Salvogesis

Today is October 31 st  so I thought that it would be good to start off with an October 31 st  quiz today:   1)       What historic event happened in Wittenburg on this date in 1517? (answer: Luther nailed his 95 theses to the door of the church.) 2)       True or False: Ghosts are mentioned in the Bible. (True, especially The Holy Ghost in the Authorized Version) 3)       True or False: A king of Israel went to a witch to speak with the spirit of a dead person (True, 1 Samuel 28). a.        Bonus Marks name the King (Saul), the dead person (Samuel), and the witch (the Witch of Endor) 4)       How many people can you name who the Bible records God used to raise others from the dead? a.        God used Elijah to raise the son of the widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17:17-23), b.       God used El...

Oct. 31, 1517, Martin Luther posted his 95 theses on the church door. Jan. 3, 1521, Luther was excommunicated after he had a number of Papal bulls burned and was investigated by the Inquisition; 1521 saw the Diet of Worms and Luther’s kidnapping by Fredrick and by 1524 the religious wars were well underway in Europe. Though not a soldier, Luther was very active in inciting military engagements. Luther rejected the authority of the Pope, agreed to the principles of Sola Scriptura and justification by faith; rejected the seven sacraments, church tradition, the prohibition to marry for clergy; and he emphasized the power of the Word of God. Erasmus: His Textus Receptus (1516) was a very important translation of the NT. He was one of the first reformers. Luther was quite upset with Erasmus as Erasmus spoke about good works being shown by those who are saved. Luther really tried to divide faith and deeds – thus he did not like the Book of James very much at all. Erasmus really tried t...

1 When the Lord restored the people, we were like those who dream. 2 Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy; then it was said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” 3 The Lord has done great things for us, and we rejoiced. 4 Restore our fortunes, O Lord, like the watercourses in the Negeb. 5 May those who sow in tears reap with shouts of joy. 6 Those who go out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, carrying their sheaves.   Imagine this with me. You get up and get ready for your day. You head out to pick up some groceries before doing whatever else you have planned for the day. You don’t have a mask. You don’t go back to your car to get a mask; you don’t have one there either. You don’t go all the way back home; you have no idea where one might be there even though not long ago you had 2 or 3 readily accessible everywhere. You don’t have a mask. You don’t know where you might find one. Bu...

This is a very interesting passage. You need to picture this. Jesus has been teaching. His disciples are with him. They are helping. They are assisting. They are doing what needs to be done. They all serve Jesus but there isn’t really a hierarchy among the 12 of them; though some do have specific responsibilities: Home League, YPS, CSM, CFS, … okay maybe not these roles but they are a team working with Jesus as he is preaching, serving, and teaching. Jesus is a popular speaker, and he is on a speaking tour travelling from the north to the south, with his final show to be in Jerusalem in Judea. Jesus is not only teaching the large crowd of disciples, students, adherents, and interested public who come to hear him speak on his cross-Palestine tour, he is also teaching his 12 especially selected disciples, the ones with whom he will leave his ministry when he retires, is promoted, gets his raise (from the dead) and goes to be with the Father. In the early part of Chapter 10 leading up t...

Thanksgiving in Canada is to a “day of general thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed.” When we were on the prairies, this took on a whole new meaning to me. We came to know a little more what was meant by planting season and harvesting season and we could even tell you what kind of combine you were driving based on the colour of the vehicle. Thanksgiving for the harvest was a real part of life.                Today, in the context of what is going on in the world and in the Army, I want to spend a little bit of time chatting about the power of a spirit of thanksgiving in our lives. It really is something that God can use to get us through even the darkest of times. This is what a spirit of thanksgiving looks like:   Philippians 4:4-7: “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious ...