Omission or Addition in the Bible? After prior discussions about adding to or taking away from the Bible, it gives one pause in considering footnotes in some translations, which effectively note that a certain phrase or verse is “not found...
The Most Dangerous Prayer in the Bible Forgiveness Is a Serious Thing, and We’re Well Advised to Never Withhold It You’re probably familiar with the Lord’s prayer, sometimes informally called by its opening line as the Our Father. It’s a...
Attending Mass (Visiting Church #5) When I tell people we’re visiting Christian churches, they often assume Protestant and are surprised our plan includes Catholic gatherings. That’s where we head today, to our first Mass. The most noticeable...
Is God’s Forgiveness Conditional? Jesus wants us to fully forgive others so that we may be fully forgiven In asking the simple question, “Is God’s forgiveness conditional?” the answer seems obvious: “No! God’s forgiveness is unconditional.” I was...
Should We Pray “If It’s Your Will?” We can learn to pray by following Jesus’s example, as long as we don’t misapply it When it comes to praying, there is no better teacher than Jesus. Perhaps that’s why many of his followers memorize the prayer...
Do We Need to Rethink How We Pray? Whether we pray often or seldom, we have likely fallen into unexamined habits How do you begin your prayers? What is your common salutation? It might be “Heavenly Father . . .” or perhaps “Father God . . . ” or...
Should We Recite the Lord’s Prayer? Last week I blogged about saying the Lord’s Prayer each Sunday in church as a kid and my apprehension for doing so. I cited my reason as the phrase “vain repetitions” (KJV) found in Jesus’s warning about how...
What Does Jesus Want Us to Forgive? In my post Be Careful What You Pray I mention a line in the Lord’s Prayer, “forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” Different groups have different wording for this line. There are some I’ve run into...
The Lord’s Prayer When Jesus’ disciples asked him how to pray, he gave them a short little example. It’s commonly called “The Lord’s Prayer” (though some suggest “The Disciples’ Prayer” would be a more appropriate label.) Others refer...
Which Version of the Lord’s Prayers Do You Say? Did you know there are multiple versions of the Lord’s Prayer—the prayer Jesus used to teach his followers how to pray? Matthew records the most common version, which goes something like this: “Our...
