Sermon: Wittenberg Academy – Sept 8

8 September 2019

Text: Phil 1:1-20

In the name of + Jesus.  Amen.

“Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”  This is how St. Paul opened his letter to the Philippians, and this is an appropriate opening to our 2020-2021 school year at Wittenberg Academy.  

 St. Paul begins this joyous letter with thanksgiving to God, calling to mind the “partnership in the gospel” that he shared with the Philippian Christians, as he addressed the letter: “to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons.”  And it is also my joy to begin this new year of grace in our educational journey together with you, the saints of Wittenberg, with the pastors and the teachers and all of the other servants of our school.  For we are all partners in the Gospel as we ply our vocations together: students, parents, faculty, staff, and administration.  

 And like St. Paul, I give thanks to God for our school, for those who teach, for those who learn, for those who serve, and also for parents, whose sacrifice in love for their children also makes it possible for us to partner in the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

 And though his letter to the Church at Philippi was joyful in tone, St. Paul wrote from prison.  And while none of us are in prison, dear friends, I know that many of our churches are still under strict restraints, and some are still unable to meet due to the virus.  We have all suffered in many and various ways as a result of this pandemic and the restrictions – not to mention our burning cities and deep divisions that plague our country.  And yet, we give thanks to God just as did St. Paul, for we “are all partakers with [him] of grace.” 

 And I know that the prayer of our school for our students as we set out on the journey of a new school year together, dear friends, is indeed St. Paul’s prayer: “that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.” 

 Amen.

 In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.