Author: Craig Owings
Ever wonder why we Lutherans use the form of worship we do? In this series we examine the depth and meaning of the various elements of our worship service, beginning with the history of Christian worship itself. Because of the lead time for Lutheran Spokesman submissions, the writing of this February issue article is being… Read More »Lutheran Liturgical Reform, Part 1 Read More
Hymn 400 “Take My Life and Let It Be”
Written by Craig Owings | September, 2016
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What is the greatest degree of commitment you could express toward someone? To say “I would die for you” certainly conveys very great commitment, but it is not an expression of the highest commitment. That would have to be “I would live for you.” There are, after all, many things worth dying for: your family,… Read More »Hymn 400 “Take My Life and Let It Be” Read More
Hymn 387 “Dear Christians, One and All, Rejoice”
Written by Craig Owings | August, 2016
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Most of those reading this magazine have, in all probability, known the blessed comfort of the Gospel from their earliest childhood. Brought up in Christian homes by godly parents, they have from their youth known the holy Scriptures, which have made them wise unto salvation through faith in Jesus Christ (II Timothy 3:15). But what if… Read More »Hymn 387 “Dear Christians, One and All, Rejoice” Read More
“Lord, Who at Cana’s Wedding-Feast”
Written by Craig Owings | July, 2016
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Hymn 620 is actually a prayer to Christ, offered in the context of a wedding ceremony. When at that wedding we sing “Thou dearer far than earthly guest,/ Vouchsafe Thy presence here” (verse 1), we are actually praying that Christ will be present at this wedding, even as He was present at the wedding in… Read More »“Lord, Who at Cana’s Wedding-Feast” Read More
Hymn 464 “Blest Be the Tie That Binds”
Written by Craig Owings | June, 2016
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It was just a small Baptist church, located in a poor rural area of the country and made up of parishioners who themselves possessed very little in terms of material wealth. The salary they were able to pay their pastor was barely adequate, often consisting partly of produce grown by the parishioners—which they gave him… Read More »Hymn 464 “Blest Be the Tie That Binds” Read More
A HYMN OF GLORY LET US SING (Fifth in a Series on The Lutheran Hymnal) Why do we celebrate Ascension Day? Although most Reformed churches today largely ignore the event as a calendar item, we Lutherans do not. Theologians actually have much to say about the doctrine of Christ’s bodily ascension. They use fancy Latin… Read More »Hymn 216 “On Christ’s Ascension I Now Build” Read More
Good Shepherd Theme (Psalm 23) Have you ever read one of those newspaper stories about the death of someone living the last decades of his life in poverty-level circumstances, who was later discovered to have had tens of thousands of dollars in cash stashed in various places around the hovel in which he had eked… Read More »“The Lord My Pasture Shall Prepare” Read More
Hymn 206 “Jesus Christ, My Sure Defense”
Written by Craig Owings | March, 2016
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A HYMN OF GLORY LET US SING (Fourth IN A SERIES) Easter What terrified thoughts and emotions might well torture the mind and grip the heart of an unbeliever facing imminent death! While still in good health and favorable circumstances, some unbelievers—if they ever think about the afterlife at all—might for a time delude themselves… Read More »Hymn 206 “Jesus Christ, My Sure Defense” Read More
Sin. The Cross. Darkness. Sorrow. Anguish. Scourging. Blood. Crucifixion. Death.
A significant number of modern American churches do not dwell on these themes—during Lent or at any other time. Instead, they try to avoid them. Such biblical elements are considered too negative for their members to hear, too much of a “downer.” Read More
New Year Last August, a Yahoo News headline asked, “What Causes Plane Crashes?” My immediate reaction was “Gravity?” Can you think of anything else as reliable as gravity? Gravity is so universal in our experience and so unfailingly reliable that we never even consider the possibility that it “may not work this time.” When we… Read More »Hymn 123 “Our God, Our Help in Ages Past” Read More
Advent Hymn 64 is an Advent hymn. Advent is a “three tense” season: the past and the future unite in our present worship. In the American Heritage Dictionary, the first part of the definition for the word advent is “The coming or arrival of something or someone that is important or worthy of note.” In… Read More »Hymn 64 “Jesus, Thy Church with Longing Eyes” Read More
One+One+One=One Do you understand? The Athanasian Creed says, in part, “So the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Ghost is God. And yet they are not three Gods, but one God.” Three Persons, each separate and distinct from the other two, each in and of Himself entirely God, and yet not three… Read More »One+One+One=One Read More
Hymn 263 “O Little Flock, Fear Not the Foe”
Written by Craig Owings | October, 2016
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Thousands would die that day in Lűtzen, Saxony. Everyone on both sides knew it. November 6, 1632. The Thirty Years’ War between the Roman Catholic Imperial forces and the Protestants had been raging for fourteen years. Camped in the fields of Lűtzen, the Protestant army of Sweden was awakened and assembled. They would attack the… Read More »Hymn 263 “O Little Flock, Fear Not the Foe” Read More
Ever wonder why we Lutherans use the form of worship we do? In this series we examine the depth and meaning of the various elements of our worship service, beginning with the history of Christian worship itself. Liturgy between Reformation and Now Liturgical changes between the Reformation and today were often due to national differences… Read More »Lutheran Liturgical Reform, Part 2 Read More
Ever wonder why we Lutherans use the form of worship we do? In this series we examine the depth and meaning of the various elements of our worship service, beginning with the history of Christian worship itself. When I first started attending my bride’s Lutheran church fifty-four years ago, I told her that I very… Read More »The Confession of Sins Read More
“Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost; As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.” Some Lutheran churches have begun using “contemporary worship” services and other somewhat casual formats instead of the traditional liturgy. The reason for that is often… Read More »The Gloria Patri Read More
Ever wonder why we Lutherans use the form of worship we do? In this series we examine the depth and meaning of the various elements of our Lutheran worship service. This quiz is about the Collect (pronounced “KAHL-ekt”). All of you probably recognize the Collect as a short prayer that comes after the Salutation and… Read More »THE COLLECT Read More
Ever wonder why we Lutherans use the form of worship we do? In this series we examine the depth and meaning of the various elements of our Lutheran worship service. (Note to the reader: There are many liturgical variations used in our fellowship, including some which eliminate the Gradual as part of the regular service.… Read More »THE GRADUAL Read More
Ever wonder why we Lutherans use the form of worship we do? In this series we examine the depth and meaning of the various elements of our Lutheran worship service. In sharp contrast to the “No creed but Christ” approach to the Christian faith, we affirm that God would have us believe and openly confess… Read More »THE CREED Read More
Ever wonder why we Lutherans use the form of worship we do? In this series we examine the depth and meaning of the various elements of our Lutheran worship service. What are your thoughts when the offering plate is passed during the church service or—in some of our churches—when you place your offering in a… Read More »THE OFFERTORY Read More