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“What is asked of me as a citizen is not contingent on what party is in power or whether I feel my government is deserving of my gospel-driven, Christian vocation as citizen. God calls us to ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’ I’m going to continue to be a neighbor even if my neighbor is my legitimate enemy.” In this episode of The Manna Podcast, Jacob Lewis and Pastor Sam continue their conversation on the Bible as it pertains to the Christians vocation as citizen of the local state.

Over the next few episodes, Jacob Lewis and Pastor Sam will be wading through Article XVI of the Augsburg Confession, pertaining to civil government and what "love your neighbor" looks like through the lens of the vocation of Christian citizenship. In Part 1, Jacob Lewis and Pastor Sam tackle the following questions: What's my response to those who tell me to "leave my faith at the door" before I enter a voting booth? Can Christians serve in our government in good conscience? What does the Bible have to say about paying taxes? What does being "salt and light" look like in a politically-driven climate?

Traditions are inevitable. And while some traditions are good, history has shown that not every tradition is - including traditions in Christian churches. In this episode of The Manna Podcast, Jacob Lewis and Pastor Sam jump into Article XV of the Augsburg Confession and seek to answer the following questions: What is the relationship between human traditions and the Bible?  What role should traditions serve in the ministry of the Christian Church? How do I determine if a tradition is or isn't good in my church?

“If we view Baptism and the Lord’s Supper as nothing more than marks of professions of faith of people, we’re missing a far greater dimension to this – namely, that these are signs and testimonies of God’s will toward us. There is covenant language that is brought up with Baptism and the Lord’s Supper…there is something that is being signified but also being sealed…these aren’t just a confession of faith, but a reception of faith, too.” In this episode of The Manna Podcast, Jacob Lewis and Sam Jeske tackle Article XIII & XIV of the Augsburg Confession, respectively pertaining to ‘The Use of the Sacraments’ and ‘Ecclesiastical Order’.

“Turn me, and I will be turned” That’s what the Hebrew of Jeremiah 31:18 literally says. Or, put another way, “Repent me, and I will be repented.”  Point being? It is God – not me – who works repentance in my heart. Well, how does he do that? A better question to ask first: how exactly does the Bible define repentance? “Now properly speaking, true repentance is nothing else than to have contrition and sorrow, or terror about sin, and yet at the same time to believe in the gospel and absolution that sin is forgiven and grace is obtained through Christ. Such faith, in turn, comforts the heart and puts it at peace” (The Book of Concord, p. 44). In this episode of The Manna Podcast, Jacob Lewis and Pastor Sam jump into Article XII of the Augsburg Confession, pertaining to Repentance.

“Why private confession? Why do you need a middleman to tell you that your sins are forgiven?” In a world where faith is privatized and being “spiritual, but not religious” sounds incredibly liberating, we’re tempted to bristle at any possible benefit of confessing our sins – be it to a pastor or a fellow Christian. But this isn’t progressive spiritual thinking; it’s regressive. There isn’t a guarantee that “Christ for you” is going to be heard at your job, your school, within your family, or even within your own heart. What you’re more likely to consistently hear is: · You’re a screw up. · You’re not good enough · You’ve burned too many bridges. · You’re worthless. · You’re a nobody. · You’re an irredeemable, unsalvageable mess. · You’re unforgiveable. It doesn't take much living to discover such privatization of our spiritual lives isn’t comforting: it actually robs people of joy and comfort the good news of Jesus gives – because we’ve anchored the promises of God in how we’re doing or how we feel. Thankfully, who you are in the sight of God on account of Christ isn’t contingent on how you feel – and God works through his Church to assure you of that tangibly.

"So, if Jesus - as true God and true man - ascended into heaven, how can Jesus be present in bread and wine during the Lord's Supper?" It's a good question.  But perhaps a better question to ask is not "How are such things possible?" but "Who is the one promising he is present?" These questions and more are discussed by Jacob Lewis and Pastor Sam on this episode of The Manna Podcast. 

