Intro Today, we focus on two sets of letters written to non-Christians. The first is by Pliny the Younger, a provincial Roman governor; the second by Justin Martyr, a Christian. Both lived in the 2nd century. Pliny the Younger (61- 113 AD) As the Governor of Bithnia, in 112-13 AD, Pliny wrote to Emperor […]
Church History, Lesson 9: Letters to Non-Christians about Christ and His Church
September 7, 2017 by
Mark 7:31-37: Not Only What, but How
September 7, 2017 by
The entrance and exit for our words—hearing and speaking. Into our ears, words enter; out of our mouths, they leave. For our vocal cords to form coherent sounds, our eardrums need those sounds to vibrate on them. By listening, we learn to speak. A little child makes many random noises, later mimicking the pitch, timber, […]
The Apocrypha, Lesson 18: Lutheranism’s Love Affair with Sirach
September 7, 2017 by
Intro For this first lesson on Sirach, we are breaking protocol. When your pastor started preparing this lesson, he found an extensive use of Sirach in the history of the Lutheran Church. So, he decided in the lesson to cover some of Sirach through our Lutheran fathers, continuing with the rest later. Martin Luther […]
Church History, Lesson 8: The Last of the Apostles’ Students, Ignatius and Polycarp
August 30, 2017 by
Intro Ignatius Ignatius of Antioch (35-107 AD) was the 3rd Bishop of Antioch. Late in Emperor Trajan’s reign (98-117 AD), he was arrested for being a Christian, chosen because of his status and profile. So, he was taken to Rome under a guard of 10 soldiers to face martyrdom. On the way, Christians gathered to […]
Genesis 4:1-15: Sin is Crouching at Your Door
August 27, 2017 by
In the store you are picking up a couple of items and close by a child is throwing a tantrum. Angry words, screaming, the stomping of feet, echoes in every aisle. Nothing the frustrated parent says calms the raging child. Of course, he tries to reason, but to no effect. A few minutes later, an […]
The Apocrypha, Lesson 17: The Wisdom of Solomon, Part 3
August 26, 2017 by
Intro We earlier learned Jesus is Wisdom incarnate. The Church understood the Apocrypha book of Wisdom to foretell Christ’s coming (“O Come, O Come, Emmanuel). Today, we continue exploring what this book has for us to learn. We Make Our False Idols so We Can Do What We Want In Acts 15, the Church’s […]
Church History, Lesson 7: The Beginning of the Rise of Rome
August 25, 2017 by
Introduction History teaches us the Apostle Peter was the first recognized Bishop of Rome, though Paul did precede him as acting bishop while under house arrest. The sources are silent, however, about Peter’s years in Rome, since he only served a short time before being martyred in 64 AD. The first leader to come […]
The Apocrypha, Lesson 16: The Wisdom of Solomon, Part 2
August 25, 2017 by
Intro Last week, we stopped at the end of chapter 6. Today, we pick up, exploring select verses of Wisdom. Wisdom Described and the Christ to Come Remember, “wisdom” is a feminine-gendered word the Greek, so “she” is used to describe “her/him/it” irrespective of whom or what “she” refers. Wisdom 7:23-24, 8:1: 23 Wisdom […]
Luke 19:41-48: The Thresher, the Threshing Floor, and the Temple
August 25, 2017 by
A threshing floor is a violent place, of division and separation. A farmer takes the cultivated harvest and casts the grain stalks on to a compacted floor. Sinewy muscles stretch and strain, beating and separating the seed’s outer bran from the starchy inside. Now, if wealthier, an ox will trudge through this crushing task, not […]
