It’s high time I start actually being on here more. This blog has been sitting here mostly unused for the past 5 or so years. It used to be where I post all my sermons, but since I started actually having audio of those, there’s not a lot of reason to post to manuscripts here. I tried making it a couple of other things along the way, but nothing really worked.
So I’m going to try to do something I do well (or, if not well, at least often): ramble on about theology, ministry, Christology, and other sorts of Christian-ologies.
Introductions
I’m pretty open about being a Lutheran pastor. It’s in my description most places, after all, and I’m rather proud of it. There’s a lot to love about being Lutheran. We focus on worship as something we do (as expressed through the liturgy). We see salvation as something we don’t do (as it is God’s action for us). There’s also the tie to something older and bigger than just what we’re doing right now. The Lutheran expression of Christianity has a lot going for it, even if it can be kind of a mess sometimes.
That said, I view my Lutheran heritage as a something secondary to a much bigger heritage: the broader Christian Church. I tend to grab thoughts and ideas from any Christian tradition, because there are a lot of things they do better than us.
Confessions
For instance, we Lutherans are largely a theological church. We sometimes act like if we just believe the right things about God we’ll be alright. It doesn’t really work like that. Other traditions have a much better understanding of the importance of actually living a Christian life. (If you disagree with me and say that belief is all that matters, maybe give James 2:14-26 a reread).
So I would call myself mostly Lutheran, but primarily someone who tries to live out his faith by following Jesus. And so I echo Jesus’ version of the Most Important Thing From God:
“The most important [commandment] is ‘Israel, listen! Our God is the one Lord, and you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, ‘You will love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.”
Mark 12:29-31 (CEB)
Luke’s version makes sure we know who our neighbor is (anyone who needs help, no matter who they are or what situation they’re in), but this is the basic idea I’m trying to pull off. I want to love people with the love of God, even though, if I’m being honest, I usually don’t.
I’m not really sure what this is going to turn into, but it’s about time it turns into something. I hope you enjoy whatever this might become. It could be an interesting ride.