“Modern Christian churches are so…legalistic.” Lutheran theologian J. P. Koehler, in his 1914 essay titled “Legalism Among Us”, defined legalism (i.e. within the Christian Church) as an attitude which “takes the motives and forms of [one’s] actions from the law (i.e. God’s commandments) instead of letting them flow from the gospel (i.e. the good news of the saving love of God we have in Christ Jesus our Lord).” Less technically speaking (and to quote Jeff Mallinson), legalism is an attitude that “emphasizes rules, discipline, codes of conduct, and precise biblical codes of behavior over grace, forgiveness, freedom, and the gospel.” So, do modern churches struggle with legalism? If so, where might such legalism exist? And does the Bible offer any constructive, yet comforting direction for churches today? On this episode of The Manna Podcast, Jacob Lewis and Sam Jeske riff a bit more on Articles VII & VIII of the Augsburg Confession (The Church, What the Church Is) and tackle these challenging questions.

“Here’s a fact: it’s a miracle that any of us believe [in Jesus].” In this episode of The Manna Podcast, Jacob Lewis and Sam Jeske continue their discussion on Article IX of the Augsburg Confession as it relates to the practice of infant baptism.

“How can material things give spiritual blessings?” The Lutheran Reformers maintained the biblical truth that, through the waters of baptism, God grants forgiveness, new life, and salvation. But the power to grant such amazing gifts doesn’t come from the water – but God’s Word. The Apostle Paul (in Ephesians 4:6) connects the same Word of God spoken at the creation of the heavens and earth with the same Word of God spoken at the creation of faith in hearts of people. And that’s the same Word of God spoken at the waters of Christian baptism. In this episode of The Manna Podcast, Jacob Lewis and Sam Jeske jump into Article IX of the Augsburg Confession on Baptism.

“Christians are hypocrites.” In a 2018 Barna Survey, this was the highest barrier to the Christian faith for non-Christians – averaging answers from Generation Z all the way to Boomers. Be it dissonance between what a Christian church practices and what the Bible preaches or a disconnect between what a Christian church preaches and what they practice, non-Christians perceive this as an obstacle when considering the Christian faith. When hypocrisy predominantly describes those within the churches nearest them, non-Christians struggle to see the Church at large as relevant, reliable, or real (i.e. authentic and genuine). Such scandal within the local church can even unnerve the church-going Christian.  In this episode of The Manna Podcast, Jacob Lewis and Pastor Sam Jeske tackle this sensitive subject matter during their discussion of Article VIII of the Augsburg Confession. 

“When Christ and his gospel is the why behind what we do, that does help [the Church] delineate between the sand and the granite…what can stay and should stay, and what can go and – perhaps – even what should go.” Jacob Lewis and Sam Jeske continue their conversation of Article VII of the Augsburg Confession on the Christian Church.

"The church, as an industry, unfortunately looks a lot like a lot of the other old-fashioned industries which is, 'This is the way we've always done it.'" That's author and inspirational speaker, Simon Sinek's take on the Christian Church today.  For Christian churches, quotes like these sting a little, don't they? Because - if we're honest - there's truth here, isn't there? Navigating a changing world can be incredibly challenging for churches. Fortunately, the timeliness of the Christian message is predicated upon a timeless foundation - that being Christ himself. And when we are built on Christ and his gospel, we not only have a foundation that will weather every storm, but a foundation that empowers us to meet the tides of change with innovation and creativity. In this episode of The Manna Podcast, Jacob Lewis and Sam Jeske tackle this topic as they continue their walk through the Augsburg Confession, turning to Article VII, The Church.

As Christians, we can sometimes get this attitude that the fruits of our faith must manifest themselves in a certain way - where they need to be these above-and-beyond, grandiose acts - otherwise they aren't considered 'fruit'. As a result, our eyes are often looking for these massive fruits of faith - like an apple on an apple tree that is so massive it's bowing the branch down - and as a result we don't see the fruit that is on the branch because we've insisted that fruits of faith must be visible (so to speak) from a mile away. But is that how God speaks of the 'fruits' of the Christian's faith? In this episode of The Manna Podcast, Jacob Lewis and Sam Jeske dive into Article VI of the Augsburg Confession, pertaining to the new obedience of the Christian, what fruits of faith are, and why the Christian produces them.

