Posts by University Lutheran (Page 61)

What do we believe about choice?

This past Sunday, I repeated the term “Choose Life” a bunch of times because it fit with where I was going with the sermon for Easter – that we make choices about what we reject as “unlife” so that we can have a more pure experience of “Life-life”. But when it comes to our choices,…

The Gift of God: He Is Risen!

This idea is commonly used on crime shows. The police have to exhume a body for a case they’re working on. The medical examiner warns, “This has been in the ground for ten years. Expect the foulest of foul stenches.” Everyone holds their noses as the casket is opened, only to discover that the body……

GIFTED: The Gift of Death

Today’s portion of Psalm 118 begins with this: “Save us, we pray, O Lord! O Lord, we pray, give us success! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord” (verses 25-26). Sound familiar? It should – these same words were cried out by the crowds on Palm Sunday, celebrated just a few…

Celebrating Gifts Given: Models of Faith

The temple in Jerusalem was a holy place. It was not meant for everyone to enter, especially to the most sacred places, because of its holiness; only righteous people could enter. Psalm 118 includes a demonstration of how people typically entered the temple. “Open to me the gates of righteousness,” the person outside the temple…

GIFTED: Jesus is the Frame

Psalm 119 is clear. “How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word” (verse 9). That’s the way to do it! By remembering to read Scripture and apply it to our everyday lives, we can defend against the evil one and avoid sin. That’s all there is to…