Paul now finishes with his first letter to Timothy. Personal words from Paul to Timothy as an overseer, continued Read 1 Timothy 6:11-12 (starting on 12b) What had Timothy done “in the presence of many witnesses?” What does “confess” mean? How does Paul describe that confession? Why did Paul say that Timothy […]
Confession of St. Peter: Petros or Petra?
January 25, 2015 by
Texts: Mathew 16:13-20, Mark 8:27-38, Acts 4:8-13, and 2 Peter 1:1-15 Each Christian congregation is to be a living embodiment, in a particular place and time, of the Church of Jesus Christ. And that just makes sense. After all, don’t Christians believe that the Jesus in heaven is the same Jesus who rose from […]
Augsburg Confession, Article 25: Confession
August 18, 2014 by
The Augsburg Confession earlier covered the topic of Confession in Article 11. However, in Article 11, the focus was on absolution, not on confession itself. The purpose of this article was to show how highly Lutherans value Private Confession. This article also explains the abuses that the Lutheran churches have eliminated from the practice of […]
Romans 6:1-11: Baptized into Christ’s Death and Life
January 19, 2014 by
Water is the substance of life. We cannot live without it. Plants and animals cannot survive without it. We drink water to keep ourselves from dehydrating and dying of thirst. We use water for cooking and cleaning. We use water to wash ourselves, to make ourselves clean. So, it makes perfect sense that God would […]
John 20:19-23: The Forgiving and Retaining of Sins
April 7, 2013 by
What brings to someone God’s forgiveness? For example, why does baptism forgive sins but not watching a beautiful sunset? Why does the Lord’s Supper forgive sins but not playing a round of golf? And how can absolution give God’s forgiveness when it’s words spoken from a man? How can God forgive in such ways? It’s […]
Straighten up and raise your heads, for your redemption is near!
December 9, 2012 by
This is the confessional address our pastor gave to us during our Service of Confession. The purpose of a confessional address is to prepare one for confession, after which the Lord’s Supper is to be received. Jesus says, “When these [signs of the end times] begin to take place, straighten up and raise your […]
The Office of the Holy Ministry: John 20:19-31
April 15, 2012 by
When Jesus speaks His divine peace to His disciples, He shows them His wounds He received on the cross. For Jesus, the crucified One, is now risen from the dead. He is the Messiah–and His wounds prove it. But Thomas denied what he hadn’t experienced. Instead, Thomas demanded a religious experience of his own choosing […]
John 1:6-8, 19-28: A Voice, Mouth, and Finger
December 11, 2011 by
What made John the Baptizer such a powerful witness? Well, you can’t be much of a witness if you don’t know what you’re witnessing about or what you’re supposed to do. John didn’t have that problem. He knew he was witnessing about the Messiah prophesied from of old. He knew that he was “sent from […]
St. Nicholas, Bishop: Matthew 5:14-19
December 7, 2011 by
Matthew 5:14-19 [Jesus said,] “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be concealed. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but on a lamp stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, […]
Fishers of Men
July 24, 2011 by
What a strange miracle: a miracle of catching many fish. That was a miracle tailor-made for fishermen. And that’s who Jesus’ first disciples were; they were fishermen. Peter, Andrew, James, and John were all partners in a fishing business. One day, Jesus was teaching a crowd that converged at the Sea of Galilee. Running out […]
