A Window to the Unseen World
STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. By faith we understand that the…
Series
“How do confessional Lutherans differ from others regarding Baptism?”
“I’M GLAD YOU ASKED!” (TWENTY-Eighth IN A SERIES) Pastors Answer Frequently-Asked Questions Some of the differences in the ways that Christian churches conduct Baptisms are merely matters of custom and logistics. Other differences surrounding Baptism…
Hymn 436 “The Lord’s My Shepherd, I’ll Not Want”
A HYMN OF GLORY LET US SING (EIGHTEENTH IN A SERIES) This hymn is a metrical translation of the 23rd Psalm—a psalm of comfort. Most psalms of comfort (for example, Psalm 91) speak words of…
Behind the Scenes
GEMS FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT He is known to history as “Cyrus the Great”; born 590 B.C., died 529 B.C. A skilled military strategist, Cyrus united the tribes of Persia (modern-day Iran), defeated the Medes…
Confident in Christ
STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT “Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive…
“How do Lutherans differ from other churches on the Lord’s Supper?”
“I’M GLAD YOU ASKED!” (TWENTY-SEVENTH IN A SERIES) Pastors Answer Frequently-Asked Questions Generally speaking, all Christian churches fall into one of three categories: Roman Catholic, Lutheran, or Reformed/Protestant. Though they share some teachings in common…
“This Joyful Eastertide” WS 733, LSB 482
A HYMN OF GLORY LET US SING (SEVENTEENTH IN A SERIES)
Death seems final to us. Leaving the room where a loved one has just drawn that last breath, we don’t expect to turn around and meet him for lunch the next day. Our general experience is that the dead stay dead.
Yet it has happened in history, more than once, that the dead have come back to life. Lazarus (John 11:43-44) and the multitudes who came forth from Jerusalem’s tombs (Matthew 27:51-53) to name some. It is foolish to contend, as some have done and others still do, that there is no possibility of resurrection from the dead.
Our great God and Savior Himself, the Lord Jesus Christ, was dead but now is living. It is His real, physical resurrection that we celebrate each spring in the processional hymn by George Woodward (1848-1934): This joyful Eastertide Away with sin and sorrow! / My love, the Crucified, Has sprung to life this morrow. So death’s finality has been proved false yet again (Matthew 28:5-6).
The Man In the Fire
GEMS FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT Any Sunday School student worth his salt knows of the three men in the fiery furnace. They might even remember their names — Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego—and that these three…
Christian Crosses are for Your Good
STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT “But recall the former days in which, after you were illuminated, you endured a great struggle with sufferings: partly while you were made a spectacle both by reproaches and tribulations,…
From Recluse to Scholar: 1506-1507
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…