February 5, 2024 Today's Reading: Isaiah 40:21-31Daily Lectionary: Job 2:1-3:10; John 1:19-34Isaiah 40:28-31:28 Have you not known? Have you not heard?The Lord is the everlasting God,    the Creator of the ends of the earth.He does not faint or grow weary;    his understanding is unsearchable.29 He gives power to the faint,    and to him who has no might he increases strength.30 Even youths shall faint and be weary,    and young men shall fall exhausted;31 but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Isaiah, the Prophet of comfort! Hear the comfort!The chapter had started with, “Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins” (Isaiah 40:1).You live in a world of no comfort, among a people of no comfort. People trying to make sure they say the right things the right ways in order not to be canceled for wrong-speak by the mob; the false confidence at people pointing to others and calling them “haters,” hoping to not be accused of the same themselves; people trying to project legitimacy by the digital life they can display on social media—where’s the comfort, where’s the true confidence in living? Isaiah proclaims comfort: Iniquities pardoned, sins forgiven, a people made holy for the Lord. But what of our life in this world? Do you feel comforted? Feel pardoned of all sin? Like you belong to the Lord?This is why our Lord has Isaiah preach His Word. Even as the Lord has your pastor preach His Word. Because we live in a world of no comfort, and because we live in lives of our own sin, we constantly need to hear the good news. The good news is that the Lord is the Creator, He upholds all things by the word of His power, and He does not grow weary of saving the sinner who is faint, weary, and exhausted.“Wait for the Lord” is Isaiah’s call to have faith, to hold tight to the promise, to daily hear the Good News of sins-forgiven, and to remember that it is the Lord before whom you stand and who gives you comfort. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.My Maker, hold me in Your hand; O Christ, forgiven let me stand;Blest Comforter, do not depart; With faith and love enrich my heart.Lord, bless and keep me as Your own;  Lord, look in kindness from Your throne;Lord, shine unfailing peace on me By grace surrounded; set me free.Amen.-Pastor Warren Graff is retired from Grace Lutheran Church, Albuquerque.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

February 4, 2024 Today's Reading: Mark 1:29-39Daily Lectionary: Job 1:1-22; John 1:1-18“[Jesus] cast out many demons. And he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.” (Mark 1:29-39)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The demons knew Jesus? Of course they did. Satan heard the first promise, the promise that Eve’s greater descendant would crush Satan’s head, giving salvation to the sinner. (Gen. 3:15) The demons have seen it all—the promise given Abraham for the justification of the sinner (Gen. 15), the promise to David that a greater Son would rule an everlasting kingdom (1 Chron. 17:11-15), and more. Maybe you can even think of other promises the Lord gave for the sinner. Satan and demons have seen much, they demons know a lot!They know about you, too, and me. They know sins I have committed even from my childhood. My history, my pride, my vanity, my shame. All the stuff I do not want known. Finally, they know how to slither into my thoughts, striking with the Law’s accusation. They strike you, too, as a snake striking a person’s heel. They know a lot.The demons knew Jesus. So why would Jesus not let them speak? What would the demons want the sinner to know of Jesus? That Jesus is true God in human flesh? That doesn’t yet save the sinner. That He has power to heal? That doesn’t yet justify before the face of God. You can know a lot about Jesus—a lot which is, indeed, true!—but it is not yet good news as Satan is poisoning your conscience with the venom of guilt and shame, striking you with the accusation. What do the demons not want you to know of Jesus? That He is not just God who became flesh, but that He became flesh in order to then be humiliated and die … for you. That what Jesus accomplished on the cross is not just a historical fact, but that He brings this historical accomplishment to you in Baptism. That the blood once shed on the cross is now delivered to you as you hear Jesus say, “Take and drink, this is my Blood for the forgiveness of our sins.”The demons want you to know none of this. They want you to know only the accusation. Jesus does indeed want you to know the Law’s accusation. He wants you to hear it so that you are then ready to hear His Gospel. Jesus has His Gospel proclaimed for you, for every sinner! To forgive guilt, to give a clean heart, to remove shame and clothe in honor—Jesus has His cross preached to you!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord Jesus, deliver me from the Evil One. Cast from my conscience the accusation of the demons. Release me from the guilt of the holy Law. Forgive my sin. Cover me in honor. Let me hear your Gospel. Justify me by your Word. Amen.-Pastor Warren Graff is retired from Grace Lutheran Church, Albuquerque.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

February 3, 2024 Today's Reading: Introit for Epiphany 5Daily Lectionary: Job 2:1-3:10; John 1:19-34I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me.Consider and answer me, O Lord my God; light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death,lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,” lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken.But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit;as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me. (Psalm 13:3-5, antiphon Psalm 13:6)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In the midst of death, the Lord brings life. Just yesterday, we prayed with Simeon that we could die in peace because we have seen the Lord’s Christ. Today, we pray with David that God would “light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death.” This psalm resonates with the song of Simeon. A Christian’s heart rejoices in God’s salvation.  In the middle of all the struggles and trials that exist in the world around us, and even as our own flesh tries to lead us back into sin, the gift of God’s salvation is what we need. He has provided this gift, and we have His steadfast love.  This is the hope of your life. Jesus Christ is your Savior. He has come, bringing your salvation. He is the One that you trust in. No matter how difficult the world’s attacks against the Church are, no matter how wracked with guilt and shame you might be, the Lord has dealt bountifully with you. He has given you what you need, and that is the forgiveness of your sins and the promise of eternal life. He has lit up your eyes with His grace. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord, let at last Thine angels come, To Abr’ham’s bosom bear me home, That I may die unfearing;  And in its narrow chamber keep  My body safe in peaceful sleep  Until Thy reappearing.  And then from death awaken me  That these mine eyes with joy may see, O Son of God, Thy glorious face,  My Savior and my fount of grace.  Lord Jesus Christ, my prayer attend, my prayer attend,  And I will praise Thee without end. (LSB 708:3)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

February 2, 2024 Today's Reading: Luke 2:22-40Daily Lectionary:Zechariah 12:1-13:9; Titus 1:1-2:6Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word;for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.” (Luke 2:29-32)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. A number of things happened that day in the temple. Mary came into the temple to keep the Old Testament law with two different sacrifices. The instructions for these sacrifices are in Leviticus 12. After the birth of a firstborn son, that son was redeemed by the sacrifice of a lamb.  That’s a confession that the Lord possessed all the firstborn of Israel since the Passover. A mother was also expected to make a sacrifice 40 days after the birth of a baby boy to purify her. (The same sacrifice was to be made 80 days after the birth of a girl, but the Bible doesn’t say why it’s 40 days for a boy and 80 days for a girl.) That’s why we celebrate this festival 40 days after Christmas.There was still more going on in the temple that day.Old Simeon took the child, Jesus, in his arms and prophesied. He had been promised that he would not die until he saw the Lord’s Messiah. Now that he held the Messiah in his arms, he could die. Because the Lord had kept His promise of sending the Messiah, Simeon could die in peace.  There is a reason that the Church prays along with Simeon each week in the Divine Service after receiving the Lord’s Supper. The same Messiah that Simeon held in His arms comes in, with, and under bread and wine, truly present in His body and blood. There, He forgives sins and strengthens faith.  Christians now pray that, since the Lord Jesus has come to them, they can die in peace. We have seen the Lord’s salvation in Christ.  When we come to the Divine Service, we don’t bring any animals with us to sacrifice there, like Mary did in the temple. The sacrifice has already come, and this is no mere lamb born in a sheep-pen, but this is the Lamb of God, born for you and your salvation. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and ever-living God, as Your only-begotten Son was this day presented in the temple in the substance of our flesh, grant that we may be presented to You with pure and clean hearts; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.-Pastor Peter W. Ill is pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

February 1, 2024 Today's Reading: 10 Commandments, 6th CommandmentDaily Lectionary: Zechariah 11:4-17; 2 Timothy 4:1-18You shall not commit adultery. (The Sixth Commandment)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Adultery is such a rare word that it can be hard to understand.  One dictionary defines adultery like this: “voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and someone other than that person's current spouse or partner.” That’s fine for the English language, but God’s definition of adultery goes beyond that.  God condemns any kind of sexual relationship outside of marriage. While the English definition would say that you can’t commit adultery if you and your partner aren’t married, God declares that a sexual relationship or encounter outside of marriage is sinful.God doesn’t stop there, either. Jesus went on to say, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” (Matthew 5:27-28) The Lord doesn’t only judge the sin of adultery, but He includes every kind of unchastity, including lust. This is not only a sin for the married or the young, but a sin that plagues every sinner with a pulse.  The Catechism helpfully points out the opposite of adultery, and that is chastity manifested in a sexually pure and decent life. Living in holiness includes sex and sexuality. Scripture calls Christians to flee from lust and to abstain from sex outside of marriage. Scripture also teaches that marriage is a gift and God has established it for good.  What does that mean in the midst of a world full of temptation? Live as a Christian, striving to live in God’s holiness and keeping yourself from engaging in sexual sin, including lust. When you find that you have fallen into sin (sexual or otherwise), flee to Jesus Christ. His precious death brings forgiveness for your sin. You don’t sin so that God’s grace can abound, but you receive His forgiveness for all your sin. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Be faithful to your marriage vow; No lust or impure thoughts allow. Keep all your conduct free from sin  By self-controlled discipline. Have mercy, Lord!  (LSB 581:7)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 31, 2024 Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Zechariah 10:1-11:3; 2 Timothy 3:1-17Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. (2 Timothy 3:12-13)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The way the reading from 2 Timothy 3 starts sounds like a cross between mayhem and your daily scroll through social media.  “For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth.” (2 TImothy 3:2-7)  That could be a description of the hallways in your high school, the crowd around the water cooler at your job, or almost any other collection of people today.  It can be easy to say that behavior and society is getting worse and worse, but Scripture speaks like the sinful behavior we see today has always been around.  That’s the reality that the Church lives in. That’s the reality that you live in, too. The deception and deceit and evil and opposition of the unbelieving world comes against you. So what do you do in the middle of such problematic surroundings? How do you proceed when the Church is persecuted and when evil people go on from bad to worse?  Simply, you believe in Jesus.  He came into this unbelieving world as the light that shines in the darkness, even when the darkness did not receive Him. The darkness of this world has not overcome Him. (John 1:5)  Even on the cross, as Jesus was suspended between heaven and earth in the darkness, the Light of the World was not extinguished. Yes, He died, and He rose again on the third day revealing that evil does not win the day. Only Jesus wins the day, and He brings that victory to you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord, keep us steadfast in Your Word;  Curb those who by deceit or sword  Would wrest the kingdom from Your Son  And bring to naught all He has done. (LSB 655:1)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 30, 2024 Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 8:1-13Daily Lectionary: Zechariah 9:1-17; 2 Timothy 2:1-26But if anyone loves God, he is known by God. (1 Corinthians 8:3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When St Paul writes about food, his concern isn’t about nutritional value or about a diet program or about balancing enough protein to build muscle.  Paul’s concern is spiritual. When he talks about eating, especially eating meat, he’s referring to meat that has been offered as a sacrifice to an idol at a temple of a false god. Those temples would sell some of the meat from the animals that were killed in those sacrifices. If someone knew where the meat that a Christian was eating came from, they might think that Christian didn’t have a problem with worshiping a false god.  Idols aren’t anything more than wood or stone. Paul refers to them as “so-called gods.”  But what people didn’t know - that these idols aren’t real - could hurt them.  Believing in those idols of wood and stone leads people away from faith in Jesus Christ, and God forbids idolatry. It’s possible that someone might think that a Christian eating meat sacrificed to idols would be participating in worshiping that idol and that idolatry isn’t a big deal.  That’s why Paul instructs Christians to be careful not to cause offense by eating meat sacrificed by idols.  This is an act of love for fellow Christians. But the meat that you eat doesn’t separate you from God, just like the food that you eat won’t commend you to God. Sinning against your brother by damaging their faith is a big deal.  This continues to be an issue in the Church today, even when the issue is no longer buying meat from the butcher shop of false gods. The music that you listen to, the TV you watch, the video games you play, the fashion sense you have and more are all similar to the meat sacrificed to idols. You are free in Christ, but do not abuse that freedom.  Do not harm your fellow Christians with that freedom. Treat them in love, because they are people for whom Jesus died.When you start to think about the ways that you have caused hurt by not being sensitive to your fellow Christians, remember that God loves you. “If anyone loves God, he is known by God.”  The One who knows you doesn’t act against you in anger, but for you in love. Trust that the Lord is good, and He brings His love to you, even as He calls you to love those around you that He loves by being sensitive to their faith. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.As we worship, grant us vision, Till Your love’s revealing light  In its height and depth and greatness, Dawns upon our quickened sight,  Making known the needs and burdens Your compassion bids us bear, Stirring us to tireless striving, Your abundant life to share. (LSB 838:3)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 29, 2024 Today's Reading: Deuteronomy 18:15-20Daily Lectionary: Zechariah 8:1-23; 2 Timothy 1:1-18“The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers—it is to him you shall listen— just as you desired of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly, when you said, ‘Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God or see this great fire any more, lest I die.’ (Deuteronomy 18:15-16)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Lord God has the authority of life and death. That was made clear in yesterday’s reading when Jesus cast the unclean spirit out of the possessed man. But that incident was not the first time the Lord declared that He has that authority. When the Lord appeared to His people at Mount Horeb (that’s the same as Mount Sinai), they were afraid and didn’t want to speak directly with God so they wouldn’t be judged and die. The people spoke to Moses and sent him to speak to God. There at Mount Horeb, he served as their representative before God, their intermediary. He stood between God and God’s people.Later, Moses gave the Lord’s promise to His people that He would raise up another prophet like him.  Another intermediary, another representative would come. But this representative is God Himself.  He doesn’t stand on the top of Mount Horeb, but was crucified on the top of Mount Calvary. There, at the place of death, the Lord Jesus takes that place of death and life.  His death wasn’t permanent, but it was still very real. In His suffering and death, Jesus ensured that you no longer need to fear the Lord’s judgment because He submitted to judgment on your behalf.  He delivers to you the forgiveness of your sins.  Jesus stands in the midst of death and life because He has the authority to bring life to those who should die for their sins, including you.St Paul teaches that Jesus is the fulfillment of this prophecy that one would arise like Moses in 1 Timothy 2:5-6, where he writes, “For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.”  Jesus is indeed that mediator, and He is also at the ransom for your sins. The Lord has spoken to you.  He calls you to repent of your sin, and He declares that He has forgiven you. Believe in that Lord, your one Mediator, Jesus Christ.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Christ, the way that leads unfailing  To the Father’s home on high,  Christ, the truth that frees the captive, Christ, the life that cannot die. Mediator to the Father, Sacrifice and great High Priest:  Lead us to Your heav’nly mansions,  There to share Your wedding feast. (LSB 540:5)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 28, 2024  Today's Reading: Mark 1:21-28Daily Lectionary: Zechariah. 6:1-7:14; Romans 16:17-27And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God.”  (Mark 1:23-24)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The man possessed by an unclean spirit had an interesting greeting for Jesus. “What have you to do with us?” You might greet people like that sometimes too. When someone comes who seems to be interfering in your plans, you might say, “What are you doing here?” The unclean spirit wants to know why Jesus is interfering in this synagogue on this day. Apparently, the unclean spirit thought He could do whatever he wanted at the synagogue, but Jesus interrupted his plans.  So, what does Jesus have to do with unclean spirits? He throws them out! He interrupts their plans!  Jesus sets the rules, and He casts out unclean spirits. Jesus comes to set this possessed man free with His power and authority. That’s a shocking action for the people in that synagogue. Not everyone works with that kind of authority. Jesus has unique, powerful authority.But the question of “What have you to do with us?” isn’t just the question of a possessed man. It’s our question, too. What does Jesus have to do with us, who gather and confess our sins?  We admit that we are poor, miserable sinners. We deserve God’s wrath and punishment for our sin. When Jesus draws near to us, we should be very afraid!  The One with Divine authority has every right to judge us for our sinfulness. But Jesus doesn’t come to bring His judgment against us.  Instead, He sets us free from sin and death and the power of the devil.  He comes with His grace and His forgiveness.This work of Jesus interrupts our sinful lives and transforms us into His saints. He washes us clean in the water of Holy Baptism, He speaks our forgiveness in the words of Holy Absolution, He instructs us in the Holy Scriptures, and He feeds us His own body and blood in Holy Communion. He brings holiness to us.  He Himself is the source of that holiness and He is the One who wants everything to do with us because of His great love. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, You know we live in the midst of so many dangers that in our frailty we cannot stand upright. Grant strength and protection to support us in all dangers and carry us through all temptations; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.-Pastor Peter W. Ill is pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 27, 2024 Today's Reading: Introit for Epiphany 4Daily Lectionary:Zechariah 4:1-5:11; Romans 15:14-33Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the Lord.Blessèd is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.Blessèd is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” and you forgave the iniquity of my sin.Therefore let everyone who is godly offer prayer to you at a time when you may be found; surely in the rush of great waters, they shall not reach him.You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with shouts of deliverance.Glory be to the Father and to the Sonand to the Holy Spirit;as it was in the beginning,is now, and will be forever. Amen.Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the Lord. (Introit for Epiphany 4, Psalm 32:1-2, 5-7, 10)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. You are blessed! Your blessedness isn’t seen in your material possessions or your fantastic mood or even by your hashtags on social media. Your blessedness comes because your transgression is forgiven and your sin is covered. There is a lot of pressure on trying to impress people around you with showing how you are blessed and how wonderful your life is. The Lord doesn’t care about those social norms. The Lord cares by bringing you His blessings, especially in the forgiveness of your sins.The practice of confessing sins before God and other people seems backwards to our understanding of showing how blessed we are. Human wisdom says that you keep your mistakes, your errors, and your sins to yourself and show others only the very best things that you do. Psalm 32 encourages you to confess your sins before God and admit them as you receive His forgiveness. When you confess your sins, you aren’t telling God anything new. The all-knowing Lord of all creation already knows your sins.  Confess these sins of yours to your merciful Father who is faithful to forgive those sins.  To accomplish that forgiveness, He has sent His one and only Son into the world to die on the cross to save you from your sins. That is where your blessedness comes from - the forgiveness won by Jesus Christ.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.I lay my sins on Jesus, The spotless Lamb of God; He bears them all and frees us  From the accursèd load. I bring my guilt to Jesus  To wash my crimson stains  Clean in His blood most precious  Till not a spot remains.  (LSB 606:1)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 26, 2024 Today's Reading: Luke 10:1-9Daily Lectionary: Zechariah 2:1-3:10; Romans 15:1-13And [Jesus] said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” (Luke 10:2)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Today is another festival. Much like Wednesday, this festival commemorates a pastor who was put in place by St. Paul. As we thank God for the faith and work of St. Titus, we hear about the realities of living in the Church. While many things change, the words of Jesus to His disciples are steadfast and true no matter the year printed on the calendar. Jesus calls His disciples and the whole Church to pray that God would send workers into His harvest field. This is most clearly seen as the Lord uses pastors in His Church, including St Titus. The Lord has established this pastoral office.  Therefore, this is no human institution. The Lord sends pastors into His Church so that His Word is preached and the forgiveness of sins is made known.  That’s really important because the Church lives as lambs in the middle of wolves. (Matthew 10:3)  The other readings for the festival of St. Titus (Acts 20:28-35 and Titus 1:1-9) confess the reality that the Church lives in the middle of the world’s attacks. Pastors serve in Christ’s Church, even when the Church isn’t popular or liked. These undershepherds of the Good Shepherd serve to lead the Church in the midst of wolves.  Pastors are also called to be an example to the Church in faith and in contentment. Jesus commanded His disciples to remain in the home where they were welcomed, not looking for a better meal or a more comfortable bed. They were to remain where they were, serving faithfully. The whole Church needs that reminder to be content with what the Lord provides. He is the One who is faithful and who provides all that we need to support this body and life. We don’t chase more contentment, but enjoy the gifts of God, knowing that he gives what is needed. When Jesus tells His disciples not to go looking for better places to stay or better accommodations, He is commanding them not to covet. The Lord who provides daily bread for the righteous and the wicked is the One who cares for His disciples and who cares for you.  On this day, it’s easy to think about the calling that God gives to pastors. That is a wonderful calling, and it is for your benefit. However, if you aren’t a pastor, this is also a day to rejoice in the promises of God for you. He is the One who cares for you by filling your daily needs. He brings His kingdom to you, and He even sends you a pastor to announce His grace for you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, You called Titus to the work of pastor and teacher. Make all shepherds of Your flock diligent in preaching Your holy Word so that the whole world may know the immeasurable riches of our Savior, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.-Pastor Peter W. Ill is pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 25, 2024 Today's Reading: Acts 9:1-22Daily Lectionary: Zechariah 1:1-21; Romans 14:1-23And immediately [Paul] proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.” And all who heard him were amazed and said, “Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called upon this name? And has he not come here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief priests?” But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ. (Acts 9:20-22)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Things don’t always go the way you planned. Sometimes, interruptions happen. Saul’s life was interrupted, not by mere circumstances or a small change of plans. The Lord Jesus interrupted Saul’s day, Saul’s trip to Damascus, Saul’s life, and Saul’s eternity. This is no ordinary interruption, but the work of Jesus to convert Saul from a life of unbelief to a life of faith in Jesus. When Jesus appeared to Saul, He had a question, “Why do you persecute Me?” Saul’s question, “Who are you, lord?” implied that he did not know or recognize Jesus. But Jesus changed that, calling Saul to faith and even using him as a chosen instrument to bring the Gospel to people all over the world.Saul’s conversion says something about how Christians are made, then and now. Christians become Christians when God interrupts their lives and calls them to faith. This is God’s Divine action, not something that any person can do for themselves. Saul didn’t ask Jesus to come visit him on the Damascus road.  Saul didn’t seek Jesus out. Saul didn’t consider that Jesus might be an option in fixing his problems, so he would give this Christianity idea a try.  No, the Lord came to Saul and called him from unbelief to faith.That’s the same thing that the Lord has done for you, calling you out of the darkness of unbelief into faith in Jesus, who is the Light of the World. God’s conversion of you might not have the same kind of shocking story of Saul’s conversion. However, comparing conversion stories and the transformation that God has worked for you compared to others isn’t the measuring stick that the Lord reveals.  Instead, it is the promise of eternal life by the grace of Jesus. That grace was applied to you the same way it was applied to Saul - in the water of Holy Baptism.  There, with His Triune name, God called you His own and applied the death and resurrection of Jesus to you.Martin Luther points this out clearly in the Small Catechism, saying, “I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith. In the same way He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith. In this Christian church He daily and richly forgives all my sins and the sins of all believers. On the Last Day He will raise me and all the dead, and give eternal life to me and all believers in Christ.”  This interruption and change of course for your eternal life is the work of God for your good! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, You turned the heart of him who persecuted the Church and by his preaching caused the light of the Gospel to shine throughout the world. Grant us ever to rejoice in the saving light of Your Gospel and, following the example of the apostle Paul, to spread it to the ends of the earth; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.-Pastor Peter W. Ill is pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 24, 2024 Today's Reading: Matthew 24:42-47Daily Lectionary:Joel 3:1-21; Romans 12:14-13:14“Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions.” (Matthew 24:45-47)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In these passages, Jesus is teaching about the end times. Specifically, He is instructing Christians to care for one another and encourage one another in the faith. We can rejoice that we can do that for each other in our vocations. We can also be grateful for men whom God has called as pastors.St Timothy is a faithful and wise servant of our Lord, Jesus Christ.  St Paul and the council of elders laid their hands on Timothy, ordaining him to serve in Christ’s Church as a pastor. (1 Timothy 4:14)  Paul’s letters of 1 and 2 Timothy are addressed to this new pastor who was faithfully serving in the Lord’s Church. These books are full of expectations for pastors, as well as expectations for all Christians in general, and divinely-inspired commands for how to live as a Christian in this world.“But,” you might say, “I’m not a pastor, and I’m never going to be a pastor!  What does St Timothy and the books addressed to him have to do with me?”  These words of God addressed to Timothy also apply to you.  You are a servant of God, no matter what calling you have.  When the Lord called you to faith in the waters of Baptism, He called you to take up your cross and follow Him, no matter what specific callings you have.  The example of St TImothy and the words addressed to him in Scripture are insightful for you.  St Paul’s words in 1 Timothy 4:12 certainly apply to Pastor TImothy, but they also apply to all who are called to faith, including you.  These words, “Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity,” call you to live as an example in how you speak, how you act, how you believe, how you love, and in your purity.  Live as the child of God that He has made you through His Baptism.  St Paul’s words to Timothy in 2 Timothy 3:16-17 is also helpful for you to hear.  It says, “ All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”  God has given you Scripture so that you read it, hear it, and take it to heart.  It is through His inspired Word that the Lord forms you, making you complete for His work.  Today, as the Church remembers St. Timothy, rejoice that the Lord has called pastors in His Church.  Rejoice also that the Lord has sent His Scriptures to train all Christians, including you, in His Word.  Finally, thank God for the gift of salvation that you share with TImothy so that you and he are the Lord’s blessed servants in His kingdom, now and forever.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord Jesus Christ, You have always given to Your Church on earth faithful shepherds such as Timothy to guide and feed Your flock. Make all pastors diligent to preach Your holy Word and administer Your means of grace, and grant Your people wisdom to follow in the way that leads to life eternal; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.-Pastor Peter W. Ill is pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 23, 2024 Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 7:29-35Daily Lectionary: Joel 2:18-32; Romans 11:25-12:13This is what I mean, brothers: the appointed time has grown very short. From now on, let those who have wives live as though they had none, and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy as though they had no goods,and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away.I want you to be free from anxieties.  (1 Corinthians 7:29-32a)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. What are your priorities? What is most important to you?  Is it your friends, or sports, or friends?  Maybe it's good grades, peace and quiet, or being liked by others.  There are lots of things that might compete for your attention as you have a variety of competing priorities. So, out of your priorities, which one or ones always rise to the top?  Recognizing all these priorities, especially as it relates to if single people should get married or not, St. Paul writes to the Corinthians.  He points out that anxieties betray priorities. Are you worried about your grades?  If you’re worried about it, that means it’s important to you.Paul writes that being married changes your priorities.  Well, duh!  Going back to school after Christmas break changes your priorities too. Any change in life changes what you prioritize. St. Paul points out that a Christian’s priority should be about the things of the Lord. This reminds us of the first commandment:  You shall have no other gods. As the Small Catechism helpfully explains, this means that we should fear, love, and trust in God above all things. That means that if something else takes priority over God, you have sinned.  And it’s obvious that you have broken this commandment. Repent. Turn from your sin. Receive the forgiveness of Jesus Christ. Set your attention on the Lord.But what about getting married or doing anything else that would change your priorities?  Set your attention on the Lord and His will. Live a life full of repentance and faith. Believe that the Lord’s forgiveness for all your sins, including your divided attention, is enough. And it is, because God’s grace is always enough.  It is that grace that covers all your sins and sustains you every day.  He is the author and perfecter of your faith, and He is faithful to forgive all your sins. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Christ be my Leader by night as by day;  Safe through the darkness, for He is the way. Gladly I follow, my future His care,  Darkness is daylight when Jesus is there. (LSB 861:1)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 22, 2024 Today's Reading: Jonah 3:1-5, 10Daily Lectionary: Joel 2:1-17; Romans 11:1-24When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it. (Jonah 3:10)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. “Is that a threat or a promise?” is an appropriate response to the message the Lord sent to Nineveh through His prophet Jonah.  “Forty days and Nineveh will be destroyed!”  For Jonah, this was a promise. The Ninevehites were the enemy of the Lord’s people in Judah, and their demise would be good news for the Lord’s people.  On the other hand, the people of Nineveh took these words as a threat, and they repented of their great evil.  From the greatest of the least of the people of Nineveh, they covered themselves and even their animals in sackcloth. They also fasted during this time of repentance. They took the Lord’s word of judgment seriously.  The Lord relented from the threat.  The destruction that He threatened was canceled. The serious threat of God’s judgment was not carried out.  The Lord revealed His goodness by not destroying Nineveh.What about you? When you hear the severity of the Lord’s judgment against your sinfulness, do you take it seriously?  You might try to rationalize your sin, arguing that it’s not that bad and it’s not really hurting anyone.  You might protest that what Scripture calls sinful shouldn’t really be sinful. After all, your logic might go, the Scriptures were written many years ago and the times have changed. No matter how you might protest against the Lord’s judgment, you should fear His wrath.  The holy God does not tolerate your sinfulness. Psalm 5:4-5 says, “For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you. The boastful shall not stand before Your eyes; You hate all evildoers.” Those are harsh words that show the severity of the Lord’s judgment against sin. There is no wiggle room in God’s expectations.  That’s a threat indeed!Even your repentance is imperfect. Even when you repent from your sin, it’s not perfect.  Sometimes mistakes continue to happen and you return to your sin. You cannot live a perfect life, no matter how hard you try.  It seems like the Lord’s threat is still hanging over your head. That is why He sent His one and only Son into the flesh. Jesus Christ died for you, and all who believe in Him are saved. The Lord didn’t cancel His threatening judgment, but Jesus, who knew no sin, became your sin so that you have the righteousness of God.  (2 Corinthians 5:21)  There, on the cross, you see the threat answered by the promise of God’s mercy and love for you. You are forgiven by your gracious God in His care for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Though great our sins, yet greater still  Is God’s abundant favor;  His hand of mercy never will Abandon us, nor waver. Our shepherd good and true is He, Who will at last His Israel free From all their sin and sorrow. (LSB 607:5)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 21, 2024 Today's Reading: Mark 1:14-20Daily Lectionary: Joel 1:1-20; Romans 10:1-21And Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” (Mark 1:17)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. What does it mean to be a “fisher of men?” Certainly, Jesus doesn’t call Simon (later called Peter) and Andrew to wrap people up in nets or to put hooks in anyone’s mouth. This figure of speech shows that Jesus will turn ordinary fishermen into something else.  Now, these fishermen will spend their time “catching” people. That sounds manipulative. Perhaps “catching” is better understood as teaching or confessing to people. Evangelizing (the Greek word for “Gospelizing”) is another good understanding. No longer would fish be the focus of these men, but the faith delivered to God’s saints.It’s easy to start thinking about how these men, and even you, would be fishers of men and how you might do it better. But the way that Jesus speaks to the disciples is really, really important.  Jesus said, “I will make you become fishers of men.” This work of teaching, confessing, and evangelizing isn’t about your skills and abilities. This is not something that you develop in yourself. This way of life, being a fisher of men, is something that Jesus does for you.  You don’t need to worry about improving your skills as you fish for people, but you simply hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Jesus brings His gospel to you, speaking into your ears the forgiveness of sins. It’s for you, today, as you attend the Divine Service. Jesus comes to you, probably not in a boat, but in a sanctuary. He calls you away from your sinfulness to the holiness that He provides. He gives you that holiness through His forgiveness when you hear it in the absolution and the sermon and when you receive His body and blood for the forgiveness of sins. There, He develops you to be a fisher of men. When you confess the Creed with your fellow Christians, you are practicing the “fisher of men” skills that Jesus is developing in you.Confessing your faith can be scary. Christians sometimes worry that their skills aren’t good enough or that they won’t know what to say or that someone won’t be impressed with how they speak about Jesus.  Those fears often focus on you and how you confess the faith. Instead of self-centeredness, focus on Jesus. He is the one who comes to you to make you a fisher of men. He is the one who has transformed you, not just from a fisherman to a fisher-of-men, but from a sinner to one of His beloved saints - and that makes all the difference!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and everlasting God, mercifully look upon our infirmities and stretch forth the hand of Your majesty to heal and defend us; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.-Pastor Peter W. Ill is pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 20, 2024 Today's Reading: Introit for Epiphany 3: Psalm 66:1-5, 20, antiphon: Psalm 66:4, 92:1Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 47:1-14, 21-23; Romans 9:19-33Come and see what God has done: he is awesome in his deeds toward the children of man…Blessed be God, because he has not rejected my prayer or removed his steadfast love from me! (Psalm 66:5, 20)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Come and see what God has done! That is the invitation from the psalmist. Come to the place where God is and receive His gifts. At the end of this psalm, the writer proclaims, “Blessed be God because He has not rejected my prayer or removed His steadfast love from me!” This is his response after receiving God’s gifts. This introit text, this psalm, gives a concise breakdown of what the Divine Service is and of what our relationship to God is. It is the pattern of a Christian’s life: receiving what God gives and thanking Him for those gifts. Two verses can encapsulate all we do Sunday to Sunday (and all the days in between). How can this be?Let’s get into it. Come and see, this is our invitation to worship. It is not Go and do this! an authoritative and harsh command, but Come, I am already here and want you to be here too.”Come and see what? All that God has done, His awesome deeds toward all mankind. What has God done toward the children of man? He sent His only begotten Son to live, die, and rise, that we might be granted eternal life. Rather than be separated from God forever because of our sinful nature, God sent Christ Jesus to suffer and die in our place and bestow the merits of His death and resurrection upon us. He does so through the Means of Grace, through the Word and Sacrament, which we hear and receive every Divine Service. None of this is earned by us. That is impossible. It is all a gift, and all given freely to scared, helpless sinners, by a good and gracious Lord. God has not rejected our prayer for mercy nor has He removed His love from us. It is because of His love that these gifts exist. It is because He is steadfast in His promises that week after week, year after year, century after century, the sins are forgiven, the Word is preached and the Sacraments are administered. And in response to all of this, we bless the Lord. And even this blessing is not of our own doing! It is the Holy Spirit at work within us. He who grants and sustains our faith enables us to then return thanks for these gifts, praising Him from whom all blessings flow.  So, dear Christian, come and see what God has done for you. Receive these gifts and return to them constantly, that your faith may be sustained. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O mighty Rock, O Source of life, let Your dear Word, in doubt and strife, in us be strongly burning that we be faithful unto death and live in love and holy faith, from You true wisdom learning. Your grace and peace on us shower; by Your power Christ confessing, let us see our Savior’s blessing. (LSB 913:3)-Deaconess Emma Heinz is the Registrar for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 19, 2024 Today's Reading: 10 Commandments, 5th CommandmentDaily Lectionary: Ezekiel 44:1-16, 23-29; Romans 9:1-18You shall not murder.What does this mean?We should fear and love God so that we may not hurt or harm our neighbor in his body but help and befriend him in every bodily need.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. At first, this commandment seems rather simple: don’t kill people. For many centuries following God writing the Commandments and giving them to Moses to give them to God’s people, you shall not murder, simply forbade taking another person’s life. This simple law is good, for the benefit of our neighbor, but it can give the illusion that we have kept this commandment if we are never labeled a murderer. Our Lord, in His teachings from the Sermon on the Mount, takes this simple command and expands it. It is not enough to simply avoid being an ax-murderer. Christ tells His hearers, “But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.” So now the command is, "Don't kill anyone, but also, do not be angry with those around you, do not insult them, and do not think unkind things about them. Dr. Luther takes his explanation of the fifth commandment from Christ’s direct teachings. Do not wish or enact harm against your neighbor. Now, when we look at this commandment, we are not as innocent as we would first assume. Sure, I haven’t killed anyone but I have insulted those around me and I’ve definitely thought mean things towards family. Christ’s teachings on this commandment (and Luther’s explanation centuries later), teach two things. The first is that we are to avoid harming our neighbors, no matter how small the offense may be. The second aspect of this teaching is the helping aspect, especially pointed out in Luther’s explanation. We are to help and befriend our neighbors, seeking their best interests and striving to provide support and help when needed. We see this modeled in Jesus. We know that Christ perfectly kept the law, but He kept the law perfectly for us. Sinners cannot keep any of the commandments. Rather than leave us to the judgment of hellfire we deserve, Jesus Christ befriends and helps us in every need.  His suffering for us means we are now strengthened by the Holy Spirit to serve and help our neighbor. We are shaped by Jesus to not seek the worst for our fellow sinners, but look on them in love - the same love shown to us first by our God. This love extends to us while we are still sinners, calls us from death into life, and grants us strength to persevere in a death-filled world.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O my Savior, help afford by Your Spirit and Your Word! When my wayward heart would stray, keep me in the narrow way; grace in time of need supply while I live and when I die. (LSB 611:5)-Deaconess Emma Heinz is the Registrar for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 18, 2024 Today's Reading: Mark 8:27-9:1Daily Lectionary:Ezekiel 40:1-4; 43:1-12; Romans 8:18-39And [Jesus] asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Christ.” And he strictly charged them to tell no one about him. (Mark 8:29–30)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Peter gets the answer right. Jesus asks the big question and Peter aces the quiz. Who is Jesus? The Christ. Today we remember St. Peter and his bold confession of faith. But on a day like today, it can be just as easy to remember Peter’s many less-than-correct answers to big questions. Just after Peter’s great confession, Jesus calls him Satan because Peter refuses to accept Jesus must die. On the night Jesus is betrayed, Peter denies His Lord three times, insisting he does not know Jesus, even when asked repeatedly. But in this moment, He says the right thing at the right time. How did this lowly fisherman get this answer right when he so often missed the mark?In Matthew’s account of this same event, we are given the answer. Jesus says, “Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.” This great confession is given to Peter. It is not his own, invented in his mind to impress his Teacher of the other apostles. God the Father revealed this confession to Peter, gave it to him freely, and enabled this sinner to boldly confess, “You are the Christ.”This is why we remember St. Peter the Apostle and his confession. This great confession of faith doesn’t belong just to Peter but to you. Jesus is the Christ, Who takes away the sin of the world. He does so out of love and not because we have earned it. Because we continually fail that Christ came for us sinners. Join in the confession of St. Peter because it belongs to you too. Who do we say Jesus is? The Christ, the Son of God, born in human flesh to save the world from sin, death, and the devil. This Christ died a sinner’s death and rose from the dead that we may also have eternal life. This Christ calls you His own in the waters of Baptism. This Christ offers Himself freely in His Body and Blood at the Lord’s Table. This Christ, this Jesus, is yours, given freely. We thank God for St. Peter and his confession because this is our confession too. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Here stands the font before our eyes, telling how God has received us. The altar recalls Christ’s sacrifice and what His Supper here gives us. Here sounds the Scriptures that proclaim Christ yesterday, today, the same, and evermore, our Redeemer. (LSB 645:4)-Deaconess Emma Heinz is the Registrar for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 17, 2024 Today's Reading: Romans 7:21-8:17Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 39:1-10, 17-29; Romans 7:21-8:17Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin. (Romans 7:24–25)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Your life, dear Christian, is lived in tension. Tension is uncomfortable. It means we are pulled in two opposing directions. It puts so much strain on us that we seek to resolve the tension. While this feels good for a moment, we quickly understand that pulling too strongly one way or another can break the strand, or in this case, us. St. Paul describes the tension between our relationship to the law of God and the law of sin. Christians, having been made to walk in Christ, seek to do what pleases God. Sinners, however, seek after sinful desires. And we find ourselves caught in the middle of these opposing ideals, unable to relieve this tension. We cannot keep the Law of God perfectly because of the inherited sin within us, so we stray towards the way of sin, death, and the devil. However, having been baptized into Christ, we strive to do what God wills, even though we know we will ultimately fail. Our life is lived in the middle, wanting to serve God with all our body, mind, and soul, while also still living in “this body of death,” as St. Paul writes, unable and often unwilling to serve perfectly. There is a Latin phrase that encapsulates this tension: simul justus et peccator. This phrase translates to “simultaneously saint and sinner.” We are, as Christians, both saints and sinners. We belong fully to God through our Baptism but original sin still resides in us, meaning we cannot live according to the Law of God, as much as we’d like to. We cannot relieve this tension, it is impossible. “Thanks be to God through Christ our Lord!” God, while we were still sinners, sent His Son to die for us. God, while we were dead in our trespasses and sins, reached into our watery grave and pulled us out into new life in Baptism. God, while we still sin much, send His Holy Spirit to strengthen us as we go about our lives, seeking to do the will of God. Go forth, dear Christian, knowing that the tension is tight and tough, but that it cannot break you. Thanks be to God!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O grant that nighting in my soul may dwell, but Thy pure love alone; Oh, may Thy love possess me whole, my joy, my treasure, and my crown! All coldness from my heart remove; my ev’ry act, word, thought be love. (LSB 683:2)-Deaconess Emma Heinz is the Registrar for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 16, 2024 Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 6:12-20Daily Lectionary:Ezekiel 38:1-23; Romans 7:1-20Flee sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside of the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. (1 Corinthians 6:18-20)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. What you do with your body matters. At a base level, this makes sense. If I eat well, sleep enough, bathe, brush my teeth, and so on, my body should continue to work well enough. Take care of your body and your body will take care of you. But St. Paul is getting at something a little deeper here. He has been warning the Corinthians (and all of us) about the dangers of misusing our bodies sexually. His comment about sinning against our own bodies means that while murder and theft directly hurt people outside of ourselves, sexual immorality defiles our body. The intimate gift of sexuality is corrupted, as is the body and mind of those who commit sexual immorality. But why does that matter? What I do with my body surely doesn’t affect others that much, does it? St. Paul argues rightly that our actions towards and with our own bodies have drastic effects. He gives a few layers of proof here. Paul begins with this: your body, dear Christian, is a temple of the Holy Spirit. In Baptism, the Holy Spirit enters in and grants you faith then and sustains your faith going forward. Second, you have been made part of the Body of Christ, the Church. If one part of the body is hurt, sick, or broken, how well will the rest of the body fare? Not well. As part of the body of Christ, the church, we take care of ourselves in order to better care for others. Finally, Paul hints at the Incarnation. Bodies are so important that the Son of Man took on human flesh to enact the world’s salvation. Jesus redeemed living in a human body. Jesus then suffered and died. The blood He shed, the death He died, was the price paid to buy us out from under the power of sin, death, and the devil. After His death, Jesus rose from the dead, in the same body He had before His death, with the nail marks and spear wound still in His flesh. Christ’s resurrection is the precursor to our own resurrection. And like our Lord, we will be resurrected with the same bodies we have now. The gift of the body that God gives upon our conception will remain with us in eternity. So glorify God in your body, knowing that sins are forgiven in Christ and we are no longer bound to sin but to Christ Jesus! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.But all of that was washed away- immersed and drowned forever. The water of your Baptism day restored whatever old Adam and his sin destroyed and all our sinful selves employed according to our nature. (LSB 596:3)-Deaconess Emma Heinz is the Registrar for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 15, 2024 Today's Reading: 1 Samuel 3:1-20Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 37:15-28; Romans 6:1-23And Eli said, “What was it that he told you? Do not hide it from me. May God do so to you and more also if you hide anything from me of all that he told you.” So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, “It is the LORD. Let him do what seems good to him.” (1 Samuel 3:17–18)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Eli was a priest of the Lord with worthless sons which was a problem because his sons were supposed to become priests of God. Previously, God has already spoken judgment unto Eli’s sons, declaring they will die.  And yet, when a new message from God comes, Eli still seeks it out. This new message is likely more judgment from God upon Eli’s house and yet he demands that Samuel tell him. Eli, in faithfulness, declares, “It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.” He does not shy away from the death sentence for his sons and his family. It is still the Word of God. Eli does not joyfully receive this news from Samuel, but he faithfully receives the word and responds in trust, “Thy will be done, O Lord.”It is a more natural response to say, “Thy will be done,” when things are going well for us. It seems, in that moment, that God’s will aligns with our will. Everything is okay.  It is a different experience to say “Thy will be done,” when things are going poorly for us. God’s will is not aligning with our will, our plan, our view of how things should go. It does not feel good to see loved ones suffer and die and still pray, “Thy will be done.” Eli gives us an image to ponder. His children will die at the hands of God and yet, this man does not flee God’s word. Eli knows his sons would make sorry examples of priests for God; he knows they deserve this punishment, but what father would punctuate the death of his son with, “Let God do what seems good to him”? Eli is faithful. He submits to the Lord in all things, even in the death of his sons. This is not out of Eli’s own ability but out of faith. This faith is given to him by God. This faith is given to you by God. Faith in the promises of God preserves us and enables us to trust that our Lord’s will is done out of love. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.From me this is not hidden, yet I am not afraid; I leave my cares, as bidden, to whom my vows are paid. Though life from me be taken and everything I own, I trust in You unshaken and cleave to You alone. (LSB 724:7)-Deaconess Emma Heinz is the Registrar for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 14, 2024 Today's Reading: John 1:43-51Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 36:33-37:14; Romans 5:1-21Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” And he said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.” (John 1:50–51)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Nathaniel is easily amused by this “magic man Jesus” from backwater Nazareth. Jesus pulls a cool party trick by revealing where Nathaniel was when Philip told him the news of the Messiah and Nathaniel believes Jesus is the Son of God because of this. His belief is based on a moment of amazement, a neat trick, but hardly anything substantial. Nathaniel falls into the same trap we do. Magic Man Jesus is cool and exciting and captivating. He heals people, raises the dead, turns water into delicious wine. He satisfies the immediate desires of those around Him. He puts on a great show. This is the kind of Messiah our sinful nature wants. A God who works wonders for our will and benefit. A God that dazzles and amazes, showing how powerful He is in ways sinful creatures understand and adore. This kind of God is here for our amusement and pleasure. This is not the God we have, nor is it the God of Nathaniel. Jesus calls out Nathaniel’s shallow belief and tells him he will witness something far greater than showy displays of power. Christ is pointing towards His greatest miracle: His death and resurrection. This is not a simple party trick, or a neat gimmick to gain followers. This would be the great work of the Messiah. Christ’s work on the cross gives us the gifts that cannot decay and do not lose their ability to satisfy. They are not flashes in the pan. They are the eternal rewards of this great work of God. Christ’s body and blood, offered up on the cross as the perfect sacrifice, now sustain us at the Lord’s Table. The water that flowed from our Savior’s riven side washes us clean and makes us new in Holy Baptism. Jesus offers Nathaniel a front seat to this great miracle and He offers that same invitation to us. What we witness as we receive God’s gifts may not seem as grand as walking on water but they are the greater thing. In these means of grace we find forgiveness of sins, freely given and life eternal with our Lord. So come, dear Christian, and see what God has done for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and everlasting God, who governs all things in heaven and on earth, mercifully hear the prayers of Your people and grant us peace through all our days; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, on God, now and forever. -Deaconess Emma Heinz is the Registrar for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 13, 2024 Today's Reading: Introit for Epiphany 2Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 36:13-28; Romans 4:1-25Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer. (Psalm 19:14)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Words matter. Our universe was created with words. Words are the building blocks of our communication with one another, they’re how we build relationships. Words are the way through which we come to know our Lord through preaching and teaching. Words matter. In this sinful world we are prone to using words for evil. We lie, we gossip, we hurt one another, we manipulate, we curse, and so much more against our neighbor. With our words, we can also blaspheme and misuse the name of our God. Even when we do not speak words, we can carry them in our hearts, holding grudges, animosity, and prejudices against our neighbor. We carry anger towards God for not answering our prayers, for not preventing the bad things in our lives, for feeling that He was not there in the time we needed Him most. On our own, our words are sinful and wretched. Our words falter and fail to share love and mercy. But the Word that does not fail, that does not falter, is our LORD Jesus. In this Psalm we pray to God with the Psalmist that our rock and redeemer would change our hearts and change our words to be righteous and acceptable in the eyes of God. We pray that our hearts would be graciously changed, purified, and forgiven of the sin that dwells within us. This psalm is a prayer to our righteous Lord for mercy.Pastors will often pray this part of the Psalm before they preach. Of course, for those who are delivering the Word of God from the pulpit, it is of great importance for them to handle their words with care. They are speaking the truth, and it is to be received by the people as the Word of God! God promises to be in the Word when it is preached, but pastors pray these words for strength and confidence as they bring this gift to their congregations. But this prayer is not just for pastors. We pray it too, that we may live lives sanctified in Him. Without God, all of the words of our mouth and heart would bring nothing but ruin. But through God’s own Word, we may be purified and forgiven, and our the meditations of our hearts made acceptable in His sight.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.To Jesus we for refuge flee, Who from the curse has set us free, and humbly worship at His throne, Saved by His grace through faith alone. (LSB 579:6)-Vicar Benjamin Heinz is vicar at Trinity Lutheran Church, Springfield, MO.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 12, 2024 Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 34:1-24; Romans 3:19-31For thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that have been scattered, so will I seek out my sheep, and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness.” (Ezekiel 34:11-12)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Contrary to popular belief, sheep aren’t stupid. Sheep are actually rather intelligent creatures. They have individual personalities, needs, and learn things very quickly. While sheep are often used in scripture as a metaphor for human beings under God’s care, we are not compared to sheep because they’re dumb animals who are too stupid to do anything on their own. On the contrary, we’re compared to sheep because we are a lot like them. Sheep wander for specific purposes! As prey animals, they’re fearful creatures, and as a result, they’re always searching for ways to avoid danger. If something seems dangerous, it’s better for them in their own minds to run away before they wait long enough to find out what the danger is. Sheep will follow one another, even wandering away from their shepherd, because they find strength in numbers. We do not stray from God because we’re too stupid to follow Him, we stray because we want to, because we think we know what’s best. We get ourselves in danger trying to be our own shepherds and finding our own way. While we might convince ourselves that we have “good intentions,” if we lead ourselves, we will only end up marching to one place: directly into the clutches of the evil one. Sheep who stray from their shepherd may think they are thoughtfully avoiding danger, but without their protector, they find themselves in an entirely more dangerous position, defenseless against the uncertainties of the wilderness. But it does not please the Lord to give us over to our own sinful desires or to our own selfish intuitions, to leave us to this untimely fate. The Lord seeks us out, one by one, and brings us back into His fold. He is willing to go to the ends of the earth, even into the jaws of death itself, in order to carry us home into His care. Thanks be to God that our Good Shepherd seeks out His scattered sheep, and that we may be numbered among His flock.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We are Yours; in love befriend us, Be the guardian of our way; Keep Your flock, from sin defend us, Seek us when we go astray. Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus, Hear us children when we pray. Blessed Jesus, blessed Jesus, hear us children when we pray. (LSB 711:2) -Vicar Benjamin Heinz is vicar at Trinity Lutheran Church, Springfield, MO.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 11, 2024 Today's Reading: 10 Commandments, 4th CommandmentDaily Lectionary: Ezekiel 33:1-20; Romans 3:1-18Honor your father and your mother. What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we do not despise or anger our parents and other authorities, but honor them, serve and obey them, love and cherish them.  (Luther’s Small Catechism: The Fourth Commandment)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Most of the commandments are fairly easy for us to wrap our brains around. We should love God, honor His name, and gladly hear God’s word. Don’t kill people, don’t be sexually immoral, don’t steal, don’t lie, and don’t covet. We don’t follow them of course, but we generally agree with their sentiments for the most part. The Fourth Commandment can be a little different. It’s not always easy to honor our parents. Even for those with great relationships with their own parents, following their rules and cherishing them can be difficult. In most cases, we spend most of our early lives with our parents. We know them better than we know anyone else in our lives, and with all the things we love and cherish about them, we know about their sins as well. We know our parents aren’t perfect, and sometimes, we might believe their decisions or rules are unfair, illogical, or just plain annoying. But your parents, and other authorities in our lives, are the people that God has chosen to guard, protect, lead, and teach us in our lives. Our parents are in authority over us because God gave them that vocation. It is their role to love and care for you, just as it is yours to love and obey them. Both parents and children fail one another in their vocations. Because of the Fall, we all are unable to uphold our vocations perfectly. Just as much as this commandment is about loving, cherishing, honoring, serving, and obeying your parents, it is also about forgiving them. Just as parents are supposed to show love to their children as God showed His love to His children, we are to show that same love to our parents. Christ died for your parents, and Christ died for you. One blessing of the family that we may sometimes forget is that we are given a close, tight knit community in which we can bring the promises of Christ to one another. Children and parents alike may bring the love of Christ to one another in love, through communicating God’s forgiveness to one another, reminding each other of our baptismal identities, and continually driving one another back to Christ. When you fail as a son or daughter, repent in love and honor; and when your parents fail, show them Christ’s love in return.“You are to honor and obey your father, mother, ev’ry day, serve them each way that comes to hand; You’ll then live long in the land.” Have mercy, Lord! (LSB 581:5)-Vicar Benjamin Heinz is vicar at Trinity Lutheran Church, Springfield, MO.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 10, 2024 Today's Reading: Ezekiel 18:25-29Daily Lectionary:Ezekiel 18:1-4, 19-32; Romans 2:17-29Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ Hear now, O house of Israel: Is my way not just? Is it not your ways that are not just?  When a righteous person turns away from his righteousness and does injustice, he shall die for it; for the injustice that he has done he shall die. Again, when a wicked person turns away from the wickedness he has committed and does what is just and right, he shall save his life. Because he considered and turned away from all the transgressions that he had committed, he shall surely live; he shall not die. Yet the house of Israel says, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ O house of Israel, are my ways not just? Is it not your ways that are not just? (Ezekiel 18:25-29)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. If you’ve been listening to the world around you, it’s easy to see that the world does not like the things that Our Lord has to say. To many, the Bible is just an outdated book full of ancient, prejudicial rules that have been used throughout history to subjugate people. Even some Christian churches are embarrassed of what God’s Word says, and will change the message so as to not offend others. The way of the Lord, as it is delivered to us in the Scriptures, is not fair in the eyes of modern society. They may ask questions like “Why would a God who loves me not want me to love and marry whoever I want to?” “If God wants me to be happy, why shouldn’t I be able to change my body?” The world does not think the way of the Lord is just. And maybe they are right. Maybe God isn’t just, at least, not according to our terms. After all, it isn’t very fair that one man should have to die for the sins of the whole world.  It isn’t very fair to let people who break laws for their whole life to be allowed to go free after they eat some bread, drink some wine, and splash some water on their head, and to forgive them when they say they’re “sorry,” even when you know they’re going to do it again. The LORD is not particularly fair, but He is the judge. What is “just” is not up to us to decide. Our own idea of judgment is based on what benefits us most. We seek out revenge and recompense for the sins done against us, but wish for mercy shown only to ourselves. Thanks be to God that His justice is not like ours. Our Father in heaven is a righteous judge, but He also has mercy on His children, rescuing them from the judgment that they truly deserve. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord, keep us steadfast in Your Word; curb those who by deceit or sword would wrest the kingdom from Your Son and bring to naught all He has done. (LSB 655:1)-Vicar Benjamin Heinz is vicar at Trinity Lutheran Church, Springfield, MO.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 9, 2024 Today's Reading: Romans 6:1-11Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 3:12-27; Romans 2:1-16What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. (Romans 6:1-5)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Jesus is not a ‘get out of jail free card.’ Though He brought all of your sins to the cross, and paid for them completely, once and for all, you are not free to let your sinful nature go free! Though your record has been wiped clean through our baptism, you are not supposed to fill the list of your offenses over again! You have been made NEW! You are a different thing entirely than you were before!You were once in sin, from the very moment you entered this world. Yet, God, in His overwhelming mercy, placed His name upon you in your baptism, in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. You were marked differently at that moment until the end of time. You are not like the world. You are Christ’s: a new creation, set apart from the sinful world around you. In your Baptism, your Old Adam has been drowned. He dies. Every single day. The waters of your Baptism have bound you completely to the work of Christ on the cross and His resurrection from the dead. You are not to live in our sin, because Christ has declared you His own, purchased and won through His death on the cross, delivered new life through Christ’s resurrection. Of course, temptations will still come. You will fall into it. Sin is still in this world, and the devil is looking for every opportunity to strike. Yet, in our new identity, we are to live differently. We are to guard against temptation and not seek sin out. We are not free to sin, or even free of sin, but free from sin. Through the gift of Baptism, we remain vigilant against sin through the grace of God, certain of the forgiveness of the sins we still continue to do.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Sin disturb my soul no longer, I am baptized into Christ! I have comfort even stronger: Jesus’ cleansing sacrifice. Should a guilty conscience seize me since my baptism did release me in a dear forgiving flood, sprinkling me with Jesus blood? (LSB 594:2) -Vicar Benjamin Heinz is vicar at Trinity Lutheran Church, Springfield, MO.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 8, 2024 Today's Reading: Genesis 1:1-5Daily Lectionary:Ezekiel 2:1-3:11; Romans 1:18-32In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. (Genesis 1:1-5) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Word and Light. These are the first things to be present in all of Creation. God utters these words: “Let there be light,” and then there is. With just a few words and a couple days, all things in the universe, every last atom, rock, plant, animal, planet, and element, came into being, and this light showers over it all from day one.  And even here, in the very beginning, before humanity is even created, we see our Lord Jesus present. The evangelist John shows us this plainly as he begins his Gospel in this very same way, with Word and Light. John says that this Word, through which all things were made, is the Christ, and that He is the light of the world. Christ scatters the darkness, so that in the light, there is no darkness at all. At the very foundations of this world, our Lord Jesus is already delivering His gifts to you: His undying light and love-filled Word. All good things come to you through the Word of God that spoke all that we know into existence. This Word guides and sustains you, bringing the gifts of forgiveness, faith, life, and salvation to you. The light of Christ dispels the darkness. In this light, we see Christ more clearly. In this Word, God’s promises are delivered directly to our ears. Even in our suffering on earth, where we may feel blind, as if we cannot see the light of Christ, or feel deaf to the words God speaks to us, the Word and Light of God remain present with you. This same Lord, who created all things in the beginning, comes to you today through Word and Sacrament, providing you through His love that has been present since even before He uttered the words: “Let there be light.”  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Of the Father’s Love Begotten, ere the worlds began to be, He is Alpha and Omega, He the source, the ending He, of the things that are, that have been, and that future years shall see, evermore and evermore. (LSB 384:1)-Vicar Benjamin Heinz is vicar at Trinity Lutheran Church, Springfield, MO.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 7, 2024 Today's Reading: Mark 1:4-11Daily Lectionary:Ezekiel 1:1-14, 22-28; Romans 1:1-17Now John was clothed with camel's hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey. And he preached, saying, “After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.  I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And when He came up out of the water, immediately He saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on Him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”(Mark 1:6-11)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It is all about Jesus. Crazy John knew this in the wilderness, and made sure people knew it! “After me comes he who is mightier than I… I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” The people at the Jordan at the time probably knew this too! After all, the voice of God proclaimed Jesus as His beloved son. But many today have forgotten. We live in a world that is all about me and what I want. And this mentality has even trickled into how some Christians talk about Baptism. For some Christians, Baptism is a choice. It is a confession of my faith to prove that I love God and have accepted Him into my heart. This sort of thinking about Baptism is more about the act of Baptism and what it symbolizes, rather than being about the promises and salvation granted to us through it. But, while your Baptism brings you into the family of God, your Baptism is not really about you. It is about Jesus. It is about your Lord binding you to Himself through water and Word, washing you clean of your sins and placing His name upon you. In Baptism, Christ secures His children for Himself. Baptism is all about Jesus, and so you can be certain that it is for you! In Christ, we have hope that the Word and water does what it says it will, regardless of how we feel in our own heart and experience our life as baptized Christians. Christ does not change, and neither does your Baptism. Thanks be to God that it’s not about us, and all about Jesus. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Blessed Lord, You wonderfully foreshadowed the promise of Baptism in the rescue of Noah from the flood, in the passing of Your people through the Red Sea, and in the ceremonial washings of Your law. In Christ and by His Baptism, You have kept Your Word and made Baptism to be the water of new life. Give us Your Holy Spirit, that we may become the new and holy people You have declared us to be. Amen. (Collect from LCMS Series C)-Vicar Benjamin Heinz is vicar at Trinity Lutheran Church, Springfield, MO.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 6, 2024 Today's Reading: Matthew 2:1-12Daily Lectionary: Isaiah. 66:1-20; Luke 3:21-38And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. (Matthew 2:11)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  These Wise Men, cannot rely only on their own wisdom.  Charts of the stars and notes on astrology would not be able to clarify what this amazing event was, and who it was about.  Look where they end up: in Jerusalem, at the palace of Herod the Great.  So if they could not rely on their own wisdom, how were they to find the Lord?  The answer is simple: He gave them an epiphany!  “Epiphany” means “to reveal.”  God revealed to them the Savior of the nations.These Magi from the east had something far greater than human wisdom to guide them.  The Lord led them by a star, and He used His Word to provide godly wisdom.  He gifted them with the wisdom of Christ, that they might find God become Man–the holy Baby resting on His mother’s lap. There is the beauty of it all!  These great, powerful men, on their knees, worshiping a Baby.  Before the Child are laid treasures: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  But the amazing thing is that this Christ Child is giving them gifts!  By coming in the flesh, He is opening the treasures of God’s grace and mercy, and ultimately eternal life, to these foreigners.Christ reveals Himself as God.  As He keeps God’s Law, suffers, dies, and rises again, He is the Light to lighten the Gentiles.  He opens the kingdom of heaven to all believers.  He fulfills His Word, so that now, both Jew and Gentile can receive Him in all of His Word and Sacrament!  Now you can rejoice exceedingly that the Lord does not keep you at arm’s length, but welcomes you to receive His gifts, and thus receive Him!“And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.”Today you go into [His] house and [see] the Child – our Savior – the King of kings with His Church, and you fall down and worship Him.  As you sit in the pew and hear His Gospel, and again as you kneel at His rail, opening [His] treasures, [He offers you] gifts – Baptism, Absolution, Gospel and Supper!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, by the leading of a star You made known Your only-begotten Son to the Gentiles.  Lead us, who know You by faith, to enjoy in heaven the fullness of Your divine presence; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Richard Heinz is pastor at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Lowell, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 5, 2024 Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 65:8-25; Luke 3:1-20“The wolf and the lamb shall graze together;    the lion shall eat straw like the ox,    and dust shall be the serpent's food.They shall not hurt or destroy    in all my holy mountain,”says the Lord. (Isaiah 65:25)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Merry Twelfth Day of Christmas!We send and receive Christmas cards each year.  There are always the cards with the beautiful and gentle Virgin and Child.  Some have a fuller image with Joseph, shepherds, animals and manger.  Some have a star and the wise men.  Others have Christmas trees, snow, or even Santa.  But some that always stood out to me had these words from Scripture, and a lamb and lion at the manger.Were there malevolent meat-eaters at the Messiah’s manger?  Were sinister snakes slithering in the stable? No.  Isaiah is preaching a vision of the Kingdom of God when Christ comes, but it is all in the distance, with a view of the entire New Testament era from Jesus’ birth through His return at the Last Day.  So while it is a Christmas scene, if you will, it is also more.In Isaiah’s era, like now, lions were dangerous predators.  They were not so populous that you would see them all the time.  But they were there, in the wilderness.  As a shepherd, David defended his  sheep against lions and bears with his sling and staff.  God gave him courage and he defeated these foes, protecting the flock. Now, the Son of David, your Messiah and King, has gone up the holy mountain of Calvary and defeated the old evil foe.  The flock is safe and sound in the care of the Good Shepherd.  There at the tree of the cross, Christ defeated Satan and all his minions, and God’s judgment from Genesis 3(:14-15) was fulfilled.  The nail-pierced foot of Jesus crushed the serpent’s head, “And dust shall be the serpent’s food.” (Isaiah 65:25)Defeating Satan is not necessarily what your friends and relatives may be thinking when they select Christmas cards.  Yet is the “reason for the season,” and is the “good news of great joy that will be for all the people.” (Luke 2:10) The Baby in the manger is the Corpus on the Cross, and that is a great vision that you are blessed to see more fulfilled, something Isaiah longed for. You are Jesus’ little lamb, kept safe from the foes of sin, death, and the devil.  Merry Christmas! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.As true as God’s own Word is true,  Not earth nor hell’s satanic crew  Against us shall prevail.Their might? A joke, a mere facade!  God is with us and we with God–  Our vict’ry cannot fail.Amen, Lord Jesus, grant our prayer;  Great Captain, now Things arm make bare,  Fight for us once again!  So shall Thy saints  And martyrs raise  A mighty chorus to Thy praise  Forevermore. Amen.  (LSB 666:3,4)-Pastor Richard Heinz is pastor at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Lowell, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 4, 2024  Today's Reading: Luther's Small Catechism, 3rd CommandmentDaily Lectionary: Isaiah 63:15-65:7; Luke 2:41-52Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we do not despise preaching and His Word, but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it.  (Luther’s Small Catechism; Third Commandment & Meaning)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Merry Eleventh Day of Christmas!Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we do not despise preaching and His Word, but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it.By this point, you may have Old Adam in the back of your mind saying, “Church? Do I have to?! Coming up again, for Epiphany?!  But we went last Sunday morning, and then later that day for Christmas Eve.  And the next day for Christmas Day.  And another Sunday. And all the extra Wednesdays we have had. And…I’m just tired and don’t want to.”  (Just imagine how frequently you’d have been at your congregation if they  had Divine Services for each of the Twelve Days of Christmas!) And the New Creature that God gave birth to in Baptism responds, feeling guilty and repentant.These Twelve Days of Christmas are not about beating up your conscience and shaming you for not wanting to be in God’s house.  Yet, Old Adam is completely wrong.  You don’t have to.  You get to!The joy to the world is that Christ the Savior is born!  But that birth is not locked away in a “once upon a time” fairy tale, nor in a scholarly history volume in some ancient library.  It is a glorious fact, whose blessed benefits God continually delivers to you.  To celebrate that birth, we are extremely blessed with multiple opportunities to come with all the faithful and receive His saving gifts of Word and Sacrament.  Forgiven and nourished by the Newborn King, we are privileged to respond in prayer and praise.Your Jesus is indeed the One once tucked in the lowly manger.  But He is also the One who grew to rescue and redeem you through his death and resurrection, freeing you from the sins that grieve you.  Yes, even the sins of being tired of worship, and despising – not wanting to hear God’s Word.  And now He is the One in the swaddling cloths of Communion linens, feeding you His holy Body and Blood for forgiveness, life, and salvation.  What a wonderful twelve days these are, when we have so many opportunities to get to “gladly hear and learn” His Word!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Softly from His lowly manger  Jesus calls  One and all,  “You are safe from danger.Children, from the sins that grieve you  You are freed; All you need  I will surely give you.”(LSB 360:5)-Pastor Richard Heinz is pastor at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Lowell, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.The Lutheran Reader’s Bible helps you develop a habit of devotion and Bible reading so you can slowly but intentionally understand and grow in God’s Word. Through introductions to the sixty-six books of the Bible, guided reading plans, and more, this Bible builds your confidence to study Scripture on your own.

