Welcoem to posts!!
in the future - u will be able to do some more stuff here,,,!! like pat catgirl- i mean um yeah... for now u can only see others's posts :c
A Word from Pastor:
Sometimes the Bethlehem innkeeper gets a bad rap. What was he supposed to do? Kick someone out of a room they paid for? He didn't turn Joseph and Mary away. He provided for them as best he could.
On the other hand, King Herod deserves all the blame he gets. He sends the Wise Men off to find the Christ-child. And when they don't return, Herod sends his soldiers to Bethlehem to murder all the babies two years old and under, fearing a newborn might threaten his lifestyle. He doesn't lift a finger or move an inch.
Perhaps even worse were the religious leaders in Jerusalem. They knew from the Scriptures where the Messiah was to be born. Having received astounding news, they gave an academic answer to the Wise Men, but weren't interested enough to investigate for themselves. The Wise Men came from far away; the religious leaders couldn't be bothered to accompany them to a nearby town, a virtual suburb of Jerusalem. Nor is there any record of their opposition or regret about Herod's genocidal response.
How far have you gone, how much interest have you shown, to search for and welcome the arrival of God, the Messiah, our Lord and Savior? "Where meek souls will receive Him still, the dear Christ enters in." (O Little Town of Bethlehem, stanza 3)
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A Word from Pastor:
Hundreds of years before God sent him, God gave Old Testament believers signs to recognize their coming Messianic Savior. He would be born of a woman. (Genesis 3:15) He would be conceived by a virgin and called Emanuel, God With Us. (Isaiah 7:11) He would be born in Bethlehem. (Micah 5:2) Then, when he was born, shepherds were given the sign by angels that "a Savior, Christ the Lord" could be found in swaddling clothes lying in a manger in the City of David, i.e., Bethlehem. (Luke 2:11-12) Also God gave an old man Simeon assurance that he would see the Lord's Christ before he died. (Luke 2:27) Then through Simeon God gave a sign for the child's future: that he was appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, a sign spoken against, revealing the state of the hearts of many. (Luke 2:34-35) Hmmmm? Could this be Jesus? Or shall we look for another.
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A Word from Pastor:
Government leaders try to appeal to a broad swath of all types, of different religious and irreligious persuasions, in order to garner a majority of voters and build unity. Jesus is a great unifier of those who recognize Him as Savior and Lord, but that is a minority (the road is narrow and few find it -- Matthew 7:13-14). So most Christmas season cards and messages from politicians are very generic. I did get one from one of the other politicians who was shot and nearly killed, Steve Scalise, (since JFK and RFK in the 1960s I think they've all been Republicans) that was about as far to Christ as a modern politician dares to venture. On the cover was a lit Christmas tree in front of the U.S. Capitol and a big, bold "MERRY CHRISTMAS." Inside the first words were "GLORY TO GOD IN THE HIGHEST HEAVEN, AND PEACE ON EARTH TO PEOPLE HE FAVORS! Luke 2:14," (Holman Christian Standard Bible) "May the glorious message of peace on earth and goodwill to all people bring you a joyful holiday season. Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a blessed (notice, not "happy") New Year."
I invite anyone to send me a seasonal card from any Republican or Democrat political figure that carries any of these "code words": Christmas, God, Jesus, Christ the Lord, blessed, or a quote from the Bible. Especially one that doesn't include a request for money. (The above didn't.)
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A Word from Pastor:
In the Bible, when God made a barren woman conceive, (Sarah, Hannah, Elizabeth, Mary), it was because God had a special mission and purpose for the child (Isaac, Samuel, John the Baptizer, Christ). Three of the four were obviously miracle conceptions: Sarah and Elizabeth being beyond menopause and Mary being a virgin. Together they point to and culminate in the Child of Promise, Jesus, the God Who Saves.
In the case of Mary it was an unplanned, inconvenient conception. (Mary had no control over her own body.) But
Mary accepted her God-given role without complaint or anxiety. Indeed, every conception is an act of God, and every conceived child has a purpose. Mothers who accept them as such are a partner with God in fulfilling God's purpose, and will not have a lifetime of guilt, shame and regret for being a partner of Satan, whose only purpose is to "kill, steal and destroy." (John 10:10) And fathers likewise need to accept their responsibility to protect, guide and provide, or give the child to a childless couple who will welcome him/her as God's gift and their blessing. Murder is not a God-pleasing option, especially if by the guilty and powerful against the innocent and powerless.
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A Word from Pastor:
God takes people very seriously. He created us "fearfully and wonderfully made" (Psalm 139:14) and gave us this magnificent planet to live on, enjoy, use, maintain and develop. Much of the beauty and harmony of God's creation we have destroyed by our rebellion against God. God is angry about that and His sense of justice requires serious consequences. Mankind has been paying many penalties for our sins, but which pale in comparison to the much greater eternal punishment that awaits us.
But God took our hopeless condition seriously, intervening by sending His Son to become one of us and take the rap and punishment for us on the cross. The size of the condescension and the severity of the torment was enough to pay for the sins of the totality of mankind. And now God takes seriously our response to His magnanimous sacrifice to satisfy justice and express love and mercy. Sadly most people don't take seriously God or what He has done for them as their Creator and Redeemer. (Just look how most observe Christmas.) They imagine that they can ignore and/or defy God and get away with it. Many assume if there is a god, we don't need to pay attention to Him, and He will ignore us. (He won't.) Either that or they imagine and invent a god that they can please by their own version of righteousness. (Which doesn't exist and cannot help them.)
