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Showing posts from February, 2015

What Is the Big Deal About God's Name?

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             “ Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. ”   Jesus has graciously invited us to see God as our Father, and to pray to Him with the confidence of sons.   But what is a son to ask of His almighty, heavenly Father?                 We begin by praying that God’s name would be hallowed, or kept holy.   Luther’s explanation in the Small Catechism says:   “God’s name is kept holy when the Word of God is taught in its truth and purity, and we, as the children of God, also lead holy lives according to it.   Help us to do this, dear Father in heaven!   But anyone who teaches or lives contrary to God’s Word profanes the name of God among us.   Protect us from this, heavenly Father!” That’s interesting isn’t it?   The petition taught by Jesus is about the name of God being kept holy, and Luther jumps straight into talking about the Word of God.   So what is the connection?   What does the Word of God, and us keeping it and living according to it, hav

Is God Your Father?

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  Jesus teaches us to pray: "Our Father who art in heaven..."                                 Is God really your Father?   Because we talk and think about Him as if He is all the time.   In fact many non-Christians seem to assume that God is a fatherly figure, even if they do not really go to church or trust Him for salvation.                 I want to make the assertion tonight that God is not your father, at least not in the way you usually think about it.      First, think about the Biblical evidence.   You will search, nearly in vain, for references to God as Father in the Old Testament.   They are there, but they are rather few and far between.   Usually it is God who asserts that He has acted as a father and the people have behaved as spoiled children. Second, think about what it means to be a father.   What do fathers do?   They beget children.   But you and I were not begotten of God.   Rather, we were made, created by Him.   We like to think

It's Not Where You Come From, but Where You Are Going

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The Huffington Post actually published a good article.  I know, I know.  Usually the HuffPo is garbage laced with poison, but this really was a helpful article...one religion of all topics! In his article "Why We Know So Little About Moses and Jesus" author Bernard Starr helps to explain why the record of the lives of these two Biblical figures do not include detailed accounts of their upbringing. Ever since the dawn of the age of psychoanalysis we have been trying to understand what makes a person tick by asking where they came from.  The keys to a person's identity lie in the past, in their youth.  That is, at least, what we believe to be true. And so we often want more information about the young life of Moses.  What was it like to grow up as an outsider in Egypt?  Was he ever mistreated?  Was he spoiled?  What was his education like?  We assume that these are important questions. The same goes for Jesus.  We want to know what happened while the holy family