Anthropology – Page 2 – What Does This Mean?

Son of Man

Encore Post:

[Twenty-Sixth in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]

Jesus does not use the title Son of God to refer to himself, even though we use it all the time for him. Instead, he most often uses the title the Son of Man. Yet, it is rarely used by anyone other than Jesus. In the Old Testament, God calls Ezekiel “Son of Man.” and Daniel talks about a vision of the Messiah, who would be “like a son of man.” (Daniel 7:13-14) Likely Jesus is claiming this prophecy with his favorite title.

Yet in this title, Christians see more. The Eternal Son of God, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, the Messiah is not ashamed to become one of us. He takes not only our nature, born in our form, but calls himself our brother, made like us in every way. (Hebrews 2:16-17) He experienced every temptation that we do, except he did not sin. God does not consider this physical world, our bodies or lives inferior, as if only the spirit matters. After all, he made it and called it “very good.” (Genesis 1:31)

More than that, even after he died for our sins, Jesus did not shed his body the way we discard our clothes after a hard day of work. He rose again after three days, keeping the wounds that were the price of our salvation and still lives as one Lord Jesus Christ, both Son of God and Son of Man to this day and forever.

The title, Son of Man, also reminds us that the Almighty and Everlasting God, whom we can never fully understand, does not live far away from us at a distance, but comes to us in a way we can understand. God in his glory we cannot grasp, but God in the person of the man Jesus Christ, we can understand. (John 1:18). He is God-with-us, and even though he is at the right hand of God in Heaven, is with us until the end of time itself — and beyond. (Matthew 28:18-20) He comes to us even more so in the Lord’s Supper, where he gives us his body with bread and his blood with wine to eat and to drink. That is why we thank and praise God that he is our Lord — Son of God and Son of Man.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

©2018-2021 Robert E. Smith. All rights reserved. Permission granted to copy, share and display freely for non-commercial purposes. Direct all other rights and permissions inquiries to cosmithb@gmail.com

God the Jealous God

Encore Post:

[Eighteenth in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]

In our tour of the Ten Commandments, we learned God wants more than just a casual keeping of his law. He wants our hearts and souls to match our behavior. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and all your might” (Deuteronomy 6:5). Of course, we know we cannot keep the law perfectly in this life, and God knows it, too. Jesus died to pay the price for our disobedience and to earn us forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation. So, why should we try at all to be good?

The reason is that sin has its consequences in this world and the next. When Adam and Eve sinned, sin multiplied and became a part of the lives of every one of their children. It brought with it death, sickness, disaster, grief, and pain. It destroyed the close relationship between people and between people and God. Since we were made to share our lives with God and each other, it harmed the very purpose for which we exist. It sin that God sent his Son to save us from, not to be a fire insurance policy against hell.

God describes his relationship with his people as a marriage. Sin amounts to being unfaithful with other gods, dividing our love for him by giving ourselves to others. So it is that God warns us in the First Commandment that he is a jealous God and there are consequences when we are unfaithful to him. (Exodus 20:5-6) God, in the sufferings and death of Jesus Christ, breaks the power of sin and death in our lives. With prayer and the help of other Christians, we can fight back against these sins and sometimes even be free of them.

After all, God’s warning comes with a promise. It is not only sins that travel from generation to generation but also blessings. With the help of the Holy Spirit, when we establish habits of doing good — attending worship faithfully, praying with our children, reading God’s word to them, and caring for others, these, too, will be a part of their inheritance.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith

Pastor Emeritus

Fort Wayne, Indiana

The Problem is in the Heart

Encore Post:

[Seventh in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]

To a serious believer, the Ten Commandments seem simple enough. Believe in God and don’t frequent idols — check. Don’t swear — check. Go to church every week, sometimes more — check. Love mom and dad — check. Never kill anyone, never take anything that doesn’t belong to you, never step out on your spouse, and don’t lie — check on all counts. And then comes coveting … How do you deal with thoughts and feelings?

