It Is of the Lord’s Mercies That We Are Not Consumed
“Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian. And he led the flock to the back of the desert,… Read More »It Is of the Lord’s Mercies That We Are Not Consumed
Articles
Redemption Lutheran Church Lynnwood, Washington
A SLICE OF LIFE IN THE CLC Snapshots of Congregations from Around the Church of the Lutheran Confession “Give unto the LORD the glory due… Read More »Redemption Lutheran Church Lynnwood, Washington
The Ongoing Conversation
Lutheran theologian A.L. Graebner wrote of Christ’s ascension into heaven that it was “the glorious termination of His visible conversation with His church on earth” (Outlines of Doctrinal Theology). Writing in 1898, he was using the word conversation in the older sense of interaction. During His time in this world, especially during His three-year public ministry, Christ interacted visibly with His fellow human beings. Also after His resurrection, He appeared visibly to His disciples and spoke to them during a period of forty days. But then He was taken up into heaven as His disciples watched, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. After that there were only a few extraordinary appearances of Christ such as those to Paul (1 Corinthians 15:8) and John (Revelation 1:10-18).
But wasn’t Christ’s time in this world also a conversation in the sense in which we use the word today? In His ministry as recorded in the four Gospels, Christ engaged His people in a three-year conversation. That was a conversation that was truly unique, in which the only begotten Son in the bosom of the Father declared to man the unseen God.Read More »The Ongoing Conversation
A New Covenant
STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT “For if that first covenant had been faultless, then no place would have been sought for a second. Because finding… Read More »A New Covenant
Rahab — A Reformed Prostitute
Sex sells, is sold, and enslaves human hearts. Businesses use sexual messages and imagery in their advertisements to sell their products. Human bodies are sold… Read More »Rahab — A Reformed Prostitute
Redeemer Evangelical Lutheran Church Sister Lakes, Michigan
When a small Lutheran congregation was organized in the southwest corner of lower Michigan in January 1963, the name Redeemer was chosen. Over the years,… Read More »Redeemer Evangelical Lutheran Church Sister Lakes, Michigan
I Will Fear No Evil
Plockhorst – public domain, originally published before 1923 in UK and USA.
Violence is on the rise!
There are shootings in schools, bombings in coffee shops, heavily-armed militia marauding in the streets. Terrorism has the world gripped in fear. Nowhere is safe! Immorality is rampant! The world demands recognition and acceptance of all the sins of the flesh. Churches have become corrupt! As we look forward to celebrating the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, Catholics and the large Lutheran bodies are working toward a restoration of full fellowship between the two groups. Ironically, the issues that still separate them today are not the issues that Luther fought to reform—many of those have already been surrendered by the Lutherans. What still separates them is the moral laxity of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), which accepts homosexuality and the ordination of women.Read More »I Will Fear No Evil
“We Have Such A High Priest”
“Now this is the main point of the things we are saying: We have such a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected, and not man. For every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices. Therefore it is necessary that this One also have something to offer. For if He were on earth, He would not be a priest, since there are priests who offer the gifts according to the law; who serve the copy and shadow of the heavenly things, as Moses was divinely instructed when he was about to make the tabernacle. For He said, ‘See that you make all things according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.’ But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises” (Hebrews 8:1-6).Read More »“We Have Such A High Priest”
Tour Choir Tryouts
TAKING THE GOSPEL ON TOUR In the second of this four-part series, seminary student Sam Rodebaugh shares his memories of trying out for the Tour… Read More »Tour Choir Tryouts
Luck Has Nothing to Do With It
“If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised.
And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith”
(1 Corinthians 15:13-14 NIV).
“Good luck! And, by the way, there’s no such thing as luck.”
This was the parting comment a Christian friend made to us as he prepared to climb into his van and return home from the Sunday morning service. We knew what he meant. It was his way of encouraging us to remember that our lives aren’t guided by blind chance. We have an almighty Lord Who is at our side every moment, Who controls all events in the lives of His believers for their good.
Someone might ask, “What’s the guarantee of this?” A good answer (short but sweet) is, “EASTER!” We celebrate Easter with gusto and a multitude of hallelujahs because we know it is our heavenly Father’s assurance that the One Who died on the cross, Whose body was laid in the grave, also arose triumphantly. He is now orchestrating all happenings in the world at large and in our personal lives so they help us to attain a blessed end.
What would your life be like if the angel’s message, “He is not here, He is risen!” were a fairy tale? Then everything you believe about Jesus would be a mirage. The wall of sin that separated you from your God would still be there. Death would be pursuing you as an invincible foe. Your hope of heaven would be a delusion. The devil would have reason to celebrate, for it would mean he had scuttled Jesus’ mission as mankind’s Savior . . . IF the events of Easter didn’t happen.Read More »Luck Has Nothing to Do With It