God owes us no answers, and certainly owes us no apologies. When we speak in way that suggests the Lord has forgotten or forsaken us, especially to the Lord, it is we who are shortsighted, not Him. And so, when we do speak such things, even though it may be emotionally honest, it nevertheless shows that our faith has been deficient in some way. And when that is the case, the Lord will work in such a way that restores and strengthens our faith . . . but what does that look like?

This podcast can never be a substitute for in-person attendance at a local church. Click here to find a local church you can connect with! Find a Lutheran church near you!

In our Lutheran Confessions, the line between “hypocrite” and “faithful Christian” is clear. But that is in a book of theology. Theology books have the benefit—indeed, the task—of providing straightforward answers. Theology in books is clean and neat. But in our outward gathering around Word and Sacrament that is called “church,”—and indeed in the secret, inner lives of our hearts and minds—the line between “hypocrite” and “faithful” is not nearly so clear nor so plain.

This podcast can never be a substitute for in-person attendance at a local church. Click here to find a local church you can connect with! Find a Lutheran church near you!

For the benefit and salvation of all, the Son goes forth from the Father, and the Spirit goes forth from the Son. Each moves in a sort of arc: going forth and returning. For as the Holy Spirit goes forth, He calls people everywhere through the gospel of Jesus Christ. And this is how God’s missionary movement comes to its completion: by Him moving forward, moving outward, to call us, to gather us, to return us to Himself.

This podcast can never be a substitute for in-person attendance at a local church. Click here to find a local church you can connect with! Find a Lutheran church near you!