What’s the Difference?

According to Martin Luther, there’s a big difference between the Word of God and the word of man:.

We must make a great difference between God’s Word and the word of man. A man’s word is a little sound that flies into the air and soon vanishes, but the Word of God is greater than heaven and earth, year, greater than death and hell, for it forms part of the power of God and endures everlastingly.

Martin Luther

Maybe this is why the Bible is the most read book in the world. When writer James Chapman created a list of the most popular books of the last fifty years, based on the number of copies sold, the Bible was the runaway winner. It sold 3.9 billion copies. The next closed contenders were “Quotations from the Works of Mao Tse-Tung” (820 million copies) and “Harry Potter”(400 million copies).

For more about the Bible see:

Is the Bible Your Companion?

Martin Luther on Reading the Bible

Thankful Words

Recently I was at the conference of our denomination (the Association of Free Lutheran Churches) and we sang this hymn. The words and tune are simple, but express a profound truth. Here is a bit about the story of how it came to be composed by evangelists Bessie and Seth Sykes, Jr. It’s taken from ‘A Great Little Man, A Biography of Evangelist Seth Sykes’ which was written in 1958.

“Thank you, Lord was born [in 1940] in a railway carriage between Edinburgh and Glasgow and has been wonderfully used of God. It has been translated into more than 70 different languages including French, German, Arabic and Chinese, and is sung both on radio and Television throughout the globe. Many touching stories have been told of how it has brought comfort and cheer to those nearing the end of Life’s weary way. One dear man heard it sung over a Canadian broadcasting network. He had come from Scotland to Canada, and somehow had lost touch with Christ. He determined to renew the covenant. Seeking the origin of the chorus, he was put in touch with Mr. and Mrs. Sykes and memories of an old friendship were revived.”

Sing these lyrics this morning and then add your own thankful words of prayer!

Some thank the Lord for friends and home
For mercies sure and sweet
But I would praise Him for his grace
In prayer I would repeat

Refrain:
Thank you, Lord, for saving my soul
Thank you, Lord, for making me whole
Thank you, Lord, for giving to me
Thy great salvation so rich and free

Some thank Him for the flow’rs that grow
Some for the stars that shine
My heart is filled with joy and praise
Because I know He’s mine

I trust in Him from day to day
I prove His saving grace
I’ll sing this song of praise to Him
Until I see His face

For more posts about being thankful see:

Practicing Thankfulness by Sam Crabtree–Book Review

Thankful for Stress!!

Thankful for Spiritual Blessings

Words of Praise

If you belong to a liturgical church, you’ve probably heard this word: doxology. Doxology is defined as:

“an expression of praise to God, especially a short hymn sung as part of a Christian worship service.”

It comes from the Greek word, doxa, which means glory, splendor or grandeur, and logos, word or speaking.

The doxology which I am most familiar with was written in 1674 by Thomas Ken, a priest in the Church of England. What a great way to start the day! Feel free to sing as well as listen!

Doxology: Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow (with lyrics) – YouTube

For more about the liturgy see

The Laity and Liturgy:

Learning from the Liturgy

Liturgy as Prayer

Truthful Words

The Bible tells us in many places to avoid lying. It’s one of the Ten Commandments–

“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor” Exodus 20:16

It’s also mentioned in the book of Proverbs…

“Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord, but those who act faithfully are his delight.” Proverbs 12:22

and in the New Testament as well.

“Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members of one another. Ephesians 4:25

Here’s a quote from my devotional reading that explains how to avoid this particular sin:

“It seems to me, that the shortest way to check the darker forms of deceit is to set watch more scrupulous against those which have mingled, unregarded and unchastised with the current of our life. Do not let us lie at all. Do not think of one falsity as harmless, and another as slight, and another as unintended. Cast them all aside; they may be light and accidental; but they are an ugly soot from the smoke of the pit, for all that; and it is better that our hearts should be swept clean of them, without over care as to which is largest or blackest. Speaking truth is like writing fair, and comes only by practice; it is less a matter of will than of habit, and I doubt if any occasion can be trivial which permits the practice and formation of such a habit.“

John Ruskin

Of course, keep in mind that speaking the truth is not to be used as an excuse for hurting others with comments that are overly blunt or even cruel. Paul also tells us to speak the truth “in love”(Ephesians 4:15) and Peter exhorts us to use “gentleness and respect.”(1 Peter:3:15).

Use words that are both truthful and loving. Make this your habit.

Martin Luther’s Prayer about the Word

Dear God,
let your Word
shine in our hearts
by your Holy Spirit.
Make it
so bright and warm
that we always find
our comfort and joy
in it.
Amen.

Source: Martin Luther, translated for A Collection of Prayers from Die Gebete Luthers, #195.