January 3, 2024 Today's Reading: Titus 3:4-7Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 63:1-14; Luke 2:21-40But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit. (Titus 3:4-5)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Merry Tenth Day of Christmas!Merry Baptism!You see what God does here?  He’s connecting the events of Jesus’ birth and your rebirth by water and the Word.  This passage from Titus 3 is typically heard in our Divine Services at Christmas, with the amazingly great Good News that “our God and Savior appeared” in the flesh.  Conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary, Christ is our God and Savior who appeared in the flesh and saved us.But here we go again, all this talk of death, at a time we should be celebrating the birth of The Baby. right?!  Why does death keep breaking into our celebration of Jesus’ birth?  God answers: “For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.” (Titus 3:3)  Your broken and corrupt human nature is soiled with sin, and “the wages of sin is death.” (Romans 6:23)  Being slaves to our passions and pleasures, we needed a holy and righteous Savior to suffer, die, and rise again.  Christ Jesus was born in order to die (and rise!) for you.  Thus, Christmas and its Twelve Day celebration are full of death and life, birth, rebirth, and resurrection.The birth of Jesus publicly began His work of salvation.  Later, He victoriously cried out, “It is finished,” completing that work for you at the cross.  Now, the forgiveness and salvation that He already purchased and won is delivered to you in Baptism.  You and I don’t have works done in righteousness that could ever earn any salvation.  We have no perfection like the Christ Child.  We desperately needed the very work He did: “But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit.” (Titus 3:4-5)So you see, Jesus' death is  the connecting link between His birth and your (re-)birth – “the washing of regeneration and renewal.”  He did this – for you – to join you to Him through the miracle and happy gift of Baptism.  So Baptism and Christmas aren’t such an unusual pair after all.  Merry Baptism!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Water, blood, and Spirit crying   By their witness testifyingTo the One whose death defying   Life has come, with life for all.Spirit, water, blood entreating,  Working faith and its completingIn the One whose death-defeating  Life has come, with life for all.  (LSB 597:1,5)-Pastor Richard Heinz is pastor at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Lowell, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

January 2, 2024 Today's Reading: Isaiah 61:10-62:3Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 62:1-12; Luke 2:1-20I will greatly rejoice in the Lord;  my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation;  he has covered me with the robe of righteousness (Isaiah 61:10)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Merry Ninth Day of Christmas!Did you receive a new dress, sweater, or even a new coat for Christmas? My Grandma and Grandpa usually gifted each of us eight grandchildren with some new clothes every year at our celebration on Christmas Eve.  When we were little and only wanted toys, these weren’t the most popular gifts, but as we matured and grew older we enjoyed them.There are times when we might not think of Baptism as the best gift.  Moments of Old Adam selfishly and shamefully saying, “I’d rather have toys.”  “I’d rather have all the fun promised by temptations that surround me.”  Your sinful flesh teams up with the devil and the world, trying to sway you from appreciating the good gifts with which the Lord covers you with His righteousness.But God is the Giver of every good and perfect gift.  He used the hands and voice of your pastor to baptize you into Christ and clothe you with Christ.  “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” (Galatians 3:27)  You have been clothed with Christ!  Jesus IS the robe of righteousness given to you at Baptism, covering you with His salvation.  And in those moments of unappreciation of His gifts, the Holy Spirit is bringing you to repentance, calling, gathering, enlightening, and sanctifying you.  He keeps you under that blessed covering of Christ – the garments of salvation – robe of righteousness – Jesus Himself!Holy Baptism is a gift that is a once-in-a-lifetime experience.  You don’t need to be baptized more than once.  It remains.  So once you have put on Christ and been clothed with Him, you can always rejoice.  WIth the simple gift of water in and with the Word of God’s name, He claims you and covers you.  The Holy Spirit keeps you in that one true faith given at your Baptism, and you just can’t help but rejoice and exult!The new sweater you got from Grandma; the college sweatshirt from Mom and Dad; even the HT gear you got yourself – they are all great!  But infinitely greater is the gift that in Baptism, you have put on Christ, and were clothed with salvation and covered with righteousness!I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.In Baptism we now put on Christ –  Our shame is fully covered  WIth All that He once sacrificed  And freely for us suffered.For here the flood of His own blood  Now makes us holy, right, and good   Before our heav’nly Father.  (LSB 596:4)-Pastor Richard Heinz is pastor at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Lowell, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

January 1, 2024 Today's Reading: Luke 2:21Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 61:1-11; Luke 1:57-80And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb. (Luke 2:21)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  Merry Eighth Day of Christmas!It’s still Christmas.  Why all this talk of blood?   The Twelve Days of Christmas have several festivals for martyrs, reminding us of bloodshed in the Church.  And now, we hear about bloodshed from our Lord.  But not in the typical way we speak of it.Jesus shed His blood for you!  Sure, you say, over 30 years after He was born.  Yes. That is true.  But there is even more to ponder and treasure up in your heart.  At the tender age of one week, Joseph and the Blessed Virgin had her Child circumcised.  He was keeping the Law – and shedding His blood in order to keep that Law.  He was not keeping it for Himself.  He did not bleed for Himself.  He did it all for you.  And as He suffered that brief moment, there was a foreshadowing of how someday He would suffer and bleed and die for all.  Stop and think about that.  Even as a baby, Jesus Christ keeps the Law for you, doing all that is required.  And even as a baby, Jesus Christ sheds His blood for you.  He takes it all upon Himself to redeem you, having His body permanently marked, to witness God’s covenant with His Church.This was also the moment when He received His name—the most holy Name – the Name which is above every name. Jesus!  The Lord saves!  Imagine: every time they called out His Name, a mini-sermon was preached – “The Lord saves!”He has come to you at your Baptism, where He brought you forgiveness, rescue, and the promise of eternal salvation.  There, you were permanently marked as His own, witnessing God’s covenant with His Church.  There you too were marked with His most holy Name.  Christ christened you as a Christian!  Bathed in the cleansing water and blood from His pierced side, you were given your personal name and placed into Jesus!It’s Christmas still.  Why all this talk of blood?  On this Eighth Day of Christmas we are merry as we remember that God is not demanding our own blood be shed to pay for our sins, but that “Jesus shed His blood for me,” the chief of sinners.  He spent His entire life on earth, and now in eternity, fulfilling His most holy name: The Lord saves!  Jesus!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Chief of sinners though I be,  Jesus shed His blood for me,  Died that I might live on high,Lives that I might never die   As the branch is to the vine,  I am His and He is mine.(LSB 611:1)-Pastor Richard Heinz is pastor at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Lowell, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 31, 2023   Today's Reading: Luke 2:22-40Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 60:1-22; Luke 1:39-56My eyes have seen your salvation (Luke 2:30)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Out of the crowds in the Temple courts that day, Simeon comes forward and scoops up Baby Jesus in his arms. Simeon recognizes the mysterious truth that this Child is not just “holy to the Lord” – this Child IS the Lord!That precious truth changes everything for Simeon. You see, this man had been promised by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before He had seen life. He would behold the Savior before He departed in peace, into Paradise to dwell with the Lord. As Mary and Joseph walk through the Temple courts, God reveals to Simeon that this is the One! This Baby is the Savior – the Redeemer – the Holy One of Israel!That is when Simeon breaks into song, praising God and declaring that he can now die a happy man, since he has seen the Savior and witnessed God keeping His great promise. He is saying, “You can take me now, God. I’ve seen it all! I knew You would keep Your promise, and now it is complete! I’m ready, Lord – come and get me, for I am made holy to the Lord!”You are holy to the Lord. St. Simeon recognizes that this is a wonderful, comforting Gospel! Try as he might, the devil cannot snatch you out of the Father’s hand. Our dear, loving God is preserving you with the  holy life, sacrificial death, and glorious resurrection of the Holy One of Israel.You belong to the Lord. At Baptism, the Savior cleansed you, body and soul, and made you holy,  claiming you as His own. God presented you to Himself, and gathered you into His family and kingdom. “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.” You were filled with sin as a baby inside your mother. You belonged to sin and death. But God changed all that. He brought you into His presence with His Word, as it was proclaimed to your expecting mother. Then, more fully and clearly, He publicly displayed that you belong to the Lord as He baptized you.You belong to the Lord. No matter what hardships you face, no matter what sufferings you endure, no matter how tough life seems, you have the sweet comfort that you are not left alone; Christ the Savior is born, and you are His! He does not abandon you to the darkness of this world, but is the “Light to lighten the Gentiles and the glory of [God’s] people, Israel.” In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, our Maker and Redeemer, You wonderfully created us and in the incarnation of Your Son yet more wondrously restored our human nature. Grant that we may ever be alive in Him who made Himself to be like us; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. -Pastor Richard Heinz is pastor at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Lowell, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 30, 2023   Today's Reading: Introit for Christmas 1Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 58:1-59:3, 14-21; Luke 1:26-38The LORD reigns ; he is robed in majesty;The LORD is robed; He has put on strength as His belt. (Psalm 93:1, from the Introit for the 1st Sunday after Christmas)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Merry Sixth Day of Christmas!In Leicester, England, a church displays a beautiful statue of the Christ Child, on His mother’s lap.  The Child Jesus is robed in beautiful, luxurious, dignified Eucharistic vestments – alb, stole, and chasuble, and with a gold crown on His head.  The Baby had every right as King David’s royal descendent to wear such gorgeous and stately garments, yet never owned costly, royal robes.  He is the King of kings and Lord of lords, who should definitely wear the most amazing crown ever crafted, but the Son of Mary was humble and poor, and did not display His rank and authority by what He wore.  Yet the sculptor is taking you beyond the “swaddling cloths” in the Bethlehem manger. He is teaching through that image that even if unnoticed or unknown, “The LORD is robed.” At the Fall in the Garden, Adam and Eve first knew that they were naked.  They had been robed with majesty and holiness as the crown of creation.  Now they  were exposed for the broken and corrupt, sinful creatures they now were.  Nakedness was no longer an innocent and beautiful adornment of perfect beings, but a blunt reminder of evil and flaws within and without.When you were born, you physically entered this world in the broken nakedness of our first parents.  “[You] were brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did [your] mother conceive [you]” (Psalm 51:5.)  But at Baptism, the Lord used the hands and voice of your pastor to bring you forgiveness, rescue, and salvation.  That washing of rebirth and renewal did something miraculous, that can be described in terms of clothing.  “Let your priests be clothed with righteousness, and let your saints shout for joy” (Psalm 132:9.)  You, the members of Christ’s kingdom of baptized priests, have been clothed with Christ!  “You have been clothed with the robe of Christ’s righteousness that covers all your sin.  So shall you stand before the judgment seat of Christ to receive the inheritance prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” (LSB, p. 271)Jesus covers you in His righteousness, making you look just like Him!  You might not see the robes or crown with your eyes, but He has covered you with Himself in Baptism, robing you as His royal priests, serving Him in thanksgiving for the faith and salvation that our Newborn King gives. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Savior, Child of Mary,  Who felt our human woe;  O Savior, King of glory, Who dost our weakness know:  Bring us at length we pray  To the bright courts of heaven,And to the endless day.  (LSB 359:4)-Pastor Richard Heinz is pastor at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Lowell, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 29, 2023   Today's Reading: Luther's Catechism , 2nd Commandment Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 55:1-13; Luke 1:1-25You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God.What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we do not curse, swear, use satanic arts, lie, or deceive by His name, but call upon it in every trouble, pray, praise, and give thanks. (Luther’s Small Catechism; Second Commandment & Meaning)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Merry Fifth Day of Christmas!St. Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, called upon the name of the Lord, as he walked to vespers on this date in 1170.  He felt the trouble becoming greater.  Several knights had entered the cathedral and demanded that he come with them and give an account to the king for his actions.  (His actions denied that the earthly king is ruler of Christ’s Church.)  He respectfully refused to be bullied.  Now these knights stormed back into the halls of the Cathedral at Canterbury and confronted St. Thomas. (SPOILER ALERT: More death during these Twelve Days of Christmas!)These had been rough years for the Archbishop who once was a good friend of the king.  But since holding this office, Thomas had held God in the highest regard, and refused to be pushed around.  He went about his work, serving Christ and His Church.He lived a life of praying, praising, and giving thanks, preaching and teaching others to do the same.He was forced into exile for a while, leaving the country so that he would not be jailed or executed for standing up to King Henry II.  He returned, even while still dangerous.  But he would not back down.  Christ is Lord of the Church and King of kings.  Thomas had called on the name of the Lord in good times – times of peace and harmony – and in times of trouble.  You do the same.  You have times of prayer and meditation – spending time with God’s Word and pondering it, both when life is full of good things and also when it has hardships and challenges.Keeping the second commandment is also about truthfully proclaiming and teaching God’s Word.  St. Thomas did that, even when pressured and threatened by rulers and soldiers.  You do that too.  Sure, you don’t have a thug in armor, whacking at your skull with his sword.  But in the face of non-Christian  classmates who make life rough, teachers who criticize your faith, and other challenges, you remain steadfast in speaking the truth of God’s Word.  In faith, you properly use God’s name.  Thanks be to God. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord Jesus Christ, You deigned to dwell  Among us here on earth  As God with us, Emmanuel,  To bring His holy birth,  Though rich, You willingly became  One with our poverty,That we might share Your wealth and name  For all eternity! (LSB 362:4)-Pastor Richard Heinz is pastor at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Lowell, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 28, 2023   Today's Reading: Matthew 2:13-18Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 52:13-54:10; Matthew 2:13-23“A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be comforted, because they are no more.” (Matthew 2:18)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Merry Fourth Day of Christmas!“The Boy who lived.”  In the Harry Potter novels, that is a phrase that refers to Harry.  No one could withstand the evil Voldemort, and his murderous rampage.  That is, until Harry.  Harry’s mother gave her life defending her one-year-old son, and when the murdering curse was cast, the baby miraculously survived. Harry was then placed into hiding by people who cared about him, so he could survive and one day help others.As the story goes on, the reader discovers that this all had to take place, so that Harry could in fact, one day lay down his own life in love and courage for the protection of others, and then return to life.  Sound familiar?  St. Matthew proclaims the real “Boy who lived.”  While King Herod orders the murder of all toddler and baby boys near Bethlehem, God sends an angel to warn St. Joseph to smuggle the Blessed Virgin and her Son to safety.  God’s plan would not be fulfilled had the Christ Child been killed in this way.  The fullness of time would come later, after living perfectly and going to Jerusalem to lay down His life as the Lamb of God on the altar of the cross.Today the Church recalls the infant martyrs who were slain by Herod’s evil plan, but takes comfort in our loving and merciful Lord who gathered those little ones into His arms in paradise.  Enduring such horrors, their mothers would be hard pressed to find any comfort.  The true “Boy who lived” is no ordinary boy, but the God who created us all.  He is the One victorious over death and the devil, and can give peace and comfort that surpasses understanding.  Rachel refused to be comforted, because sin, death, and the devil had not yet been fully conquered.  But the Christ Child grew and at the fullness of time, laid down His life for us all.  At the cross, the death of these Holy Innocents lost its comfortless horror and grief.  Jesus’ own death and resurrection bring the holy comfort that heals and soothes their mothers, and the whole Church.  In His saving and life-giving work, we can share in the joy and bliss that the Holy Innocents have already been experiencing since the moment they departed this life, and were embraced by their Lord.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty God, the martyred innocents of Bethlehem showed forth Your praise not by speaking but by dying.  Put to death in us all that is in conflict with Your will that our lives may bear witness to the faith we profess with our lips; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. -Pastor Richard Heinz is pastor at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Lowell, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 27, 2023   Today's Reading: John 21:20-25Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 51:17-52:12; Matthew 2:1-12This is the disciple who is bearing witness about these things, and who has written these things, and we know that his testimony is true. (John 21:24)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  Merry Third Day of Christmas!Happy Feast of St. John!  John is one of the Twelve.  Apostle.  Evangelist.  The one bearing witness about these things.  Or as he originally said it in Greek, the one martyring about these things.  To be a martyr is to be a witness.  Normally we use that word to talk about those who bore witness to Christ by being killed for Christ and the faith that He has given.  It is said that St. John is the only apostle who died a natural death; Jesus spared him the violence of being physically martyred.  And yet, his life and ministry for the decades that followed Jesus’ resurrection and ascension were full of a witness through John’s preaching and celebrating of Christ’s sacraments. The world is full of darkness.  And not just the darkness at this time of year, with later sunrises and earlier sunsets.  Sin, death, and the devil are always trying to surround us and fill us with cold and darkness, doubts and fears, to keep us away from Jesus.  The Beloved Disciple witnesses Christ to us, and reflects the Light of the World (John 8.)  Jesus scatters the darkness, radiating His Gospel light, and the darkness has not overcome it (John 1:5.)Christ cast the bright beams of His light by forming John and the other apostles in faith, proclaiming His Law and His life-giving Gospel.  And they, in turn, witnessed.  Martyred.  They reflected the bright beams of Christ’s light to all who heard His Word in their preaching and writing.Daily, the devil tries pulling you back into the darkness, overwhelming you so you feel alone and cut off from the Light of the World.  Like St. John in his elderly years, after the other apostles had all been martyred, you might even feel like you alone are left, and you’re surrounded by those who are against Christ.  But Jesus has rescued you and given you new birth from above (John 3), claiming you as His own.  You are not alone.  Jesus has sent the Comforter and has overcome the world for you (John 16.)Jesus has overcome any hurt, heartache, overwhelm, and  darkness.  And He gives His saving Gospel to you through St. John (and the other prophets, apostles, and evangelists that He inspired.) Through the witness of St. John and these men moved by the Holy Spirit, Christ gives light to you and the world. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Merciful Lord, cast the bright beams of Your light upon Your Church that we, being instructed by the doctrine of Your blessed apostle and evangelist John, may come to the light of everlasting life; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy SPirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. -Pastor Richard Heinz is pastor at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Lowell, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 26, 2023   Today's Reading: Matthew 23:34-39Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 49:22-26; 50:4-51:8, 12-16; Matthew 1:18-25For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’” (Matthew 23:39)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Merry Second Day of Christmas!  Today is the Feast of St. Stephen, the first martyr after Jesus’ resurrection, stoned to death for preaching Christ crucified.  Wait. What?  Christmas is a time to talk about birth.  Babies.  New life.  What’s this about death?  “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.” Jerusalem would not see Jesus after He prophesied this until Palm Sunday, when He triumphantly entered the city as the Son of David, the King, coming for His enthronement on the cross.  “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”  Even when some saw Him, like many Pharisees, Sadducees, and others, they refused to join in this cry of faith.“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”  At the moment of Stephen’s death, he saw the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God, and while the crowd surrounding Stephen to murder him would not exclaim the praise, Stephen could see the One who comes in the name of the Lord, ready to receive him into paradise.  As this cruel and painful end crushed him, Stephen had a peace beyond understanding, as Christ Jesus gathered him to our heavenly Father.“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”  We get a glimpse of Stephen’s heavenly vision as we gather around Christ’s altar week after week.  Singing both “Holy! Holy! Holy!” with the angels around God’s throne, and this quotation from the Psalms with the children of Jerusalem and the Church in every age, we feast upon the true body of Christ and drink His true blood.“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”  Some day, when the Lord has brought our days to His perfect completion, He will gather us to Himself and bless us with this vision given to Stephen, seeing our Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.  The bloodshed and hardships of this world will be over, and we will have joy that is merrier than any Christmas we have known.  The One who has come in the name of the Lord to nourish, forgive, give life and salvation, will bring it to perfect completion at the Last Day – as He comes – for you.  “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.” In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Praise for the first of martyrs   Who saw You ready stand  To help in time of torment,To plead at God’s right hand  Like You, our suff’ring Savior  His enemies he blessed,With “Lord, receive my spirit,”  His faith, by death, confessed. (LSB 517:7)-Pastor Richard Heinz is pastor at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Lowell, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 25, 2023   Today's Reading: John 1.1-14Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 49:1-18; Matthew 1:1-17And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son  from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:14)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. “Christmas just doesn't work out for me. Never has.”  That is the punch-you-in-the-gut moment as you get to know Billy, the sad, impoverished child picked up by the Polar Express.  He is dressed in a tattered night shirt, and comes from an old, run down house “on the wrong side of the tracks.” Christmas has not been a time of plenty, but of continued need.  Still, there is a problem.Billy has a hard time trusting anyone, as tough as life has been.  Throughout the story, he is welcomed and befriended by two other children.  And in the end, the conductor artistically punches words into the passengers’ tickets.  Billy’s has the words: “COUNT ON.”  He is encouraged to count on others, to count on his new friends, to count on Santa, to count on Christmas working out for him.Christmas is indeed a time to “count on,” but not in the simplistic, earthly sense of counting on friends, family, or others. Christmas is the great festival of the Incarnation and Nativity of Our Lord!  God-in-the-flesh has come and there is no one more perfect, loving, and holy to “count on.”Today you worship God Incarnate and then go about your daily life in the true Christmas Spirit.  That is, the Holy Spirit, who has called you to faith and delivered the Gospel and Sacraments of the Word Made Flesh.  It is not you who have the ability to count on God; it is the loving and merciful gift of the Lord that He sends His Spirit to give you faith—the gift of “counting on” Him alone. The Holy Spirit is the One who is giving you joy over Jesus’ birth; God becoming Man for you!Merry Christmas, you dear, forgiven saints!  Merry Christmas, as you celebrate in the gift of faith, counting on Christ Jesus, who is delivered to you in His Gifts of Word and Sacrament!  His Holy Spirit brings you to believe and understand the most profound words about Christmas, which are not even from Luke 2, "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us."  Yes, Joy to the world!  The Lord is come!" And He will continue to come in His Word and His Sacraments, until He gathers you to Himself in eternity!  THAT is an amazing Christmas gift that you can “count on” and “believe!”  Merry Christmas!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, grant that the birth of Your only-begotten Son in the flesh may set us free from the bondage of sin; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.  -Pastor Richard Heinz is pastor at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Lowell, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 24, 2023   Today's Reading: Luke 2.1-20Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 44:21-45:13, 20-25; Revelation 12:1-17For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.  And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger. (Luke 2:11-12)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Where do we find Him?  The shepherds are tremendously blessed that the Gospel proclaimed by the angel and sung by the heavenly host did not simply tell them what had happened, but where.  Sure, the King of kings and Lord of lords is omnipresent.  He’s everywhere.  But He had just come right then, for them–and for you!  Christ the Lord had come in the flesh, and located Himself, for our salvation.People around us are looking for some sort of “good news” about Christmas in many places; movies, Christmas cookies, trees and decorations, a break from school, time with family, and more.  Even in the Church, you can get side tracked, and focus on the Christmas carols, the children’s Christmas program, decorating the church, sharing a feast with family, and just loving each other.  These are all good things.  They are all gifts from God.  And yet, they are not the heart of the angel’s message that brings the “good news of great joy.”The best way to celebrate this holy day IS to gather with family, sing, eat, and receive a gift. However, not in the way most people would think of that.  The Lord has blessed you to celebrate this holy night, gifting you to know where to find Him.  He still is everywhere, but He still locates Himself for you.  Christ the Lord still comes in the flesh, and locates Himself for your salvation.  Where do we find Him?  Tonight, He is no longer a newborn baby in Bethlehem, as precious and dear as that image is to us.  He is not swaddled and sleeping in heavenly peace.  You don’t even have the challenge of coming up with airfare to Israel and making your way to the incense-filled grotto in the Church of the Nativity. Tonight is not only for the shepherds to find Jesus. Tonight you also find the baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.  You do this as you sing with the angels, hear His Gospel proclaimed by your pastor, and kneel at the altar where the body of Christ the Lord is wrapped in the swaddling cloths of Holy Communion linens.  What good news of great joy that Jesus Himself is placed on the manger of your tongue.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“The manger held the God of life,  Who came to swallow sin and strife.Christ, let my tongue Thy manger be,That I may swallow life in Thee.”In Bethlehem, the House of Bread, a hymn by Chad L. Bird-Pastor Richard Heinz is pastor at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, Lowell, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 23, 2023  Today's Reading: Introit for Advent 4Daily Lectionary:Isaiah 43:25-44:20; Revelations 11:1-19In them he has set a tent for the sun, which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy. (Psalm 19:5)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. The words of Psalm 19, are a proclamation that the very creation, created by the living and active Word of God testifies to His glory and handiwork. God’s Word does not fall flat. It accomplishes what it says it will do. We find comfort, and delight in this, knowing that when God says something, it is as good as done.The word made flesh, Christ the bridegroom comes to us, not as a strong man, but as a lowly baby. The Christ child, the Word made flesh, submits Himself under the perfect law of the Lord. The Christ child, who would not live the life of a royal king, or be known as a strong man, is known as Jesus, the one who we put to death on the cross. It is in this weakness, that God Himself, bearing our sin is condemned under the law and receives our punishment.  That being hung on the cross, dying, before the heavens and all creation it would be as the Psalmist says, “Shower, O heavens, from above, and let the clouds rain down righteousness; let the earth open, that salvation and righteousness may bear fruit.” It is in this weakness that God Himself works salvation for the whole world.It is in Christ crucified for you that the heavens declare the glory of God. It is in Christ crucified for you, that all creation proclaims the handiwork of the Lord. This crucified and risen Jesus, who came to you as a lowly baby is the one who declares you innocent, and blameless. In Jesus you are acceptable to God. The Gospel of Christ crucified, is the message that Christ commanded His church to proclaim to all parts of the world. The message that Jesus, the Son of God is the one who through the preaching of the word, and the giving of the Sacraments by your pastor, the eyes of the sinner might be opened, and salvation and righteousness would bear fruit. The Word that became flesh and dwelt among us, will come again in glory. Until that day, we rejoice that the bridegroom has emerged and will emerge again to be with His bride.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord Jesus, You are the Sun of righteousness with healing in His wings. Enlighten our darkened understanding by Your Holy Word. Enkindle our hearts and mold our will to walk in faith, love, and hope unto all pleasing. Let the light of Your Gospel shine on the nations that sit in darkness, and preserve Your Church to the day of Your coming. Amen. (Book of devotion: the Psalms” pg. 29)-Vicar Justin Chester is vicar at Shepherd of the City in Fort Wayne, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 22, 2023   Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 43:1-24; Revelations 9:13--10:11Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. (Isaiah 43:19)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Israelites in exile endured each day, and longed for when God would deliver them. God did not abandon them, or leave them without His Word. He sent men like Isaiah to remind them that God had not forgotten His promises to deliver them. God had not forgotten them, and He would be the one who would redeem them, bring them back home, and be their Savior. We long for our suffering to end. That our struggle against our sinful flesh and its desires would cease. That the groaning of all creation would be silenced. Your God has heard your groaning, and has answered you. As we endure each day of our earthly lives in our fragile flesh, we go about each day not despairing as the world does, but full of hope and joy for what is to come. God has redeemed His creation. His Son Jesus, is the Savior of the world. In Him the one whom they have pierced flows rivers of life giving water, and blood for His chosen people to drink.You were baptized into this life giving water, and receive the body of Christ to eat and His blood to drink. You are strengthened by this life-giving meal. Getting up each day and remember that in your Baptism you do not simply struggle against the world and your sinful flesh as a poor miserable sinner, but as a baptized redeemed child of God. These promises are for you, and all believers in Christ. Behold God has done a new thing in Christ Jesus, not just for Abraham’s offspring, but for the whole world. In Christ your longing for home is ended, because in Christ you are redeemed, and declared a witness of the resurrection.  In Christ you may have peace that there is a place prepared for you, and whether in death or on the day He returns God has received you as His beloved child and welcomed you into His kingdom. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.You sit in splendid glory, enthroned at God’s right hand, Upholding earth and heaven by forces You command. We know that You will come as our Judge that final day, So help Your servants You have redeemed by blood, we pray; May we with saints be numbered where praises never end, In glory everlasting. Amen, O Lord, amen! (LSB 941:4)-Vicar Justin Chester is vicar at Shepherd of the City in Fort Wayne, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 21, 2023   Today's Reading: John 20.24-29Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 42:1-25; Revelations 9:1-12but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. (John 20:30)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Thomas was faithful to his Lord in the end. Now, doubting Thomas really isn’t the best construction to put on him. So let’s call him “reassured” Thomas. Thomas wasn’t there that night when Jesus appeared to His disciples. Thomas wanted to believe his brother disciples, but dead men don’t rise.Eight days later. Thomas was now with them, longing to be reassured by the disciples' account. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.”” These eleven disciples, despite ten of them having seen Jesus, are still hiding behind locked doors. Their fear, Thomas’ doubt and need for bodily reassurance are present in this locked room. Despite this, Jesus came to them, He stood among them and absolved them and said, “Peace be with you”.It’s not all about Thomas. It’s not about the faith of the eleven. It’s all about Jesus. Jesus who was crucified in front of them, bled and died in front of them. Who rose and appeared to them. This Jesus who’s chosen twelve betrayed, and deserted Him, are absolved. Just as He came to them and pointed to the marks that He is Christ the crucified and risen Lord, He comes to you. He comes to you through your pastor and when you confess your doubts, your fears, and your failures, you hear just what Thomas and the ten heard. “Peace be with you.” “Your sins are forgiven.” Not only that, but He gives you His body to eat and His blood to drink under the simple means of bread and wine. All this He gives, just as these words were written down, “so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” Thomas’ faithful proclamation is your proclamation. That by faith and not by sight you have received the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation in Jesus. In Jesus your doubts are reassured, and your fears calmed. Thanks be to God, for His servant Thomas who proclaimed Christ crucified to the nations, to comfort those who doubt, and reassure them that Christ has come and will come again for you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and ever-living God, You strengthened Your apostle Thomas with firm and certain faith in the resurrection of Your Son. Grant us such faith in Jesus Christ, our Lord and our God, that we may never be found wanting in Your sight; through the same Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.-Vicar Justin Chester is vicar at Shepherd of the City in Fort Wayne, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 20, 2023  Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism, 1st commandmentDaily Lectionary:  Isaiah 40:18-41:10; Revelations 8:1-13You shall have no other gods. (Exodus 20:3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  What even is an idol? We’re not exactly making golden calves or selling statues of foreign deities anymore. Dr. Luther is helpful to us in understanding the totality of the first commandment, “Now, I say, that whatever you set your heart on and put your trust in, is truly your God.” (Luther, LC I., BoC, 385)Jesus puts it another way, “You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.” The devil would like nothing more than to put idols in our faces, even more so to put things that don’t look like idols in our lives. The explanation of Dr. Luther rings true. Whatever we fear, love, and trust more than God and His Word is an idol. Whether that’s money, fitness, sports, family, technology, etc. Anything that would pull us away from God and His Word that we find trust in, is an idol.This is the commandment that all others extend from. Our old Adam pushes back against this commandment. Since the fall, we see ourselves as the center of our own universe. Our neighbor, our daily bread that God gives us can all be used as stumbling blocks for our old Adam to latch onto and proclaim as our own doing. Our sinful flesh has no desire to be with God, because sinful man has no place before a holy and righteous God. So we set up gods that are in our own image. Who are approachable, on our terms. These gods all fall by the wayside, and ultimately no security from suffering, no peace in our despair, and no deliverance from death.This holy, jealous, and righteous God is a loving God. Who tells Moses and His people, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.” (Exodus 20:2) God has no desire to see you fall away from Him. God is a loving Father who, from the beginning has proclaimed life through His Word. This same Father through the Word incarnate Jesus Christ, His Son does what no false god can. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and endures the pains and trials of this world. The Son of God bears your sin, your false hopes in false gods, and crushes any idea of security that this world or idol could prop up. God’s love, His freedom from sin, death, and the devil are yours in His Son. You shall have no other God’s because there are no other gods. God Himself came down in human flesh for you, suffered and died for you, rose again and ascended into heaven for you. Your heart and mind is free to love and trust in Him, knowing that all things are done in Christ Jesus.God, the holy, jealous, loving, and gracious God who reigns over all things, and caring for you and all creation until He will come again on the last day for you. Come Lord Jesus.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O come, O come, Thou Lord of might, Who to Thy tribes on Sinai's height In ancient times didst give the Law In cloud and majesty and awe. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to thee, O Israel! (LSB 357:3)-Vicar Justin Chester is vicar at Shepherd of the City in Fort Wayne, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 19, 2023  Today's Reading: 1 Thessalonians 5.16-24Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 40:1-17; Revelations 7:1-17Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Thessalonians 5:23)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. That’s right, Paul is talking about Advent, the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Although he’s referring to the second Advent the whole church prayerfully waits for. Yes that’s right, just as God’s people of old sought the first Advent of God’s Messiah, His anointed one, who God has long promised would come and redeem His people. This was not just a redemption, and return from an earthly exile. Although God would certainly deliver Israel home in time. This was a redemption with eternal consequences.But we know that story. The Advent of the Messiah who was born in Bethlehem, not as a king in a palace, but the Messiah, the Son of God, the one who came to redeem you. To end your exile of wandering in slavery to sin, and death, and to know God’s love for you in the wounds of His crucified Messiah, Jesus. Only these wounds are not found in the arms of a dead man, but the wounds of your crucified, dead, and risen Savior. Who came for you, died for you, and conquered death for you. In Jesus, the God of peace sanctifies you completely. It’s all His gift, given to you through faith by the simple means of the water of your Baptism, and nourishing you weak after weak with His life giving body and blood that He gives you to eat and to drink. He does this without any merit or worthiness in you, purely out of His fatherly divine mercy, that just as His people of old wait for Him, you too may wait for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, assured of the promises of the God of Israel, the God of the church, and the God who will come and bring you out of the great tribulation, and into the life to come. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“Comfort, Comfort ye My people, Speak ye peace,” thus saith our God; “Comfort those who sit in darkness, Mourning ‘neath their sorrows’ load. Speak ye to Jerusalem Of the peace that waits for them; Tell her that her sins I cover And her warfare now is over.” (LSB 347:1) -Vicar Justin Chester is vicar at Shepherd of the City in Fort Wayne, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 18, 2023  Today's Reading: Isaiah 61.1-4, 8-11Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 34:1-2, 8-35:10; Revelations 6:1-17I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. (Isaiah 61:10)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Word given to Isaiah to proclaim to those returning from exile is truly comforting. “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor…” (Isaiah 61:1). These are the same words that Jesus reads in the synagogue of His hometown of Nazareth. Jesus proclaims that these words given to God’s people of Israel through the prophet Isaiah “has been fulfilled in your hearing.” (Luke 4:17)This good news, of God fulfilling His promises, to comfort and restore the poor, the broken hearted, the captives and those who are bound, is proclaimed to you by the one God has sent out to care for His offspring. Your pastor proclaims God’s Word and administers the Sacraments to you because that is God has promised to be for you. You don’t have to look in the world for God to reveal His comfort, or means of salvation. He tells you plainly where He can be found. While the world does not accept Jesus, and even His hometown rejects Him as the fulfillment of the words of Isaiah He is there in His Word and simple means of bread and wine, and water. Desiring nothing but the broken and those trapped in their sins to come and hear this good news.In this Jesus who was crucified, died and buried, your sins are covered with His blood and laid in the tomb never to emerge again. It is the crucified and risen Jesus who God has fulfilled these words of Isaiah and all of His promises to His people. In your Baptism God has clothed you with the garments of salvation, and covered you with the robe of righteousness. You and all believers are Christ’s bride, the church. Who are united to Christ Jesus your bridegroom, who takes you His bride and adorns you with jewels to present you to His Father as His most precious treasure.Take comfort in these words, you are united to Christ’s death and resurrection. Your sins are forgiven, all the stressors and pains of this world cannot take you away or exile you from the love of God for you in Christ Jesus. Come Lord Jesus, where the bride groom will join His bride and live together in righteousness with praise and thanksgiving forever.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Mine is the sin, but Thine the righteousness; Mine is the guilt, but Thine the cleansing blood; Here is my robe, my refuge, and my peace; Thy blood, Thy righteousness, O Lord my God.“ (LSB 631:5)-Vicar Justin Chester is vicar at Shepherd of the City in Fort Wayne, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 17, 2023  Today's Reading: John 1.6-8, 19-28Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 33:1-24; Revelations 5:1-14He [John] was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light. (John 1:8)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. John the apostle gets right to work with John the Baptist in our reading today. There’s no annunciation by an angel, no mute Zechariah, no leaping in Elizabeth’s womb. John the prophet, the preacher, sent from God to proclaim His Word to His people.The people of Israel, God’s chosen people certainly must have felt God had forgotten them. Like they had lost their identity. Stumbling from empire to empire, wondering when God will be the God of His promises, the God who had delivered them in the past. When will He deliver them now?We can relate to this. Often our daily lives have similar stresses, similar identity crises. When a parent or loved one becomes sick or hurt beyond recovery. When the to do list seems to never end and school work, house work, your job just continues to pile on overwhelmingly. When we see tragedies, and disasters happen at home and around the world. We feel lost, and often wonder “Where is God?”, “Has He forgotten me?”.Beloved child of God, your Father in heaven has not forgotten you, just as He had not forgotten His chosen people Israel. Maybe it has been awhile since you have been in church, heard His Word. Received His gifts. Know that your Pastor, or the Pastor in your community is delighted to give them to you. Just like John the Baptist, He is not the Light, but He bears witness about the Light. Even more so your pastor is given to you by God Himself to give you Jesus. Who is the Light of the world, the Christ, the one promised and foretold by Isaiah and all of Scripture who is the fulfillment of God’s promises for you.  Who on the cross gave His Body and poured out His Blood for you, as the very lamb who was slain. To cover your sin, to cover your suffering, and brokenness. So you know that you do not walk alone through the challenges of this life. Your identity is not given legitimacy by this world, that is always changing. No, your identity is yours in Christ who has washed you and united you in the waters of your Baptism, and united you to Himself in His body, and blood that you are given to eat and to drink. That is your strength, your assurance, that the one who will come whose sandal strap John the Baptist is not fit to untie”. Is the one who has come, is with you now, and will come again. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord Jesus Christ, we implore You to hear our prayers and to lighten the darkness of our hearts by Your gracious visitation; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Vicar Justin Chester is vicar at Shepherd of the City in Fort Wayne, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 16, 2023  Today's Reading: Introit for Advent 3Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 32:1-20; Revelations 4:1-11Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved!In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It’s easier for me to imagine the saving face of God that saves us as something brighter than the sun.  Transfigurations are always appealing, even to those who know better than to try to build tabernacles on mountains.  The Good Shepherd, enthroned upon the cherubim that guarded the Ark of the Covenant seems to demand awe and wonder.  But if the cherubim guarded the real presence of God in His true glory, wouldn’t they circle the cross where God-made-man came down to die?   The hour for the Son of Man to be glorified left Him with no throne but a cross.  The radiance of the transfiguration gave way to streaks of blood and sweat.  But this is how we are saved.  Don’t look up the mountain for a glowing God of might.  Look to the cross for the dying God of mercy.  Here, we are restored.  Here, we are saved.  Here, all of your sins are atoned for, and you are given a shepherd that leads you through death to life again, not one who calls to you from the other side of the veil.  In fear and in danger, we want the face of the transfiguration, but God gives us the face of the cross, crowned with thorns instead.  And it’s a gift.  Peter, confronted with a shouting sky and a glowing God, only realized what he was not, and fell down in terror.  A centurion saw the same God die and realized what happened.  Pray the psalms for mercy, not power, and God doesn’t ever seem so far away, because we finally start to measure Him in the things that actually work to answer our prayers.  Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Jesus, author of salvation, Shared in our humanity; Crowned with radiant exaltation, Now He shares His victory! From His face Shines the grace Meant for all our fallen race. (LSB 462:3)-Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 15, 2023  Today's Reading: Revelations 3:1-22Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 30:27-31:9; Revelations. 3:1-22And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: ‘The words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. ‘I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead.” (Revelation 3:1)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. From the whitewashed tombs of the Pharisees to the tax collectors and sinners in the Kingdom, the heavenly band isn’t what we’d expect.  And it leaves us plenty of opportunities to turn that on to each other.  There’s too much conflict in church.  Especially considering that this applies to ourselves more than it does anyone else.  This isn’t just a warning not to trust anything too polished, to question authority, and to roll your eyes at anyone who says “we’ve always done it this way”.  If you’ll allow it, it’s a chance to reflect upon the secret things that are killing you from the inside out that you hide from everyone else.  They’re not actually measured in the battles you lose against vice, nearly so often as they are the things you don’t want to call wrong in the first place.  The things you excuse yourself from, but are still too uncomfortable to talk about among the sanctified, because you tell yourself they’re just not enlightened enough to understand.  We hide the things that are killing us because what else do you do with the things you can’t get rid of and you’re not even sure you want to?  John has instructions to the walking-dead-inside.  Remember. Keep. Repent. Remember what you received. Past tense. Already, before you quit the vice you won’t call a vice. You are already free from it. It’s drowned in the font. You received it in Baptism.  Keep it.  That means realize it’s valuable enough to keep you.  Treasure it.  This isn’t a battle for self control you lose. It’s an identity already won on a cross for you.  It’s worth clinging to because it’s at least honest, even if it’s every bit as confusing.  This is who you are. Dead to sin. Alive to God.  It’s called repentance.  You live a life of repentance every day. You live a life of Baptism every day. Not marked in improvement, but in death. Every day you call sin what it is, even if you can’t get away from it. Every day you hear God’s promises.  Every day you’re turned back towards the one who forgave you because that Baptism you treasure is worth more than the vices you hoard.  Repentance isn’t what you quit. It isn’t how sorry you are about what you’ve done. It isn’t about a promise to quit you’re not sure you can keep.  It’s what brings the dead inside back to life.  It’s a Spirit carried hand toward the cross that swallows up what you bury and a promise that you’re already joined to the same empty tomb that Jesus burst free from. No matter how you feel inside. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Amen. -Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 14, 2023  Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism, Sacrament of the Altar, question 4Daily Lectionary:Isaiah 30:15-26; Revelations 2:1-29Who receives this sacrament worthily?  Fasting and bodily preparation are certainly fine outward training. But that person is truly worthy and well prepared who has faith in these words: “Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.” But anyone who does not believe these words or doubts them is unworthy and unprepared, for the words “for you” require all hearts to believe.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Our churches make a big deal about Communion.  We don’t let just anyone come.  We believe it is exactly what Scripture says that it is. We believe that it can do great good if received correctly, and great harm if received incorrectly.  Paul talked about someone dying.  He seemed against it. We agree. The problem is, the devil loves an opportunity to call someone unworthy.  The evil foe will say you’re unworthy because of the porn you watch. Because you cut yourself. Because you struggle not to hate your parents. Being a sinner doesn’t make you unworthy of Communion.  Communion is only for sinners. If you’re not a sinner, don’t drink from the cup that promises forgiveness.  It’s not a meal for former sinners who kicked the habit. It’s not a meal paid for with promises to do better next time.  It’s a meal for the unworthy, and everything is flipped on its head.  For everything you’re too ashamed to admit to everyone kneeling beside you, Jesus only promises forgiveness.  Every week (cool practice, huh?).  Fasting and bodily preparation turn into something new.  They don’t earn your place.  They simply become fine outward training.  A meal that forgives everything you want to be rid of helps us to realize life would actually be better without it.  So we fight against our sinful flesh. We fast. We prepare for the supper. And when we come starving and sinning anyway, we’re met by the same promise.  Take drink, this is the blood of Jesus, shed for you for the forgiveness of all your sins.  We still practice closed Communion.  Not because we want less people to receive this great gift.  But because we want to be sure that everyone who does is helped by it.  So the answer to “may I take communion” is never a no. Just sometimes a not yet.  We teach the faith all hearts must believe. We point to just how much is given here.  The Holy Spirit works in the hearts of those who hear it.  And the church is fed.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Unworthy though I am, O Savior, Because I have a sinful heart, Yet Thou Thy lamb wilt banish never, For Thou my faithful shepherd art: Lord, may Thy body and Thy blood Be for my soul the highest good! (LSB 618:3)-Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 13, 2023 Today's Reading: Revelations 1:1-20Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 29:15-30:14; Revelations 1:1-20John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne. (Revelation 1:4)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The more exciting you try to make the book of Revelation, the more boring you make the church.  The more boring you allow Revelation to continue to be, the more glorious church appears.  We go looking in the book of revelation for wild stuff we don’t see.  Like sword-mouth-Jesus.  Sword-mouth-Jesus is definitely less boring than your pastor.  Except they preach the same thing.  Jesus died and rose again. He holds the keys to death.  But John saw a vision from heaven. With trumpets.  Visions from heaven with trumpets are definitely less boring than the Bible reading in church that goes on just a little too long.  Except the vision directed John to share it with the churches in a book. Like a Bible.  That is trustworthy and speaks of Jesus for sinners. The gift of Revelation is that the more boring you allow it to be, the grander church appears because for all the incredible language describing heavenly visions; all that stuff shows up in your church.  The letter of Revelation was written to fledgling churches struggling with doubt and despair, false doctrine and gross sin.  Jesus is there in Word and Sacrament to forgive, to comfort, to save those who don’t deserve it.  He calls us out of foolishness and into eternal life. You receive those very gifts every Sunday. Your pastor preaches to you. He gives you the body and blood of Jesus. He ties you to the alpha and the omega in a way that transcends space and time as you are united with the marriage feast of the lamb in His kingdom which has no end.  When Revelation needs to be more than that, it always makes church feel like less, and worse, you can never actually find it no matter how many signs you see in the news.  When Revelation is a book pointing to Jesus, going to church where Jesus is just gets even more impressive.  I imagine sword-mouth-Jesus looks cool, but the body and blood on your altar aren’t just something to imagine.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.A mighty fortress is our God, A trusty shield and weapon; He helps us free from ev'ry need That hath us now o'ertaken. The old evil foe Now means deadly woe; Deep guile and great might Are his dread arms in fight; On earth is not his equal. (LSB 656:1)-Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 12, 2023 Today's Reading: 2 Peter 3.8-14Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 29:1-14; Jude 1-25The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.  The heavens will pass away with a roar.  The earth and the works done on it will be exposed.  So be diligent to be found by Him without spot or blemish, and at peace.  And until that last word, it’s all a threat.  Hey everyone, Jesus is gonna show up when nobody expects Him, set everything you love on fire, and expose everything you’ve ever kept secret.  But be at peace when it happens. This is fine. Because the timing matters.  The last day isn’t a trap. He doesn’t delay so that more people will be lost, but out of a desire that more would be saved.  It isn’t time yet because there’s more preaching to do. More forgiving sinners to do.  More hope to receive.  Jesus isn’t waiting for the right time to pull your shame out into the open so more people can see it. He already did that. He bore it on the cross.  Every evil deed. Everything you’d have nobody see. All of it hung on Jesus as He bore your sins.  None of it comes back down from there. You are forgiven.  You are baptized.  Blameless, and without spot or blemish.  So wait that way.  Baptized.  The promise of the last day should make you feel better, not worse. It’s a harbinger of peace, not anxiety.  Jesus will Advent, one last time, and then we can be rescued from the darkness that feels so overwhelming. We can stop counting the days we wish we could forget. They’ll be burned up.  And we’ll be taken through death and unto the same resurrection that we saw in our Lord. The last day isn’t one we can predict. But we don’t need to run from it. We pray for it. Come, Lord Jesus. But even while we wait, we can be at peace, because we have the very things we need to sustain us until the last. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.He comes the broken heart to bind, The bleeding soul to cure, And with the treasures of His grace To enrich the humble poor. (LSB 349:3)-Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 11, 2023 Today's Reading: Isaiah 40.1-11Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 24:14--25:12; 1 John 2:15-29The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the LORD blows on it; surely the people are grass. (Isaiah 40:7)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. I actually prefer the fake Christmas trees to the real ones.  It’s not the mess or the cost. It’s actually Isaiah. “All flesh is grass. The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the LORD blows on it. Surely the people are grass.” There’s something that hits a little too close about putting a dying tree in your living room as we celebrate the birth of Him who saves us from death.  It’s great that the Savior was born…but the grass still withers. The tree still dies. It’s the thing nobody wants to think about this time of year, so just to make sure nobody thinks too hard about it, what if we took the dying tree…and put lights on it.   So much of what celebrations this time of year turn into are hiding from problems nobody can fix. So much of what we look to for comfort is just trying to cover up what’s wrong.  Because what else do you actually say? What shall I cry? It’s the question that drove Isaiah to wail before the Lord.  What do you say to the grass withering in the field to make it green again? What do you say to someone that’s lost everything? And the deeper question, just hinted at, “Wasn’t it Your breath, Lord, that did this to them? Isaiah would have rather preached to a people who didn’t need comfort, but only the sick need the doctor.  The Lord spoke and said to Isaiah, “Tell my people that her warfare has ended, her iniquity is pardoned”  Yes, your sin is real, but every sin is forgiven.  You don’t have to double down on it because there’s no other choice.  Your mistakes, your rebellion, your sin is pardoned, forgiven, forgotten.  Covered by the blood of Him who died for you.  All that well deserved God’s anger was addressed there, for you. You don’t have to dress it up as something else like lights on a dying tree. You don’t have to look for comfort in hiding from what’s wrong.  You don’t have to be afraid. Our Lord confronts the death of withering grass and dares us to see the truth about comfort. Comfort is not measured in the lack of bad things, but in the presence of good.  So God advents. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Yea, her sins our God will pardon, Blotting out each dark misdeed; All that well deserved His anger He no more will see or heed. She hath suffered many_a day, Now her griefs have passed away; God will change her pining sadness Into ever-springing gladness. (LSB 347:2)-Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 10, 2023 Today's Reading: Mark 1.1-8Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 26:20-27:13; 1 John 4:1-21John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. (Mark 1:4)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ starts with John, not Jesus. No Christmas joy. No angel choir. No kids in bathrobes pretending to be shepherds.  A preacher preaching repentance and baptizing for the forgiveness of sins.  It might be better.  The good news of Jesus Christ begins with the Word being given to sinners for repentance and the forgiveness of sins.  It’s a reminder of how God advents today.  He is where the Word is preached. Where the Sacraments are administered.  This is how He is with us always, even to the end of the age.  Advent is a God who shows up.  The Gospel of Jesus Christ doesn’t start without Him.  He is being given to those who need Him.  Your church works that way too.  Jesus isn’t at a manger we journeyed to, met by our best efforts and gifts and well rehearsed lines someone else made you memorize.  He’s preached to sinners in the wilderness.  When you look around your sanctuary, your home, your life, and Jesus feels far, when the people the book says listen to are weird, and when the season feels a little off like it does some years, God advents. The Word-made-flesh is preached. Your sins are forgiven. Mark skips the pleasantries and sometimes it’s good to be reminded we have permission to do it too.  There are weeks that are too heavy for small talk. The bad ones where the guilt piles up.  Where the things said and done since last Sunday still haunt you.  Those are not the weeks for Christmas pageants and small talk after about how big the kids are getting.  So you can go to church and you hear your pastor dispense with pleasantries. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Your Baptism.  You confess your sins.  He forgives you in Jesus’ stead.  You can look around and it might still feel off, but God advents there. Shows up. To meet you in the wilderness of your worst week. To forgive. To save. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Stir up our hearts, O Lord, to make ready the way of Your only-begotten Son, that by His coming we may be enabled to serve You with pure minds; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. -Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 9, 2023 Today's Reading: Psalm 80:1, 8a, 9b, 7; antiphon: v. 3Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 26:1-19; 1 John 3:1-24Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved! (Psalm 80:3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  God delights in the prayers of His people.  He loves for us to call upon His name.  If we are honest, it seems like we usually pray only when we are in desperate need.  When our backs are against the wall and we are at the end of our rope, we finally find ourselves crying out to God for help.  And you know what?  God delights in the prayers of His people.  Praying to God is faith in action, and the Lord longs for us to put our trust in Him.  That’s exactly what prayer does; it is faith looking to and talking to God.  If you think about it, it’s all a gift.  Faith given, faith in action praying – all given by God.  The Psalms too are a gift from God, for they are a collection of prayers driven by faith calling upon the Lord.  When our prayers are joined to the Psalms, God delights in hearing His Word prayed back to Him. Restore us, O God.  The Hebrew word behind restore is the idea of returning or coming back; it is a prayer of repentance.  Repent me, O God  is the cry of faith.  We often think of repentance as something that begins with us, something we must finally decide to do.  Repentance begins with God; it is a work He begins in us.  In other words, repentance is a God’s gift to you.  We are prone to wander, aren’t we? We often find ourselves on the wrong road either by choice or by deception, we can’t help it.  But our loving and gracious Father will not let us wander off to be lost forever.  He seeks us out, He finds us, He returns us to Himself through his Word and Spirit and thank God He does.  Let your face shine, that we may be saved.  This is where repentance leads us, to Christ, the light of the world.  The light of Christ’s life shone in the darkness when He hung on a Roman cross that you may be saved.  Even when it seemed like His life was extinguished, three days later He radiated in resurrection glory.  Christ must suffer and on the third day be raised that repentance and forgiveness of sins be preached in His name (Luke 24:46).  God delights in your prayers.  He repents you, He forgives you, He saves you, all for the sake of Jesus. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.From the cross Thy wisdom shining  Breaketh forth in conqu’ring might; From the cross forever beameth  All Thy bright redeeming light. (LSB 578:4)- Pastor Darrin Sheek is the Senior Pastor of Prince of Peace Lutheran in Anaheim, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 8, 2023 Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 24:14-25:12; 1 John 2:15-29And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. (1 John 2:17)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Nothing lasts forever.  That’s certainly the way it seems to be in this world we live in.  You purchase a new smartphone and after a year or two, you need a new one.  Your favorite sport’s team is hardly recognizable as players come and go.  This world is not meant to last and our life experience confirms this fact.  So why is it that we continue to buy into all the various promises the world continues to make us?  Let’s face it, we love the world, or at least that’s the temptation.  Who doesn’t want to feel accepted, or to have a more fulfilling life?  Who doesn’t need more happiness? Who doesn’t feel the need to be more in control of their present and future?  We grasp for these things because they give us hope, but the world is passing away along with its empty promises and false hopes.   “Do not love the world or the things of the world,” John writes.  The one behind all those false promises and hopes this world offers is the one who led Adam and Eve to doubt God's promises, Satan himself.  He is still at it trying to lure us away from the only thing that will last forever.  He’s crafty.  He disguises himself in this world knowing those voids in our lives that he tries to fill with fabricated promises and misplaced hopes.  There is only one thing that remains forever; there is only one thing that will endure after everything else has faded away; the Word of the Lord remains forever (1 Peter 1:25).This word that lasts forever is the Gospel that was preached to you. God’s promises He makes to you in Christ endure for you, forever.  The world’s promises are based on lies, and that shouldn’t surprise us since Satan “is a liar and the “father of lies” (John 8:44).  You have been given the Spirit of God to know the truth.  You have been given the gift of faith to trust in the one who will never let you down.  Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, and whoever trusts in Him will live forever.  If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father.  And this is the promise that He made to us – eternal life” (1 John 2:24-25).  This is the will of God for you, to trust His Son, Jesus.  The Word made flesh remains forever.  Jesus’ Gospel promises for you to endure forever, and trusting in that Word, so will you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Lord Jesus Christ, Give us strength to fight the good fight and by faith to overcome all the temptations of Satan, the flesh, and the world so that we may finally receive the salvation of our souls. Amen- Pastor Darrin Sheek is the Senior Pastor of Prince of Peace Lutheran in Anaheim, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 7, 2023 Today's Reading: Sacrament of the Altar, Question 3Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 24:1-13; 1 John 1:1-2:14“…Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” (Matthew 26:27–28)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. What do you see?  A piece of bread, maybe a wafer?  A little wine?  What do you hear?  “This is my body…this is my blood.”  Words spoken through an ordinary voice giving you ordinary bread and wine.  Then comes those words, “for the forgiveness of sins.”  How can this be?  How can eating this bread and drinking this wine do such great things, like forgiving me of my sins?  Those words spoken into your ears over the bread and wine are not just any words, they are Jesus’ words.  The words of Jesus do just what they say.  Luther writes in the Large Catechism, what Christ’s lips say and speak, so it is(LC V 14).  Thank God for faithful pastors who simply speak Jesus’ words for you.  Thank God for pastors who faithfully give you what Jesus has won for you through the shedding of His blood.  Jesus knows what we need, and He continues to provide.  He gives us His church; He gives us pastors; He gives us His Word, and that Word gives what it promises.  Our Lord knows us better than we know ourselves.  He knows we struggle.  He knows we are weak in faith, and that our faith is always under attack.  He knows we are prone to doubt His love and forgiveness for us, especially when we are aware of our shortcomings, our giving into sin.  So Jesus continues to speak the words we need to hear.  He continues to give and strengthen your faith in who He is and what He has done for you.  And the faith Jesus gives believes and clings to His words of promise for you.  Jesus gathers you to Himself and feeds you the fruits of His cross through ordinary bread and wine.  His Word does just what it says.  Whoever believes these words has exactly what they say: forgiveness of sins. (SC Lord’s Supper 3).What do you see?  Don’t trust your eyes but trust your ears.  What do you hear?  Jesus’ words of forgiveness, life, and salvation delivered right into your mouth.  The Lord’s Supper is truly Jesus for you!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Is this for me? I am forgiven and set free! I do believe that I receive His very body and His blood.  O taste and see—the Lord is good. (LSB 629:5)  - Pastor Darrin Sheek is the Senior Pastor of Prince of Peace Lutheran in Anaheim, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 6, 2023 Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 14.1-23; 2 Peter 3.1-18But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen. (2 Peter 3:18) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  Grow in grace and grow in knowledge. These are both gifts from God who wants to have a relationship with you.  It is God’s desire for you to know Him, and He’s done everything for that to happen.  Even after Adam and Eve’s fall into sin, God was determined not to write them or us off. He continued to do everything, to pave the way, to restore that intimate relationship with Him that was lost.  This is what the angels were waiting for. This is what the prophets promised and foretold. This is what John the Baptizer was sent to prepare. This is why God became man; this is why Jesus was born. He was born for you, to bring you back into a loving, secure relationship with God that will stand the test of time and even withstand our sinfulness. It required a sinless life; it required an atoning death, and Jesus’ empty tomb declares He has done it.  That’s the grace of God. The giving of Himself that you might be brought back to Him. That’s the grace we grow in, being connected to a God who has done everything and continues to do everything to keep us connected to Him.  God continues to give Himself to us that we may grow in grace and knowledge of His Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ.  He opens our minds to understand the Scriptures; how the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise again from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name (Luke 24:46).  This is Christian growth – that we grow in our realization of how much we need forgiveness, and we grow in our dependence upon all the ways God delivers His forgiveness to us as a gift all because of Jesus.  We grow in grace knowing we have a gracious God who loves us, who is for us, who comes to us and makes Himself known to us because He desires us to know Him – just as you are.  Faith can’t help but want to come to Him, to know God, to walk with Him and to trust Him daily with our lives.  And yes, even faith is a gift from God – the soil in which we grow in grace and knowledge of our beloved Savior, Jesus.  To Him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.By grace God’s Son, our only Savior, Came down to earth to bear our sin. Was it because of your own merit That Jesus died your soul to win? No, it was grace, and grace alone, That brought Him from His heav’nly throne. (LSB 566:3)- Pastor Darrin Sheek is the Senior Pastor of Prince of Peace Lutheran in Anaheim, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 5, 2023 Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:3-9Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 11:1-12:6; 2 Peter 2:1-22I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus. (1 Corinthians 1:4)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The season of Advent, these days leading up to Christmas, is full of anticipation.  We are invited to wait, as Israel did, for that shoot to spring out from the stump of Jesse (Isaiah 11:1).  Some 800 years after Isaiah penned these words, God made good on His promise to send the one whose belt is righteousness and faithfulness (Isaiah 11:5) and upon whom the Spirit of the Lord rested upon (Isaiah 11:2).  Jesus was born; the Lord has come, and He’s bringing gifts for you.  The Apostle Paul reminds the Christians at Corinth how he is always giving thanks to God because of the “grace that was given you in Christ Jesus” (1 Cor. 1:4).  Paul is beside himself with joyful gratitude when thinking about how gracious and giving God is for us whom he loves.  God doesn’t hold back; He gives it all to you and for you, all because of Jesus.  All of what?  Everything you need to keep you until our Lord Jesus’ second Advent, His second coming.  You are not lacking any gift, Paul writes.  You have all you need in Christ to live these days knowing God has your back. God is faithful!  And while you live these days waiting, trusting, and living daily under God’s grace, God promises to sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 1:8).  Seriously?  What must I do?  Nothing!  That’s why it is called grace.  This is why the coming of Jesus is God’s gift for you and for the world. And like the gifts we are given from those who love us, we simply stretch out our hands to receive them and say, thank you.  That’s what faith does with God’s gifts, it simply receives and says thank you. The Lord has come, and He will come again. Now we wait with our eyes of faith fixed on Jesus who came bearing the gifts of forgiveness and life.  Now we live, with our eyes of faith fixed on Jesus who will come for you, to gather you to Himself, and present you holy and blameless, and completely guiltless – all as a gift for you.  Thanks be to God!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Then when You will come again as the glorious King to reign, I with joy will see Your face, freely ransomed by Your grace. (LSB 352:1)- Pastor Darrin Sheek is the Senior Pastor of Prince of Peace Lutheran in Anaheim, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 4, 2023 Today's Reading: Isaiah 65.1-9Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 10:12-27a, 33-34; 2 Peter 1:1-21I was ready to be sought by those who did not ask for me; I was ready to be found by those who did not seek me. I said, “Here I am, here I am,” to a nation that was not called by my name.” (Isaiah 65:1)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  How long does God have to wait for someone to seek Him out?  He’s ready.  How long does God have to wait for someone to actually find Him?  And, if we find Him, then what?  The truth is we don’t want anything to do with a God who is holy and just.  We certainly don’t want to come to Him and have to answer for ourselves.  Remember how that went for Adam and Eve when they realized they were naked and ashamed?  God comes looking for them, and they bury themselves behind some bushes wrapped in fig leaves.  God came to them, but they wished He hadn’t, and we’ve been hiding from Him ever since.  The Apostle Paul lays out the truth about our hiding from the one true God, None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one. (Romans 3:10-12)  So, if we will never seek after God, no matter how ready He is for us to come, how in the world will we ever be welcomed by Him?  If we can’t cover our shame, as our first parents attempted, how can we ever be fit to be in His presence, let alone walk with Him and live with Him?  God doesn’t wait for us to come to Him, and He certainly doesn’t wait until we’ve cleaned ourselves up. No, God comes to us.  He seeks us out and He finds us by sending His own Son to seek and save the lost.  God comes to you in Jesus and says, “Here am I coming to be born of a woman.  Here I am coming into the city that kills its prophets.  Here I am, arms spread out upon a Roman cross to cover your shame.  Here I am, risen from the dead, just as I said, to give you life with me.  Here I am, coming once again, this time to gather all who have believed in me for life together forever”.God has sought you; He has found you.  His arms are wide open for you.  You are clean, you are forgiven, you belong to Him, and He will never let you go. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Come, Thou long expected Jesus, Born to set Thy people free; From our fears and sins release us; Let us find our rest in Thee.  Israel’s strength and consolation, Hope of all the earth Thou art, Dear desire of every nation, Joy of every longing heart.  (LSB 338:1)- Pastor Darrin Sheek is the Senior Pastor of Prince of Peace Lutheran in Anaheim, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 3, 2023Today's Reading: Mark 11:1-10Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 9:8-10:11; 1 Peter 5:1-14“If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of it…” (Mark 11:3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Today marks the beginning of the season of Advent.  Our journey over the next three weeks will eventually lead us to a manger in the city of David where an angel of the Lord announces, “for you is born this day a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11).  This little baby’s life journey will take Him to a different city, Jerusalem, where He will accomplish His life’s mission, “you will call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).  We need Advent; I need Advent, the coming of God’s Savior to save us, you and me, from our sins.  Jesus knew why He was sent; His purpose was clear, and He willingly gave up all to be born to save us from our sins.  “The Lord has need of it.”  This simple phrase marks the life and mission of Jesus, “the Lord has need of it.” What does the Lord need?  A womb to be conceived in, a manger to be born in, a river to be baptized in, a donkey to ride upon, a cross to die on, a tomb to rise from.  Everything must take place, just as the Lord planned, for you, to save you.    The Lord has need of it. Why?  Because of the simple and plain fact that you and I cannot save ourselves.  We try, don’t we?  We make plans to do better.  We make promises to change our behavior.  When we fail, we can find reasons and excuses to diminish the offense of our sins.  When we have good days we are tempted to think they will somehow cover the bad ones.  Advent reminds us that we cannot save ourselves – no way!  We are imprisoned without any chance of escape. We owe an insurmountable debt that we honestly can never repay.  We need someone to deliver us, to rescue us, to pay the price, to die our death, to bring us back into a loving relationship with God.  Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!  Hosanna, the cry of those who realize they need someone to save them, and the crowd that lined the road into Jerusalem knew the one riding on a donkey had come to do just that. The Lord has need of it.  Advent graciously reminds us of our need for a savior, and then proclaims to us the very Savior we need, Jesus.  The Lord has need of it, your sin, your death, His cross, His tomb.  Jesus is the answer to our hosannas, Lord save us, and He does.  After all, that’s why He came in the first place, for you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Once He came in blessing, all our sins redressing; Came in likeness lowly, Son of God most holy; Bore the cross to save us; Hope and freedom gave us. Amen.  (LSB 333:1)- Pastor Darrin Sheek is the Senior Pastor of Prince of Peace Lutheran in Anaheim, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 2, 2023Today's Reading: Introit For Advent 1: Psalm 25:1-3; antiphon Zechariah 9:9b, altDaily Lectionary: Jeremiah 29:1-19, Matthew 26:36-56Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!Behold, your king is coming to you;  and having salvation is he,humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. (Zechariah 9:9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Tomorrow begins the season of Advent. A season of waiting, preparation, repentance, and hope in Christ who came in the flesh, comes in His Word and Sacraments, and promises to come again. Tomorrow we hear how Jesus fulfills the words of his prophet Zechariah as He rides into Jerusalem amidst palms and praises. Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humbled and mounted on a donkey. Tomorrow we hear the Palm Sunday word ringing in the new church year as Advent begins the same Holy Week begins, with shouts of Hosanna!Hosanna is the perfect word to sing as Advent begins. Hosanna means, “Lord, save us.” Jesus came to do his Hosanna work, to seek and to save the lost. This is what God  has always done. He is the God of Hosanna. The God who saves. When the people of Israel cried out to God in the days of Moses for rescue from slavery in Egypt, God heard their cry of Hosanna, Lord, save us. And he did. God saved them from death by the blood of the Lamb. God saved them from Egypt through the waters of the Red Sea. God saved them by dwelling among them in the cloud and pillar of fire in the tabernacle.In Zechariah’s day, when the people of God, once again, cried out for rescue. They had spent seventy years in Babylon. They were returning from exile. The temple and walls of Jerusalem were rebuilt. Would God save us as he promised? Would God make his advent as he said? Will God hear our Hosannas? Yes, foretold the prophet Zechariah. Behold, your king is coming to you.Centuries later, the king Zechariah foretold finally arrived. God heard the Hosanna cries of his people. God made his Advent in the wood of the manger and the cross.. God became man to be present with and save his people, and to save you.In Advent, Jesus brings his Hosanna to you. He came in the flesh to save you. He comes in His Word, water, body and blood to save you. He promises to come again on the Last Day and save you. In Advent we celebrate and remember Christ’s first Advent in the flesh, confident that because He died and rose again, He will make His Second advent in glory. And until that day, our King Jesus still saves you and promises to be with you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.A humble beast He rides, Yet as a King presides; Though not arrayed in splendor, He makes the grave surrender. Hosanna, praise and glory! Our King, we bow before Thee. (LSB 335:3)-Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

December 1, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 26:1-19, Matthew 26:20-35“Take, eat; this is my body.”  And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. (Matthew 26:26-28)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It’s one thing to make a promise, that’s easy. Plenty of people make promises.  It’s another thing to make a promise and keep it; that’s the hard part. And yet that’s exactly what God does over and over again in His Word. God makes promises and God keeps His promises. Israel was hungry in the wilderness, God promised to feed them, and God sent manna and quail. God warned His people Israel that their sin of idolatry would lead to exile, and yet, He promised that they would return from exile in Babylon, and God kept his promise. God promised Adam and Eve that there would be a child born of the woman who would crush the devil, and He kept that promise by sending Jesus to live, die, and rise for us.One of the ways God makes and keeps his promises is by making a covenant with his people. A covenant is God’s promise to do what He says, to keep His word. When God establishes a covenant with His people He is the one who initiates it, sustains it, and fulfills it. Left on our own, we break promises all the time, just like Israel broke God’s covenant of Sinai over and over again. This is why God makes his covenant with us and He keeps it.This is the way it was for Noah and all creation when God made His covenant never again to flood the earth and put a bow in the sky. And for Abraham when God made His covenant with him that all nations on the earth would be blessed through him. And for David when God made a covenant with him that even though David would die, there would be a ruler who would come from his descendants who would reign forever. Jesus comes as the promise maker and promise keeper all in one. Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection is proof that God keeps His promises. Jesus promised to die and rise on the third day, and He did for you. Jesus promises on the night when He was betrayed that the bread in Holy Communion is His body, and the cup of wine is the blood of His covenant, His promise poured out for you for the forgiveness of sins. No wonder St. Paul says that all of God’s promises are yes in Jesus. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Glory be to Jesus, Who in bitter pains. Poured for me His lifeblood From His sacred veins. Grace and life eternal in that blood I find; Blest be His compassion, Infinitely kind. (LSB 433:1-2)-Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 30, 2023Today's Reading: John 1:35-42aDaily Lectionary: Jeremiah 25:1-18, Matthew 26:1-19The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” (John 1:35-36)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In one sentence, John tells us everything we need to know about Jesus….everything we need to know about our life in Christ as his church, as his children.  John’s confession is what separates Christianity from all the world’s religions. God is “beholdable.” He is approachable, knowable, tangible. Men saw Jesus, heard him, touched him, ate with him. Jesus didn’t live in “never-land" or “once upon a time” or “in a galaxy far, far away.” He was born in the days of Caesar Augustus. Crucified under Pontius Pilate.  John’s confession is remarkable. When John stands in the wilderness and points to Jesus saying, “Behold, the Lamb!” he’s pointing to God in human flesh. God with a human face. God who is truly bone of your bone and flesh of your flesh. Behold, the Lamb of God. In the Scriptures, a Lamb means sacrifice. Sacrifice is God’s way of covering our sin and guilt. Sacrifice is God’s way of taking our death and giving us life in exchange. A substitute. A life for a life. The innocent for the guilty. As John cries out, “Behold, the Lamb!” three OT events come to mind. After the fall, God clothed Adam and Eve’s nakedness and shame. And God did this with animal skins. Seems ordinary enough, but where did those skins come from? That’s right…sacrifice. A substitute. A life for a life. The innocent for the guilty. Then there’s Abraham and Isaac. “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.” And as they hiked up the mountain, Isaac said to Abraham, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” Abraham said, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” And he did. The Lord provided. Finally, we can’t forget the Passover lamb. The Lamb would die. A sacrifice. Substitute. A life for a life. The innocent for the guilty. Guilt covered. Sins forgiven and atoned for. Blood covered the doorpost. And Israel ate the flesh of the Lamb who was slain for them. All of Old Testament history – the tabernacle and temple – all of it is soaked in sacrificial blood. And it is all a blessed reminder of John’s words that Jesus is the Lamb of God whose blood cleanses us from all sin. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lamb of God, pure and holy, Who on the cross didst suffer, Ever patient and lowly, Thyself to scorn didst offer. All sins Thou borest for us, Else had despair reigned o’er us. Have mercy on us, O Jesus! O Jesus! (LSB 434:1)-Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 29, 2023Today's Reading: Luther's Small Catechism: The Sacrament Part 2Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 23:21-40, Matthew 25:31-46What is the benefit of this eating and drinking? These words, “Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins,” show us that in the Sacrament forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation are given us through these words. For where there is forgiveness of sins there is also life and salvation. (Explanation of the Sacrament of the Altar, part 2)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Lord God is the original Iron Chef. From beginning to end, and many places in between, when God serves up his blessings in Holy Scripture, course after course often involves food. When God created the heavens and the earth he gave Adam and Eve access to a fruit and vegetable buffet line, until, of course, they sinfully chose to pick and eat something off the menu. When the people of Israel were in bondage and slavery in Egypt, God provided a holy meal of bitter herbs, unleavened bread, and roasted lamb as the Passover meal. Central at that meal was the lamb who was sacrificed, whose blood covered their doorposts, and who’s life was given to spare the life of Israel, that death would Passover them.When the prophet Elijah was hiding in a cave the Lord sent ravens to feed and nourish and strengthen him for his prophetic task.When the prophet Isaiah was called by God to preach and foretell the coming work of the Messiah, Isaiah dished up a plate of good news. When the Messiah came there would be a feast of rich foods and fine wine and a mountain top where he would destroy death (Isaiah 25).From Genesis to Revelation, God often pairs his blessing and provision with his gifts of daily bread. So it;s no surprise that when we come to the New Testament, God incarnate is also the Top Chef of Salvation, serving up his forgiveness, life, and salvation, alongside food and table. Jesus is well known in the Gospels for eating and drinking with sinners, like Zacceus the tax collector. In Divine Service, our Lord Jesus does the same for us. Today salvation has come to your house! Jesus feeds the crowds on more than one occasion, revealing that he is the Shepherd-Messiah who has come to feed his lost sheep in the abundance of his grace. Many of Jesus’ parables result in or revolve around a feast.All of these food and feast events are like appetizers, leading up to the main course in Matthew 26 on the night when Jesus is betrayed. When Jesus took the bread and said, “Take, eat; this is my body given for you. Take, drink; this is my blood of the new covenant which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.The gifts are in the feast, Gifts far more than we see; Beneath the bread and wine Is food from Calvary. The body and the blood Remove our ev’ry sin; We leave His presence in His peace, renewed again. (LSB 602:5)-Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 28, 2023Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 15:20-28Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 23:1-20, Matthew 25:14-30For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. (1 Corinthians 15:22)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In Today’s reading from 1 Corinthians 15, St. Paul tells us a tale of two Adams. The man Adam, formed by God from the dust of creation. And the God-man, Jesus, the Second Adam, begotten of His Father before all worlds. The first Adam was formed by God into a man. The Second Adam is not only true man, but also true God. In the Garden, Adam was tempted three times and overcome by Satan. In the wilderness, Jesus, the Second Adam, was tempted three times and overcame Satan. The first Adam was tempted to become like God. Jesus, the Second Adam is true God, and became man to be tempted for us as we are tempted, yet without sin. The first Adam was tempted to eat the food that God had not given him to eat. The Second Adam knew that man lived not by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. The first Adam was tempted to forsake the word of God. The Second Adam is the very Word of God who also speaks God’s living word.The first Adam brought death out of life. Jesus, the second and perfect Adam brought life out of death. As Paul writes, “For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.” The first Adam failed. Fell in sin. Died. And in Adam, in our own sinful flesh, so do we. But not Jesus, the Second Adam. Where the first Adam said “yes” to the devil’s lie, Jesus says no, again, again, and again.                            The first Adam was overcome by the tree serpent and the tree of the Garden. Jesus our Second Adam overcomes the devil by the tree of the cross for you.  The first Adam fell and brought us sin and death. Jesus our Second Adam dies and rises to raise us from the dust by His resurrection.The first Adam cast us out of Paradise. Jesus our Second Adam brings us through the wilderness to a new creation: “today you are with me in Paradise.”The first Adam gave us food of the fall by sweat and labor. Jesus, our Second Adam, feeds us with his own life-giving food, the Bread of Life in his body and blood.We confess with St. Paul, that “As in Adam we die, so in Christ, our Second Adam we live.” And we rejoice with St. Paul that we are brothers and heirs of Christ, our Second Adam, who has destroyed the last enemy of death for us and for all creation. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.But Christ the Second Adam, came To bear our sin and woe and shame, To be our life, our light, our way, Our only hope, our only stay. (LSB 562:4)-Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 27, 2023Today's Reading: Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 22:1-23, Matthew 25:1-13For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. (Ezekiel 34:11)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Every now and then, you hear a song on the radio or Spotify and think to yourself, “This song sounds so familiar.” There’s a reason for that. Musicians call it sampling, when you take a bit of an old song and put it in a new song so it reminds you of that old song. The same happens all over God’s Word as well. It’s no accident that Jesus calls himself the Good Shepherd, and looks at the crowds like sheep without a shepherd, and is identified by John as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. This is the New Testament’s way of sampling the Old Testament promises of God. The new song of salvation sounds a lot like the old songs of salvation from the prophets. Ezekiel 34 is one of those memorable chapters in the prophets, full of the promises of God to be the shepherd of his people Israel. God’s people were lost in idolatry, God promised to seek them out and save them. God’s people were scattered in exile, God promised to bring them home and rescue them. God’s people were injured, weak, and hungry, and God promised to bind their wounds, give them his strength, and feed them in rich pastures. In the Old Testament, that’s the refrain of God’s song of salvation: God the Lord is the shepherd of Israel and he alone seeks them out, saves, and rescues them.When we turn the pages of the Scriptures to the New Testament our Lord is playing the same old song but with something new. God the Shepherd has become one of his sheep in his incarnation and has become one with his sheep in our humanity. Jesus is the Good Shepherd of God in human flesh. He came to seek and save us in our lostness. He came to bind up our wounds by his wounds on the cross. He came to rescue us from sin, death, and the devil, by his redemption. He came to feed us with the rich pastures of his word and sacraments.All the promises that the prophets foretold, all the songs of salvation they sang, find their fulfillment and joyful crescendo in Jesus crucified and risen. For Jesus is the Good Shepherd who seeks, saves, rescues, feeds, and forgives you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.The King of love my shepherd is, Whose goodness faileth never; I nothing lack if I am His And He is mine forever. (LSB 709:1)-Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 26, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 25:31-46Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 20:1-18, Matthew 24:29-51Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. (Matthew 25:34)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Some folks read Jesus’ teaching on the Last Day in Matthew 25 like The Hunger Games: “Last one standing is a sheep, and may the odds be ever in your favor!” For many, it’s a day of judgment, doom, and gloom; “everyone, save yourselves.” But that’s not what Jesus teaches about his second coming. When Jesus teaches about the Last Day, there is warning. But, Jesus also preaches good news at his coming.The Son of Man comes, enthroned in glory. All the nations are gathered and he’s separating people one from another. Sheep to the honorable right; goats to the dishonorable left.This is the eternal Sorting Hat. Notice, works are mentioned after the separation. The sheep and goats are not separated on the basis of what they did or didn’t do but who they are. The sheep are the righteous. Jesus’ righteousness was reckoned, imputed to them. Sin covered in the blood of the Lamb. They hear the words, “Come, you who are blessed by Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you before the foundations of the world.” Pure gift. Jesus’ inheritance is yours because He dies and leaves you with everything. The sheep are astonished: “Lord, when did we see you hungry, thirsty, naked or imprisoned?” “As you did these things for the least of these my brothers you did it to me.” A blessed befuddlement: Jesus is hidden in the lowly losers. The sheep aren’t busy counting good works because they know they have the Good Shepherd who laid down his life for them.The goats are surprised too, but for different reasons. They’re as ignorant of their sin as the sheep were of their good works. “Lord, when did we see you?” They’re outraged. “If only we had known it was you, Jesus.” Goats are busy counting their works, like a social media influencer counting followers. The goats are for the goats..So, what are you? Sheep or goat? In Adam, we’re all natural born goats. Naked, caught with our fig leaves down. Starving, thirsting, sick with sin and prisoners of death. The mirror of the Law only reveals a stinking, stubborn goat. But in Christ Crucified you are a righteous sheep, made woolly white by Jesus’ blood. By water, word, and the Spirit, you are Jesus’ little lamb. Hear the Good Shepherd’s voice: ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.My Savior paid the debt I owe And for my sin was smitten; Within the Book of Life I know My name has now been written. I will not doubt, for I am free, And Satan cannot threaten me; There is no condemnation! (LSB 508:5)-Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 25, 2023Today's Reading: Introit for Pentecost 26: Psalm 39:4-5, 7-8, 12a; antiphon 2 Peter 3:13Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 11:1-23, Matthew 24:1-28In keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth,the home of righteousness. (2 Peter 3:13)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The end of the world is going to happen and Christian’s and non-Christians believe it.  We love to stream shows depicting a zombie apocalypse.  The world hears warnings of financial collapse or global warming,- burning our world up.  It seems that we can all agree that this world will come to an end. But how? Peter assures us that the Day of the Lord will Come; in the Lord’s time, with destruction for the ungodly, but salvation for the faithful.Do we have the same attitude toward the end as the rest of the world? No! Every week we get to say that Christ will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead (Nicene Creed) – it could be any moment.  The good news is that Peter says: “the Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” In Jesus and His forgiveness you are ready, you are prepared, let us pray come Lord Jesus, come quickly. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Zion hears the watchmen singing,  And all her heart with joy is springing;  She wakes, she rises from her gloom.  For her Lord comes down all-glorious,  The strong in grace, in truth victorious;  Her star is ris'n, her light is come.  Now come, Thou Blessed One,  Lord Jesus, God's own Son,  Hail! Hosanna!  We enter all   The wedding hall  To eat the Supper at Thy call.  (LSB 516:2)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 24, 2023Today's Reading: James 5:7-11Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 8:18-9:12, Matthew 23:13-39Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until it gets the early and late rains. (James 5:7)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The church year is almost over and we are moving to where we hear about the end times.  That’s what James is reminding us today.  I’m not a farmer, but I have grown plants. There can be a long time in between planting and the harvest when you don’t see much of anything. There needs to be the right amount of rainfall, sun and time for the crop to mature for harvesting. The farmer needs to be patient. But in the end, he knows the harvest is coming.James is telling us Christians that Jesus will return. Hold on. Hang on. Just be patient. Our Lord is coming. You have his word on it.“Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord.” When the Lord comes He will judge the living and the dead.  When the Judge comes in, what will he find?  Will there be fruit or a dried up plant?Take heart.  Jesus is the sower of the seed who has planted His cross for the life of the world.  His cross is the vine in which you are the branches and by His precious blood He bears all good and righteous fruit in you.  The harvest is coming, be patient, the sower of the seed has cared for you His dear creation. In Him you have life, you have fruit, you are part of His good and gracious harvest. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Savior, rend the heavens wide;  Come down, come down with mighty stride; Unlock the gates, the doors break down;  Unbar the way to heaven’s crown.  (LSB 355:1)