“Can’t I find God outside of Christianity? “Can’t I commune with God on my terms with my terms?” “If I don’t think the Bible is relevant anymore, how could that possibly benefit me spiritually?” Modern objections like these are incredibly common in America’s spiritual “oasis”. But while these objections are incredibly common, they’re also incredibly not new. You could hear variants of these objections even during the time of the Reformation in the 1500s. And for the Reformers, the answer to such objections zeroed in on our need for “objective, external, sure, and certain” means for God to reveal and give himself to us. The Reformers referred to these means as the “means of grace”. In this episode of The Manna Podcast, Jacob Lewis and Sam Jeske march on through the Augsburg Confession with Article V, titled ‘The Ministry’.

"I cannot, by virtue of God's law, find life; the letter kills, the Bible tells us. It's the gospel that gives life. And the gospel (the good news) is, what you could not do, Jesus has done for you. It pushes you out of the spotlight of your salvation - and thank God for that." In this episode of The Manna Podcast, Pastor Sam and Jacob Lewis continue their discussion of Article IV of the Augsburg Confession - the doctrine of justification.

It is the doctrine "by which the Church stands or falls." It's the beating heart of the gospel. For the Protestant Reformers, this chief article of the Christian faith was well worth the ink, blood, sweat, and tears shed defending it.  We're talking about the doctrine of "justification". In the Bible, to "justify" is a forensic term (legal/courtroom language) that means "to declare righteous". While the Bible quite clearly defines the 'what', 'why', and 'how' of justification, by the time of Martin Luther, the definition of "justification" had become tremendously buried by manmade rules and to-do lists. A need to return to and re-champion the Biblical definition was needed then - as it is continually needed in every generation. Is our justification a process? Or is our justification a proclamation? Why are we declared righteous? On account of what? On account of whom? In this episode of The Manna Podcast, Sam Jeske and Jacob Lewis wrap up their discussion of Article III on the Son of God and shift gears to talking Article IV on justification.

“Who do the people say that I am?”  That was the question Jesus asked his disciples once. The people then didn’t know what to make of ‘Jesus of Nazareth’. Some saw him as social activist. Others saw him as a moral teacher. Still others saw him as a prophet – but nothing more. And if you fast forward to today, things haven’t changed much, have they? Well, what does the Bible have to say about who Jesus is? Why is it that we, like Peter, can point to Jesus with certainty and say "We believe and know that you are the Holy One God"? In this episode of The Manna Podcast, Jacob Lewis and Pastor Jeske jump into Article III of the Augsburg Confession – an article that succinctly summarizes the biblical profile of Jesus, why we needed a Savior like Jesus, and what present comforts a Savior like him gives us today.

History has a way of repeating itself.  And when it comes to Church History, false teachings have a way of repeating themselves, too. That was definitely the case at the time of the Reformation. As Lutheran Reformers sought to positively make the case that their confession was historic and purely biblical (nothing new, nothing innovative), they had to intentionally distance themselves from all sorts of contemporary groups pushing unscriptural teachings - outside and inside the Church. That type of positive and negative argumentation is what we begin to see in the first two articles of the Augsburg Confession. In Article I, the Lutheran Confessors reiterated their affirmation of the biblical doctrine of the Trinity - that God is one divine essence in three distinct persons - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  In Article II, the Reformers underscored the biblical doctrine of Original Sin - an unparalleled "disease" that (as the Bible clearly teaches) renders us unable to either save ourselves or cooperate in or contribute to our salvation.  Join Pastor Sam and Jacob Lewis as they begin their journey through the Augsburg Confession!

Saturday, June 25, 1530. A group of Lutheran confessors hand to Emperor Charles V a confession of faith that they were confident would "prevail against the gates of hell, with the grace and help of God." That confession of faith was the Augsburg Confession. So, what is the Augsburg Confession? Why was it written? What's it about? Why is this document still read and subscribed to today? What, even, is a confession?  In this episode, Pastor Sam Jeske and Jacob Lewis dive right into the nuts and bolts of this historic confession of faith - and highlight it's doctrinal relevance and impact today.