Today we will look at an incident in the life of Martin Luther that, until our present pandemic, constituted only a footnote in Christian history. It involved a plague striking Wittenberg in 1527 where Luther lived and ministered.
Some 180 years earlier Europe had been decimated by the Black Death, commonly believed today to be the bubonic plague. Between 1347 and 1351 it is estimated that 35-65% of Europe’s population DIED as a result of this pandemic. It came from Asia where it had already killed untold numbers in China and India. More details about the Black Plague can be gained from the Wikipedia article and from this History Channel article. But this plague was not done after its initial surge. Additional outbreaks continued in every generation at least until the 17th Century (some even say the 19th). These additional outbreaks were not as widespread but were still both feared and deadly. One such outbreak happened in and around Wittenberg in Germany in late 1527.Continue Reading
I did not know much about Martin Luther until I began teaching Christian History. I knew he was credited with helping begin the Reformation, that he nailed a document to a church door challenging some of the Catholic Church’s doctrines and practices, is said to have taught “salvation by faith alone,” and that a major religious group, Lutherans, look to him as their founder. I turns out there is so much more to know about him, his reforms, and his work.
Maybe I should preface the next several articles I write about Luther with the expression, “Credit where credit is due.” I do not agree with everything Martin Luther taught, and there were occasional personal flaws in his character and conduct. But of every person except Jesus, including myself, I would say the same. Yet, Martin Luther was a monumental person who changed the history of Christianity for the better, and we would all benefit by knowing more about the good he did.Continue Reading
I’m spending much more time than usual at home as mandated by our state and city governments… and by the president of our school! This means I have more time to look at the many emails and other digital media that come my way daily from the larger Christian community.
I have been on the mailing lists for some time of various ministries, publishers and respected leaders. Though I might have significant differences with some doctrinal views and practices, I respect these men and women for their deep faith and commitment to the fundamentals of the Gospel. That is never more evident than now as the whole Christian community is being powerfully impacted by the current pandemic. Combine this with their thoughts at the approach this Sunday of Easter in much of Western Christianity… and the fact that all public celebrations of it have been cancelled.Continue Reading
In March of 2016 I had the opportunity to travel to Israel and Jordan with a tour group from Lubbock Christian University led by Dr. Jesse Long. Among the many highlights of that tour for me was the opportunity to visit the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem. Within that building is the “Edicule,” a small building built during the crusades over the remains of what was believed to be the cave tomb of Jesus.
About six months after our visit, the Edicule was closed for major repairs and the National Geographic magazine and cable channel was granted permission to video what was uncovered in the center of that small building. A documentary and magazine article are available from them. But in brief, when the flat marble stone (dating from about AD 1100-1300) supposedly covering the “tomb bed” was removed, another much older stone slab dated to about AD 345 was discovered beneath. Then when that slab was shifted to one side, only the original limestone tomb bed was found beneath! And then within a few hours it was all cleaned and repaired, and hidden once again from human eyes.Continue Reading
During these trying times with most Christians ordered to shelter in place or at home, and with all church services and classes cancelled, many different faith-based ministries are stepping up to offer free access to their materials. I mentioned and linked to several of them in a post about two weeks ago.
One of those is Ligonier Ministries, who presently makes over 2,500 videos available for free access. Now they have added the ability to download over 100 of their Ligonier study guides in PDF format for free that accompany their various video series. Many of the authors are recognized Biblical scholars and seminary professors.Continue Reading
I have long held the strong conviction that professed Christians have too little knowledge and understanding of “apologetics” – the study and presentation of the strong evidence and reasons for believing the fundamental facts of the Gospel message. This includes the reliability of the Bible as a historical record and the existence of a real person named Jesus. The facts concerning Jesus would further include His doing of miracles, His teachings, and His death by crucifixion and then resurrection from the dead! Failure by those of us who teach and preach to regularly present this evidence to our people has left many of them weak in faith and more easily misled by the skeptics in our culture and educational systems. Therefore, I often incorporate the “evidence that demands a verdict” in my messages and classes. And there is no better time to do that each year than during the Easter season.Continue Reading
Lifeway, the publishers of the English Standard Bible translation, is currently offering a free PDF download of Psalms in 30 Days: A Prayer Guide Through the Psalter, written by Trevin Wax. I could not find the book on their website, but received the download link in an email from the ChurchResources division of Lifeway.
