If the world were to go to the doctor for its 2020 annual check up …
- what would the doctor say?
- what would the examination reveal?
- what’s the malady? the sickness?
- what’s the diagnosis?
- what’s the medicine? is there a cure?
- what “life changes” need to take place for continued health?
2020 has revealed a world that is sick, torn apart and ravaged by sin, death and the devil. We struggle with …
- a languishing faith
- a loss of hope
- a lack of love
In days like these, where and to whom shall we go? What is the cure? Where is the healing?
In Jesus … the Worst of the World is Met with the Best of the Triune God
The good news is that in the person and work of Jesus we receive all of the gifts that only the Triune God can give! He not only gives life eternal but faith, hope and love for today!
In Jesus, the world is redeemed, restored and reconciled. We not only survive in this world, by God’s grace, we spiritually thrive. He superabundantly gives to us …
- a vibrant and active faith for today
- a sure and certain hope for tomorrow
- a selfless and sacrificial love each day for the neighbor
In Jesus, the worst of the world is met with the best of the Triune God. In Jesus, and the gifts that He gives, all things are made new!
Vlog Cast and Overview
Here’s a video link to an extended vlog cast that introduces you to the “To Whom Shall We Go?” journey I’ll be leading this Fall. You could also think of it as a “spiritual check up” for 2020.
If you’d like to learn more about the “To Whom Shall We Go?” journey, click on the button below.
A Call to … Repent! Receive! Rejoice! (repeat)
At the heart of this journey are three calls (and a fourth) from God …
- a call to repent (a brutal and honest acknowledgement of sin and a “beggar like” dependence on the Lord Jesus)
- a call to receive (a bold faith to believe and trust that though we have nothing to offer the Lord Jesus, He has everything to give)
- a call to rejoice (a surpassing, surprising and sacred joy given by God that rests in the promise that when you have the forgiveness of sins in Jesus you have … everything!!!)
- a call to repeat, repeat, repeat (a formation of a spiritual “habitus” – set of habits – that makes the reception of the gifts of the Triune God a way of life – The Receptive Life)
Here’s a wonderful summary quote from the Lutheran Confessions:
The sum of the preaching of the Gospel is this: to convict of sin; to offer for Christ’s sake the forgiveness of sins and righteousness, the Holy Spirit, and eternal life; and that as reborn people we should do good works. [30] So Christ includes the sum of the Gospel when He says, “Repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in His name to all nations” (Luke 24:47).
Apology, Article XIIA (V) Repentance, Concordia: The Lutheran Confessions: Second Edition, Paul Timothy McCain, Concordia Publishing House
Beginning Thursday, October 22nd …
I’d like to invite you to start a journey that will teach you how to live, not just a day, but a life of repentance – a life spent running to the Lord Jesus and receiving and rejoicing in all of the gifts that only the Triune God can give.
Here’s the itinerary and some next steps:
- Ten Days of Preparation and Examination Using the Ten Commandments (starts Thursday, October 22nd).
- A Day Set Aside to Repent, Receive and Rejoice in the House of God (East Bethlehem Lutheran Church has set aside Sunday, November 1st for this day).
- A 12 week course, process and experience called The Receptive Life that will help you learn where to find and how to receive all of the gifts that only the Triune God can give. (starts Monday, November 2nd).
You can enroll in the “To Whom Shall We Go?” online and virtual journey by clicking on the link below.