Professor Diane Jacobson joins us from Luther Seminary in Mpls, MN to share with us how and why Lutherans read the Bible. Diane is the director of the ELCA Book of Faith Initiative and a wonderful presenter.
Cost for this event are covered by a grant from the ELCA so there is no charge. We will, however, take a… Continue
Let's not forget to breath. Thanksgiving is right around the corner. Christmas is coming. I started this little series of notes with Jim Reeves and "Gimme That Old Time Religion." How about we wrap it up with a little Dave Brubek, just for fun? Take Five!… Continue
Morals, boundaries and laws change over time. I don't want to make myself out to be a "relativist" or get into a "situational ethics" debate, this is just an observation. Why do they change? Well, two things pop into my head right away. Knowledge changes and grows, for one thing. And then the needs of people… Continue
Shadows can capture the essence of an object, but they are flat and colorless.
Last week I talked about twin emphases that wind their way through the Bible. There is a concern for rules, boundaries and morals - which I associated with "purity codes" - and then there is what I called the "prophetic" strand. Today I’m trying to tackle rules, boundaries and morals.… Continue
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.
Saints
So great a cloud of witnesses
Surrounding me with warmth, wisdom and wonde… Continue
Last week I wrote a little about how one might think about welcoming gay and lesbian folk into the Christian fold from a Biblical point of view. Actually it is a really awkward question. I mean how can you not welcome people into faith?! But I write because it is an issue for us in the ELCA right now.
I find two major strands of thought in the Bible when it comes to moral or ethica… Continue
Jim Reeves is remembered for a song entitled "Gimme That Old Time Religion." The words include:
"Gimme that old time religion
It's good enough for me
It was good for the Hebrew children
It's good enough for me
It was good for dad and mother
And it's good enough for me"
Yet, what happens to that old time religion when the world changes around us? I'm thinking about when Galileo… Continue
1. Law and Gospel
2. What shows forth Christ
3. The plain meaning of the text
4. Scripture interprets Scripture
These are basic Bible interpretation principles from a historic, Lutheran, perspective. Lutheran Christians have been reading the Bible in this way for almost 500 years. These a… Continue
What shows forth Christ? and The plain meaning of the text.
Last week I looked at Mark 9:30-37 and talked a little about a Bible study I was a part of. The disciples had been arguing about "Who was the greate… Continue
The ELCA “Book of Faith” initiative offers us five historic, Lutheran, Scriptural interpretation principles to guide our Biblical reading. I talked a little about the first one two weeks ago, that was “Law and Gospel.” A second principle is “W… Continue
I said last week that I'd do a little series on "historic, Lutheran, Scriptural interpretation principles," but I got side tracked this week. I preached Sunday on James 3, "The tongue is a fire ..." With some recent experience on being misquoted or maligned this seemed like an interesting text.
Martin Luther in… Continue
Can just anybody interpret the Bible?
This is an interesting question! Certainly most anybody and everybody does interpret the Bible. Some do a really bad job of it. Some may do a really good job of it, but you might not like what they conclude. So who’s right? How do you know?
The ELCA “Book of Faith” initiative… Continue
The Bible clearly says that homosexual behavior is wrong. There is nothing that says it is okay. How can the ELCA justify its decision?
A lot of people are asking this question. It’s a good one! The simple answer is that the Bible says lots of things if you just go verse by verse. The straight forward love of God in Jesus Christ comes through loud and clear this way. However, mo… Continue
“Can the Bible say different things to different people?”
This is a question somebody asked me following our ELCA, churchwide assembly. The context was something like “Can the Bible tell one person homosexuality is okay and another that it’s not?” I’m not so interested in the specific context, though. I want… Continue
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Professor Diane Jacobson joins us from Luther Seminary in Mpls, MN to share with us how and why Lutherans read the Bible. Diane is the director of the ELCA Book of Faith Initiative and a wonderful presenter.
Cost for this event are covered by a grant from the ELCA so there is no charge. We will, however, take a… Continue