This is not a commentary nor a devotional study guide to the Psalms. Rather, the author has arranged the various psalms to be read and incorporated into the reader’s daily prayers. The full text of each psalm is reproduced – from the ESB version of course. The book is arranged into three daily prayer times for 30 days. Each prayer time includes not only the psalms chosen for that time, but also one or more brief Scripture quotations from other parts of the Bible in line with that time’s theme, and also a prayer or prayers to be verbalized in addition to the psalms. The total length of the book in print form is 299 pages.Continue Reading
On Easter Sunday, April 1 2018, I delivered the following sermon at the Church of Christ in Friona, Texas. No recording was made, but I have included my outline below.
On This Day
Scripture Text:Luke 24:1-3
Introduction:
As a teacher of Christian History at Sunset International Bible Institute, I have the opportunity to teach about the various controversies in celebrating Easter that occurred in the early centuries of the church.
Controversy was primarily over what date it should be celebrated.
The questions and differences first appeared in the 2nd century.
It is interesting to note that no evidence exists for or against the New Testament (1st century) era church keeping an annual specific day, but only Sunday itself.
It is also important to note that there was no doubt in the 2nd century about the actual historical event of Jesus’ resurrection. Only the heretical Gnostics rejected its truth. Mainstream Christianity only squabbled over what date they should celebrate it on.
Now Christian history does tell us is that three practices of the church go all the way back into the 1st century of Christianity – and all three of these practices declare the historical truth of Jesus’ resurrection. We will speak more about these 3 practices in this lesson.
As I write this, “Easter” is two weeks away on April 12. For the eighteen years I preached at Tanglewood in Odessa, Texas I delivered a message specifically for that holiday almost every year. Over the next two weeks I want to share a few of those messages.
I am not suggesting that this specific time each year is exactly when the Lord was resurrected. We don’t know the real day of the year other than that it was on a Sunday. But I do know this time each year is an opportune time to remind our people and our visitors of the truth and importance of His resurrection.Continue Reading
News keeps coming in daily of the spread and effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Schools, churches and businesses across our nation are closed for at least the near future. But not all the news is bad. In our city of Lubbock many people, organizations and businesses are stepping forward and giving and serving our community with no strings attached. I like to think this is at least partly the result of the strong influence that Christianity still exerts in our city and region. Hopefully those reading this in other parts of our nation are seeing similar generosity; perhaps some are even part of Christian churches involved in such service.Continue Reading
As I write this, our city, state, nation and world are dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. Already over 10,000 deaths are attributed to it, and projections are that those numbers will go much higher. In this nation our national and local leaders have instituted numerous laws and requirements to try and slow the spread in our population.
I am not writing this either to stir up further hysteria or to make light of this very serious threat to us all. Instead I have been thinking for several days about the lessons we can draw from our own Christian history and what our response as followers of the King of Kings should be. As both a teacher and student of church history, other times in our history when the church faced similar circumstances easily come to mind.Continue Reading
A project at Sunset International Bible Institute that I have been involved with since its planning stages is the Sunset Digital Library app. At Sunset we have a large archive of older video and audio recordings of our instructors and ministers dating as far back as 1970. Some of the well-known names (now deceased) include Cline Paden, Gerald Paden, Ted Stewart, Truman Scott, Doyle Paden, Abe Lincoln, Richard Rogers, Norman Gipson and Richard Baggett. Others still with us include Ed Wharton, Truitt Adair, Ken Jones, Dan Rouse and many others.Continue Reading
I did not know much about Martin Luther until I began teaching Christian History. I knew he was credited with helping begin the Reformation, that he nailed a document to a church door challenging some of the Catholic Church’s doctrines and practices, is said to have taught “salvation by faith alone,” and that a major religious group, Lutherans, look to him as their founder. I turns out there is so much more to know about him, his reforms, and his work.
Lifeway
As I write this, “Easter” is two weeks away on April 12. For the eighteen years I preached at Tanglewood in Odessa, Texas I delivered a message specifically for that holiday almost every year. Over the next two weeks I want to share a few of those messages.
As I write this, our city, state, nation and world are dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. Already over 10,000 deaths are attributed to it, and projections are that those numbers will go much higher. In this nation our national and local leaders have instituted numerous laws and requirements to try and slow the spread in our population.
A project at Sunset International Bible Institute that I have been involved with since its planning stages is the Sunset Digital Library app. At Sunset we have a large archive of older video and audio recordings of our instructors and ministers dating as far back as 1970. Some of the well-known names (now deceased) include Cline Paden, Gerald Paden, Ted Stewart, Truman Scott, Doyle Paden, Abe Lincoln, Richard Rogers, Norman Gipson and Richard Baggett. Others still with us include Ed Wharton, Truitt Adair, Ken Jones, Dan Rouse and many others.