The Joshua Victor Theory

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. “The time is coming…” the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy, a young pastor. “The time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.” Well it shouldn’t take much convincing for us to realize that that time is now here. We already live in the time Paul described, where people will not listen to or tolerate sound teaching, but gather around them teachers that will say what their itching ears want to hear. Today Paul’s words to Timothy call us to make sure we are listening to the God-breathed Word of holy Scripture, which is vital for our spiritual health today. Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. So are we really living in “those times” when people won’t listen to sound teaching,...

Lutherans aren’t known for getting a lot of attention in the news. They tend to slip under the radar more often than not—while other Christian churches make the headlines. But things changed in August, as headlines like these flashed: “Lutherans adopt more open view on gays,” “Lutherans approve gay ministers.” What’s all this about? The 4.8 million member Lutheran denomination, the “Evangelical Lutheran Church of America” (ELCA), passed recent measures in their national assembly to endorse homosexual marriage and allow the ordination of homosexual pastors in their church. (Side note: a remarkable thing occurred at the same time these measures were being passed on the convention floor in Minneapolis: without warning, a tornado briefly struck downtown Minneapolis, and caused a highly selective bit of damage…It knocked the cross off of the steeple on the ELCA church across from the convention center! You can see the picture and read one ELCA pastor’s reflections on it here: http://www.wor...

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. The sermon is based on our reading from Ephesians 5:22-33, which describes God’s holy design for marriage and family. Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. An illustration really caught my attention in the informational video we showed Thursday, for this Financial Peace University program that we’re starting. Dave Ramsey, the speaker, had the audience stand up and close their eyes, and then point in the direction they thought was North. Then they opened their eyes and started laughing as everyone was pointing different directions. He held a compass and pointed to True North. His point was that your feelings aren’t a trustworthy guide to finding truth, nor do they change what the truth is, no matter how strongly we feel. Each person thought that North was in a different direction, but he said that no matter what people thought, and whether they liked it...