For the student: Read along, fill in the blanks, and write your answers on the lines. Your parent has the answers.
Step 1 · Understand the Collect
Most collects follow a five-part pattern: the address (the One to whom we pray), the reason (what God has done or promised), the petition (what we ask), the purpose (what we hope will result), and the ending (the closing that names the Trinity).
Almighty God, You have promised to be with Your Church forever. We praise You for Your presence in this place of worship and ask Your ongoing blessing upon those who gather here. Dwell continually among us with Your holy Word and Sacraments, strengthen our fellowship in the bonds of love and peace, and increase our faithful witness to Your salvation; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
1. Mark each part of the collect. Write the words that belong to each part.
2. One of the five parts has no separate clause in this collect. Which part is it, and where does it end up?
3. The collect names the means by which God dwells among us. What are they?
Step 2 · Understand the Gospel
Read the Gospel on your own.
Luke 19:1-10
1 He entered Jericho and was passing through. 2 And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus. He was a chief tax collector and was rich. 3 And he was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was small in stature. 4 So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was about to pass that way. 5 And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, "Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today." 6 So he hurried and came down and received him joyfully.
7 And when they saw it, they all grumbled, "He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner." 8 And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, "Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold." 9 And Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost."
1. Tax collectors were hated. Why?
2. Jesus says, "I must stay at your house." Why must He? Look at verse 10.
3. Did Zacchaeus give money in order to earn Jesus' visit? Look at the order of events.
4. Why does Jesus call Zacchaeus "a son of Abraham"?
Step 3 · Find the Collect in the Gospel
1. Find at least two places where a petition of the collect appears in the Gospel. Explain each one.
2. In the Old Testament reading for this day, Solomon asks, "Will God indeed dwell on the earth?" (1 Kings 8:27). How does the Gospel answer him?
Step 4 · The Small Catechism
The Third Commandment. Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we do not despise preaching and His Word, but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it.
Cross-reference. "And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another." (Hebrews 10:24-25)
1. Luther's meaning never mentions a day of the week. What does he say this commandment is about?
2. How does a church building serve the Third Commandment? Use the collect in your answer.
Think about it. If God is everywhere, why do we need a church? Read 1 Kings 8:27-29 and be ready to talk about it.
Step 5 · Wrap It All Up
1. Write a short collect of your own for our congregation. Use all five parts.
Pray today's collect together. Then answer:
2. What does Jesus do for you in this church?
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible. Small Catechism quotation from Luther’s Small Catechism with Explanation, © Concordia Publishing House.