November 23, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 7:1-29, Matthew 23:1-12And she said to Elijah, “What have you against me, O man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to remembrance and to cause the death of my son!”  (1 Kings 17:1-24)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Coloring books are all over the place these days. In Christianity those color books are about happy events in the Bible.  I think we should have color pages for people like Elijah.  We could have pages and pages that we could consider in the life of Elijah.  How would you color Elijah’s struggles? How would you struggle with the boy on his deathbed? What Elijah faced was a long, arduous journey through the valley of the shadow of death.  It seems as if there was no room for light, color or beauty.  Elijah’s pictures might be at best gray, but mostly black and void.We too walk in the valley of the shadow of death wearing the vale of tears we face.  However, we trudge through the valley of the shadow of Jesus’s death. We walk with the veil of tears with the promise.   Even in the darkest moments of despair, pain, and loss there is beauty and even color.  At the deathbed of a young boy, there is the beauty of prayers being heard and resurrection given.  The cold, gray, pale shades of death, are colored back in with the reviving life and color on his face as the boy was alive again.   There is beauty and color for us in Jesus’ death and resurrection.  As we look at  our own lives under the cross there really is beauty in the resurrection of all flesh, the color and vivid life of the new heavens and the new earth, the new creation. Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Open now thy gates of beauty,  Zion, let me enter there,  Where my soul in joyful duty  Waits for Him who answers prayer. Oh, how blessèd is this place, Filled with solace, light and grace!  (LSB 901:1)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

 November 22, 2023Today's Reading: Luther's Small Catechism: The Sacrament Part 1Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 5:1-19, Matthew 22:23-46It is the true body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, under the bread and wine, for us Christians to eat and to drink, instituted by Christ Himself.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Hungry?  Sure, you’ve all been there. If you don’t eat, you get “hangry”, weak and will eventually die.  God takes care of you daily by giving physical food and drink.  In the same way He feeds you in this Christian faith.  He gives you forgiveness, life, and salvation. Are you hungry for forgiveness because of your guilt? Are you weakened and troubled by your sins? Then come and eat! Go to the altar and receive the gift of God’s forgiveness. There you are filled with Christ’s forgiveness that heals your soul and will bring wholeness to your body. Just like physical food strengthens you, so too the Eucharist is given to strengthen you in faith toward God and in fervent love toward one another. So come to the altar and be assured of God’s love for you. He loved you so much that he gave his only Son for you, that you would not perish but have eternal life.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord Jesus Christ, life-giving Bread,  May I in grace possess You.  Let me with holy food be fed,  In hunger I address You.   Prepare me well for You, O Lord,  And, humbly by my prayer implored,  Give me Your grace and mercy.  (LSB 625:1)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 21, 2023Today's Reading: 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 3:6-4:2, Matthew 22:1-22But concerning the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need that I should write to you. (1 Thessalonians 5:1)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. During this time of year we are coming to the close of another church year. Between this time and the season of Advent, we hear an awful lot about the return of Jesus: the last day, the day of judgment. So many and Christianity want to know when that will happen. So many Christians are terrified by that day, and left in our sins we should be terrified!   So many in Christianity today like to act like they know when it’s going to happen because of signs and seasons all around us. Paul’s words today in 1 Thessalonians 5 show us how we should anticipate Jesus’ return. Holy Scripture is silent, we don’t know when it’s gonna happen.  Pray it happens, but don’t fret about it.  The Lord’s final verdict for you in Jesus is “not guilty”.  In Christ you are perfect, and without blemish or stain of sin. That is who you are now in your Baptism, and that is who you are, when the Lord returns to judge the living and the dead.  We don’t know when this last day will happen, but we should fervently pray for it to happen sooner than later. On that day, the Lord will return to bring us to that place where there is no darkness, no sin, no death. In Christ, we will see him face-to-face, and live in the light of his glory forever and ever, come Lord Jesus come quickly!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.The One whom angels tended comes near, a child, to serve; thus God, the judge offended, bears all our sins deserve. The guilty need not cower, for God has reconciled  through his redemptive power all those who trust this child.  (LSB 337:2)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 20, 2023Today's Reading: Zephaniah 1:7-16Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 1:1-19, Matthew 21:23-46 Be silent before the Sovereign Lord, for the day of the Lord is near. The Lord has prepared a sacrifice; he has consecrated those he has invited.  (Zephaniah. 1:7)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Imagine if your pastor started his sermon with “Be quiet!” It would get your attention.  This is how Zephaniah speaks in today's reading. Zephaniah tells the people of God to be quiet, in other words, “Hush up, you’re in the presence of the Lord.” Thanks be to God?What Zephaniah says is meant to strike fear in the hearts of God’s people. The day of our Lord's return is nearer today than it was yesterday.  We do not know when it will happen and this time of year we are shaken up by the reminder of his return.  This shaking up is a reminder to repent, confess your sins.  Where is the Gospel in all of this?  It’s all about Jesus!  Jesus, is the one who is returning to judge the living and dead.  But remember Jesus is the one who takes the judgment promised by Zephaniah onto himself. He is judged with your sins in our place on Good Friday.  The day of the Lord’s return can be scary stuff!  In Christ, however, it becomes good news for you and we pray for His return as soon as possible.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.The night will soon be ending; the dawn cannot be far.  Let songs of praise ascending now greet the Morning Star!  All you whom darkness frightens with guilt or grief or pain,  God’s radiant Star now brightens and bids you sing again.  (LSB 337:1)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 19, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 25:14-30Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 34:1-12, Matthew 21:1-22His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’  (Matthew 25:21)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We can easily get bogged down by these parables to see who we are in the reading.  These parables are all about what Jesus is doing for you!  Let them be all about Jesus and His work for you!  Jesus is the good and faithful servant. Christ Jesus was entrusted with God’s Word.  He is the only one who perfectly kept the Commandments of God.  The Father entrusted the salvation of the world with a single life, His very own Son.  Jesus lived that life without fault, in perfection, in true faithfulness to His heavenly Father, for you!  In turn the Father says to Christ Jesus, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.” You are forgiven in Jesus’ righteousness because of that the Father likewise says to you, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.”His faithfulness spills over to us in your love and generosity to others in need. Jesus does all the work, by faith you get all the credit, pray that the lord would work His love and generosity in and through you for the benefit of your neighbor. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and ever-living God, You have given exceedingly great and precious promises to those who trust in You. Dispel from us the works of darkness and grant us to live in the light of Your Son, Jesus Christ, that our faith may never be found wanting; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  (Prayer for Pentecost 25)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 18, 2023Today's Reading: Introit to Pentecost 25: Psalm 143:2, 5-6, 10-11; antiphon Psalm 143:1Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 32:28-52, Matthew 20:17-34Hear my prayer, O Lord; give ear to my pleas for mercy!  In your faithfulness answer me, in your righteousness!  (Psalm 143:1)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. David was betrayed. There were those who ran after him to take his life. One of those who wanted him dead was his own son Absalom.  David’s very life was in danger, he felt crushed into the ground.  We have betrayed ourselves in our sins.  Not only have we betrayed ourselves but we are also being pursued by enemies of death, the devil, a fallen, wicked world. This is why we pray Psalm 143 and our Lord answers your prayer with His mighty deliverance. Rather than running away Jesus is betrayed in your place.  He lets our sins hunt Him down for our sake.   He is hunted, beaten down, crushed, crucified, and died for you!  He is risen and now Jesus pursues you through the valley of the shadow of death.  He does not pursue you with betrayal or death.  He pursues you with goodness and mercy all the days of your life.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.From depths of woe I cry to Thee,  In trial and tribulation;  Bend down Thy gracious ear to me, Lord, hear my supplication.  If Thou rememb’rest ev’ry sin,   Who then could heaven ever win  Or stand before Thy presence?  (LSB 607:q)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 17, 2023Today's Reading: Ezekiel 36:22-28Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 31:30-32:27, Matthew 20:1-16And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. (Ezekiel 37:27)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Sin loves to eat at us. Even if it's not bugging you all the time, you still find yourself bothered at times. You just can't get over it! If it wasn’t bad enough looking at your sinful heart, we also hear that sin is a beast ready to pounce and consume you (Genesis 4:7). 6 The LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? 7 If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it.”  Our sin and the devil are actively working to rule us and we have no problem with it.It's all a matter of what your All-knowing and Almighty God says about it. It's the part we don't want to think about. While no one else may know except you, there is someone who always knows: your God.  He sees no life, no color, no blood pulsing from your heart of stone.  We are dead in our sins.  Ezekiel was not only consoling Israel who were brought into their own land, but he was foretelling of the new covenant God has given to us. The name of God, the Word of God is made flesh and dwelt among us.  As the Word made flesh is crucified for you, blood and water burst forth from His side to cleanse you. That's why Ezekiel connects the name of God, with God washing us clean and giving us a new heart.  Daily as we live out our Baptism we are reminded that we are part of the family of God.  Stony hearts are ripped out and new hearts of flesh are given to us. And your hearts are alive, full of color and live, hearts that are now the temple of God. In Baptism your veins now pulse with the blood of Christ in you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Sin, disturb my soul no longer: I am baptized into Christ! I have comfort even stronger: Jesus’ cleansing sacrifice.  Should a guilty conscience seize me, since my baptism did release me In a dear forgiving flood, sprinkling me with Jesus’ blood?  (LSB 594:2)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 16, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 31:1-29, Matthew 19:16-30The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. (Deuteronomy 31:8)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. “The Lord be with you” is a statement you often hear your pastor say.  This is not a simple greeting, it is a blessing and consolation, of the promised presence of the Lord Jesus with you. Moses was 120 years old, he was told he would not be able to enter into the promised land. Now things are handed off to Joshua, to continue the Lord’s promise of the land they would inherit.  Surely there was fear, confusion, and uncertainty. We face life each day with the same things before us. Each, and every time we gather for Divine Service we are constantly reminded of the great blessing that the Lord is with you. He is with you, as the prayer of the day is being prayed in the congregation.  He promises to hear our prayers. He is with you as He prepares a table before you in the presence of your enemies in the Eucharist. He is with you as He sends you out the doors of the church with his heavenly benediction, and blessing for you.  Be sure to catch that the next time you’re in the Divine Service where the pastor says the “Lord be with you.” It is key, it is intentional and it is Jesus’ promise said through your pastor.  No matter what we face in life do not be discouraged, do not be afraid, Jesus is with you promising you the everlasting inheritance that is laid before you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.In these last days of sore distress  grant us, dear Lord, true steadfastnessthat pure we keep, till life is spent,  your holy Word and sacrament. (LSB 585:2)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 15, 2023Today's Reading: Luther's Small Catechism: The Office of the KeysDaily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 30:1-20,  Matthew 19:1-15but before the pastor we should confess only those sins which we know and feel in our hearts.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When you go to a doctor, maybe you have a small issue that bothers you. Maybe it’s a larger issue that you can’t handle.  You’ve tried to give yourself a remedy but nothing works. The doctor enters privately, examines you and gives you a path forward for healing.  What is said and shown to the doctor remains with the doctor.  This is how you should view your pastor with private confession.  Luther calls the pastor the “soul physician”.  In private confession Jesus is doing the forgiving when pastors forgive the sins of the people given into their spiritual care. Jesus says “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven” (Matthew 16:19).  Unlike a doctor, the pastor’s medicine always works because Jesus is always the medicine you need.  Go to your pastor just like you go to your doctor.  Confess your sins as the self inflicted wounds that need help and healing.  Just like others wound you and a doctor heals those wounds, absolution heals the wounds done against you.  Jesus will take all sins away, even the ones done against you because by His cross, His death brings life and the medicine of immortality to you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.For your Son has suffered for me  Giv’n Himself to rescue me   Died to save and restore meReconciled and set me free  Jesus’ cross alone can vanquish These dark fears and soothe this anguish(LSB 608:3)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 14, 2023Today's Reading: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 29:1-29, Matthew 18:21-35In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Death is very confusing.  It’s really confusing for those outside of the church. For a non Christian, a funeral is pure grieving, pure loss, pure hopelessness, because death is only seen as permanent separation. And this is the approach the Thessalonians were drifting into when it came to death as well. Even as Christians we are not immune from the sting and confusion of death. Those of us who have had loved ones pass away do not hear from them anymore, do not see them anymore, do not find encouragement from them anymore. At death, they are removed from us and they seem to be completely gone. This was and is the assumption of those without the encouragement of God’s promises.But because of Jesus we do not lose hope or insight to the future.  Death for Christians is not a permanent loss, it is nothing more than sleep!  What a joy!  We placed our loved ones in the cemetery, the place of sleeping.  We have a great hope when it comes to facing the death of those who fall asleep in Christ! Indeed, if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, then in the same way we also believe that God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep through Jesus. Jesus’ death and resurrection have an intimate connection to the believer’s life. Because Jesus paid for all of our sins and served as the first-fruits of the resurrection, we know that those who have fallen asleep in the Lord will be awakened from their death-slumber on the last day. God will bring those who have fallen asleep to himself. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Awake, my heart, with gladness– see what today is done!  Now, after gloom and sadness, comes forth the glorious sun.  My Savior there was laid  where our bed must be made  when to the realms of light  our spirit wings its flight.  (LSB 461:1)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 13, 2023Today's Reading: Amos 5:18-24Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 28:1-22, Matthew 18:1-20But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream! (Amos 5:24)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Justice is a big buzzword in our society today. Our world says we must have justice for whatever we are passionate about. Many Christians today  emphasize the Christian faith needs to be all about justice for everybody else.  Justice is why the church exists today. But what does that justice and righteousness look like?  Amos’ message is harsh, it bites, it thrusts the Law of God’s sword into our hearts. We do not love God, or our neighbor, as ourselves. We, like the people of Amos’ time, have given God cheap lip service. We have felt that we have offered proper worship to Him and that we have done well in His sight. This leads us to ignore the needs of mercy and forgiveness that our neighbors desperately need from you.  Confess your sins, confess you don’t know what you’re doing before God, or that you can know true justice and righteousness on your own.  But also give thanks to God through our Lord Jesus Christ. God’s justice and His righteousness flow out of the pierced side of Jesus for your forgiveness. Strengthened and washed by the blood of Jesus, you now receive God’s undeserved justice and righteousness. As Christ now lives in you, you know justice, you know  true righteousness, you know, true love, and mercy for your neighbor, in need all because of Jesus.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Today Your mercy calls us To wash away our sin. However great our trespass, Whatever we have been,However long from mercy Our hearts have turned away, Your precious blood can wash us And make us clean today.  (LSB 915:1)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 12, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 25:1-13Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 27:1-26, Matthew 17:14-27The foolish ones said to the wise, “Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.”  (Matthew 25:8)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Some read this parable and say “Do you have enough oil?”  Or in other words, “Do you have enough faith?” That’s the question so many want to ask today in Christianity. No way, that is not how Christianity works. Faith is a gift, given wholly and freely to you by God the Holy Spirit! You did not choose this, rather Christ has chosen you! And your faith is always kept for you by God!  God in his unconditional love goes to great lengths to protect our faith. Faith can die, we can walk away. However Jesus’ desire, His plan, is to keep our lamps filled with oil so we can rejoice when He, the Bridegroom, arrives. He gives us lamps. He lights our lamps. He fills our lamps with oil. He keeps our lamps full of oil. How does He do this? Our lamps are filled with Christ through His Word. We need the oil that Holy Scripture can bring. In hearing the Word, in preaching and teaching, oil is poured into our lamps so that we are prepared for whatever may come our way. At the font Christ filled you by washing you clean and warding off the attacks of Satan. At this Holy Table, where Christ enters your body and soul to forgive your sin, strengthen your faith in this difficult, fallen world.  You are given faith, you are in Christ, you are His beloved who is seated at the marriage feast of the Lamb in His kingdom. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Zion hears the watchmen singing,  And all her heart with joy is springing; She wakes, she rises from her gloom. For her Lord comes down all-glorious, The strong in grace, in truth victorious;  Her star is ris'n, her light is come.  Now come, Thou Blessed One,  Lord Jesus, God's own Son,  Hail! Hosanna! We enter all  The wedding hall To eat the Supper at Thy call.  (LSB 516:2)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 11, 2023Today's Reading: Introit for Pentecost 24: Psalm 84:1, 9-12; antiphon Psalm 84:3Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 25:17-26:19, Matthew 17:1-13Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, at your altars, O LORD of hosts, my King | and my God. (Psalm 84:3 )In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. God makes room for the worthless.  It strikes a chord with my self hate that understands the Law better than I wish it did. I understand what I break. I understand what I fail to do. The sparrow costs a penny. Sometimes I’m pretty sure the sum of my time isn’t worth that.  But the sparrow finds a home at the LORD’s altars.  Not just to visit. To live.  Lots of people will put up with me for a time. But I’m pretty sure they’ll leave.  God calls me to live here.  And there is a promise never to cast me out. He doesn’t bicker with me about the best construction. He doesn’t weigh the pros and cons of my time here. He just forgives. Daily. Renews.  Daily.  Grants worth, not based on what I can do, but based on what was paid for me. Daily.  I’m worth the blood of Jesus. He feeds it to me here, at His altars.  I want to live here. Free from the accusations of the Law. Where there’s an answer to my self-talk as the Gospel is preached to me by my pastor, who won’t argue either. He just forgives.  I’d rather be a doorkeeper here than invited into the tents of wickedness. Not because I choose good. But because in those tents all I am is the sum of what I do.  I know what that leaves me with, even if I manage to take a little more from others.  How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of hosts.  It is a shield against the torments of reality.  Not because it’s fake. But because it grants a new creation. A new reality. It changes what was wrong into what is forgiven. Here, there is favor and honor. I sit with brothers and sisters in Christ, all of us equal, all of us redeemed, and all of us loved.  No good thing does the LORD withhold from us.  Even in this veil of tears, when He safekeeps it for a time until the Resurrection.  We’d only ruin it if we got it before then.  He still gives us the foretaste in His supper.  We participate in the Resurrection even now. This is why I go to church. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Abide with me, fast falls the eventide. The darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide. When other helpers fail and comforts flee, Help of the helpless, O abide with me (LSB 878:1)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 10, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 24:10-25:10, Matthew 16:13-28Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (Matthew 16:16)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Who do you say that the Son of Man is? We’re still asking the same question.  We’re past the days where people haven’t heard the name Jesus.  Even today, He still gets a lot of press.  The thing is, when you listen, we all seem to be talking about someone different. Most of them aren't real. There's a good example of Jesus, who helps you be better until you don’t wanna be so bad anymore.  But most of the time he just ends up being the guy used to bash you over the head when you don’t do what someone else wants you to.  There’s bigoted Jesus who calls people sinners in a hate filled book that does nothing but set the scene for hate crimes in the name of a higher power.  Some just say he’s a myth, because how could a loving God let the world look like this? If I were God I’d do things differently, and even though I need help using the dishwasher sometimes, I’m still pretty sure I’m smarter than any deity that created us.Have you noticed a common theme yet? Grab hold of a select part of the Law, ignore the Gospel completely, then weaponize religion.  It’s what the people wanted from Elijah, who they wanted to be a weapon against a world set against them.  It’s what they wanted from John the Baptist and Jeremiah, who were both ridiculed and hated by the world and the religious alike, not because they were wrong, but because they called everyone to seek mercy in the Lord who not only calls sin wrong, but loves sinners enough to forgive them.  But who do you say the Son of Man is? This is ‘not a what does Jesus mean to you’ essay.  That’s where all of those other ones went wrong.  Not one is a confession of who God is, just speeches about how we’d use Him.  You can try to use the law, but you can only receive the gospel.  And if Jesus is something to use, not receive, he only ends up being what we wish he was.  Either to help us win, or to excuse us from having to listen to Him, it always ends up being law and no gospel.  Those are answers from flesh and blood.  They should sound ridiculous.  This is not a chance to come up with your own answer.  Instead we’re given a common confession. Peter’s answer is not from flesh and blood, but from God. You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.  We answer the same.  Because there’s mercy there for sinners. For us. It will stand. Even against the gates of hell. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Here stands the font before our eyes, Telling how God has received us. The_altar recalls Christ’s sacrifice And what His Supper here gives us. Here sound the Scriptures that proclaim Christ yesterday, today, the same, And evermore, our Redeemer (LSB 645:4).- Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 9, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 21:1-23, Matthew 16:1-12“An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” So he left them and departed.” (Matthew 16:4)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Jesus tells the Pharisees that there will be no sign except the sign of Jonah, His death and Resurrection.  Then He rebukes the disciples because they do not remember the signs given to them in the feeding of the 5000.  One side gets yelled at for wanting more signs.  The other gets yelled at for not expecting to see more.  Thanks, Jesus. The Pharisees and the disciples have the same problem.  They take their eyes off of Jesus.  The Pharisees only want signs, not what they point to, God made man to die for sinners.  They want appetizers, but not dinner.  The disciples don’t expect signs, because they overlook the simple idea that God will care for them, even though He was made man to die for sinners. They sit at the table and are shocked there’s actually food there. I shouldn’t write reflections when I’m hungry.  Or I’ll just pretend to be like Jesus and insist I’m not actually talking about food, either. In all reality, when it comes to miracles we usually set our hearts in the wrong places too.  We want a vending machine God who only gives us the things we ask Him for, and could care less about what He actually wills.  We seek miracles that prove He’s real when the greatest miracle of all towers over us, not just as a sign, but as salvation.  He dies and rises from the grave.  The sign of Jonah is death and resurrection. It is a historically verifiable miracle, proof that Jesus is God, who has saved you.  The sign of Jonah is what we cling to in doubt and fear. It’s what we cling to for forgiveness for seeking the leaven of the Pharisees and for not seeing the goodness God daily bestows upon us in ways we just overlook.  Look to the cross, where Jesus died for you. It isn’t just Him proving Himself right to those who are wrong. It’s Him winning salvation for them, for us, for you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Faithful cross, true sign of triumph, Be for all the noblest tree; None in foliage, none in blossom, None in fruit thine equal be; Symbol of the world’s redemption, For the weight that hung on thee (LSB 454:4)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 8, 2023Today's Reading: Luther's Small Catechism: ConfessionDaily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 20:1-20, Matthew 15:21-39Confession has two parts. First, that we confess our sins, and second, that we receive absolution, that is, forgiveness, from the pastor as from God Himself, not doubting, but firmly believing that by it our sins are forgiven before God in heaven.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. God doesn’t just want to forgive your sins.  He wants you to firmly believe that your sins are forgiven.  He wants to address your conscience.  Because you’re baptized, and that daily and richly forgives your sins.  But sometimes it doesn’t feel that way.  Sometimes it just clings. Scratches. Tears apart from the inside out.  That thing that you want to erase.  God wants to speak to you about it.  Tell you that it’s gone.  As far as the east is from the west.  Guilt festers. So God speaks.  He uses your pastor to tell you.  Your sins are forgiven in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  That sin is forgiven.  Because I can walk past a group of people who start laughing and tell myself that it’s definitely not at me. But sometimes it feels better to hear for sure.  God speaks forgiveness from the outside in so that when guilt piles up, He would be able to remove it.  See, it isn’t a question of whether you can be saved. Jesus died and rose. Your sins are forgiven. Paid for already.  The real battle ground is over your conscience.  The devil would have you look only at yourself in guilt.  God wills that you have a pure conscience, and so He gives us confession.  Go to your pastor.  Hear about forgiveness. Don’t stew in guilt.  If you wait until Sunday, fine. Your sins are forgiven. But if it keeps you awake on a Tuesday night, know that you can go earlier. God doesn’t only forgive sins an hour a week. Private confession exists to give you the same gifts whenever you need them. It isn’t about talking more about a sin you want to think about less. It’s about not having to let it hang over you until Sunday.  Private confession exists so that forgiveness is given out each day as it is needed. In all of it, though, God simply wills you firmly to believe. You don’t suffer from doubt. You don’t suffer anguish. So confess, and hear absolution.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.And though it tarry through the night And till the morning waken, My heart shall never doubt His might Nor count itself forsaken. O Israel, trust in God your Lord. Born of the Spirit and the Word, Now wait for His appearing (LSB 607:4).- Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 7, 2023Today's Reading: 1 Thessalonians 4:1-12Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 19:1-20, Matthew 15:1-20“For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality;” (1 Thessalonians 4:3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. For all the talk of sexual ethics in the church, it’s easy to overlook the first and most important sentence.  God wills you to be holy.  So He makes you that way.  He takes all that is unholy from you and bleeds for it. He cleanses you in the waters of Baptism and gives you a new identity. His child.  Holy. Worthy of love.  Holy people do holy things in the same way that apple trees make apples.  That isn’t to cast off the idea of good works as unimportant. It’s to recognize they flow out of what we are.  Now we can talk about sexual sins.  In Jesus, they are forgiven.  In Jesus, you are forgiven.  But sometimes even that’s hard to hear.  There’s a reason.  It isn’t just that some sins pollute more than others.  It’s that some seem to grab hold of us in a way that they become our all.  Our identity.  That’s the real issue with these sins.  It isn’t that they can’t be forgiven.  Christ died for all the world, even sinners who sin like that. Like us.  It’s that we wrestle with these sins on such a personal level that we can finally understand the nature of original sin. It isn’t what we do. It’s who we are.  Corrupt. When we lean into that identity, we lean away from Christ.  When we would rather be known by our sin than our Savior, it says more about us than it does about Him who died to forgive us these very sins.  You are not the sum of your lusts, your actions, your browser history, or the things you’ve endured.  You are Christ’s.  Holy. Worthy of love. Not because you’ve abstained. Because Christ died.  This is the will of God. That you be holy. So we lean into that. We try to serve our neighbor. We try to tame our lusts.  And when we fail, we return to the source of holiness to be made new all over again in Baptism.  It’s war. You’ll lose. A lot.  But Christ still wills you to be holy so firmly that He makes you that way all over again. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, forsake me not! Take not Your Spirit from me; Do not permit the might Of sin to overcome me. Increase my feeble faith, Which You alone have wrought. O be my strength and pow’r—O God, forsake me not!  (LSB 731:2)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 6, 2023Today's Reading: Micah 3:5-12Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 18:1-22, Matthew 14:22-36“Thus says the LORD concerning the prophets who lead my people astray, who cry “Peace” when they have something to eat, but declare war against him who puts nothing into their mouths.” (Micah 3:5)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. People have been weaponizing religion ever since sinners realized there was power in it.  It’s not ok.  Ever.  From simple greed to much darker sins, it’s hard to see how organized religion seems to function.  I get why people would swear it off.  The LORD speaks through Micah and promises a retribution most seem to avoid today, even if Jerusalem was handed over into captivity back when.  The people looking for vengeance are still a step behind the rest of the heartbroken who have sworn “never again”.  They want to see someone hurt. Maybe they have. Maybe not yet.  But the rest ask the more important question.  Why would God want there to be a church in the first place when this is what is done with it? It’s probably the best question to ask. Because The LORD is pretty unhappy with those who would make weapons out of the things that make for peace, too.  That gives you the chance to consider something.  God sees the evil done within His walls and still decides to keep His religion around.  If you pack a box full of sinners, they’re gonna sin, even if the box is called a church.  That doesn't just mean you have to take the bad with the good. Decry it. Leave no room for sin to thrive.  And grow from it what the evil one would only use for ruin by realizing that it can’t stop God from working peace even when false prophets would try to wield it like a club.  The peace that He gives is so potent that it thrives where evil would only destroy.  It’s so powerful that evil men would use it for selfish gain.  But God is so good that He would let that power remain so that it can save us sinners.  That truth grants grace not just to look at yourself, but to look at the religion and hope.  Christ came to suffer at the hands of the same kind of men.  He redeemed His church that it would be again a bringer of good news to men.  His mercy is given even where evil would attack it, but His mercy endures and thrives to make a mockery of every terrible plot.  There is bad in the church, but there is God working salvation too. If it is evil, cast it out. If it is of Jesus, cling to it. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Spirit, who didst once restore Thy Church that it might be again The bringer of good news to men, Breathe on Thy cloven Church once more, That in these gray and latter days There may be those whose life is praise, Each life a high doxology To Father, Son, and unto Thee (LSB 834:4)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 5, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 23:1-12Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 17:1-20, Matthew 14:1-21“And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven.” (Matthew 23:9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. These verses either read like a threat to authority or an excuse to ignore it.  Maybe because the whole “unity in Christ” bit would be a lot easier if we weren’t told what to do by people who screw up.  So we get vaguely punk rock about it and try to ignore the fact that the very voice that told Moses the 4th commandment was to honor your mother and father is now telling us to ignore all that. Still, it sounds good.  If nobody can tell anyone else what to do, nobody is above or below anyone else. Unity.  After all, real unity always happens when everyone just does what they want on their own anyway. Understand what it all means.  Best case scenario, this is just another chance to turn inward. You’re all you’ve got and the best thing God would ever give you is an excuse to ignore what you don't like and be on your own. And when you look in the mirror and pretend never even a hint of doubt that you might be wrong, that you might be not good enough, that you might actually be a sinner like the one true Father says, then what? At least it’s all equal in the pit? But what if God actually loved us enough to want to help sinners? It sounds like a nice enough concept until you see who He sent to help you. Other sinners. Parents and teachers.  The real miracle is that their sin won’t stop God from working through them.  Even in the mess their sin makes.  Call no one father, but know your Father in Heaven loves you so much He would give you one anyway, then work through him, even if he’s wrong sometimes. God is still stronger. Real unity doesn’t come at the expense of casting off anyone given to you who happens to be a sinner. Real unity comes from the cross where Christ does away with our Sin.  Christ, who promises to work good through sinners who continue to sin. Real unity comes from Baptism. From a God who calls you His own child no matter who you are or what you’ve done, then gives you others to love and be loved by, then even promises to work through all of you. None of us will do it perfectly. All of us will receive forgiveness. This is where we speak in unity. Our Father who art in heaven. And He is. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Merciful and gracious Lord, You cause Your Word to be proclaimed in every generation. Stir up our hearts and minds by Your Holy Spirit that we may receive this proclamation with humility and finally be exalted at the coming of Your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.- Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 4, 2023Today's Reading: Introit for Pentecost 23: Psalm 149:1-4; antiphon Psalm 148:13Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 15:19-16:22, Matthew 13:44-58For the LORD takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with salvation. (Psalm 149:4)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We treat it like it reads “pretend to be less than you are and God will be happy with you.”  Really, it’s “when you are so humiliated the best you could hope for is pity, and it tastes so sour you’re not sure whether or not you’d just prefer to be abandoned, the Lord sees you the same way your dog does when you come home from school.” Where I come from, humble just means “don’t be braggy”.  Which means the Psalm reads something like give God praise for all the things you’re afraid to admit publicly to having because they sound too nice.  It makes for a monotonous liturgy.  But humble doesn’t mean pretending to be less than you are. It shares a root with humiliation.  The thing where you actually are less and you know that everyone knows it.  Humiliation is a word that somehow becomes a time machine to everyone’s terrible,horrible no good very bad days.  But it is the humiliated that God adorns with salvation. He wraps it around you like clothing, so that others may see it too. It looks like white robes.  Baptism.  The mark of the baptized isn’t a lack of humiliation. It’s an identity that cannot be marred by it.  It brings about the genuine praise the Psalm calls for.  He is the God who sees us in our humiliation and is exalted by joining us in it and conquering it for us.  He leaves the angel choirs to be mocked by the crowds.  He leaves the power of heaven to die at the hands of ignorant men, naked and ashamed.  He is helpless as His mother looks on.  And after dying to save the ones who did it to Him, us, He rises.  He promises the same to you.  You are not just God’s creation, but His children. The liturgy sings not of how you feel on your good days or your humiliated ones, but of God’s works, that we would have something to cling to when everything seems to slip away, and something to taste in His body and blood that aren’t sour. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.At the name of Jesus Ev’ry knee shall bow, Ev’ry tongue confess Him King of glory now. ’Tis the Father’s pleasure We should call Him Lord, Who from the beginning Was the mighty Word (LSB 512:1).- Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 3, 2023Today's Reading: 1 Thessalonians 2:1-13Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 14:1-2, 22-23, 14:18-15:15, Matthew 13:24-43We exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory. (1 Thessalonians 2:12)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Paul throws this verse in at the end of telling everyone how great a job he and his fellow pastors have done.  I can hardly read it. I feel guilty.  I am guilty.  I have not worked as hard, walked as purely, or served as well.  When I look at my works, I have not walked in a manner worthy of God.  Lord have mercy.  Not just on me, but on the people I’ve been charged with caring for.  It’s so easy to mark our failures in the face of other’s success.  It’s not even jealousy.  It’s shame.  It’s compounded when I read Paul’s words.  My sins didn’t just hurt me and the people around me.  They hurt the witness of Christ.  You hear it everywhere.  The world loves our hypocrisy. We believe in a Law we don’t walk in.  We love commandments we break daily.  They imagine our sin proves our faith wrong because we are not by our works what God commands us to be.  But we are what God commands us to be by His works.  He forgives our hypocrisy.  He forgives my sins and yours.  And this is a greater witness to the power of our religion than me being a good person.  I really still wish I was. I really still wish I did better, and I really do want to do better.  But the walk in a manner worthy of God isn’t about your steps. It’s you being carried home by the Good Shepherd who seeks those who have strayed.  He daily seeks us in our rebellion. Daily gathers us and carries us home in mercy.  That’s actually the bigger miracle.  That God would forgive me. I hope that’s what I can be known as. I hope that’s the witness. Jesus forgives sinners, of which I am numbered.  God be praised.When it comes to Christian witness, let it be the Law and the Gospel, and not just the Law.  Let it be not our works, but Christ’s mercy.  None of us can by our own works be worthy of God.  All of us, by our Baptism, are worthy already.  We walk as we have been made to be.  Redeemed.  Faith in Jesus goes to Jesus.  We seek the Lord in His mercy when we have failed to live up to the standards of the Law.  It isn’t just a place God covers your shame.  It is a place He demonstrates the worthiness of our faith.  The worthiness of His name.  We have a God who forgives sinners, and invites more to receive the same. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Perverse and foolish oft I strayed, But yet in love He sought me  And on His shoulder gently laid  And home rejoicing brought me (LSB 709:3).- Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 2, 2023Today's Reading: Luther's Small Catechism: Baptism Part 4Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 13:1-18, Matthew 13:1-23What does such baptizing with water indicate? It indicates that the Old Adam in us should by daily contrition and repentance be drowned and die with all sins and evil desires, and that a new man should daily emerge and arise to live before God in righteousness and purity forever.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Baptism is supposed to make your life harder.  Actually, it’s supposed to end it.  Kill you. That’s the best thing it can offer.  Death with Jesus. Life with Him too.  But we only focus on the second part.  Usually to our detriment.  We imagine the baptized life as God’s holy children to be cleaner. Better.  Wholly devoted to Him and His service. Instead we lose a war with ourselves every day.  Because the Old Adam wasn’t drowned once.  He has to die daily.  Old Adam daily drowns.  He must be a strong swimmer. Paul might say it better than Luther. St. Paul writes in Romans chapter six: “We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life (Romans 6:4).”  The Lord throws the dirt on you while you still claw at the coffin.   Because He loves you.  He loves you enough to bring to nothing the things that will kill you, and unite you to the death that actually saves you: Christ’s. Old Adam’s struggles are found in trying to live by chasing things that kill. And we won’t stop, even after receiving His forgiveness, life, and salvation. So He nails us to the cross with Jesus in our Baptism.  Throws us into the tomb with Him, and keeps throwing dirt on us every time we claw our way out.  Because death with Jesus yields life with Jesus.  Daily.  Daily you are made new. Holy. Daily you are tied to salvation.  Your last mistake, the same one you made daily for as long as you can remember and wish you could forget? That’s forgiven. Daily.  Because you’re baptized.  Remember it.  Daily. Make the sign of the cross. It doesn’t forgive you. It reminds you of the forgiveness you can’t escape in your Baptism.  Because God won’t stop pouring out mercy.  Daily.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Christian, firmly hold this gift And give God thanks forever! It gives the power to uplift In all that you endeavor. When nothing else revives your soul, Your Baptism stands and makes you whole And then in death completes you. (LSB 596:5)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

November 1, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 5:1-12Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 12:13-32, Matthew 12:38-50“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”  (Matthew 5:8)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Some folks feel awkward in church.  They don’t fit the decor.  They know it. To them, the whole thing feels fake.  It might be where the meek go, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, who are peacemakers.  It might be where folks mourn, but unless they’re burying someone they feel out of place.  This is a place to be merciful, but it’s a little too stuffy, and there are other options for that.  But the thing that really cuts is that this is a place for the pure in heart.  And God knows.  They probably have a better read on things than the rest of us. God is actually present here in a meaningful way.  A different way than He’s everywhere else.  But the more time we spend here, the more we can be tricked into forgetting it.  We lose sight of the magnificent in the liturgy we have memorized.  The divine is here, and His standards don’t change just because you’re not impressed by the felt banners and bald pastor.  If it’s your job to fit in here, the house will stand empty.  If it’s a house for the meek, the merciful, the pure in heart, that’s not you.  Because it’s not your house.  It’s Christ’s.  Even when some swagger around like they own it. Even when some of us know full well we don’t fit.  He reminds us that above all the rest, this is a house for the poor in spirit.  To the one utterly alienated from God.  And that still isn’t you.  It’s Christ, who though He was rich, became poor, who though He knew no sin, became sin.  It would be tragic except for the fact that He did it for you.  Which makes it beautiful.  Every beatitude is Jesus for you.  He becomes all of those things and gives you every reward.  He took your sins. He took everything about you that doesn’t fit. And invites you to receive every good thing He has.  It’s never measured in you.  It’s always given by Him.  On the good weeks where you got a little better. On the worst weeks where everything fell apart.  It is only this: Are you in Christ Jesus?  Are you baptized?  If you’re the kind of sinner that’s scared to be here, or the kind of sinner that isn’t anymore, that forgiveness is still yours. You are a saint now. A holy one of God. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and everlasting God, You knit together Your faithful people of all times and places into one holy communion, the mystical body of Your Son, Jesus Christ. Grant us so to follow Your blessed saints in all virtuous and godly living that, together with them, we may come to the unspeakable joys You have prepared for those who love You; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.- Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 31, 2023Today's Reading: Romans 3:19-29Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 11:26-12:12, Matthew 12:22-37But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it. (Romans 3:21)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  Words of law are always the most optimistic. “This is what we should do.  I have a plan.” They bear witness to righteousness.  They just can’t give it.  It would come from the Law if we could fulfill it.  All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  Words of Law will leave you wanting to love Jesus but getting lost under hating yourself.  Looking for an excuse for everything you do that He says not to, which usually just means finding someone else to hate instead.  We can’t help but see the worst intention in people because deep down we know our own. We know what we did this week, and try to ignore the fact that God saw it too.  We know what we’re called, and what we can’t unsee when we look in the mirror.  We know how tiring it gets to balance our accomplishments against our failures on a lopsided hill.  Every mouth is stopped sooner or later.  But it’s Reformation Day so let’s just tell the story of Luther and a church door. Christianity has become a race to not actually needing Jesus anymore.  And it doesn’t work.  The Law bears witness to how things are supposed to be.  It just can’t get us there.  So, God, in mercy, fulfills it for us.  Then bears Himself the wrath we rightly deserve. The righteousness of God is manifested on the cross.  It’s called the Gospel.  Jesus died for you.  For all the things that you have done and been through that aren’t the way they’re supposed to be.  And your sins are forgiven.  You are holy. You are baptized.  The righteousness of God is manifested in that font for you. You wear that righteousness.  And in Christ, even the Law bears witness to you.  It paints a picture of how God sees you. It paints a picture of good that you can freely live in, because it doesn’t measure you.  It was measured in Christ. It is finished. It is yours. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and gracious Lord, pour out Your Holy Spirit on Your faithful people. Keep us steadfast in Your grace and truth, protect and deliver us in times of temptation, defend us against all enemies, and grant to Your Church Your saving peace; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.- Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 30, 2023Today's Reading: Leviticus 19:1-2,15-18Daily Lectionary:Deuteronomy 11:1-25, Matthew 12:1-21“Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel and say to them, You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy."  (Leviticus 19:2)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. I’ve never had to go to court, so I guess I haven’t done injustice there.  Mostly because I’ve never gotten caught doing injustice outside of the court.  I should probably definitely try to speak better of my neighbor.  Or at least talk a little less trash.  There’s a commandment about that somewhere between 7 and 9.  Realistically, I could probably do that better. I don’t know how to carve the hate out of my heart though.  It plants itself in past wrongs.  It festers in old wounds.  It carves away that which should be given to love and corrupts it, even darkening my reason.  Ask me how I was right when it comes to those who have wronged me.  Even my brothers and sisters in Christ. The Law shows us our sin.  Because it doesn’t paint a picture of us.  The Law paints a picture of Jesus. He is the one who actually fulfilled it.  He is the one to imagine when we want to see what it looks like.  The LORD is holy.  But our text does not call us to try to be like God.  That led to some problems in the past between Genesis 2 and 4.  God speaks.  Something happens.  Think Genesis 1.  Let there be light.  And it was good.  You shall be holy.  And you are.  Jesus, who fulfills the Law in your stead dies on the cross to forgive your sin.  Your pastor pronounces absolution.  Your sins are taken away. You are holy, even as holy as Jesus. He makes you that way.  So when we read the Law and find all our shortcomings, we take them to Him who forgives us, and makes us new to love our neighbor free from having to measure.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O grant that nothing in my soul May dwell, but Thy pure love alone; Oh, may Thy love possess me whole, My joy, my treasure, and my crown! All coldness from my heart remove; My ev’ry act, word, thought be love (LSB 683:2)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 29, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 22:34-46Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 9:23-10:22, Matthew 11:20-30And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. (Matthew 22:35 )In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Pharisees were a lot of things, but stupid wasn’t one of them.  If the question seemed too easy on the surface, you’re right.  The core of the 10 commandments is love.  Love the Lord. Love your neighbor. These are the two tables of the law. The real question is underneath it. If that’s all it takes…what are you doing here? The answers in your catechism show how much love demands in each commandment, but there’s more.  The Pharisees could only measure love in themselves and their actions. The things they did. The things they abstained from. The Lord ceased to be the provider of all good things worthy of love.  Instead, He became the measuring stick who can only be appreciated by the worthy. The neighbor to be loved ceased to be a neighbor, the subject receiving love.  Instead, they became objects, proof for each Pharisee that it was ok to love themselves.  Jesus isn’t content to leave us here, loving ourselves above all things. They ask about the law.  He responds with the Gospel.  Who is the Christ? How can He be the Son of David if He is David’s Lord?  The answer is easy, too.  Love.  Not as a feeling or a measuring stick, but as a sacrifice. God, who is love, took on human flesh, born of David’s line, yet David’s Lord, to redeem sinners like him, like us, and like the Pharisees too.  He not only fulfills the law, but forgives us for falling short.  In this freedom we can finally stop looking at ourselves to provide all good things and look to God.  Our neighbors can finally be the subject of mercy instead of an object to prove we’re doing enough.  We already have the victory in Jesus. Sin, death, the devil, and even our best efforts lie defeated under His feet.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, You have commanded us to love You above all things and our neighbors as ourselves. Grant us the Spirit to think and do what is pleasing in Your sight, that our faith in You may never waver and our love for one another may not falter; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.- Pastor Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 28, 2023Today's Reading: John 15:12-21Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 9:1-22,  Matthew 11:1-19If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.  (John 15: 18-19)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Happy St. Simon and St. Jude day!  Simon is the patron saint of saw workers and St. Jude is the patron saint of desperate situations or lost causes.  More on that in a bit.  If you look up St. Simon and St. Jude you won’t find much information other than they were the 10th and 11th disciples named among the 12 disciples.  We don’t set these saint days apart to pray to the saints or uphold them with some unnecessary esteem.  However we do give thanks to God that He worked through men like this for the extension of His Kingdom throughout the world.  It is kind of comical that St. Jude is the patron saint of “desperate situations and lost causes.”  It's comical that Christians would pray to St Jude about desperate situations and lost causes.  St. Jude was in need of a savior just like you and I are!  Who did St. Jude pray to when he experienced desperate situations and lost causes?  He prayed to Jesus!  Jesus who today says that the world is a place full of desperate situations and lost causes.  Sin has caused all of our desperation, it has caused us to lose our own way.  If that wasn’t bad enough, Jesus tells us today that the world is going to hate you for being a follower of Him! Talk about desperation and losing out in the game of life!  However, Jesus tells us this today not to bring fear, but to remind us that the world treated Him the same way. The world hated Jesus so much that they didn’t want Him anywhere but on a cross.  The world hates that Jesus loves you so much that He shed his precious blood to cover you of all your sins. Because of that glorious cross the world hates that Jesus promises you everlasting life by His death and resurrection.  In a world of desperation and lost causes remember what Jesus says to you today “I chose you out of the world.”  In your Baptism all desperation and loss is turned into hope and joy because Jesus has sought you out and found you. Thanks be to God Jesus preached the same message through St. Simon and St. Jude.  Let the world think what it wants of you, they hated Jesus, they hated Simon and Jude and all the other saints, they will hate you because you are baptized.  Let the world do its worst to us, they have no victory over Jesus or you as you walk as a redeemed saint who is precious in His sight.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, You chose Your servants Simon and Jude to be numbered among the glorious company of the apostles. As they were faithful and zealous in their mission, so may we with ardent devotion make known the love and mercy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR..Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 27, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 10:24-42Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 8:1-20, Matthew 10:24-42Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.  (Matthew 10:39)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Life is full of so many unexpected twists and turns.  There are always those things that we never anticipated happening, being dumped into your lap.  We thought we knew what was going on and suddenly we had to re-evaluate our plans and future.  As Christians it is very important that we realize this rather than shy away from it.  Jesus was never one who promised a life full of ease and happiness. For us today who live in the shadow of Jesus’ cross we have to constantly be brought to the realization that we really aren’t in charge.  In your sins you want to be in control, you want to be the author and sustainer of your life, but your sins also show you that is not the case.  Sometimes when God allows chaos, uncertainty or suffering to be dumped into our lap God may very well be stopping our selfish and sinful plans. However this is a daily battle we face each and every day.  Luther says that our greatest enemies are sin, the devil and even ourselves in our sinful flesh.  Yes, that means you are your own worst enemy.  It’s so hard to have God’s will be done on earth as it is in heaven, but even then Jesus has come to take on our mortal and sinful nature for us.  His path seemed to have many unexpected twists and turns, it seems as if so many things he faced were unanticipated.  However in all things, He knew the path set before Him. His path had His eyes set on you, His joy and delight.  He is the one who lost His life, so that you might gain eternal life. In the case of uncertainty and suffering we find comfort in the fact that Jesus Himself is acquainted with suffering and grief but even more He is the one who came for the sake of you, to endure the cross and its suffering and chaos to insure that you will live with Him never to be of concern about your plans or future.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, though we do not deserve Your goodness, still You provide for all our needs of body and soul. Grant us Your Holy Spirit that we may acknowledge Your gifts, give thanks for all Your benefits, and serve You in willing obedience; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR..Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 26, 2023Today's Reading: 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 7:1-19, Matthew 10:1-23They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God,  and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath. ( 1 Thess. 1: 9-10)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It’s hard to be hopeful today about many things. Finances, social statuses, our health, what kind of techy pads or phones we don’t have, all the way down to loneliness, despair, depression and abandonment.  It really stinks living in a world that is drenched in sin.  If we had some hope, it might motivate us a bit more.  We need hope, we would like to put something hopeful in our calendar or social media status.  Anything to keep us from facing the daily pains of our sins.  However, most of our hope is based on us and how we can make things better.  We say “well, things will get better if I just get through this day…” “things will get better when I’m married or get a raise…” But what if things don’t get better? What if the pain and struggles continue for the foreseeable future?  When we talk about hope as Christians we need more than just a temporary fix.  Hope is more than making lemonades out of life’s lemons because our problems are much bigger than we see. Sin is at the core of all that is broken, full of despair and hopeless.  As Christians we see hope in Jesus’ permanent fix for this life.  Paul says today “[God] raised from the dead Jesus, who delivers us from the wrath of to come.”  Jesus gives you permanent hope. Believe it or not this hope actually cuts through the sharpest of pains in life all the way down to our trivial complaints. This hope forgives and heals you of your sins. That’s why we rejoice - because faith, love and hope are for you in Jesus. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Hope of the world, God's gift from highest heaven, bringing to hungry souls the bread of life:still let your Spirit unto us be given  to heal earth's wounds and end her bitter strife.  (LSB 690:2)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR..Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 25, 2023Today's Reading: Luther's Small Catechism: Baptism Part 3Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 6:10-25, Matthew 9:19-38“Clearly it is not the water that does it, but the word of God that is in and with the water, and the faith that trusts this word of God in the water. For without God’s word the water is plain water and no Baptism.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Water is the greatest earthly gift that God has given to us in this life.  You are reminded of how important it is to drink your 8 glasses a day of water each day and that probably gets annoying.  If you lose too much water you get dehydrated and can die.  How many times have you seen a show where someone is in the desert parched and looking for just a simple bit of water.  Even the rich man sitting in hell asked for Lazarus to simply dip his finger in some water to cool his tongue.  Water is a big thing in Christianity too.  All Christians speak about Baptism in some way or another.  Have you noticed that so many Christians today tend to focus on the water?  Sprinkling, immersing, churchy bathtubs, rivers or the ocean.  So much tends to be focused on how much water one needs to be baptized.  If  you think about it, water isn’t exactly in huge abundance for all peoples and locations.  In some areas water is a very precious commodity.  People have to spend an immense amount of time, money and energy to have access to water.  What water they do have is extremely precious and wisely used.  If I am in an area where there is a severe drought and water is very precious, does God really require us to fill a large pool or tub to be immersed?  That’s why as Lutherans we have always stated that God sets no standard for how much water we need or where it is to be found.  To be blunt Luther today is really saying “To be sure, water is absolutely necessary for Baptism, but let's not lose focus of what Jesus is doing in Holy Baptism.”  In Baptism the focus is on the fact that God has attached His Word to water.  It is His command and His promise attached to water that Jesus works through, whether it be a sprinkle or Niagara Falls.  The Word of God that is in and with the water is the very hand of God, giving out all the benefits of Christ’s death and resurrection for the life of all sinners.  Thanks be to God for water,  you need it for everything in this life that we live. Thanks be to God for attaching His Word to the waters of Holy Baptism where He gives you all that you the waters of everlasting life, never to evaporate or recede, for Jesus says to you; “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” John 7. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Father in heaven, at the Baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River You proclaimed Him Your beloved Son and anointed Him with the Holy Spirit. Make all who are baptized in His name faithful in their calling as Your children and inheritors with Him of everlasting life; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR..Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 24, 2023Today's Reading: Isaiah 45:1-7Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 5:22-6:9, Matthew 9:1-17“This is what the Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of…”. (Isaiah 45:1)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Have you ever seen God work in someone that you totally never expected?  Maybe the person was a nominal Christian or maybe they were the furthest thing from a Christian.  It can catch us off guard at times with how God can use evil people for His will to be done.   In the events leading up to our Old Testament text today from Isaiah. Israel found themselves in exile from God.  Another way of putting it is that they were “divorced” from God.  However, God was still at work for their benefit.  When Israel was sent into exile, God used both the Babylons and the Persians to do His will for the children of God.  Today we hear of the Persian King named Cyrus.  Cyrus is not an Israelite, he never will be one of them.  He is a pagan ruler who knows nothing about the remarkable history between Israel and God.  However the God of Israel will use Cyrus for the deliverance of Israel.  In the reading today, notice that in working with good or evil, God is the active agent in this story, no one else. Read the text again and you will see almost every sentence begins with “I”, the “I” being God.  “I will go before you,” “I have grasped,” “I will give,” “I call you,” “I name you,” “I equip you,” "I form” and “I make.”  They are all there.  And why does God take action through this man named Cyrus; for the sake of his servant, Israel, His chosen people.  All of God’s actions are done for the sake of his people who he has not forgotten.  God could have raised one of Israel’s own up to do what needed to be done, but instead he chose an outsider.  By the way, notice in verse 1 what Isaiah says of Cyrus. Cyrus is the “anointed one”. The word in Hebrew for “anointed one” means “Christ” in Greek. Not something you might have expected.  God’s work is in unusual and surprising ways.  Simply look at the cross and see the dead Son of God bringing the Life of the World to you. In our sins we are divorced from God. However Jesus’ unending love for you, His bride, placed him on the cross. He became the exiled one so that we could be brought back into the Kingdom of our Heavenly Father and the inheritance prepared for you in the life of the world to come.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, in Your mercy guide the course of this world so that Your Church may joyfully serve You in godly peace and quietness; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR..Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 23, 2023Today's Reading: Acts 15:12-22Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 5:1-21, Matthew 8:18-34After they finished speaking, James replied, “Brothers, listen to me. (Acts 15:13)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. You all probably know someone who does not believe in Jesus.  I'd be surprised if anyone reading this doesn't have a dear loved one, who does not trust in Christ. It's the saddest thing in the world. Today we observe the Feast of St. James of Jerusalem, Brother of our Lord.  James was Jesus' brother (Mark 6:3). Yet, we are told in Scripture that Jesus' brothers did not believe in him (John 7:5). In fact his family thought he was a downright cuckoo! (Mark 6:21) How sad that James couldn’t believe what Jesus had come to accomplish.  However, all hope is not lost. We know that at some point James believed in Jesus. In 1 Corinthians 15:7 that after his resurrection Jesus appeared to James after he appeared to his disciples. In Acts 1:14 Jesus' brothers, who didn't believe in him were in Jerusalem devoting themselves to prayer and waiting for the pouring out of the Holy Spirit. James didn't only become a believer and a witness of the resurrection of Christ, but he is counted among the Apostles (1 Corinthians 9:5) and. Paul even calls him a pillar of the church! (Galatians 1:18-19; 2:9). The Epistle of James also is believed to be written by the same James.  We know that Jesus is able to sympathize with us in our weakness and was tempted like us in every way, except without sin (Hebrews 4:15). Yet, we also know that Jesus dealt with the pain of having his own flesh and blood reject him and not have saving faith. But our Lord continued to pray for his brother. He continued to preach and confess the truth. And those prayers and those words worked. James was baptized and led to confess Christ, and he died a Christian death.  So while you have loved ones who aren’t Christian, Christ knows the same sadness and pain. He will not give up on them, just as He did not give up on James. You have the comfort that God hears your prayers for your loved one. And you have the encouragement to not give up confessing Christ. God's word has the power to create faith (Romans 10:17). In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, shepherd of Your people, You raised up James the Just, brother of our Lord, to lead and guide Your Church. Grant that we may follow his example of prayer and reconciliation and be strengthened by the witness of his death; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR..Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 22, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 22:15-22Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 4:21-40, Matthew 8:1-17And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?”  (Matthew 22:20)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Pharisees today try to trap Jesus. They want to see if He would be for or against paying taxes to the Romans.  Jesus famously uses the image of Caesar on the coin to show that He wasn’t a revolutionary who refused to pay taxes or overthrow the Romans. He submitted to the governing authority yet knowing that the Romans or Herod would never have authority unless it had been given from on high. The image of Caesar meant it belonged to Caesar, but you are made in the image of God, which means that you belong to God. It is God who claims us, who made us in his own image. We do not belong to anything or to anyone else. We don’t even belong to ourselves. We belong to God in all our being, with all our talents, interests, time, and wealth. The consequences of belonging to God are really beautiful. First, it means that God will not forsake us. The Pharisees and the other religious leaders that Jesus denounces were notoriously bad at caring for the people. They neglected their responsibilities and the people God gave into their care. Second, it means that because we belong to God, we belong to the people of God, the body of Christ. We are baptized into this Body and no political or governing authority can take that away from you.  Pay your taxes?  Yes, as hard as it is to accept that. Pay your way to get back into God’s good grace?  No way!  Jesus paid the price for you so that you now live with Him in His kingdom. The cross was the final trap of the Pharisees, but through that cross Jesus paid the price in full for the life of the whole world.  You bear the image of Jesus in your Baptism, God has rendered to you His son so that you may be His forever. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, the protector of all who trust in You, have mercy on us that with You as our ruler and guide we may so pass through things temporal that we lose not the things eternal; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR..Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 21, 2023Today's Reading: Introit to Pentecost 21: Psalm 121:1-4, 7-8; antiphon Psalm 121:5Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 4:1-20, Matthew 7:13-29The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Psalm 121 is a “song of ascent”. It was sung by the pilgrims who were making their journey to Jerusalem and the temple.  Their journey was often met with intense heat, rocky terrain, dangerous roads and even people who would rob or kill them. This Psalm is the perfect Psalm to describe the beginning and end of your life as a Christian.In the life of the church we typically use Psalm 121 in the rite of Holy Baptism and sometimes at funerals.   Baptisms and funerals are the two events that are a part of every Christian’s life.  Baptisms and funerals go together perfectly.  In Baptism you are connected to Jesus’ death and resurrection, you are washed clean and walk in the newness of life.  At a funeral the first thing we do is acknowledge that the deceased “IS” baptized, not was baptized. Because of Jesus’ death and resurrection the deceased will rise again on the last day in resurrection of all flesh, never to die again.  Likewise for us living today that means that in your Baptism you are clothed in Christ. Even as we journey in the treacherous paths of life, through danger, suffering, even in the valley of the shadow of death Jesus keeps you and guards you from all evil.  Jesus has placed the sign of the cross on your forehead to mark you as one who is redeemed by His blood. By all these promises God who watches over our comings and goings now and forever more. . In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.There is nothing worth comparing to this lifelong comfort sure!  Open-eyed my grave is staring: Even there I’ll sleep secure.  Though my flesh awaits its raising, still my soul continues praising:  I am baptized into Christ; I’m a child of paradise! (LSB 594:5)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR..Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 20, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 3:1-29, Matthew 7:1-12“Do not judge others..”. (Matthew 7:1)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. If you ever watch a courtroom trial on TV, you will always notice the trial takes time. Sometimes the trial is a few hours, sometimes it takes months. You will always notice that the judge doesn’t immediately make a judgment at the start of a trial.  Judges listen carefully to the facts, they read the laws and take all things into account before bringing in the verdict. Their duty is to make sure that the trial is fair to all sides with all the facts put on display.  Today everyone loves to throw the Words of Jesus at us “Judge not!”  It’s probably the most memorized verse in and outside of the church today.  However, in Matthew 7, Jesus is dealing with the Pharisees, who spent most of the time immediately criticizing the sins and shortcomings of everyone except themselves. Jesus eventually became so frustrated with the Pharisee’s self-righteousness (viewing themselves as perfect) that He called them “whitewashed tombs” (Matthew 23:27).“Judge not”. Most of the people who quote this verse don't understand what Jesus said. They seem to think Jesus commanded a universal acceptance of any lifestyle or teaching. If we see what Jesus said in Matthew 7:15-16, He commands us to know people by the fruit of their life, and some sort of assessment is necessary for that. The Christian is called to unconditionally love. But the Christian is not called to unconditional approval. We really can love people who do things that should not be approved of. Instead, Jesus is speaking against being judgmental, that is, judging motives and the inner man, which only God can know.  We can judge the fruit of a man, but we can rarely judge their motives with accuracy. Sin is an addiction and our neighbor cannot free themselves of their sinful condition. Most of our judgment in regard to others is wrong, we do not let all the facts be made known. Jesus will judge the living and the dead, but He will do so with a standard we cannot see in ourselves. His final verdict is given from the cross “forgive them for they know not what they do.”  That is your verdict in Jesus and it's our prayer, not judgment, that many more would be declared not guilty because the blood of Jesus covers a multitude of sins.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“The Law of God is good and wise  And sets His will before our eyes,Shows us the way of righteousness, And dooms to death when we transgress”. (LSB 579:1)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR..Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 19, 2023Today's Reading: Luther's Small Catechism, Baptism Part 2Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 2:16-37, Matthew 6:16-34It works forgiveness of sins, rescues from death and the devil, and gives eternal salvation to all who believe this, as the words and promises of God declare.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.   Baptism today is practiced by so many Christians throughout the world today.  It is a key to the teaching and practice of Christians since the great commission of Jesus to baptize all nations in Matthew 28.  However, if you take a look at the majority of Christian views of Baptism you will find that they are all over the map in terms of teaching and practice.  How much water is needed to baptize?  Who is old enough to be baptized?  Do you need to understand what Baptism is and do you need to give a testimony of faith?  Does Baptism require something from you first?  If you notice these questions, they center on one thing, you and me.  Baptism has been twisted into something that is empty, symbolic and centered on us and how we meet Jesus where He is.  However, Baptism is not something that you do.  It’s not about how much water, how old you are or if you even understand what is going on.  Baptism is all about what Jesus is doing for you, not vice versa.  Jesus then drowns your old Adam in His water and blood that flow from His pierced side on the cross. He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit (Titus 3).  It is critical that we as Lutheran’s hold strong to this simple yet profound teaching on Baptism: “It works forgiveness of sins, rescues from death and the devil and gives eternal salvation.” Read the explanation again and again. Jesus is the one doing the work in Baptism, because apart from Him we stand guilty, death will consume us and the devil will lead us to hell.  The entire message of the Gospel is Jesus at work for you and His church.  In Baptism He does this in all places and times, with various amounts of water, various people of all ages and understandings. Rejoice!  Jesus has washed you in His blood and declares you are now His beloved child. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Sin, disturb my soul no longer:  I am baptized into Christ!  I have comfort even stronger:Jesus' cleansing sacrifice.  Should a guilty conscience seize me  Since my Baptism did release me  In a dear forgiving flood,  Sprinkling me with Jesus' blood!  (LSB 594:2)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR..Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 18, 2023Today's Reading: Luke 10:1-9Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 1:37-2:15, Matthew 6:1-15Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you. (Luke 10:9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.Today’s verses have certainly been used by so many to give a pep rally for us to go out and proclaim the Kingdom of God in all that we do.  The 72 were sent and they were told not to worry about their earthly needs, so go out there and you can do the same thing!  The problem is that the whole passage of the 72 isn’t about you or me and how we can fulfill the harvest for the Lord.   Jesus is the one doing all the work in, with and under the 72 He sends out. Go back and look at the passage again and see who is doing all the work.  In the first verse, Jesus appoints and sends. In the second verse, He centers the entire mission on God. God is the Lord of the harvest, and God sends laborers into His harvest. The sent ones do not need to worry about their earthly needs because God will see to it they are provided for. Some would accept them and the peace they bring, others would not, if they are turned away don’t take it personally, for Christ bears the rejection Himself, and will do so ultimately on the cross.  In all that they do they are simply sent to proclaim what has been told to them by Jesus “The Kingdom of God has come near to you.” And when the seventy-two come back, they return with joy! But even then Jesus redirects their joy beyond their efforts and experiences to the gracious work of God, as the One who writes their names in Heaven.That is the whole point of Jesus sending out the 72.  In the same way He sent out St. Luke as well.  They weren’t sent to equip others for how they could somehow be faithful fulfillers of God’s harvest announcement.  They were sent out to proclaim what God in Christ has already done for the life of the whole world.  They were sent to point people to Jesus and His greater work in the victory of eternal life.  Your pastor and your church are sent for the same reason today. As you live out your holy vocations as God’s baptized child He will work where and when He pleases in you because the Kingdom of God has come near to you.  Rejoice that Jesus continues His work of the harvest  by continuing to bring His kingdom to us through His Word and Sacraments in the church.  In all of this the Lord of the harvest is at work not only bringing more to faith, but also reminding you that your name is written in heaven by the blood of Jesus Christ.   In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.For that belov’d physician  All praise, whose Gospel show   The Healer of the nations,The one who shares our woes.  Your wine and oil, O Savior,  Upon our spirits pour,And with true balm of Gilead  Anoint us evermore. (LSB 518:26)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR..Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 17, 2023Today's Reading: Philippians 4:4-13Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 1:19-36, Matthew 5:21-48“The Lord is at hand…”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Lord is at hand..Rejoice in the Lord always…do not be anxious about anything”. Yeah that seems like it's not gonna happen.  When you look at everything around us today it seems like there is very little to rejoice over.  If the struggles and fears of life weren’t bad enough, Paul’s words today have been severely misused with Christians.  So much of Christianity today loves to beat people over the head with this passage from Philippians, as if this somehow a hand-book for being a happier and stress-free Christian. Paul’s words today are not some sort of self-help to make you more happy and anxious-free as a Christian, the key to all of this passage today is “The Lord is at hand…”.  Life truly stinks.  The pressures we face each day and the sins we constantly love to swim in are drowning us.  Living a life of rejoicing and not being anxious is something you can’t accomplish on your own, it must be done by the Lord who is at hand. Our lives are lived under the cross of Jesus Christ who suffered and bore our sins, our shame, our guilt that have caused us despair and fear. We did our worst to Jesus at the cross and He rose from the dead victorious over death, not to give us some sort of example to follow but to give to us that same victory over sin and death.  Your greatest fear and source of anxiety has been covered in the blood of Jesus Christ.  Jesus  says to you each and every day, “Do not be afraid”.  If you aren’t comforted by that, if you can’t rejoice in that, if anxieties don’ cease, then confess your sins to Jesus who forgives.  Pray to Him who hears your prayers and cry out “Lord I believe, help thou my unbelief”.  He hears your prayers, He sees your suffering and fears and He promises that heaven and earth will pass away but His words will never pass away.  This means that this world of suffering and fears is not permanent for you.  He has overcome your death, He promises you that this veil of tears, anxiety, and negativity are not all that we have to look forward to.  Whether we live or die, “the Lord is at hand” shepherding you to that place He has prepared for in the glory to be revealed in heaven. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Rely on God your Savior   And find your life secure. Make His work your foundationThat your work may endure.  No anxious thought, no worry,  No self-tormenting careCan win your Father's favor;  His heart is moved by prayer.  (LSB 754:2)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR..Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 16, 2023Today's Reading: Isaiah 25:6-9Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 1:1-18, Matthew 5:1-20And he will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations. He will swallow up death forever.  (Isaiah 25:7)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Many of us can probably remember a very special meal that we were a part of.  It may have been a meal that we anticipated like a birthday party or a holiday meal.  Eating with loved ones and friends is a very beautiful thing when you think about it. I would love to be able to sit down to a meal with my dad and grandparents and aunts and uncles who have passed on from this life.  Our reading from Isaiah points to a meal that is prepared for you and all who are faithful in Christ.  This meal is exquisite with the richest and most luxurious food and drink.  However, the meal is more than just sitting down to a tasty meal.  The meal Isaiah speaks of today is the Feast of Victory of our God.   Listen to what the Lord does with this meal: “And he will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations. He will swallow up death forever.”  Let those words sink in for a moment. “The Lord will swallow up death forever! Usually it is death that swallows us up. But the day is coming when the Lord will swallow up death itself. Forever. That is something to look forward to. For now death is like a veil, a shroud, a covering that is draped over all humanity.  Death is not something our Lord ever planned for us, our sins brought it upon us and death’s shadow has covered you your entire life. But the day is coming when that shroud will be lifted.  Until then we do not hunger or thirst.  Jesus continues to prepare a table here and now in the presence of our enemies of sin, death and the devil.  As you partake of the Holy Eucharist, you receive the forgiveness of sins that banishes death.  You are strengthened in the eternal promises of God are yours today and that a place is prepared for you at the marriage feast of the Lamb in His kingdom which has no end.   The day is coming when “the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the LORD has spoken.” “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” Joy, because the Lord has promised to swallow up death, forever and seat us at the feast of victory.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Now no more can death appall,  Now no more the grave enthrall;You have opened paradise,  And Your saints in You shall rise.  Alleluia!  (LSB 633:6)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR..Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 15, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 22:1-14Daily Lectionary: Malachi 3:6-4:6, Matthew 4:12-25The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son.  (Matthew 22:3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When you sit down to eat with your family either at home or at a restaurant, you generally eat with the people you know and love.  It would be rather odd to have some stranger sit down and start eating your food.  They haven’t been invited, they aren’t part of the family, get lost, you don’t belong at our table.  Jesus speaks of the King’s wedding feast today.  The table is set.   Who deserves to be at the table?  No one!  Not one single person born of Adam deserves a seat at the feast of our Lord!  We only deserve present and eternal punishment.  That’s it.  We deserve nothing from our God and Lord, which is why we cry out in repentant faith, “Lord, have mercy!  Christ, have mercy!  Not for my sake, but for the sake of the bitter sufferings and death of Your beloved Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.  Forgive me all my sins.” And you know what?  He does exactly that!  In fact, He doesn’t just show us mercy.  He bestows on us His grace.  (Remember: Mercy is not getting what you deserve, and grace is getting what you don’t deserve.)Look to the font, the pulpit, and the altar.  This is the feast of victory—His victory!  You don’t have to wait to get home to heaven to start feasting.  I realize it will be inconceivably better in heaven, but the Divine Service is where the King has set up His now!  He continues to send His faithful servant, Jesus Christ, to feed us and nourish us with His grace, His mercy, His love, His peace.  Consider the gifts of life, grace, mercy, and peace given to you by God Himself in the waters of Holy Baptism.  Consider how your Lord feeds and nourishes you each and every Sunday, at this earthly side of the Master’s heavenly feast table.  Each Sunday our Lord is bringing heaven to earth, to a bunch of sinful beggars and lowlifes like us!  Consider the very words you hear, spoken directly to you precisely so that you can hear and trust, words spoken in the stead and by the command of the Master Himself.  “You are forgiven.  For the sake of Christ’s bitter suffering and death, you are forgiven.  Depart in peace.” Recognized through the eyes and ears of faith, how could you want anything else?  How could you even want to be anywhere else?  Hold fast to this blessed, Christ-centered Truth.  Fear not.  Be at peace.  Your sins are forgiven in Christ and because of Christ, have a seat at the Feast of Victory!I n the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, You invite us to trust in You for our salvation. Deal with us not in the severity of Your judgment but by the greatness of Your mercy; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.- Pastor Kent Schaaf is pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR..Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 14, 2023Today's Reading: Introit for Pentecost 20: Isaiah 61:10; antiphon Psalm 146:2Daily Lectionary:Malachi 2:1-3:5, Matthew 4:1-11I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.  (Psalm 146:2)In the Name of Jesus, Amen. Hallelujah is Hebrew for “praise the Lord.” The Greek word is alleluia. Alleluia is an invitation to praise God. That is why we sing it so much in our worship. We sing alleluia to ourselves and to each other.  We are encouraging and inviting each other to the joyful work of praising God, speaking of all he is, said, says, did, does and will do. Let us do this together! We sing praise in the congregation for the mutual blessing of knowing and believing in Jesus as Lord and Savior. It is good to sing praise to the Lord.Praise is not done for God. He doesn’t need it. We do. In praising God we bring to our minds and hearts what God has said and done for us men and for our salvation. God knows what He has done and said He doesn’t need reminding. Sinners tend to forget. Through praise God does His work of saving among us. Preaching and hearing God’s Word is praise that goes into our ears. The praise that comes out of our mouths is our joyful response. Within the congregation our praise also enters our ears and those nearest us. Hear what God has done for me! Daring to be Lutheran is praising God boldly and clearly in worship.The liturgy is full of God’s Word. The Psalms along with the readings, sermon and hymns guide us in our praise. Through God’s Word, preaching and the sacraments we know that God is with us to distribute His gifts of life and salvation through the forgiveness of sins. We also know that God is present among us in our praise. The psalmist put it this way: You are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel (Psalm 22:3). God reigns among His people in their praises! He distributes His kingly divine gifts to us. Christians give way to joyful praise because through Baptism they have been clothed in the righteousness of Jesus. Christian praise is to put our trust in God rather than men. Praise puts to death the old sinful man and raises up Christ, the New Man within you. The breath of men departs and they die. The breath of God that is poured out through our worship and praise brings forth life and eternal salvation. “I will praise Him as long as I live!” In the Name of Jesus, Amen.  It is good to give thanks to the Lord,    to sing praises to your name, O Most High;    to declare your steadfast love in the morning,    and your faithfulness by night,   For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your work;    at the works of your hands I sing for joy.   (Psalm 92:1,2,4)-Pastor Preston Paul is pastor at St. Matthew Lutheran Church, Almena, WI.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 13, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Malachi 1:1-14,  Matthew 3:1-17John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”   “…The voice of one crying in the wilderness…” (Matthew 3:1,2,3b)In the Name of Jesus, Amen. God wants you to be a happy hearer. Satan, on the other hand, wants you to despise preaching and to reluctantly listen to your pastor. Despising preaching is easy to do. The Pharisees and Sadducees didn’t gladly hear John’s preaching. They despised it because it called for them to confess their sins and believe in Jesus. Christians gladly hear preaching because it works repentance in them and delivers Jesus their Savior.Pastors don’t always appreciate the work of listening. They are busy preaching. The pastor's job, above all, is to preach boldly and clearly, God’s Word. He owes this to the hearers. Pastors strive through God’s Word and prayer to give the hearers something worth gladly hearing. The preaching task is done for the sake of the salvation of sinners. Your pastor is a preacher, a proclaimer of God’s Word, His good news for sinners.John the Baptist was ordained by God to prepare the way for Jesus through preaching. Preaching is a really big deal to God. The hearers of John’s preaching knew that God promised to send a Savior. John’s preaching prepared the hearers to receive Jesus gladly.The primary purpose of your ears is to hear God through preaching and the scriptures. Having ears is a daily reminder that you are a hearer of God’s Word. God gave them to you, your ears, that you may know Him more fully. It is a mystery that God does His work in this way: from the mouth of a human preacher into the ears of sinners. We pray that “Righteousness will go before him and make his footsteps a way.” (Psalm 85:13). The righteousness that goes before Jesus is the preaching of John and all faithful pastors. Preaching prepares you for Jesus in you. The righteousness of preaching is the message of Christ crucified for sinners. When we pray, “Righteousness will go before him and make his footsteps a way,” we confess that preaching is for sinners and their salvation and ask that it would be so for me. Preaching makes a path for Jesus straight into your happy hearing ears. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.Give ear, O my people, to my teaching;    incline your ears to the words of my mouth! I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings from of old, things that we have heard and known, that our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children, but tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might,  and the wonders that he has done. (Psalm 78:1-4)-Pastor Preston Paul is pastor at St. Matthew Lutheran Church, Almena, WI.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 12, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Nehemiah 9:22-38, 1 Timothy 6:3-21But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. (1 Timothy 6:6-8)In the Name of Jesus, Amen. Your life should reflect who you are in Christ, all of your life. You are baptized and empowered to live life accordingly. This is what Paul means by godliness. Living a Christian life is far more than simply being a faithful Sunday morning worshiper. The strength and source of living a godly life is Jesus. The Divine Service is where we are plugged-in, so to speak, to Him. Without Jesus there is no godly life. What does your life look like outside of the Divine Service? Is it God pleasing? Godliness is keeping God at the center. It is keeping His Word before our eyes, in our ears and upon our hearts daily. It is reflecting that Word in our words and works of love towards God and neighbor. Why does Paul instruct Timothy to preach and teach about godliness with contentment? And to charge Christians to live a holy life fleeing from sinful desires and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness? For these reasons: for the sake of true joy, peace and contentment and that we may not lose what we already have been given freely in Christ nor cause others to stumble and fall away. We don’t worship or live a godly life for compliments. Your godliness in no way atones for sins and gains salvation. However, Jesus’ perfect life of godliness and death does… atone for your sins and saves. God wants us to have good things, he “richly provides us with everything to enjoy.” However, He doesn’t want us to fall into faith destroying snares. The temptations of riches, power and worldly desires are always ready to entrap us. Satan uses such things to drive us away from Jesus. O Christian flee from those things! Godliness that finds its joyful source in the righteousness of Jesus, freely given, provides a life of contentment. We give thanks for all that God has provided in this life, whether little or an abundance. And how much He has given! What the world considers good and needful is most often just the opposite, hurtful and detrimental to faith. There is only one thing needful for you and that is Jesus, your crucified and risen Savior.  In the Name of Jesus, Amen.Oh, fear the Lord, you his saints,   for those who fear him have no lack!   but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing, Better is the little that the righteous has   than the abundance of many wicked. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.  He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness  for his name’s sake. (Psalm 34:9, 10b; 23:1,3)-Pastor Preston Paul is pastor at St. Matthew Lutheran Church, Almena, WI.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 11, 2023Today's Reading: Luther's Small Catechism, Baptism: Part 1Daily Lectionary: Nehemiah 9:1-21, 1 Timothy 5:17-6:2“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” (Matthew 28:19)In the Name of Jesus, Amen.  In the beginning was water. The Spirit of God hovered over the water, and the Word of God was spoken according to the will of God. All of creation had its origin out of the water. God, the Word of God, the Spirit of God and water are the ingredients of creation, The Holy Trinity and water. God remakes His creation in the same way He made it, by means of water and Himself…the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. “It is He who made us and we are His” (Psalm 100). This makes you a disciple of Jesus, a hearer of His voice. It makes you…what you are. It gives you identity in God. He knows exactly who you are and lovingly reminds you daily of His love for His very own. The Lord loves the baptized. He made them. He made you.In a perfect world we all would have been conceived within the marital union and love between a husband and wife. And wouldn’t it be great if we all grew up surrounded by their perfect love, of those parents, in the same house. The brokenness in this world often causes us painful and confusing identity crises. Who am I and why am I here?  The world that God created by means of water and His Word is horribly broken…it cannot simply be repaired. It can be remade. Jesus empowers His church to do the work of remaking… “go and make disciples…”Despite the brokenness of life in this world into which you were born, God chose you to be His baptized, remade, child. Not only did He form you in the womb, but He remade and marked you for eternity in Baptism. The pastor may have administered the Baptism, but the words “in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” show clearly that God is the one doing the “making.”  He makes disciples. He baptized you. God’s work of remaking you continues in His church. Baptism gave you ears to hear. The church teaches the baptized that they may learn who they are by listening. What does it mean that I am baptized? Who am I in Jesus? The answer is in the preaching and teaching that you hear from your pastor. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. The voice of the Lord is over the waters;  the God of glory thunders,  the Lord, over many waters. The voice of the Lord is powerful;   the voice of the Lord is full of majesty.Know that the Lord, he is God!    It is he who made us, and we are his;  we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.  (Psalm 29:3,4; 100:3)-Pastor Preston Paul is pastor at St. Matthew Lutheran Church, Almena, WI.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 10, 2023Today's Reading: Philippians 3:4b-14Daily Lectionary: Nehemiah 7:1-4, 8:1-18, 1 Timothy 5:1-16I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ. (Philippians 3:8)It is personal. Faith is first about you and Jesus, just the two of you. That is how it began. Jesus chose you. Remember your Baptism. We Lutherans tend to get a little squeamish if we use words like, “I”, “my” and “mine” too much. We should. Those first-person personal pronouns tend towards self-centeredness. They often leave little room for God and neighbor. Sinners are all about themselves, not Jesus or anybody else. But when it comes to Jesus and you those pronouns are the way to go…use them. St. Paul did and so should you. Jesus knows you personally. He is your Lord and Savior to know and love. It can get a little emotional, and sometimes a lot, like any relationship. This one is the most important of all. Dare to be Lutheran… call Him “my Lord.” The Psalms help us sort the emotions out by knowing the mind and heart of Jesus. For Paul it was very personal. He lost everything, from a worldly perspective, when Jesus came thundering into His life. It blinded Him. He didn’t see it coming. He met the Lord, the one he was persecuting. That One wanted to be Paul’s Lord. He wished to call him “My” Paul…to save him. Jesus desired Paul to reciprocate and call Him “my Lord.”To have nothing but Jesus as your Lord is far better than having everything without Jesus. This is a hard perspective for us to have in such a self-centered and material society. It is difficult spiritual work. The only way is by prayer and God’s Word.  Other “lords” strive to push Him out of the center, His rightful place. These pushy and tyrannical “lords” manifest in countless ways. You know who and what they are…if you wonder, examine yourself according to the Ten Commandments. God’s law flushes them out for you…keeping Jesus as your only Lord to love and trust for that which is good and beneficial in life and for your salvation. I am continually with you;   you hold my right hand. You guide me with your counsel,   and afterward you will receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but you?   And there is nothing on earth  that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail,    but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.  For me it is good to be near God;  I have made the Lord God my refuge.  (Psalm 73:23-26, 28b)-Pastor Preston Paul is pastor at St. Matthew Lutheran Church, Almena, WI.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 9, 2023Today's Reading: Isaiah 5:1-7Daily Lectionary: Nehemiah 5:1-16; 6:1-9, 15-16, 1 Timothy 4:1-16What more was there to do for my vineyard…? (Isaiah 5:4a)In the Name of Jesus, Amen. God is a gardener. He planted the first garden in Eden out of love. It was perfect; a garden that was destined to be forever green with blooming flowers and fruitful trees. God Himself watered the garden with a mist from the ground. This garden He made for man, for Adam and Eve and their offspring. The fruit of this garden that God desired, above all, was the love and joyful obedience of man. God had made it all for them to know His love and to love Him in return. But the garden’s fruit began to rot. God continued to garden. He planted a people, the house of Israel and the men of Judah, His chosen people. It was the Lord’s vineyard. Like the first garden, God desired His loving care for this vineyard to produce fruit…love and obedience to His Word. God is a faithful vinedresser. He did everything He could for this vineyard to be fruitful. But the fruit it produced was worthless, rotten from loveless and disobedient hearts. Out of love God destroyed this vineyard. He had its walls torn down and the vineyard trampled. By God’s doing it became a waterless wasteland full of briers and thorns. He stopped the rain. He did so, not out of despair, He wasn’t giving up. He was being the faithful vinedresser. He was gardening, caring for His pleasant planting.In the dried-up desolate land where the vineyard was planted was a stump. It was left there by God. The stump blossomed. It was the line of David. Jesus was the fruit born of Mary. He came to His vineyard. The vineyard rejected Him like before. But this time He would bring forth fruit on its behalf. He would do so from a tree, the cross…the fruit of perfect love and obedience. What more could He do for His vineyard? He did it by dying. We are God’s pleasant planting, His church, His precious vineyard. This vineyard will never be destroyed but come to its fullness on the last day. He has joined us to Himself, the Tree of Life. In His church He does His gardening, pruning, planting, and watering. May we be fruitful in joyful love and obedience in and through Him. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. O God, you are my God;  earnestly I seek you;  my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you,  as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,  beholding your power and glory. Because your steadfast love is better than life,  my lips will praise you. For you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy. My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me. (Psalm 63:1-3,7,9)-Pastor Preston Paul is pastor at St. Matthew Lutheran Church, Almena, WI.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 8, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 21:33-46Daily Lectionary: Nehemiah 4:7-23, 1 Timothy 3:1-16But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and have his inheritance.’  And they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. (Matthew 21:38, 39)In the Name of Jesus, Amen. The master of the house who planted the vineyard is God. The vineyard is Israel, God’s people. The tenants of the vineyard are the religious leaders. The servants sent to gather the fruit of the vineyard are the prophets sent by God to preach and teach God’s Word. The son sent by the master of house is Jesus, the only begotten Son of God. The parable was a direct and clear condemnation of the elders of the people and the chief priests. Jesus was pointing a finger directly at them, “you have done this!” God’s Word from the mouth of God Himself condemned them. There was no wiggle room for these leaders. They and all who heard knew what Jesus meant. They should have repented. But rather they bound themselves in their sin and hardness of heart and desired Jesus dead. Perhaps, some by God’s mercy later, after Jesus' death and resurrection, saw clearly, repented and believed with Jesus’ parable still burning on their hearts and minds.Leaders of God’s people, then and now, are always in grave danger of forgetting to whom the vineyard belongs. The church is always in need of faithful pastors, of tenants, to care for God’s people according to His Word and will. Unfaithfulness in preaching and teaching mutes the voice of the Apostles, those sent by God, effectively killing them and throwing them out of the church. Jesus’ parable serves as a reminder to pray for faithful pastors who hold tightly to the Word of God. “Ask the Lord of the harvest to send out workers...” (Matthew 9:38). Pray daily for your own pastor. Pray that pastors would always remember whose vineyard it is in which they work. They serve in the stead and by the command of Jesus for your salvation. Pray that the lay leaders of your congregation would support faithful ministers as they serve God’s people. It is the Lord’s vineyard, His people, for whom He sent His Son to die.You, and all believers, are the fruit of God’s vineyard. His fruit brought forth through Baptism and faithful preaching and nurtured in the Holy Communion.  In the Name of Jesus, Amen.You brought a vine out of Egypt;   … and planted it.  Look down from heaven, and see;    have regard for this vine,   the stock that your right hand planted… Let your face shine, that we    may be saved! (Psalm 80:8,14b, 15a, 19b)-Pastor Preston Paul is pastor at St. Matthew Lutheran Church, Almena, WI.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 7, 2023Today's Reading: Introit to Pentecost 19: Psalm 118:22-24, antiphon Psalm 118:1Daily Lectionary: Nehemiah 2:11-20, 4:1-6, 1 Timothy 2:1-15This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. (Psalm 118:24)In the Name of Jesus, Amen. You are a child of the day. Day is for light; for seeing clearly. You are not a child of any ordinary day but of an extraordinary day; a day coming since the creation of the world. A day set by God. A day that has come. The psalmist speaks of this day…“that the Lord has made.” (Psalm 118:24)We are talking about a specific day in history that God made. We have reason to rejoice and be glad every day because of this day, one far greater than any other. It is the day the rejected stone became the cornerstone. You are a child of that day. A day full of light and life.The Temple was built with enormous stones. The cornerstone was selected to join two walls together. The psalmist is not speaking of an earthly building or stones. He is speaking of Jesus. He is the stone that was rejected by His own people according to God’s will and design. Jesus came to build something far greater than the Temple. He came to build His church of which He is the cornerstone. The church which is the household of God filled with the children of the day. The day that stone was laid in place for His church is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day of which we speak. A day of resurrection and light. Jesus was rejected. The religious leaders with the crowd cried, “crucify him.” He had done nothing deserving such rejection. Yet, He was not only rejected by His people but also by His Father. He was stricken, smitten, afflicted and forsaken by God. Rejected. Crucified. Buried. But let us get to the day, to the light that scatters the darkness… Resurrection Day. The day the stone was rolled away. The day the crucified Jesus rose, laying an everlasting foundation for His Church. He who was laid stone cold dead in the tomb, sealed by a stone, is our resurrection cornerstone. The Cornerstone who joins all the children of the day to Himself and to each other. We are children of that day, the day of Resurrection. A day the Lord has made for rejoicing and gladness. You became a child of that day, your Resurrection day, in Baptism. In Jesus, our resurrected Lord, we see clearly, as in the day, what God has done…it is marvelous in our eyes. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.Open to me the gates of righteousness,  that I may enter through them and give thanks to the Lord. I thank you that you have answered me and have become my salvation. You are my God, and I will give thanks to you; you are my God; I will extol you. (Psalm 118:19, 21, 28)-Pastor Preston Paul is pastor at St. Matthew Lutheran Church, Almena, WI.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 6, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Nehemiah 1:1-2:10, 1 Timothy 1:1-20The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners… (1 Timothy 1:15)In the Name of Jesus, Amen. In Jesus, God saves sinners. Jesus is God. All things were created through Him. Jesus is fully man. He became enfleshed in the womb of the Virgin Mary. Jesus became a sinner. He claimed your sins as His very own. They stuck to Jesus, the God Man. You hear the voice of Jesus, the sinner, in the Psalms calling your sins His. Jesus prayed, “I acknowledged my sin.” The Psalms are the Lord’s prayers given to the baptized, prayers by the sinless Son of God as sinner. God made Him who was sinless to be sin in your place. In Jesus, God saves sinners. Jesus needed saving. He became the foremost of sinners. Only He as God could save Himself. Only He could die for the sins that had become fully His. In the ignorance of unbelief those surrounding the cross unwittingly suggested He do that very thing…save Himself. “Save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross” (Matthew 27:40). “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” (Luke 23:3) And He did just that, save Himself and us. By dying in the flesh, made to be sin, as God, sin lost all its power. In Jesus sin died. By saving Himself as sinner in our place He fulfilled His Father’s will to save sinners. In Jesus, God saves sinners. Jesus wasn’t about saving Himself, clearly. He was all about saving you. This was His Father’s will. You can’t save yourself from sin. Jesus did the saving by dying. He rescued you. It is a trustworthy confession that Jesus came into the flesh to save sinners. This is the theme of the entire Bible. He did not come as a lawgiver to beat you down into despair and submission. He came as Savior. He came for all sinners. And that includes you! In Jesus, God saves sinners. It is a sin to doubt what God has said He has done and will do. It is sin to think in your heart that God can’t forgive and save you. He forgives your doubts as well. Those doubts were on Him at the cross. They died. Faith, God given faith, firmly planted in you, believes, clings, trusts and accepts that Jesus is the Savior of sinners. You may not always feel that way, but it is true, nonetheless. God said so. In Jesus, God saves sinners. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.I acknowledged my sin to you,    and I did not cover my iniquity;I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,”    and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised,     and I am saved from my enemies. (Psalm 32:5; 18:3)-Pastor Preston Paul is pastor at St. Matthew Lutheran Church, Almena, WI.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 5, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: 2 Chronicles 36:1-23, Colossians 4:1-18Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. (Colossians 4:5-6)In the Name of Jesus. Amen. Are you a preacher or a hearer? If you are a preacher, as you well know, you must also count yourself a hearer. What does the preacher preach? The mystery of Christ, the Word of God (both Law and Gospel), repentance and Christ crucified for sinners, the forgiveness of sins. What does the hearer hear? All of the above, the clear Word that flows from the faithful preacher’s open mouth…the splendid mystery of Christ revealed, the forgiveness of sins. Who do the hearers receive from the preacher? They receive Jesus. All of Him. What great gift God has given to His Church for you. He opens heaven to you through the preaching of God’s ordained ministers. This is a joyful mystery of God’s working in us and among us. So, we give thanks and pray for the preachers that He would open doors for the Word to be declared in all its clarity and power. Hearers (that’s all of us) live as such…hearers of the Word, wherever you may find yourself. “Walk in wisdom” is another way to say the same thing. Hearers walk in and with Jesus. The baptized, who are the hearers of the Word, are baptized into Christ. Jesus is the wisdom of God who dwells in you, and you in Him. “Walk in wisdom” … walk in Jesus. Christian speech, by which I mean how we speak in all of life’s situations, begins with preachers putting Jesus into our ears. How we speak to those within the household of God, fellow believers, and “outsiders” matters…it matters a lot. Gracious words are words that don’t betray your hearing, and expose you to be a hypocrite…hearing one thing and speaking another. Gracious words reveal Christ in you to those who hear you. Speech “seasoned with salt” is not laced with profanity, gossip and animosity. Christian speech is not argumentative. Gracious speech is seasoned with kindness, sincerity and truth. Gracious speech is a mark of hearers living under God’s grace. “Grace be with you,” that you may be gracious. “Grace be with you,” St. Paul’s final word to you today, a good final word, for God’s grace is His eternal kind and merciful favor towards you that you hear in the preaching of Christ crucified. In the Name of Jesus. Amen.Let not those who hope in you be put to shame through me,  O Lord God of hosts;let not those who seek you be brought to dishonor through me.   O God of Israel.My prayer is to you, O LORD. In the abundance of your steadfast love  answer me in your saving faithfulness. (Psalm 69:6,13)-Pastor Preston Paul is pastor at St. Matthew Lutheran Church, Almena, WI.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 4, 2023Today's Reading: Luther's Small Catechism, The Lord's Prayer: ConclusionDaily Lectionary: 2 Chronicles 35:1-7, 16-25, Colossians 3:1-25For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.In the name of Jesus, Amen. Thine means yours. Let’s be clear. Thine doesn’t mean “mine.” Thine is a form of Thy before a word beginning with a vowel. Daring to be Lutheran is to boldly give all the glory to God in our praise, forever. We don’t get any glory apart from Jesus. Without Jesus we have no power. Without His death and resurrection we have no kingdom to call ours. It is His kingdom to reign. It always has been. And will be forever… yes, yes…this is so.We call Him our Father because He gave His Son into death for us. The only power to save is through the Son’s death and resurrection. Without the Son’s saving work there is no forever and ever for us. No glory, no kingdom, nothing good for you to call “mine.” It seems pretty obvious, doesn’t it? That the kingdom, power and glory are all His? But not so obvious to the world…and our sinful nature. The world is not going to acknowledge that anything truly belongs to God. Our sinful nature wants it all for itself. All of it…the kingdom, the power and the glory. By our sin we claim it all as “mine,” not “thine.” In this life we dwell in a kingdom fiercely opposed to God’s kingdom. Satan is the prince of this world. This world is presently his kingdom. We pray in the Lord’s Prayer that God would protect and guard us from the devil’s evil reign which surrounds us. God’s Word empowers us to live godly lives under this tyrannical rule. So, we pray… “Thy kingdom come!” Your kingdom, as an heir with Jesus, prepared for you.God alone has the power to create and recreate. “The whole world lies under the power of the evil one… [but] we are from God” (1 John 5:19) The power of sin is death. Death has no power over us who have been baptized into the death and resurrection of Jesus. God’s saving power, secured in Jesus crucified, is for you, your power over sin, death and the devil.The glory of the Father, simply put, is Jesus. Jesus is the glory of the Father because He took on visible flesh and died on the cross. When you see Jesus, you see God’s glory. Jesus is God in flesh forever and ever. He is your Savior Jesus, your glory for all eternity. Because of Jesus, your Baptism into Him, the kingdom, the power and the glory of the Father are all yours. Fully and completely, all freely. Go ahead, call what is His, your very own. Now and forever. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.The LORD is great in Zion;  he is exalted over all the peoples.Let them praise your great and awesome name!  Holy is he! (Psalm 99:2-3) -Pastor Preston Paul is pastor at St. Matthew Lutheran Church, Almena, WI.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 3, 2023Today's Reading: Philippians 2:1-18Daily Lectionary: 2 Chronicles 34:1-4, 8-11, 14-33, Colossians 2:8-23Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves which is yours in Christ Jesus... (Philippians 2:4,5)In the Name of Jesus, Amen. There is only one God, the Holy Spirit. This Spirit is one with the Father and the Son. When you were baptized the Spirit of God was poured out upon you. The Holy Spirit dwells in you. By baptism you were made one with God; Christ in you, and you in Christ. Your life is in Him and He lives and reigns in you. What joyful oneness and unity you have with God who delights in YOU. I am sure you know that your congregation is not perfect. Perhaps you have seen members argue or even yell at each other. Maybe your pastor lost his temper and said something that shouldn’t have been said. The people of Israel and their leaders were much like our congregations. Now, as then, God’s people sinfully grumble and argue in ways that are not right and God pleasing. This ought not be. Sinful pride and self-centeredness can tear congregations apart. The devil works hard to cause conceit and selfish ambition in God’s people in order to destroy Christian fellowship and unity. Satan does not want peace and joy in Christ among and in God’s people.Do you have the mind of Christ? Do you think like Jesus? Do you desire what God desires? That is, do you love God above all things and your neighbor as yourself? Do you love Jesus? Do you believe He died for you? To have the mind of Christ is to love God and your neighbor, that is, especially and most importantly, your brothers and sisters in Christ in your congregation. This is not easy to do as sinners. You are one with God in Christ. This is a great mystery. It is equally true that all your brothers and sisters in your congregation share the same oneness with Jesus as you do. Jesus is the perfect brother that put Himself last for you and for them. In Him was no selfish ambition or conceit. He loves you and them and considers us all of far more worth than His own life. He gave His life for you and them. What joy! The same Spirit of life dwells in all of God’s people in your congregation. This is hard to remember and to put into practice. But through God’s Word, prayer and the Holy Spirit we can live in great joy, peace and unity in our congregations!  In the Name of Jesus, Amen.Pray for the peace of Jerusalem!  “May they be secure who love you! Peace be within your walls and security within your towers!” For my brothers and companions’ sake,  I will say, “Peace be within you!” For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,  I will seek your good.  (Psalm 122:6-9)-Pastor Preston Paul is pastor at St. Matthew Lutheran Church, Almena, WI.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 2, 2023Today's Reading: Ezekiel 18:1-4, 25-32Daily Lectionary: 2 Chronicles 33:1-25, Colossians 1:24-2:7For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord God; so turn, and live. (Ezekiel 18:32)In the name of Jesus, Amen. It’s not my fault! I didn’t do anything wrong! Why do I have to pay the price for what someone else did? This is what the people of Israel meant when they quoted the proverb: “The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge?” It was passing the blame onto their ancestors for their suffering, playing the victim card. The people of Israel suffered great affliction. Yes, the sins of their fathers didn’t help.  But neither did they in their own sin and unbelief.  We too would cry out to God and complain, blaming others and God as they did. Christians daily do all of the above, cry out, complain and blame God. It is okay to cry out to God and complain, but not to blame him. Such prayer is very good when it is done in faith, love and trust in God. Our crying out and complaining get muddled with our sinful hearts and minds. And God sometimes, through His Word, speaks sternly and directly to us in our sin as a loving father, as He did for the people of Israel. Our prayers often are self-centered. God sorts that all out, our sin and faith that is, through His Word and Holy Spirit. That is one purpose of prayer; getting things sorted and cleared-up in our hearts and minds.  So, we pray “with all boldness and confidence…as dear children ask their dear father.” God doesn’t mind the “why me” prayers at all. Because he hears and answers according to His good, right and merciful will. It is good to ask God why and seek the answers in prayer and His Word.All people, including those who have caused suffering in our lives, will be held accountable before God and judged. We cannot fully know now the reason for affliction that God permits. But we do know that He uses suffering for the purpose of saving sinners. God is always about giving life over death in Jesus. Through suffering, His Word, prayer and the Holy Spirit, God turns us from our human thinking and ignorance. He draws us to Himself so that we can see clearly that Jesus suffered and died in our place. We will stand fully alive before God on the last day as forgiven and cherished sons and daughters with Jesus. In the name of Jesus, Amen.Turn to me and be gracious to me,   for I am lonely and afflicted. The troubles of my heart are enlarged;    bring me out of my distresses. Consider my affliction and my trouble,    and forgive all my sins.  (Psalm 25:16-18)-Pastor Preston Paul is pastor at St. Matthew Lutheran Church, Almena, WI.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

October 1, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 21:23-32Daily Lectionary: 2 Chronicles 32:1-22, Colossians 1:1-23For John came to you in the way of righteousness…the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him. (Matthew 21:32a)In the name of Jesus, Amen. Authority is the right to do or say something within your vocations. Humans have no true authority unless it is given to them. All authority in heaven and earth belongs to God. God was not given dominion and power over heaven and earth; it is His by right as God and Creator. Authority is God’s alone to give. Parents have authority to parent from God. Pastor’s have authority from God through the Christian congregation. The chief priests and elders of the people taught that all authority comes from God. So, they questioned Jesus, “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” We cannot look into their hearts like Jesus, but their question was also motivated by pride and jealousy. The religious leaders often acted as if their authority was their own not from God. John the Baptist’s authority to say and do what he did, as the forerunner of Jesus, was from God. God’s Word bestowed to John the divine right to preach and baptize. Jesus’ question to the chief priests and elders was to call them to repentance and to search the scriptures about John and Himself. Sadly, instead of searching the authoritative scriptures they discussed Jesus’ question among themselves. In themselves they would not discover the truth of John’s baptism, that it was from God, nor see and believe that Jesus was God in the flesh.The son who repented (changed his mind) is the one who did the father’s will. The chief priests and the elders prided themselves in doing God’s will in their words and works. However, they refused the work of faith, believing that Jesus is the Christ, the Lamb of God who came to take away the sin of the world. Faith is God’s work within us. Repentance is also God’s work within us. Faith and repentance are the work of the Holy Spirit through the Word of God. John preached the righteousness of Jesus; that Jesus would take our sins and give His life in our place. John called sinners to repentance and faith in Jesus. Sinners who gladly heard this preaching and were baptized were made sons of the kingdom of God!Through the authority of God’s Word and Baptism, faith and repentance have been worked in you. The kingdom of God is yours! You are the first son with Jesus. Through Him you have done the Father’s will. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. Create in me a clean heart, O God      and renew a right spirit within me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation     and uphold me with a willing spirit. (Psalm 51:10, 12)-Pastor Preston Paul is pastor at St. Matthew Lutheran Church, Almena, WI.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 30, 2023Today's Reading: Introit to Pentecost 18: Psalm 147:1-5; antiphon Psalm 147:6Daily Lectionary: 2 Chronicles 31:1-21, Philippians 4:1-23He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. (Psalm 147:3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When we lived in Corpus Christi, one of our unique experiences was learning what happens when a category 5 hurricane blows through the area. Corpus Christi itself didn’t receive as much water damage from Harvey as Houston or as much wind damage as a dozen towns that were just up the coast from us. But for the next two years, our congregation was a base camp for volunteers from all around the country—they came to help tear out water damage, repair sheetrock,  install flooring—they even replaced a few roofs! We had almost a thousand volunteers who came and stayed at our church. I led devotions each morning for the volunteers before they went to work. One of the verses that became a “theme verse” for us was Psalm 147:3, that God heals the broken-hearted and binds up their wounds. I came to love this verse because of all the broken-hearted folks I met along the way. Some folks had lost everything in the storm, and I certainly had no words on my own that would have fixed anything. But God did. I’ll never forget the looks on some of the homeowners’ faces when our teams showed up to help. When we got there, they looked hopeless, like the task in front of them was more than they’d ever be able to handle. But these folks who showed up to help…showed up. And when they came, they didn’t expect any thanks or recognition. One homeowner couldn’t stop thanking a volunteer to the point that the volunteer was having a hard time getting his work done. He almost didn’t know how to respond…You’re welcome, don’t mention it, it’s my pleasure—he tried everything…until it dawned on him. This thanks shouldn’t have been directed toward him at all. “Could I pray with you?” he asked. In his prayer, he asked God to draw near to his new friend. He thanked God that He had brought this group to this house on this day. And He asked God to continue to show the folks in that area His mercy through the work that was being done to rebuild what had been broken by the storm. Some of the acts of God described in Psalm 147 are incredible, like determining the number of the stars…others may seem less impressive, like lifting up the humble…but for the one who has been lifted up, it’s the greatest thing they could ever ask of God. In  the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Voices raised to You we offer; tune them, God, for songs of praise. Hearts and hands we bring in tribute for Your gifts through all our days. Alleluia! Alleluia! Triune God, to You we sing! How can any praise we offer measure all the thanks we owe? Take our hearts and hands and voices–Gifts of love we can bestow. Alleluia! Alleluia! Triune God, to You we sing! Amen. (LSB 795:1)-Pastor Dustin Beck is pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Corpus Christi, Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 29, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 18:1-11Daily Lectionary: 2 Chronicles 29:1-24, Philippians 3:1-21“See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 18:10)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When I was younger (like, during the 1900s), there was this movie that came out called Angels in the Outfield. I don’t remember all of the details of the movie, but I do remember thinking, even as a kid, how unusual the premise was that there would be angels whose ministry was to help a Major League Baseball team win. (Also, I think that may technically be cheating.) Helping sports teams is NOT what God created angels to do. Angels show up here and there throughout scripture; sometimes, we see them singing praises to God; other times, they deliver God’s messages (the Greek word for “angel” means “messenger”); in a few places, we hear about angel battles…and in Matthew 18, our text today, Jesus talks about little children and “their” angels who always see the face of Jesus’ Father in heaven. “Their” angels? That’s exactly what it says! This is reminiscent of Psalm 91, when God promises to “command His angels, concerning YOU to guard you in all your ways.” God’s angels are certainly messengers; they delight in praising God day and night; they fight and do battle when called upon to do so; but they also protect you—likely, many times when you don’t even know it! In the same way that our churches don’t pray to saints, we don’t pray to angels. But Luther, in his Small Catechism, suggests that angels should at least be on our mind. In his morning and evening prayers, Luther concludes with these words: “Let your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.” God has promised that His angels will be with us, working behind the scenes to frustrate the plans of the devil wherever he would snatch the certainty we have in Christ. As we said in yesterday’s devotion on Revelation 12, Michael led God’s angels in battle against the devil; casting him out of heaven. Christ, by His blood and death, resurrection and ascension into heaven, has conquered…and your angel who sees God’s face, watches over you now and always! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Everlasting God, You have ordained and constituted the service of angels and men in a wonderful order. Mercifully grant that, as You holy angels always serve and worship You in heaven, so by Your appointment they may also help and defend us here on earth; through Your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Dustin Beck is pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Corpus Christi, Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 28, 2023Today's Reading: Revelation 12:7-12Daily Lectionary: 2 Kings 9:1-13, 10:18-29, Philippians 2:12-30And they conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.”(Revelation 12:11)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When was the last time you read the book of Revelation? I teach Religion at a Lutheran High School, and this past Spring, our final unit was on Revelation. There were a few students who were nervous about that part of the class. I’ll tell you what I told them. In Revelation, Jesus wins. In fact, by His death and resurrection, He already has. There are scary things that will happen between His ascension and return, but those will happen whether or not you read Revelation. And if you study Revelation, you’ll see the beautiful comfort that Jesus revealed to John, so that he could share it with the church who faced persecution in the late first century.That being said, look at today’s text! There’s a battle. All out warfare in which an angel named Michael commands an army of angels to fight against the dragon, that ancient serpent, called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the world. And the good guys win. But then, we’re re-introduced to a theme that showed up near the beginning of Revelation: conquering. That was the title Jesus used to describe the faithful in chapters 2-3, the letters to the seven churches. In each letter, the “one who conquers” would receive some share in Jesus’ life. But what is conquering? It doesn’t necessarily mean living a successful, wealth-filled, happy life right here and now. Remember that Revelation was written to the church as she patiently endured persecution at the hands of the Romans. According to Revelation 12:11, conquering has very little to do with winning, at least in the way we usually think about winning. Instead, God’s people conquer and overcome the devil by the blood of the Lamb—by Jesus’ blood that covers every sin the devil could have hurled at them—and by the words of their testimony. That word, “testimony,” is the same Greek word we translate “martyr.” You and I are more than conquerors through Him Who loves us and gave Himself for us—even if we are called to testify of His love by the shedding of our blood. If suffering—or even death—is the worst that we may suffer, Christ is still risen, and our lives are in Him. Death (and the devil) have nothing over us! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Long on earth the battle rages, since the serpent’s first deceit; twisted God’s command to Adam, made forbidden fruit look sweet. Then the curse of God was spoken: “You’ll lie crushed beneath His feet!” Jesus came, this word fulfilling, trampled Satan, death defied; bore the brunt of our temptations, on the wretched tree He died. Yet to life was raised victorious; by His life our life supplied. Amen (LSB 521:3-4)-Pastor Dustin Beck is pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Corpus Christi, Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 27, 2023Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism, The Lord’s Prayer: Seventh PetitionDaily Lectionary: 2 Kings 6:1-23, Philippians 1:21-2:11The Lord will keep you from all evil; He will keep your life. The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore. (Psalm 121:7-8)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. As we’ve walked together through the Lord’s Prayer, it has become more and more clear to me that each petition of the prayer Jesus taught us could offer more instruction than we could hope to learn in a lifetime—and the final petition is no exception. “Deliver us from evil” is all-encompassing. It’s praying “with a broad brush.” It’s bundling up everything that might afflict us in this life—sickness, temptation, persecution, doubt, plague, drought, hatred, flood, depression, death—maybe you’re thinking of something I haven’t listed…When God delivers us from evil, He delivers us from ALL of these. He rescues us from everything that can assault the body or soul. Our Father delights to hear us offer up these words because this deliverance is found solely in the cross of Christ. At the cross, we see the epitome of what evil can do. In Adam and Eve’s rebellion, they essentially told God that they wanted to be like Him—not in the image-bearing sense that He created them, but on their own terms. The full-blown rejection of God was complete when mankind nailed God’s Son to the cross. As Jesus’ hands and feet were nailed to the cross, it seemed as if God’s Kingdom would never come. As they mocked and shamed Him where He hung, the evil will of man was done. Now, the Bread of Life Himself knew hunger and thirst, and instead of daily bread, His lips touched sponge and bitter wine. He cried out, “Father, forgive them, they don’t know what they are doing,” as He met God’s righteous wrath and was Himself forsaken. On one side there hung another, not led into temptation—not mocking, not cursing. “Remember me,” was his plea—a child of paradise Christ named him. When we look at the cross of Christ, we see evil outpoured. But He went willingly. He drank the cup of judgment that we might take the cup of Salvation. When Jesus said, “It is finished,” He meant it. Evil is finished, you’ve been delivered from it. Believe it. Cling to it. Until your “last hour comes,” when we ask God to “give us a blessed end, and graciously take us from this valley of sorrow to Himself in heaven.” In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty, everlasting God, Your Son has assured forgiveness of sins and deliverance from eternal death. Strengthen us by Your Holy Spirit that our faith in Christ may increase daily and that we may hold fast to the hope that on the Last Day we shall be raised in glory to eternal life; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.-Pastor Dustin Beck is pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Corpus Christi, Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 26, 2023Today's Reading: Philippians 1:12-14, 19-30Daily Lectionary: 2 Kings 5:9-27, Philippians 1:1-20For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. (Philippians 1:21)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Paul’s faith amazes me. I wish I could say that I’d have his attitude if I found myself in his circumstances in the book of Philippians, but I don’t have that kind of confidence in myself. Paul was in prison when he wrote Philippians. Even so, the tone of Philippians is one of joy in every circumstance. The content of the letter is, at least in part, a thank you letter for their support of his ministry and for the Church at large. In our text today, he reports back to them that his imprisonment has actually served to advance the Gospel, even into the household of Caesar. And as Christians heard about Paul’s boldness to preach to his persecutors, they themselves became more bold to preach! But even in the midst of his seemingly unwavering faith, Paul admits that he’s torn. He knows that it is far better for him if he should be killed for the name of Jesus so that he could join his Lord in heaven…but there’s still work to be done. He knew that Jesus had appointed him to the task of being His apostle to the Gentiles, and Jesus would preserve his life until his work was finished. At the top, I know I made it sound like I don’t have the same confidence “in myself” that Paul seemed to have. But if you really look at our text, you’ll see that Paul’s confidence was never in himself. In Philippians 3, Paul says that he has every reason to have confidence in the works of his flesh…but he counts them all as garbage when he compares them with the “surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus [his] Lord.” (Philippians 3:8) The beautiful good news for you and for me is that we have the very same confidence that Paul did. It’s not in our own faithfulness! It’s not in our own righteousness! It’s in Christ! You have been baptized in Christ’s name; and you are united to Him. His perfect obedience is now yours. In His death, you died to sin. He is risen! So are you. The life you now live, you live it by faith in the Son of God Who loved you and gave Himself for you! (Galatians 2:20) So, right now, you can have bold confidence to say, “to live is Christ.” And whenever your death should come, you’ll know the joyful “gain” that is heaven!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord, it belongs not to my care whether I die or live; to love and serve Thee is my share, and this Thy grace must give. If life be long, I will be glad that I may long obey; if short, yet why should I be sad to soar to endless day? Amen. (LSB 757:1-2)-Pastor Dustin Beck is pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Corpus Christi, Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 25, 2023Today's Reading: Isaiah 55:6-9Daily Lectionary: 2 Kings 4:38-5:8, Ephesians 6:1-24“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways," declares the LORD. (Isaiah 55:8)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Have you ever sought a second opinion? Usually, that’s something that happens in a medical context. A doctor might suspect a particular illness or recommend a course of treatment. If the patient doesn’t like the doctor’s diagnosis/recommendation, he or she may choose to seek a second opinion from another doctor. There are times when it makes good sense to get a second opinion on something. But whose opinion should you trust? In matters that are even greater than life and death–and by that, I mean matters of eternal life–you should go to the One whose opinion actually matters…God Himself. In today’s text, there’s an invitation to “Seek the LORD while He may be found” and to “call upon Him while He is near.” People are to seek the LORD in order that we might see His ways, how they are holy and upright (unlike ours), and so that we may repent of our wicked ways and thoughts. The LORD will have compassion; He will pardon! The problem is one of perspective. It’s all too easy for us to lose perspective on what God has called good and evil. We tend to live in the moment; scratching every sinful “itch.” We try to justify our own sins by pointing out that they aren’t that bad…but what we’re really demonstrating is that we see things differently than God. He has a perfect perspective. From His vantage point over all things in creation, He can truly say that, “as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.” So the question boils down to this: whose opinion are you going to trust? There’s an added urgency to these words…When should we seek the LORD? While He may be found! When should we call upon Him? While He is near! As this was yesterday’s Old Testament lesson in worship, it makes sense for us to think of it in light of the Gospel lesson from Matthew 20. There is a time when God is calling us into His field to labor…and a time when the laborers’ wages will be doled out. There is a way in which God will generously give His laborers the fruits of their faith. But beware the temptation to grumble when God forgives the wicked and the unrighteous…and remember that God’s thoughts and His ways are higher and better than ours–for it is in His ways and thoughts that YOU are saved! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.The will of God is always best and shall be done forever; and they who trust in Him are blest; He will forsake them never. He helps indeed in time of need; He chastens with forbearing. They who depend on God, their friend, shall not be left despairing. Amen. (LSB 758:1)-Pastor Dustin Beck is pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Corpus Christi, Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 24, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 20:1-16Daily Lectionary: 2 Kings 4:8-22, 32-37, Ephesians 5:15-33“So the last will be first, and the first last.” (Matthew 20:16)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. This parable of Jesus, sometimes called the “Laborers in the Vineyard,” can be misapplied in two ways. The first is addressed in the parable itself. For longtime Christians, the actions of the master attack our idea of fairness. How could this master be so cruel to the workers who labored throughout the heat of the day?! Wouldn’t it have made sense for him to double their pay? If a day’s wage was what they were going to receive for their day’s work, shouldn’t the ones who worked an hour receive a fraction of that? The master’s kind words to the tired, grumbling servants are instructive for us: “Friend, I am doing you no wrong.” When we, like the disgruntled workers, look at the affairs of others, we play the comparison game: “What do they have that I don’t?” “What opportunities have they been given that I haven’t?” “Why them…and not me?” But the master comes into clear focus when he points back to his generosity toward the dissatisfied worker. “Didn’t we agree you’d work for a denarius? Take what belongs to you, go!...do you begrudge my generosity?” It’s as if he’s saying, “This is enough for you.” The idea of daily wages reminds me of the Fourth Petition, concerning daily bread. Remember Israel, wandering through the wilderness for forty years? God gave them daily bread. If they were greedy and took more than they needed in a day, it rotted overnight. God supplies our needs. The second misapplication of the parable is the temptation toward sloth, effectively saying, “If the reward is the same whether I’m there all day or just the final hour, why would I ever show up early?” Or, to put it another way, “Why should I spend a lifetime being a Christian, when I’ll be just as saved with a deathbed conversion?” It’s important to remember that none of us knows when our day will end–so we shouldn’t plan for things that aren’t promised…But there’s another dangerous omission in this flawed attitude: the workers don’t decide when they start working–the master does. He goes out, seeks them, and calls them into His service. He goes out all day long, gathering more and more to work in his field, but also to enjoy His rich generosity! You didn’t choose to work in the Lord’s field, you were called! This parable invites us to see less of our own desires and jealous comparisons with others–and to fix our eyes on the generosity of the Master, our Lord Jesus Christ. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord God, heavenly Father, since we cannot stand before you relying on anything we have done, help us trust in Your abiding grace and live according to Your Word; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Dustin Beck is pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Corpus Christi, Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 23, 2023Today's Reading: Introit to Pentecost 17: Psalm 116:12-13; antiphon Psalm 116:17Daily Lectionary: 2 Kings 2:19-25, 4:1-17, Ephesians 4:25-5:14What shall I render to the LORD for all His benefits to me? (Psalm 116:12)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. “How can I ever thank you?” Think of a time in your life when someone gave you some undeserved kindness. Maybe it was a gift you received or a loving act that you didn’t feel like you deserved. For some reason, in situations like this, we often feel like we need to thank the person by returning the favor. But what could we possibly do to “pay God back?” You already know the simple answer: there is nothing that we could ever do to even begin to express an appropriate level of gratitude for God’s great love and mercy. He has forgiven (and daily forgives!) all our sins for the sake of His Son, Jesus. Psalm 116 is not an attempt to pay God back or to return the favor, but to extol God’s grace through a hymn of praise. It’s a prayer of thanks for God’s always open ear to hear us when we cry out for help. It’s a recounting of the fact that even when we’re brought low, God listens to us and saves us. And it’s a Psalm that points us to God’s faithfulness in the darkest of times—even when death draws near. The psalmist proclaims, “I will call on the name of the LORD as long as I live!” (vs. 2) and although he recounts that he had been brought low to a place of stumbling, tears, and death, he still has confidence to say, “I will walk before the LORD in the land of the living.” (vs. 9) When we consider the love that Jesus has shown us through His life, death, and resurrection, we may be left asking, “How can I ever thank you?” Jesus spells it out plainly. We abide in His Word. We take up the cup of the salvation of our God. We offer Him our thanks and praise. And when we call upon His name, He does exactly what He always has done and will always do—He gives us what we don’t deserve. He gives us life and salvation. You’ll never be able to thank God enough for all that He has done for you. He knows that. That’s the beautiful thing about His grace. It’s utterly and completely free. God be praised! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Let the vineyards be fruitful, Lord, and fill to the brim our cup of blessing. Gather a harvest from the seeds that were sown, that we may be fed with the bread of life. Gather the hopes and the dreams of all; unite them with the prayer we offer now. Grace our table with Your presence, and give us a foretaste of the feast to come. Amen. (LSB 955)-Pastor Dustin Beck is pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Corpus Christi, Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 22, 2023Today's Reading: Ezekiel 2:8-3:11 (OT for St. Matthew)Daily Lectionary: 2 Kings 2:1-18, Ephesians 4:1-24And He said to me, ‘Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak with My words to them." (Ezekiel 3:4)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. How do you feel about public speaking? A hasty search on “the Google”  informed me that 77% of people have some level of anxiety about speaking in front of a group of people. Statistically speaking, the odds are that you’re in that crowd. But here’s a question to consider: does the anxiety that accompanies such speaking fluctuate based on the audience? If you’re surrounded by your peers, is it easier to find your voice than if you were in a room filled with folks you don’t know? What if the room is filled with experts in the field that you’re discussing? I’m sorry if I just got your heart rate up. Ezekiel was called by God to preach to the house of Israel. His calling was peculiar, in that God gave him a scroll and instructed him…to eat it! God literally placed His Word into Ezekiel’s mouth. The words are sweet in his mouth, likely as a reminder that God’s Word is always good and right. It’s helpful to remember that when you see what was written on the scroll. There was writing on the front and on the back–words of lamentation, mourning, and woe. I imagine any degree of comfort that Ezekiel had when he learned that his audience was going to be his own people melted away when he saw the words that God was giving him to proclaim. On the one hand, his preaching would be simple enough: the people lived where he lived and they spoke the same language he spoke, but then God broke the news to him that if He had asked him to travel to a strange land where they spoke a foreign language, they would’ve listened to him. Israel wouldn’t listen. They hadn’t listened to God up to this point, and Ezekiel’s charge was to preach to spiritually deaf ears, hard foreheads, and stubborn hearts. Why? Because God is stubborn in the very best way. He is patient with His people. He will send prophet after prophet to call them to repentance. They’ll be carried off into exile and Ezekiel will go and tell them that God will raise up a New Temple, a New Israel, even a New Creation. In short, Ezekiel preached Christ to a people who had forgotten that God is their salvation!   In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord God, bless Your Word wherever it is proclaimed. Make it a word of power and peace to convert those not yet Your own and to confirm those who have come to saving faith. May Your Word pass from the ear to the heart, from the heart to the lip, and from the lip to the life that, as You have promised, Your Word may achieve the purpose for which You send it; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.-Pastor Dustin Beck is pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Corpus Christi, Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 21, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 9:9-13Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 19:1-21, Ephesians 3:1-21As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and He said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And he rose and followed Him.” (Matthew 9:9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Jesus came for sinners...God be praised! That means that He came for you and for me. And He came for Matthew, too. Matthew, also known as Levi, must’ve lived a conflicted life up until the day he learned that Jesus came for him. The name Matthew means “gift of the LORD,” but when he came around, the people experienced less of a gift of the LORD, and more of a tax burden of the Roman Empire. The name Levi brings to mind service in the LORD’s Temple and the tribe of Moses, Aaron, and the entire priesthood of Israel. But Matthew Levi’s life, to that point, was certainly not devoted to the matters of God. Two words changed everything. “Follow me.” I’m not sure why Jesus called some to follow and sent others away. Just before today’s reading, Jesus healed the paralytic with the instructions, “Rise, pick up your bed and go home.” A few verses after today’s text, Jesus raises a young girl from the dead and heals two blind men. None of these are given the invitation to follow Him. While we certainly can’t be sure, a potential explanation may be the utter unlikeliness of a tax collector being called to leave behind his tax booth and the relative financial security that he would have enjoyed in his employ to the Roman Empire. It’s plain to see that the former paralytic, the recently-revived young girl, and the two men, once blind but now they see–each of these needed Jesus. Aside from the hatred of his kinsmen and being branded a “sinner,” Matthew very likely enjoyed a life of wealth and importance. But here’s the thing...He needed Jesus just as much as the others. The cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches are all too capable of choking out the Word. But Jesus, the Master Sower, knew exactly where a few seeds would take root and flourish into a life of faithful following, a masterful insight into Jesus’ fulfillment of the Old Testament, and a firsthand account of Jesus’ life, ministry, passion, death, and resurrection! God be praised for the hundredfold fruit of those two little words, “Follow me.”  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Son of God, our blessed Savior Jesus Christ, You called Matthew the tax collector to be an apostle and evangelist. Through his faithful and inspired witness, grant that we also may follow You, leaving behind all covetous desires and love of riches; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Dustin Beck is pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Corpus Christi, Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 20, 2023Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism, The Lord’s Prayer: Sixth PetitionDaily Lectionary: 1 Kings 18:20-40, Ephesians 2:1-22“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.” (1 Peter 5:8-9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Any time our family is traveling somewhere we’ve never been, we try to visit a zoo that we’ve never seen. There’s just something incredible about seeing God’s creation up close and in person. But while penguins, parrots, and monkeys look like they would make great pets, the lions, tigers, and bears (Oh, my!) put off a different vibe. These beasts don’t look cuddly. They have teeth and claws that look like they were designed for tearing things limb from limb. And that’s the image–a lion–that the Holy Spirit inspired Peter to put in our mind about the devil, that old evil foe, and the first tempter of mankind. I’ve always found Luther’s explanation of the Sixth Petition to be simply brilliant. From the start, he quotes James 1:13 and the simple fact that God tempts no one. “Lead us not into temptation” is a plea that God would lead us away from temptation, that He would guard and keep us out of the clutches of the “unholy trinity,” which consists of the devil, the world, and our sinful nature. These enemies wage war against us. But take note of this: their deception aims to mislead us, first and foremost, into false belief; then, despair; and, almost as an afterthought, other great shame and vice. When most people think of temptation, their minds go to shameful sins and vices first. The devil’s aim in tempting us is not primarily to make us sin. He certainly can use sins and even our conscience to mislead us into thinking that we’ve “outsinned” God’s forgiveness, or that we are so forgiven that it doesn’t matter if we sin. His target isn’t just sins or conscience, though. His aim is to corrupt our faith. After all, false belief is what damns. The devil prowls like an angry lion, all eager to devour us. But for us fights the valiant One. He cannot overpower us. Our Champion is a Lion, too, you know. John heard about Him in Revelation 5:5. He’s the Lion of the tribe of Judah, and by His death He has been declared worthy to open the scroll in God’s hand so that His plan of salvation might come to pass. God grant that our faith in Christ may be guarded and kept secure. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, You justify the ungodly and desire not the death of the sinner. Graciously assist us by Your heavenly aid and evermore shield us with Your protection, that no temptation may separate us from Your love in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.-Pastor Dustin Beck is pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Corpus Christi, Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 19, 2023Today's Reading: Romans 14:1-12Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 18:1-19, Ephesians 1:1-23For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. (Romans 14:7-8)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In 1 Corinthians 6 and 7, Paul says, “You were bought with a price.” There is tremendous comfort in the knowledge that “we are the Lord’s.” As the Catechism teaches, Christ “purchased and won [us] from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil; not with gold or silver, but with His holy, precious blood and with His innocent suffering and death, that [we] may be His own…” But what does life as God’s people look like? If that’s our question, we’re in luck. It seems like half of the New Testament was written to describe life as the people purchased and won by Christ. In our reading today, Paul is dealing with meat sacrificed to idols, observing religious days, and Christians with weak consciences. It boils down to this: don’t use your freedom in Christ to erect a stumbling block that could scandalize your brother or sister in Christ. In 1 Corinthians 8, Paul deals with the issue in more detail. He basically says that, even if we know that idols aren’t real (since there’s only one God), we ought to pay attention to our neighbor in Christ, who may not understand that idols have no power, and if we participate in eating food that was sacrificed to an idol, their conscience may be defiled and throw them into confusion or despair.A similar situation might arise today around a Christian’s participation in Halloween. If a new Christian only knows Halloween to be the commercial holiday that seems focused on the occult, you could understand their reluctance to allow their kids to dress up and beg for candy…The important reminder Paul gives us in Romans 14 is that our lives are not our own; and we’re charged to live these lives–created by God, redeemed by Christ, and being sanctified by the Holy Spirit–with that in mind. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.No saint on earth lives life to self alone or dies alone, for we with Christ are one. So if we live, for Christ alone we live, and if we die, to Christ our dying give. In living and in dying this confess: We are the Lord’s safe in God’s faithfulness. For to this end our Lord by death was slain, that to new life He might arise again. Through sorrow on to triumph Christ has led, and reigns o’er all: the living and the dead. In living and in dying, Him we bless; we are the Lord’s, safe in God’s faithfulness. Amen. (LSB 747)-Pastor Dustin Beck is pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Corpus Christi, Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 18, 2023Today's Reading: Genesis 50:15-21Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 16:29-17:24, 2 Corinthians 9:1-15“As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.” (Genesis 50:20)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Do you remember the account of Joseph? I think Joseph’s life is one that most of us remember pretty well. His father’s favorite son (out of twelve!); his colorful robe; the brothers’ conspiracy to kill him or to leave him in a pit…but ultimately they sell him into slavery; the incident with Potiphar’s wife by which he wound up in prison; the dreams of the cupholder and the baker; the dreams of Pharaoh; and Joseph’s exaltation to the place at Pharaoh’s right hand, where his brothers showed up, bowing down to him and begging to buy grain. I think his life is so memorable because it’s such a rollercoaster. He experiences highs and lows that may be hard for us to even imagine. But our text today comes near the end of the account of Joseph’s life, and having endured being brought low and having enjoyed abounding, he speaks as a man who has perspective. He looks back on the evils that his brothers perpetrated against him, the years that he languished in a jail cell, and he sees how God used the terrible evils of mankind to ultimately bring about his good purposes. When we endure difficult times, it can be hard to find the good purposes of God at work. But Joseph is a “type” of Jesus (a type is like prophecy, but instead of a message, a type is a person, place, event, etc.) When we see Joseph arrayed in the splendor of his father’s affection, it is reminiscent of Jesus’ Transfiguration, when Jesus is adorned in heavenly bright robes and the Father’s voice proclaims Jesus His beloved Son. When Joseph is  forsaken and sold by his brothers, we do well to remember the 30 pieces of silver Judas exchanged for his brother and Lord, Jesus. When Joseph languishes in prison, even though he was innocent, our hearts are drawn to Jesus’ time in the custody of the soldiers who beat, mocked, and scourged Him. But Jesus, in similar fashion to Joseph, is also exalted. When God is at work, crosses give way to empty tombs! When the Son of God’s life slips away on a Friday afternoon, He’ll have all authority in heaven and on earth by Sunday morning! We don’t always see things with the perspective of God’s good purposes (sometimes hiding behind the wicked intentions of men), but we see Christ with the eyes of faith. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.The will of God is always best and shall be done forever; and they who trust in Him are blest; He will forsake them never. He helps in deed in time of need; He chastens with forbearing. They who depend on God, their friend, shall not be left despairing. (LSB 758:1)-Pastor Dustin Beck is pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Corpus Christi, Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 17, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 18:21-35Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 12:20-13:5, 33-34, 2 Corinthians 8:1-24“Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants.” (Matthew 18:23)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Many of our readers are students, so the next thing I write may not be as applicable to you as the rest of the devotion–I hope it startles you a bit. In the year 2023, American citizens owe a total of $986 billion to credit card companies (for perspective, that looks like $986,000,000,000 when you write it out!) That is an unfathomable amount of money that has been borrowed and is now owed to banks…with interest. In Jesus’ parable of the unforgiving servant, we see a figure that is just as shocking. Ten thousand talents is equal to about 60 million denarii (a denarius was the daily wage for a day laborer)...in other words, the servant owed his master a little over 164,000 YEARS’ worth of work. How could he have possibly wound up in that kind of debt?! Well, you and I both know that’s not the point of Jesus’ parable. The master graciously canceled his debt! I can’t imagine how the servant must have walked away from that encounter–his burden removed, he was FREE from that crushing weight of debt…until he saw a fellow servant who owed him  a couple months’ worth of income. That’s not the astronomical amount he had owed the master, but it’s also not nothing. Suddenly, the shoe was on the other foot. The man whose balance had swung from about as negative as is possible to breaking even found himself in control; he had a little power–and he completely missed the point of the master’s forgiveness. That’s what this parable is really about, after all. The master forgave sins beyond number with the desire that his servant, who had now become his friend, would go and do likewise! Instead, he took the master’s forgiveness for granted and held his neighbor’s debt against him. How often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? The answer’s not seven. It’s also not five-hundred-thirty-nine (seven times seventy-seven.) It’s more like a calculus problem where “the limit does not exist.” Dear reader, you’re forgiven for the sake of Jesus’ innocent blood, spilled on the cross where He died to pay the debt your sins incurred. He died for your neighbors’ sins, too! If we ever think that someone has outsinned our forgiveness, God grant that we remember, in that very hour, the countless sins God has forgiven us when He called us friends–and we would likewise befriend our neighbor. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, our refuge and strength, the author of all godliness, hear the devout prayers of Your Church, especially in times of persecution, and grant that what we ask in faith we may obtain; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Dustin Beck is pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Corpus Christi, Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 16, 2023Today's Reading: Introit to Pentecost 16: Psalm 143:1-2; antiphon: Psalm 143:9Deliver me from my enemies, O Yahweh! I have fled to you for refuge! (Psalm 143:9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In Psalm 143, David is praying for refuge from his enemies and rest. Whether he is thinking of Saul, or the other sons of Solomon, or any number of other enemies, he is being pursued, and he finds only darkness and weariness. But behind those earthly enemies is God. If God enters into judgment with David, he will not survive, because no one living is righteous before Him (143:2). Everything depends on whether God is for you or against you. Even if you have no earthly enemies, if God is against you, what does it matter? On the other hand, even if everyone in the world is against you, what does it matter, if God is for you? “Do not enter into judgment with Your servant, because there is not a righteous one before You of all the living.” If God is going to answer us, we need Him to answer us according to His righteousness, not ours. Of all the living, there is no one righteous–except the Man who is also the living God. He alone is righteous, and God enters into judgment against Him on the cross. Because His righteous one faced the judgment of sin and death, God will not enter into judgment against you.   In the Presence of the only one whose judgment matters, we flee to Him in the flesh of Jesus for refuge. In Him we will find rest from our enemies: He is the one who conquered our sin, which threatens to bring us under God’s condemning judgment, and He is the one who conquered death, which is behind the threat of every enemy. Blessed is the one who takes refuge in Him! Blessed is the one who finds refuge in the promises of God, in the baptismal name, in the absolution, in the body and blood that we eat with the bread and wine. In all of these means, God assures us that He delivers us from all our enemies, even our own sinful flesh. On every Lord’s Day, we flee to Him for refuge. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.From depths of woe I cry to Thee,  In trial and tribulation;  Bend down Thy gracious ear to me,  Lord, hear my supplication, If Thou rememb’rest every sin, Who then could heaven ever win  Or stand before Your presence?Though great our sins, yet greater still  Is God’s abundant favor;  His hand of mercy never will  Abandon us, nor waver.  Our shepherd good and true is He,  Who will at last His Israel free  From all their sin and sorrow” (LSB 607:1, 5).- Pastor Timothy Winterstein is pastor at Faith Lutheran Church, East Wenatchee, Washington.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 15, 2023Today's Reading: 2 Corinthians 6:1-18Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 11:1-26, 2 Corinthians 6:1-18Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation (2 Corinthians 6:2)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. “Do not receive the grace of God in vain,” which means to receive God’s grace to no purpose, for emptiness, or as if it were worthless. Paul’s exhortation to the Corinthians is based on this fact: whatever their problems, whatever their sins, whatever their conflicts, they have received the grace of God. God has not kept it from them. Paul is citing a promise given to the people of Israel through the prophet Isaiah, that God would restore them after their exile. He would send a servant as a light for both Israel and the nations (Gentiles) (Isaiah 49:6, 8). To receive God’s grace in vain would be to plaster it as an excuse over our sin and rejection of God’s will. This is what Solomon did in 1 Kings 11, when he made room for the idols of the nations, which came into Israel through his many wives and concubines. And Paul touches on the same point in 2 Corinthians 6:14-18, when he emphasizes that every baptized Christian has been set aside, taken out of the kingdom of this world’s darkness, and put into Christ’s kingdom of light. The actions of the Corinthians often show that they are more closely tied to the world than to Christ. Of course, we are no different. We, too, are often conformed to the ways of the world, rather than transformed by the renewal of our minds in Christ. This is where Luther’s morning and evening prayers can be so helpful for the daily living of our life in Christ: in the morning, remind yourself with the sign of Christ’s holy cross that you are baptized, no matter what happens today; thankful that the Lord has kept us this past night, we pray that He would keep us today from all sin and evil. Then, when we come to the end of the day, we give thanks that He has brought us through the day; we ask Christ’s forgiveness for what we have done wrong, and we make the sign of Christ’s cross to remind ourselves that no matter what happened today, we belong to Jesus. Every single day is the favorable time when God calls us back to our baptism; every day is the day of salvation. Today is the day that God hears you cry out for His mercy. Today He helps you with His grace. Today He makes His dwelling with you, so that you are the temple of the living God! Today; and tomorrow when it is called today, and every day after that, until we see the salvation that is ours in Christ. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Today Your mercy calls us To wash away our sin./However great our trespass,  Whatever we have been,  However long from mercy  Our hearts have turned away,  Your precious blood can was us/And make us clean today” (LSB 915:1).- Pastor Timothy Winterstein is pastor at Faith Lutheran Church, East Wenatchee, Washington.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 14, 2023Today's Reading: John 12:20-33Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 9:1-9, 10:1-13, 2 Corinthians 5:1-21"Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself." He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die. (John 12:31-33)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. “Sir, we wish to see Jesus” (John 12:21). Seeing is believing, we say. I’ll believe it when I see it. But in this age of Artificial Intelligence and Photoshop and increasingly realistic deep fakes, do we still trust what we see? Is what we see always what we get? When it comes to the world and to God, the answer is no.St. Paul encourages the Corinthians this way: “So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18). What we see is not what we get. When the Greeks tell Philip that they want to see Jesus, Jesus says, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified” (12:23). Great! They will get to see Jesus in His glory! Yes, but like this: “‘And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all to Myself.’ This He said signifying what kind of death He was about to die” (12:32-33). This is how the Son glorifies the Father, and the Father glorifies His Name (12:28). But it doesn’t look like what we might want or expect the glory of God to look like. A bloody man stretched out on a Roman cross, helpless and weak and defeated? Remember: what you see is not what you get. Because sinners turned everything in God’s creation upside-down, calling good evil and evil good, now Jesus turns it back around. In shame, death, and defeat, Jesus brings to an end sin and death in His own body. The cross is His coronation and His victory, and the resurrection proves it. The crucifix is not a sad reminder of what went wrong, until God got it right in the resurrection. It is the eternal sign of victory, because the crucified one is God, who is the Life. Because of Him, all the death and destruction we see in the world will not be the final word. The things that are seen are transient. “We adore You, O Lord, and we praise and glorify Your holy resurrection. For behold, by the wood of the cross joy has come into all the world” (Good Friday Chief Service, Adoration of Christ). In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Merciful God, Your Son, Jesus Christ, was lifted high upon the cross that He might bear the sins of the world and draw all people to Himself. Grant that we who glory in His death for our redemption may faithfully heed His call to bear the cross and follow Him, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.- Pastor Timothy Winterstein is pastor at Faith Lutheran Church, East Wenatchee, Washington.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 13, 2023Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism, the Lord's prayer: Fifth PetitionDaily Lectionary: 1 Kings 8:22-30, 46-63, 2 Corinthians 4:1-18So we too will sincerely forgive and gladly do good to those who sin against us (SC, LP, Explanation to the Fifth Petition)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Forgiveness is at the heart of the Christian Faith. No forgiveness, no Christianity. If Jesus does not take all our sins upon Himself in order to crucify them in His own body, and then deliver forgiveness to us in His resurrection life, there is no Christianity. That forgiveness is not conditional. He gives it freely, just as the master freely forgives the enormous debt owed by the servant in Matthew 18:23-27. This is what the Kingdom of Heaven is like: a master forgiving a debt that the servant could never repay, no matter how much time he had.But then that same servant goes out and uses his new-found freedom from debt to force someone else to pay him. He won’t even give the second servant some more time, although the second servant is far more likely to repay the first than the first would be to repay the master. In other words, the first servant refuses to extend the gigantic gift of the master to the second servant. Jesus concludes the parable with the words of the master: “Should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?” And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart” (Matthew 18:33-35). Why are Jesus’ words so harsh? Simply for this reason: if God’s forgiveness in Christ is not big enough to cover the sins of  those who sin against us, then it is not big enough to cover our sins. It is all or nothing with God: either His forgiveness covers every single person, or it covers no one. So how do we learn to forgive others? Only by being forgiven. Our forgiveness of others is not actually ours; it is God’s. It does not come naturally to us; we often find it difficult, or even impossible. And, in fact, it is–for us. But the entirely undeserved forgiveness that God gives us in Christ not only covers us, but it covers those who sin against us. When we forgive, we are forgiving with Christ’s forgiveness. We’re playing with house money. All for us, and all for others. Forgiveness is everything. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“Forgive our sins, Lord, we implore, That they may trouble us no more;  We, too, will gladly those forgive Who hurt us by the way they live.  Help us in our community  To serve each other willingly” (LSB 766:6).- Pastor Timothy Winterstein is pastor at Faith Lutheran Church, East Wenatchee, Washington.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 12, 2023Today's Reading: Romans 13:1-10Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 7:51-8:21, 2 Corinthians 3:1-18Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law (Romans 13:10)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We do not often think of our obedience to governing authorities (or any authorities, for that matter) in terms of love. What does obeying the law of the land have to do with love? But that’s what Paul says. Even paying taxes he calls an exercise of love! He talks about all of this in terms of giving to each person what is “owed” to them, and then he says, “Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law” (Romans 13:8). The fulfilling of the commandments is love, because God commands His law for the good of people. It is not good for people if their lives are threatened by murder; it is not good if their possessions are stolen; it is not good if husband and wife are not united completely; it is not good if children do not obey their parents, and governmental authority is an extension of the parents’ authority (see the Explanation to the Fourth Commandment in the Small Catechism). To do what is truly good for another person is truly loving. And we don’t have to wonder what is truly good for another person, because God’s commandments tell us. Consider what would happen if we all decided not to obey the governing authorities. Would anarchy and chaos be good for us or for our neighbors? We obey the governing authorities because God has established them for our good and for the good of people around us, and we love them and want what is good for them. Of course, sometimes the governing authorities go beyond their God-given authority and act against Him (as parents sometimes do). In that case, as the apostles demonstrate, it would not be loving our neighbor to obey them, for example, to stop preaching the Gospel, or gathering around Jesus’ words and gifts. Then we must obey the God who puts all authorities in place, rather than the authorities who are rebelling against God. But all of it is for the love of our neighbor, whom God has given us to serve. As God has loved us, though the price of that love is the crucifixion of Jesus, so we love our neighbors as ourselves, whatever the consequences. Jesus fulfilled the law of God on our behalf; now we do the good works of the commandments, not to be right with God, but for the sake of our neighbors and their good. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Merciful God, for freedom You have set us free through Christ’s liberating death and resurrection. In this freedom, teach us to live in the fruit of the Spirit given us in our Baptism that we may bear in our bodies the fulfillment of the Law as we love our neighbors as ourselves; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.- Pastor Timothy Winterstein is pastor at Faith Lutheran Church, East Wenatchee, Washington.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 11, 2023Today's Reading: Ezekiel 33:1-10Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 5:1-18, 2 Corinthians 1:23-2:17How then can we live? (Ezekiel 33:10)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When we observe the nature of the world, the sins of people against us, and our sins against others, it is easy to become pessimistic and cynical. We can identify all sorts of problems in the world, but we do not seem to be able to solve any of them. We recognize the symptoms of the problem in violence, hatred, injustice, division, and a lack of care for anyone but ourselves. The people of Israel did not have the technology to spread their sin, as we do, but they had the same sins. In Ezekiel 24, when God tells Ezekiel to declare to Jerusalem that the king of Babylon has laid siege to the city, God calls Jerusalem “the city of blood” (24:6, 7, 9). This is a repetition of the charge in chapter 22: “You shall say [to the people of Jerusalem], Thus says the Lord Yahweh: …You have become guilty by the blood you have shed, and defiled by the idols that you have made. … Father and mother are treated with contempt in you; the sojourner suffers extortion in your midst; the fatherless and the widow are wronged in you,” among many other things (Ezekiel 22:3, 4, 7ff.). To a greater or lesser degree, all Jerusalem’s sins are still present in our world. Ezekiel was sent by God to declare the people’s sins, just as God still sends preachers of His Word to declare His Law. When God’s Law brings to our attention the depth of our sin and idolatry and corruption, we might well say with the people, “Surely our transgressions and our sins are upon us, and we rot away because of them. How then can we live” (Ezekiel 33:10)? God says, “I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his ways and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways, for why will you die, O house of Israel” (33:11)? Sin and rebellion against our Creator, who is our life, makes no sense. Why would we turn from Him and die? But that is what sinners, left to themselves, will always do. So God finally breaks the stalemate between His desire and sinners’ actions. He sends Jesus to become the wicked one and take all the world’s wickedness upon Himself, though it does not belong to Him. He fulfills Ezekiel’s vision and not only warns us of our impending death, but becomes our death. How then can we live? In Christ, crucified and risen; who gives Himself to us in Holy Baptism, Holy Absolution, and the Holy Supper. This is how we live. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, our heavenly Father, You desire not the death of a sinner, but rather that we turn from our evil ways and live. Graciously spare us those punishments which we by our sins have deserved, and grant us always to serve You in holiness and pureness of living; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. - Pastor Timothy Winterstein is pastor at Faith Lutheran Church, East Wenatchee, Washington.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 10, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 18:1-20Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 3:1-15, 2 Corinthians 1:1-22“For where two or three are gathered in My Name, there am I among them” (Matthew 18:20)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Where is Jesus? He says, “Where two or three are gathered in My Name, there am I among them.” Notice the three parts of that: two or three gathered; in My Name; and there am I. So is Jesus not with us when we are alone? Do we have to meet another Christian so there are at least two of us, before Jesus will be present with us? No. Of course, Jesus is with each and all of His baptized children, “all the days, until the completion of this age” (Matthew 28:20). Here in Matthew 18, Jesus is speaking within the particular context of repentance and forgiveness. The idea of “two or three” goes back to Deuteronomy 19:15, where two or three witnesses are necessary to establish a charge against someone (see also 2 Corinthians 13:1). If there are two or three witnesses to a sin in the Body of Christ, then Jesus forgives that sinner and restores him or her within the gathering of two or three. Within the assembly of the Church (“two or three”), who are created and gathered in the Name of Jesus in Holy Baptism, there Jesus Himself will be present to forgive. Jesus is certainly present everywhere, because He is God, but He has not given us the promise of forgiveness everywhere. This is because He does not want us to be in doubt about where that forgiveness can be received. So here and in the last chapter of Matthew, He has given us a sure and certain promise: by the same Name into which people are baptized, Jesus will be present to forgive and restore us. The Name marks our existence as His people: we are baptized into that Name; each week, we hear the Invocation of that Name, which marks the gathering of His baptized Christians; then we hear the Absolution, which is proclaimed in that same Name, and which keeps us in and restores us to Christ’s baptismal grace. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.My faithful God, You fail me never; Your promise surely will endure. O cast me not away forever  If words and deeds become impure./Have mercy when I come defiled; Forgive, lift up, restore Your child” (LSB 590:3). O God, from whom all good proceeds, grant to us, Your humble servants, Your holy inspiration, that we may set our minds on the things that are right and, by Your merciful guiding, accomplish them; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.- Pastor Timothy Winterstein is pastor at Faith Lutheran Church, East Wenatchee, Washington.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 9, 2023Today's Reading: Introit to Pentecost 15: Psalm 92:1-4, antiphon Psalm 92:5sDaily Lectionary: 1 Kings 2:1-27, 1 Corinthians 13:1-13How great are Your works, O Yahweh! Very deep are Your thoughts! (Psalm 92:5)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Here’s a clue to the theme for each Sunday’s Divine Service: trace the thread from the antiphon of the Introit (the first and last verse of the Introit), to the Collect for the day, to the readings. Sometimes the theme will be clear and obvious; other times it will be a little bit harder to identify. It is easier during the festival half of the Church Year (from Advent through Trinity) than it is during the Sundays after Pentecost. But looking ahead to the Introit with its antiphon, reading the assigned readings, and praying the Collect will help get the Word of God into your heart and onto your lips in preparation for the Divine Service. For example, for tomorrow, the Introit comes from Psalm 92 and the antiphon is 92:5, which I translated above. The psalm puts in parallel God’s “works” and God’s “thoughts,” and says that they are “great” and “very deep.” This causes us to ask, “What are God’s thoughts? Can I know them?” If God did not reveal His thoughts, we could not know them. His thoughts are not our thoughts, and His ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55:8-9). We would (as we often do) make up our own ideas about what God would do or not do.But God has not left us to imagine His thoughts or figure them out on our own. He has revealed Himself in His great works. Christians start with what God has done and then we understand what God is like. What He says is the same as what He does. How He acts is the same as who He is. And He reveals His thoughts finally and forever in His Son, Jesus. In Jesus’ death and resurrection, we see the true depth of God’s thoughts, and the greatness of His works. In God’s works, we see God’s thoughts. Who could imagine that God would become flesh and die? Who could imagine that God would take on Himself the offense and curse of sin? Who would think that the least, the last, the helpless, the child would be the greatest in the Kingdom (Matthew 18:1-2)? More than that, God gives His Kingdom only to those who cannot give Him anything in return (18:3-4). None of us could imagine a mercy that never fails to seek those whom people would consider “lost” (18:10-14). God seeks us in Jesus, and then He seeks everyone through His Church, wherever two or three are gathered around His forgiving love (18:18-20). These thoughts of God would be too deep for us to imagine, if He had not sent His Son and revealed them to us in His works. How great are Your works, and very deep are Your thoughts! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night” (Psalm 92:1-2).- Pastor Timothy Winterstein is pastor at Faith Lutheran Church, East Wenatchee, Washington.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 8, 2023Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 12:14-31Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 1:1-4, 15-35, 1 Corinthians 12:14-31Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it (1 Corinthians 12:27)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. God puts the Church together as He chooses. There is a command here not to think of ourselves more highly than we ought (Romans 12:3), as if the Body of Christ would not survive without us. But there is a promise as well: God chose each one of us in Jesus Christ to be members of Christ’s Body. God has chosen you for salvation. Whenever we think we are indispensable to the Lord’s work, we actually make idols of ourselves. The only indispensable one is Jesus Himself. But graciously, He has chosen you and, in that sense, He has made us an integral member of Christ’s Body. We are not free to think of any other member of the Body as dispensable, because God has chosen each of them as well. Because God chooses sinners, and only sinners, to be purified by Christ’s blood as holy members of His Body, we will not have perfect (or, even, very good!) love for others, and they will not have perfect love for us. But since we are all, by God’s mercy, in this together, we are forced to practice love and forgiveness for one another. Just as you do not choose the family into which you are physically born, you do not choose the Church. We do often choose our local congregations, but here is an argument for being joined to the Body of Christ in the faithful congregation most local to us. We will have to learn to love the people there, with all their faults, and they will have to learn to love us, with all of ours. But wherever we are, we should remain (unless there is persistent false teaching), because God arranges the members of the Body, and all things, as He chooses (1 Corinthians 12:18). This is, finally, a comfort to us. Everything does not depend on us. God has put each of His Christians in their individual vocations, with particular people, to exercise our love for those whom God has put before us. And He has put us before them. We are not responsible for every person in the world, to serve everyone, or bear witness to everyone. He has put other people in those places. Our vocations are limited in how many relationships we have, but they are unlimited in love, since we will never run out of good works to do. When we are burdened, exhausted, and weary from all those good works; when we have not fulfilled them as we should; then we remember that it is the Body of Christ, and He forgives, sustains, and nourishes us by the Body and the Blood in the Sacrament. Thanks be to God for His continual provision for His Church! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord, help us walk Your servant way  Wherever love may lead  And, bending low, forgetting self,  Each serve the other’s need (LSB 857:5).- Pastor Timothy Winterstein is pastor at Faith Lutheran Church, East Wenatchee, Washington.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 7, 2023Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 12:1-13Daily Lectionary: 2 Samuel 12:1-25, 1 Corinthians 12:1-13Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be uninformed (1 Corinthians 12:1-13)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Corinthians have  a lot of questions. Apparently, they had asked Paul to teach them about “spiritual” things. The word “gifts” is actually not in 12:1. Paul does talk about gracious gifts of the Spirit starting in 12:4, but the Corinthians’ question was broader: what are “spiritual” things, because they seem to be competing with one another for the most spiritual, as the end of chapter 12 through chapter 13 shows.They wanted to know about “the things of the Spirit.” Sometimes we want to separate “spiritual” things from “physical” things, as if the Spirit has nothing to do with our everyday lives, but is only concerned about “deeper” or “higher” things. But all of it is in the realm of the Holy Spirit! For those who have been reborn in Christ by water and the Spirit (John 3:5), all things are “spiritual.” The “gracious (gifts)” (where we get our English word “charismatic,” but which really refers to God’s gracious or free giving) of which Paul begins to speak in 12:4 are related to any and all things that the Christian does, especially in loving service to the neighbor. It is a Trinitarian work in and through us: one Spirit; one Lord (Jesus); one God (the Father) (12:4-6). Paul does not give an exhaustive list here of all the gifts the Spirit gives. His point is not that we all find ourselves in this list, but that the Spirit gives as the Spirit pleases. The Spirit orchestrates the work of the members of Christ’s body for the good of one another, as He sees fit (12:11, 18). Some of these gracious gifts are more “spectacular” than others, but none of them is expendable. The summary point is 12:7: “To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good,” or for the benefit of the whole body. So what gifts has the Lord graciously given you, baptized and remade by His Spirit? What talents? At what things do your parents, friends, teachers, or pastors say you are good? Whatever it is, it is a “spiritual” thing, because you have been given the Spirit in baptism. Spiritual people do all things in the Spirit, and all for the good of others. You are, with all the other baptized believers, one Body in Christ. God has set up the Body perfectly according to His will, and He uses each person as He chooses. He has chosen you in Christ for His own purposes, and you can rejoice in the Spirit that God knows exactly what He’s doing with you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.How clear is our vocation, Lord, When once we heed Your call: To live according to Your Word And daily learn, refreshed, restored, That You are Lord of all And will not let us fall (LSB 853:1).- Pastor Timothy Winterstein is pastor at Faith Lutheran Church, East Wenatchee, Washington.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 6, 2023Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism, the Lord's Prayer: Fourth PetitionDaily Lectionary: 2 Samuel 11:1-27, 1 Corinthians 11:17-34We pray in this petition that God would lead us to…receive our daily bread with thanksgiving. (SC, LP, 4th Petition)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. God gives daily bread to everyone, even to the evil. This is the sort of God He is. Daily bread includes anything and everything that has to do with these bodies and this life. The God who created everything still sustains His creation and the people who live in it. Sinners, however, always believe that they have gotten everything for themselves. People make themselves into their own gods, and thank themselves for doing what they need to survive. Christians can get sucked into this way of thinking, when we forget that everything we have is a gift. We become selfish with our money and our time. We work and get a paycheck and provide for our needs. Then we expect that if someone does not have what he or she needs, the solution is for that person to work harder. You get what you deserve, after all.We can only think that way about other people when we forget that God is the giver of all our daily bread. We would not have a job if God did not provide for it. We would not have food and clothing if God did not provide it. We would not have “good weather, peace, health, self-control, a good reputation, good friends, faithful neighbors, and the like” if God did not give it. Instead, we continue to pray that God would keep us in mind of all His gracious gifts for as long as He gives us life and breath. Even more, in Christ He gives us everything we need to share His divine and eternal life. He is the true bread who has come down from heaven to give life to us and to the world, so that eating and drinking His body and blood, we will never die. We have deserved none of this. “All this He does only out of fatherly, divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness in me” (Explanation to the First Article of the Creed). You can’t earn a gift. And since everything is gift, none of it is earned. Though many do not know that everything they have comes from their Creator, the Holy Spirit has graciously given us faith to know our dear Father through His Son, Jesus. We know where everything comes from, so we rejoice and give thanks to Him. And we also know that God serves those in need through those whom He has blessed with abundance. Freely have we received, freely we give (Matthew 10:8), until the new creation is revealed, in which no one will lack anything necessary to their life. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Give us this day our daily bread, And let us all be clothed and fed. Save us from hardship, war, and strife; In plague and famine, spare our life,  That we in honest peace may live, To care and greed no entrance give (LSB 766:5).- Pastor Timothy Winterstein is pastor at Faith Lutheran Church, East Wenatchee, Washington.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 5, 2023Today's Reading: Romans 11:33-12:8Daily Lectionary: 2 Samuel 7:19-29, 1 Corinthians 10:23-11:16Present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship (Romans 12:1)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Verbs matter. In Romans 12:2, there is one active verb (“present”) and two passive verbs (“be conformed” and “be transformed”). And then there is a verb form that flows from that being transformed (“testing-to-approve”). Either the world is working on us, conforming us to its shape–which is our natural shape as sinners; or God is working on us by His Spirit, transforming our natural ways of thinking to align with His. Either we will be living sacrifices for the sake of the world, or die as this world dies. In His mercy, God has grafted us into Christ, the Vine, though we Gentiles do not deserve it any more than the Israelites who reject Christ. In Christ, He has chosen you and had mercy on you, though you, like all people, were bound up in your disobedience to God. Jesus is the only sacrifice for sins, now and forever. So you do not offer your bodies, your works, your love for others as sacrifices for your sins, and hope it all shakes out in your favor on the day of judgment. Jesus already took care of your sins. Now you are turned toward others as living sacrifices–a strange contradiction! No sacrifice ever stayed alive. But covered in the mercy of God, you are given as a sacrifice for the sake of other people, as long as you live in this world. And since you are “holy and pleasing” to God in Christ, you can know what is “good and pleasing and perfect,” His will for you. Paul goes on to give some examples of what that might look like: prophesying (in right relationship to the Christian Faith); serving, teaching, exhorting and encouraging; in generous contribution, zealous leadership, and cheerful acts of mercy (12:6-8). God gives each of these gifts to the members of Christ’s body, to be used in humility for the sake of other people. The English translation calls all this our “spiritual worship,” but the word “spiritual” isn’t there (instead, it is something like “rational” or “reasonable”), and the word for “worship” can also be translated “service.” So we offer our bodies, redeemed and cleansed by Jesus, as living sacrifices of good works for our neighbors. And this is our “reasonable service,” according to God’s command, which tells us what works are actually good. This is the Christian life: God has had unfathomable mercy on us, which transforms our minds to think according to the mind of Christ; and we pour ourselves out for the good of our neighbors in our God-given vocations, according to the gifts He gives us. This work is good and pleasing to God because we are good and pleasing to God in Christ. And He who began this good work in us will bring it to its perfect conclusion in the resurrection. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Lord, You have had mercy on us in Jesus Christ, by His sacrifice for our sins. Continue to make us living sacrifices, poured out in love for one another. Amen.- Pastor Timothy Winterstein is pastor at Faith Lutheran Church, East Wenatchee, Washington.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 4, 2023Today's Reading: Isaiah 51:1-6Daily Lectionary: 2 Samuel 7:1-17, 1 Corinthians 9:24-10:22“My salvation will be forever” (Isaiah 51:6)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. “Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look at the earth beneath; for the heavens vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment, and they who dwell in it will die in like manner” (Isaiah 51:6). That sounds a lot like many of the fears expressed by people today: fear about what’s happening in the world; fear about what’s happening to the creation; fear about death. But Isaiah is not repeating the fears of people; he’s speaking the words of Yahweh to His people. Listen to Me, God says. Look; pay attention. Look at all the things and know that none of them will last forever. This creation and all the people in it are subject to sin and death, and thus they all wear out and fade away. So do not put your trust in them! Do not make anything in this creation your god. None of it can save you. Listen, instead, to Me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek Yahweh. Look to Me, the rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug (51:1). I am your creator. I made Abraham and Sarah, and from them I made Israel, My people. And by that family line, I bring to the world My salvation and My righteousness. All creation waits for Me to restore it in Christ. Listen and look! My salvation and My righteousness are in Jesus, by whom I judge the nations. He spreads out His arms, nailed to the cross, and My judgment is fulfilled in His body, to give you My righteousness and My salvation. I will comfort you in the midst of the mess of this creation, the mess of your family, the mess of your life. I will make deserts into gardens, and this old, wilderness creation into a new, Eden creation. You can find this comfort now in the places I have promised to be, in My Word and My Sacraments. There you can find the beginning of rivers in the desert, of the Garden I am making in the middle of the wilderness of this world. The day is coming when there will be only joy and gladness and thanksgiving forever, because God’s salvation in Jesus, risen from the dead, cannot be removed or killed or destroyed. “My salvation is forever, and My righteousness will never be dismayed” (51:6).  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“In Thee is gladness Amid all sadness, Jesus, sunshine of my heart. By Thee are given The gifts of heaven, Thou the true Redeemer art. Our souls Thou wakest, Our bonds Thou breakest; Who trusts Thee surely  Has built securely; He stands forever: Alleluia! Our hearts are pining To see Thy shining, Dying or living To Thee are cleaving; Naught can us sever: Alleluia!” (LSB 818:1) - Pastor Timothy Winterstein is pastor at Faith Lutheran Church, East Wenatchee, Washington.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 3, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 16:13-20Daily Lectionary: 2 Samuel 6:1-19, 1 Corinthians 9:1-23“But who do you say that I am?” (Matthew 16:15)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. “Who do you say that I am?” That’s the question, isn’t it? When Jesus asks the disciples about who people say that He is, the disciples respond with the various answers they have heard: John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah, or another one of the prophets (16:14). People today have other answers: a good teacher; or the founder of a religion; or a revolutionary, standing bravely against oppression and injustice. Perhaps none of those answers are entirely wrong. But the real question is, “Who do you say that I am?” Peter, as always, is ready to answer on behalf of the other apostles: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (16:16).  And Jesus responds: “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah [“son of Jonah”]! For flesh and blood have not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven” (16:17). Peter makes this good confession, but it did not originate in Peter’s mind or heart or mouth. He didn’t figure it out by himself based on the evidence.  God put those words there. “Confession” means to say the same thing. And so Peter says the same thing that God has revealed to him: that Jesus is the Christ (Anointed One) whom God has sent to bring life to the world. Only God the Father draws people to the Son by His Spirit. And this is the blessing of God: to believe in one’s heart that God raised Jesus from the dead and to confess with one’s mouth that Jesus is Lord (Romans 10:9). The first question is not what we say about Jesus, but what God says about Jesus. The answer is the comforting truth that the Son of the living God entered our flesh in order to reveal Himself to us. In His healing of the sick, feeding of the hungry, raising the dead, and casting out demons; in His suffering and death; and in His resurrection, He reveals to you that He is the one whom God has sent to undo sin, death, and the evil that is so prevalent in our world. That we believe and confess this is a great, undeserved blessing. Jesus builds His Church on the truth of this confession, so that no matter what people may say about Jesus, He remains the Lord who destroys the power of death and hell for you. You belong to Jesus, the Christ, the Son of the Living God, and not to your sin, or to death, or to the devil. Blessed are you! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, Your Son willingly endured the agony and shame of the cross for our redemption. Grant us courage to take up our cross daily and follow Him wherever He leads; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.- Pastor Timothy Winterstein is pastor at Faith Lutheran Church, East Wenatchee, Washington.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 2, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary:2 Samuel 5:1-25, 1 Corinthians 8:1-13But take care that this right of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak. (1 Corinthians 8:9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Knowledge is a gift, until it becomes a weapon. Freedom is a gift, until it too is used as a weapon. You might be wondering, though, how can knowledge or freedom become weapons? Learning stuff is good! Being free is good! Agreed. However, we (sinners) take that which is good and mess it up. We who still struggle (daily) with our sinful nature take gifts and often make them into clubs (to use against our neighbor). In 1 Corinthians, Paul is writing about food offered to idols. He acknowledges that of course idols are not real deities; they aren’t God and have no power over anything. That knowledge is good; that knowledge comes from being taught the Law (in specific, the First Commandment). However, when that knowledge  is used to belittle or cause one of our neighbor’s to sin, that knowledge has now become a weapon. Paul is instructing the believers in Corinth to not let their knowledge outweigh their love for their neighbors - especially over something as short-lived as food! In love, we share what we have been taught with our neighbors. But then, also in love, we sacrifice ‘knowing it all,’ for the sake of one who is struggling. We deny our ‘right knowledge,’ in favor of walking alongside an unsteady neighbor. In the same way, freedom in Christ is a gift! We are freed from sin; death and the devil are conquered enemies. However, freedom used against our neighbor is no longer Christian freedom; now our freedom has become a tether to a false god: pride. True Christian freedom is always understood in relationship to your neighbor and their needs. We are not free to cause hurt, harm, or discourse for someone else. We are not free to tempt or hurt another’s conscience. Knowledge and freedom are gifts from God and rightly understood in Jesus. Our sinful minds like to take gifts and make them into weapons. Repent of this. Humbly remember that, before God, we are all beggars. You and your weaker neighbor are both in desperate need of forgiveness and mercy. You and your weaker neighbor are both receivers of God’s gifts:  Baptism, the preaching of His Word, and the Lord’s Supper. Learn and be free - in the Gospel. Learn with your neighbor. Be free in your service of your neighbor. Rejoice that God saw you in your weakness and sent His Son to pay for your sins! You (and your neighbor) are loved and forgiven.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Love in Christ is strong and living,  Binding faithful hearts in one;  Love in CHrist is true and giving.  May His will in us be done.  (LSB 706:1) -Deaconess Sarah Longmire is the bible study editor for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

