What a joyous, happy event a birthday is! When a child is born, the family rejoices. A birthday is something to remembered in a special way each year. The Day of Pentecost, the 50th day after Easter is a birthday, too, the birthday of the Christian church. What a memorable day that was! The disciples and a small group of other believers had gathered in a room in Jerusalem. There they heard the rushing, mighty wind, saw the tongues of fire, and received the gift of languages. These were the outward signs that the Holy Spirit had come as Jesus   More…

On Good Friday, March 29, 2013, Dr. Francis Monseth, Dean of Free Lutheran Theological Seminary, was received into his eternal home at age 71. He earned an STM and ThD from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis.  He taught systematic theology: the Lutheran Confessions and Dogmatics at Free Lutheran Seminary since 1971.  He was a “steadfast Lutheran” at a seminary that strives to maintain Orthodox, confessional Lutheran theology, while paying homage to its roots in Scandinavian Lutheran Pietism. His teaching emphasized the proper distinction between law and gospel, justification, the inerrancy and authority of the Scriptures, and the efficacy of the   More…

When the movie, “The Passion of the Christ” premiered, TV news showed people leaving the theatre either crying or in stunned silence.  Those of you who have seen the film may have experienced this first-hand.  Does Jesus’ cross make you sad or glad?  Meditating on the Scriptures and the text of Lenten hymns, I’ve concluded that it will do both. The Cross shows us our sin and our Savior. The Cross is a powerful preaching of the Law, as we see the terrible price God demanded for sin.  Because of our sin, we deserve death- physical, spiritual, and eternal death   More…

Also translated, “Bright and Glorious is the Sky” (ELH 120), this delightful hymn for Christmas and Epiphany comes from the country of Denmark. If you could, by some chance, worship in a Danish Lutheran church this past Sunday, you would probably be singing this hymn. Everything about this hymn is joyous- the words, the meaning, the melody. To hear this hymn and read the words click here. “Bright and glorious is the sky,” it begins. The first verse paints a picture with words. What a beautiful sight the heavens are with unnumbered stars shining like jewels in the dark night!   More…

Researching one’s family history can turn up surprises. A couple years ago, a distant cousin of mine researched our family line using a computer program. How surprised I was to learn that my family had been in this country for over 350 years and that our ancestral home was Warwickshire, England. In the Scriptures, we find several genealogies. When we come across one of them when doing our devotions, our first inclination is to skip over them. Yet as we read Christ’s genealogy in Matthew chapter 1 and Luke chapter 3, we find some familiar names- Adam, Noah, Abraham, Jacob,   More…

A child’s first word is usually “mama” or “dada.”  For my son, his first word was “Thank you.”  While he pronounced it “Tay-due,” we knew what he meant.  We started calling him “Tay-due” for his nickname.  What a polite and thankful child! But this is the exception.  Thankfulness is something that needs to be taught.  It’s not something that comes naturally to children.  Self-centeredness is one trait that children have in common. They need to be taught to share or to care for others first. A two year old’s favorite word is “mine.”  Our natural inclination is that of self-entitlement.    More…

Matthew 22:15-22. 15 Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk. 16 And they sent to Him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not regard the person of men. 17 “Tell us, therefore, what do You think? Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?” 18 But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, “Why do you test Me, you hypocrites? 19 “Show Me the tax money.” So they   More…

What is justification? For Lutherans, the central teaching of the Bible is justification by faith apart from the works of the law. The classic expression of this doctrine is found in Article IV of the Augsburg Confession, “Also they teach that men cannot be justified before God by their own strength, merits, or works, but are freely justified for  Christ’s sake, through faith, when they believe that they are received into favor, and that their sins are forgiven for Christ’s sake, who, by His death, has made satisfaction for our sins.  This faith God imputes for righteousness in His sight.   More…

During its annual convention in June 2012, the ELS resolved that “our members be alerted to this recent challenge” to the Biblical teaching on marriage (the “preferential treatment given to those who live together outside of marriage due to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act”) and “be encouraged to remain steadfast in their commitment to the institution of marriage of one man and one woman as established by God in Holy Scripture and natural law” (Report of the 95th Convention of the Evangelical Lutheran Synod, p. 88). In basing the institution of marriage of one man and one woman   More…

A recent edition of Rock Center with Brian Williams featured hilarious selections from the book, “P.S. I Hate It Here!: Kids’ Letters from Camp” by Diane Falanga. In this book, kids are brutally honest about their summer camp experience. You may read excerpts here. Similarly, the sainted Gerhard Forde once wrote of his childhood experience at Bible Camp, “I recall vividly once in my young life going to a Bible Camp with its campfire meetings at which there were all sorts of ‘goings-on’ which were strange to the son of an Old Synod parish- emotional songs which I had never   More…

What is decision theology? Decision theology is the teaching that a person is saved and born-again when he makes a decision to accept Jesus Christ. To come to faith, a moment of decision must be made by the individual sinner. In this way, they are contributing to their own salvation. You may hear invitations such as: “If you would like to begin to begin a relationship with Jesus Christ right now, right where you are, you need only ask Him…” “Jesus is knocking at the door of your heart. You need only to let Him in.” “Inviting Jesus into your   More…

On Sunday, June 17, the 95th annual convention of the ELS began in traditional fashion, with an afternoon Synod Sunday service, following the “Bugenhagen” order of service, also known as the Danish-Norwegian rite of 1685. It was chanted in a vibrato tenor, typical of pastors of Scandinavian descent. This was followed by a picnic, forced indoors by threat of rain. The late afternoon was highlighted by musical performances of Norwegian folk songs and folk dancing at a replica pioneer log cabin. The proceedings of the convention, starting Monday morning, have brought us out of our idealized past and into these   More…

The 95th annual convention of the Evangelical Lutheran Synod (ELS) is fast upon us. It will begin with “Synod Sunday” services and a picnic (our conventions are like a big family reunion) on the Bethany Lutheran College campus on June 17 (ELS conventions always begin on Father’s Day) and will continue through Thursday, June 21. At last year’s convention, the ELS adopted the vision statement, “In the next five years we will learn to engage others more faithfully with Jesus” (Synod Report, p. 113, goal 7). This statement is often abbreviated in the four-word phrase “engage others with Jesus,” just   More…

         There was a time in the not so distant past when one could step into any Lutheran church in the United States on Sunday morning and know what to expect: the familiar common order of service.  Now this is no longer the case. Even within various Lutheran denominations one can no longer expect that the service will be the same from congregation to congregation.  This is true even within the confessional and conservative synods.  It is especially true in home mission congregations. A memorial was brought before the ELS at convention in 2010 urging our Board for Home Missions   More…

Training in God’s Word begins at home.  With this in mind, Luther wrote this heading before each part of the Catechism, “In the plain form in which the head of the family shall teach them to his household” (ELS Catechism 2001 Explanation, p. 13). Teaching and learning the words of the catechism is to take place at home.  In confirmation class and Sunday school, the pastor and teachers are assisting the parents with the task God has given to them. God has entrusted parents with the task of teaching their children God’s Word. “You shall teach them diligently to your   More…