If you find yourself convicted about your sin, then run to Christ and throw that sin at the foot of the cross. Don’t ignore the Spirit’s working through your convicting conscience, but heed the impulse that drives you to repent so that you can once again enjoy communion with your heavenly Father. As Martin Luther... Continue Reading

Once again, the gospel takes center stage. It is (and always has been) the gospel—and nothing else—that defines the people of God. The good news of Galatians is that the gospel formerly promised to Abraham has now been realized in Jesus Christ.   For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put... Continue Reading

God created man in his image and gave him dominion over the creatures (Gen 1:26–28). Although God made man on the same day as the other creatures, man is clearly higher than the animals. Part of man’s call is to set aside the seventh day. To worship and have an intimate relationship with God is... Continue Reading

To those reborn by the Spirit of God and hidden in Christ, God says, “You are like a tree.” And not just any tree. You are a tree with three defining features: (1) you are planted by the source of life—God himself; (2) you yield good fruit in season; and (3) your leaves never wither. You are... Continue Reading

Trusting God to govern our lives quiets many anxieties and affords much peace. Think of it: isn’t the unfolding of our lives wrapped in mystery? One small step this way and not that, one thoughtless act, one unexpected conversation, one small tilt in the rudder, and all is changed.   Saul stands as a controversial... Continue Reading

In every moment and every situation our sacred calling is to promote good growth instead of poor growth, to scatter good seed rather than bad. It is to do all we can to foster the kind of growth that will spring up into a bountiful harvest of love, joy, grace, and peace.   It was... Continue Reading

The one thing we really need to be doing in our preaching is offering Christ, unadulterated. He came to get us. He is the King of the cosmos. He became nothing, stooped low enough to scoop even us up and lift us to the heavens.    We’re at the confluence of a few different currents... Continue Reading

It is often forgotten that Sola Scriptura was designed to battle more than Rome.  For Luther, he was equally concerned about the opposite problem.  Many in the so-called “radical” Reformation had taken a posture of individualism, disregarding the history of the church, the classical creeds, and the church fathers. We might think here of Menno... Continue Reading

We might ask what difference it makes that Jesus is both priest and king. I suspect the readers of this letter were wondering the same thing. It makes a massive difference!   The Word of God became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:14). This profound truth leads an honest reader to ponder what Jesus’... Continue Reading

In Rom 1:13, Paul says that he “often intended to come” to the Romans. In that report of his (frustrated) travel plans, the pro- in protithēmi may have a temporal sense (projecting a plan for the future) or an imaginative sense (proposing an idea, setting it out there for consideration), or both. On this model, Eph 1:9 teaches that... Continue Reading