September 1, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: 2 Samuel 1:1-27, 1 Corinthians 7:25-40So then he who marries his betrothed does well, and he who refrains from marriage will do even better. (1 Corinthians 7:38)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We love when things are straight-forward and are logical. Opposites make sense. You are hot or cold. There is up or down. You turn left or right. We like to think in absolutes, put everything in its proper box, and usually give it a label. We do this with our neighbors too. ‘Those sinners’ and us, the good people. ‘Those making all the wrong choices,’ and us, making all the right ones. ‘Those who keep voting wrongly and us,’ who have our politics in order. It can be quite easy to fall into the temptation to group ‘others’ in relation to us. In the 1 Corinthians reading, it might seem like Paul is trying to create a logical ‘either or’ statement. However, he also seems to be getting things mixed up. He says marriage is a gift. But he also says that singleness is a gift. He says that getting married is not a sin, but also speaks very highly about remaining single. What’s the deal, Paul? Why can’t you make up your mind? In our desire for logic and reason, we usually see options in contrast to other options. For example, you can’t be married and also stay single. However, what if God has given us two good options? What if God, in His bountiful goodness, allows for marriage and singleness to both be good gifts? What if, instead of pitting the gifts against one another, we rejoice in the ways in which God has given us to love our neighbor? The Law is good. It shows us right from wrong, good from evil. However, when we apply the Law to situations in which it doesn’t speak, we create division that is not good or helpful. Marriage is a gift from God; from the beginning of time, God created Eve for Adam and gave them, one to another, in marriage. Singleness, though, is also a gift. The single person is able to devote time and energy to caring for other neighbors in their life. Both of these vocations are good! God gives good options for His people. Whether single or married, your identity is as a Baptized child of God. You are part of God’s family through Jesus’ death and resurrection; that is what sticks for eternity. Rejoice in the opportunities you are given to love your neighbors - either as a married person or a single person - knowing that both vocations are good. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Hear us, dear Father, when we pray  For needed help from day to day That as your children we may live, Whom You baptized and so received.  (LSB 865:3) -Deaconess Sarah Longmire is the bible study editor for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 31, 2023Today's Reading: Romans 11:33-12:8Daily Lectionary:1 Samuel 31:1-13, 1 Corinthians 7:1-24For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen. (Romans 11:36)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. God’s Word often describes the Body of believers as, well, a body. It talks about each of us making up one united being with Christ as the Head. This is a beautiful picture of who we are! We are joined with all other believers; we are included and precious. However, our sinful nature has a way of taking that which is wonderful and creating disharmony. We become obstinate about our own abilities and importance. We seek to be bodies of one, completely independent, and often try to disconnect from others (usually because they sin differently than we do, so clearly we would be better off without them). Reread Romans 11:36: For from him and through him and to him are all things. Hmmm… ‘All things.’ From God, through God, and to God, are ALL things. What does that mean about our own ‘independent’ abilities? What does that mean for our insistence that we are better than another part of the body? What does that mean for our judgment of another’s gifts? In the words of today’s reading, we are reminded that we are not alone and cannot survive alone. We are told that it is all from, through, and to God. We have been uniquely created and given all that we have. Our gifts were not given to lord over someone else or to be used in competition. Instead, God created each part of the body as a gift to and for one another. Do we have different gifts than our neighbor? Yep. Thanks be to God! If a body was all an elbow, how would we see or eat or walk? If the foot overpowered the ear, how could we hear? All things are in God. All things are completed by Jesus’ death and resurrection on the cross. Your sins of worry, comparison, coveting, and self-seeking glory are paid and gone. In their place, there is peace, unity, and forgiveness. You are part of the Body. You are needed by your neighbor. Rest in your Baptism. Rejoice that all things are from God, through God, and in God. You don’t have to fight for a place in God’s family. You don’t have to earn God’s acceptance. The work has been done by Jesus; we now *get* to love and serve our neighbor using our unique and specific gifts. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Know that the Lord is God indeed;  Without our aid He did us make. We are His folk, He doth us feed,  And for His sheep He doth us take.  (LSB: 791:2)-Deaconess Sarah Longmire is the bible study editor for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 30, 2023Today's Reading: Luther's Small Catechism, Lords Prayer: Third PetitionDaily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 28:3-25, 1 Corinthians 6:1-20And when He strengthens and keeps us firm in His Word and faith until we die. (How is God’s will done?) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Have you heard the phrase, ‘battle of wills?’ It means that two (or more) people have their own ideas or plans that are not matching up with others’ plans or ideas. Each person wants their will to be followed and is unable or unwilling to make room for someone else’s needs or will to be done. When this happens, there is, well, a battle. When engaged in a battle of wills, we fight for OUR wants. We desire to win, dominate, and succeed over others. In actuality, though, after a battle of wills, there is usually angst, sadness, resentment, and pain. Often, even the person who wins is left feeling hollow; their victory came at the expense of someone else’s pain or failure. The Third Petition of the Lord’s Prayer is ‘Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.’ The sinner in us may become immediately suspicious: what is God’s will? How will it (negatively) affect ME? What will it cost me? What might I have to give up? How can I get around it or battle it and win? Our sinful nature immediately reacts to this prayer, realizing that it is about God’s will; this means that it isn’t our will. Furthermore, we realize that none of us are God and that we don’t have control. In fact, God’s will is going to crush my will because His is perfect and mine is sinful. Do I want God’s will to be done? Yes! God’s will is that all people are saved. God’s will is that sin, death, and the devil be defeated. God’s will is Jesus paying for the sins of the whole world, defying death, and giving life to all believers. God’s will is to claim YOU as His own through Baptism; He continually strengthens and feeds you through His Word and with Jesus’ Body and Blood. God’s will is done apart from our prayers and works; God’s will is done for us. God’s will won the battle on the cross and gives us victory, life, and salvation. Yes, God’s will is good and holy. God’s will is for you: that you are washed, revived, forgiven, loved, and kept secure with Him forever.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Your gracious will on earth be done  As it is done before Your throne, That patiently we may obey   Throughout our lives all that You say.  Curb flesh and blood and ev’ry ill  That sets itself against Your will.  (LSB 766:4) -Deaconess Sarah Longmire is the bible study editor for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 29, 2023Today's Reading: Mark 6:14-29Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 26:1-25, 1 Corinthians 5:1-13And the king was exceedingly sorry. (Mark 6:26a)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. John the Baptist’s executioner was exceedingly sorry that he would put John to death. But, punishments follow crimes committed, right? Why would King Herod feel sorry?  In fact, Herod’s interactions with John are confusing. First, Herod sends John to prison because he doesn’t like what John said about his marriage. But, we also read that Herod, ‘feared John…and kept him safe’ (v. 20). Even more puzzling, though, was that when King Herod heard John speak, ‘he was greatly perplexed, and yet…heard him gladly’ (v. 20). Wait, what? Herod puts John in prison for what John said about his marriage. But then, we read that Herod (the KING) fears John, protects John, and is glad to hear John speak. So, John is punished for speaking, protected for speaking, gladly heard when speaking, but then ultimately put to death for speaking. This is weird, right? Perhaps it’s because John had a dynamic and inviting personality. He must have been relevant and very popular. But…that’s not what Scripture says. John was the ‘weird guy’ who ate bugs and lived out in the wilderness. John was the guy who kept talking about someone else coming, about God’s Law, and the need for repentance. It wasn’t his personality that caused Herod’s sorrow. John the Baptist faithfully preached God’s Word. He reminded sinners that they couldn’t do anything they wanted (like marry their brother’s wife, for example), that they needed to repent, and that the Savior was coming. John pointed to Jesus. God’s Word promises to never return empty, but to always accomplish God’s work (Isaiah 55:10-11). The Law is good and necessary; it shows us our sinfulness and our desperate need for a Savior. John was faithfully preaching God’s Law. Herod’s confusing reaction to John makes sense; he was struck by the truth of John’s teaching even as he recoiled that the Law was for him too. We are often like King Herod; we react to God’s Law with anger or reluctance. (I hope, though, that you aren’t throwing your pastor into prison when he preaches it to you!) Like John the Baptist, God sends us faithful pastors to preach God’s Truth in its purity. Your pastor reminds you of your sins and your deadness on your own. But then, he points to Jesus. He comforts you with God’s grace and mercy through Jesus’ death and resurrection. You are declared forgiven. Today, we remember the faithfulness of John the Baptist; we give thanks for faithful pastors. We rejoice that we have a loving and merciful God who gives us His Word, both Law and Gospel, for our eternal good. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Our thanks for John the Baptist  Who, till his dying day,  Made straight paths for the SaviorAnd heralded His way!  In witnessing to Jesus  Through times of threat or shameMay we with faith and courage  The Lamb of God proclaim. (LSB 517:24)-Deaconess Sarah Longmire is the bible study editor for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 28, 2023Today's Reading: Isaiah 51:1-6Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 25:23-44, 1 Corinthians 4:1-21My salvation will be forever, and my righteousness will never be dismayed. Isaiah 51:6bIn the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Disaster. War. Murder. Slander. Cursed. Defiled. Ugly. These are heavy words. These are words we use to describe horrible things that happen to us or around us. These are words that cause a pit to form in your stomach, tears to fall from your cheeks, and cries of despair to leave your lips. Life in a sinful world is hard. Living as a sinner, with other sinners, often hurts. Our bodies break. Our minds are overwhelmed. Our communities suffer. Our world is ugly. God’s people throughout history viscerally understood these struggles. Isaiah is writing to people who knew the kingdom of Israel had split into two nations: Israel and Judah. In fact, they knew that the ‘other’ kingdom was their enemy. They had experienced the roller coaster of bad kings and *not as bad* kings. They had been in war; they had suffered through battles and saw death. And yet, in today’s reading there is hope. God has not abandoned His people. He promises comfort. He promises salvation forever! He reminds the people (and us) that this world, riddled with sin, is not going to last forever. The heavens and earth will wear out and perish; we see the decay around us every day. And yet, we are reminded, just like the people to whom Isaiah is writing, that God’s righteousness will never be dismayed (v. 6). There is hope in the midst of our hurt. There is promise in the midst of disaster. Jesus is with us within and through every trial and trouble. God sent His Son to be our Savior; He sent the only One who could enter a broken and dying world and give it new life. In your Baptism, you are made clean and holy. You are given life eternal. You will live forever with Jesus! Take heart and cling to the promises of God: we who are in Christ will not be dismayed. Life in a sinful world hurts now, but the hope for tomorrow is found in Christ. You are not alone, forgotten, or left behind; in your Baptism you are part of God’s family forever; God has declared you as His own. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.All who believe and are baptized  Shall see the Lord’s salvation;  Baptized into the death of Christ,  They are a new creation.  Through Christ’s redemption they shall stand  Among the glorious, heav’nly band  Of every tribe and nation.   (All Who Believe and Are Baptized, LSB 601:1)-Deaconess Sarah Longmire is the bible study editor for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 27, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 16:13-20Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 25:1-22, 1 Corinthians 3:1-23‘For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.’ Matthew 16:17bIn the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In today’s reading, Jesus asks a question to His disciples: ‘Who do people say that the Son of Man is?’ The disciples respond with what they have heard: some say this person, some say that person. The answers seem to make logical sense; they  include: John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah, or another prophet. These responses are reasonable and understandable; the Son of Man must certainly be a teacher or someone who is well educated about the Scriptures. We hear these same types of explanations today: Jesus was a good teacher. Jesus is one way to heaven. Jesus taught the people to love everyone. Jesus is a great example of how to treat others. In our flawed human thinking, we try to make sense of all that is unbelievable. And, we like to control the message; if we put Jesus in the ‘one option’ category or as a ‘decent teacher,’ then we can pick and choose what we believe. We can justify our own choices and actions because, afterall, we are being logical and reasonable. After the disciples answer Jesus, He asks a follow-up question: Who do you say that I am? Peter answers with a statement of faith: You are the Christ, the Son of the living God (v. 16). This answer doesn’t make logical or reasonable sense: the Son of the living God? How? Why? But, what about me as god? And Jesus responds to Peter: Blessed are you! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven (v. 17). Peter has been given faith and confesses who Jesus truly is. It doesn’t make sense that God would send His perfect Son to be the Savior of a sinful world. And yet, that is exactly what happens. In your Baptism, you received the Holy Spirit. In God’s Word, you hear and are reminded of whose you are and who God is. Jesus is our merciful Savior. Jesus is the Son of God and Son of Man. Jesus loves, forgives, renews, and revives us. Jesus gives us His Body and Blood in the Lord’s Supper. This doesn’t make sense. This isn’t easily explained. And yet, this is the Truth. This is your faith. This is your reality. Thanks be to God for all that does not make sense, and yet is ours completely. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, whom to know is everlasting life, grant us to know Your Son, Jesus, to be the way, the truth, and the life that we may boldly confess Him to be the Christ and steadfastly walk in the way that leads to life eternal; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect of the Day) -Deaconess Sarah Longmire is the bible study editor for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 26, 2023Today's Reading: Introit to Pentecost 13: Psalm 28:1-2, 6-7Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 24:1-22, 1 Corinthians 1:26-2:16Blessed be the LORD! For he has heard the voice of my pleas for mercy. (Psalm 28:6)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It’s been a long week. It seems as though attending the Divine Service last Sunday was longer than 6 days ago. Maybe a particularly difficult day this week is still replaying in your head. Maybe a committed sin keeps coming up in your thoughts (and stealing your sleep). Maybe a hurt caused by someone else has made its home in your heart. Life is hard down here; living in and with sin hurts. Today’s Psalm speaks about the weight of our need as sinners. We try and try, but we fail. And then, someone fails us. Usually, both happen frequently. We try again, and fail again. We try to fix what is broken, but make the mess messier. We cannot make it better and often feel beaten up by the end of the day, and certainly by the end of the week. We cry out to God in frustration, pain, and sorrow. We cannot carry the burdens of our sins and our hurts. It is heavy. It hurts. It is too much. Friend, your prayers have been heard. You are not alone in your pain and suffering. You have a loving God who has heard your cries and answers them. He meets our sin with forgiveness. He meets our pain with relief. He meets our deadness with new life. He does not leave us to wallow in our failures, but gives us victory. In our Baptism, we are made new. We are breathed to life and given Jesus’ life as our own. We are washed clean, renewed, loved, and mercied. In the Divine Service, we hear God’s Word preached. We hear our sins forgiven. We hear our neighbors’ sins forgiven. We receive Jesus’ Body and Blood. We are filled with the truth of whose we are and what we have been given. We are reminded of God’s grace and His mercy. The week has been long. But tomorrow, the table has been prepared for you. Your pastor will, in the stead of Christ, forgive your sins. He has prepared the Word to point you to your Savior. Carry your worries, burdens, hurts, and sins to church. Receive God’s promises, love, forgiveness, and hope. Blessed be the Lord! He has heard our cries for mercy!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Be still, my soul, before the Lord,  For God is always near.  Before your mind is moved to pray,   God listens and will hear.   (Be Still, My Soul, before the Lord, LSB 771:1)-Deaconess Sarah Longmire is the bible study editor for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 25, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 20:24-42, 1 Corinthians 1:1-25‘Not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.’ (1 Corinthians 1:17b)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Paul, inspired by God, wrote  to the Corinthians. Paul, also known as Saul, had been well educated and had been a high ranking Jew. He studied with great teachers and had been given great authority (think about the permission he had been granted to travel, find followers of Jesus, and arrest them). And yet, did you hear how he would refer to himself and his teaching? He wrote that he was preaching the Gospel, ‘not with words of eloquent wisdom.’ Wait a minute. He was a big deal, right? Even after he was converted, he was well-known. And yet, he is rebuking the Corinthians for claiming him, or other prophets and teachers, and causing division among themselves. How often do we stumble over our words when trying to speak about our faith? Or, in frustration with the world and the horrible sinners in it, we discuss Jesus in a way that sounds more like an argument - one which we will certainly win. We use our churchiest words and our fanciest terms and, well, we witness…about ourselves. We make the conversation about how much better we are than our neighbor and how great life with be if only *they* were like us. We decide to be god and attempt to convert others to ourselves. Paul knew he had nothing to offer to God. He knew that anything he said, attempted, or tried would fail. He lamented about his inability to just do what was right (Romans 7). And, in the first letter to the Corinthians, he reminds them that the power of God, true wisdom, is found in the most illogical place of all: the Cross. True wisdom is not found in the best argument or the greatest speech. It is not found in well-formed discourse  or strongly defended debates. Instead, true wisdom is Jesus crucified for you. True wisdom is in the all-encompassing mercy given to sinners through Jesus’ death and resurrection. Remember your Baptism. Rest in the folly that is freedom through Jesus’ Work, not your own. When you are talking to your neighbor, don’t worry about winning. Share the joy you know as a redeemed sinner. Point to the true and only God who, when you were dead in your sins, saved you, washed you in His blood, named you, and gave you salvation. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Good Christian friends, rejoice and sing! Now is the triumph of our King!  To all the world glad news we bring:  Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!   (Good Christian Friends, Rejoice and Sing, LSB 475:1)-Deaconess Sarah Longmire is the bible study editor for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 24, 2023Today's Reading: Luke 22:24-30Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 20:1-23, Acts 28:16-31But I am among you as the one who serves. (Luke 22:27b)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. St. Bartholomew was one of the Apostles. He traveled with Jesus,  listened to Jesus teach, and saw Jesus’ miracles. He heard again and again about who Jesus is and what Jesus was going to do. And yet, he didn’t get it. In today’s reading, he was with the disciples as they argued about who was the greatest. This argument occurs right after Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper! It is Holy Week! Jesus is soon going to the cross! And yet, the apostles, including Bartholomew, are concerned about right now. They want a judgment of ‘who is the best.’ They want power, authority, and status. If they were declared the best, then they weren’t the worst -they weren’t last. Jesus knew what they were discussing. And even on the cusp of going to the cross and His own painful death, He continues to love them and teach them. He recognizes the power that comes with status: ‘For who is the greater, one who reclines at table or one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at table?’ (v. 27a). And yet, He points to Himself, who is the greatest of all, and clearly states that He is their servant. He, the Savior of the whole world, came to serve and save. Even amidst and after their squabbling, Jesus reminds them that His Kingdom will be theirs. We are like Bartholomew and the other disciples. We don’t get it. We focus on this temporal world and want power, glory, and dominion now. We want to be the greatest and the best; if you are the best, you don’t need help and aren’t weak. And yet, left on our own, we are dead; we are powerless against sin, death, and the  devil. We are unable to save ourselves and certainly cannot dominate over anything else. We are lost and helpless. In His mercy, Jesus saves us. He went to the cross to pay for the sins of the whole world, including Bartholomew’s and including yours. He forgives us our every sin, washes us in Baptism, sends us the Holy Spirit, and keeps every promise. We too are inheritors of His Kingdom. We too are conquerors; it is not by our own merit, but by His mercy and grace. Bartholomew died a martyr’s death; God gave him faith and was with him, even unto death. God gives us faith and is with us every moment of this life and the next. We rejoice in the certainty that we are loved, forgiven, and redeemed. We look forward to being in heaven, with Bartholomew and all the saints, eternally praising and worshiping our Savior Jesus. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.For all the saints who from their labors rest, Who Thee by faith before the world confessed, Thy name, O Jesus, be forever blest.  Alleluia! Alleluia!  (For All the Saints. LSB 677:1)-Deaconess Sarah Longmire is the bible study editor for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 23, 2023Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism, The Lord’s Prayer: Second PetitionDaily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 19:1-24, Acts 28:1-15…so that by His grace we believe His holy Word and lead godly lives here in time and there in eternity. (Explanation of The Second Petition) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Did you see it? In this petition, we are praying that by HIS GRACE we believe His Word and live godly lives. But isn’t living godly lives according to the 10 Commandments? Don’t we check the ‘good works’ boxes of behavior and live the Christian life? And furthermore, this petition is about God’s kingdom. That sounds like battle - fighting to the death - winning by force. If only everyone’s behavior would get better. If only *insert a sin that isn’t yours* would be stopped. If only *your neighbor* would act differently. THEN God’s kingdom would come. Then we would win; we could kick back and lord it over those ‘others.’ And yet, that isn’t how it works. That isn’t how God works. And eternally, we are grateful that He doesn’t work that way. The consequence of sin is death, and no one escapes it. We are guilty. We are unworthy. We are dead. And furthermore, we were born that way. There is no amount of behavior that can undo a death sentence from the womb. And yet. God sent a solution. He had a plan to save you, to save the whole world, to make His Kingdom come: through grace and mercy and forgiveness. He sent His perfect Son Jesus to pay for your sins, for the sins of the whole world, and to defeat sin, death, and the devil. After three days, His victory, and ours, was complete.  Therefore, in this petition, we remember that God brings His kingdom by giving His Spirit. He gives us grace in the face of sin and death. In Baptism, we are given new life. We are brought back to life. We are brought into God’s kingdom - through grace. We remember that we are the receivers of mercy and are beggars before Him. This means, though, that we must also  remember that He loves and redeems our neighbors - even that one who keeps sinning. You are forgiven. You are part of God’s kingdom through His grace. You are Baptized and Redeemed. Share this Good News with those around you; as a fellow sinner, you know how God’s Kingdom comes. You receive His Body and Blood in the Divine Service; you have assurance in your Baptism. Rest in the assurance that His Kingdom does come and it is through grace. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Thy Kingdom come; thy Grace be nigh,  O'er all the Earth, o'er all the Sky; The Holy Spirit of thy Grace, Bestow his Gifts on Human Race.  From Satan's woful Tyranny,Keep all thy Churches safe and free. (Our Father, Who From Heav’n Above, LSB 766:3)-Deaconess Sarah Longmire is the bible study editor for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 22, 2023Today's Reading: Romans 11:1-2a, 13-18, 28-32Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 18:10-30, Acts 27:27-44For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. Romans 11:29In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. God’s Word is trustworthy and true. How do we know? Every promise He made, He kept. Every word He gave has come to fruition. In today’s reading, there is another reality: Gentiles get to be part of God’s family too. His gifts and His mercy extend to those outside of the house of Israel. To the proud and Pharisetical Jews, this was awful. How could *those people* get to be included? They didn’t have the *right* bloodline. They didn’t have the *traceable back to King David* family tree. And in fact, Saint Paul writes even more outrageously: ‘branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in’ (v. 19). Not only are Gentiles included, but members of the house of Israel have been excluded. On what merit or word does this get to be the reality? Members of the house of Israel were focusing on the wrong thing. They were so sure of their history and their works, they had fallen into unbelief. Unbelief causes separation from God. Similarly, these unbelievers had declared judgment on their Gentile neighbors and were sure that no Gentile could be redeemed. Oh how wrong they were! ‘You, a wild olive shoot were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree’ (v. 17). God pruned the plant, cutting off what is dead and including what was alive. You struggle with the same sin as the Pharisetical Jews. You declare yourself ‘god’ when you look at a neighbor who sins differently than you do and think (or say) that they cannot possibly be loved or redeemed by Jesus. Their sin is too bad. Their life is too broken. Or, you look at fellow Christians and think, ‘well at least I am not judgmental like them.’ Saint Paul has a warning for this too: ‘do not become proud, but fear’ (v. 20). We all fall short of God’s perfect Law. We become complacent and comparative with our actions or in our attitudes. Repent. Remember that you (and your neighbor) were born in sinfulness. You (and your neighbor) were brought back to life in Baptism. You (and your neighbor) have God’s full pardon through Jesus’ death and resurrection. Rejoice in the overwhelming love you have been given from our merciful and forgiving Lord! Rejoice that God’s love is so abundant that it completely covers you and your neighbor. Rejoice and rest in the knowledge that you (and your neighbor, yes, even that one…) are washed in the blood of the Lamb and are included in God’s family. His Word promises it; God always keeps His promises. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Chief of sinners though I be, Jesus shed his blood for me, died that I might live on high,  lives that I might never die.  As the branch is to the vine,  I am his and he is mine!  (Chief of Sinners Though I Be, LSB:611 1)-Deaconess Sarah Longmire is the bible study editor for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 21, 2023Today's Reading: Isaiah 56:1, 6-8Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 17:48-18:9, Acts 27:9-26The Lord God, who gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares, I will gather yet others to him besides those already gathered. (Isaia 56:8)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Outsider. Foreigner. Doesn’t belong. Outcast. These words describe exclusion. These words create division: if you are out, that means you are NOT in. If you are ‘in,’ there is a temptation to breathe a sigh of relief and do whatever is necessary to maintain the ‘included’ status. To be left out hurts; no one desires to be slighted, forgotten, cut off, or left behind. In today’s reading, there is a wild declaration from God: He is going to INCLUDE those who were on the outside of Israel. He was going to not only gather the ‘outcasts’ of Israel, but also include those ‘others’ too. That hardly seems fair; they must be ‘outsiders’ for a reason. And by their exclusion, we can be sure that our inclusion is secure…right? How radical of an idea that those who have been on the outside of God’s mercy can suddenly be included! In our sin, we create labels for ‘others.’ We struggle to not self-justify our status as ‘better-than-others’  based on external descriptions (at least I don’t sin like that person) or a false sense of earning our place with God (I go to church every week, so I am definitely ‘in’). We can become complacent in the reality of our own former status as ‘other.’ Before our Baptism, we were dead in our transgressions and alienated from God. We were without hope, certainly not able to earn a spot or make for ourselves an ‘in’ with God. We were the outsiders - the foreigners - the outcasts - the other. God in His mercy sent His Son to pay for our sins, give us new life, and declare us as His. This was not earned by us. This was not a negotiation we won. This was His plan for our salvation. In our Baptism, we are made alive, given God’s name, and declared ‘in’ with Him. We live in our Baptism for eternity. He claims us for eternity. But what about the worry that including others might take from us what we have? This is unfounded and unnecessary. Jesus died to pay for the sins of the whole world: He has more forgiveness than we have sins. Therefore we joyfully share the Good News of Jesus’ death and resurrection with all of our neighbors, knowing that God’s mercy is for them abundantly - just as it is for us!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.God would not have the sinner die; his Son with saving grace is nigh.  His Spirit in the Word declares  that we in Christ are heaven's heirs.  (God Loved the World So That He Gave, LSB 571:3)-Deaconess Sarah Longmire is the bible study editor for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 20, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 15:21-28Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 17:20-47‘Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David.’  (Matthew 15:22b)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Mercy. Undeserved reprieve. Declared innocent in light of clear guilt. In today’s reading, a mother is crying out for mercy to be shown to her daughter. She is desperate and coming to Jesus. She has the diagnosis: demon possession. She needs the only true cure: Jesus. However, she is rebuked by His disciples and, at first, dismissed by Jesus. But she is persistent: she comes before Him, kneels, and cries out for help. She does not offer a bargain or a trade. In fact, when Jesus tells her that she is not an Israelite (and in fact suggests that she is a dog), she rightly acknowledges her status. She knows and readily admits who she is and what she needs; she may be an outsider, but she knows who the Master is and what He can do. She feels the weight of her daughter’s troubles and knows that the solution must come from someone beyond herself. She is weak, helpless, and unable to save her daughter. We too were once outsiders; before our Baptism, we were dead in our sins and enemies to God. Dead! Dead things cannot fix themselves (or help others). Enemies! Even if we could do something, we would do the wrong thing - the evil thing. We are guilty. We are broken. Left to ourselves, we are hopeless. We know the weight of sin; sin causes that which should be perfect to break. We have been brought to our knees in the face of the consequences of sin: our own sin and sins done against us. We are like this Canaanite woman: we are guilty, broken, and have no recourse except to cry out to God for mercy. Here’s the Good News! God has and continues to show you mercy! It is undeserved and a reprieve from lasting death. In your Baptism, you were given new life; you are covered by Jesus and named as one of God’s children. We who were enemies have now been claimed and redeemed, chosen and made clean. We have God’s infinite mercy, won for us by Jesus, through His death and resurrection. We didn’t earn it nor do we deserve it, but it is ours. Rest and rejoice in the merciful goodness from our Lord. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and everlasting Father, You give Your children many blessings even though we are undeserving. In every trial and temptation grant us steadfast confidence in Your loving-kindness and mercy; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. -Deaconess Sarah Longmire is the bible study editor for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 19, 2023Today's Reading: Introit to Pentecost 12: Psalm 28:1-2, 6-7; antiphon: Psalm 28:8Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 17:1-19, Acts 26:1-23Psalm 28:7: “The LORD is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The tenses matter.  David is calling out to God for help. Present tense.  Right now.  If God won’t answer him he’ll die.  Present danger.  There are wicked workers of evil around him.  Present tense. He’s in trouble as He prays this psalm.  Blessed be the LORD! For He has heard the voice of my pleas for mercy.  Past tense.  Before David ever cried out to God for help, the Lord had already heard.  Before they call, I will answer them, says the LORD.  The LORD is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him.  Present tense.  David, surrounded by enemies and about to die, is helped.  Present tense.  The help that brings him comfort can exist even in the present tense and danger.  It isn’t held out to the future.  It isn’t quarantined to a time you don’t need it anymore.  It’s present tense.  The help David found comfort in, even surrounded by problems, was rooted not in the absence of problems but the presence of God.  God heard and worked even before the problem.  He has sent His Son to rescue you from every evil before you could ever call upon Him.  The prayers we pray are comforts, not because we need to make God work in the future to fix our present problems, but because He has already worked in the past, and His present Word reminds us of our help now.  That help lasts forevermore.  The rescue we have is eternal.  The victory we have is over the grave.  When you pray, don’t think of prayer as leverage to make God work. Use those words to remember God’s promises.  Everything that you’re asking for has been paid for. The help that you need is from a God not far off.  The rescue that you think can’t be today is already yours.  Blessed be the Lord, who has already worked to deliver us. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.We all believe in one true God, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, Ever-present help in need, Praised by all the heav’nly host; All He made His love enfolds, All creation He upholds. (We All Believe in One True God, LSB 953:1)-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 18, 2023Today's Reading: 1 Samuel 16:1-23Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 16:1-23, Acts 25:13-271 Samuel 16:7: “But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.””In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Lord looks at things differently than we do.  We want might. He wants mercy.  Pastors love alliteration even more than allegory.  So when Samuel goes out to visit Jesse to see which of his sons would be the newer, better king, there’s something for us to learn.  Samuel assumes the taller. The stronger.  Someone to crush Saul, who has turned evil.  Someone who would protect the people.  The Lord rejects this idea.  It’s going to be David, despite all the things that make him look weak.  David’s Son, yet David’s Lord is no different.  The God we want help from stomps the people we hate. He cures all our diseases. He fixes all our problems.  Instead, we get the God who dies on the cross.  We’re as perplexed as Samuel.  But where mercy is worked, peace follows.  We talk a lot about the theology of the cross and the theology of glory.  We know the difference between mercy and might, and which one our Lord uses.  But we often overlook which one brings peace.  A theology of glory never gives true lasting peace.  Each rescue only kicks the can down the road until the next tragedy, pain, or trial.  Each rescue isn’t a chance to rejoice, but only a chance to look over your shoulder for something else.  But a theology of the cross provides a rescue that even death itself cannot destroy.  It provides the peace of knowing none of these things can separate us from the love of God which joins us in the pit to suffer, to work mercy, and to save.  Ours isn’t a hope of escape from one problem at a time.  Ours is a hope of salvation that none of our problems can rob us of, whether we have them or not.  It’s of a God who isn’t just mighty, but loving enough to work within suffering so that suffering can become a gift, and not just something to spend our days afraid of.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Lord, my God, to Thee I pray: O cast me not in wrath away! Let Thy good Spirit ne’er depart, But let Him draw to Thee my heart That truly penitent I be: O God, be merciful to me (To Thee, Omniscient Lord of All, LSB 613:2)!-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 17, 2023Today's Reading: Romans 10:5-17Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 15:10-35, Acts 24:24-25:12Romans 10:17: “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. God sends His word to you so that you will believe it and be saved.  And we’re still scared that Christianity is going away.  Despite the boomers telling you how full the church was “back in their day”, it’s not a new problem.  One verse before the promise that faith comes by hearing is the lament of Romans 10:16, “But they have not all obeyed the gospel.” For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?””I love it when old people complain to me about things I worry about too.  Generation after generation has worried about the wellbeing of Christendom.  Generation after generation has lamented.  Generation after generation has been preserved in faith.  Because no matter how much we worry, God still sends preachers.  He still sends His Holy Spirit by His Word to call, gather, enlighten, sanctify, and keep.  The feet are beautiful because God sends them to speak salvation.  It's not your job to ascend to heaven. It’s not your job to save yourself.  It’s not your job to save others.  It’s Jesus’ job to descend.  To die. To rise. To ascend back into heaven.  To send forth the Spirit by the feet of preachers.  And to save you and many more by the hearing of that Word. Not all will believe.  That doesn’t nullify the Word.  It just makes it matter more.  In a world of not enough hope, God is still speaking more.  He can’t be silenced any more than He can be uncrucified.  So we hear. We believe. And we confess.  Christ Jesus saved me by His death and resurrection.  He has saved you too. The Word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.To hope grown dim, to hearts turned cold Speak tongues of fire and make us bold To shine Your Word of saving grace Into each dark and loveless place (Lord Jesus Christ, with Us Abide, LSB 585:3).-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 16, 2023Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism, The Lord’s Prayer: First Petition Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 14:47-15:9, Acts 24:1-23Hallowed be Thy nameIn the Name + of Jesus. Amen. People misuse God’s name a lot.  Not just where toes get stubbed.  Where people lie about who God is. Where people teach falsely in His name. Where people use His name as a weapon for a cause they deem more important than His will.  And yet, God’s name is already holy.  You can’t make God’s name more holy by your prayers.  You can’t make it less holy by your actions.  But we pray in this petition that God’s holy name would be a gift to us.  That the name we can’t sully by our sins would be the name of our redeemer.  That our redeemer wouldn’t abandon us to our sins, but give us a name to call upon in every trouble, pray, praise, and give thanks.God’s name is kept holy when the Word of God is taught in its truth and purity, and we, as the children of God, also lead holy lives according to it. Help us to do this, dear Father in heaven! But anyone who teaches or lives contrary to God’s Word profanes the name of God among us. Protect us from this, heavenly Father!This Petition is a gift because it points to who God already is. That turns the prayer from a burden to a gift.  Now you don’t have to pray for something to happen, but rejoice that it happens near you and for you. He’s establishing His holy name in your life by His Holy Spirit where His Word is preached and His Sacrament administered. You can know where it is and pray that it is given to you too.  You can find comfort in receiving them.  You can find holiness brought near you.  God gives His holy name that you would find comfort in praying to Your Father in heaven, and life in His only Son. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Your name be hallowed. Help us, Lord, In purity to keep Your Word, That to the glory of Your name We walk before You free from blame. Let no false teaching us pervert; All poor deluded souls convert (Our Father, Who from Heaven Above, LSB 766:2). -Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 15, 2023Today's Reading: Luke 1:39-55Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 13:1-18, Acts 23:13-35Luke 1:48: “for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Blessed are you among women To be called the mother of God by the small whispering wordAnd so much worse by those without ears to hear.The virgin shall conceive and bear abuse. But she named it all Immanuel.God with us. For the belittled and the befouled The mocked and reviled, the virgin gives a hymn.He has regard for the humiliated. who in their shame would prefer sticks and stones to words used to cause much deeper hurt He sheds precious blood and names the least of these holy.  Exalting what has been profaned,and blessing what others only curse.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, You chose the Virgin Mary to be the mother of Your only Son. Grant that we, who are redeemed by His blood, may share with her in the glory of Your eternal kingdom; through Jesus Christ, our Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 14, 2023Today's Reading: Job 38:4-18Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 12:1-25, Acts 22:30-23:11Job 38:4: ““Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Where were you when God worked? To create. To redeem. The real question the Lord poses to Job is “Why would you think you need to be?” It’s a harsh question for a reason.  After everything that Job went through, it’s easy to question how a loving God could let it happen. It’s easy to come up with 100 other options that involve less hurt.  The Lord doesn't take time to entertain them.  He doesn’t make it a contest of ideas, but of identity. Because we have questions and ideas.  And honestly it’s going to be tough to convince anyone in the midst of Job’s suffering that it’s totally a good idea. We still try. We treat “everything happens for a reason” like a magic spell that just makes it all ok.  Instead, Job is left with a reminder about who his God is.  Because honestly, he’s not going to understand the reason.  The Lord berates Job for chapters on end for assuming he possibly could.  You are not God. You’re not going to understand the reason.  You were not even there.  And that’s a gift. Why would you think you’d need to be?  Did the God who did all these we don’t understand and hate put Himself farther away from creation or closer? He was incarnate.  Did He put Himself farther away or closer to suffering? He took flesh to die for you.  Were you there?  Why would you measure creation by your experience of it? Why would you think you had to be at the foot of the cross to make it matter more? It’s evil to measure it by your experience.  If God is only working in ways that you experience as pleasurable, when you need Him the most, He’ll feel the farthest away.  He didn’t abandon Job.  Thinking that way is demonic.  It’s literally what Satan wanted.  Sing songs about where you were when Jesus was crucified all you want, but what matters isn’t just that it happened, but it happened for you. Even if you weren’t there. That it was the work of a God smarter than you. Holier than you. Who loves you.  He does things we don’t understand and don’t like.  But He also bears the worst of it Himself, even for the very sinners who question His motives while He does it. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Were you there when they crucified my Lord? Were you there when they crucified my Lord? Oh . . . Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble. Were you there when they crucified my Lord (Were You There, LSB 456:1)?-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 13, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 14:22-33Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 10:1-27, Acts 22:17-29Matthew 14:24–25: “but the boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them. And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It’s easier to talk about the Jesus who walks on water than the Jesus who made the disciples get in the boat before the winds and waves pulled their boat from land and soaked the disciples to their bones.  The wind was against them.  Which is an understatement sort of like when someone asks you “how’s it going?” and you say “OK”.  The wind was against them in the kind of way that took control of their boat from them and threatened death.  It’s great that Jesus walked on water in a storm, but if you ignore the reality that He also made the disciples go out into what just might have killed them, you’ll miss the point.  Both were done out of mercy.  In the middle of the night, surrounded by death, the deeper truth is that Jesus rescued the disciples from the misconception that calm is the same as peace.  When Christianity confuses calm for peace, it offers neither.   But still, so often, we want to describe our faith as a calmed storm, not a present Lord. We imagine that a thriving faith is the kind that can walk on water and not sink, but I wonder how many of the people who’d criticize St. Peter for the doubt that sunk him into the sea also took swimming lessons.  “O ye of little faith, why did you doubt?” O ye of little faith, why would you think that would stop God from working.  The disciples were anything but calm.  Peter doubted.  God still saved.  All of this is given to you so you’ll stop measuring the storm, stop measuring the calm, stop measuring your faith, and start looking to your God.  Christianity is not Christians copying Jesus to walk on water.  It’s Jesus pulling up sinking sinners.  He reaches down into death and pulls us back out.  He dies upon the cross for you and rises from the dead, taking you with Him. And if Christ can pull you out of the grave, go ahead and let your calm be damaged. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.Almighty and most merciful God, preserve us from all harm and danger that we, being ready in both body and soul, may cheerfully accomplish what You want done; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. 

August 12, 2023Today's Reading: Introit to Pentecost 11: Psalm 34:4-8; antiphon: Psalm 34:1Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 9:1-27, Acts 21:37-22:16Psalm 34:7: The angel of the LORD encamps around those who I fear him, and delivers them.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The angel of the Lord is, more than sometimes, the Son of God.  Angel means messenger.  Voice. Word.  The Word of the Lord made flesh spoke even before He was made flesh.  The Son of God was at work in the Old Testament too.  The angel of the Lord who saves the poor man out of his troubles, who encamps around those who fear them and delivers them is the one who would become man to die and rise.  It doesn’t just change the actor. It changes what the help looks like.  We imagine help from angels looks like spiritual war protecting us from demons.  We imagine it looks like forces unseen at work to keep us safe.  But the angel of the Lord dwells with us in our suffering to deliver us by suffering for us on the cross.  God won’t be far from our cries for help in times of trouble.  But He saves us not by sending legions of angels to conquer the trouble but by bearing it Himself.  God saves us through weakness, not strength.  But that means when you look around and things are falling apart, it isn’t because God has left us.  It usually just means we’re looking in the wrong places.  Oh taste and see that the Lord is good.  God dwells with sinners to save today.  In communion, Jesus encamps on altars surrounded by the faithful, struggling with sin week after week. Struggling with death. Struggling with the evil one.  He gives the victory we’re desperate for week after week.  He brings deliverance you can taste. His body and blood for you.  They save you.  From the sins you can’t escape on your own.  From the death that looms.  From the evil one.  We eat and drink the body and blood of Jesus that forgives all your sin, brings life everlasting, and robs the devil of all his might.  That It’s worth praising. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.From evil, Lord, deliver us; The times and days are perilous. Redeem us from eternal death, And, when we yield our dying breath, Console us, grant us calm release, And take our souls to You in peace (Our Father, Who from Heaven Above, LSB 766:8).-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 11, 2023Today's Reading: Acts 21:15-36Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 8:1-22, Acts 21:15-36Acts 21:24: “take these men and purify yourself along with them and pay their expenses, so that they may shave their heads. Thus all will know that there is nothing in what they have been told about you, but that you yourself also live in observance of the law.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Paul seems to go back and forth on little details, but makes a huge deal of them.  In some places he urges circumcision. In others he forbids it.  Sometimes he speaks about eating food offered to idols as no big deal, and today he shaves his head to show he’s not down with that tomfoolery.  It’s almost easier to blame it on the hypocrisy of Christians.  Today we don’t talk about food sacrificed to idols, and circumcision isn’t a trending topic, but can you shop at Target?  It really seems like everyone is making up their own answers, justifying them from Scripture, and condemning others even if they end up changing their minds and justifying their new answers from the same Scriptures.  There is a way to see through the haze.  First, right and wrong are defined by the 10 commandments.  Those don’t change.  If the commandments are silent, for example, on food that was sacrificed to Ba’al or  Ta’arget, we ask a simple question.  What does this confess? Not just what do you intend, but what do other people see? You can fly a rainbow flag as a remembrance of God’s promise to Noah, but the world will see something different.  What does this confess? That’s why Paul’s answer changes.  To those who would make a weapon out of the Law and use it against others, he preaches Christian freedom.  To those who would be harmed spiritually by being subject to the trends of the day, he preaches a clear distinction between faith and unfaithfulness.  When you go out into the world, can you be made unclean by anything in your Baptism? No! Jesus died for you. Daily you are washed.  Your salvation cannot be robbed by the dollar spot.  Might there come a time for some people in some places that they cannot be associated with unbelief to the point where they’ll have to look elsewhere? Sure.  But in each case, the question is what does this confess? We confess Christ crucified for the forgiveness of sins and the free salvation given to sinners by His promises.  Let that be our identity.  That saves more than public declarations of boycotts. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.All who confess Christ’s holy name, Give God the praise and glory. Let all who know His pow’r proclaim Aloud the wondrous story. Cast ev’ry idol from its throne, For God is God, and He alone: To God all praise and glory! (Sing Praise to God, the Highest Good, 819:5)-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

 August 10, 2023Today's Reading: Acts 19:1-22Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 6:19-7:17, Acts 19:1-22Acts 19:19: “And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted the value of them and found it came to fifty thousand pieces of silver.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Magic always boils down to the same thing.  Whether it’s Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter or genuine dark arts and witchcraft.  Manipulate something spiritual to affect something physical.  Poke at something you can’t see to get something you can.  Which, if you think about it, is a lot like how most Christians treat prayer.  That might actually be a good way to think about this.  In the text the exorcists weren’t calling out to Satan to cast out Satan. They were using the name of Jesus. They thought they knew the magic words.  It’s what broke the second commandment.  Magic is evil because it’s about control.  Using God’s name as a magic word to get what you want (please) is evil because it’s about control. The difference between magic and prayer is control.  Are you praying to a Heavenly Father who loves you for comfort in the knowledge that His will is going to be done in your life as it is everywhere else, or are you trying to manipulate something you can’t see to get something you can? God’s name is not something you use to get something else.  God’s name is a comfort to all who trust in Him.  The difference between the exorcists and Paul’s teaching about the Holy Spirit and baptizing in the triune name isn’t just that Paul’s stuff worked. It isn’t because Paul meant it for good and the people trying to cast demons out of the sick and suffering had ulterior motives.  It’s that God would not allow His name to be misused to teach people He was the same as any other spiritual force out there.  Call upon it in every trouble, pray, praise, and give thanks.  But do so knowing you have a Father in Heaven who loves you, and that any peace comes from knowing you have received the Holy Spirit and need not worry about having to do magic in the first place.  Because God is in control.  That’s way better.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O come, Thou Wisdom from on high, Who ord’rest all things mightily; To us the path of knowledge show, And teach us in her ways to go. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to thee, O Israel! (O Come, O Come, Emmanuel, LSB 357:2)-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 9, 2023Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism, Table of Duties: Intro to the Lord's PrayerDaily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 5:1-6:3, 10-16, Acts 18:1-11, 23-28Our Father who art in HeavenIn the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Prayer is about comfort, not stuff.  For some reason we’ve come to see it the other way around.  Prayer is about making God do stuff for you.  The problem is that the second prayer is rooted in stuff and not comfort, there’s never any comfort to be found until you get the stuff.  So everything becomes devoted to getting it.  Which means you have to pray more. And be more heartfelt about it. And definitely get more people to do it with you and for you so that God will help you.  Because He only helps the popular kids, right? Also, when prayer becomes about stuff and you’re not getting your stuff, it’s hard not to see God as the bad guy in the situation.  Some Christians even call themselves prayer warriors.  The thing is, Satan was defeated at the cross.  So, who’s left to fight except God?  So Jesus teaches us to pray.  Our Father who art in heaven.  We pray as if we have a Father in heaven who actually loves us enough to take care of us.  Who calls us to ask for all things with the knowledge that the answer isn’t rooted in you doing enough to earn a prize, but in Him loving you enough to take care of you.  Sometimes that means saying no.  Sometimes that means saying later. But even when you don’t get what you want, even what you need, you still have a Father in heaven, and this prayer is a comfort because it reminds us of that.  The thing we need isn’t everything.  You have a God who will care for you, even without it if He knows it to be best.  When prayer is about comfort, you can bring all your complaints, your worries, and even your sins to God with your petitions and know that He gladly bears them all for you.  He answers not as a vending machine would, but as a Father.  This is the greater good. Your parents don’t stop being your parents because they say no to you.  You’re better for being told no once in a while.  The comfort of prayer is knowing that God, who is smarter than you and holier than you, is on your side, and working in all things to care for you as a dear Father cares for His dear children. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Our Father, who from heav’n above Bids all of us to live in love As members of one family And pray to You in unity, Teach us no thoughtless words to say But from our inmost hearts to pray (Our Father, Who from Heaven Above, LSB 766:1)-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 8, 2023Today's Reading: Romans 9:1-13Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 4:1-22, Acts 16:23-40Romans 9:11: “in order that God’s purpose of election might continue, not because of works but because of him who calls.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It’s a dangerous thing to look at missions and assume you’re more loving than God is.  Almost all of us have someone in our life outside of the faith.  Every single one of us is uncomfortable about it.  Even though God is the one who did the work to die and rise again to save us. Even though we cannot by our own reason or strength believe in this Jesus Christ our Lord or come to Him, we make it our “mission” to make sure someone else does.  What can we do? What can we say? How can we make them believe? Paul struggles with it, and I deeply understand his frustrations.  To Paul’s people belong the promises, the Law, the worship, the covenants.  Yet not all of them are children of Abraham.  It is not as though the Word of God has failed, though.  Remember, God’s purpose of election, His love for sinners, is what first drove Him to the cross.  Do you think He loves us less this side of Easter, now that the painful part is over?  All who hear and receive God’s promises in faith hear because He calls.  Yes, some will hear and ignore.  Some will close their ears to the Law and the promises.  It doesn’t mean God doesn’t want them saved. After all, He calls them, which shows He wants them saved.  It also doesn’t fall on you to fix what God supposedly did wrong.  There will be people who hate the promises, but they can’t unmake them.  It isn’t yours to save your friends anymore than it is Paul’s.  But God wants them saved even more than you do.  Even if they hate the promises now, they can’t unmake them.  So God will still proclaim, and the Holy Spirit will still work to call, gather, enlighten, sanctify, and even keep. Rest here. If there are such things as missions, recognize it is God who is at work, and simply take joy in the reality He cares about the people in your life enough to make promises to them over and over, and that His Word does not return void. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Elect from ev’ry nation, Yet one o’er all the earth; Her charter of salvation: One Lord, one faith, one birth. One holy name she blesses, Partakes one holy food, And to one hope she presses With ev’ry grace endued (The Church’s One Foundation LSB 644:2).-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 7, 2023Today's Reading: Isaiah 55:1-5Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 3:1-21, Acts 16:1-22Isaiah 55:2: “Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It doesn’t makes sense, but I still watch a basketball team I don’t think will win and eat food I know isn’t healthy.  I say money can’t buy happiness, but I also say practice makes perfect, so I guess I’ll try it one more time anyway.  Everyone nods sagely when we talk about the futility of these things.  Simplicity and productivity fill my feeds.  They get millions of views because all of us see through the foolishness and are convinced that if we just finally abandon the ridiculous things we cling to. our stress will go away along with it. We figure If we can't have all we covet, money must be bad, even though we thank God for the gifts it buys because we know who made it, gave it to us, and called it good in the first place.Money isn't bad, leisure isn't bad. Being more organized and less stressed isn't bad. But God won't limit Himself to where these things might theoretically exist.  If you want to measure God's presence or goodness or even just whether or not He exists based on how little stress and how much money you have, when you need God the most He'll be the farthest away. He doesn't need those things as much as you think He does. God puts Himself in poverty and chaos.  God invites in those who have no money, and all who thirst.  He makes a covenant with sinners, and promises to save, help, and redeem.  He doesn't need money or work/life balance to manage it.  He takes on human flesh and weakness, and even the human sin that looks for God where He has never promised to be found, in us getting better enough to not need Him anymore.  We find Him not living the best life, but dying the righteous death upon the cross.  It’s so that if you have plenty, you can thank God, and if you don't, I'm sorry, and you're allowed to lament it, but just don't think you somehow lost God in the midst of it, or that He won't continue to care in ways that all those things you think you need could never manage. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.All depends on our possessing God’s abundant grace and blessing, Though all earthly wealth depart. They who trust with faith unshaken By their God are not forsaken And will keep a dauntless heart (All Depends on Our Possessing, LSB 732:1)-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House

