Archive for April, 2006
This Man Was in Hell
I love Touchstone magazine. You should all subscribe to it and read every word. It is ecumenical in a good way. The writers are mostly Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Anglican with a few Lutherans and occasional Protestant-types. Not that there aren’t important doctrinal differences here. There surely are. But [...]
Assurance of Salvation
Not long ago, I was reading a book by Daniel Preus,Why I Am a Lutheran: Jesus at the Center. And he said that one thing that always challenges or frustrates him as a pastor is when you ask your flock, “Are you going to go to heaven?” and they answer “I hope so.” [...]
God Does, In Fact, Reject People
Maybe you’ve seen the latest television ad for the United Church of Christ. If not, go here. The UCC is one of the most liberal denominations in America and also one of the fastest shrinking. If they are not growing numerically, it’s not for lack of being inclusive.
On the one hand, I [...]
Television: Consumers or Consumed
Egad! I’ve nearly missed it entirely! This is the annual Turn-Off-TV Week, April 24-30, 2006.
Most of us watch far too much television. I’m not a big TV fan. And it’s not just the offensive nature of much of the content that irks me. You’ve read the studies which show the [...]
Facts About 24’s Jack Bauer
My wife and I are enjoying DVDs of the previous seasons of 24. This blurb completely cracked me up. Go here. Some of my favorites are:
Killing Jack Bauer doesn’t make him dead. It just makes him angry.
Superman wears Jack Bauer pajamas.
Jack Bauer is the leading cause of death in Middle Eastern men.
When [...]
Sanctuary Flags: Love ‘em or Lose ‘em?
I found this interesting post about sanctuary flags over at Purgatorio. I say, “Lose ‘em.”
Here at my church, there are flags in the building, but they are the very back of the nave. My preference would be to remove them altogether.
I’m a patriotic American. We put the stars and stripes outside our [...]
Experience with Rick Warren’s Book
One or two of you may be getting tired of these recent posts about Rick Warren. I know that I am. I really wasn’t planning to write these but a certain someone decided to slam me with a nasty-gram on Maundy Thursday. Interestingly, my blog readership has quadrupled.
Darrell over at SouthCon [...]
Doctrine vs. God’s Word
The New Testament uses the word “doctrine” or “doctrines” over 50 times. Sometimes it refers specifically to the “doctrines of men.” Sometimes it refers to false or perverse doctrine. And sometimes it refers to religious truth.
The word simply means “teaching.” Just as there are false teachings and harmful teachings and dangerous [...]
Mission to Siberia
I don’t have a ton of information yet, but I thought I may as well go ahead and ask for prayers. I will be traveling in June and July to several cities in eastern Siberia as part of the Russian Project of my alma mater, Concordia Theological Seminary, Ft. Wayne, IN. We’ll start [...]
Cycle of Sanctification
In my last post, I asked “who is the gospel for?” One perceptive commenter, Elaine P, recommended I post this article by Pr. Don Matzat. She is right. It is a good article.Issues, Etc. Journal – Spring 1998 – Vol. 3 No. 1
Hitting For The Cycle
What is sanctification? How is it produced? [...]
