At the time of Luther, the practice of the Sacrament of the Altar by papists inflicted many abuses upon the laity. These included withholding the cup from the laity, selling masses, masses for the dead, and more. The greatest abuse … Continue reading
A vogue phrase today is, “to die for.” “This chocolate is to die for.” “That dress is to die for.” A lifestyle clothing brand is called To Die For. A novel and a film about obsession with media and fame … Continue reading
Here is something that is not to be done: stepping on a king’s train. With that in mind, recall what Isaiah saw. “I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe … Continue reading
Faith does not spring from nature, nor from our own reason, strength, or will. The Holy Spirit creates faith by the Word and Sacraments. When God said, “Let there be light,” there was light. “For He spoke, and it was; … Continue reading
The character of Lutheran worship is a rich tapestry of traits. It is like the catechism: it can be learned by a child, but no one can master it. Here are a few vital threads that are woven into the fabric … Continue reading
A mindless repetition. That is what critics of creeds say about reciting the Creed. Opponents of liturgy call it a vain repetition. Of course, it is possible to say the Creed mindlessly. People say all kinds of things mindlessly. Sometimes … Continue reading
Leviticus was used widely in the early church and later to preach the Gospel. The modern church generally ignores Leviticus.[1] Leviticus is a gift unopened and sent back to the Giver. We’re missing out. God speaks in Leviticus. Here He … Continue reading
Jesus lived a perfect human life. We know that. But it is easy to miss some of his practices. It might sound strange, but Jesus was pious. He had godly habits. By them, he lived joyously, even though He also … Continue reading
Every now and then, when there is an issue or concern in my life, the Holy Spirit uses the Word in its variety of forms and places of proclamation to repeatedly reveal the same truth over and again and call … Continue reading
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost for the Evangelical Lutheran Church of England. These loving people are giving away “the layman’s little Bible”—Luther’s Small Catechism— in English as a gift to English-speaking Christianity. The ELCE has published its Reformation Anniversary … Continue reading
Drought and fires this year recall memories of prairie fires in homesteading days. In high winds, fires moved rapidly, burning grass, crops, livestock, wildlife, buildings, and people. One time a homesteading father saw a fire fanned by winds toward his … Continue reading
A new book this year for women by Cindy Koch is titled Woman: The Forgotten Story, published by NRP Books, an imprint of New Reformation Publications. According to their websites, either New Reformation Publications is a project of the 1517 … Continue reading
My to-read-soon stack of books is an embarrassment of riches. So many great Christian books already bought, paid for, and waiting to be read when Rev. Dr. Matt Richard sent me an advanced reader copy of his new book, Will … Continue reading
One of my vain ideas was to reach 60 without being an inpatient of a hospital. Didn’t work. Two Januaries in a row, I was hospitalized. I was a suffering puppy, though still nothing like many around me. My condition … Continue reading
The decline in membership of Lutheran churches in America is a like a migraine headache. It is always there. We keep explaining it with the same explanations. We keep taking the same medications. The pain continues. What is the right … Continue reading
In the worship wars, one of the alleged reasons for abandoning the historic liturgy is to make worship relevant. We want application of the Gospel in ways that connect with people. Dear friends, the historic liturgy is like a many-layered … Continue reading
A new book offers a new kind of critique of the novel and movie, The Shack. My articles here on Brothers of John the Steadfast have been transformed into a book that the Steadfast Lutherans are distributing to you for free on … Continue reading
Editor’s Note: To understand what is meant by “Trinitarian Theology” in this post, please see Part 2. Having traced the journey of Wm. Paul Young, author of The Shack, and his main character, Mackenzie Phillips, from the pain of their Great … Continue reading
Note: The following is a guest article by Rev. Ryan Loeslie, Pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church, Merna, Nebraska. Most Lutherans who went through junior high confirmation class at one time in their lives are familiar with Luther’s famous question from his Small … Continue reading
In Part 1 of this series of articles we saw that The Shack and its theology arise from two pressures experienced by its author, Wm. Paul Young, and main character, Mackenzie Phillips: pain and the inadequacy of “traditional Christianity” to … Continue reading
In Part 1 of this series of articles, we saw that The Shack and its theology arise from two pressures: Pain, loss, and suffering. The perceived inadequacy of Calvinistic and Wesleyan-Arminian evangelicalism to heal pain. These two pressures – pain … Continue reading
The Shack: Where Tragedy Confronts Eternity[1] is a presentation of Trinitarian Theology and perichoresis[2] in the form of story, novel, and dialogue. This Trinitarian Theology is both like and not like our Lutheran confession of the Trinity.[3] The differences are … Continue reading
The novel, The Shack, is coming out as a movie. So it is time again for Christians to have discernment about this material. Many Christians have written previously about the false teachings in The Shack. Those who have defended … Continue reading
Gerhard Forde says, “Sanctification, if it is to be spoken of as something other than justification, is perhaps best defined as the art of getting used to the unconditional justification wrought by the grace of God for Jesus’ sake.”[1] There … Continue reading
This year marks the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther’s 95 Theses. Historians mark the beginning of the Reformation from Luther’s publication of them. Many organizations have planned commemorations of Luther and the Reformation. Maybe these commemorations will have an impact. … Continue reading