August 6, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 14:13-21 Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 2:18-36, Acts 15:22-41Matthew 14:14: “When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The feeding of the 5000 happens right after John the Baptist gets his head cut off for preaching the stuff God told him to preach.  It makes bread and fish seem like less, even if He healed a few sick people along the way.  Especially since Jesus left afterwards so He wouldn’t have to do it again.  Reading about miracles in the Bible only seems to highlight the places they aren’t today.  So instead of measuring God by every single problem, by everything you think you lack, look to who He is in the face of all of it.It was compassion that moved Jesus each time.  It was compassion for the loss of His friend that drove Him to the desolate places to mourn.  It was compassion for the people there that drove Him to feed the people that followed Him.  It was even compassion that drove Him away after.  When He went, it wasn’t to abandon them. He carried their pains and fears and most of all their sins with Him. He wanted to do more than answer one fear after another as they arose.  He wasn’t meant to be that kind of King.  He left to snuff them out completely.   His was to go into Jerusalem to wear a crown of thorns so that sinful desire and scared idolatry would not devour us, that enemies like death and the devil would be robbed of their sting. That the sinners would find mercy.  That the dead would live. That those who hunger and thirst for righteousness would be satisfied.  Even when everything looks like this.  Maybe you don’t see Him still working in the middle of all your problems, but neither did the disciples surrounded by hungry mouths to feed.   In the face of fear and sorrow and a complete lack of everything needed, Jesus took bread, and after giving thanks, broke it and gave it to the disciples. 5000 were fed.  The same love, the same mercy that drove Him to care for those saints drives Him to care for you, even if He does it differently.  Today I don’t see 5000 fed, but the body and blood of Jesus forgive my sins.  That does more than leave me fed once and looking for the next meal. You can have some too. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, though we do not deserve Your goodness, still You provide for all our needs of body and soul. Grant us Your Holy Spirit that we may acknowledge Your gifts, give thanks for all Your benefits,and serve You in willing obedience; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. -Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 5, 2023Today's Reading: Introit for Pentecost 10: Psalm 105:39-43; antiphon: Psalm 105:1Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 1:21-2:17, Galatians 6:1-18They asked, and he brought quail, and gave them bread from heaven in abundance. He opened the rock, and water gushed out; it flowed through the desert like a river. For he remembered his holy promise, and Abraham, his servant.  (From the Introit for Pentecost 10)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It is no surprise that this is tomorrow’s Introit when you know that the Gospel reading is the Feeding of the 5000. These words dovetail (or is it ‘quail tail’?) nicely with what Jesus does.This psalm is a quick overview of what God has done for his people from the call of Abraham up to the people coming into the Promised Land. It is a remembrance of all that God has done in love for His chosen ones.When you hear these words tomorrow, and your pastor proclaims the Gospel to you about how Jesus multiplied the loaves and fishes, think back to these words and rejoice that God our Father has been providing for His people in strange and mysterious ways century after century since He called Abraham to be the father of his people.Sure, the modern grocery store may not seem as miraculous as the loaves and fish, or manna on the ground each morning, or flocks of quail drifting through the camp at catchable speed, or water gushing from a rock in the wilderness, but it is indeed a miracle of modern engineering that fresh (and shelf-stable) foods are replenished as fast as you can load a grocery cart. Not to mention fast food outlets and their offerings.The giving of First Article Gifts, of our Daily Bread, is what God our Father does for a living. He allows the rain to fall on the just and unjust, He provides food and shelter for all of His creations, and He preserves us in safety with an eye to eternity.These gifts of food and drink, house and home, and all that the explanation to the First Article of the Creed in the Small Catechism spell out come to us because God remembers his holy promise.As marvelous and as amazing as these miracles are, and the reception of our Daily Bread, they all pale in comparison to Jesus giving his very self for us and our salvation. Even this is a gift of God because by it, He remembers His holy promise.So the next time you are wowed by a beautiful dinner or a surprising find at the grocery store, remember that God your Father remembers His holy promise to you and He sustains you because He loves you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Praise to the Lord, who o’er all things is wondrously reigning And, as on wings of an eagle, uplifting, sustaining. Have you not seen All that is needful has been Sent by His gracious ordaining?  (LSB 790:2)-Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 4, 2023Today's Reading: Galatians 5:1-15Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 1:1-20, Galatians 5:1-26For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery…For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.  (Galatians 5:1, 13)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. There is a lot going on in Galatians 5. St. Paul is angry to the point of throwing things, he’s so mad about how the Galatian Christians act in response to God’s Word and outside influences that he can’t even see straight. He can’t believe that people who have heard the sweet words of the Gospel can so quickly return to trying to earn salvation under the Law.Freedom in the Gospel is primary, here. Don’t think you need to live under the fear of the Law once you have been recreated in Christ through baptism. It is easy to think that if you just followed all the right rules in all the right ways, that life would be awesome and you’d have no problems because you were following the script handed down from above.The problem is, sinners get in the way of that perfect plan. Satan, the world, and your own sinful flesh causes everything to flip upside down, and all of a sudden you are trying to please God by following a checklist instead of receiving His good and gracious gifts.And that’s why St. Paul urges you to stand firm in the freedom of the Gospel. But see that freedom as a way to love those around you, not to just go crazy and do whatever you want and say, “it’s fine, Jesus forgives me!”The Christian life is a life of loving God with every fiber of your being and your neighbor as yourself. That means living a life that honors your neighbors because they need to know the love of God as much as you do.Freedom in Christ isn’t living for yourself. It isn’t trying to get the most out of life at the expense of others. It is living the life God our Father has given you, a life lived in love for those around you, and in you receiving the love of others for you, too. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Called by worship to Your service, Forth in Your dear name we go, To the child, the youth, the aged, Love in living deeds to show; Hope and health, goodwill and comfort, Counsel, aid, and peace we give, That Your servants, Lord, in freedom May Your mercy know and live.  (LSB 848:4)-Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 3, 2023Today's Reading: Ezekiel 40:1-4, 48:35Daily Lectionary: Judges 16:4-30, Galatians 4:12-31“And the name of the city from that time on shall be, The LORD Is There.” (Ezekiel 48:35)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The words “hope” and “Old Testament prophet” don’t often go together in our minds. But the very reason the prophets are sent is because of hope. Because the Lord God wants to draw His people back to His side, into His hands, into a place set aside for them that is safe from all outside attacks.And so it is that the prophet Ezekiel, after calling out God’s people (and many foreign nations, too) for their faithlessness and wandering, ends his book with a word of profound hope and peace. It takes him nine chapters to outline just how magnificent and glorious the New Jerusalem God promises is. He’s mostly known for dry bones, weird visions, and baking bread over manure, but all of that pales in the light of what he lays out at the end of his book.God’s people know why they are in exile. They know why Jerusalem, their lifelong home, had been destroyed. And they wonder if God will ever return them home. They have just about given up, even though there have been many times Ezekiel has comforted them throughout his time as a prophet.And so it is with us, too. We’ve heard God’s Law against our failures. We’ve heard his Gospel promises and assurances of our forgiveness and salvation in Jesus, but we still wonder if it is all true. If God really means it. If he will return and take us to that New Heaven and New Earth he’s promised.And that’s the thing. He has promised it to us. Our not believing it doesn’t make it untrue, it just makes our lives more difficult. The Word of God stands whether we trust it or not, which is why Ezekiel goes to such pains to outline the gloriousness of the future.And he doesn’t stop there. He finishes his book with the line from our reading today. That the name of this place prepared for us, the New Heaven and Earth, the place where the uncountable multitudes shall gather for all eternity, is: “The Lord is There.”And that’s all we need to know. The Lord is there, so of course it will be magnificent beyond description. Beautiful beyond comprehension. Glorious beyond all understanding. The Lord is there, and so are we, his baptized, redeemed, and forgiven children. There forever, before his majestic glory. There is no other place to be for eternity, because He’s made it for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.God Himself is present: Let us now adore Him And with awe appear before Him. God is in His temple; All within keep silence; Humbly kneel in deepest rev’rence. He alone On His throne Is our God and Savior; Praise His name forever!  (LSB 907:1)-Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 2, 2023Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism, Third Article Part 2Daily Lectionary: Judges 15:1-16:3, Galatians 3:23-4:11What does this mean? In the same way He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith. (Small Catechism, The Third Article, Part 2 of the Meaning)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Last week we talked about how the Holy Spirit is like a lifeguard saving a drowning person; He does all the work to save, the drowning one can only rest in His arms and be saved.This week, He does this for everyone other than you. Just as He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies you, He does the same for every single Christian on earth. And then, once safe in the ark of the church, the Spirit keeps that church in the faith.The Holy Spirit works through your (and every) pastor to make sure that the saving Word of God is taught and proclaimed in its truth and purity, and that the Sacraments are administered as God intended, that they may work to keep, strengthen, and preserve you in the one true faith.The Holy Spirit is the ‘silent partner’ of the Trinity; He doesn’t call attention to himself. He points you to Jesus, always to Jesus. He works behind the scenes so you always see your Savior before you. He carries the Word to your ears, makes sure Christ’s Body and Blood paint your tongue, and sees to it that you are comforted in times of need.“Jesus died for you. Jesus is risen for you. Your sins were washed away by Jesus’s blood, and your Baptism is where that happened. Need to be reminded of what God has done for you? Listen to his Word. Feeling your sin? Come to the Supper—eat, drink, and live!” That’s the work of the Holy Spirit. That’s what He is doing for you and for every believer in all of history.Calling you into the family of God by the Word, gathering you together with the saints before the throne of God, enlightening and making you holy with the Sacraments. All of this, for you. Jesus’s gifts, given for you, their delivery made certain by the Holy Spirit.. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and ever-living God, You fulfilled Your promise by sending the gift of the Holy Spirit to unite disciples of all nations in the cross and resurrection of Your Son, Jesus Christ. By the preaching of the Gospel spread this gift to the ends of the earth; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  (Collect for Pentecost Tuesday) -Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

August 1, 2023Today's Reading: Romans 8:28-39Daily Lectionary: Judges 14:1-20, Galatians 3:1-22What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?  (Romans 8:31-32)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Romans 8 is a favorite chapter of so many Christians. And why not? It says so clearly what we need to hear from our Lord about living safely in God’s hands.But what if it was the other way around? What if St. Paul had written: ‘If God is against us, who can be for us?’ What a despairing thought! How horrible! If God himself turned against us in wrath, who would be able to save us? Certainly none of the comic book heroes, not one created being would be able to stand before God in his full wrath.And that’s good, because He wouldn’t be God if one of His creatures could win against Him. Because there once was a time when God was against us, and that was when all of our sin was piled high upon Jesus.When St. Paul says “He who did not spare his own Son,” He gives it away. That was the moment when God stood against not only you, but against all of humanity. God did bring His full wrath and anger down, like a bolt of lightning, like a slamming hammer, but not upon us, but upon Jesus for us.The very Son of God was the only one who could withstand such an onslaught. The God-Man endured, even though He died, and brought salvation to you. The God-man passed from death to life to rescue you, having satisfied God’s anger and wrath.Yes, it is a frightful thing to consider Almighty God being against you. And maybe things have happened in your life to make you think He is against you, that He is angry with you. But that’s when you go back to this chapter of Romans and read it once again to see that no, God’s Word itself promises that He is not against you, He is not punishing you.He has done all of that in Jesus, who endured His cross knowing that by dying for you, you wouldn’t have to suffer eternally. Sure, this life will bring suffering. Any sinful world will. But even in all of that, nothing will separate you from the love of God, because He is on your side; He is for you. And all things are yours, all of eternity is yours, because of that love He has for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord, when the tempest rages, I need not fear, For You, the Rock of Ages, Are always near. Close by Your side abiding, I fear no foe, For when Your hand is guiding, In peace I go.  (LSB 722:2)-Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 31, 2023Today's Reading: Deuteronomy 7:6-9Daily Lectionary: Judges 13:1-25, Galatians 2:1-21Know therefore that the LORD your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations.  (Deuteronomy 7:9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Deuteronomy. A Bible book titled “The Law Again,” essentially. These are Moses’s final words to God’s people before his death beyond the Jordan River.The Lord God knows what will happen once the Children of Israel enter the Promised Land, so much like parents reminding their children what they should and should not do before they leave them home alone for an evening out, He has Moses give them “the talk” one more time.Sure, there are reminders of punishments to come for misbehavior. Warnings of dire consequences to fall upon them for not doing what they’ve been asked to do. But it isn’t all doom and gloom. God doesn’t threaten to destroy them; He reminds them of His love for them.He reminds them that, even though He knows they will fail, even though they will misbehave, even though they will turn their backs on Him, He will still love them. He is their faithful God, Yahweh Elohim, the LORD God, and He is always faithful even when His people aren’t.How faithful? To this very day He has preserved His children, His church. Nations have come and gone, churches have been planted, grown, and died out, Entire populations have come under His protection and passed out from it again, and He has still kept His church, His faithful, in safety.There was a time when Elijah thought he was the only one left, but God reminded him that there were still 7000 faithful believers in Israel. Your church might also look tiny and weak these days. You might have seen a migration away from your area, or people not coming back after Covid. It might seem bleak.But the LORD your God is God. He is faithful to you, to your church, no matter how large or small it may be. No matter how many baptized Christians gather to hear the Word and receive the Sacraments.You may be preparing to take on a new challenge in life: high school, college, a new job, moving to a new home. Don’t worry, don’t be afraid. The LORD your God is faithful, and He will sustain you and be with you wherever you go. Hear His voice, receive His gifts, and be comforted in His presence. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.We praise and laud and worship You; We give you thanks forever, O Father, for Your rule is true And just and changes never. With boundless pow’r, Your mighty reign Fulfills whatever You ordain. Lord, grant us ev’ry blessing!  (LSB 947:2)-Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 30, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 13:44-52Daily Lectionary: Judges 7:1-23, Galatians 1:1-24“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.”  (St. Matthew 13:44)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. of Jesus. Amen. Fill in the blank: “I would give everything I have for _____!” For what would you give everything? Is it really worth it? Is it something that you would truly be satisfied with after giving up absolutely everything you have? And I mean everything.Most of the time, we’re a bit flippant about that question. Is it a car? A dream home or job? Or is it more time with a family member who has died? Is it Jesus? Often, this text is preached in a way that we are the ones who are to get rid of everything in order to “buy” Jesus.And that isn’t a bad reminder; we should be willing to (as our Confirmation vows say) “suffer all, even death, rather than fall away” from the faith. But that can only happen once we are called, gathered, enlightened and sanctified by the Holy Spirit. We are already among the faithful at that point.What if the man who found the treasure is Jesus, though? He finds his creation buried in the dirt and filth of this sinful, broken world and sees the absolute treasure that you are. How utterly precious you are to him. So He gives up everything He has. He steps away from the right hand of the throne of God and becomes man. He leaves the indescribable light of the heavens to become an infant dependent on young Mary for food and shelter. He gives up His majestic glory, where He is served by angel hosts, to learn a trade from Joseph. He leaves His comfortable home to live where “the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.” He humbles himself and “endures the cross, scorning its shame” because He found you completely lost and in need.That’s where the true comfort of these words is found. You are in the most horrible place possible—lost in sin, covered in death and despair, unsure about how you’ll find your way in this world—and Jesus comes and buys you back. He redeems you from sin, death, and the devil. He gives up absolutely everything He has, even His life, so that you would be brought into his New Creation for all eternity. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and everlasting God, give us an increase of faith, hope, and love, that, receiving what You have promised, we may love what You have commanded; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. (Collect for the Sunday of the Ninth Week of Pentecost)-Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 29, 2023Today's Reading: John 11:1-44Daily Lectionary: Judges 6:25-40, Acts 15:6-21Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. (St. John 11:1)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Mary, Martha, and Lazarus are people important to Jesus. They had become very dear friends throughout the time of Jesus’s ministry, and you see that in the message the sisters send to him when Lazarus falls sick: “Lord, he whom you love is ill.”It might be easy to categorize the siblings into caricatures: Mary is frivolous, Martha is the overachiever, and Lazarus…well, Lazarus doesn’t seem to do much of anything but die and be raised, and then eat a big dinner.But there is much more to them than these snapshots, as there is much more to you than what people think of when they hear your name (yes, people have an idea about you that you might not even consider as your identity!).The raising of Lazarus is a text that has been used at funerals for centuries. It’s where Jesus says: “I am the resurrection and the life.” Arguably, this is the most important interaction Jesus has with the family, at least, the most eternally engaging.Martha is known for her industriousness and service, which is also a good thing. She’s remembered for her service in the Collect appointed for this day, being hospitable and providing a place for Jesus to rest and eat.Mary is most often remembered for being ‘lazy,’ for sitting around and listening to Jesus instead of helping Martha. But she is also known for something more important, I’d say. She is the Mary who anointed Jesus’s feet with expensive perfume right before Palm Sunday. Jesus said she did this to prepare him for his burial, already pointing ahead to what was to come.Three different saints, with different sets of abilities and gifts. What they have in common, though, is that Jesus loved them dearly. Just like He loves you and all your varied gifts and abilities.Regardless of your aptitude, Jesus sees your faith, your trust, your hope. And that’s what’s most important. Love and serve those around you, it’s what you’re given to do. But remember why you do that. You love those around you because Jesus first loved you. And He loves you so much that one day, like Lazarus, you’ll be called from your grave to life everlasting with him. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, Your beloved Son befriended frail humans like us to make us Your own. Teach us to be like Jesus' dear friends from Bethany, that we might serve Him faithfully like Martha, learn from Him earnestly like Mary, and ultimately be raised by Him like Lazarus. Through their Lord and ours, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. (Collect for Mary, Martha, and Lazarus of Bethany)-Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 28, 2023Today's Reading: John 10:1-10Daily Lectionary: Judges 6:1-24, Acts 14:19-15:5So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.  (St. John 10:7–9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It is always a bit jarring to talk to our fellow Christians who don’t see the importance and depths of the Sacraments that we do. In large parts of Christianity, Baptism is simply a loyalty vow; Communion is just an act of remembrance because Jesus said to “do this.”If you insist that Jesus’s words actually mean what He says they mean (‘This IS My Body…’), you will often get a question about this part of St. John in response: ‘Well, does that mean Jesus is a literal DOOR?!?’Of course He is a literal door! But not in the way you think of your bedroom door, or the church door. Jesus says that whoever enters by him will be saved. Whoever passes through Jesus is in the kingdom.See it through the eyes of the shepherds of Jesus’s time and how they took care of their sheep. They would go out for the day, eating from the green pastures and drinking from the still waters. But then, when it gets close to dark, and the shadows lengthen, the sheep are led back to the pen, usually build out of stone, where the shepherd would lay down for the night in the opening of the pen, the doorway, to both keep the sheep safely in and the predators out. They were the doors to the pens.Not only is Jesus your Good Shepherd who leads you beside the water of Baptism and the grass of his Word, but he guards and keeps you from all that would attack you, holding you safe in his arms. He brings you through the narrow door of salvation—His life for yours—and keeps you safe within the kingdom that can only be entered through Him.Yes, He is the door. The strongest and most secure, and also most open door, in existence; the door that wants all people to enter into his safe pasture. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, grant to Your Church Your Holy Spirit and the wisdom that comes down from above, that Your Word may not be bound but have free course and be preached to the joy and edifying of Christ's holy people, that in steadfast faith we may serve You and, in the confession of Your name, abide unto the end; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. (Collect for the Word) -Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 27, 2023Today's Reading: Romans 8:18-27Daily Lectionary: Judges 4:1-24, Acts 14:1-18Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.  (Romans 8:26)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Yesterday we considered how it is that the Holy Spirit brings us to faith. That it is all his doing. You play no part in ‘deciding for Jesus,’ because by the time you ‘decide’ that you have come to faith, the Holy Spirit has already created and planted and enlightened that faith within you by the power of the holy Gospel.But the Holy Spirit doesn’t stop there. As part of the enlightening and sanctifying work that the Spirit does for you, He also prays for you, interceding before God the Father on your behalf.Just like you can’t save yourself from drowning, praying properly is something you can’t do without help either. So, St. Paul says, the Spirit takes all those prayers you lob heavenward and gathers them, considers them, and then—with groaning and communication we can’t begin to comprehend—He presents those prayers to the Father in a clear way that He is sure to understand.That doesn’t mean that you give up on prayer because the Holy Spirit is doing it for you. No, you keep on praying like your life depends on it, because it does. Because your Father always wants to hear from you. He always delights in your prayers, even if they aren’t clear enough to be included in a prayer book.It just so happens that you’ve got an expert interpreter who knows what you truly need on a deeper level than you can ever imagine. And your needs are carried to the Father who loves you by the Holy Spirit who loves you so that the work of the Son who loves you can bless and keep you all your days.You are never alone in this world, no matter how dark some days may seem. For, even in those toughest of times, The Holy Spirit still prays for you so that the Father can answer those groanings to your benefit and for your salvation. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Holy Spirit enter in, And in our hearts Your work begin, Your dwelling place now make us. Sun of the soul, O Light divine, Around and in us brightly shine, To joy and gladness wake us That we may be Truly living, To you giving Prayer unceasing And in love be still increasing.  (LSB 913:1)-Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 26, 2023Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism, Third Article Part 1Daily Lectionary: Judges 3:7-31, Acts 13:42-52What does this mean? I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith.  (Small Catechism, The Third Article, Part 1 of the Meaning)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. A drowning person can’t save himself. He is beyond reason and ability; panic takes over and even the lifeguard must be careful to not be dragged down in an attempt to save him.Thankfully, Jesus isn’t in danger of drowning when He saves us. He’s already been through death and come back to life, securing our eternal life and salvation. That’s a hard thing to believe, though. As is what we confess in this article of the Creed: ‘I believe that I cannot believe.’ We have to say that, though. We must be honest with ourselves that we cannot believe without being brought to that faith by the one who authors it. Like the drowning person who must finally give up and fall into the arms of the lifeguard who  pulls him from certain death, we can only fall into the arms of the One who has spoken salvation and faith into our ears and hearts, trusting that His work does what He says it does.Look who is running the verbs in that explanation above: the Holy Spirit is doing all the action. All we do is confess that we can’t. But look just how much the Holy Spirit is doing. He doesn’t just throw you a life ring and say “Hang on!” No, the Holy Spirit calls you to faith by the living Gospel of Jesus, enlightens you—fills you with saving knowledge through Word and Sacrament, and sustains you in that faith with those same gifts.Almighty God has reached into this tumultuous sea called life and grabbed you from the chaotic waves. He has pulled you to safety, set you on dry ground, and comforted and cared for you. Thanks be to God that none of this was up to you, because you could never do it alone!Instead, Father, Son, and Spirit all worked together to bring you to safety; eternal safety. A safety and peace that can only be assured by the all-powerful working of the One True God who, now that He has you in his hands, will never let go. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, who gave Your Holy Spirit to the apostles, grant us that same Spirit that we may live in faith and abide in peace; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. (Collect for Pentecost Monday)-Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 25, 2023Today's Reading: Mark 10:35-45Daily Lectionary: Judges 2:6-23, Acts 13:13-41And he said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?” And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.”  Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” (St. Mark 10:36-38)In the Name + of Jesus.of Jesus. Amen. It’s a pretty bold thing for James and John to ask, right? They think they know what they are asking for—Jesus is going to be made king of Israel, and they want to be at his side when He ascends his throne.This kind of ambition is good today; it shows that you are a go-getter and ready to take on more responsibility than people who don’t want to jump into the action. Except, they didn’t know what they were asking, did they?Which is why Jesus asks them flat out if they are able to “drink the cup” that He is soon to drink. To suffer as He is soon to suffer. To be baptized into death, not just for himself, but for all of humanity.Jesus says that they will indeed drink and be baptized as He is, which is a rather forbidding thing to say as it is, but then He goes farther and says that the places to his right and left have already been assigned.Even before Palm Sunday, Jesus knew who was to be crucified with him on Good Friday. Those places had been prepared from eternity, because even then, before the first “Let there be…” was spoken on the first day of creation, God knew that his Son would need to become man to save all people from their selfish ambition.Eventually, St. James does drink the same cup Jesus drinks, when Herod beheads him for proclaiming the gospel. But St. James goes to his earthly death in faith and trust, because he knows that when Jesus ascended his glorious throne of the cross, death, sin, and the devil were defeated, and he could rejoice that he would soon be at the Lord’s side in eternity.May we always have this same faith and trust; that even when we lose sight of the Lord’s work for us, we may always trust that he saves and keeps us, and he does it all without our help. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O gracious God, Your servant and apostle James was the first among the Twelve to suffer martyrdom for the name of Jesus Christ. Pour out upon the leaders of Your Church that spirit of self-denying service that they may forsake all false and passing allurements and follow Christ alone, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. (Collect for St. James the Elder, Apostle)-Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 24, 2023Today's Reading: Isaiah 44:6-8Daily Lectionary:Joshua 24:1-31, Acts 13:1-12Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts: “I am the first and I am the last;  besides me there is no god.”  (Isaiah 44:6)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Today, we tend to think that one of the worst jobs in the world was that of the Old Testament prophet. We see them standing on the street corner in shabby clothes, with wild hair and a long beard, just yelling at people that God’s punishment is right around the corner and YOU BETTER REPENT OR DIE!While there are plenty of examples of that in both the Old and New Testaments (thanks, John the Baptist!), these men of God were not one-trick-ponies. They spoke the fullness of God’s Word to his people. Sometimes, it was a word of condemnation, but just as often it was a word of consolation, peace, or love.While Isaiah has just given God’s people a tongue lashing for their faithlessness, he starts Chapter 44 with a “but…” He reminds them that they are still His chosen people, and that He will restore them. Then he reminds them who He is as their God with the words above, and a few verses later reaffirms his vow to save and preserve them through all trouble.Much like a loving parent who needs to discipline a child, so also is our God. The Lord God Almighty—he who spoke into existence the entirety of the universe, He who made you and all you see, He who became man for your salvation—is your champion and defender, even when you sin against him.Sure, you may have days when you feel like God has “gone all Old Testament” on you; that He’s allowed wrath to fall on you. Even then, your Lord God is with you. Even then He is acting in love for you.There are examples throughout Scripture where these words of comfort follow words of discipline. Your God never wants you to think that He has abandoned you, or that He is powerless in the face of this sinful and broken world. You are always safe in his hands, always preserved from evil when He is your defender and champion.St. John quotes Jesus in his Revelation, that He is “the Alpha and the Omega,” that He is “the first and the last,” and He will never leave you. So it has always been for God’s people, and so it will be for you. Your God is with you now and always, He is all-powerful for you, and—oh, yeah—He’s the only God there is. And He is your Savior. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.The Lord, my God, be praised, My God, the everliving, to whom the heav’nly host Their laud and praise are giving. The Lord, my God, be praised, In whose great name I boast, God Father, God the Son, And God the Holy Ghost.  (LSB 794:4)-Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, Ky.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 23, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43Daily Lectionary: Joshua 23:1-16, Acts 12:1-25But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, “Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.”’  (St. Matthew 13:29-30)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Life is challenging for the faithful, confessing Christian. If only all the distractions and wicked people could be rooted up, life would be so much easier! If only Almighty God would allow his holy angels to rip the unbelievers and haters out of our lives, then we could live in peace and harmony!But would getting rid of all the ‘bad’ sinners make life for us easier? Of course not. We  forget that each and every one of us is a sinner, too. We don’t want to admit it, and we close our eyes to the truth of it, but getting rid of the ‘bad’ sinners would just lead to the ‘not-so-bad’ sinners making the list next. And then where are we? On a quest to purge everyone who isn’t holy enough from the world, just so we can be at peace; at least, what we think is peace.Our Lord and God is quite a bit smarter than us, thankfully. He sees the big picture, the telos, the end goal of all His work on earth given through His read and proclaimed Word, through His holy Sacraments, through the work of the Holy Spirit.Evil and sin has sown disastrous things among the people of this world, but it wouldn’t serve God’s purposes to prematurely purge it. In his overwhelming love, God allows things we don’t understand for the greater goal of his saving Gospel being proclaimed to more ears that will hear.He doesn’t want the faithful to be harmed in any way, so He allows the weeds among the wheat so that none of the wheat be harmed. Even though there are weeds all around, you still grow, safely and securely rooted in the Word and work of Christ for you.The living soil of God’s kingdom nourishes and sustains you until the day of harvest comes; then and only then, will you be gathered into the ‘barn’ He has prepared for you for all eternity. Sure, the weeds are all around, but you are planted solidly in God’s kingdom, safe there where his gifts come to you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, so rule and govern our hearts and minds by Your Holy Spirit that, ever mindful of Your final judgment, we may be stirred up to holiness of living here and dwell with You in perfect joy hereafter; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. (Collect for the Sunday in the Eighth Week of Pentecost)-Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 22, 2023Today's Reading: John 20:1-2, 10-18Daily Lectionary: Joshua 10:1-25, Acts 11:19-30“Mary”  John 20:16In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In the resurrection account there are a lot of people who are scared, perplexed, even doubting this all took place.  Their faithful disciples had a hard enough time believing the message they first heard, let alone from a woman for whom Jesus had removed demons. In the middle of all the confusion, Mary from Magdalene, stood outside the tomb and wept.  She looked inside and saw two angels.  She was wailing loudly, for she loved her Lord.  She saw His arrest, crucifixion, and death.  She learned much from Him, and He had cast seven unspecified demons from her. Not only was He dead, but His body was missing.  In her sadness and despair she failed to recognize her risen Lord standing in her presence…until He spoke a single word.  He who created the world by speaking a word, He who spoke a healing Word to many who were ill, demon-possessed and dead, speaks to Mary a very simple yet profound Word on that first Easter -  He simply says,"Mary!" In our sins, we can be so clouded by fear, despair and doubts that we cannot recognize our Lord on our own.  Yet in all of this the risen Lord Jesus has prepared the fruits of HIs cross and resurrection for you just as He did for Mary. In the Divine Service, Jesus calls us by name and bids us to follow Him through our Baptism into His death and resurrection.  Each Sunday Jesus gathers us around the cross and resurrection and speaks over and over as He proclaims His death and resurrection and attaches those promises to water, bread and wine.  Through these Means of Grace our Lord gives us the gifts He won on the cross for us; so we are not left in the sadness and despair of our sins. We are the blessed recipients of Mary's being the first eyewitness to the Lord's resurrection, for the Lord rose from the dead for her, and for you. The Eleven did not believe Mary, but the Holy Spirit inspired St. Matthew, St. Mark (an associate of St. Peter), St. Luke (associated with St. Paul), and St. John to record that which Mary saw and that to which she testified.  And it is this same Holy Spirit who takes us poor, miserable sinners and makes us faithful. Just like Mary and the followers of Jesus, He is bringing us out of the great tribulation by washing our robes in His blood. The resurrected voice of Jesus is still alive and active as He is calling each of us by name, and promising you His resurrection of the body and the life everlasting.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.All praise for Mary Magdalene, Whose wholeness was restored By You, her faithful master, Her Savior and her Lord. On Easter morning early  A word from You sufficed; For she was first to see You, Her Lord, the risen Christ. (LSB 516:20)-Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 21, 2023Today's Reading: Acts 11:1-18Daily Lectionary: Joshua 8:1-28 “Looking at it closely, I observed animals and beasts of prey and reptiles and birds of the air. And I heard a voice saying, ‘Rise, Peter; kill and eat.  Acts 11:6-7In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Bible is full of people having all sorts of interesting visions. Today we hear of Peter having a bizarre idea! The Jews were allowed only to eat foods declared clean by God.  In Peter’s vision, a picnic blanket descended from heaven by the corners three times, covered with unclean food! This doesn’t exactly look like something Peter would want to eat; it would make him unclean.  And then God speaks: “Get up, Peter, kill and eat!” A new order came down from above, “What God has cleansed, no longer consider unholy.” The vision ended, and Peter sat perplexed.The vision Peter was given was about much more than permitting him to discover that bacon makes everything taste better! The food laws no longer apply to Peter, but God’s command to “no longer consider unholy” goes far beyond pork chops and shrimp cocktails. God is showing Peter that Jesus, His church, His Word, and Sacraments are for all nations, even you!In the past, Jews and Gentiles never mixed, let alone would a Jew eat what the Gentiles considered clean.  After this vision, Peter is told to go and interact with Cornelius, a Gentile. The centurion Cornelius was what the early church would have called a “God-fearer,” a Gentile who believed in the one true God. He was given the vision to reach out to Simon Peter so that Peter would go and see Cornelius preach and teach all about Jesus Christ.When Peter was finished, he said: “Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?” No, they cannot withhold the water! Cornelius and his entire household were baptized that day and added to the kingdom of heaven.Peter was later put on trial for his baptizing of Cornelius. Peter’s actions scandalized the leaders of the early church. But in all this, we see that the Kingdom of Jesus is for “all nations.” Jesus was talking about that when He said: “Just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this, everyone will know you are my disciples if you love one another.” What this means is that the Gospel is for you as well!  You may not be of Jewish heritage or someone who could have encountered Jesus in the flesh, but Jesus has sent you His Word and Sacraments so that you might partake of His grace and forgiveness today.  You who were once unclean are now declared clean by your baptism into Christ.  No heavenly visions, no restrictions on food, just a place at Jesus’ table with all of the company of heaven, no matter their heritage, feasting on the marriage feast of the lamb in HIs kingdom, which has no end. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.-Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 20, 2023Today's Reading: Joshua 7:1-26Daily Lectionary: Joshua 7:1-26, Acts 10:34-48“I beg you, give glory to the Lord God of Israel, and make confession to Him”  Joshua 7:19In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We all have sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God.  You can’t escape your sins for the as the Psalmist says you were born in sin.  “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me”  (Psalm 51.)  Through the Law of God you know your sins, but do you always know the ramifications of your sins?  How your sins might have affected others around you?  In today’s reading we hear of one man’s sin and how it affected the entire nation of Israel.  Jeremiah chapter 6 tells us of the remarkable victory at Jericho. In their victory at Jericho the nation of Israel was  not to take for themselves anything of the ‘accursed’ things—that is, all that was under the ban and destined for destruction. The very beginning of Chapter 7, however, tells us of a sad failure. “But the children of Israel committed a trespass regarding the accursed things . . .” (v. 1a). The entire nation of Israel was declared guilty, but it was all at the hand of one man, Achan.  “for Achan…took off the accursed things; so the anger of the Lord burned against the children of Israel” (v. 1b). One person’s sin brought God’s anger upon the whole nation. Jeremiah seeks Achan out and asks him to make confession of his sin. Achan responds “Indeed I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel, and this is what I have done.”  However, Achan’s sin had deep consequences. 36 men died in the battle with Ai, and the people of Israel mourned their defeat.  Achan was not truly repentant, but rather sorry he was discovered.  The consequence was his own death at the hands of the nation of Israel.This should show us the magnitude of sin in God’s sight, but also the deep and expansive ramifications your sins have against everyone around you.  You may not know how far those ramifications are, but your sins have certainly caused harm to yourself and others.  This is why we speak of the importance of Confession and Absolution in the life of a Christian.  As Proverbs 28:13 says, “He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.” God’s attitude towards sin hasn’t changed (1 John 1:5-7). It’s as true today as it was in Joshua’s day—”If I regard iniquity in my heart, The Lord will not hear” (Psalm 66:18). Confess your sins to God, go to your pastor and bring the darkness of your sins and its ramifications on you and others into the light of Christ.   As King David wrote in Psalm 32:5, “I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,’ and You forgave the iniquity of my sin.” In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, You desire not the death of sinners, but rather that they turn from their wickedness and live. We implore You to have compassion on the frailty of our mortal nature, for we acknowledge that we are dust and to dust we shall return. Mercifully pardon our sins that we may obtain the promises You have laid up for those who are repentant; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.-Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey..Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 19, 2023Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism, Apostle’s Creed: Second Article Part 3Daily Lectionary: Joshua 6:6-27, Acts 10:18-33-in order that I might be His own, live under Him in His kingdom, and serve Him in everlasting righteousness, innocence and blessedness; even as He is risen from the dead, lives and reigns to all eternity. This is most certainly true.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When I hear the word “kingdom” I usually think of a king sitting on a throne with his knights, loyal subjects and people serving him.  Whatever the king wants, the king gets.  The king is in charge and if you don’t obey, you are an insurrectionist and deserve death.   This is not how the kingdom of God works for you. During holy week, when Jesus enters into Jerusalem we hear the shouts of “Hosanna, blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.” The people of Jesus were longing for their king to come in and rid them of the Roman authorities. Later on King Jesus is betrayed, arrested and put on trial.  The  “King of Kings and Lord of Lords,” submits to the authorities of both the Jews and Gentiles.  As Jesus is on trial with Pontius Pilate, Pilate asks the crowds who they want him to release, Jesus or Barabbas.  The crowds demand that Barrabas be released. Barrabas, who’s name means, “son of the Father” was not a robber, but an insurrectionist. He was known for rebelling against the Roman authorities. The crowds were disappointed in the Kingdom of God Jesus brings.  Jesus' Kingdom is a Kingdom where the King becomes the servant even to the point of dying for the entire sins of the whole world.  This kingdom which is at work for you today.  After King Jesus rises from the dead He tells His disciples that “All authority in heaven and earth are given to Me…” (Matthew 28).   No government, king, president or anyone else can take this authority from Him, as His kingdom grants you “righteousness, innocence, blessedness and resurrection.”  In the Divine Service Jesus’ Kingdom comes to you through His Word and Sacraments. In the Divine Service we pray the words of our King in the Lord’s Prayer.  We pray, “Thy kingdom come”, and we specifically pray those words during the liturgy of Holy Communion.  The prayer for the Kingdom of God to come is immediately answered as you hear the Words of Institution and receive the King’s flesh and blood in the Eucharist.  Yes, Jesus reigns from the right hand of God the Father, but He doesn’t rule as a terror or taskmaster.  He reigns and brings His kingdom to you so that maybe forgiven by His blood and constantly reminded that His kingdom is yours now and forever. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord Jesus Christ, You release us from out bondage to sin, death, and the devil as the healer of the nations. When it came time to release You, the crowd chose a murderer instead. Through our death and resurrection with You in the waters of our Baptism, may we continually be released from our sins as we confess You to be our everlasting King; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 18, 2023Today's Reading: Romans 8:12-17Daily Lectionary: Joshua 5:1-6, Acts 10:1-17For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Slavery isn’t something we really think of today in terms of ourselves.  If slavery is ever mentioned it's usually associated with our country’s past or even things like the slavery of people or the Israelites in the Bible. However, as our devotion in Roman’s 7 showed us, we  are addicted to our sins.  To be an addict is to be a slave to whatever controls us.  As Paul  points out we are never able to free ourselves from our sins and in those sins the Law of God brings terror and shame for what we have done.   Sin is the worst kind of slavery for us to endure, and unfortunately every human being finds themselves bound up in sin’s chains. This is why we need Jesus.  Jesus is the one who knew no sin, no slavery, no addiction to sin, and yet took on our sins in order that we might be set free.  When Jesus takes away sin is that He doesn’t simply take our sins away like we take the garbage to the garbage can.  Jesus immerses Himself into our sins, He takes on the shame, the guilt and weight of our sins and the Father’s wrath and anger over sin.  He is slave to us and our sins as Paul says in Philippians;  “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant,being born in the likeness of men.  And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”  In your Baptism you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons.  In those Holy and blessed waters you are cleansed in the Blood of Jesus which forgives your debt to the Father. Because of that you no longer live in a spirit of fear, but a Spirit of freedom and life.  That word “sons” doesn’t mean that there are no “daughters”.  This term “sons'' is in reference to those who receive an inheritance.  In the ancient days the first born son was always the recipient of the inheritance from his father.  What Paul is saying is that all Christians, male and female, are the first to receive the inheritance your heavenly Father has promised for you.  Jesus becomes the last as He breaks loose your chains of sin and death and sets you free to live in His forgiveness and love.  Because of that adoption you are now part of the family of God, no longer a slave to sin. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Your great love for this hath striven  That we may, from sin made free,  Live with You eternally. Your dear Son Himself has given  And extends His gracious call,  To His Supper leads us all. (LSB 559:2)-Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 17, 2023Today's Reading: Isaiah 55:10-13Daily Lectionary: Joshua 4:1-24, In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. You’ve all seen rain and snow fall down from the sky.  You’ve also probably studied the natural water cycle in science class as well.  In our reading from Isaiah we can easily picture the Word of God like rain or snow, falling down to water things and produce good crops.  Isaiah is not just simply speaking about the Bible's falling from heaven like rain and watering the earth and returning to God.  Our passage today is not a simple object lesson for how we should view the Bible. John 1:14 speaks of the Word becoming fleshing and dwelling among us; “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”  Hebrews says “ the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”  Jesus is the one who is living and active among us.  He is the one who “came down from heaven and became incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary”.  This is more than rain or snow, this is Jesus coming to serve you with His precious body and blood given up for the life of the world.  But even then this Word must be preached, taught and heard.  As Romans says “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? 15 And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”(Romans 10)The Word is preached by your pastor who is the called and ordained servant of the Word, Jesus Christ.  The pastor’s proclamation is meant  to convict us of our sins and confirm in us His blessed absolution where you are forgiven and given the flourishing fruits of the cross in you.  Jesus is the rain of heaven who waters the earth with the life giving waters of Baptism. He is the snow whose blood covers the scarlet of our sins (Is. 1:18). He is the one who gives us the blessed bread of his flesh to eat in Eucharist, and he does not return to the Father fruitless.  Jesus returns to the Father with you, cleansed, spotless, fruitful and alive. The Bible is the voice of God, every single page speaks of Jesus, His promise, death and resurrection all showered upon you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord, keep us steadfast in Your Word; Curb those who by deceit or sword Would wrest the kingdom from Your Son, And bring to naught all He has done. ( LSB 655:1)-Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 16, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23Daily Lectionary: Joshua 3:1-17, Acts 9:1-22“Behold, a sower went out to sow.”  Matthew 13:3bIn the Name + of Jesus. Amen.In the Name of Jesus, Amen. Let's start off right away by saying these parables are not about you.  They are not about you  and your role in them or anything else that is about you and what you can do for Jesus.  Don’t ever read the parables that way.  Don’t ask the age-old question churches for the last 100 years have asked with this parable; ”what kind of soil are you?”   As Christians one of the worst things we can do is somehow break these parables down into little object lessons that teach us how to be better little Christians.    “What kind of soil are you?” is the wrong question. This parable isn’t really about dirt – it’s not really about us – at all, but the Sower and the seed. This Sower  makes a pretty terrible farmer. He will probably lose his farm within a year. Why? Well, he’s pretty reckless with his seeding.  75% of His crops fail. He’s a very inefficient farmer.   But even then, no matter the condition of the soil, the seed is always powerful. Jesus says very clearly that the seed is the word of the kingdom. The seed is the Word of God. The seed is the Law and the Gospel. Nothing else will do. The parable is all about the Kingdom of God and how it works for you!  Left to ourselves we don’t even want to receive the seed, we don’t want to be near the farmer or His agriculture work. When we look at these parables, look at what Jesus is doing all for you. He is the one who makes you the “good soil” in order to live and flourish in His kingdom. If you know anything about good soil, it is usually tilled and broken up.  Sometimes we call that “plowing” which is a very violent action meant to make the soil good.  The Word of God must plow up our rocky, thorny and stubborn hearts as we hear “repent”.  Confess your sins, die in your Baptism daily, as Christ promises firmly to root and grow in you by His cross which has been planted in the earth for the world.  .   St. Peter sums this up well when he says; “22 Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, 23 having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever,  1 Peter 1:22-24So stop asking, “What kind of soil am I?” Instead, ask,“Is the seed, the word of the kingdom, being sown around me? Am I hearing Law and Gospel being planted in my heart daily weekly? Is the forgiveness Jesus won on the cross and provides for me in Baptism and Absolution, regularly watering my soul? Is the fertilizer of his body and blood feeding the seed of faith he has planted?” If those things are true then I can assure these parables are not about you, but all for you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Blessed Lord, since You have caused all Holy Scriptures to be written for our learning, grant that we may so hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.-Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 15, 2023Today's Reading: Introit to Pentecost 7: Psalm 103:15-19; antiphon: Psalm 103:8Daily Lectionary: Joshua 2:1-24, Acts 8:26-40The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. Psalm 103:8In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Today’s text from Psalm 103 is what I typically call a “commercial passage” of Scripture. What I mean by this is that we typically see this kind of passage from Scripture  plastered on t-shirts, inspirational calendars, water bottles  and bumper stickers.  We love it, we love the sound of it. “The Lord is merciful and gracious” Whatever that means, it means nice.  But when you ponder this passage in light of yourself, you probably don’t find it so “inspirational”. . We don’t really use this word “mercy” or “gracious”  alot today, but we like that the Lord acts this way toward us. But what about you?  Have you shown mercy or compassion and understanding to those around you?  Have you been the first in line to help those in need, especially those who you don’t know or maybe aren’t comfortable with you?  Where is the mercy that God has first shown you?    What about graciousness?  Are you quick to be forgiving of each other?  Are you ready to put the best construction on everything and show grace to those who have offended you?  Where is the grace of God in you that He has first given to you?“The Lord is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love”  This is a passage we all read with a collective sigh of relief.  Thanks be to God He is not swift to punish me in anger for what I did in my sins.   Yet how many times have you been angry?  Heated anger pouring out of every vain against your parents, siblings, friends or others.  Anger that is directed right at them and quickly served up.  What about steadfast love?  That word “steadfast” means unwavering or always firm.  Scripture says “We love because He first loved us” (another commercial passage). Yet John later says “If someone says, “I love God,” and yet he hates his brother or sister, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother and sister whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.” (1 John 4). Suddenly you want to burn that t-shirt, throw the inspirational calendar away and recycle the water bottle.   There are always two sides of the coin with the Scriptures, we call them Law and Gospel.  This Psalm is comforting for sure, but it's not because you can somehow follow Jesus’ example. Only Jesus can be merciful, gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.  When you hear Psalm 103 tomorrow at church look at the cross of Jesus.  On the cross of Jesus you will see HIs great mercy, grace and love.  The righteous anger was poured out on Jesus fully so you would not have to endure it eternally. Rather than a cute water bottle, t-shirt or bumper sticker, wear a crucifix, put one in your car or wherever it can be seen by you and others.  In Christ on the cross you see not a commercial Jesus, but a merciful, gracious, always loving Savior who pours Himself out freely so that you might be saved, but also to show mercy, grace and love to those around you, all by His blood shed for you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Thy love and grace alone avail  To blot out my transgression; The best and holiest deeds must fail To break sin’s dread oppression. Before Thee none can boasting stand, But all must fear Thy strict demand  And live alone by mercy. (LSB 607:2)-Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 14, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Joshua 1:1-18, Acts 8:1-25No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.  Joshua 1:5In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Our English Bibles don't lead us down the path of understanding what's going on in the Old Testament and how it is connected to the New Testament.  However, in today’s reading we have a good glimpse of that connection between the old and new.  Today we hear about Joshua.  In the Greek language, the name Joshua is Jesus.  Joshua is what we theologians call a “type of Christ.  After Moses died, the Lord gave authority to Joshua to lead the Israelites into the promised land.  With the help of the Lord, Joshua conquered the land of promise for God’s people and boldly stood up to their enemies.  Likewise, Jesus conquered the forces of evil, both human and demonic, as well as the grave itself, so that His people would inherit an eternal land of promise, the new heaven and the new earth.The Law of Moses with its threats and promises could not bring God’s people forgiveness or eternal rest.  The blood of lambs and bulls was not enough, because they only pointed to a greater Lamb to come.  The plagues upon Egypt and the parting of the Red Sea, fantastic and powerful as they were, pointed to even greater realities to come: the plagues of God’s wrath against sin.  That wrath was placed onto the greater Joshua, Jesus Christ on the Cross.  In your Baptism you have passed through the sea of death and sin and hell and have been preserved safe.Jesus, the greater Joshua, grants you  eternal promise of life and salvation..  We cross the Jordan in Baptism, and will soon take possession of that promised land we have been given, when Jesus returns to resurrect all flesh.   So our enemies are conquered, even though it does not always seem that way.  The world is still full of evil that threatens us.  Death terrifies us sometimes.  The devil is as deadly as always, even though he is mortally wounded by our Jesus.In Jesus be strong and courageous as you go through this world.  Yes, you are vulnerable to the attacks of many enemies.  But with Christ our new Joshua, He will lead us in order that we can be strong and courageous.  Thanks be to God for Joshua’s courage by the mighty Hand of God.  Thanks be to God for our Joshua, Jesus,  Who has faced down our strong foes so that we share the victory He purchased with His suffering and death and resurrection. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Mighty Victim from the sky, Hell's fierce pow'rs beneath You lie; You have conquered in the fight, You have brought us life and light. Alleluia! (LSB 633:5)-Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 13, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 31:10-31, John 21:1-25Then, as soon as they had come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid on it, and bread.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Gospels speak about two charcoal fires that have some pretty significant meaning.  As Jesus is being put on trial Peter is warming himself by a charcoal fire in the courtyard.  It is there where he is questioned about following Jesus and he denies it three times.  The second charcoal fire is in today's reading.  It is after Jesus’ resurrection, shortly before His ascension. Jesus bids his disciples to come and eat with Him after their second great catch of fish.  Jesus would go on to ask Peter “Do you love me?” Three times.   At the first fire, there is darkness, it is cold, the Son of God was betrayed and abandoned by His disciples.  There is a feeling of emptiness, cold darkness, no unity around the fire, fear and lack of faith.  At the second fire there is light, warmth, a miraculous catch of fish, calming of fears, and the resurrected Jesus bringing the disciples unity and strength and even something to eat.  Jesus still stands by his charcoal fire, calling all of his denying, deserting, fallen disciples to come to him and be forgiven and fed.You have denied Jesus just like Peter did.  This isn't a case where you know better than Peter. Every day we deny Christ by words and actions, surrendering to the pressures of the world. Denying him also by failures to speak, and by inactions. Like Simon Peter, you and I have denied our Lord Jesus more times than we can count. Some, in particular, may stand out in our minds and memory, like those times in the courtyard did for Peter.But the good news today is this: Jesus is calling you over to himself, maybe not to a charcoal fire, but to the fire of His love. A fire that purifies, cleanses and does not burn.  This fire is the Light of the World that the darkness cannot overcome. Not only that but Jesus also feeds you.  Jesus has it already laid out for you. It is His holy Body and Blood, given for you to eat and to drink in his Blessed Sacrament. Come and eat. Come and be forgiven. Come and be restored. Jesus is with you in the Divine Service dear friends, and the holy fire of forgiveness is still burning all for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Come Holy Fire, comfort true, Grant us the will Your work to do And in your service to abide; Let trials turn us not aside. Lord by Your pow’r prepare each heart, And to our weakness strength impart That bravely here we may contend,  Through life and death to You our Lord ascend. Alleluia. (LSB 497:3)-Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 12, 2023Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism, Apostle’s Creed: Second Article Part 2Daily Lectionary:Proverbs 30:1-9, 18-33, John 20:19-31“purchased and won me from all sins, from death and the power of the devil; not with gold or silver, but with His holy, precious blood, and with His inno­cent suffering and death.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Christian God speaks of the creator becoming the created.  “He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.” (John 1)  No other world religion speaks of their god or gods this way.  Jesus is truly God, but He is truly human. Jesus ate, drank, slept, walked, talked, and wept, just like you and me.  Think of the great consolation that Jesus, true God, and true Man, experienced and knows everything you and I know. Jesus had real flesh on his skeleton of bones and real blood flowing through His veins.  The whole Old Testament teaches us what Hebrews 9 summarizes for us in the New Testament: Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins. If a sinner is to be forgiven, then blood must first be shed. In other words, death must first occur as a substitute for the end of a sinner who deserves to die. In the Old Testament, it was animal blood, an animal’s death, that the Lord accepted, but only because He was teaching Israel that a much more precious death had to occur.  The blood of Christ, the end of Christ, true God and true Man, was the total atoning price for the sins of the world, the entire payment for all sins, so that God can and will forgive any sin to the one who claims the atonement made by Christ, to the one who believes in Him as the Redeemer.In Christ, we have full communion with God as we partake of Jesus’s real body and precious blood in the Holy Eucharist. In this meal, God does not make demands of you or simply gives you a memorial.  He comes to you and places into you His body and blood that were given into death, now become one with you in body and soul.  As St. Paul writes, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”  Take heart, you have been purchased by the precious blood of Jesus, which redeems you, but that now also pulses in your veins as He currently lives in you and you in Hm. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Blessed Savior, Jesus Christ, You have given Yourself to us in this holy Sacrament.  Keep us in our faith and favor that we may live in You even as You live in us.  May Your body and blood preserve us in the true faith to live everlasting.  Hear us for the sake of Your name.  Amen.  Prayer for thanksgiving after receiving the Sacrament, (LSB page 308 (157))-Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 11, 2023Today's Reading: Romans 7:14-25aDaily Lectionary: Proverbs 27:1-24, John 20:1-18“For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.”  Romans 7:15In the Name of Jesus, Amen. I’m sure you are like most people who hear the word “sin” you think of the things you have done. In our reading today, Paul does mention the sins he hates, but he also says the power of sin, which is, you guessed it, sin.  What does this mean?  We can’t stop sinning because sin is at work and lives within us. Does that mean we can blame sin for our sinning and somehow squirm our way out of blame?  Not at all; the Law of God still stands and reminds us of all that we have thought, said, and done in our sins under the power of sin. This is similar to addiction.  At the beginning of addiction, the person freely chooses to become interactive with that addictive substance. Drugs, alcohol, porn, food, you name your favorite addiction; it can wreak havoc on all of us.  However, within addiction, soon that substance controls the individual, whose life becomes dominated by seeking the next fix. When that happens, you’ve bought into the habit at one level while overwhelmed by it at another.  And so “it is a sin that dwells within me” that is both the power at work in you and the addiction you always return to.  What does this mean for you as a Christian?  Well, simply put, you are simultaneously a saint and a sinner.  In other words, you are at war, not only with sin but yourself and your addiction to sin.  In other words, as Paul says, we are very much with ourselves.  It's “the law of sin that dwells in my members” that takes us captive.  There is a war going on, and sin is taking its prisoners!  The result is hopelessness.  “Who will rescue me from this body of death?”  And the answer?  “God through Jesus Christ our Lord.”  Christ Jesus is your victor in the circular battle against sin, the devil, and your flesh.  Apart from Christ, the victor you are hopelessly lost and defeated.  “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” 2 Cor. 5:21.  Your sins are great, but Jesus is greater.  By the power of the Holy Spirit, repent of your sins, and plead the blood of Jesus to your heavenly Father, who hears you.  There is no forgiveness of sins without the shedding of blood.  Christ knows your addiction to evil and yourself, and He desires to kill you by the Law so that you may be made alive in Him, forgiven, restored, and clean. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.To Jesus we for refuge flee, Who from the curse has set us free, And humbly worship at His throne, Saved by His grace through faith alone. (LSB 579:6)-Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House

July 10, 2023Today's Reading: Zechariah 9:9-12Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 25:1-22, John 19:23-42“Return to the stronghold, You prisoners of hope. Even today I declare That I will restore double to you.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. What a weird statement from Zechariah today, “prisoners of hope”.  What does it mean to be a prisoner of hope? Remember that the people of Israel had been in the habit of groaning about their captivity. They were used to whining about the fact they had been exiled from Jerusalem, from everything they had held near and dear, particularly the temple.  They would groan and whine, the Lord would set them free and the cycle would repeat.  The same goes for us.  We are prisoners to our sin, but prisoners of hope.  Zechariah calls the people to face the fact their hopes had been dashed, because their hope had been misplaced. It was a false hope that, once the messiah showed up on his war horse, everything could go back to the way it was. But the way it was meant turning away from God, rejecting God’s promises. This is your daily battle with life as well. St. Paul reminds us:  “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. 19 For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. 20 Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. (Romans 7). Like the Israelites in Babylon, we have to face the fact that we constantly sin but we are also called the saints of God. This is why the prophet Zechariah says “Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem!”  We may be prisoners in our sin but our hope is in the Lord your God. Repent of your sorrow and lament, and rejoice in the salvation accomplished for you in Christ. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Ride on, ride on in majesty! In lowly pomp ride on to die. Bow your meek head to mortal pain, then take, O God, your pow'r and reign.  (LSB 441:5)-Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 9, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 11:25-30  Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 24:1-22, John 19:1-22“Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Have you ever felt completely overwhelmed by all that is thrown at you?  Family, school, friends, social media trends,  or other things.  What about being overwhelmed with how God might view you and what you have done in your sins against Him and others.  Jesus says today “Come to Me, all you who labor and heavy laden and I will give you rest.” What is it, then, to labor and be heavy laden, to be weary and burdened? What does Jesus mean by that? Jesus speaks to those who are weary of trying to please God by their own efforts. He gets to the heart of the matter if you are burdened with the weight of sin?  Is family, school, or friends etc, heavy and burdensome?  Sure!  But with most burdensome and heavy things we tend not put the best construction on what's going on.  We become weighed down with the weariness and burdens that life in this vale of tears lays upon us. Jesus speaks to those who are heavy-laden with loads they are unable to carry. To those who realize their weariness and burdened state, Jesus says today, “... I Will Give You Rest.”Jesus’ words were directly aimed at the people who were under the weight the Pharisees would load on people’s backs. They thought, and they taught, that the Law was something–if you worked hard enough–you could keep. That was how you could be accounted righteous before God–by your works. But when you add all that typical sinful human beings encounter each and every day we know we cannot please God or treat our neighbors with love.  This is why Jesus speaks of giving us rest.  That rest is found in Sunday’s in the Divine Service, in regular reading and participating in the Word of God and evening the life of prayer.  Jesus speaks of all that being rest for us because when we take that time it is Jesus who forgives us and renews us and feeds us His forgiveness and mercy with His real presence with us.  Not only does He forgive and feed us, He also takes on your weights, your burdens and places them onto himself as your Redeemer and Savior; all so that you may be set free, no matter what you face.  His rest is for you, His comfort is for you, He will carry your weights and burdens now and into eternity.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Gracious God, our heavenly Father, Your mercy attends us all our days. Be our strength and support amid the wearisome changes of this world, and at life’s end grant us Your promised rest and the full joys of Your salvation; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.-Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 8, 2023Today's Reading: Introit for Pentecost 6: Psalm 91:2, 9-10; antiphon Psalm 91:1Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 22:22-28:12, John 18:15-40He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust. (Psalm 91:1–2 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. You live in occupied territory. You live behind enemy lines. You are a citizen of a great kingdom, but you live in a place that does not recognize you or  your king. You live in a place that seems to be permanently at war with your king. Things are not as they appear. The great battle is over, the war is won, you king now rules over all but the victory parade has not yet reached you. This is the reality of being a Christian. You live in the now and the not yet. Jesus is king  now, eternal life is yours now but His reign and your place in it  has not yet fully manifested itself. The world you live in continues on a day to day basis as if Jesus does not reign, as if the battle was still going on. Even worse it is engaged in an active disinformation campaign telling all who would listen that there is no kingdom and no king.  In the face of the constant onslaught of the already defeated sin, death, and the devil you have a place to take refuge in. God himself is your fortress. Your local congregation gives you sanctuary from the forces arrayed against you and God himself is present there with His gifts that give a glimpse of what will be at the full coming of His kingdom. This is what the Word and Sacrament ministry of the church is. Every time the Gospel is proclaimed it is a declaration of God’s victory. Every Baptism is a little more new creation taking over the old. Every celebration of the Lord’s Supper is a foretaste of the feast to come. Every worship service is a manifestation of the kingdom that is coming, a kingdom that you already belong to, a kingdom that this world cannot and will not stop. The very king who is coming is the very king who is your fortress and your refuge. He is here now and He will guard you and keep you until the full coming of His kingdom.   In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.A mighty fortress is our God, A sword and shield victorious; He breaks the cruel oppressor's rod And wins salvation glorious. The old satanic foe Has sworn to work us woe. With craft and dreadful might He arms himself to fight. On earth he has no equal.( A Mighty Fortress Is Our God, LSB 657:1) -Pastor Grant Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, California.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 7, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 22:1-21, John 18:1-14“Then Jesus, knowing all that would happen to him, came forward and said to them, “Whom do you seek?” They answered him, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus said to them, “I am he.” Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them. When Jesus said to them, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground.” (John 18:4–6 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. The Pharisees and Sadducees who plotted the arrest of Jesus probably thought that all their back room machinations were finally bearing fruit. You can almost hear them say, “I love it when a plan comes together.” They had received inside information on where Jesus was going to be absent from the crowds that had been preventing them from acting.  One of Jesus’ own inner circle was willing to betray him. At last they would be rid of this interloper that was challenging the status quo. They were wrong on all accounts.What was going on in there in the Garden on the night in which Jesus was betrayed was not the coming together of the plans of those who plotted Jesus' arrest. Rather what was coming together was the plan that God had set in motion from the very creation of the world. The Sadducees and Pharisees thought that they were conspiring against a man. Jesus the son of Joseph and Mary. Jesus who until now had avoided all their other set ups and traps. Instead Jesus was in full control of everything that was happening because it was His plan all along that was coming together. Look at His answer to His question about who they were looking for. He does not say ‘that is me’ so much as He says ‘I AM’. He identifies Himself as the creator God. He was not the son of Joseph, He is the incarnate Son of God. Nothing happens to Him by surprise. His betrayal and arrest in the garden had to happen because it was part of the plan. Creation was broken and could not fix itself. The creator had to enter His creation to fix it and His plan was to become incarnate, to become man, to die on the cross and fix everything that had gone wrong. They fall to the ground because they understand who Jesus had said that He is. At this point in the passion narrative it looks like the Jewish authorities are the ones in control, but as the story unfolds it becomes more and more clear that Jesus is in control of all the events of his arrest and interrogation. The way of the cross was the plan from all along. Jesus is doing the very thing that He came to do and He is doing it for you.  The plan of God from all eternity to save His people was the plan of God to save you. What happened to Jesus was all part of the plan.  The great I AM came seeking you.  Amen. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.He sent no angel to our race, Of higher or of lower place, But wore the robe of human frame, And to this world Himself He came.  (O Love, How Deep, LSB 544:2) -Pastor Grant Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, California.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 6, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 20:5-25, John 17:1-26“I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” (John 17:20–21 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  The words of Jesus in John 17 are known as the High Priestly Prayer. Here Jesus prays for His disciples, He prays for those who would come to faith through their preaching, and He prays for the unity of all Chrisitans everywhere. Jesus is often spoken of as being prophet, priest, and king. Here He is exercising His office as priest. Indeed the author of Hebrews will go on to call Jesus the great High Priest of our confession. In Jewish tradition, under the Mosaic covenant, the High Priest was the one who could go into the very presence of God on behalf of the people on the Day of Atonement. The people had no direct access to God. The priest had to go for them.All this changed because of Jesus. His death on the cross ended the Old Testament priesthood. People no longer needed a priest to go to God on their behalf. They themselves had access to God. There was no longer any need for a mediator. Luther would refer to this as the Priesthood of All Believers. What this means is that all God’s people have access to him in prayer. They can come into His presence without fear. Everytime you go to church, everytime you receive the Sacrament of the Altar, you are in the presence of God. You are a priest. You have direct access to God in prayer. You don’t have to go through any kind of mediary. That is your privilege as part of the priesthood of all believers. You can go straight to God in prayer on your own behalf as well as on behalf of others in your life. This means that you can pray for yourself but other Christians can pray for you just as you do for them because they too are part of the priesthood of all believers.  All the while the one who made all this possible continues His prayers for all His people including you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Son of God, eternal Savior, Source of life and truth and grace, Word made flesh, whose birth among us Hallows all our human race: By your praying, by Your willing That Your people should be one, Grant, O grant hope’s fruition: Here on earth Your will be done. (Son of God Eternal Savior, LSB 842:4) -Pastor Grant Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, California.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 5, 2023Today's Reading: Table of Duties, Luther’s Small Catechism: Second Article Part 1Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 17:1-28, John 16:17-33And [I believe] in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell. The third day He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty. From thence He will come to judge the living and the dead. What does this mean? I believe that Jesus Christ, true God, begotten of the Father from eternity, and also true man, born of the Virgin Mary, is my Lord. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Christology (what we have to say about Jesus) can be one of the more complex areas of theology. But before you get lost in all of the minutiae of the communication of attributes, it is important to remember that as rigorous as the topic can be, discussion of who Jesus is need not be overly tedious. In fact, for Luther, the Second Article of the Creed is the centerpiece of his catechism. This is the most important part of the entire thing. Another way to put it would be to say that the entire Lutheran theological system centers in Jesus. What this means is that your salvation does not come from the Ten Commandments, nor does it come from any part of the Law. Your salvation does not come from your saying the Lord's Prayer a certain number of times or with the right emotional inflection. Nor does your salvation come from participating in the Sacraments as if they were simply ceremonies that must be performed. Without Jesus the whole thing falls apart and you are left holding a half cooked bratwurst at a potluck in a church basement for no particular reason. With Jesus, however, the whole thing comes together. With Jesus the Law loses its condemnations because He fulfilled it for you; with Jesus God becomes your dear Father who hears your prayers, with Jesus the Sacraments become means of grace where He is present for you. He may not make the half cooked bratwurst better, but you will know why you are there. Jesus is the place where time and eternity come together. He is at the same time both man and God. When you say that Jesus is your Lord you are saying that Jesus is the God who saved you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Gentle Mary laid her child Lowly in a manger, He is still the Undefiled, But no more a stranger, Son of God of humble birth, Beautiful the story; Praise His name in all the earth; Hail the King of glory! (Gentle Mary Laid Her Child, LSB 374:3)-Pastor Grant Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, California.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 4, 2023Today's Reading: Jeremiah 28:5-9 Daily Lectionary:Proverbs 16:1-24, John 16:1-16As for the prophet who prophesies peace, when the word of that prophet comes to pass, then it will be known that the LORD has truly sent the prophet. (Jeremiah 28:9 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Context is one of the most important things to take into account when reading the Scriptures. Without understanding the context, Jeremiah can come across as the Debbie Downer of the prophets. You can almost hear the ‘wha wha’ sound when he stops speaking.  Without the proper context it also appears that a prophet’s job is to only announce the bad news of war, famine, and pestilence. What Jeremiah is reacting to in our reading is the specific false prophecy that the Babylonian captivity would be over soon; that it would be short and not require any repentance on the part of God’s people. Jerusalem would be restored and the king would return from exile. Jeremiah knew better and that is why he speaks differently than the false prophets. He had been prophesying to them with different words before our reading and continues to prophesy to them after our reading. The Babylonian captivity would someday end, but it would not be soon. Jerusalem was not going to be restored and the king was not going to be returned in the short term. Jeremiah was not all doom and gloom, however, and you can see this in his enigmatic statement about the prophet who prophesies peace and his word coming about.  Jeremiah knew that the Babylonian captivity was not God’s last word to His people. He knew that there was a way back, he knew that there would be a restoration, but he also knew that the context for that went beyond his immediate time. You live in a completely different context than Jeremiah and his words of warning spoken here are not spoken directly to you in the sense that all he has to say to you are words of war, famine, and pestilence. Instead you are part of what Jeremiah knew would come after his own time. You are part of the new covenant he prophesies in chapter 31. What Jeremiah could only look forward to, you can look back upon. What he could only hint at, you know. The true prophet of peace has come and He is Jesus who has restored the people of God and brought to an end the exile of His people. The muted ‘wha wha’ of the trumpets of doom have become the resounding peal of the trumpet of salvation. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Herald, note the sound of gladness; Tell the news that Christ is here; Make a pathway through desert For the one who brings God near.  Sound the trumpet! Tell the message: Christ, the Savior king, is come! (Herald, Sound the Note of Judgment, LSB 511:2)-Pastor Grant Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, California.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 3, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 10:34-42 Daily Lectionary: Proverb 15:1-29, John 15:12-27“Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.” (Matthew 10:34 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Our reading presents us with a Jesus who is not familiar to us. We tend to like our Jesus meek and mild with never a raised voice or a harsh word.  A Jesus who comes not to bring peace but a sword is something else entirely. The sad truth is that the gospel divides and that division sometimes splits families. Jesus even says that he has come to set son against father, daughter against mother, and daughter in law against mother in law. This would have been especially surprising in the ancient world where the family relationship took priority over almost everything else. Jesus’ words in our reading come from His instructions to His twelve disciples prior to their Galilean mission. He is letting them know that their proclamation of the kingdom would result in strife and division. This is still true in many parts of the world today where becoming a Christian comes at a great cost. This is, of course, not all that Jesus has to say to The Twelve. He also lets them know that rejection is not the only reaction that they would experience. There would also be those who would receive them and even treat them well. This is where the words about receiving a cup of water because of being a disciple come in. Paul will later use the vocabulary of family to describe the relationship between Christians. The very message that divides families also creates a new family known as the church. For early Christians who had lost their family because of their faith the church functioned as a substitute family. Christianity was never meant to be a solo venture or a religion of loneliness. God does not create individual believers as much as He creates a whole people. What this means for you is that even if your family is intact, because of your faith, you are a member of an extended family that is the people of God. You have an uncountable number of brothers and sisters that are part of the one holy Christian and apostolic church. While the Gospel may have divided you from some, it has united you to many, many others. No matter what your circumstances are, you are part of the family.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.For strife He came to bring a sword, The truth to end all lies; To rule in us our patient Lord, Until all evil dies: For in His hands He holds the stars, His voice shall speak to end our wars, And those who love Him see His scars And look into His eyes. (In Silent Pain the Eternal Son, LSB 432:3) -Pastor Grant Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, California.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 2, 2023Today's Reading: Luke 1:39-56Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 14:1-27, John 15:1-11“He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever.” (Luke 1:54–55 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. ‘A pregnant virgin goes to visit a pregnant old lady’ sounds like the opening line of a joke or the pitch for a really awful reality television series.  In the case of Mary and Elizabeth it is no joke but the meeting of the Old and New Testaments. Elizabeth is pregnant with the last and greatest of the Old Testament prophets while her relative Mary is carrying the promised Messiah.  At Christmas time it may be popular to sing, Mary Did You Know? but it is clear from the words in our reading that both of these women were aware of what was going on. Elizabeth refers to Mary as ‘the mother of my Lord’ and even the baby in her womb leaps at the presence of the child Mary is carrying. Elizabeth also makes it clear that she knows the circumstances of Mary’s pregnancy.   Mary’s response to Elizabeth makes it even more clear that she did indeed know.  Her response to Elizabeth has been put to music and is known as the Magnificat. Her song has become the song of the church. Today’s reading is about far more than a joint baby shower, it is the meeting of the first Christians gathered around the presence of Jesus. What both of these women knew was that their children were part of the great story of salvation. Their children were part of how God was going to fulfill His promises to save his fallen creation. In other words, both these women knew that what was going on with them was ultimately about you. Mary’s words are about the God who has done great things for her and those great things are the same things that He has done for all people.  They are the same things that He has done for you. In Jesus the child of Mary was help for Israel and the mercy promised to Abraham. The promises of God have been fulfilled for you in Jesus. You are part of the promise to Abraham and you are part of His people Israel. Mary’s song is also your song. When you gather for worship it is in the same presence of Jesus.   In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Father in heaven, by your grace the virgin mother of your incarnate Son was blessed in bearing him, but still more blessed in keeping your word: Grant us who honor the exaltation of her lowliness to follow the example of her devotion to your will; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.-Pastor Grant Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, California.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

July 1, 2023Today's Reading:  Introit for Pentecost 5: Psalm 89:15; antiphon Psalm 89:1Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 13:1-25, John 14:18-31Blessed are the people who know the festal shout, who walk, O LORD, in the light of your face, who exult in your name all the day and in your righteousness are exalted. (Psalm 89:15–16 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. How long has it been since you let loose with a good festal shout?  The benefits of the primal scream are fairly well established, a scream of anger and frustration is thought to be cathartic. In fact, we are all too quick to express our anger and frustration at things. What about the opposite? What about the shout, cry, or song of joy?  Lutherans in particular seem to be more restrained in their expressions of joy.  If you don’t believe me just look at some pictures of 19th century Lutheran pastors and you’ll see what I mean.All kidding aside, it is all too easy to give into the negative view of things. The keyboard warriors on social media and the talking heads on television seem united in the effort to give you new things to be outraged at every day. In addition, according to them, any joy that you may be feeling is most likely oppressing someone somewhere else. At times the world itself seems against you. In fact, that is just how Satan wants it. He wants the worries of this world to wash away your joy and wash away your faith. As a Christian, however, you have a lot to be joyful about and no need to feel ashamed for it. You have every reason to join in a festal shout. Think about your baptismal identity. You are a child of God. You are one who walks in the light of God’s face, you are exalted in His righteousness. This means that the source of your joy comes from God Himself. This is no fleeting feeling without a substantial base. Your joy is a gift from the creator of the universe. As frustrating as life in this world can be, you have already overcome the world. This is what it means to be a person of faith. Eternal life is already yours. The forgiveness of sins is already yours. What God has given you cannot be taken away.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.I will sing my Maker’s praises And in Him most joyful be, For in all things I see traces Of His tender love for me. Nothing else than love could move Him  With such deep and tender care Evermore to raise and bear All who try to love and serve Him. All things else but have their day; God’s great love abides for aye. (I Will Sing My Maker’s Praises, LSB 977:1)-Pastor Grant Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, California.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 30, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 10:1-23, John 14:1-17“Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. You would think that in a day and age where multiple navigation apps are available for your phone that it would be hard to get lost. You should always know where you are, and even better you should always know how to get where you are going. If you have ever used any of the navigation tools available, you know that they are sometimes better in theory than in practice. There have been multiple reports of people getting lost or led on routes that included roads that were undrivable because they followed their navigation app without questioning it. Even the show The Office has an episode where manager extraordinaire Michael Scott drives his car into a lake because his navigation unit told him to. He sees the water ahead of him and drives in anyway because, “the machine knows.” The irony here is that the Christian life oftentimes should be more like this episode of The Office. The way that Jesus is, is the way of the cross and it leads us to places that look impassable. When this happens we should be more like Micheal Scott and proceed forward in faith because the Savior knows. Instead we trust our senses instead of our Lord and look for another, easier way. What looks to us like an easier route takes us off the way of Jesus and leaves us stranded on the shores of unbelief. When it comes to the Christian life the way of Jesus is the only way.  When Luther wrote about these words of Jesus he used Israel’s crossing of the Red Sea as an example.  God led His people into the parted waters and from their viewpoint things might have looked perilous indeed. They were surrounded by walls of water on each side with Pharaoh's army behind them. There was no other way for them to go but forward to the other side. This is the way of Jesus. Sometimes you are being led through things where it appears that it would be easier to go around. In those times always remember that you are not alone. Jesus who is the way and life is with you and will lead you in the way you need to go. You can proceed into what looks impassable because Jesus knows.   In  the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Christ the unfading Light Of everlasting day, Our Morning Star in splendor bright, The Life, the Truth, the Way; That light of truth You give To servants as to friends, Your way to walk, Your life to live, Till earth’s brief journey ends. (Christ the Eternal Lord, LSB 829:4)-Pastor Grant Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, California.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

