With Christmas just past, we are reminded that the event of the birth of God’s Son was surrounded by prayers and songs—especially songs of praise. The choir of holy angels over a Bethlehem field was… An Old Testament Christmas
“I’M GLAD YOU ASKED!” (TWENTY-THIRD IN A SERIES) Pastors Answer Frequently-Asked Questions It may be surprising to learn that the Bible doesn’t say a lot about homosexuality. It is mentioned specifically in just a handful… “What Does the Bible Say About Homosexuality?”
The ROAD TO REFORMATION In preparation for the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we are presenting a brief survey of the life of Martin Luther. The series will culminate in the October 2017 issue… Life of Luther — School Days
Imagine yourself as a Jew living in Jerusalem in the year we now call A.D. 301. Roman
rule over Judea embitters your life. Your religious leaders—the Pharisees—have burdened you with numerous invented religious “laws” which they say you must follow in order to be righteous in God’s eyes. Sadducees, the other prominent Jewish social/ religious/political element, control the high priest’s office and hold a majority in the Sanhedrin (the Jewish high court); but they are wealthy aristocratic appeasers of Rome who are entirely out of touch with, and much despised by, the common Jewish residents of Judea.Hymn 58 “O Lord, How Shall I Meet Thee”
“Therefore, when He came into the world, He said: ‘Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, But a body You have prepared for Me. In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You had no pleasure.… How Far Is It to Bethlehem?
(Please read Judges 9 for the setting, people, and events to which this devotion refers.) Sunday school students are fascinated by the characters in the book of Judges—Deborah, Gideon, Abimelech, Samson. . . . You… Your Enemy May Be Closer than You Think
Fraternal insurance is not provided by an insurance company, but rather by a fraternal benefit society. Fraternals were developed in the 1800’s as a way for people to join with others who shared a common… What’s Wrong with Fraternal Insurance?
Surprises. They make up a big part of Christmas anticipation, don’t they? Packages of all shapes and sizes begin to appear under the tree, and with them the growing expectation of wonderful, exciting surprises. Who… Surprise!… Again!
If William Walsham How, the author of this hymn, saw it in The Lutheran Hymnal, I think he might not entirely approve. The words in our hymnal are his, but the order is not; and three of the original stanzas have been left out.
In this long hymn, How develops the theme of the Church Militant1 looking to the Church Triumphant2 as an example and encouragement to us in our daily battles, finally culminating in the glorious return of Christ on Judgment Day. That’s a multi-part theme, which How developed in a logical and chronologically progressive manner. Unfortunately, that careful development has been somewhat weakened in our version due to the omission of three verses and a change in the placement of one verse.Hymn 463 “For All the Saints, Who from Their Labors Rest”
“Therefore it was necessary that the copies of the things in the heavens should be purified with these, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ has not entered the holy… The Real Thing
