This entire series is my 30-paged bachelor thesis I submitted to the theology department at Concordia University-Ann Arbor—a higher Lutheran education university—as part of the requirement to graduate from the Pre-Seminary programme. It has been reformatted to fit this blog. This is the second section of my paper. In part one, I discussed the three…
Matthew 4:4, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” I love food. Food is a motif throughout Scripture both for physical providence and for joy. God provided manna for the Israelites so they might live (Exodus 16) and the Scriptures speak on a joyful feast…
Psalm 25:14, The friendship of the LORD is for those who fear Him, and He makes known to them His covenant. 1 Kings 19:1-8, Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “So may the gods do to…
Nehemiah 8:8-10, They read from the book, from the law of God, clearly, and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading. And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the LORD…
Psalm 100:1-2, Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth! Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into His presence with singing! In 1 Chronicles 16, the ark of the covenant is brought into the tent of meeting and David leads the congregation of people in worship at this church dedication. They are rejoicing that they have…
As a future pastor, this question bugs me. I come across Christians from all different walks of life who somehow get it in their heads that since they’re Christian, church isn’t required. Actually, the opposite is true. Church is required because you’re Christian! If you’re not Christian, obviously church isn’t required. After all, why would an unbeliever…
What in the world does “maundy” mean? The word comes from the Latin word mandatum, which means “order” or “command.” During this day of Holy Week, we observe Maundy Thursday because of Jesus’ command, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one…