 June 29, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 16:13-20Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 9:1-18, John 13:21-38“And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” (Matthew 16:18 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Our reading allows us to draw a straight line from Peter, to Luther, and then to Lutherans.  Peter confessed Christ, Luther confessed Christ, and Lutherans continue to confess Christ. This may be true, but Peter’s confession also draws a straight line into the past as well.  In other words, the confession of Peter plants the New Testament church firmly in the soil of the Old Testament.  The words of both Peter and Jesus here bring to mind the promises of God to David and Abraham. When Jesus gives Simon the name of Peter, He places him alongside others in Israel’s past who had been given new names.  People like Abram who became Abraham.  Abraham was given the promise that he would become the father of many nations, that through him all the families of the earth would be blessed.  This means that Peter and the church after him are linked to that promise.  Peter and the church are part of the great multitude of the children of Abraham that are the people of God. Even the word ‘rock’ here is important because of its ties to the promise to Abraham (Isaiah 51:1-2 )  This rock theme is also tied up with David and the building of a house for God.  The rock at the base of the temple on Mt. Zion was thought of as the center of the cosmos. It was the place upon which heaven, earth, and even the underworld came together.  Now Jesus is saying that upon this rock he will build his church.  The church is the place where heaven and earth meet.  It is the center of the cosmos and the very gates of hell will not prevail against it.  In other words, death itself has no power in the church of Christ.  Confessing Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the living God makes you into His living people, people that death cannot touch. Here resides the true mystery of the cross. In the death and resurrection of Jesus is the death of death itself and the promise of resurrection for all God’s people.  The covenant God made with Abraham, the covenant God made with David, are all fulfilled in Jesus. You are part of those covenants.  You are all children of Abraham, and you are all subjects of the Davidic King. You were all given new names in Baptism and You are part of the great house of God that is the church and you have nothing to fear from the gates of hell. In other words, you rock!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Merciful and eternal God, Your holy apostles Peter and Paul received grace and strength to lay down their lives for the sake of your Son. Strengthen us by Your Holy Spirit that we may confess Your truth and at all times be ready to lay down our lives for Him who laid down His life for us, even Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. -Pastor Grant Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, California.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 28, 2023Today's Reading: Table of Duties, Luther’s Small Catechism: First Article Part 3Daily Lectionary: Proverb 8:22-36, John 13:1-20 All this He does only out of fatherly, divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness in me. For all this it is my duty to thank and praise, serve and obey Him. This is most certainly true. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  When it comes to the doctrine of creation we spend so much time talking about when it happened and how long it took that questions about what it means to be a creature don’t get the treatment they deserve. When we confess our belief in God the Father Almighty,  Maker of heaven and earth we are confessing far more than a belief in what took place during God’s six days of creative work. We are also confessing that God continued to be involved with His creation even after He rested on the seventh day. We are confessing that God continues to be involved with us. The Creator God who made all things is concerned with you. He did not make you and then take a step back to see what you could do on your own. He did not wind up creation like a clock and then step back to let it run on its own, He remains active in HIs creation and He remains active in you. He does all this, not because of who you are but because of who He is. God did not have to make the universe but He did. God did not have to make you, but He did. God did all these things because he chose to. He is a God of love and mercy and He creates and sustains us because that is who He is and that is what He does.  He sent His own Son into creation to save it. The creator entered into His creation to save you. This means that God follows you (not in a social media kind of way)  and is involved with your day to day existence. He provides all that you need both spiritually and physically. He doesn’t do this because you live a particularly Instagram worthy life or because you are an influencer. He does this because He is the Creator God and you are one of His beloved creations. Confessing the creator God is confessing the God who is for you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.We all believe in one true God, Who created earth and heaven, The Father, who to us in love Has the right of children given. He in soul and body feeds us; All we need His hand provides us; Through all snares and perils leads us, Watching that no harm betide us. He cares for us by day and night; All things are governed by His might. (We All Believe in One True God, LSB 954:1) -Pastor Grant Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, California.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 27, 2023Today's Reading: Romans 6:12-23Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 8:1-21, John 12:36b-50“But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.” (Romans 6:17–18 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. One of the common storytelling tropes is that of someone selling their soul to the devil. It has been used in all manner of books and movies over the years and is familiar to most people. The problem with it is that you are not free to sell your soul because it is not yours to sell. You don’t own it. This is the reality of the fall into sin. You are not born in a neutral state with a decision to make between good and evil. You are born enslaved to sin. God and Satan are not opposite ends of the spectrum of human choice because you are not free to choose. This is the human condition, born into slavery to sin without any natural ability to seek freedom. You can’t break the chains of sin. You can’t run away from sin, and you cannot choose to not sin. The amazing truth of the Gospel is that what you could not do, God did for you. He purchased you with the life of His Son Jesus. You were bought with a  price. Because of Jesus you have been brought from death to life. You have been set free from sin but you are also under new ownership. You were a slave of sin, now you are a slave of righteousness. The direction of your life has been changed because of Jesus. Before your slavery could only lead to lawlessness piled upon lawlessness. Now your slavery leads to righteousness piled upon righteousness. You were under the dominion of the law but now you are under the dominion of grace. Your sinful nature remains, but you are no longer a slave to it. The God who bought you does not leave alone free but helpless in a hostile world. He who bought you remains with you. Jesus who saved you is the same Jesus who washed you in the waters of Baptism, and feeds you with His very body and blood in Communion. His yoke is easy and His burden is light. Before you could only earn death, but now you have been given the gift of eternal life. You were a slave of sin but now you are a slave of God. Slavery to sin can only lead to death, but slavery of God leads to eternal life. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.The everlasting Son Incarnate deigns to be, Himself a servants form puts on To set His servants free. (The Advent of Our King, LSB 331:2) -Pastor Grant Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, California.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 26, 2023Today's Reading: Jeremiah 20:7-13Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 5:1-23, John 12:20-36a“Sing to the LORD; praise the LORD! For he has delivered the life of the needy from the hand of evildoers.” (Jeremiah 20:13 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Do you ever feel like Lutheranism has given you a raw deal? Do you think that being part of the people of God is not all that it is cracked up to be?  Are you tired of being ridiculed by others simply for believing in God?  This is what Jeremiah appears to be thinking when he writes, “O Lord, you have deceived me, and I was deceived..”  He has encountered one of the uncomfortable truths of the faith. Belief in God is not a guarantee of a trouble free life. In fact, being faithful to God can bring about trouble in the world. In Jeremiah’s case the very prophecies that God gave him to speak caused the people who heard them to ridicule and persecute him.  Jeremiah is simply doing what God has called him to do, and the entire Israelite cancel culture has risen up against him.   Jeremiah’s response to this comes in the form of a lament. He makes his complaint directly to God. What is important to realize here is that in all of this Jeremiah remains faithful. Complaining to God is an act of faith. Jeremiah complains because he believes that God can actually  do something about the situation.  His suffering is real, but so is his belief in God. Jeremiah never loses sight of the realities of his faith. God will be the ultimate victor. In the end His kingdom will come and His will will be done. This is why in the midst of his lament Jeremiah can still write, “Sing to the Lord; praise the Lord! For he has delivered the life of the needy from the hands of evildoers.”  The same is true for you. Being faithful may cause you to suffer at the hands of the enemies of the faith. In the face of your suffering you can make a faithful lament to God. He did not abandon Jeremiah and He will not abandon you. You can bring your complaint right to Him. The God who called you in the waters of Baptism, the God who will bring you forth from the grave, the God whose victory is assured is the God who is with you even when you lament.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Yet even though I suffer The world’s unpleasantness, And though the days grow rougher And bring me great distress, That day of bliss divine, Which knows no end or measure, And Christ, who is my pleasure, Forever shall be mine. (From God Can Nothing Move Me, LSB 713:6) -Pastor Grant Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, California.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 25, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 10:5a, 21-33Daily Lectionary:Proverbs 4:1-27, John 12:1-19“So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known.” (Matthew 10:26 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Christianity is not so much about what you know as it is about what you believe. This does not mean that you have to check your brain at the door when you become a Christian, but it does mean that you don’t have to have an exhaustive knowledge of theology to follow Jesus. You also don’t have to have an exhaustive knowledge of theology to tell other people about Jesus. There are plenty of things about God that we do not know. Sometimes these are the very things that those who are against the church choose to focus on as the basis for their unbelief. The words of Jesus in our reading come from a section in Matthew where He is sending out His disciples to proclaim that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. He tells them that their proclamation will be met with resistance and hostility. He tells them that their experience will mirror His own. For sure the disciples did not understand everything that Jesus was telling at this time in His public ministry. At this point they don’t even know the magnitude of what they don’t know. This  lack of full understanding is not a reason to keep silent. They are to proclaim openly what Jesus has told them. In time what is covered will be revealed and what is hidden will be made known. The use of the passive voice here indicates that it will be God Himself that does the revealing and making known. They are to focus on what they know, that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand in the person of Jesus. Nothing that anyone can do to them can change the truth of that.The Kingdom of Heaven has come to you as well. That same Jesus who sent His disciples has come to you in water, word, bread, and wine to make and keep you as His own. This is true whether you understand the deep mysteries of the faith or not. You need have no fear of anyone who questions what you believe or treats you badly because of what you believe. The same God who gave you that faith also keeps you in that faith. Until the time when all is revealed, you can be secure in what you do know and believe; that Jesus was, is, and will always be for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, because Your abiding presence always goes with us, keep us aware of Your daily mercies that we may live secure and content in Your eternal love; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. -Pastor Grant Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, California.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 24, 2023Today's Reading: Luke 1:57-80Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 3:5-24, John 11:38-57And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare His ways. (Luke 1:76)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Usually, Luke 1 and 2 are reserved for Advent and Christmas. Many of you who read this can still remember being in Christmas programs at church when the story is repeated each and every year. But we don’t usually focus all that closely on the foretelling and subsequent conception and birth of John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ. But it makes sense that John, six months older than Jesus, would show up on the scene about 6 months before we celebrate Christmas, so today, we’ll celebrate the nativity of the Baptist. It had been a strange time in Zechariah’s home over these last 9 months. He returned from his priestly duties unable to speak. The angel Gabriel had met him as he offered incense at the Temple, telling him that his barren wife, Elizabeth, would conceive and bear a child in her old age. Zechariah hadn’t believed the angel’s unbelievable message, and had subsequently struck him mute. Sure enough, Elizabeth conceived. The last few months of her pregnancy, a relative had come to visit—Mary—who was visited by the very same angel, and who had conceived, by the Holy Spirit, another child. Mary’s greeting caused Zechariah’s child to leap for joy in the womb. When he was born, Zechariah insisted that he would be named John, as Gabriel had instructed him—and Zecharaiah’s tongue was loosed into words of praise directed to God…and a prophecy of his own, concerning this child. He had leapt in Elizabeth’s womb, and he would continue to precede Jesus; to herald our Lord’s entrance into the spotlight at His baptism in the Jordan River, and to lay down his life, not to atone for sins, but to show what the world intends to do to those whose trust is in Christ. The good news for you, dear Christian, is that God has gone above and beyond to point you to His beloved Son. Through the prophets, priests, and kings of old, we see a promise that God would certainly fulfill…and when John shows up, we know that Christ is coming soon. In short, I guess you could say that June 24th is a perfect day to remember that the beautiful promise of Immanuel (God with us) is coming soon. That God has sent a herald to announce the coming of the Kingdom—even the coming of the King Himself! So look for John! Where you hear his message of repentance and faith, you can rest assured that the Savior of the world is drawing near! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.We praise You for the Baptist, forerunner of the Word, Our true Elijah, making a highway for the Lord. The last and greatest prophet, he saw the dawning ray of light that grows in splendor until the perfect day. Amen. (LSB 518:18)-Pastor Dustin Beck is Pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Warda Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 23, 2023Today's Reading: John 11:17-37Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 1:8-33, John 11:17-37Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.”(John 11:25-26a)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Jesus is in the resurrection business. Let that sink in for a minute. Martha had stomped out to meet Jesus before He even made it to the house. “If you had been here,” she sobbed, “my brother wouldn’t have died!” You get the idea that she and her sister had rehearsed these words as Lazarus’ health had gone from bad to the very worst…Martha knew that her brother would rise again on the last day…but that didn’t speak to her grief right then and right there. But at that moment, when Martha correctly confesses the resurrection, Jesus has a “mic drop” moment that brings peace and comfort to her, to Mary, and to all of us as well. “I AM the Resurrection and the Life,” He said. To know Jesus is to know life and resurrection. As we heard yesterday, Jesus brings the light of life where there would otherwise simply be death and hopelessness. Mary was told that Jesus was headed to the tomb, and she tried to share the same, rehearsed line: “Jesus, if You had been here—” but Jesus continued His march to the tomb…The compassion that brought Jesus to tears and had opened the eyes of the blind carried Him to place where His friend had been laid. You see, He needed to have a word with the dead man. More specifically, He needed to have three words with him: Lazarus, come out. And the dead man rose. These words are comforting for you, dear Christian reader. These words were spoken to Lazarus (who surely tasted death again…) for YOUR good, so that you might believe that Jesus is YOUR resurrection…so that believing, you may have life and never fear the grave. Death is undone and Christ’s resurrection pledges a resurrection for YOU as well! In the Name + of  Jesus. Amen.O Christ, Who shared our mortal life and ended death’s long reign, Who healed the sick and raised the dead and bore our grief and pain: We know our years on earth are few, That death is always near, Come now to us, O Lord of Life; bring hope that conquers fear! “I am the Lord of life and death!” You answered Martha’s cry, “And all who hear and trust My Word shall live, although they die!” You walked the path to Laz’rus’ tomb, You called him forth by name, and living, loving once again, From death to life he came! Amen. (LSB 552:1,10)-Pastor Dustin Beck is Pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Warda Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 22, 2023Today's Reading: John 11:1-16Daily Lectionary:Ecclesiastes 12:1-14, John 11:1-16Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.” (John 11:9-10)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Do me a favor: re-read John 11:1-16–pay special attention to each of the extra details that St. John includes about the situation. Jesus’ friend Lazarus was sick. We learn a few extra details about Mary and Martha—and that Jesus loved their family.  He knew what was going on—He knew what He was going to do for Lazarus. They stayed a few extra days where they were—Jesus wasn’t in a rush. When Jesus told the disciples it was time to go to them, a few of them questioned the wisdom of a return back into the heart of Judaism where the leaders were seeking Jesus’ life. But then, the very same Jesus who called himself the “Light of the World” (John 1:4-5, 9, 8:12, 9:5), offered a comforting commentary on just what that light in the world means. Where Jesus is, there is light, and where there is the light of Christ, the fear of stumbling into death flees like darkness when the lights come on. Next, Jesus tells the disciples exactly what’s going to happen—that Lazarus had fallen asleep (the same term used by the early church to describe the death of a Christian), but that Jesus was going to wake him up again. Even though the disciples had witnessed other miracles of this nature, they didn’t get it. I’ve always scratched my head about Thomas’ response to this whole situation… “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” What did he mean by that? Is it out of concern based on the other disciples’ fears about returning to Judea? Is he feeling particularly brave and ready to charge into Judea, no matter what’s waiting? Maybe he still thinks Jesus is talking in a figure of speech? Maybe we can’t figure out what Thomas meant, what was in his head…But what’s important for us to see is the Light himself. We see His willingness to go to Mary, Martha, Lazarus—and ultimately to the cross and empty tomb. His light still shines today. You see it when you hear the sweet words of the Gospel, when your pastor pronounces God’s verdict concerning your sin: FORGIVEN! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O wondrous type! O vision fair of glory that the Church may share, Which Christ upon the mountain shows, where brighter than the sun He glows! And faithful hearts are raised on high by this great vision’s mystery, for which in joyful strains we raise the voice of prayer, the hymn of praise. (LSB 413:1,4)-Pastor Dustin Beck is Pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Warda Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 21, 2023Today's Reading:Table of Duties, Luther’s Small Catechism: First Article Part 2Daily Lectionary: Ecclesiastes 11:1-10, John 10:22-42Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. (Matthew 6:26)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Is that all? I know, I know…if you’ve read through Part 1 of Luther’s Small Catechism’s explanation for the First Article, the response I should expect is: Isn’t that enough?! “God has made me and all creatures!” He has given me my body and soul and still takes care of them. That’s no small feat! Something that only God could do. But Dr. Luther is intent on rescuing us from any delusion we may have cooked up that we’ve pulled ourselves up by our bootstraps, or that “our” stuff is really “ours” at all. “He also gives me—“ and I just love it when Luther starts listing things like this. He really gets on a roll here—from the clothes on my back and the shoes on my feet  to my home, family, and the (admittedly modest) little group of animals who provide us with things like eggs and occasionally even meat—all this is from God. And we can’t overemphasize this point. It’s not enough to simply believe that God created us. He is still, right this moment, actively holding all things in creation together. And working together the very same things for your good. I know that there are days when you just don’t see it. Maybe you don’t have one of the things on the list. I know that feeling, and it’s not easy. There’s nothing I can say that will soften that feeling of incompleteness, but there is something that Jesus has said on the subject. In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells us that anxiety fixated on food, drink, and clothing is not how creation looks to its creator. The birds are well fed and nourished, the grass is clothed with beautiful flowers…and you? God has already taken care of these things. So seek first His Kingdom and the rest will be added to you. After addressing the body- and life-supporting stuff in creation, Luther reminds us of God’s protection. Danger and evil flee from our Father, and we do well to hide in the shelter of His wings—to call upon Him in our day of trouble—and in so doing, more often than not, our perspective on the temporal things He has given us strikes a more thankful tone. Thanks be to God for the stuff He gives us…but so much more for the love with which He gives it! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Consider how the birds above feed day by day with carefree ease—Does God not keep them in His love? Are we not worth much more than these? Be not afraid to suffer loss of all the things for which you pray, for He who faced for you the cross will give you strength to live each day. Amen. (LSB 736:1, 5)-Pastor Dustin Beck is Pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Warda Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 20, 2023Today's Reading: Romans 5:6-15Daily Lectionary: Ecclesiastes 10:1-20, John 10:1-21“For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.” (Romans 5:6)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Timing is everything. I don’t know how those three words make you feel. But, in one way or another, they’re the absolute truth. Think of all of the things that have happened in your life that you look back on after and realize just how perfect the timing had to be. I wouldn’t have met my wife if she hadn’t stopped where she was standing to take a phone call and I happened to be walking in her general direction. I’ve driven past car accidents that, if I were just a few minutes earlier, I would’ve likely been a part of. Maybe you’ve played baseball or softball or a musical instrument…you know that being a split second early or late will result in a strike or an unintentional solo. Sometimes, we can plan the timing of things—but a lot of the time, we get it wrong. Think of Adam and Eve in the garden. The terrible timing when Eve’s curiosity and Adam’s reluctance to interfere led to the rebellion that brought sin and death to all people. Our timing is usually not the best. But God, the author of time, has things under control. That’s what our text from Romans 5 tells us. At just the right time, while we were stuck in sin and enemies of God—Christ died for us. I could try to explain why 2,000 years ago was just the right time for Jesus to be born, to die, and to rise, but it would just be my best guess. God alone knows. And as one for whom such a loving act has been carried out, who am I to question? It’s also no accident that the perfect timing of Jesus’ death was followed by a just-the-right-time Resurrection. Paul tells the Romans that we’ve been reconciled to God by Jesus’ death and saved by His life. We don’t always think about these two things (being reconciled and being saved) apart from each other, and I think that’s the point. Jesus’ death has paid the price for our sin, and made a way for peace between God and us—and His new life delivers it! Remember Jesus’ first words to the apostles on Easter evening in John 20? “Peace be with you!” That peace wouldn’t have been possible without the cross. It was proclaimed in the resurrection. And through the Word and Sacraments, it’s yours today, too! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.I was in slavery, sin, death, and darkness; God’s love was working to make me free. Therefore I’ll say again: God loves me dearly, God loves me dearly, loves even me. He sent forth Jesus, My dear Redeemer, He sent forth Jesus and set me free. Therefore I’ll say again: God loves me dearly, God loves me dearly, loves even me! Amen. LSB 392:2-3-Pastor Dustin Beck is Pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Warda Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 19, 2023Today's Reading: Exodus 19:2-8Daily Lectionary: Ecclesiastes 9:1-17, John 9:24-41“‘You shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.” (Exodus 19:6)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Our family loves camping. There’s something about the great outdoors, enjoying the beauty of creation, unplugging from responsibilities (and electronics) that always seems to give us a nice reset before we rush headlong back into the busyness of this life. If you look at the opening verses of our text this morning, you may have noticed that Israel, about 3 months after they were rescued from Egypt, came to the wilderness of Sinai, where they camped. But their camping was anything but a vacation! They weren’t there to relax and recharge. Instead, they were there because God directed them to that place in order that He might establish His covenant with them. The Lord instructed Moses to begin by reminding the people of His gracious act of redemption when He drowned Pharaoh and his army while Israel was carried out of slavery in safety. Next, comes the terms of the covenant. “Obey my voice…keep my covenant…” Essentially, it was a call to listen to God’s Word. Maybe someone has asked you before if you’re listening to them and you responded, “I heard you!” But there’s a difference between hearing something…and listening. God expected His people to listen. And the result of their listening? They would continue to be God’s treasured possession, His kingdom of priests, His holy nation. It doesn’t get much better than that! Moses reported the words to the people, and they replied, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do!” Part of me wishes that I could step back into that moment in time and (in Hebrew, so they could understand,) warn them of the foolish nature of their vow. But maybe that’s the point of the ongoing nature of Israel and God’s continued wrestling. God keeps choosing them according to His rich mercy; they prove faithless over and over again; and while there are certainly times when He allows them to fall into the pit they’ve dug themselves—more often than not, He forgives, rescues, and restores them to the favored status He originally bestowed upon Abraham, Isaac, and Israel. That said, we can learn a lot about what NOT to do when we see Israel making promises in vain. As we’ve seen in the last week, God is in the business of having mercy, but He won’t stand for fake righteousness. Repent and believe accordingly! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.The Law of God is good and wise and sets His will before our eyes, shows us the way of righteousness, and dooms to death when we transgress. To Jesus we for refuge flee, Who from the curse has set us free, and humbly worship at His throne, saved by His grace through faith alone. Amen. LSB 579:1, 6-Pastor Dustin Beck is Pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Warda Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 18, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 9:35-10:20Daily Lectionary: Ecclesiastes 8:1-17, John 9:1-23Then Jesus said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” (Matthew 9:37-38)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Our Gospel lesson this week unfolds in the most beautiful fashion. Jesus had been teaching and healing, but then He saw just how bad things were–these crowds were like sheep without a shepherd. He immediately had compassion on them…He was moved to act on their behalf. But pay close attention to Jesus’ observation and instructions to His disciples: “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray…” He doesn’t say that “the harvest is plentiful and the laborers are few, so GO!” Prayer comes first. In prayer, we acknowledge that God is the giver of every good and perfect gift. If there is a task ahead of us, we do well to start with prayer. And no sooner than Jesus instructed them to pray–He answered that very prayer by sending them out! This sending, sanctified by prayer, was given to the twelve…and it’s not the kind of sending most of us would’ve expected. Stay away from the Gentiles and Samaritans. Go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel and tell them that the Kingdom of heaven is at hand. These were the ears and hearts who should’ve been eagerly expecting the Messiah to bring God’s Kingdom into their midst! Before the Gospel would be proclaimed to the ends of the earth, it would be preached in Jerusalem and Judea first. Jesus moves from the target audience to the task—you know, just the usual stuff—healing the sick, raising the dead, cleansing lepers, casting out demons. Did He say raising the dead?! I’m not sure the disciples were ready for this kind of an assignment! And if all this weren’t enough, what happens next seems downright reckless! He instructs them to leave behind extra provisions for the trip. Don’t accept gifts along the way, don’t take a bag, don’t bring a change of clothes. Go and stay in the first house you enter. If no one will listen to you, shake the dust of that town off of your feet as a witness of judgment against them. But then, Jesus makes one final pronouncement to these disciples whom He is “apostling” (sending): “I’m sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves…” Jesus is sending them AWAY from Him, the Good Shepherd, into wolf-infested territory! But the Holy Spirit speaks for them; He strengthens their faith. Your faith today is evidence that Jesus was faithful—and will be forever!. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty, eternal God, in the Word of Your apostles and prophets You have proclaimed to us Your saving will. Grant us faith to believe Your promises that we may receive eternal salvation; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Dustin Beck is Pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Warda Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 17, 2023Today's Reading: Introit for Pentecost 3: Psalm 67:4-7, antiphon: 67:3Daily Lectionary: Ecclesiastes 7:11-29, John 8:39-59; antiphon: Psalm 67:3Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for You judge the peoples with equity and guide the nations upon earth. (Psalm 67:4)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. “Judge not, lest you be judged.” I’ll never forget the first time these words were thrown at me. I was in high school, and I had questioned the behavior of a classmate. She knew I was a Christian, I knew she wasn’t. I wasn’t trying to hurt her or to put her down…but she had heard my words of correction as just that. In her mind, I thought I was perfect–holier than thou. I was on my perch, telling her how she needed to behave and acting as if I was the sole arbiter of right and wrong…so she quoted Matthew 7:1: “Judge not, lest ye be judged.” Now that I think of it, I think she even said “ye,” just to get the full force of the King James Version behind her argument. When I didn’t have a response, she told me I should go home and read my Bible more. I can’t tell you today that I went home and honed my argument from scripture and then went back the next day to win the debate…I was disheartened. I had been trying to help. Unfortunately, there are times when those outside of the Christian faith will close their ears and say anything they can think of to close our mouths. “Judge not” can be this kind of argument-ender. But Matthew 7:1 isn’t about not judging. It’s about judging yourself with the same metric first. It’s about judging from a place of humility, rather than a place of superiority. And this is crucially important for this reason: we’re under the very same judgment, or better said, under the same Judge. That’s why it may seem confusing that our reading today invites praise, gladness, and singing for joy–for the Lord judges the people with equity. Usually judgment is something that we fear! But here, we see that God uses the same standard for all peoples. He is equitable, not going easy on some and pouring out wrath on others. Paul shared this sentiment when he said that “God has consigned all to disobedience, that He may have mercy on all.” (Romans 11:32) This means that, in light of Christ, salvation has been won for all people–because all people needed it. All were under the same crushing judgment of the Law–and the way of life has been opened equally to all! We can rejoice in God’s judgments, because Jesus has come to take them upon Himself and to give us forgiveness forever! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.He comes to judge the nations, a terror to His foes, a light of consolations and blessed hope to those who love the Lord’s appearing. O glorious Sun, now come, send forth You beams so cheering, and guide us safely home. Amen LSB 334:7-Pastor Dustin Beck is Pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Warda Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 16, 2023Today's Reading: Romans 4:13-25Daily Lectionary: Ecclesiastes 6:1-7:10, John 8:21-38For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” (Romans 4:3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Paul’s life was forever changed when, on the road to Damascus, on his mission to imprison followers of Jesus, He met Jesus Himself. Paul was struck blind, but in a way, his eyes were finally opened to the One who is the way, the truth, the life. Paul wrote in Galatians about his self-imposed exile in Arabia and Damascus. During that time, he studied the Old Testament to better understand how these things could be true. Paul was a trained Pharisee under Gamaliel, a revered Jewish Rabbi. He knew the scriptures. But now, with Jesus at the center of them, everything became clear. All things pointed toward the fulfillment that took place in the incarnation, life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus! Judaism was a religion of works, always emphasizing the obedience the people owed to God. And it’s certainly possible to read the Old Testament in that way. But not when you factor in the words and works of Jesus! Instead, it becomes plain that God showed His great love for us by sending His Son to live a perfect life in our place, to overcome sin and temptation on our behalf, and then, to suffer the punishment that we deserved. This Gospel-filled unpacking of the Old Testament taught Paul to see Abraham in a different light. No longer was Abraham the example of obedience, but of faith. “Abraham believed God,” (Genesis 15:6) became the defining characteristic of father Abraham. He didn’t merely provide a bloodline for the Messiah, or for the chosen people, Israel, but He believed. And God considered him righteous. It’s easy for us to think about the things that the Old Testament heroes of the faith DID. That’s what Sunday School stories teach us, right? David and Goliath…Noah building the ark…Moses raising his staff, parting the Red Sea…but we have to remember that the Old Testament, just like the New, is all. about. Jesus. So what we should actually see throughout the Old Testament is that faith in God is commended. Where there is faith, there are God’s righteous people. Abraham believed God and trusted when God told him that he would be father to many nations. God be praised that we can see these faithful men and women, carried along by God, trusting that we are called to walk, not by sight, but faith. And where there is faith…there is righteousness before God! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Christ, the Word of God incarnate, Lord and Son of Abraham; Christ, the radiance of the Father, Perfect God, the great I Am; Christ, the light, You shine unvanquished, Light and life You bring to all; Light our path with Your own presence, Grant us grace to heed Your call. Amen. LSB 540:1-Pastor Dustin Beck is Pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Warda Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 15, 2023Today's Reading: Table of Duties, Luther’s Small Catechism: First Article Part 1Daily Lectionary: Ecclesiastes 5:1-20, John 9:1-23“Of old You laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands.” (Psalm 102:25)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Father’s Day is right around the corner, and if your dad is anything like my kids’ dad, a good Father’s Day might consist of going to church, a nap, and a steak for dinner. But the important thing about fathers isn’t the stuff that they enjoy in life, it’s their function in the family. And a father’s function in the family isn’t something that society dreamed up or something that dads just started doing one day. We know what fathers are supposed to be like because God calls Himself our Father, and He has shown us what He is like. Now, it is true that our natural fathers pale in comparison to God (that should go without saying), and saying that fathers are in any way similar to God doesn’t mean that our father’s failures here are reflective of God. But God is truly our Father. He has truly made us–and not us only, but all things in heaven and on the earth.When Luther wrote his Small Catechism, the explanation he gave for the First Article is profoundly personal. It’s not enough for Luther to say that God has made all things. He didn’t talk in terms like “universe,” “cosmos,” or even “heaven and earth,” the words used in the Creed itself. Instead, Luther began with this simple confession: “I believe that God has made me…” This is Luther’s confession that God is his Father. God brought him forth. God has known him for every moment of his life. God knew him better than he knew himself. And the beautiful truth of this simple explanation is that it is true for you as well! There may be times in your adolescence when you don’t even feel like you know yourself…you’re trying on different “yous” and learning which “you” is going to be the “you” for the next chapter in your life. Trust me when I say that you’ve still got time to figure this part out. But trust this even more: God knows YOU–always has, always will. He made you. He’s your Almighty Father Who has loved you from before the foundations of the world. And not only has He created you, all creatures, and all things–He still takes care of them, still takes care of you. That’s a truth you can believe unto eternal life! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.God the Father, be our stay; O let us perish never! Cleanse us from our sins, we pray, and grant us life forever. Keep us from the evil one; uphold our faith most holy, and let us trust Thee solely with humble hearts and lowly, let us put God’s armor on, with all true Christians running our heav’nly race and shunning the devil’s wiles and cunning. Amen, amen! This be done; So sing we, “Alleluia!” LSB 505:1-Pastor Dustin Beck is Pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Warda Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 14, 2023Today's Reading: Psalm 50:1, 7-15Daily Lectionary: Ecclesiastes 4:1-16, John 7:32-53“Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.”  (Psalm 50:15)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Have you ever struggled to find a gift to give someone? Sometimes, picking just the right thing can be a challenge, it might even feel impossible. What do you buy for the person who has everything? Now, consider a gift you might give God!? Psalm 24:1 says “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein.” In other words, God owns everyTHING and everyONE in all of creation. In our text today, it says the cattle on a thousand hills belong to God. I feel like I should add that the cattle on the 1,001st hill belong to Him, too. All of the cattle on all of the hills—and everything else in creation that’s not cattle or hills—it’s His, too. I think I’ve made the point, God owns everything. But when God says that He won’t accept His people’s sacrifices, it’s not just that He doesn’t need what they’re offering. It’s that “the sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.” (Psalm 51:17) God isn’t looking for us to impress Him with our very best works, with our very best sacrifices, or our very best efforts. He’s looking for faith. He’s looking for us to die to our self-centered, idolatrous way of life. “Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving…” Sacrifices are an interesting subject in the Old Testament. If you read through the Pentateuch, you’ll see sacrifices all over the place. If you read through Leviticus, you’ll see an entire sacrificial system that is set up in very specific detail. But the point of sacrifice was never the sacrifice itself. It was always a looking-forward-to event. Every sacrifice in the Old Testament was intended to point toward the one and only sacrifice that actually took away sins. The writer to the Hebrews wrote about this when he said that “Christ offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins.” (Hebrews 10:12) So maybe  we’ve been asking the wrong question this whole time…maybe there are times when we feel like we should give God a gift…but our God is in the business of giving, not receiving. He rejoices to give You the gift of His Son, the perfect sacrifice for the removal of sin. And that is the perfect gift for each of us. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Not all the blood of beasts on Jewish altars slain could give the guilty conscience peace or wash away the stain. Believing, we rejoice to see the curse remove; we bless the Lamb with cheerful voice and sing His bleeding love. LSB 431:1,5-Pastor Dustin Beck is Pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Warda Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 13, 2023Today's Reading: Hosea 5:15-6:6Daily Lectionary: Ecclesiastes 3:1-22, John 7:14-31“Come, let us return to the Lord; for He has torn us, that He may heal us; He has struck us down, and He will bind us up.” (Hosea 6:1)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Some lessons are harder to learn than others. I’m sure that comes as no surprise to you. In school, some subjects will be easier than others…but there are some things that we don’t learn in a classroom setting. Some things we have to learn by experience. One of the hardest things for most people to learn is when to admit that they’re in the wrong. Our reading today begins with God’s promise that He will return to his people when they confess their sins in earnest (truth). Hosea 6 starts with these words: “Come, let us return to the Lord…” The people even go so far as to acknowledge that God, by His Word, “tears” and “strikes down,” but that these harsh activities are ultimately for the purposes of healing and binding up. God tears down the idolatry in our hearts and builds up our faith through the promises that are in His Word. But had Israel learned the hard lesson of repentance? You guessed it. They don’t. God compares Israel’s repentance with a morning cloud or dew that dries up early. They’re insincere. They don’t mean what they say.  They say that they’ve learned repentance, but they’re still trying to placate God with their burnt offerings and  works. It won’t work. But the beautiful truth that resonates throughout Hosea’s prophecy is that God continues to return to His people over and over. There are certainly times when He comes with words that tear and strike down. When His Word tears YOU down and strikes YOUR conscience—it’s times like these that God is teaching us the hard lesson of repentance. God’s Word is true when it calls us out for our unfaithfulness toward Him. His Word is right to accuse us in times when we are insincere about our repentance. So don’t be like faithless Israel. Don’t play games with God. Don’t think that the things you do will please Him. He is pleased to show mercy upon sinners like you. He rejoices to save you from Your sin. He rejoices to deliver such salvation through Word and Sacrament, the means by which you are connected to Christ. Consider that a lesson learned.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O all-embracing Mercy, O ever-open Door, What should we do without You When heart and eye run o’er? When all things seem against us, To drive us to despair, We know one gate is open, One ear will hear our prayer. Amen. LSB 915:4-Pastor Dustin Beck is Pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Warda Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 12, 2023Today's Reading: Matt. 9:9-13Daily Lectionary: Ecclesiastes 2:1-26, John 7:1-13Jesus said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Matthew 9:12-13)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Have you ever  played the game, Follow the Leader? If you’re not familiar, you get in a single file line and the person in the front is the “leader.” The leader takes the line wherever (and however) he or she wants to go. If someone following the leader doesn’t execute a convincing enough T-Rex walk, or isn’t able to balance on the rail that the leader took them on, that player is out. In our reading today, Jesus tells Matthew to follow Him. Matthew was a tax collector. That meant he was Jewish, but was in the employ of the Roman government. If that weren’t bad enough, tax collectors’ wages came from the money they collected from their countrymen. Let’s just say that most of the tax collectors gave in to the temptation to extort a little extra money to line their own pockets…you could say that Matthew, like most tax collectors in those days, was following the idols of money, success, and status. But then Jesus said, “Follow me.” Matthew left his tax booth and his former way of life behind…and he followed Jesus. When Jesus was in the house, a few verses later, the Pharisees saw Jesus with tax collectors and public sinners. It’s at that point that Jesus draws the powerful distinction between those who are well and have no need of a physician—and the sick, who absolutely need health and healing. Jesus makes the very same distinction when He quotes Hosea 6:6, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” Jesus is not impressed with the righteous behavior of the Pharisees. Their “sacrifice” of living extra-holy lives resulted in them thinking that they didn’t even really need God all that much. They’re certainly the ones who thought they had no need of a Physician. But the tax collectors? Those labeled publicly as “sinners?” They’re the ones with whom Jesus dines. They know that their own righteousness will not cut it with God. They know that they have nothing to offer God, but they come to know that Jesus is not only a Physician for them, but a friend. He calls the sin-sick to find life in Him. In a word, He invites them to follow Him. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Praise, Lord, for him whose Gospel Your human life declared, who, worldly gain forsaking, Your path of suff’ring shared. From all unrighteous mammon, O raise our eyes anew that we in our vocation may rise and follow You. Amen. LSB 518:25-Pastor Dustin Beck is Pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Warda Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 11, 2023Today's Reading: Mark 6:7-13 Daily Lectionary: Ecclesiastes 1:1-18, John 6:60-71And [Jesus] called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits.  (Mark 6:7)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Everyone needs a Barnabas. No, I don’t mean to say that your life is somehow incomplete if you don’t have a friend who goes by “Barney.” Today, the Church remembers Barnabas, an Apostle and companion of St. Paul on his missionary journeys. His name appears throughout Acts–he’s with Paul through many of the hardships Paul endured and he’s there for a lot of the successes of Paul’s ministry, too. Barnabas first shows up in Acts 4 where he sells a field and lays the money at the feet of the disciples. This was common in the early church; the money was used to provide for the needs of the poor, widows, and orphans. It’s in this introduction to Barnabas that we learn that his name is actually Joseph, but the Apostles call him “Barnabas,” which means “Son of Encouragement.” Acts doesn’t tell us exactly why he’s given this nickname, but apparently it stuck.And I’ll stick with my original thought: everyone needs a Barnabas. We need encouragement. We need someone to walk alongside us in the places that Jesus has sent us, in the circumstances Jesus calls us into where we show loving service toward our neighbor. The terrifying and tremendous thing about a calling like this is that we don’t ever exactly know how these things are going to turn out. God will provide…but He’ll do so according to His timing and His will. Will my efforts to encourage others be met with mockery? Will I ever see the results of what I do?  What if they make fun of me or even hate me for telling them about Jesus?When Jesus sent out the Apostles, He sent them two by two. There’s a whole list of items they were not supposed to bring. Things like food, money, extra clothes—all of that is unnecessary. But a partner for ministry? That’s a must-have! Jesus sent them out, not just with a companion for their encouragement, but with His very own life-giving name! And encouragement given by the Son of God drives out discouragement like light drives out darkness. Rest assured, knowing that in Christ, you have the greatest “Son of Encouragement” there is! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, Your faithful servant Barnabas sought not his own renown but gave generously of his life and substance for the encouragement of the apostles and their ministry. Grant that we may follow his example in lives given to charity and the proclamation of the Gospel; through Your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Dustin Beck is Pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Warda Texas.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 10, 2023Today's Reading: Introit to Pentecost 2: Psalm 50:7-10; antiphon: Psalm 50:1Daily Lectionary: Song of Solomon 7:6-8:14, John 6:41-59 The Mighty One, God the Lord, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting. (Psalm 50:1)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When I am at a stop light, I can yell all I want for the traffic signal to change from red to green, but my words don’t have that kind of power. When I watch hockey on TV the referees do not listen to my voice and change their call in my favor.God’s Word, however, is different. When God speaks, things happen. What God says is what occurs. God’s Word is more than sound and syllables and syntax. God’s Word is an event. God’s Word creates, gives life, and is active, doing what He says and giving what He promises. This is what the opening verse of the Psalm of the day for tomorrow is all about, the creative, powerful, life-giving Word of God. When God the Lord speaks, the Psalm says, he summons the earth. John and Paul and the author of Hebrews echo this verse when they say that all creation is made through Jesus, that in him all things are held together, and that He upholds the universe by His Word of power. The Mighty One, God the Lord, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting. This is good news. God gives us His holy, saving gifts through His Word. When you go to Divine Service tomorrow, you will be in the place where God speaks. Luther even called the church a mouth-house of God’s forgiveness. You will hear the Lord speak in His Word of holy absolution, forgiving your sin through His called and ordained servant of the Word. You will hear the invocation that was spoken on the day of your Baptism when a pastor took water, spoke God’s Word, and washed away all your sin in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. God’s Word is in and under the bread and wine as you receive Jesus’ body and blood for the forgiveness of all your sins.As you get up and go to church tomorrow, rejoice that the same Lord who summons the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting also summons His Word to give you what he promises, His Word of life spoken, declared, and delivered to you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord God, bless Your Word wherever it is proclaimed. Make it a word of power and peace to convert those not yet Your own and to confirm those who have come to saving faith. May Your Word pass from the ear to hear heart, from the heart to the lip, and from the lip to the life that, as You have promised, Your Word may achieve the purpose for which You send it; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.-Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is Pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WAAudio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 9, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Song of Solomon 6:4-7:5, John 6:22-40I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. (John 6:35)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. C.S. Lewis once observed that, “God likes matter; after all, He created it.” We see this truth throughout Scripture as well. Time and time again, God takes the stuff of His creation and uses it to bless and be with His people. God puts a rainbow in the sky to remind all creation of His promise to never again flood the earth. God takes water from the rock and quenches Israel’s  thirst. God sends oil and flour to the widow of Zarephath to give her and her son daily bread. God cares for creation, and we His creatures, so much in fact, that he took on human flesh for us. God the Creator of all became a creature to save us all. God the giver of life and daily bread became man who would eat and drink with sinners. God, who feeds and cares for all creation, comes in the flesh to be the very bread of life. As the crowds gathered around Jesus in John 6, He fed them with daily bread for their stomachs and the daily bread of His Word and promise for their body and soul. Once again God was taking the stuff of His creation and using it to bless and be with His people. Jesus does the same thing for us when he institutes the Lord’s Supper on Maundy Thursday. Jesus takes the bread and gives us His body. Jesus takes the cup of wine and gives us His blood. Simple, ordinary, earthly gifts and yet heavenly, holy, sacred, and life-giving gifts full of forgiveness in Jesus’ body and blood.When our Lord gathers us in His house around His table and gives us His gifts, the words of Jesus in John 6 continue to ring in our ears. “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” When we approach and kneel before our Lord’s table we hold, touch, taste, and see Jesus the bread of life. When we drink the cup of the new testament in His blood we are forgiven and given to drink from the true fountain of life. When we are gathered by our Lord around His table,,like the crowds in John 6, we receive Jesus who is the bread of life given for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, the fountain and source of all goodness, who in loving-kindness sent Your only-begotten Son into the flesh, we thank You that for His sake You have given us pardon and peace in this sacrament, and we ask You not to forsake Your children but always to rule our hearts and minds by Your Holy Spirit that we may be enabled constantly to serve You; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (Post-Communion Collect)-Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is Pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WAAudio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 8, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Song of Solomon 5:2-6:3, John 6:1-21 Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?”  (John 6:5)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When we pray in the Lord’s Prayer, “Give us this day our daily bread,” we are reminded that throughout the Scripture, God is the God who feeds His people and gives them what they need. God gave Adam and Eve the fruit of all the trees of creation save the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. God gave Joseph’s brothers food to eat in the midst of a famine in the land for seven years. God gave the people of Israel manna and quail in the wilderness. And the list could go on. In the New Testament we see the same story repeated over and over again. God in the flesh is the God who feeds His people and gives them what they need. Here in John 6, Jesus fulfills Psalm 23 and all the other Scriptures about God feeding His people. Jesus leads the people on the hillside, has them sit down, and feeds them. ​​Jesus then took the loaves, and when He had given thanks, He distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted. And when they had eaten their fill, He told His disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.” So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten. When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!”Like the prophets of the Old Testament, Jesus fed the people with the daily bread of God’s Word, His very Word, and the daily bread for their physical hunger as well. Not only does Jesus speak God’s Word, He is God’s Word in the flesh. Jesus is the very bread of God come down from heaven. When Jesus feeds the thousands here in John 6 he is giving us a preview of the greater feast that is to come on the night when He is betrayed. When you come to the Lord’s table and receive the Lord’s body and blood, Jesus is doing the same thing for you that he has done throughout Scripture; Jesus gives you the daily bread of His body and blood. Jesus is the God who feeds you and gives you what you need, His very life. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord Jesus, You are the God who feeds us. Give us this day our daily bread with blessings for body and soul, at our table, and at the table of your holy altar, that we may have life in your name; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. -Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is Pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WAAudio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 7, 2023Today's Reading: Table of Duties, Luther’s Small Catechism: The Close of the CommandmentsDaily Lectionary: Song of Solomon 4:1-5:1, John 5:30-47 What does God say about all these commandments? He says, “I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of their fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Me,  but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love Me and keep my commandments”.  (The Close of the Commandments)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  Have you ever wondered why God gives us commandments? If so, you’re not alone. Many have wondered that same thing. Some have answered that question by saying that the commandments are given for us like a stairway to heaven so that we can climb our way into God’s grace and favor. Some have said the commandments are like the pirate code in Pirates of the Caribbean, they’re more like guidelines really. Some try to take God’s commandments and soften them like Mary Poppins and her spoonful of sugar. It doesn’t take too long to realize that these ways of thinking about God’s commandments fall short, just like we do in keeping them. God’s commandments aren’t given as a ladder, but as a mirror and a hammer to show us our sin and crush our sinful flesh. God’s commandments aren’t suggestions or guidelines we can do away with on a whim; this leads to thinking that God’s Law has nothing to say to us, when in fact it is given to show us our sin and our need for Jesus our Savior. God’s commandments aren’t meant to be sugar-coated either; they show us that we have failed to love the Lord our God with all our heart and soul and mind, and love our neighbor as ourselves. Psalm 119:32 puts it this way, “I will run in the way of your commandments when you enlarge my heart!” When we come to the close of the Ten Commandments in the Small Catechism, we quickly realize that we have not kept these commands, and that if we have done anything in accordance with them, it was all by God’s grace. And yet, God’s commands also help us to see our need for a savior. The commandments we have not kept, Jesus has kept for us perfectly. That is why in the close of the commandments, God’s punishment for our sin is outweighed by His love which lasts a thousand generations, the Scripture’s way of saying his love is everlasting. Where we have failed and falter at keeping God’s commands, Jesus has kept every one of them for you in His everlasting love. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O holy and most merciful God, You have taught us the way of Your commandments. We implore You to pour out Your grace into our hearts. Cause it to bear fruit in us that, being ever mindful of Your mercies and Your laws, we may always be directed to Your will and daily increase in love toward You and one another; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. -Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is Pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WAAudio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 6, 2023Today's Reading: Acts 2:14a, 22-36Daily Lectionary: Song of Solomon 2:8-3:11, John 5:19-29 He foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption.  (Acts 2:31)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When Jesus met two of His disciples on the Emmaus road after His resurrection, He taught them how to read the Old Testament, to read it with eyes, hearts, and minds fixed on Christ’s death and resurrection. “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”When Peter delivered his sermon in Acts 2 on the day of Pentecost, he was preaching what he had heard Jesus teaching, that all of God’s promises and prophets’ words of the Old Testament are found and fulfilled in Jesus.In today’s reading from Acts 2, Peter quotes two psalms of David. First, is Psalm 16. What’s Psalm 16 about? David and Peter tell us. It’s about the Messiah, the Holy One, Jesus. In Psalm 16, David foretells what Jesus, the Son of David will do; He will die and be buried but He will not see corruption. Jesus was not abandoned in the grave. Jesus rose again from the dead, and in doing so, Jesus, the Son of David, fulfills David’s words. Psalm 110 is the next psalm quoted by Peter. “The Lord says to my Lord: Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.” Psalm 110 is another messianic psalm, pointing to the work of Jesus the Messiah. Peter moves us from Jesus’ death and resurrection to His glorious ascension and His reign on the throne of heaven. In Psalm 110 David proclaims the victory and triumph over the enemies of the Lord. Which enemies are those? Sin, death, and the devil. By His dying and rising, Jesus stomped and crushed the serpent’s head underfoot as Moses recorded in Genesis 3:15. And in His ascension, Jesus reigns as our victorious crucified and risen King forever.Peter’s sermon reminds us that when we go into the Old Testament, we see the work of Jesus already foretold, so that when we come to the New Testament, as in Peter’s own sermon here in Acts 2, we see the work of Jesus fulfilling the Scriptures for you. David points us to Jesus, the Son of David. Peter points us to Jesus, who is both Lord and Christ and who was crucified, rose from the dead, and ascended where He rules and reigns for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Blessed Lord, You have caused all Holy Scriptures to be written for our learning. Grant that we may so hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that by patience and comfort of Your holy Word, we may embrace and every hold fast the blessed hope of eternal life; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.-Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is Pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WAAudio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 5, 2023Today's Reading: Genesis 1:1-2:4aDaily Lectionary:  Song of Solomon 1:1-2:7, John 5:1-18In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. (Genesis 1:1-2)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Ever wondered where in the Old Testament you hear about the Holy Trinity? Just two verses into the book of Genesis and God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, are already at work. God the Father is there creating, as we confess in the Apostles’ Creed. “I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.” Moses also tells us that the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit, was there in the beginning as well. But what about the Son of God, the second person of the Holy Trinity? Where’s Jesus? Don’t worry. He’s there too. Fast forward from Genesis 1:1 to John 1:1 and we hear these familiar words. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.”John is telling us that all the way back in Genesis, the Word of God, the second person of the Trinity, was there too. In the New Testament this second person of the Trinity is Jesus. In the Old Testament He is named the Word, the one through whom all creation was made. This is a great and gracious mystery. Just as God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit were present in the beginning of creation and active in the work of creation, so too, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are active in the work of your salvation.In creation, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit created out of nothing. God said, “Let there be light,” and it was so. God’s Word creates faith in your heart the same way, out of the nothingness of sin, God speaks, “Let there be faith and life” and it is so. When God speaks, whether it’s in creation or salvation, His Word does what He says and gives what He promises. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Gracious Lord, You brought all creation into being out of nothing by Your grace, loving kindness, and Your creative, life-giving Word. By Your Son, Jesus the Word made flesh you redeemed and saved all creation by Your grace. Help us, as Your baptized children, to live by Your grace and mercy in our daily lives and vocations as we continue to live daily by Your grace; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, One God, now and forever. Amen. -Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is Pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WAAudio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 4, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 28:16-20Daily Lectionary: Numbers 35:9-30, Luke 24:28-53 “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” (Matthew 28:19)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Stay on the path. That’s one of the most basic rules of hiking. Those are also wise words for Trinity Sunday, a day when we celebrate one of the great paradoxes of the Christian faith. Today is Holy Trinity Sunday, the day we celebrate this great paradox and mystery of the Christian faith, namely, that God is both three and one at the same time. Three persons in One Divine Essence, One Divine Essence in three persons. Strange? You bet it is. Understandable? Of course not. So we confess it. As we will in the Athanasian Creed. A summary of about four hundred years of the church struggling to say it just the right way.  And even then, we can only come to an approximation, as though looking through a dirty window pane. We can describe God using words like “person” and “being” and “essence” and “substance” but we can’t really explain God. How can something be both three and one?  The trick to all paradoxes, is like the basic rule of hiking: stay on the path. Don’t subtract God’s Word. Don’t add to God’s Word. Confess what Scripture teaches. We worship three persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in one being or essence called “God.” It’s as simple as that. As we confess in the Athanasian Creed, the Father is God, the Son is God, the Holy Spirit is God, and yet there are not three Gods, but one God.  The triune life of God is also our life in Holy Baptism. We are baptized into the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. We live, move, and have our being within this Trinity, worshiping the Father in the Spirit and in the truth who is Jesus, having God as our Father, Jesus as our brother, and the Spirit as our Advocate and Guide. We are loved by the Father in the beloved Son who bears our humanity and are drawn by the Spirit. It is God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – who leads, guides, saves you, and reveals himself in this great triune paradox that we might rejoice and confess, “Blessed be the Holy Trinity and the Undivided Unity. Let us give glory to Him because He has shown His mercy to us.”  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and everlasting God, You have given us grace to acknowledge the glory of the Trinity by the confession of a true faith and to worship the unity in the power of divine majesty. Keep us steadfast in this faith and defend us from all adversities; for You O Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, live and reign, one God, now and forever. Amen.  (Collect for Trinity Sunday) -Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is Pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 3, 2023Today's Reading: Introit for Holy Trinity Psalm 16:8; antiphon: Liturgical TextDaily Lectionary: Numbers 32:1-6,16-27, Luke 24:1-27Blessed be the Holy Trinity and the undivided unity; let us give glory to Him because He has shown us mercy.  (Liturgical Text)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. I don’t know about you, but I enjoy a good mystery. Solving a riddle. Reading Sherlock Holmes. Watching Scooby Doo, Shaggy, and the gang unmask another dastardly villain.Tomorrow on Trinity Sunday we celebrate one of the great mysteries of the Christian faith, the Holy Trinity. Tomorrow we join the Scriptures in celebrating not so much an event, like Jesus’ birth at Christmas or His resurrection at Easter, but God’s revelation of himself. That God is Three in One and One in Three. The Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. And yet there are not three Gods, but one God. A singular plurality and a plural singularity.Tomorrow we celebrate not a when, but a who. Today we rejoice in the mystery of the Holy Trinity. That…We worship one God in Trinity and Trinity in Unity, neither confusing the persons nor dividing the substance. Tomorrow is Trinity Sunday, and there’s a mystery afoot. Ultimately, however, this mystery of the Holy Trinity isn’t a riddle to unpack, a puzzle to solve, or even a question we can fully answer, much less understand. Rather, the Holy Trinity is revealed in Scripture that we believe, teach, and confess. As we give thanks and praise the Holy Trinity, we also give thanks and praise that the God who is beyond our understanding reveals himself in words we can hear and understand. The uncreated God comes to us by means of his creation revealing his saving love in simple words, plain water, ordinary bread and wine. The incomprehensible God becomes comprehensible for us as he accomplishes the most incomprehensible, yet gracious act of all, as he goes to the cross to die for you. Yes, indeed, we confess a great mystery in the Holy Trinity. But it is a gracious mystery from our good and gracious Lord. Blessed be the Holy Trinity and the undivided unity; let us give glory to Him because He has shown us mercy. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and everlasting God, You have given us grace to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity by the confession of a true faith and to worship the Unity in the power of the Divine Majesty. Keep us steadfast in this faith and defend us from all adversities; for You, O Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, live and reign, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for Trinity Sunday) -Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is Pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WAAudio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 2, 2023Today's Reading: Acts 2:1-21Daily Lectionary: Numbers 27:12-23, Luke 23:26-56And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. (Acts 2:21)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In Exodus 20:24, when God instructed Moses to build the tabernacle, He promised, “In every place where I cause my name to be remembered I will come to you and I will bless you.” With God’s name comes His peace, presence, and promise. It was true for Israel in the tabernacle. And it is still true for you in the true and greater tabernacle not made with human hands, Jesus, the Word made flesh who dwelt among us, who literally tabernacled among us.Now wonder the Hosanna crowds rejoiced! Hosanna, blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord. Not only does Jesus bring the peace, presence, and promise of God, but as true God and true Man, Jesus is God’s peace, presence, and promise. This is what St. Peter preaches to the crowds gathered at that first Pentecost. The rushing wind. The tongues of fire. Speaking the good news of Jesus crucified and risen in the native languages of people gathered. The pouring out of the Holy Spirit on the Church. It’s all part of God’s plan to give and reveal the saving Name of His Son Jesus once again, this time on and in the Church for the life of the world.In the Church, once again, God’s name is given. God causes his name to be remembered, to be present, and to bless His people once more. You are baptized in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. You live in this faith in the name of Jesus who promises to be with you always. You hear, read, mark, learn, and confess His name in the Scriptures. You are absolved of all your sin in the same holy name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In Divine Service you are gathered by the name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit who prepares the table of the altar for you with Jesus’ body and blood. And there in His and by His word, Jesus peace, presence, and promise is with you as you gather in His name. Blessed are you who come in the name of the Lord and call upon His holy name! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Gracious Lord, we give thanks that in Holy Baptism we receive forgiveness of sins, deliverance from death and the devil, and eternal salvation. Grant that we who are baptized into Your holy name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, would continue to live in the faith into which we have been called, and boldly confess Your name; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is Pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WAAudio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

June 1, 2023Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Numbers 24:1-25, Luke 23:1-25But they all cried out together, “Away with this man, and release to us Barabbas”—  a man who had been thrown into prison for an insurrection started in the city and for murder.  (Luke 23:18-19)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When we hear the word martyr, the first thing that most likely comes to mind is a Christian who dies for the sake of their faith in Christ, like Stephen in Acts 6 or Justin, Martyr, whose death at the hands of Roman persecution (A.D. 165) we remember today. This is one meaning of the word martyr, but there is also another meaning.The word martyr literally means witness. To be a martyr is to give witness to something or someone. So the women and the disciples at the foot of Jesus’ cross and around the empty tomb and in Jesus’ resurrection appearances were all martyrs. They were witnesses to Jesus’ death and resurrection. Later, all of the apostles, except for John, would also become martyrs in dying for the sake of their confession and faith in Christ. Martyrs in life and martyrs in death. This is also what our Lord Jesus did for us. His very life, death, and resurrection was a witness to God’s love, grace, and mercy towards us. Jesus’ death on the cross is the ultimate martyrdom, where he, the innocent one, was taken away into death for us who are guilty. Where Jesus the one who knew no sin became sin for us. Where Barabbas who deserved death walked away while Jesus who did not deserve death faced it on our behalf. This is the faith that Justin the apologist and martyr for the Christian faith bore witness to in his life, writings, and his death. Thanks to the work of Justin, Martyr, we know a great deal about the liturgy used in the second century Christian Church. Justin writes and gives witness to the early church pattern of gathering for teaching, preaching, and receiving the Eucharist on the Lord’s Day. His apologetic writings also give witness to the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Today we join the Church in thanking God for martyrs like Justin who teach us how to be faithful witnesses in our day for the sake of Jesus crucified and risen. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and everlasting God and Father, You sent Your Son to take our nature upon Himself and to suffer death on the cross that all should follow the example of His great humility. Mercifully grant that we may both follow the example of our Savior, Jesus Christ, in His patience and also have our portion in His resurrection; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.-Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is Pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WAAudio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 31, 2023Today's Reading: Table of Duties Luther’s Small Catechism: Tenth CommandmentDaily Lectionary: Numbers 23:4-28, Luke 22:47-71We should fear and love God so that we do not entice or force away our neighbor’s wife, workers, or animals, or turn them against him, but urge them to stay and do their duty. (Explanation to the Tenth Commandment)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. God is the God who calls. God first calls us to faith in His Son, Jesus. He calls you to life and salvation in the waters of Baptism. This is the vocation, or calling, of every Christian, to live daily in God’s gifts of repentance and forgiveness. God also calls us into various vocations, or callings, throughout our life where we are given many responsibilities and opportunities to love and serve our neighbor, and to love and serve God through our vocations. Martin Luther called these vocations in life the masks of God, where God would hide in us to serve others, and where we would serve God through the needs of others all at the same time. So God calls us into the vocation of the Christian life in His Church. God calls us into vocations within the home and family. God calls us into vocations in daily labors of life in a civil society. This little word, vocation, is one of the ideas that connects the Small Catechism’s teachings in the Table of Duties and in the Tenth Commandment. Both reveal our responsibilities in our various vocations, or callings, in life. The Table of Duties highlights three areas where we love and serve our neighbor, the home, the church, and in society. The Tenth Commandment, likewise, highlights our relationship with our neighbors and the various vocations which are a part of his household and life.Like all human relationships and vocations, we sin in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and left undone in the home, the church, and society. This is part of the reason God gave us the Scripture passages that are found in the Table of Duties and the tenth commandment, to serve a mirror that shows our sin in our many callings in life. Thankfully, for all the times we fail and sin in our vocations in life, we rest on and are forgiven in the perfect life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, whose calling it is to be your Savior. We live in service and love to our neighbor knowing that Jesus perfectly feared, loved, and trusted the Father in all things he said and did for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord God, You have called Your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown. Give us faith to go out with courage, not knowing where we go but only that Your hand is leading us and Your love supporting us; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is Pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WAAudio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 30, 2023Today's Reading: John 10:1-10Daily Lectionary: Numbers 22:21-23, Luke 22:24-46The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.  (John 10:3-4)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Where do you go to hear God’s voice? Some would direct you inward to your desires; “Search your feelings,” they say. Some would beckon you to the ways and whims of this fallen world like Ulysses and the siren’s call. Some would tempt you to find God’s voice in the things of this creation, like Satan tempting Adam and Eve. To find God’s voice you need not look inward to your sinful flesh, nor outward to the fallen world, nor to the devil’s lies.Where do you go to hear God’s voice? Go where He promises to speak to you in His Word through the voice of His Son Jesus. If you want to hear God’s voice look no further than the voice of Jesus who speaks, teaches, preaches, calls, leads, and delivers you in His holy Word. As sheep of the Good Shepherd we could start by listening to Jesus’ voice in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. But don’t stop there. Read the book of Acts and hear the voice of the Good Shepherd leading, guiding, and saving His church. Go on further and read the epistles written by Paul, Peter, Jude, James, John just to name a few, and hear the voice of the Good Shepherd declaring His promises to you over and over again. The New Testament is full of the voice of Jesus the Good Shepherd, but don’t stop there. Wherever you turn in the Old Testament, whether it’s the Psalms, prophets, or books of Moses, you will find and hear the voice of Jesus the Good Shepherd. Wherever you read God’s word, from Genesis to Revelation, you are listening to the voice of the Good Shepherd. In God’s word in your Baptism the Good Shepherd calls you by name. In God’s word of absolution the Good Shepherd calls you out of darkness and into His light and life. In God’s word joined to bread and wine, the Good Shepherd feeds you His body and blood. In God’s word  Jesus the Good Shepherd speaks, calls, saves, leads, and goes before you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, merciful Father, since You have wakened from death the Shepherd of Your sheep, grant us Your Holy Spirit that when we hear the voice of our Shepherd we may know Him who calls us each by name and follow where He leads; through the same Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the 4th Sunday of Easter) -Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is Pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WAAudio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 29, 2023Today's Reading: John 3:16-21Daily Lectionary: Numbers 22:1-20, Luke 22:1-23For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. (John 3:17)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It’s a safe guess that most of us know John 3:16. It rolls off the tongue easily. It’s memorable for and memorized by many. It’s a great summary of the good news that in Christ God is reconciling the world to himself. But what if someone asked you to quote John 3:17. Could you do it without looking it up? John 3:17 is also a beautiful, comforting, memorable passage filled with good news for you in Jesus. Notice how John beautifully weaves these two memorable passages together.“For God loved the world in this way, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”These two verses contain more goodness than a mega-stuffed Oreo. Listen to all the things God is doing in these two verses. God the Father loves. God the Father gave His Son. Jesus, the Son of God in human flesh saves from death. God gives eternal life. God the Father sends His Son. God the Father saves you through His Son. But did you notice the one thing God does not do in these two passages? God does not condemn you. In Jesus, you are saved from condemnation.Old buildings are condemned. People guilty of crimes are condemned to their sentence. But not you. In Jesus you are not condemned. To be sure, because of our sin we deserved condemnation. But because the Father loves you, because the Father gave and sent Jesus, because the Father desired to save you and give you eternal life, Jesus was condemned on the cross in your place  and you were set free. Jesus died in our place to win eternal life for you. Jesus is sent into the world, not to condemn the world, or you, but to save you in His compassion, His crucifixion, and His glorious resurrection from the dead. So, the next time you feel weighed down by guilt, shame, sin, or death, remember this good news in John 3:17. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, our heavenly Father, because of Your tender love toward us sinners You have given us Your Son that, believing in Him, we might have everlasting life. Continue to grant us Your Holy Spirit that we may remain steadfast in this faith to the end and finally come to life everlasting; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.-Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is Pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WAAudio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 28, 2023Today's Reading: John 7:37-39Daily Lectionary: Numbers 21:10-35, Luke 22:1-23Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” (John 7:38)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. There are certain things in life that are meant to go together, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich or bacon and, well, just about anything. And if this is true with some of our favorite things in the kitchen, imagine how much greater it is in Holy Scripture. There are many things in God’s Word that are meant to go together. Law and Gospel. God’s gifts of Word and Sacraments. Good Friday and Easter Sunday. The cross and the Christian life. The list could go on. Here in John 7, Jesus reveals another one of Scripture’s  sacred combinations, the Holy Spirit and water. This connection between God the Holy Spirit and water goes back to creation. In the beginning, in Genesis 1, the Spirit hovered over the waters as God began his creating work. Fast forward to the beginning of the four gospels and once again, you water and the Holy Spirit, as the Holy Spirit descends on Jesus at His baptism in the Jordan River. In John 7, Jesus is at the Feast of Booths - the Old Testament feast remembering Israel’s wilderness wandering and living in tents -Jesus joins brings water and the Holy Spirit together again. “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” John tells us that  Jesus is talking about the Holy Spirit who would be  poured out at Pentecost. The Holy Spirit who dwells with believers. The Holy Spirit who calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies you in Jesus’ death and resurrection. This is the same Holy Spirit Jesus gives you, and who in turn, gives you Jesus. Jesus makes this connection personal. He takes water and His Holy Spirit and gives them both to you in your Baptism.Remember the words spoken at your Baptism,  as the living water of the Holy Spirit and water were poured over you. I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. There it is again. Water and the Holy Spirit. Jesus joins them together so that you would be joined together with Him forever. For you, our Lord brings together the greatest combination of all, water and the Holy Spirit to forgive, save, rescue, wash, and restore you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, on this day You once taught the hearts of Your faithful people by sending them the light of Your Holy Spirit. Grant us in our day by the same Spirit to have a right understanding in all things and to evermore rejoice in His holy consolation; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the Day of Pentecost) Pastor Samuel Schuldheisz is Pastor at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Milton, WAAudio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 27, 2023Today's Reading: John 14:15-21Daily Lectionary: Numbers 20:22-21:9, Luke 20:45-21:19John 14:15: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Jesus said, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my commandments”.  Faith, of course, is presupposed.  I guess that’s good…we assume Christians believe.  But also, when we take faith for granted, all that’s really left to talk about is what we want to come out of it.  We assume the most important part of what Jesus said, then leave all of the stress on something that wasn’t ever given to carry the weight.  We focus on the word keep.  We assume it’s ours to carry as obedience and call it proof we love God. The problem, of course, is that when this is our hope, our lack of obedience can really only be proof we hate Him.  Don’t presuppose faith.  See it for what it is.  The gift of the Holy Spirit. Pentecost celebrates that.  God wants to speak and give good gifts to sinners.  He sends the Spirit to bring faith, to bring to remembrance the teachings of Good. Not just to know them.  To remember them. To love them. To treasure them.  That’s what keep means.  Keep isn’t measured in obedience but in love.  Love what the world loves not.  Love the cross and all it brings.  Love the place God puts to death all evil and saves you from yourself.  Love the life He gives that only comes on the other side of the tomb, but already belongs to you in your Baptism. And so love the commandments too, as they paint a picture of the Lord who saved you by fulfilling them in your stead and then dying that you would live.  In the promise Jesus makes, you who love the Lord do treasure His words.  The word speaks and it shapes us. Each day it forgives, and each day it ties us to the great promise He makes us. The promise we cling to and keep because we love Him who has first loved us.  Rise. Let us go from here. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and ever-living God, You fulfilled Your promise by sending the gift of the Holy Spirit to unite disciples of all nations in the cross and resurrection of Your Son, Jesus Christ. By the preaching of the Gospel spread this gift to the ends of the earth; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 26, 2023Today's Reading:  Luke 20:19-44Daily Lectionary: Numbers 20:1-21, Luke 20:19-44Luke 20:25: He said to them, “Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Do you think stamping Caesar’s face on a coin makes it not God’s anymore? It isn’t just whether or not this is God’s coin. It’s whether or not this is God’s Caesar.  The Pharisees saw Caesar as something ungodly that came about by the will of men, not God.  They saw tribute to him as worship to an idol.  Maybe to those who saw him as a god, it was, but isn’t that the problem?  This isn’t about the coin. It’s about the face.  Is this God’s Caesar, or is this Caesar independent of God, and a god himself? It’s the same today. This guy who you don’t like and doesn’t agree with your beliefs is in charge.  He’s still not God. Even if some people worship him.  Do you think God doesn’t work there anyway?  Do you think that’s not God’s creation raised up to the office of president? If God puts someone in the office, He will work there. Even if it’s messy. Even if the person put there is sinful.  Even if the person put there is ungodly. The thing that is God’s is the authority to establish leaders, and the promise to work through them and their institutions.  The tax paid can be called theft. It might not be so far from it.  But render unto God the power and will to work good among thieves.  He saved you by dying in-between two of them.  Render unto Caesar what is Caesar's.  He has authority given by God.  Render unto God what is God’s.  He has the will to work good through sinful men and the faithfulness to make His promises worth clinging to.  It makes the questions of church and state easier.  If it’s against God’s 10 commandments, call it sinful.  If God is risen from the dead, expect Him to work good through sinners.  That good won’t be measured in their sins becoming socially acceptable, but in God forgiving sinners by His death on the cross and His day by day working of blessings that should not be able to thrive in a field of so much sin.  Yet here we are.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Let us recall that in our midst Dwells Christ, His only Son; As members of His body joined We are in Him made one. (Where Charity and Love Prevail, LSB 845:5)-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 25, 2023Today's Reading: Luke 20:1-18Daily Lectionary: Numbers 16:41-17:13, Luke 20:1-18Luke 20:4: “was the baptism of John from heaven or from man?””In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Who is running the verbs?  Who is doing the thing? It changes baptism. Not just because the Pharisees were afraid of upsetting the crowds, but because if all we have is a bath of good intentions, the waters never get less muddy. Pledge yourself to Jesus all you want.  But take an honest look at yourself and what you’re pledging each time you have to redo it because you screwed the last one up.  Do you think God really wants you to pledge Him that? Do you think God really wants your best intentions and the excuses for all the sins that lead you to having to do it in the first place? But if John’s Baptism comes from heaven, maybe it means something that Jesus climbed down in those muddy waters too.  God works something in your Baptism. Forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation.  He climbs down from heaven to collect not your good intentions but your sins.  He gathers up not your promises to do better, but your past and all your excuses, carries it with your future ones too each step to a cross to bleed and die for you to save you.  Baptism is what God would do for you.  It now saves you. The Pharisees didn’t understand this.  So Jesus won’t tell them why He preaches either.  It isn’t just whether or not Jesus should be allowed to speak in the house built upon His name and promises.  It’s what He would say there.  Does the Gospel Jesus preached actually forgive sins, or is it just a call to try harder and come up with a new life plan?  Who is running the verbs? Who is doing the thing?  If all you want from Jesus is a chance to prove you can do better, you’ll miss out because the answer isn’t so tricky.  God has authority in His creation.  And God wishes to save sinners.  So when God works in His church, it isn’t actually about you. It’s for you. It isn’t about your works or your gifts or your intentions or your life changes.  It’s about salvation given freely to sinners. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.This miracle of life reborn Comes from the Lord of breath; The perfect Man from life was torn; Our life comes through Christ’s death. (This Is the Spirit’s Entry Now, LSB 591:2)-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 24, 2023Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism Ten Commandments: The Ninth CommandmentDaily Lectionary: Numbers 16:23-40, Luke 19:29-48You shall not covet your neighbor’s house.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  In mercy, God will even guard your heart.  There’s already a commandment about not taking what’s yours.  You shall not steal.  You shall help your neighbor improve and protect his possessions and income.  We covered this.  But your heart can trespass too.  It can go where it ought not go.  Even the pagans recognize the shortsightedness of materialism.  Spending all day on Amazon and ignoring what you’ve been given is foolishness.  That doesn’t make the things we would covet sinful. It means that our hearts will do sinful things with them.  We usually call it greed.  Greed seeks more than God already graciously gives at the expense of others.  And greed creates problems with the extra it acquires.  To quote the hymnist, “More money, more problems.”So God gives us a commandment to guard our hearts.  Because greed is an ugly beast to slay.  It looks at the world and the possessions within it as a zero-sum game instead of a heap of gifts given by a merciful Father.  And God would rather your heart be fixed on Him who gives what we don’t deserve, then keeps on giving it even though everything in the world is falling apart, all just to make you a little more comfortable than you deserve on the beach with one set of footprints because He had to drag you kicking and screaming the whole way into the resurrection because you think your sandcastle is what really matters even though the tide is going to take it by tomorrow anyway.  Thou shall not covet.  Because where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.  Set not your heart on greed, which would take from others, but on God who would only give in mercy.  It isn’t just instructions to follow for a happier life.  It’s a joy that the Jesus who died to forgive you all your sins, even forgives your heart.  Your heart is forgiven too.  The greed that you hide and the greed that you don’t is forgiven by Jesus.  He numbers it among the 10 commandments He fulfills and the 10 He daily and richly forgives. So count it as a joy that God cares about your heart so much that He’d guard it, redeem it, and seal it for salvation.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“You shall not crave your neighbor’s house Nor covet money, goods, or spouse. Pray God He would your neighbor bless As you yourself wish success.” Have mercy, Lord! (These are the Holy Ten Commands, LSB 581:10)-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 23, 2023Today's Reading: 1 Peter 4:12-19, 5:6-11Daily Lectionary: Numbers 16:1-22, Luke 19:11-281 Peter 4:13: “But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Peter calls suffering a blessing.  I wish he wouldn’t.  It isn’t just how much it hurts.  It’s the question of why.  Because a loving God sends some suffering for good.  And also, the devil prowls about like a roaring lion seeking to devour Christians.  Working havoc.  And suffering. It makes the suffering God sends hard to pick out from the suffering the devil brings.  And highlights the question.  Why?  We try to parse the source of the suffering. We try to parse the reason.  When all along, this is simply a call about where to take it.  We take suffering to Jesus, who joins us in it.  It’s going to hurt down here.  Be ready.  Some of it will come from the devil.  Some of it will come from God.  Some of it will come as the consequences of your own sins and sins others commit. And in the middle of it all, you won’t understand where it comes from. You’ll just pray it will go away.  You won’t understand why it’s happening, be it divine plan, satanic attack, or simply human stupidity.  But even if you do, it usually won’t be worth the trade to you. We have a bigger problem with suffering than God does.  That’s evident.  Not just because it’s too common or because it  hurts, but chiefly in the fact that suffering is how God saves you.  He suffers for you.  God dwells in suffering first.  He died on the cross to save you, not just from the attacks of the devil, but from the consequences of your own sins.  So that you could do more than hope that this world too full of suffering might get a little better.  He places Himself into suffering so that you can be placed into the resurrection and a world without it.  God dwells in suffering first.  His glory is revealed there.  Glory is a presence word.  It means that God is actually there.  God suffers for you on the cross and works good there.  When we are close to suffering, we are close to where God works salvation. That’s a blessing.  When we suffer, we join ours to Him who has already conquered it and we look past the cross to the empty tomb, that we would know suffering isn’t all there is, it’s just the rocky path already paved smooth by Jesus for your salvation. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O LORD, let us who suffer according to Your will entrust our souls to a faithful Creator while doing good. Amen. -Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 22, 2023Today's Reading: Acts 1:12-26Daily Lectionary: Numbers 14:26-45, Luke 18:35-19:10Acts 1:16: ““Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke beforehand by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. What do you say at the funeral of a friend? Judas was numbered with them. Spent 3 years with them. Ate, laughed, and cried with them.  Then he killed himself.  This isn’t just a turning point towards the calling of Matthias, the 12th 2.0.  It’s a loss over what to say in the face of something so awful.  Sometimes there just aren't’ words. The heavy-handed law to anyone considering Judas’ end might look at how they don’t know what to say.  Look at how much work is still left to be done, but now by another.  Look at how little is fixed by this.  There is a field devoted to the tragedy that will never be the same to everyone left. It’s so easy to put a better construction on things than they rightly deserve.  Find a reason.  Peter doesn’t do that.  He points to the fulfillment of the scriptures, which don’t deny Judas his sin, but also provide the answer.  The scripture had to be fulfilled.  And it was.  Jesus was betrayed, crucified, and risen.  He ascended to sit upon the throne.  It’s not what Judas’ sin allowed. It’s what God insisted would happen, even for sinners like Judas.  Hope can draw near and exist even when there aren’t words to talk about what happened.  There is forgiveness, life, and salvation for all who believe.  Don’t excuse away actions. Cling to the word of God.  That endures to life, even when yours fall short.Trust in the baptism that saves sinners.  God saves through faith, even battered and broken.  Then, when you look back to Judas, it can be more than a cautionary tale.  If you look at the darkest funerals you stumble across, they can be stories of commending a fallen brother to the mercy of God, and a chance to look forward to seeing God who saves the sinners still at work in your life and to life everlasting. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O LORD God, Dear Father in Heaven, give to us the Lamb in the midst of the throne to be our shepherd, that He will guide us to springs of living water, and will wipe away every tear from our eyes. Amen.-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