For starters, keep Christ in your Christmas.
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A Word from Pastor:
At Christmas we celebrate the incarnation, God becoming man, Emanuel, God with us, God one of us, God for us, to be our Savior. But we're a little late, because the incarnation happened 9 months earlier, when the angel Gabriel announced to the Virgin Mary, "You will conceive and have a son," and explained it would be by the Holy Spirit. So for centuries Christians have confessed in the Apostles Creed: "Jesus Christ, His only Son our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary."
Mary responded, "I am the Lord's servant. Let it happen to me as you said." Notice she didn't assert control of her own body, "reproductive rights," or "women's health," "a decision between her and her doctor," etc. These and other euphemisms for taking the life of another -- your own child -- only became a part of our lexicon in the past 50 years. We call that "Progressive." God calls it "murder."
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A Word from Pastor:
Sunday past in Bible Class we looked at the expressions of thanksgiving in Paul's epistles. In nearly all of them, after identifying himself as the writer, and the location of the church he was addressing, and giving a salutatory blessing, Paul immediately gave a thanksgiving. We also noticed how many times he expressed thanks or encouraged giving thanks in the body of his letters. Most of Paul's letters were written while in prison for the sake of the Gospel. Pleasant circumstances were not the source of his gratitude. Paul was confident of God's gracious presence and purpose in all his situations.
The "homework" assignment for the class was to make thanksgiving the beginning, middle and ending of our prayers and to maintain an attitude of thanksgiving throughout the day no matter what. After all, "if God is for us, who can be against us?" (Romans 8:31) "In all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28) And what is God's main purpose for us, His Chosen Ones? That we be conformed/transformed to "the likeness of Christ, so He can be the firstborn among many brothers." (Romans 8:29) So "we rejoice in or sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us." (Romans 5:3-5) "Count it all joy, my brothers, when you face various trials, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." (James 1:2-4) "In all these things we ae more than conquerors through Him who loved us. . . Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8: 37-39) "Rejoice always; pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)
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A Word from Pastor:
In the Bible, when God made a barren woman conceive, (Sarah, Hannah, Elizabeth, Mary), it was because God had a special mission and purpose for the child (Isaac, Samuel, John the Baptizer, Christ). Three of the four were obviously miracle conceptions: Sarah and Elizabeth being beyond menopause and Mary being a virgin. Together they point to and culminate in the Child of Promise, Jesus, the God Who Saves.
In the case of Mary it was an unplanned, inconvenient conception. (Mary had no control over her own body.) But
Mary accepted her God-given role without complaint or anxiety. Indeed, every conception is an act of God, and every conceived child has a purpose. Mothers who accept them as such are a partner with God in fulfilling God's purpose, and will not have a lifetime of guilt, shame and regret for being a partner of Satan, whose only purpose is to "kill, steal and destroy." (John 10:10) And fathers likewise need to accept their responsibility to protect, guide and provide, or give the child to a childless couple who will welcome him/her as God's gift and their blessing. Murder is not a God-pleasing option, especially if by the guilty and powerful against the innocent and powerless.
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A Word from Pastor:
God takes people very seriously. He created us "fearfully and wonderfully made" (Psalm 139:14) and gave us this magnificent planet to live on, enjoy, use, maintain and develop. Much of the beauty and harmony of God's creation we have destroyed by our rebellion against God. God is angry about that and His sense of justice requires serious consequences. Mankind has been paying many penalties for our sins, but which pale in comparison to the much greater eternal punishment that awaits us.
But God took our hopeless condition seriously, intervening by sending His Son to become one of us and take the rap and punishment for us on the cross. The size of the condescension and the severity of the torment was enough to pay for the sins of the totality of mankind. And now God takes seriously our response to His magnanimous sacrifice to satisfy justice and express love and mercy. Sadly most people don't take seriously God or what He has done for them as their Creator and Redeemer. (Just look how most observe Christmas.) They imagine that they can ignore and/or defy God and get away with it. Many assume if there is a god, we don't need to pay attention to Him, and He will ignore us. (He won't.) Either that or they imagine and invent a god that they can please by their own version of righteousness. (Which doesn't exist and cannot help them.)
For starters, keep Christ in your Christmas.
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A Word from Pastor:
God established three festivals for the Israelites which were meant to remind them of God's historical acts on their behalf. These festivals were the Passover, the First Harvest and the Gathering in at the end of the year. (Exodus 24:14-17) Special offerings were required by God to be a part of their worship festivals. "Don't come before Me empty-handed." (Ex. 24:15) God required "the first products of your work." (Ex. 24:16) "Bring the first and the best of the crop of your ground to the house of the LORD, your God." (V. 19)
Similarly, we have the festivals of Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter, which commemorate God's provisions and deliverance. Offerings and sacrifices have always been an important part of worship. These are to honor God as worthy of the first and the best, not a few secondhand items and leftovers after other priorities. God expects to be honored with our sacrifices and offerings, and promises that "those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise me shall be lightly esteemed." (1 Samuel 2:30) It's either one or the other.
When you come to God's House, bring your first and best to God, who gave His first and best for you.
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Welcome to The Voice of Our Savior!
Our channel is a ministry that we at Our Savior Lutheran Church use to share the good news of Jesus Christ. This church belongs to our Savior, who paid for it with His blood, and who has commanded us, His people to: “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all people, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded.”
We recommit ourselves to this task, trusting in our Savior to work through us as He promised, “Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the world.” Matthew 28:19-20