Almost out of the blue, the Bible introduces us to Abram. From the faithful line of Noah’s descendants, from Noah’s son, Shem, comes the first of the great patriarchs: “Abraham the Hebrew” (Genesis 14:13). Abram lived in Ur (today in Iraq), a city known for its prosperity. Abram was wealthy. So, when God told Abram […]
From Adam to Jesus: The Rainbow
November 17, 2012 by
Priestly Service Last week, in our lesson at least, God finished creating the world. We also saw how Moses described the world’s creation in much the same way as the Tabernacle/Temple’s construction. What was God doing through such crafted literary accounts? He wanted His people to see, after further meditation, that the Garden of Eden […]
From Adam to Jesus: The Sabbath
November 10, 2012 by
The eternal love story told to us in Scripture begins in a simple way: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Without toil or a “big bang,” God simply speaks creation into existence. 2 Maccabees 7:28: Look at the heavens and the earth and see everything in them, and recognize that God […]
From Adam to Jesus, Lesson 1
November 1, 2012 by
Learning to Read the Old Testament with a Christian Heart and Mind Introduction Many of us have started to read the Old Testament with a blessed purpose: to learn God’s truths. So, we start on page one, as we do with any other book. Fortunately, Genesis has many captivating stories. Later, in Exodus, we even […]
Revelation, Lesson 18, Epilogue
October 27, 2012 by
We now find ourselves at the epilogue of Revelation. This section not only concludes the visions of chapter 21-22, but also of then entire book. This we can see when we compare the book’s epilogue with its prologue. Prologue Epilogue “the time is near” (1:3) “what must soon take place” (22:6) The […]
Revelation, Lesson 17: The New Heaven and the New Earth
October 19, 2012 by
In Chapter 20, John briefly described the end of the old creation: “Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them” (20:11). We also find John being brief here, as he describes the new creation […]
First Communion during the Lutheran Reformation
October 16, 2012 by
This is our pastor’s article for SOTHLC ‘s November newsletter. Today, almost all of us have grown up seeing infant baptism as the norm. Later, a baptized child would finish confirmation around the 8th grade, and then he would receive his first communion. That is what is normal for us. Yet, throughout history, we […]
God’s Channels of Grace
October 15, 2012 by
This article was originally planned for SOTHLC’s November newsletter from our Stewardship Committee. They have chosen, instead, to publish another article. The other article will be forthcoming. God calls us to be His instruments, bringing the living reality of Jesus to others around us. We are channels through which God seeks to grant His blessings. Perhaps, you’ve […]
Revelation, Lesson 16: Christ and Satan
October 13, 2012 by
The Millennium (20:1-6) After Revelation covered Christ’s defeat of Satan’s earthly agents in chapter 19, we now see the defeat of Satan himself. Yet, we see Revelation describe this in two parts with Christ’s 1,000-year reign in between. We must also note that John did not say at the start of this section, “And after […]
Revelation, Lesson 15: Christ’s Final Victory
October 6, 2012 by
Last week, we saw the only time Revelation showed what anti-Christic worship looked like, of course from an eternal perspective. It was full of lament. Now, in contrast, we again see what worship looks like in heaven. We also see a similarity among the worship scenes in heaven in Revelation. Chapters 4-5 Chapter […]
