Claimed, gathered and sent

I thought I'd share some posts from my courses at Regent. This was in response to the question of if we were to write a systematic theology book, what would be essential doctrines. Below is my response. In the West, we love to recreate the wheel. In the “three ecumenical creeds,” [1] we have a thorough systematic theology. The most concise being the Apostles’ Creed, followed by the Nicene Creed which fleshes out the Apostles’ Creed and lastly the Athanasian Creed, which gives a detailed defense of the doctrine of the trinity. Focusing on the Apostles’ Creed, it can be divided into three sections: the first concerning God the Father and his role as creator. The second article concerns God the Son and his role as redeemer. The third article is on the Holy Spirit and being made holy. Martin Luther’s Small Catechism provides a simple explanation of each article of the creed. The Small Catechism was written for the teaching o

My next few posts are going to be on the following passage. I have been meditating on this for a number of days. It is quite rich. For my own devotions, I have broken this passage down by sections/ideas and have concentrated on each. Ephesians 1:17-19 17 I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, 18 so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened , you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe , according to the working of his great power. First, God bookends this passage. he is at the beginning and the end. He is the actor and we are the ones acted upon. Brief overview: loaded with verbs pray give come know enlightened called believe working repeated words know (twice) power (twice) Who-God What-gives spirit of wisdom and re

Lk 9:18-27 Peter’s Declaration about Jesus Once when Jesus was praying alone, with only the disciples near him, he asked them, ‘Who do the crowds say that I am?’ They answered, ‘John the Baptist; but others, Elijah; and still others, that one of the ancient prophets has arisen.’ He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Peter answered, ‘The Messiah of God.’ Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection He sternly ordered and commanded them not to tell anyone, saying, ‘The Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.’ Then he said to them all, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will save it. What does it profit them if they gain the whole world, but lose or forfeit themselves? Those who are ashamed of me and of

It's been crazy lately with school. I've ready so much good stuff lately that I've wanted to share it all. But though a bit behind, I'm going to post some recent Bonhoeffer devotions that are powerful. Enjoy! Community Prayer The prayer of the Psalms teaches us to pray as a community. The body of Christ is praying, and I as an individual recognize that my prayer is only a tiny fraction of the whole prayer of the church. I learn to join the body of Christ in its prayer. That lifts me above my personal concerns and allows me to pray selflessly. Many of the Psalms were very probably prayed antiphonally by the Old Testament congregation. The so-called parallelism of the verses, that remarkable repetition of the same idea in different words in the second line of the verse, is not merely a literary form. It also has meaning for the church and theology....One night read, as a particularly clear example, Psalm 5. Repeatedly there are two voices, bringing the same prayer requ

This is a powerful illustration of God's work in our lives. Follow this link to a profound message. http://www.nesynod.org/publications/2007_TheLink/link-may-2007.pdf

New Englanders will be familiar with this expression, "You can't get there from here." You hear this when you are asking directions. It seems you should be able to get to your destination. Sometimes it's even in sight, but you just don't know the road to take. In walking with God, if we are prayerfully considering something, listening as he speaks through scripture and other members of his body, WE CAN GET THERE FROM HERE!!! Just over two years ago I went back to school part time. I feel called to serve God and his church through the ordained ministry of Word and sacrament in the ELCA. To get there, I had to finish undergraduate study to go to seminary. I am now one year away from graduation. The next step is candidacy. This is a process through the synod. Your church and pastor have paperwork to fill out. You complete an application and an autobiography. Then it all goes to the synod. You meet with the committee, have psychological testing and hopefu

I was looking over paperwork I received a few years ago from the New England Synod of the ELCA about the process of going into ordained ministry in the ELCA. My first communication and thinking about this was in 2004. At that time, I had a long way to go to finish school before going to seminary With move from full time work/part time school to part time work/full time school, I will be finished with my degree in 1 year. I couldn't believe it! It was years down the line...now the goal is within reach. When I was discouraged with one of my classes (math!), Pastor Paul told me, "Keep your eyes on the prize." That stuck with me. I can see it now. " You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised" (Hebrews 10:36).