As we have considered the other commandments, we’ve learned they are not as simple as they seem. Still, they seem doable. The Ninth and Tenth Commandments point out the real problem. Our old Adam and old Eve want everything for themselves. Everyone at work gets a raise, and yours is quite generous. But you know your teammate got more. So you’re jealous.

King David had everything, including many beautiful wives. Yet one look at someone else’s wife — and he took a bath. Committed adultery, lied about it, and arranged the murder of her husband. Later, he put his finger on the problem. He was sinful from birth — sinful since he was conceived. (Psalm 51:1-5) Jesus summed it up when he said, “For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.” (Matthew 15:19-20)

Let’s face it. We cannot do this alone. Instead, we can turn to the one tempted in every way that we are, except he didn’t sin. (Hebrews 4:15) His suffering and death break the power of sin in our lives. When we remember our baptisms, we remember that the Old Adam and Eve were drowned there. We can confess our sins to him, be forgiven, and face our fight with the flesh. We also have those in this fight with us — our brothers and sisters in Christ. Together we can resist whatever comes to our minds and hearts.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith

Pastor Emeritus

Fort Wayne, Indiana

Speak up for others

Encore Post:

[Sixteenth in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]

It all began with a lie. “You shall not die, but you will be like God…” (Genesis 3:4-5) Since then, falsehood has been the go-to sin — the way we try to wiggle out of tough spots. Sometimes it works — for a while. The trouble with lies is that they multiply like rabbits, and it is hard to keep them all straight. A variation of this strategy is to build yourself up by tearing others down. It is why it is the staple of garden-variety gossip — and political campaigns. It is also when someone competes with us that we assume the worst of others and spread it. The problem is, of course, that such lies destroy reputations and lives. It is why God forbids lying about others. But you know all that. It is the common theme of preachers when they take up this commandment.

Martin Luther sees something more in this commandment. It is God’s call to speak up for others, especially those who cannot speak for themselves. So, when the opportunity comes, we should speak well of others. We should praise people publicly when they do well, help others see their good side, and defend them when we hear them criticized. This is especially true if they are weak, defenseless, unable to defend themselves, or in danger. This can be challenging when the person is a friend or loved one, but difficult if they are opposed to us or even an enemy. We may discover that they are not as bad as we think.

Every day we fail to do this. Yet there is forgiveness for us. Jesus suffered the insults and lies of others, even his friends. These lies resulted in his crucifixion. He knew this would happen, yet he willingly suffered so that we might be saved. Because he died and rose again, God now sees only the best in us — that we do good because we love him and that we are holy for Jesus’ sake. He now gives us the ability to see the good in others, to pray for them, and defend them.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith

Pastor Emeritus

Fort Wayne, Indiana

Beg, Borrow and Steal

Encore Post:

[Sixteenth in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]

Advertisements are all around us. They call to us: “You can have that bright, shiny car. If you act now, you can get it for hardly any money at all…” “Buy a lottery ticket, and you will win millions of dollars.” The temptation to win something for nothing, to take a shortcut to get what you desire, is strong in us. What we may not realize is that at the bottom of it all is taking something that is not given to us or earned by us. In fact, you could see the first sin as theft — taking the one fruit God did not give.

Stealing is obvious when someone breaks into your house and takes your T.V., drives off in your car, or holds up a grocery store. Less obvious, but just as real, is when someone steals your identity, charges you way more than an item is worth, or sells you a property they know will need major repairs. What is less obvious is how each of us steals. We rob people not only when we take something, but also when we do not give others what we owe them. When someone pays us, we owe them our best work. When we do not help them to protect their possessions and improve their business, they are poorer for it. Even when we sue someone for damages and are awarded more than we need to recover for the harm done to us, it is a form of theft.

