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Showing posts from November, 2010

Emmanuel Is Coming

Ladies and gentlemen, Emmanuel is coming. The festive cry had gone out through all of Jerusalem. Jesus was on his way. This famous worker of miracles was coming to town. This infamous preacher was marching on the city. “There He is. No, not that one. Over there. He is the one riding on the donkey. Yeah, that’s Him. Hosanna!” the people cry. “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord. Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David. Hosanna in the highest!” Emmanuel is coming. The excitement filled the air. The people genuinely wanted to meet this Jesus. They wanted to see him, touch him, be healed by him, be ruled by him. But be careful what you wish for. You might just get it. You see, Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem is no regular visit. This is not his vacation. He is coming to Jerusalem on business. And he has two different, yet related items on his agenda. He intends to confront and upset the comfortable. And he will comfort the upset and the confronted. Emmanuel is coming. He

4th Commandment

Honor your father and your mother. What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we do not despise or anger our parents and other authorities, but honor them, serve and obey them, love and cherish them. [Luther's Small Catechism] This commandment signifies that we should not only respect our parents, but also any person or organization who is given authority over us. That could be a family member such as a grandparent or uncle. It could be a governmental authority like the president or mayor. It could also be a vocational authority figure like my employer. In the Fourth Commandment the Lord bids us to be obedient to these people. We should do what they say as long as it does not conflict with the expressed Word of God. We may not always like what they tell us, but we should comply. This keeps peace and allows the world to function. But this command is more than a statement that we should obey all the rules that other people make for us. We are also to love an