Preachrblog

Matthew 11:12-19 Reformation Day October 30th, 2011 “Dirges and Flutes” A blessed Reformation day to you. Today is that one day in the church year that we Lutherans, especially, highlight our heritage. Beginning in the 1500's, with the German monk Martin Luther, the Western church began to reform. We went back to the Bible as our only source and norm of faith and life. We saw the error of many of our ways. The abuses of Rome were corrected, the false practices that had crept in over the centuries were abolished. And most importantly, the doctrine – the truth – that we are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone! This message, the Gospel, we still preach today! It is the good news of Jesus Christ, crucified for sinners like you and me. It is good news, but it's not particularly new. It is a good news, that has long been rejected. Jesus teaches that the prophets had been preaching the word and God had been working in the world...

Matthew 22:15-22 Pentecost 18 October 16th, 2011 “Christ and Caesar” The foolish Pharisees. Trying to ensnare Jesus in his words. He, the living Word of God, the creator of words. The arrogance. But if they could trip him up – maybe the Romans would take care of this Jesus problem and they wouldn't have to get their hands dirty. So they send a delegation – with questions. But first, compliments. And the false praise here is plain blasphemous. For they neither consider him truthful or of God. If so, they would have listened to him long ago. They wouldn't be here to challenge him. But the question is still a good question. And Jesus answer is even better. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar? And in this short question is packed a load of dynamite. You see, the Romans were occupiers, outsiders, and their grip was as cold and cruel as it was strong. The Jews longed for the glory days when they governed themselves, chose their own way. When they co...

Or, "Another 'Is Mormonism a Cult" Blog Post" No one denies that Mormonism and Traditional Christianity are different.  But, perhaps because of some high-profile national political figures, many Christians have taken to calling Mormonism a "cult".  Is this true?  Is it good for us to do so? I won't take time to build the case that Mormonism is far different from traditional Christianity.  Others have done that sufficiently well.  Check here, for one good summary .   So I guess we could say, it's fairly straightforward to define "what is a Mormon".  They have certain stated beliefs.   But the word that causes heartburn is "cult".  It's a loaded term with lots of pejorative connotations.  Is Mormonism a cult? I think for most of us, we associate the term with some of the infamous cults, like Heaven's Gate, Jim Jones & co.  Small groups of brainwashed followers with a manipulative leader.  The cult leader abus...

We've often talked about the three functions or uses of the law, Curb, Mirror and Guide.  I suppose this discussion would fall under function number 2, the Mirror.  In terms of how the law shows us our sin, or, what we see in the mirror when we look.  There are three ways of looking. When the law is preached, or applied to the sinner, and it does not go in one ear and out the other, we can observe three distinct products or reactions: 1) Self-righteous hypocrisy Some hear the law and say, "I have kept this", much like the rich young man (Mark 10) who questioned Jesus.  But wanting to justify himself, he couldn't see that he actually broke the law.  The law, to him, was a weak shadow of the true law.  This was not because of a lack in the preacher (Jesus), but the hardness of his heart and the rationalization of his mind kept him from hearing the law's perfect demands.  To be sure, some preachers lend this kind of law all on their own, howeve...