Sacred Trash Pits and Holy Garbage
By Mark Duerr
09/24/26
14mins

Sacred Trash Pits and Holy Garbage

The Israelite God was different from all the other gods, thus, the worship of Yahweh differed from that of all other gods.
Psalm 15: Who Abides in God?
Steven Paulson
Steven Paulson
09/23/26

Psalm 15: Who Abides in God?

David finally found the truth that it was not his seed of kingship but the promise made to Abraham that made him holy. From that, David refused to be moved and wrote this Psalm by the necessity of the Spirit as the assurance of faith. The law never made a man holy, not even one as robust as David; yet faith did this great thing without lifting a finger.
Political Polarization and Cultural Christianity
John W. Hoyum
John W. Hoyum
09/18/26

Political Polarization and Cultural Christianity

Today, the longing for cultural Christianity on both the left and the right hearkens back to an older version of Christendom that was a mixed blessing for the church in the western world. The cultural mediation of Christian views on created order has certainly benefitted the civilization we’ve inherited. But the gospel itself isn’t something that can be reduced to cultural mediation either. Instead, the gospel as a message stands apart from all human accomplishments and achievements, no matter how beneficial they might be.

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Mark Mattes
Mark Mattes
04/09/19

A Q&A with Mark Mattes on Law and Gospel in Action: Foundations, Ethics and Church

The Gospel restores us to our true humanity, embeds us in the body of Christ, feeds us with Christ’s own body, and offers us a community.
Donavon Riley
Donavon Riley
04/02/19

Your Jesus Has Made You Well

When we preach Jesus crucified for the sin of the world, Jesus crucified to put away God’s harsh judgment, that good news creates faith
Jacob Corzine
Jacob Corzine
03/31/19

The Law and the Already Terrified Conscience

Where contrition is evident, the conscience has already been prodded, piqued, finally terrified. More Law only serves to confirm the lie this person is already at risk of believing: that the last work of the conscience is also God’s last word. But God’s last word is the word of absolution, not the confirmation of the conscience’s testimony, but now its contradiction.
Daniel van Voorhis
Daniel van Voorhis
03/27/19

Always Preach the Law, if Necessary Use Words

In our own lives, we might find that the Law is not an alien word, whether we call it our conscience or our values, our Holy Writ, or our municipality’s laws and regulations
Robert Kolb
Robert Kolb
03/24/19

Meditating on the Passion (A Forgotten Art: For Preachers and the Entire Congregation)

Lenten meditation is the one time Luther might advise us to be turning in on ourselves--and taking a cold, honest glance. For only in the shadow of the Cross can we look honsetly into the cause of the death of the man from Nazareth, the second person of the Trinity.
Donavon Riley
Donavon Riley
03/19/19

The War for Our Freedom

The lack of Gospel or abundance of Gospel and Christ’s gifts, more than anything else, determines whether we’ll be overrun by sin, death, and hell
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
03/14/19

So You Don't Like Your Pastor

Pastors are built from the same stuff as everyone else. That’s good, and that’s bad.
Bob Hiller
Bob Hiller
02/20/19

Baptizing the Thief on the Cross

Asking, “Do you have to be baptized to be saved?” is really like asking, “Does Jesus have to save you in order for you to be saved?”
Donavon Riley
Donavon Riley
02/19/19

God Speaks to Us to Give Us Gifts

When we say “forgiveness,” we mean, “Jesus.” When we say, “righteousness,” we mean, “Jesus.”
John Bombaro
John Bombaro
02/17/19

Psalm 23: A Song of Christ (Or: A Note on Christ-Centered Preaching from the Psalter)

Christ and the Evangelists, along with saints Peter and Paul, show a deep attachment to the Book of Psalms...it was because the Psalms were about the Messiah, the Christ of God.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
02/16/19

Riding Tandem Toward a Flourishing Life

Our American ethos trumpets the ideal of the rugged individual who doesn’t need anyone else. But that’s not only a lie; it’s also the recipe for disaster.
Jacob Corzine
Jacob Corzine
02/10/19

The Law and the Falsely Terrified Conscience

And so, when you preach the Law, you are also instructing the conscience and thereby forming it. For some of your hearers, this will result in activating their consciences, making them more sensitive, so they become more aware of their sin and more urgently seek the Gospel. For others, it is a re-instruction.
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