Thank God that he is merciful even to thieves. Jesus forgave the thief on the cross and died for his robbery and ours. Not only that, but in Jesus, God gives us everything we need — life, salvation, and faith to be generous to those in need. With the strength he gives, we can resist the temptation to steal and become, like him, people who give.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith

Pastor Emeritus

Fort Wayne, Indiana

God’s Good Gift of Marriage

Encore Post:

[Fifteenth in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]

“It is not good,” God said, “that man be alone. I will make a helper fit for him.” (Genesis 2:18) Formed from the rib of Adam, God presented Eve to man. “At last, bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh!” replied Adam. … “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh,” Moses concludes his account of the first marriage. (Genesis 2:23-24)

God’s gift was very good. Marriage is the closest picture we have of the nature of God. In it, there are two persons, yet one flesh. It reflects the relationship between Christ and his bride, the church. It is the foundation on which God builds families, where children can be raised in love and security. It is sealed with God’s gift of sexual intimacy. God thinks so highly of marriage that he makes it a part of the Ten Commandments. That is why he limits sexual activity to marriage.

In our culture, which makes sexual freedom into a god, it can be more challenging than ever to keep this commandment. Everywhere are sexual images, pornography, and temptation to all manner of sexual encounters. Jesus makes it no easier when he tells us that even to look at someone who is not your spouse with a desire for her is to break this commandment. (Matthew 5:27-28)

Thank God, we have resources to help us resist these temptations. Marriage itself helps by providing a place for these feelings to be expressed. We also have each other. All of us have these temptations, and we can urge each other to be faithful. When we see a friend tempted, we can plead with him and remind him of the consequences of such sin. And when we fall into sin, we know Jesus died to forgive our sins and is with us always to help us resist it.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith

Pastor Emeritus

Fort Wayne, Indiana

Being for Life and not Death

Encore Post:

[Fourteenth is a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]

On the surface, “you will not murder” seems easy enough to keep. In spite of what the TV and the Internet like to make us believe, very few people outside the military ever actually kill another person. Most police officers on the job never draw their weapons. It should be easy to check this one off, we are tempted to think.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells us there is a lot more to this command than that. Murder begins in our hearts when we become angry with someone and wish harm to them. (Matthew 5:21-26) Hatred has a way of spilling over into action when we give it room to fester.

Martin Luther sees in this command every place God forbids us to harm our neighbors in any way. It also calls on us to help anyone who is hurting, in danger, weak, hungry, or ill. God, the Author of Life, wants us to be for life, too. When we do not come to the aid of others, we kill them, even if it is only in a small way. Jesus even promises to remember on the last day when we do not care for them. What we do or do not do to the least important of our neighbors, he will count as having been done to him. (Matthew 25:31-46)

In our modern culture, it is ever more challenging to defend life, protect the weak, and care for those who suffer. Mothers are taught it is their right to kill babies in the womb if they do not want to raise them. Doctors urge patients and their families to put to death those who suffer greatly. Sometimes, governments take these decisions out of the hands of families and kill patients they find too expensive to treat. Rightly so, Christians come to the defense of the weak and defenseless.

Because God in Christ died so that we might rise again, we seek not to harm others, but to help them as he helped us.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Pastor Emeritus
Fort Wayne, Indiana

To Live Well, Honor Your Parents

Encore Post:

[Thirteenth is a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]

The Fourth Commandment is different. This commandment is positive. It urges us to honor our father and mother rather than the “nots” of most of the commandments. It comes with a promise — that you will live a long life. It is the first commandment that even non-believers can keep, and their lives will be better in this world. It is the first of the Words to explain what it means to love your neighbor — to do to others what you want them to do to you.

