Posts with the tag “newsletter”

In several of St. Paul’s letters, namely 2 Thessalonians and Galatians, Paul will end the letter with a sign of genuineness: writing the farewell greeting with his own hand in large letters. We know from Paul’s letters that Paul would dictate the letter to his scribe, also called an amanuensis, who would write down all that Paul would say. (see Romans 16:22 “I Tertius, who wrote this letter, greet you in the Lord.”)  Read More

As it is now Spring, it is the time for me to get the lawn prepared, cleaned, and ready to be cut. That is, once the rain stops and the ground dries up. But when the time comes, the first thing that I do is to go out into the yard and gather the sticks that have fallen from the trees. Once I clear that debris, I am ready to mow the yard.  Read More

St. Luke was the companion of St. Paul, and a doctor from what Paul says of him in Colossians 4:14. And Luke begins his Gospel by writing to a certain Theophilus. We are not sure of his identity, but his name means “loved by God.” Many commentators think that his name is code because of how Luke addresses him as “most excellent.” This is how one addresses a superior, especially a royal superior.   Read More

“Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.” Jude 3  Read More

“My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” Psalm 22:1 and quoted by our Lord Jesus in Matthew 27:46, Mark 15:34. Suffering and trusting in God would appear to be like oil and water—they don’t mix. But the blood of Jesus here in the verse quoted above attest otherwise.  Read More

“[Jesus said] ‘Are you able to drink the cup that I drink or to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?’ And they said to him: ‘We are able.’ And Jesus said to them, ‘The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism that I am baptized with you will be baptized.” Mark 10:38-39  Read More

What time does your day begin? Are you an early riser? Or does being a night owl cause you to rise a bit slower in the morning? In college, a friend of mine would joke, “If you are going to hoot with the owls, you better be ready to soar with the eagles.” That encapsulated well the schedule it felt on some days in college as we burned the candle on both ends.  Read More

“And the rich man said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father’s house—for I have five brothers—so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’ But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’  Read More

“And you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved…” Matthew 10:22 The verse above is Jesus talking to his disciples and telling them plain as day what they will expect from the world. As this text goes on he will talk about the honor that comes from being treated like Jesus himself was treated. He then tells the disciples to have no fear of those who slander or malign you for belonging to Christ, because the day is coming when all will be known.  Read More

“The reason why the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.” 1 John 3:8 On Friday, June 24th, which was fitting to be the date that we in the church celebrate the birth of John the Baptist who leapt in the womb at the presence of Christ our Lord in Mary’s Womb, the announcement came out from the Supreme Court that shook the cultural landscape of our country.  Read More

Why does Jesus do this? Why does Jesus come to his disciples to deputize them and send them out? Isn’t it enough that Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead? Isn’t that what makes us good with God? Why do these 10 men in the text get the authority to forgive sins?  Read More

It is now that time of the year! As you read this, we are only a few days away from the start of Holy Week. The week that is the highlight of our Faith as we revolve around the events of the final days and life of Christ, beginning from his ride into Jerusalem and leading to the empty tomb. I live for this week even as it wears me out by Easter afternoon.  Read More

In the last few weeks, the story of the Catholic Priest who resigned over the words he spoke at baptisms finally became mainstream and caused quite a stir and upset many people, my grandma included, who called me to ask me about it. I had about 3 people at our congregation ask me about it as well, so I thought I would spend my article here discussing it.  Read More

“Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.” Jude 3  Read More

“For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread.” 1 Corinthians 11:23 In this section of 1 Corinthians, St. Paul tells us what the Lord’s Supper is: our heritage from the Lord. It is the Promise of God that each generation of Christians passes onto the next. This Sacrament teaches us to treasure, safeguard, and deliver the Gospel to another generation. The Lord’s Supper is how Jesus sustains His Church until His coming again, and the Eucharist is how we can endure the Lord’s delay for however long Jesus tarries in returning.   Read More

I have been asked about preaching a lot lately. How I learned to preach, style of preaching, etc. My preaching on Ephesians got a few inquiries come my way of which I am all thankful for and love. It is after all, my trade in life. So, I thought I would take some space to give more background into my training and the nature of homiletics (the study of preaching).   Read More

To come into the presence of a king, let alone THE King, is no small thing. Esther’s point above is this, “Ask anyone who is alive, and they will tell you that you cannot just come into the King’s presence without being called by Him. That is a death sentence to approach the king without his permission.”  Read More

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your doing, it is the gift of God, not a result of works so that no one may boast.” Ephesians 2:8 The verse quoted above is but a mere sample of what is in those 6 chapters. Out of Paul’s letters it is my favorite, and arguably, perhaps my favorite book in the entire Bible. The jury is still out on that one because it is hard to settle for just one.   Read More

The word blessing in the book of Genesis is a key word that flows through the entire book. Used more than a dozen times in Genesis alone, it is placed at key moments between God and his chosen people. God blesses his creatures in creation. God blesses Noah after the flood. God blesses Abraham and through him, all nations will be blessed. God blesses Jacob. Each time the blessing is tied to a promise from God.  Read More

How important is unity in the Church? I could give a theological paper on it. I could give a list of synonyms with unity in the bible: community, harmony, concord, oneness, & fellowship. Here are just a few passages talking about unity with God and with one another:  Read More

Gah! I just love the post-resurrection appearances of Jesus. They are fraught with tension and excitement. There are the women, the disciples in the boat, and the men on the road to Emmaus just going about their way and their lives when Jesus unexpectedly arrives. We are outside looking in and eagerly waiting for the people in the narrative to make the realization that we have:  Read More

You know the well beloved and cherished story of Zacchaeus. So well known that I can never read the account without bursting into the song that accompanies it. “Zacchaeus was a wee little man and a wee little man was he…” The point of that entire account is the conclusion that I have quoted above. Everyone is grumbling at what Jesus has done. He has chosen, of all people, this Zacchaeus, who is of short stature and character, and has dined with him. “He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.” That is what they say.  Read More

How often do you get a devotional thought from 2 John? It was tempting to just write the entire book down because it is only 13 verses. Here I have emphasized the words, “walking.” When the word “walk” is used in the Bible, both Old Testament and New, the visual that always goes with it is walking along a path, a road, a way.   Read More

Well it is official. As of October 18th, I am now your sole pastor. Or as some have come to term it, your “soul” pastor. Ha! I like it. In response, I have heard this stated in my life by several pastors and now I stand in the same place to say it to all of you: Congrats to you all! You guys have, without fail, called and now affirmed a sinner to be your pastor.   Read More

October 2020“Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” Ephesians 4:29As one whose calling it is to do a lot of communicating, I must always stress that the verse above is my goal.  Considering the tense times we live in where communicating is hard to do on a good day, the challenge is c...  Read More