WE NEED GOD TO RESCUE US FROM US
(Please read Ezekiel 36:22-28) Those who follow Jesus will have enemies. First, there’s the devil. He’s determined to do you everlasting harm. He “walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” (1…
THE MARRIAGE OF THE KING’S SON
(Don’t miss the shocking conclusion!) Online media providers know exactly what to promise the public to draw them in. “Don’t miss the shocking conclusion” is especially effective bait in that it not only compels the…
GOD’S GIFT OF SHEPHERDS
“The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed: Shepherd the…
THE AARONIC BENEDICTION
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. “The Lord bless thee, and…
THE GOD WHO SEES ME
For Hagar, the circumstances were desperate. She was young, alone, pregnant and penniless; a slave fleeing the harsh treatment of her mistress Sarai. Seventy miles lay behind. If her destination was home in Egypt, many…
THE WICKED VINEDRESSERS
A sense of entitlement is a corrosive cancer which blinds the soul to the goodness of our Lord and leads to a wide range of sin. In the Parable of the Wicked Vinedressers (Mathew 21:33-46),…
KNOW THE SCRIPTURES
Let us assume that a teacher who lived a thousand years ago had written an “autograph” [that is, a document hand-written by the author himself.] He had some students who appreciated the value of their…
SERVICE OF THE SACRAMENT: THE BENEDICAMUS
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. Our lives in this fallen…
WHAT WILL THEIR END BE?
“For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of…
WHEN TO PRAY, OR NOT
A visiting missionary to India recounted this prayer-experience. His mechanical pencil had run out of lead, and though he was in a large city, he had difficulty finding replacements. Shop after shop had none. He…