The Lenten season is finished. And yet, we don’t move on to something better, even though we have broken our Lenten fast with the Easter feast. For what can be better for us than Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God who takes our sins away? In our Gospel reading, we find Jesus still fresh from […]
Augsburg Confession, Articles 3-4
April 26, 2014 by
AC III: The Son of God 1Our churches teach that the Word, that is, the Son of God [John 1:14], assumed the human nature in the womb of the blessed Virgin Mary. 2And so He has two natures–divine and human–inseparably joined in the unity of one Person: one Christ, true God and true man, who […]
Pastor Futrell Guest on Steadfast Throwdown
April 24, 2014 by
Our pastor was recently interviewed for a Lutheran program called “Steadfast Throwdown.” The subject of the program is the New Covenant as the Fulfillment of the Old. Since we are not within listening range of the station that will air the interview, you can hear the interview at two different times on the internet: – […]
Tradition in Christ’s Church According to the Bible
April 23, 2014 by
This is our pastor’s newsletter article for May, 2014. Today, many are practicing “Christian freedom” by living a way of life that is contrary to the Christian faith! One way of doing that is by seeing faith as only something personal, not communal. It’s both! Just read the New Testament. It’s true: no one can […]
Christ is risen! John 20:1-18; 1 Corinthians 15:1-11
April 20, 2014 by
Christos anesti! Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed. Alleluia! From St. John’s Gospel and the other gospel writers, Mary Magdalene, with some other women, went to the tomb early in the morning of the first day of the new week. In the dim, gray light, they wondered how they would move the stone away […]
Good Friday Sermon: Isaiah 53:3-7
April 18, 2014 by
We live in a market-driven, entertainment-fixated world. Shallow, entertaining sound-bites have replaced deep reflection. And in such a world, Good Friday is not merely a misstep but a different dance altogether: God’s dance of death to give us life. Nothing is entertaining about the cross. Drawing a smiley face on the cross does not change […]
Maundy Thursday Sermon
April 17, 2014 by
Today, we rarely use the word “mercy” in our everyday speech. But in the Church, it’s as common as the air we breathe. We pray in the liturgy: “Lord, have mercy on us.” When we do that, we echo the blind men who sought physical sight from Jesus in Matthew 9 and Luke 18. For […]
Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter
April 16, 2014 by
As Holy week of 2014 draws near to a close, we will have our final services of the week: Maundy Thursday, April 17th, is at 7:00 PM. This is a service when we commemorate Jesus instituting the New Covenant for us: His Holy Supper. Good Friday, April 18th, is when we observe Christ’s crucifixion and death […]
Matthew 21:1-11: Jesus Still Comes to Us
April 13, 2014 by
People confess what is within them by what they do. People show what they believe by what they do with their hands, feet, and head. For example, when a Lutheran kneels at the Communion rail, he confesses that before him is God, Jesus’ body and blood in the bread and wine. Look at what people […]
Augsburg Confession, Articles 1 and 2
April 13, 2014 by
Introduction to the Augsburg Confession When Luther finally realized that a person is made right before God because of Jesus Christ, he came to see more clearly how the Roman-Catholic Church had veered away from the historic, Christian faith. Rome’s teachings on repentance and the forgiveness of sins, especially as tied to indulgences, led Luther […]
