It’s good to know who you are, and who you are not. John the Baptizer knew who he was, and who he was not.
He wasn’t the Messiah, the Christ. A delegation of priests and Levites from synodical headquarters in Jerusalem went out to John to investigate. They always send a…
We’re going to have a guest preacher over these next two Sundays in Advent. His name is John, the son of Elizabeth and Zechariah. He was conceived and born when his parents were very old, well beyond child bearing years. A miracle baby, though not exactly unexpected. An angel told his…
We the clay; God the Potter. He is God; we are not God. And that is good, even when it appears not to be good.
The prophet Isaiah foretells the coming day of destruction, when the proud armies of Babylon would breach the walls of Jerusalem, take the people captive, and destroy…
Happy new year! No, I haven’t skipped over December, as much as I’d like to. Nor am I suffering from post-Thanksgiving stress syndrome. Advent is the beginning of the church’s year, so gloriously out of synch with the world’s calendar. The world is counting down to the end, and the church…
"Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His mercy endures forever." "It is truly good, right, and salutary, that we should at all times and in all places give thanks to You, holy Lord, almighty Father, everlasting God, through Jesus Christ, our Lord."
We don’t really need a presidential proclamation, or…
Today is the Sunday of the Fulfillment of all things; the last Sunday of the year on the church’s calendar. The omega of all things, the Last Day when Jesus appears in great glory as King and Judge, suddenly and without warning, like a thief in the night, like a groom arriving for the…
He comes to judge the living and the dead. Judgment Day. It’s not far off. Nearer now than it was a week ago. How near? We don’t know, and He’s not telling. What will it be like, this day of judgment? Hear the parable of the sheep and…
What is heaven going be like? Inquiring minds want to know. Don’t you want to know? What will it look like? Who will be there? What will it feel like? Smell like? Taste like? You long for a glimpse of the glory, a sneak preview, something to…
The Presence
When we are bereft of dear ones, it is a tremendous shock. For a time we are stunned. Not everyone, can feel at once their continuing companionship. We should not for that reason despair. An adjustment must take place in our lives, reaching deep into our habits, emotions and thoughts. …
On October 31st in the year 1517, a 34 year-old Augustinian monk walked up to the castle church door in Wittenberg and posted 95 theses penned in Latin for the purpose of theological debate. Martin Luther wanted to talk. He wanted to know why the teaching of his church did not square with…