaguered. Such would not be terribly unusual, in fact. We do ourselves a disfavor if we demand everyone have a particular kind of interior disposition when the celebration of the resurrection arrives. Some come to the day of the resurrection distraught by horrific news from family and friends, others with recently-felt deaths of loved ones, others with a difficult financial position, still others with doubts or hidden disbeliefs.

Thus, we need the grace of God to enliven us to faith and confession that Jesus Christ is, indeed, risen from the dead and is both Lord and God. Coming to the day of the resurrection worn down, beleaguered, tired, frustrated, etc., is a common occurrence in the lives of many Christians. Such need to be told again and again, Christ is risen, which is the announcement that will, in time, turn our sorrow into joy. We pray, therefore, that God would ever enliven such in us, and more so also, we are grateful for His mercy in bearing with us in our weakness and our sin. Christ is risen!

Source: Adapted from Parish Pfarrbreif, Pastor Williams, for April 12, 2026.