For more prayers see:

Prayer to the Holy Spirit #2

A Prayer of Surrender

A Penitent Prayer

Dedicated continued ….

I recently posted about the word, dedicated . When we dedicate our lives to God, they become holy. This does not necessarily mean we must do “big” things. Rather, as Mother Teresa said,

“Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.”

In this way, every daily activity becomes a sacred practice when we offer it to God.

These quotes from my daily devotional seemed to sum it up well:

“We do not always perceive that even the writing of a note of congratulation, the fabrication of something intended as an offering of affection, our necessary (interaction) with characters which have no congeniality with us, or hours apparently trifled away in the domestic circle, may be made by us the performance of a most sacred and blessed work–even the carrying out, after our feeble measure, of the design of God for the increase of happiness.” From Anna or Passages From Home Life

“Definite work is not always that which is cut and squared for us, but that which comes as a claim upon the conscience, whether it’s nursing in a hospital, or hemming a handkerchief.” Elizabeth M. Sewell

Jesus, the Word of God

“It is Christ Himself, not the Bible, which is the true word of God. The Bible, read in the right spirit and with the guidance of good teachers will bring us to him. ” C. S. Lewis

“ In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” John 1:1

“ In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe.” Hebrews 1:1-2

Dedicated — An Important Word

I just finished a book entitled, “Dedicated–The Case for Commitment in an age of Infinite Browsing.” Pete Davis, the young man who authored it, believes we’re surrounded by a culture that discourages us from dedicating ourselves to anyone or anything — there are so many options that we’re paralyzed by FOMO (fear of missing out). If we marry too quickly, we might miss out on our real soulmate; if we stay at the same company for many years, we won’t advance as quickly; if we devote ourselves to a certain craft or area of study, we’ll cut off other options.

Although this is not a book about religion, he does mention that the word “dedicate” has two meanings:

1. To make something holy
2. To stick with something for a long time

Christianity encourages us to both kinds of dedication. Life wth God has been compared to a marriage, a garden, or a building — all things that take time and effort. According to the Bible, we are to commit our entire lives to Christ.

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship” Romans 12:1-2

When we dedicate ourselves in this way, our lives become holy.

^“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light”. 1 Peter 2:9

Dedication has great value. As Mr. Davis says:

“The Counterculture of Commitment is made up of people who are tilling the soil, planting seeds, and growing small forests–and in doing so they are generating hope. Their commitments don’t just transform society–they transform the committers themselves.”

So don’t put it off. dedicate yourself today to the One who gives us a living hope — your life will be changed, and so will our world.

For more posts on changing the world see:

The Lutheran Ladies Changing Their Environment

Changing Your Environment–Joan’s Story, part 2

Changing Your Environment — Joan’s Story, Part 1

The Word Did It All –Martin Luther

“What is Luther? The teaching is not mine. Nor was I crucified for anyone … How did I, poor stinking bag of maggots that I am, come to the point where people call the children of Christ by my evil name? … I simply taught, preached, wrote God’s Word; otherwise I did nothing. And while I slept, or drank Wittenberg beer with my friends Philip and Amsdorf, the Word so greatly weakened the papacy that no prince or emperor ever inflicted such losses upon it. I did nothing; the Word did everything.“

Martin Luther

For more quotes by Martin Luther see:

Martin Luther on God’s Word

Martin Luther on Doing Good

Martin Luther on How to Respond to a Pandemic

Interesting Word #3

The word paradise is used only a few times in the Bible. The most well known verse is in the Gospel of Luke, when Jesus tells one of the thieves on the cross:

“Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.” Luke 23:43

The apostle Paul also uses this word to describe a vision he experienced:

“And I know how such a man—whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, God knows— was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which a man is not permitted to speak.” 2 Corinthians 12:3-4

Finally, it is mentioned in Revelation:

“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will grant to eat of the tree of life which is in the Paradise of God.’ Revelation 2:7

But what exactly does paradise mean? Is it synonymous with heaven? Well, not quite.

Paradise was originally a Persion word meaning “an area enclosed by a wall” or a “garden.” In the Old Testament, it’s used to refer to the Garden of Eden in Genesis. In intertestamental (noncanonnical) literature such as the pseudepigrapha and apocrypha the word takes on a more specifically religious meaning. Human history will culminate in a divine paradise on earth. Since there was (and still is) no immediate access to the garden of Eden, or the New Jerusalem, paradise (also sometimes known as Abraham’s Bosom) was considered the realm of the righteous dead who are awaiting the resurrection of the body. It’s this intermediate state which is probably referred to in the verses above.

For more posts about the garden of Eden see:

Back to the Garden

It Started in the Garden

What’s a Libretto?