So, why is honoring our father and mother the first commandment about loving our neighbors? Of all the vocations (callings) that God gives to us, parenting is the most basic. We are not all blessed with children, professions, businesses, or crafts, but every one of us has one father and one mother. For us, a parent is a mask God wears to care for us in this world. When the evil of this world deprives us of a loving father and mother, adoptive father and mother, a stepfather or mother, or a foster father and mother, life is profoundly more difficult and troubled. When a father and mother serve God by caring for their children, providing for their needs, disciplining them, and loving them, their children have the best chance of living happy, productive lives. When we love them, thank them, care for them in old age and illness, we encourage them to serve faithfully. Most of all, we set an example for those we care for.

Martin Luther also saw in fathers and mothers a model for all people God calls to care for us. Employers, rulers, pastors, teachers, first responders, husbands, and others are called to lay down their lives for those in their care. We benefit from their leadership and protection. When we honor them, we honor God, who called them. We, in our turn, then serve those in our care, as Christ loved us and gave his life so we can live. When we honor all our leaders, we live longer, simpler, and happier lives in balance.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith

Pastor Emeritus

Fort Wayne, Indiana

The Sabbath Rest

Encore Post:

[twelfth is a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]

The Sabbath rest is ancient. God himself rested on the seventh day, just after he created the world in six days. When God gave his law to his people, the command to rest on the seventh day made the top ten. God knew that working without rest would damage his creatures. So he built it — rested every night, and on the seventh day. It provided time for his people to worship and to meditate on his word.

Yet for Christians, the day they worship — and rest — is a matter of freedom. It belongs to the civil law, the law for the nation of Israel. It is not part of the moral law, the law for all people. We know this because Jesus called himself “the Lord of the Sabbath” and St. Paul describes that freedom in Romans and Colossians. Still, the church chose from the beginning to rest every Sunday, the first day of the week, to remember the Resurrection of Jesus.

While Christians should worship God every day, resting on Sunday offers the opportunity to hear God’s word preached, to receive his gifts of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, to meet with each other and pray for each other, and to study the Word of God. It is not so much that we have to go to church as that we get to go to church. At many times and in many places, that freedom does not exist.

So we honor Sundays and holy days. We used the opportunity to receive forgiveness of sins and bread for our daily lives. We rejoice to honor our Lord Jesus, who died for us, rested in the tomb three days, and rose again, so that we might rest with him forever.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith

Pastor Emeritus

Fort Wayne, Indiana

Pray, Praise and Give Thanks

Encore Post:

[Eleventh is a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]

A name has a lot more packed into it than we often realize. It carries a person’s reputation, authority, and power. In ancient magical lore, if you know a person’s true name, you can have power over them. God’s name is the most important of all, not because it is magical, but because God has promised to hear us when we call to him.

The Second Commandment is all about using God’s name in prayer, acting as his tools in this world to bring the Gospel to the lost and to do his will as we serve him and our neighbors. We baptize in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. We teach all that he commands us to teach. When we make promises to tell the truth and make promises to each other in his presence, we commit ourselves to keep them.

The problem is our sinful nature wants to use God’s name to cover lies and to make people believe we intend to do what we have no intention of doing. We want God to give us what we desire, treating Him as if He were some kind of cosmic vending machine — insert prayer. Believe you will get it, and it will come to you. We are inclined to say “Oh my God” when we are surprised or shocked, rather than as a prayer for help. These uses are misuses of God’s name and are what the command forbids.

So, then, do we go the other way, as Judaism does, and not even use his name at all? No, God wants us to use His name. We call him in trouble. We are comforted when, in His name, our pastors forgive our sins. We draw strength when we remember that he came to us in our baptism and put his name on us so that in his name we are saved. We call his name the way we call a beloved father, mother, or grandparent, knowing we are loved and that they want to share our lives. We use his name to praise him and thank him for his love and mercy.

Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog

The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack

Rev. Robert E. Smith

Pastor Emeritus

Fort Wayne, Indiana

©2018, rev. 2020 Robert E. Smith. All rights reserved. Permission granted to copy, share and display freely for non-commercial purposes. Direct all other rights and permissions inquiries to cosmithb@msn.com