Such a reviled word, submission. Given a different worldview, which concerns itself for others, we set aside our desires and rights for the benefit of another. Now, this is part of following Jesus because He did the same for us. The rights and privileges of being God, He put away, becoming human, walking the road […]
John 16:16-22: The Church as a Woman in Labor
May 18, 2017 by
The saints in the struggle, the Church on earth, is a woman in labor. The saints at rest, the Church in eternal glory, is compared to a mother whose birthing pains are past. No longer in contractions, she now beholds her baby born, her anguish long forgotten. The people of God, described as a pregnant […]
What is the Church?
March 24, 2017 by
Here is our pastor’s newsletter article for April 2017. In the Nicene Creed, from the original Greek, we confess, “We believe in… one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church.” What is this Church? The Augsburg Confession, which we affirm as a Lutheran congregation, also gives us a definition. “The Church is the assembly of saints where […]
John 16:12-15: Receiving All–the Deposit of the Faith
April 24, 2016 by
We’ve inherited a strange way of reading the Bible. When someone reads Scripture, he often thinks each passage is a direct line, straight from God, telling him what to do. Such a notion, however, isn’t true. Read the Bible and you will find out otherwise. Here’s an example. Paul writes, “Wives, submit to your husbands […]
Acts 2: It Had All Been For This
May 26, 2015 by
It had all been for this. Jesus ascended into heaven, taking His seat at the right hand of the Father, that position of authority and power, all to pour out the Holy Spirit from the Father. That Spirit, which Jesus had sent to His Church, was the same Spirit that had come to the Virgin […]
Augsburg Confession, Articles 8-9
May 18, 2014 by
AC VIII: The Church (Part 1) Properly speaking, the Church is the assembly of saints and true believers. However, since in this life many hypocrites and evil persons are mingled with believers, it is allowable to use the sacraments even when they are administered by evil men, according to the saying of Christ, “The scribes […]
Augsburg Confession, Articles 6-7
May 18, 2014 by
AC VI: New Obedience Our churches teach that this faith is bound to bring forth good fruits [Galatians 5:22-23] and that it should do good works commanded by God [Ephesians 2:10], because God so wills it. We should not, however, rely on those works to merit justification before God. For forgiveness of sins and justification […]