 May 21, 2023Today's Reading: John 17:1-11Daily Lectionary: Numbers 14:1-25, Luke 18:18-34John 17:11: “And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Why does it feel so good to lament the decline of civilization? It seems like a solid 80% of the conversations I have with Christians involve some sort of complaint about the world. Why does it feel so good to think there’s nothing we can do about it but say “I told you so” in the face of calamity?  Maybe it’s because quitting feels easier. Or because when we are powerless to circumstance, it might be our problem but at least it’s not our fault.  Even with Christ who is risen from the grave, Christians aren’t just sad but despondent.  Hopeless. That’s worse than sad. Sadness can keep fighting. Keep struggling. But when there’s no hope, when the world is insurmountable, why bother? Hopelessness creeps into every part of life.  Relationships feel broken and unfixable.  Anxieties pile up and can’t be conquered. Illnesses are terminal and can’t be cured.  This is what giving up feels like.  And it feels good. Despondency feels good. Complaining about the world feels good. If you couldn’t have won anyway, you can be dragged into the same sins you lament in the world, the same culture you decry, but with a superior attitude and “I told you so” on your lips. Despondent people build altars to their own emptiness and turn the church into something that looks like it’s dying too.  Do you know how pitiful it is to quit something the Lord has already won the victory over?  Repent of your hopelessness. Repent of your politics and the despair they bring you.  Hear Jesus pray a prayer for glory and fully expect it to be answered by the Father with a cross. Know that this cross is for you. To forgive you your sins. To save you from a world destined to decay.  Cling to the resurrection and the promise it yields.  Nothing that falls apart won’t be put back together.  Christ died on the cross to save sinners.  To save you.  To save those in the world.  The world itself may fall apart. But you are already rescued, as surely as He is risen.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O King of glory, Lord of hosts, uplifted in triumph far above all heavens, leave us not without consolation but send us the Spirit of truth whom You promised from the Father; for You live and reign with Him and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  -Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 20, 2023 Today's Reading: Psalm 100:1-5; antiphon: Psalm 101:1Daily Lectionary: Numbers 13:1-3, 17-33; Luke 18:1-17“Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing!” (Psalm 100:1-2) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Holy Spirit has gifted some with amazing musical talent, which they employ in service to God’s Word. Think of all the musicians and poets whose work is compiled in our hymnal. Consider all the talent and dedication that make for choirs and festivals, which make up the music played on Lutheran Public Radio. Now think of your own congregation. Some are able to lead the congregation with their voice or instruments. Others can join in with their own voices. Still others are not gifted musically, and may even stay completely silent, while they listen to others sing to them. We may joke that our singing ability amounts to making a joyful “noise” to the Lord, but that’s not what the word means. It’s not noise like your parents say when they tell you to turn down your music. It’s a joyful cry to the Lord. A cry, as in when the walls of Jericho fell (Joshua 6), and as when the Lord entered Jerusalem to accomplish our salvation (Zechariah 9:9). It’s a joyful cry in response to what God has done. The reality is that every believer can make a joyful noise to the Lord, regardless of their personal musical ability. This psalm describes the natural reaction of lost, hopeless sinners being reconciled to God, of those who were dead being made alive together with Christ. Even if our vocal cords or our fingers are not capable, our spirit within us can rejoice. That doesn’t diminish the value of sacred music. The psalms invite us to come into His presence with singing, with the sound of lyres, horns, tambourines, and flutes. This is to give external voice to our inner devotion. Just as making the sign of the cross or bowing before the altar are an expression of our heart’s deep reverence toward God. Martin Luther once shared this insight about how God’s Word in music bolsters our faith: “Except for theology there is no art that could be put on the same level with music, since except for theology, [music] alone produces what otherwise only theology can do, namely, a calm and joyful disposition.” (LW 49:428) Don’t let the level of your musical ability or that of your congregation hold you back from making a joyful cry to the Lord and to come into His presence with singing. Be encouraged by the last verse of the Psalms: “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!” (Psalm 150:6)  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Oh, that I had a thousand voices To praise my God with thousand tongues!  My heart, which in the Lord rejoices,  Would then proclaim in grateful songs, To all, wherever I might be,  What great things God has done for me. (Oh That I Had A Thousand Voices, LSB 811:1)- Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 19, 2023 Today's Reading: Numbers 11:24-29, 12:1-16Daily Lectionary: Numbers 11:24-29, 12:1-16; Luke 17:20-37“Hear my words: If there is a prophet among you, I the Lord make myself known to him” (Numbers 12:6) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. There was a problem with Moses: He couldn’t do it all. Today, we would have said Moses was close to burnout. There needed to be others to share the burden of spiritual headship. So, seventy men were appointed to serve as elders, and the Lord took some of the Spirit that was on Moses and put it on them. Well, actually, 68 of them were present. When Moses heard of it, he—perhaps in exasperation—says, “Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, that the Lord would put his Spirit on them!” This turned out to be a prophecy. At Pentecost, the Lord again pours out His Spirit on His people. Peter explains this is something the Lord had promised through Joel: “I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.” (Acts 2:17, Joel 2:28-32) However, Aaron and Miriam show that sin can still spoil God’s work in giving the Spirit. They became resentful toward Moses saying, “Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has he not spoken through us also?” They wanted to seize the Spirit to give themselves what they considered a promotion. The Lord checks such uppity “spirituality.” It’s true that the Lord continues to pour out His Spirit on His servants—young and old, men and women. What they all have in common is, “Everyone who calls on the Name of the Lord will be saved” (Joel 2:32). But as Paul teaches in 1 Corinthians 14, the Spirit gives us gifts according to our vocations. Don’t get jealous of your fellow servants, but be content with the vocation He has given you in the Church. If you are a woman, it’s clear that you are not called to the role of pastor (“public prophesy”). Nevertheless, there are so many other ways the Spirit has gifted you to serve in the Name of Jesus. Parents can delight in prophecy by teaching and modeling the faith to their children. Friends can prophesy by sharing their faith and even inviting others to church. Our Lord Jesus has gifted us with His Spirit, and put each of us exactly where we need to be in His Church to fulfill His purpose.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty and ever-living God, You make us both to will and to do those things that are good and acceptable in Your sight. Let Your fatherly hand ever guide us and Your Holy Spirit ever be with us to direct us in the knowledge and obedience of Your Word that we may obtain everlasting life; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.- Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

 May 18, 2023 Today's Reading: Luke 24:44-53Daily Lectionary: Numbers 11:1-23, 31-35; Luke 17:1-19In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Alleluia! Christ is risen!  What’s a huge difference between Christianity and other religions? Not just that other religions require us to justify ourselves to God by works. It’s also that they rely on human works to spread. The mission of the first Muslims was to spread by military conquest, allegedly proving that Muhammad’s Allah was true. Judaism depends on the preservation of traditions handed down from one generation to another, and that Jerusalem be taken back. Mormonism relies on door-to-door missionaries and that people feel a “burning in the bosom” to know the far-fetched claims of Joseph Smith are true. Even the Wokeism of our day is a human effort, because it’s fueled by the cunning of academics and the power of politicians. Not so with Christianity, even though people are the instruments by which it spreads. Before His Ascension, our Lord explained His work as the fulfillment and confirmation of all the Law, Prophets, and Psalms—“that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in His Name to all nations.” These are the mighty works of God, no longer just handed down to the sons of Israel. They are to be told to people of every nation. This is what He has done, and by Jesus Christ’s faithfulness and obedience; by His holy, innocent suffering and death, sinners have peace with God and can stand at the final judgment. This Gospel of Christ is not spread by our cunning or force. Even though God uses people just like us to spread that Gospel, we are not doing it on our own. The Lord told the apostles: “Behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.” It is God the Holy Spirit who calls, gathers, enlightens, sanctifies by this Gospel. Jesus ascended into heaven so that He would send the Holy Spirit who would draw all people to Him (John 12:32). That same Lord who spoke these reassuring and powerful words before His Ascension is the same who mightily sent the Holy Spirit on Pentecost, and who still is at work wherever His Word of repentance for the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed. Even though He ascended on high, He is actually as near as our pulpits and in our words as we share this Gospel today.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty God, as Your only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, ascended into the heavens, so may we also ascend in heart and mind and continually dwell there with Him, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. (Collect for the Ascension) - Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 17, 2023 Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism, Ten Commandments: The Eighth CommandmentDaily Lectionary:Numbers 10:11-36; Luke 16:19-31“You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.” (Exodus 20:16, the 8th Commandment) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Alleluia! Christ is risen!  “Who is my neighbor?” the lawyer asks to justify himself (Luke 10:29). It’s easy to imagine standing up for our friends and family, or someone we have feelings for. But do you think of standing up for the reputation of those to whom you have no connection and maybe even disagree with? If you see a boy dressed in girl’s clothes getting bullied, would you stand up for him? Certainly, you don’t agree with his behavior, but it’s also wrong for others to mercilessly ridicule another person. That boy is a person who is valued by God, and priced with the precious blood of Christ, so we are to have compassion on him. God sees him as a whole person, not just by the surface of outward appearance (1 Samuel 16:7b). Besides, how would we ever witness to other sinners if we, too, push them away? The Catechism explanation teaches us, “A good name or reputation is important so that each of us may enjoy the trust and respect of others.” Think for a moment how important that is for your own life. With trust and respect, you’re able to make friends, take advantage of opportunities, and show your capability. Take that away, and others will see you only for your faults, be suspicious of trusting you, and lead you to doubt your own abilities. Isolated by this, many people despair and even contemplate suicide. This is the damage people can do to each other’s reputations, but what are God’s ways? When Adam and Eve sinned, He gave them coverings for their nakedness. Specifically, it was with garments of skin, foreshadowing that such a covering for sin would come at the death of another (Genesis 3:21). We now know and believe that covering for our sins and others is the death of Jesus Christ, our Lord. In the wisdom of Proverbs, He teaches us, “Whoever goes about slandering reveals secrets, but he who is trustworthy in spirit keeps a thing covered.” (Proverbs 11:13) This is the way of God: not to magnify faults and increase the damage of sin, but to cover a matter for the good of our neighbor. Yes, there are times when the safety of our other neighbors may require us to speak, but those are very specific. Rather than rushing to judgment, rush to the cross, where God has made the covering for the sins of all. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty Father, it is Your gracious will to remove our transgressions from us as far as the east is from the west by the atonement of Your Son. Grant us Your heart toward our fellow sinners, that we may deal graciously with them even as you have with us; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. - Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 16, 2023 Today's Reading: 1 Peter 3:13-22Daily Lectionary: Numbers 9:1-23; Luke 16:1-18“Have no fear of them, nor be troubled,but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy” (1 Peter 3:14-15) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Alleluia! Christ is risen! Imagine what it was like for Noah, those 120 years he was building the ark. People around him were eating and drinking, marrying and being given in marriage. Meanwhile Noah was preparing for the upcoming destruction of the world. If we find it hard to be the only Christian we know at school or work, can you fathom what it was like to be one of the few on earth who feared God? Yet, Noah persevered. See, Noah had hope in a world to come, which those who ridiculed him didn’t have. They were occupied with this present life. The Nephilim were interested in being powerful and feared. The sons of God who were marrying the unbelieving daughters of men were grounded by their family ties to this present life (see Genesis 6:1-4). But Noah, who had found favor in God’s eyes, also had hope that went beyond this present and wicked life. We also can expect to be ridiculed by those who are perishing. The unbelieving around us say that this life is all you can hope for. They say follow your desires, and don’t let anyone tell you they’re wrong. When we deny that, they will call us names, pass us by in employment, or worse. Yet, they can really do no lasting harm. Like Noah, we have found favor in the eyes of the Lord. In Holy Baptism, He has looked at us in His Son: “This is my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” We hope in this heavenly Word, and in the promise of “the resurrection of the body and the life of the world to come” (Nicene Creed). As we still live among the unbelieving, we bear testimony to our God, who desires the salvation of all mankind. This world is passing away, and our gentle and respectful lives bear witness to that. Even if stubborn unbelievers cause us suffering, we let go of whatever we lose and pray to our God: “Because Your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. For You have been my help, and in the shadow of Your wings I will sing for joy.” (Psalm. 63:3, 7; LSB 286) There is plenty of room in the ark of the Church. We pray that the Lord would grant repentance to our family, friends, and neighbors who are of the world. The end of the world is coming. The end of each of our lives is coming, and then comes judgment. God grant repentance that we might live before Him with a good conscience!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. To forgive our enemies, persecutors, and slanderers and to turn their hearts…and graciously to hear our prayers: We implore you to hear us, good Lord. (Litany, LSB 288) - Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 15, 2023 Today's Reading: Acts 17:16-31Daily Lectionary: Numbers 8:5-26; Luke 15:11-32They should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. (Acts 17:27) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Alleluia! Christ is risen!  In seminary, I had a professor who said, “You need to exegete the culture.” Exegesis is what’s done when a biblical text is analyzed and application is drawn out from it. In the same way as you delve into God’s Word to draw out the message, look at the world around you. It’s important to acknowledge that all people are God’s creatures. When we hear the far-fetched things that people outside the church are doing, it’s tempting to say, “I thank you God that I am not like them.” But just as you have compassion when you see an awful car accident on the side of the road, we ought to see those lost in false belief. In many ways, the unbelievers are not completely cut off from God (yet). When Paul was in Athens, “his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols.” He had compassion for these people who imagined that their life was in the hands of fate and moody deities. He started with what they sort-of had right: “I perceive that in every way you are very religious.” He even quoted where some of their poets saw the truth. Yet, Paul was clear to correct what they had wrong and would lead to them perishing eternally. We can do a similar thing in our own day. Think of a person who is confused about their gender because of their emotions and onset of hormonal changes. He or she needs to hear that they were created purposefully by God either male or female. They need to be guided to see their body as good, but damaged by sin, and to find help from this God who loves him or her and has compassion. The philosophy of Critical Theory is right to identify that people are flawed and commit injustices toward each other, and to want to remedy injustice and care for the oppressed. But, they need to be told of the God who “made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth.” That evil is not in white skin, masculinity, or oppressive power structures, but in each of our failures to love God and love our neighbor as ourselves. Rather than upend society, we need to learn from Him who created and redeemed mankind. It’s easier to simply isolate and be glad that we have the Gospel. But God who “made from one man every nation” desires “all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (1 Timothy 2:4)  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The world’s remotest races,  Upon whose weary faces The sun looks from the sky,  Shall run with zeal untiring,  With joy Your light desiring That breaks upon them from on high. (Arise and Shine in Splendor, LSB 396:3)- Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 14, 2023 Today's Reading: John 14:15-21Daily Lectionary: Numbers 3:1-16, 39-48; Luke 14:25-15:10“I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me.” (John 14:18-19) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Alleluia! Christ is risen!  One of the scary things about losing your parents is that you lose a connection to your roots. Your parents are a connection to where you came from. In the Holy Gospel today, our Lord makes two reassuring promises: I will not leave you as orphans and I will come to you. In Christ, we are not orphans, cut off from our roots. We are adopted into a lineage that goes back all the way to Adam and Eve. Now, you can’t find it on a genealogy website. But it is one that is recorded in Holy Scripture. Every baptized believer is born into the Church. This Church began with the promise made to Adam and Eve after the Fall, and stretched all the way into eternity. Our roots transcend generations, span oceans, overcome death, and will never be severed! And that’s amazing, but what about our day-to-day life in the body? That’s where the second promise comes to our aid: “I will come to you.” He’s not merely talking about His Second Coming. He is Immanuel, God with us, and that did not cease to be true when He ascended. Consider the ways He is with His Church, which we call the means of grace. He gives us Baptism as a proof that “I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you” (Isaiah 43:1-2) He sends His Holy Spirit with Absolution to assure us that the forgiveness which the pastor speaks is valid on the Judgement Day (John 20:21-23). He is with us in His holy Word, which is why we are taught to say, “Thanks be to God” when it’s read and we stand for the Holy Gospel. And if that is not enough, in the Lord’s Supper, He gives to you His own true Body and Blood to strengthen and keep you. If you get lonely, feeling like an orphan, go to church. If it’s a Tuesday at 8:45pm, go talk with your parents, or phone a brother or sister in Christ. If you’re away from home and can’t do that, read the Bible as your family history and pray to your Father because you are His dear child.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. O God, the giver of all that is good, by Your holy inspiration grant that we may think those things that are right and by Your merciful guiding accomplish them; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.- Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 13, 2023 Today's Reading: Psalm 119:89-93; antiphon: Psalm 119:105Daily Lectionary:Leviticus 26:21-33, 39-44; Luke 14:1-24“Forever, O Lord, your word is firmly fixed in the heavens.” (Psalm 119:89) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Alleluia! Christ is risen!  Our brothers in the Roman church often debate whether “sola Scriptura” (the all-sufficiency of Scripture) is taught in the Bible. If you ever want a strong case for that, look to Psalm 119, especially to these verses in Lamedh. Our God not only spoke creation into existence, but He also had it written down as an ongoing, trustworthy testimony for us. How can we have life if not for His commandments, recorded and faithfully handed down to us? Plus, as New Testament Christians, we have been blessed to know that life is through God’s Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. We will pray these words tomorrow, in preparation for hearing the great promise from the incarnate Lord Himself: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments…Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.” (John 14:15, 21) If we need something more than Scripture to know God’s salvation in Christ, we’re not told what it is or where to find it. Regardless of the fact the Reformers penned the idea of “sola Scriptura,” the Lord Himself has taught us that His forever-enduring Word is all the foundation we need to know Him. By it the heavens and earth were made, and remain to this day. He desires for us to find refuge and life in His Word. Outside of the Word of God is only uncertainty, fear, and even death. Think of what happens when God’s Word is far from people. Our darkened imaginations run wild and myths creep in. This is certainly the darkness that loomed over common people when the Bible was only in Latin. Sadly, it still happens today in churches that minimize the Word of God itself, and overshadow it with doing “Christian things” like missionary work, social ministries, and hoping America will return to its supposed Christian roots. But in the Word, there is certainty, perfect love, and life. Christ sends us the Helper, the Holy Spirit, to be with us forever, there is life and salvation—“By Your precepts you have given me life. I am yours; save me.” This is why we hold so joyfully to “sola Scriptura.” In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Lord Jesus Christ, giver and perfecter of our faith, we thank and praise You for continuing among us the preaching of Your Gospel for our instruction and edification. Send Your blessing upon the Word, which will be spoken to us, and by Your Holy Spirit increase our saving knowledge of You, that day by day we may be strengthened in the divine truth and remain steadfast in Your grace; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. - Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 12, 2023 Today's Reading: Leviticus 26:1-20Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 26:1-20; Luke 13:18-35“And I have broken the bars of your yoke and made you walk erect.“ (Leviticus 26:13) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Alleluia! Christ is risen!  There’s a certain strange comfort in believing that the world works like this: God is in control of everything. He gives prosperity and power to the good people. The bad people he sends calamity and weakness so bad they’ll wish they were good. In this nicely ordered world, how good you’re being can be told by your prosperity and lack of calamity. This was the world of Job’s three friends. This is the world of televangelist Jerry Falwell, who, when the World Trade Center was attacked, blamed it on the immoral people of our country. It’s the world of Pat Robertson, when Haiti suffered a great earthquake, said it was a judgment for their practice of voodoo. But this is not how God works. “If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities, who could stand?” (Psalm 130:3) It seems that is how he works, from these words of Leviticus, but look at the bigger picture. If calamity is the direct response to unbelief and wicked behavior, what about the godless who are enjoying plenty of earthly prosperity? Where is their disaster for spurning the Word of the Lord? So much for the neat, tidy world we can understand. The wrong situation of this world can drive us to say with the psalmist, “Behold, these are the wicked; always at ease, they increase in riches. All in vain have I kept my heart clean and washed my hands in innocence.” (Psalm 73:12-13) So what is the answer for us? The promises made to Israel are only realized through Christ. They are neither literal promises that our daily lives will be free from trouble, nor that diseases are direct punishments for unfaithfulness. It’s clear that Israel as God’s nation fell far short of the faithfulness which God promised to bless. Even when they were rebuked by curses, at best only a remnant repented. What it takes is God’s Son, the Christ, to stand in the place of His people. He was the truly obedient one, who “[walked] in my statutes and observed my commandments and [did] them.” And yet, what Christ got in His passion was the curses our disobedience deserves. This is the only way for sinners to receive God’s favor. That is also how He has broken the bars of your yoke to make you walk upright. It’s not our good behavior that needs to turn God’s heart toward us. While we were still sinners, Christ did this for us. We walk upright before God through faith in His Son.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We implore You, O Lord, in Your kindness to show us Your great mercy that we may be set free from our sins and rescued from the punishments that we rightfully deserve; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.  - Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 11, 2023 Today's Reading: Luke 12:54 - 13:9Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 24:1-23; Luke 12:54-13:17 “No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” (Luke 13:5) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Alleluia! Christ is risen!  Perhaps you will be blessed to never have to cross the court system, but most of us will in some way. The courts exist to deal with our faults—from the parking ticket you got, to the taxes you thought you wouldn’t have to pay, to more serious crimes that involve sentencing.  What’s our first reaction when we see that ticket on our windshield, the summons, or the police show up? It wasn’t my fault! They were being unfair! Look over there at how bad they are! Rarely is it, “I deserved that.” Why is it? Why can’t we be objective about our faults? It’s sin in us that resists and denies the truth. It reared its ugly head the minute God’s first accusation came, “Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you shall not eat?” (Genesis 3:11). If we can deny the truth of the guilt, then perhaps we can also get out of the deserved punishment.  What Jesus is teaching in the Gospel reading today is both the sternness of the Law, and the comforting grace of what He has done for us. Interpreting the signs of the times is not an invitation to the next prophecy workshop, nor is the call to settle with your accuser practical legal advice. Both of these are declaring what St. Paul also says: “We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God…Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” (2 Corinthians. 5:20, 6:2) Today is the day to turn from your lame excuses and finger pointing. Repent of comparing yourself to others, and prepare for your own day before the judgment seat of Christ. The time our God has given us in this life is for continually hearing His Word and receiving His saving work. Though judgment is what you and I deserve, our Great High Priest intercedes for us. In effect, He is like that vinedresser who says, “Sir, let it alone this year also” that even when we should be misled for a time, He might bring us back to repentance and bring forth its fruits. So, next time you smell manure, it can remind you of this Gospel. That’s what His sacrifice has done for us, that we might live.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty and everlasting God, You despise nothing You have made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent. Create in us new and contrite hearts that lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness we may receive from You full pardon and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. (Collect for Ash Wednesday)- Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 10, 2023 Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism Ten Commandments: The Seventh CommandmentDaily Lectionary: Leviticus 23:23-44; Luke 12:35-38We do not take our neighbor’s money or possessions, or get them in any dishonest way, but help him to improve and protect his possessions and income. (Seventh Commandment) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Alleluia! Christ is risen!  The age of information provides so many new opportunities. Never in history have so many people had access to vast amounts of information. If you want to know it, it’s probably available at your fingertips—without pay, instantly, privately. The 2017 Catechism explanation wisely adds the question, “What else is considered to be our neighbor’s possessions or property today?” It points out things like ideas and writings, music, software, movies, and personal information. Our sin needs a curb when it comes to that much power. When I was a young man, it was just being realized how easy it was to access intellectual property. At this time, before I knew the Lord, I had thousands of MP3’s and several pieces of software that I had not paid for. (After all, how could a college student afford such things?) To avoid getting in trouble, people became increasingly clever about how they shared the data. Peer-to-peer networks and servers in Sweden were among the most popular. The question for a Christian to ask is not, “Can I do this?” but rather, “How does this impact my neighbor?” even if that neighbor seems distant on the other side of the screen. They put long, hard hours into this work. Content creators make a career out of the videos they post to support their families. Game developers are worked to the bone to meet their deadlines. Everyone listed in the movie credits needs to be compensated. Even website ad revenue, as obnoxious as it can be, is important because it pays for hosting costs. Our very life is a testimony of the value God placed on us: “You were bought with a price, so glorify God in your body,” St. Paul writes (1 Corinthians 6:20). He did not consider it too costly to spend the precious blood of His Son to redeem us, even though we are filled with greedy desires. Baptized into Jesus’ death and resurrection, we now “walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4). Rather than looking out for our advantage, we desire to help our neighbor support his or her family, give a boost to those who are just getting started, and witness an honesty not found in vast swaths of the Internet. Where God gives us opportunity, we may even stand up for the good of our neighbor and encourage our friends not to pirate, or plagiarize, or obtain someone’s private information—all because we see the things of this life as gifts from God’s hand.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!  Morning by morning new mercies I see;All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;  Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me! (Great is Thy Faithfulness, LSB 809: refrain)- Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 9, 2023 Today's Reading: 1 Peter 2:2-10Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 23:1-22; Luke 12:13-34 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 2:4-5) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Alleluia! Christ is risen!  The hope of many is to see the temple rebuilt in Jerusalem, a “Third Temple,” they call it. There is even a movement among some orthodox Jews to dress the stones for the future temple they hope to build. Even more puzzling, there are also many Christians who are encouraged to support the Jews in this rebuilding fantasy. Those who hold to a so-called “literal” interpretation of the Bible believe that rebuilding the Temple is a major part in the fulfillment of Jesus' return. How wrong we can be in our sinful blindness! The reading from St. Peter’s epistle teaches us to rightly understand the prophets when they speak of God establishing a house, of making His people holy priests, of building a place for His name to dwell. “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in Him will not be put to shame.” The prophet Isaiah was not speaking about a building, but Jesus Christ Himself! As for us who believe in Him (not in a building), we are made like Him by the Holy Spirit: “you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” This is how to look at the communion of saints we confess in the Creed: God is at work building His church, stone by stone.  Each stone—each believer—is dressed by God working by His Word and Holy Spirit. Living daily in our Baptism, we are fitted anew into the temple of God’s design, according to Christ, the Cornerstone. We are also called a holy priesthood, who offer spiritual sacrifices within this Temple of the Christian Church. It’s not that we have anything worthy enough to offer God. But out of what flows from the Lamb of God, we are made alive to give our lives: for building up our fellow stones, for offering prayer for them and for the world, for service within the temple and in our various vocations. In all of it, proclaiming “the excellencies of Him who called [us] out of darkness and into His marvelous light.”  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We are God’s house of living stones,  Built for His own habitation. He through baptismal grace us owns  Heirs of His wondrous salvation. Were we but two His Name to tell,  Yet He would deign with us to dwell  With all His grace and His favor. (Built on the Rock, LSB 645:3)- Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 8, 2023 Today's Reading: Acts 6:1-9; 7:2a, 51-60 Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 21:1-24; Luke 12:1-12And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” (Acts 7:56) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Alleluia! Christ is risen!  Today is the 78th anniversary of V-E Day, when victory was celebrated in Europe after over 6 hard years of fighting during World War II. Adolf Hitler, the Nazi Party, and the German army, had been a nearly unstoppable force. Over the previous 12 years, they had not only transformed the landscape of Europe through bombings and invasions, but they had convinced thousands that Hitler was a messiah figure who had come to establish a millennial kingdom. Under that deception, millions of Jews lost their lives by the claim that he was purifying the human race. No wonder V-E Day was such an occasion for celebration! From the moment in time which we occupy, it can often seem like the evil powers are winning the day. Cultural Marxism is sweeping the country. The transgender political beast rages. Millions have left the church they grew up in, only to be catechized by social media. In the time after Jesus’ Crucifixion, Death, and burial, it sure seemed like evil had won the day. After all, the murderous Sanhedrin had gotten their way. Jesus’ followers would eventually disperse, and Jewish life would get back to waiting for the “true” Messiah. But we know that is not the case. That first day of the week, Jesus rose and appeared to His disciples. The truth spread over against the lies: Jesus is the Christ, who has conquered sin, death, and the devil! After forty days with His disciples, Jesus ascended to the right hand of God. He sent the Holy Spirit who equipped the apostles and grew the Church by the Word they proclaimed. The Holy Spirit gave boldness and words to Stephen to preach to these Jews—not simply to diminish their earthly influence—but to save their souls. As the powerful and unbelieving were stoning Stephen, he was given a vision of the truth: Jesus is risen, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence, He will come to judge the living and the dead. Even though the mighty prevailed that day, the living Lord has won the battle for eternity. That victory belongs to every believer, delivered to you in your Baptism. Even though we see the wicked raging for now, the Holy Spirit keeps you in the truth: Christ is risen indeed! Alleluia!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. But short was their triumph; the Savior arose,  And death, hell, and Satan, He vanquished His foes. The conquering Lord lifts His banner on high;  He lives, yes, He lives, and will nevermore die. (He’s Risen, He’s Risen, LSB 480:3)- Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 7, 2023 Today's Reading:  John 14:1-14Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 20:1-16; Luke 11:37-54Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. (John 14:13) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Alleluia! Christ is risen!  Have you ever been on the line with customer service or tech support? It’s already been forty-five minutes, when they tell you, “I can’t help you with that. I’m going to have to transfer you to someone who can help you.” Crestfallen, you realize you must have taken a wrong turn in the phone menu and you’ll have to start from scratch with someone new. Although there was none of that in the upper room, the disciples had the impression that Jesus was something less than He is. Despite being with Him for so long, they think there’s some higher tier that actually rules the universe. Even though He is sitting with His disciples in the flesh, He is the same one who goes to prepare a place for them. Jesus Himself is the Lord, the “I Am” who appeared to Moses (Exodus 3:14). He is “the Way, the Truth, and the Life,” by whom no man can come to the Father except through Him. The Lord Jesus is both true God, ruling over the universe, and true Man, sitting right there talking with them. He isn’t an intermediary like Moses. He himself has divine power and authority. And what will He do with such power and authority? Prepare a place for you and I to dwell in the Father’s house. He will hear and answer what we ask Him. He will put His Name upon us so that by His authority, we are called children of God (John 1:12-13). We often think the promise, “I will come again and will take you to myself” is merely for the end of our life. He says, “Where I am you may be also.” Where is He now?  He has passed through the grave, never to die again. He is risen. He has ascended into heaven, to intercede for us and to sit at the right hand of the Father Almighty. That is to say, He has “all authority in heaven and earth” (Matthew 28:18). So why wouldn’t we come to Jesus with our prayers? He has come to us with His most-worthy name and by His merit we will be brought into eternal life. Today, in Him, we can be confident that we are not being pawned off to someone else who can “really” help us. Jesus is Lord, and He is here for you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. O God, You make the minds of Your faithful to be of one will. Grant that we may love what You have commanded and desire what You promise, that among the many changes of this world our hearts may be fixed where true joys are found; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.- Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 6, 2023Today's Reading:  Psalm 30:1-5; antiphon: Psalm 149:1Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 19:9-18, 26-37; Luke 11:14-36O LORD my God, I cried to you for help, and you have healed me. O LORD, you have brought up my soul from Sheol; you restored me to life from among those who go down to the pit. (Psalm 30:2–3 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus.  Amen.  Whether you know it or not, you are in a relationship with death, but it might not be the relationship that you think. In the Old Testament, Sheol was the place of the dead. It was a place that no one wanted to find themselves, yet everyone ended up in.  It was thought to be a place of darkness, a place with an unending appetite for consuming the living.  Whatever existence there was  in Sheol, it could not compare with being alive. The food had no taste, nothing had any substance, and God himself was not praised.  In Sheol there was no thought, no knowledge, and no wisdom.  There was also no coming back.  Once you were there that was it.  It was a one way trip.  It was the Old Testament version of Hotel California; you could check out, but you could never leave.  Any possible rescue could only come from God Himself.  God could do it, but would He?The rest of the ancient world was even more hopeless in its relationship with death. There was no coming back from it at all. Once you died that was it.  Eumenides (an ancient play) even has the line “Once a man has died, and the dust has soaked up his blood, there is no Resurrection.”  Death could be postponed, put off, avoided for a time even, but once it came that was it. There may be some kind of life after death, but it was not an embodied life.  In their thought the relationship with death was entirely on death’s terms. That all changes with Jesus.  In the death of Jesus is the death of death itself.  What Jesus did on the cross forever changed your relationship with death.  No longer is Sheol waiting to devour you.  Death has been tamed and even if you should die Sheol is no longer your place.  You have been rescued from the pit.  You have been redeemed.  Here is the great truth of Easter:In the Resurrection of Jesus is the promise of your resurrection. You will return to an embodied life.  Death could not hold Jesus and it will not hold you.  Death no longer dictates the terms of the relationship.  You are part of the new covenant and its new song is your song.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.New songs of celebration render To Him who has great wonders; Love sits enthroned in ageless splendor; Come and adore the mighty One. He has made known His great salvation Which all His friends with joy confess. He has revealed to every nation His everlasting righteousness. (New Songs of Celebration Render, LSB 792:1) - Pastor Grant A Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 5, 2023Today's Reading:  Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 18:1-7; Luke 11:1-13“What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:11–13 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  Ever since His disciples asked Him to teach them to pray, there have been those in the church that think that there is some magic secret to prayer that will guarantee that God hears and responds in the desired manner.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  Prayer is not magic and God cannot be manipulated by the right posture, hand motions, or combinations of words. To put it bluntly, praying is not like casting a spell and no amount of Harry Potter style swish and flick will make any difference. The secret to prayer does not lie in methodology.  This is where a lot of teaching on prayer goes off the rails. It treats prayer as something that we do, that has its genesis within us. This is not the case in any way, shape, or form.  Prayer does not have its beginnings with us.  Another way to put it would be to say that God does not hear our prayers because of who we are or what we do.  God hears our prayers because of who He is.This is the meaning of the Parable of the Friend at Midnight. It shows that God hears our prayers because that is part of HIs nature. He hears us because He has promised that he would.  He hears us because he has integrity and honor.  Even more than that He has given us the very prayer that He never tires of hearing.  On top of all this our prayers are a response to God working in us.  Our very ability to pray is a gift from God.  We do not have to go in search of methodologies or worry about proper posture, hand motions, or even words. He has given us all that we need to pray to Him in full assurance that we will be heard.  He hears us because He is our Father and He has made us HIs children through Jesus Christ.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Amen, that is, so shall it be. Make strong our faith in You, that we May doubt not but with trust believe That what we ask we shall receive. Thus in Your name and at Your Word We say, ‘Amen. O hear us, Lord!  (Our Father, Who from Heaven Above, LSB 766:9) - Pastor Grant A Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 4, 2023Today's Reading:  1 Peter 2:19-25Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 17:1-16; Luke 10:23-42For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly. For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. (1 Peter 2:19–21 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Our reading for today really needs to be read in context to be properly understood. It comes in the midst of what is known as a “household code” where Peter uses the normal structure of society to talk about Jesus. Grecco/Roman culture was all about structure and order. Everyone had their ordained part to play and if they did not play it then society did not function.  In our case he is specifically addressing household servants who may continue to suffer unjustly simply because  they are Christians. Christianity itself was seen as a challenge to the social order because it was thought to encourage people to act outside of their established roles. What Peter is getting at is that their faith did not change their status in society.  Becoming a Christian did not mean that they were free to walk away from a bad situation. They were to continue to live out their roles even if that meant serving an unbelieving or even an evil master. Their faith did not merit them special treatment.  If they suffered because of their faith it was because of the paradigm that was set by Jesus.  His suffering was the model for theirs.  Another way to put it would be to say that their suffering was not an accurate reflection of their status before God. The evil that they had to endure was not a reflection of their eternal destiny.  This may be an especially hard passage to read in our time and place where unjust suffering seems to be un-American.  The focus of our society is on individual rights and equity and yet Christians continue to suffer just because they are Christian.  Peter’s message to the Christians of his time is the same message that he has for you. Your faith has not changed your place in society. but it has changed your place in eternity.  No matter what happens here you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Let us suffer here with Jesus, And with patience bear our cross. Joy will follow all our sadness; Where he is, there is no loss. Though today we snow no laughter, We shall reap celestial joy; All discomforts that annoy Shall give way to mirth hereafter. Jesus, here I share Your woe; Help me there your joy to know. (Let Us Ever Walk with Jesus, LSB 685:2)- Pastor Grant A Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 3, 2023Today's Reading:  Luther’s Small Catechism Table of Duties: Sixth CommandmentDaily Lectionary: Leviticus 16:1-24; Luke 10:1-22The Sixth Commandment:  You shall not commit adultery.  What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we lead a sexually pure and decent life in what we say and do, and husband and wife love and honor each other. In the Name + of Jesus. After reading this commandment as well as some of the other things that the church has said about sex over the centuries, you might reach the conclusion that the best thing to do would be to avoid sex altogether. Celibacy, it would seem, might be the better choice for the Christian. This is certainly where the medieval church came down on things. Before and even during the time of Luther celibacy was considered superior to marriage. The celibate were better believers and were more capable of pleasing God than those that were married. In other words, it was more Christian to abstain from sex entirely and even sex within marriage carried the taint of sin. For Luther the sixth commandment is more about giving sex its proper place in marriage  than it is about banning sex in general. Sex is not a prohibited activity, it is a gift from God that is meant to be enjoyed by husband and wife. Sex can and should take place, but only within the context of marriage. It is the one flesh relationship that is part of God’s intentions for His creation. Marriage, rather than being an inferior status, should be considered the default for the vast majority of Christians. Celibacy is also a gift of God, but it is a rare gift and does not make someone a superior Christian. Sexually pure does not mean free from sex from birth to death, it means that sex ought only take place within marriage. It was designed by God for husband and wife, for the procreation of children, and as an expression of their love for one another.  In fact, Luther links marriage to the promise to Abraham that in his seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed. (LW Vol 4 pg. 233) In that promise, the marriage bed is regarded as undefiled and marriage is honorable because of their connection to the Seed which is Christ.  Ultimately this means that you are pure because Christ was pure on your behalf, on behalf of your future spouse, and on behalf of any children you may have.  Amen.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Gracious Savior, grant Your blessing To this husband and this wife, That in peace they live together In Your love throughout their life. Christ, defend them from the tempter And from all that would destroy Love’s foundation You have laid here, And its threshold paved with joy. (Gracious Savior, Grant Your Blessing, LSB 860:1)- Pastor Grant A Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 2, 2023Today's Reading:  Acts 2:42-47 Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 10:1-20; Luke 9:37-62And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved. (Acts 2:46–47 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  I had a roommate in college that thought a romantic relationship only lasted until someone better came along. A girlfriend could be (and often was) replaced at any time. I bring this up because this is how some in the ancient world thought about the Christian God. They would question His commitment to His people. If one of their friends became a Christian they would ask them how they could follow such a fickle God. “He changed His mind about the Jews,”they would say, “How long until He changes his mind about you?”Their thought was that God had chosen the Gentiles over the Jews and that He had not kept His promises to the descendants of Abraham. Such a God who changed His mind was not to be trusted,  He was not to be followed, and He was inferior to the other Gods available. These critiques were meant to sow the seeds of doubt among the non-Jewish converts to the new faith. Part of the apologetic task of the early church was to counter such criticisms and show that God had kept his promises to the Jews, that He was, is, and always would be faithful to His people whether they were Jew or Gentile. Our reading today shows that God was faithful to the Jews and that He did keep his promises to them. Everything that Luke mentions in this summary statement took place in Jerusalem among believers who were ethnic Jews. They were devoted to the apostles’ teaching and the breaking of the bread. They were proof that God was faithful to the Jews, that God kept the promises He had made to Abraham. God continues to be faithful to His promises. The same teachings that they were devoted to are the same teachings that continue to this day in the church. The bread they broke is the same bread we break in the Sacrament of the Altar. The God who was faithful to them is the God who is faithful to you. God did not change His mind about them and He will not change His mind about you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Through the intervening ages Round the world the Gospel spread: Faithful heralds took the message , Guided where the Spirit led; So the body grew in stature, Serving Christ, the living head. (We Are Called to Stand Together, LSB 828:3)- Pastor Grant A Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

May 1, 2023Today's Reading:  John 14:1-14Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 9:1-24; Luke 9:37-62Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?” (John 14:8–9 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. If our reading was a reality television show I can imagine Thomas being pretty upset with Philip while James is giving both of them the stink eye.  Neither Thomas nor Philip come across as especially apostolic in our reading, but only Thomas gets the lasting legacy of the ‘doubting’ nickname attached to him. James, on the other hand, only gets his name mentioned in the Gospels and has to share his day on the liturgical calendar with Philip. In all seriousness, it is easy to give the apostles a hard time. They don’t come across as especially smart in the Gospels. They question Jesus, they don’t understand Jesus when he speaks in figurative language,  and they don’t believe him when he speaks plainly.  They spend a lot of their time with Jesus not really understanding what is going on. At no point in their doubts and questions did Jesus ever disown them. Despite their flaws they remained His. In other words, they are a lot like you.They did not bring anything special to the table. They were not recruited for their athletic prowess or sought out for their intellectual achievements.  They were not the best and brightest of their generation. They just happened to be the guys that God picked. The Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus changes everything for them. Prior to the first Easter they question and doubt, after the Resurrection they are completely different.  Everything they needed to follow Jesus was given to them by God. It is the same for you. You bring nothing to your relationship with God. You may doubt and you may question, but you still belong to Jesus.  The Crucifixion and Resurrection that changed them has changed you as well. The same Holy Spirit that was given to them has been given to you. What they witnessed with their eyes, you participated in with your Baptism. Philip and James have rooms in the Father’s house and so do you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.We praise You, Lord, for Philip, Blest guide to Greek and Jew, And for young James the faithful, Who heard and followed You. O grant us grace to know You, The way, the truth, the life, To wrestle with temptation, To triumph in the strife. (By All Your Saints in Warfare, LSB 518:18)- Pastor Grant A Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 30, 2023Today's Reading:  John 10:1-10Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 8:1-13,30-36, Luke 9:1-17“I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.” (John 10:9 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  All this language of shepherds and sheep has led to some interesting places in the history of the church.  This is especially true in the theology of missions and biblical translation. Sheep are some of the most helpless animals on earth. They are cute and fuzzy for sure, but they are not really bright. In cultures where sheep are unknown this passage becomes a challenge to talk about and translate. In Papua New Guinea they had to substitute ‘pig’ for sheep, but the most interesting debate took place when Star Trek fans wanted to translate the Bible into Klingon and were stumped on how to translate ‘sheep’ into a culture where helplessness wasn’t even a category. In a sense this is also true of our own culture. Americans don’t like to think of themselves as sheep either. Maybe the problem is not with the language, but with people.  Maybe we just don’t want to be sheep.  We call people who go along with the crowd sheep, and we do not mean it as a compliment.  Gordon Gekko put it best in the movie Wall Street when dismissing certain people who could not find success in the business world.  He said, ‘they are sheep, and sheep get slaughtered.’  The thing to remember is that all people, Christian or not, are sheep. The difference is not in what we are, the difference is in the voice  we follow. The voice we follow is that of the Good Shepherd.  All other voices are those of the stranger and they are not to be followed because they do save and do not lead to pasture. As sheep of the good shepherd, you are saved and can go in and out and find pasture.  This talk of coming and going sounds awkward to us. We use the same language in our baptismal liturgy. We say to the newly baptized “the Lord preserve your coming in and going out from this time forth and even forever more”  Coming in and going out was a phrase that dealt with the course of human life. The Good Shepherd is there for you in all times and in all circumstances you have nothing to fear from the voices of thieves and robbers.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, merciful Father, since You have wakened from death the Shepherd of Your sheep, grant us Your Holy Spirit that when we hear the voice of our Shepherd we may know Him who calls us each by name and follow where He leads; through the same Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.-Pastor Grant A Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 29, 2023Today's Reading:  Psalm 95:1-3, 6-7a; antiphon: John 10:14, 15bDaily Lectionary: Exodus 40:17-38, Luke 8:40-56“I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, and I lay down my life for the sheep.” (John 10:14–15b ESV)In the Name + of Jesus.  Amen. In our time and our place, we have become so used to the language of Jesus as the Good Shepherd that we don’t even really think about when we hear it. We have tamed the language and made it into something as inoffensive as a Hallmark greeting card.  There is nothing safe or tame in Jesus stating that he is the good shepherd.  In fact, in saying this Jesus is making the claim “I AM the Good shepherd” Jesus is stating that he is subject of Psalm 95, that he is the Lord, in other words that he is God. He is the one whom before we worship, bow down, and kneel. Even more significantly,  He is the one that defines His own goodness by laying down His life for the sheep. He lays down his life for you.  What does it mean to be one of Jesus' little lambs? I ask this question because I think that the church has gotten a little too sentimental about all of this sheep and shepherd imagery and that we have made it too nice and neat.  When we think about shepherds and sheep, we tend to think of it as a nice peaceful guy leading his flock through pristine fields of the greenest grass towards the clean cold waters of a stream.  There are no rocky trails, no barren wilderness to cover and most certainly no wolves to be afraid of.  I am here to tell you that being a shepherd was not easy work and being a sheep was no fun either.  There were dangers to the left and dangers to the right. The only thing that kept a sheep safe was following the one voice that they recognized, the voice of their shepherd.In saying that we are the sheep of his hand, we are confessing that we are helpless and unable to save ourselves. We are confessing that our lives as sheep are only found in the Death and Resurrection of the Shepherd. If Easter truly is to be a season of reflecting on the Resurrection, then there is no better way of doing that than remembering that Jesus is the Good Shepherd who laid his life down for the sheep only to take it up again. His voice calls to you from Word and Sacrament ministry of the church which tells you that you have been brought into the flock and are under the care of the Good Shepherd. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“O ever be our guide, Our shepherd, and our pride, Our staff and song. Jesus, O Christ of God, By Your enduring Word Lead us where You have trod; Make our faith strong.”Shepherd of Tender Youth LSB 864, st 4.-Pastor Grant A Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 28, 2023Today's Reading:  Daily Lectionary: Exodus 39:32-40:16, Luke 8:22-39“He said to them, “Where is your faith?” And they were afraid, and they marveled, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that he commands even winds and water, and they obey him?”” (Luke 8:25 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The identity of Jesus can be a confusing thing.  In our reading for today the demons are the only ones that seem certain about who Jesus is. They call him “Son of the Most High God”.  Jesus’ own disciples who have heard His teaching and witnessed His calming of the storm are left with the question, “Who then is this, that the commands even winds and water, and they obey him?” The Geneserates, when they hear how Jesus freed the man from the demons, respond in fear and ask him to depart. They fear that the demons will come back in force and don’t believe that Jesus is up to that kind of challenge. You can almost see the public relations team telling Jesus that he needs to work on his brand if he wants to be successful.   This confusion continues even today in the ivory towers of some academic biblical scholars. They will tell you that the Jesus we meet in Luke’s Gospel is presented to us with a low Christology, which is a way of saying that Jesus, as Luke presents him, is fully human and not divine. The divine part of Jesus’ identity, they will tell you, comes later and is not part of the faith of the earliest believers. These guys not only get Jesus wrong, they also get Luke wrong. There is nothing ‘low’ about the Christology of Luke’s Gospel. He presents to his readers a Jesus who is fully human and fully divine. He presents to his readers a Jesus that is truly both God and man. Look again at how our reading ends. Jesus tells the man who had been freed from the demons to declare how much God had done for him and he goes away proclaiming all that Jesus has done for him. Who is this that the wind and water obey? Who is it that has authority over demons? There is only one answer. In other words, Jesus is God. The one who can tame creation is the Creator. The God who created the world became flesh and entered into His own creation to save it.  He comes to you in water and Word to recreate you. He feeds you with His own flesh and blood in communion.  His death is your death and His life is your life. What Jesus has done for you is what God has done for you.  Knowing the true identity of Jesus means that you know your own identity.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.He who the sea And wind obey Doth come to serve the sinner in great meekness. Thou, God’s own Son, With us art one, Dost join us and our children in our weakness. “O Jesus Christ, Thy Manger Is” LSB 372, st 2-Pastor Grant A Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 27, 2023Today's Reading: 1 Peter 1:17-25Daily Lectio nary: Exodus 38:21-39:8, 22-23, 27-31, Luke 8:1-21“for “All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever.” And this word is the good news that was preached to you.” (1 Peter 1:24–25 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. You live in exile. You live as an outsider in the world. Sometimes it would just be easier to be an unbeliever. You wouldn’t catch quite so much grief from the political and celebrity elites that dismiss Christians as being dumber than the average bear. You also would not have to worry about being targeted as an extremist by federal law enforcement officers. In addition, Sunday mornings could be reserved for sleeping in. It wouldn’t solve all of life’s problems; you would still have to do homework and fulfill all your other commitments and responsibilities. Life would not be perfect, but it sure would be easier. At the very least, you would no longer be living in exile. This is exactly the kind of temptation that presented itself to the people that Peter writes to in our reading for today. He calls them exiles, not so much because they had been removed from their homeland, but because their faith had made them outsiders. The people they lived among had no respect for the faith or the faithful. Good citizenship and Christianity were considered incompatible. It would have been easier for them if they had just given into the things their culture was expecting from them and renounced their beliefs and blended in.  In the face of cultural persecution Peter reminds his readers who they are. His words to them are also his words to you. You have been ransomed by the very blood of Christ. You have been washed in the eternal Word and fed with the very body and blood of that Word made flesh. You have an eternal status as a child of God. Nothing in this present world can compare to that. Nothing that our culture offers you has any lasting value. That which is  tempting you away from the faith is fleeting and transitory. It, like the grass and flowers, withers and fails. The Word of the Lord, the good news that was preached to you, the very new creation that you are will remain forever. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord, Your words are waters living When my thirsting spirit pleads. Lord, Your words are bread life giving; On Your words my spirit feeds.  Lord, Your words will be my light Through death’s cold and dreary night; Yes they are sword prevailing And my cup of joy unfailing. “Speak, O Lord, Your Servant Listens” LSB 589, st 3. -Pastor Grant A Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 26, 2023Today's Reading: Luther's Small Catechism, Table of Duties: Fifth CommandmentDaily Lectionary:Exodus 34:29-35:21, Luke 7:36-50The Fifth Commandment.:  You shall not murder.  What does this mean?  We should fear and love God so that we do not hurt or harm our neighbor in his body, but help and support him in every physical need. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. At first glance this commandment would seem pretty easy to obey. It is not difficult to live your day to day life without having to resort to the act of murder.  Many of the other commandments, particularly the eighth, are much more difficult to keep.  Luther’s teaching on this commandment shows that its meaning goes far beyond the simple prohibition to not murder. In fact, this commandment is not so much about avoiding the act of murder as it is about acting to protect your neighbor from harm and danger. In helping to care for your neighbor you become part of the wall that God has erected around them to protect their bodily life.  Much of what we would call acts of mercy are actually fulfillments of the command not to murder. The command not to murder cannot be obeyed passively; it carries with it the expectation that you will act on behalf of your neighbors needs.  For Luther these actions are the product of meekness. Not the meekness that we might practice before our friends and family but the meekness that is shown to our enemies. The meekness that does not seek revenge. The meekness that prays for those who do evil to us. This kind of meekness can only be the product of faith. The keeping of this commandment does not earn or create faith–it is the product of faith. You can only act on behalf of others because someone has already acted on behalf of you. You can only protect another's life because you have been given life. You can only act with this kind of meekness because Jesus became meek for you. While you were still His enemy he acted on your behalf and gave His life on the cross. He did all that was necessary to protect your bodily life. He moved you from death to life and has made you an agent of life not a bringer of death. Your care of  the life of your neighbor has its genesis in the Gospel because that is the source of your life with Christ. It is because He is with you that you can act to protect the life of your neighbor.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.You shall not murder, hurt, nor hate; Your anger dare not dominate. Be kind and patient; help, defend, And treat your foe as your friend. Have mercy, Lord. “These Are the Holy Ten Commands” LSB 581, st 6.-Pastor Grant A Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 25, 2023Today's Reading: Luke 10:1-9Daily Lectionary: Exodus 34:1-28, Luke 17:18-35“Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves.” (Luke 10:3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Mark would have been a terrible televangelist. Those guys for the most part promise you a successful stress free middle class life with an attractive spouse, well behaved children, and a three car garage. Mark, on the other hand, makes it clear in his Gospel that suffering comes before glory in the Christian life.  If, as one strain of church tradition tells us, Mark was one of the seventy-two, then he heard it straight from Jesus, “I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. This is the truth of your baptismal identity. You came up out of the waters of the font marked as one redeemed by Christ the Crucified and that mark functions as a target for Satan and his minions.  Belief in Jesus is not a shortcut to a life of  private jets, and yachts where the world bows to your every whim. Instead your life as a Christian is lived in a world that is hostile to your very existence. The world that rejected him also rejects His followers. This is part and parcel of the mystery of theology of the cross. Your very life with Christ is tied up in the mystery of his suffering on the cross. Mark’s entire Gospel points to the cross and he does not want Jesus to be understood apart from the cross. Jesus is not to be understood as a worker of miracles, or as a great teacher. He is to be understood as the one who suffered and died to give his people victory over sin and death. Many times in this life that victory is hard to see. If the cross is a mystery, then so is the life of faith. This means that you can suffer and still be a Christian. You can live as lambs in the midst of wolves because Jesus the Crucified One is with you. Your life as a Christian will be full of peaks and valleys. The here and now will always be full of wolves seeking to separate you from Christ, but His victory is your victory, and His Resurrection points to your own resurrection. Your present may contain darkness, but your future contains only light. In Jesus the kingdom of God has come near to you and remains near to you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.For Mark, O Lord, we praise you, The weak by grace made strong, Whose labors and whose Gospel Enrich our triumph song. May we, in all our weakness, Reflect your servant life And follow in Your footsteps, Enduring cross and strife. “By All Your Saints in Warfare” LSB 518, st 15.-Pastor Grant A Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 24, 2023Today's Reading: Acts 2:14a, 36-41Daily Lectionary: Exodus 33:1-23. Luke 7:1-17“And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.”” (Acts 2:38–40)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It's amazing what a little water can do, especially when it is combined with the Word and promise of God. In our reading for today the law has had its way with the people Peter is preaching to. They have come face to face with the reality of their sin. They have rejected the promised Messiah. They have crucified the Son of God. How can you possibly atone for a sin like that? How can you pay back God for the life of HIs Son? Nothing in the law of Moses, nothing in the traditions of the Pharisees gave them any recourse. They are left only with the question, “What shall we do?” In the face of the accusations of the law and the reality of their sin Peter gives them the Gospel. The solution is Baptism in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins. What they could not do, God will do for them. The atonement they could not make has been made for them. The law they could not fulfill, has been fulfilled for them. In the waters of Baptism they will find release from their sins and be given the gift of the Holy Spirit. In the waters of Baptism they will be given faith in the one that they rejected. In the promise of the Gospel they will be saved from their crooked generation. The promise that was for them was not limited to them. It is a promise that was for their children, and all who are far off. It was a promise that covered all sins for all people for all time. In other words, it is a promise that is for you. In the waters of your Baptism you received the forgiveness of sins and God called you to himself.  No accusation of the law even if brought by Satan himself can take away what God has done for you. In the promise of the Gospel you have been saved from this crooked generation. You are a child of the promise and have nothing to fear from the accusations of the Law.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Satan, hear this proclamation:  I am baptized into Christ!  Drop your ugly accusation, I am not so soon enticed. Now that to the font I’ve traveled, All your might has come unraveled, And, against your tyranny, God, my Lord, unites with me!  “God’s Own Child, I Gladly Say It” LSB 594, st 3. -Pastor Grant A Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 23, 2023Today's Reading: Luke 24:13-35Daily Lectionary: Exodus 32:15-35, Luke 6:39-49“And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.” (Luke 24:27 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. There are any number of Christians that will tell you that the Bible is the Word of God. They take what it says seriously and want to apply it to their lives. The problem is that despite having the best of intentions, these people don’t know how to read the Bible. They treat it like a Magic 8 Ball. They ask a question and then open the Bible to a random passage, place their finger on the page, and what they read becomes the answer to their question. That is not how it works, that is not how any of this works.This is the same issue that Cleopas and his friend in our reading had. Well, maybe not the Magic 8 Ball thing, but they still did not know how to read the scriptures. Look at what Jesus says to them, he calls them foolish and slow of heart because they did not believe all that the prophets have spoken. In other words, he castigates them for not understanding how to properly read the Scriptures.  Jesus then gives them the key to understanding the Bible. He interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. Jesus showed them that He is the key to reading the Bible. He showed them that the Bible is primarily about Him. This is not something that they could have known prior to this. This way of reading the Bible only comes in the light of the Resurrection. Prior to Easter many of the things that Jesus said and did remained a mystery even to his closest followers. After His Resurrection, His actions and words became more clear and the Scriptures became a new book. The Bible did not change, but their ability to read and understand  the Word of God was changed. The ‘do this’ of the law was changed into the ‘for you’ of the Gospel. This is the way that Lutherans still read the Bible today. We read the Scriptures with what is known as a Christologica Hermeneutic, which is just a fancy way of saying that we believe that Jesus is the key to understanding the Bible. We believe that the writings of the prophets and apostles are about Him and from start to finish point to His life, Death, and Resurrection as the key to understanding God’s Word. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, through the humiliation of Your Son You raised up the fallen world Grant to Your faithful people, rescued from the peril of everlasting death, perpetual gladness and eternal joys; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God now and forever. -Pastor Grant A Knepper is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Modesto, CA.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 22, 2023Today's Reading:Psalm 84:1-4; antiphon: Psalm 84:5Daily Lectionary: Exodus 32:1-14, Luke 6:20-38Blessed are those who dwell in your house,ever singing your praise!  Psalm 84:4In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Christ is risen! In the Old Testament, the children of Israel were very familiar with where God was located.   Psalm 84 celebrates the temple of God in Jerusalem. It begins, “How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of Heaven’s Armies” (Ps. 84:1). This is a reference to the temple, as is made clear in the following verse: “I long, yes, I faint with longing to enter the courts of the LORD” (Ps. 84:2). Moreover, the psalm-writer adds, “What joy for those who can live in your house, always singing your praises” (Psalm 84:4).  Later in this Psalm we hear of the sheer joy of being in the temple versus anything in this world “A single day in your courts is better than a thousand anywhere else” (Psalm 84:10).As we read this psalm today, we might pause and say, this is nice, but is there anything here for us? Where are God’s courts today? Where is the temple for us today?Many Christians today will emphasize that God’s temple is now your heart. Ask Jesus into your heart, and He and His father will make it your temple. This leads to Christianity solely focusing on the individual and their prayers and devotions. Because God has made himself known to us in Christ, and because the Spirit of God.Yet, Psalm 84 shows us that God’s presence is not just for the individual but for the entire Body of Christ to participate together. This happens in the Divine Service, where Jesus meets us with His gifts of forgiveness, life, salvation, and heavenly presence.  Jesus says, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it in three days.”  The temple for us today is the flesh of Jesus, that flesh that was crucified, resurrected, ascended, and given each Lord’s day in the holy eucharist. Because Jesus is our living temple, He makes His home with us. In fact, according to the New Testament, the local church is the new temple of God: “Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you? God will destroy anyone who destroys this temple. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple” (1 Corinthians 3:16-17). Thus, Psalm 84 encourages us to celebrate the presence of the Lord Jesus as we gather with God’s people.  Jesus Christ, with His Word and Sacraments, is the ultimate dwelling place of God on earth, the Word made flesh. Through Christ, we dwell in the house of the Lord forever and sing His praises.  Christ is risen! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.In His temple now behold Him; See the long-expected Lord! Ancient prophets had foretold him; God has  now fulfilled His word. Now to praise Him, His redeemèd Shall break forth with one accord.  LSB 519 vs. 1- Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 21, 2023Today's Reading: John 14:18-24Daily Lectionary: Exodus 31:1-18, Luke 6:1-19 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.”Christ is Risen“John 14:18  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Amid a world of death and decay, it is straightforward to feel alone, lost and abandoned. The world doesn’t have an answer for death, so many want to celebrate the life lived in the valley of the shadow of death. The world’s inability to have an answer to the end, the devil prowling around you like a roaring lion, and our over-confidence in ourselves leads us to despair and feel alone.  Yet Jesus reminds us today, “I will not leave you as orphans.”  Jesus did not say that He will never leave us, but that He will not leave us... as orphans. To leave behind an orphan is to abandon a child, to give it up, and give up caring and loving for it. It used to be that the church took in orphans in communities. The church was not only told to pray for orphans but also to foster these children and care for them. A lower birth rate and an increase in the killing of unwanted children have led to fewer and fewer orphans around us. Yet there are still unwanted children, for whatever reason, and it’s unsuitable for the children or the parents.It is easy to feel that we have been left behind and forgotten, orphaned by the Lord. Has He forgotten us? Are we orphaned? He has left us for a time, but not as orphans. That is where the Resurrection of Jesus comes into full force—the world. It cannot give you an answer for death; it leaves you to your own devices and the temptations of the devil. We spend seven weeks during Easter to be reminded that because Christ is risen, we too shall rise. We will enter into that place our heavenly Father has prepared for us.  This is why he tells his followers after Jesus’ Resurrection, "​Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to my Father!​“ Now that He has ascended, and sent the Spirit, the Helper, we see Him in His fullness, not with mere eyes, but with great faith and love, enthroned as God and Man.He has left us, not as orphans, but baptized, adopted children, given up, and abandoned by death! We live and shall live because He lives. Your heavenly Father has sent Christ as your Savior, Redeemer, and brother, and the Spirit reminds us that wherever two or three are gathered in Jesus’ name, there He is, all so that where He is, we may be found.  Not found as orphans but beloved children.  Christ is risen! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Now I will cling forever To Christ, my Savior true; My Lord will leave me never, Whate'er He passes through. He rends death's iron chain; He breaks through sin and pain; He shatters hell's dark thrall;  I follow Him through all.   LSB 467 vs. 6- Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 20, 2023Today's Reading: Luke 5:17-39Daily Lectionary: Exodus 25:1-22, Luke 5:17-39Quotation for the Reflection (citation)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Christ is risen! The church, at all times, has longed to have new members joining the Body of Christ.  Who doesn’t love to see the church grow?  It used to be that the church would evangelize through works of mercy and care for anyone in need.  Today it seems as if we look for church members who won’t cause problems, messy people, people who will volunteer more or even give more money.  Jesus tells His disciples to “let down your nets for a catch” today. This image of Jesus is a familiar one to us.  The disciples have tried fishing all night with no results. Jesus tells them to drop the nets in the heat of the day, and there is the miraculous fish catch. This imagery is given to us about the disciples who would become “fishers of men” for the church.  However, Jesus doesn’t fish for specific fish.  He is not going over largemouth bass or walleye. He’s not going for catfish; He wants them all. Jesus doesn’t use a pole with line and bait; He uses a net.  A net is something that brings everything together at once.  Big fish, little fish, dying fish and newborn fish, predator fish, and prey fish, the list goes on and on.  Watch a YouTube video of fishermen using nets in the sea.  When the net comes up from the water, there is a massive variety of fish and creatures. The fishermen begin to sort out the fishing. Keep only what is good and throw out what is bad.What we hear of in the miraculous fish catch today is the perfect picture of Jesus’ church. Jesus does not mention what kind of fish He is looking for; none are to be cast aside. This seems crazy to us in the church.  It might even seem irresponsible, uncomfortable, or even inconvenient for whom we want to see in the church. This is the initial call of the church. To seek and welcome the lost, the last, and the losers of life so that they might be redeemed and restored by Jesus just like us.  But it's not enough to dump the net on the floor. Jesus also calls us to show mercy and love to all who enter His church's doors.  This might seem daunting; it might seem uncomfortable or awkward, but remember that He has also sought you out. His blood has redeemed you.  Blood that washes away your sins and pulses through your veins as you receive Him in the Holy Eucharist. Blood that strengthens you to welcome anyone caught up in the net of Jesus placed before HIs church. Christ is risen! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Grant, then, O God, Your will be done, That, when the church bells are ringing, Many in saving faith may come  Where Christ His message is brining: “I know My own, My own know Me. You, not the world, My face shall see. My peace I leave with you.  Amen.”  LSB 645 vs. 5- Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 19, 2023Today's Reading: Luther's Small Catechism Table of Duties: The Fourth CommandmentDaily Lectionary: Exodus 24:1-18, Luke 5:1-16“Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. “Honor your father and mother,” which is the first com­mandment with a promise: “that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth.” Ephesians 6:1-3.”  Luther’s Table of Duties - the Fourth CommandmentIn the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Christ is risen! I was blessed to have Christian parents who raised me in the church.  However, I still rebelled against them as most kids do.  The older I got, the dumber they seemed to me.  It was always hard to hear my parents or pastor say, “do you remember the fourth commandment?”  My response was usually an eye roll. You have heard it before, and you may have the same reactions.  However, the Lord takes this commandment very seriously.  It is no small thing that this commandment sits atop the second table of the ten commandments, which speak about loving our neighbor.  Honoring and obeying God is always first, but the parents and all authorities always come second.We are not only to love our parents but also we are to honor them.  Honor is greater than love; this command still stands despite what we think of our parents or even their faults and sins.  We are to honor and love our parents despite their failings and inadequacies. God commands that we obey our fathers as He is our Father. Fathers, likewise, are expected to be like our heavenly Father. After all, He is the origin of what it truly means to be a father.  Fathers have a high calling from God to be in His stead in the family.  St. Paul writes directly to fathers when he says, “Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.” Ephesians 6:1-4Your parents are God’s instruments, not to raise you as children but as adults. They are the masks of God in your life, and the only way they can fulfill this duty is by the grace of God given to them as well. Jesus forgives you for failing to love and honor them, and He also forgives your parents for failing to love and raise you according to His commands; in the end, that is what it means to live out your life with your parents and family. Living in the love Christ has first shown to us and living in His gifts he continually gives us in our parents. But always remember you as well are a tremendous gift to your parents. Christ is risen! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“Our works cannot salvation gain;  They merit only endless pain. Forgive us, Lord! To Christ we flee, Who pleads for us endlessly, Have mercy Lord!”    LSB 581 vs 12- Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 18, 2023Today's Reading: 1 Peter 1:3-9 Daily Lectionary: Exodus 23:14-33, Luke 4:31-441Peter 1:3   Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead”. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  Christ is risen! I love birthdays, especially when it's the birthday of one of my kids.  I love the joy they get to see and celebrate and the memories and emotions I have of recalling the day they were born. We all have birthdays, but none of us can remember what that particular day was like.  Not only that, none of us chose to be born (thanks be to God your parents went through with it!). Yet your birthday is not just a one-time-a-year event.  When you think about it, every day you live, you get to live out your birthday!  Peter said that God caused us to be born again today. We didn’t do it. God did. It wasn’t you “making your decision for Jesus,” as though you could cause yourself to be born again. No, God caused us to be born again, and he did it through his life-giving Word. Later Peter writes in chapter 3, “Baptism now saves you.” Jesus does the work for us as we are born again.  And each day, you live out your Baptism as Jesus forgives you in the name of the triune God that gives Baptism its saving power! This Baptism is also connected to Jesus’s Resurrection, where Scripture talks about him being the “firstborn” of the new creation.  Your Baptism connects you to the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Peter says just that. He says God “has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” Christ was dead, and now he is risen. And therein lies the decisive act in all of history. Christ’s Resurrection from the dead gives substance to the excellent news, connects us to Christ in Holy Baptism, and forms the basis for the hope of our resurrection.Just like our birthday, there will also be our death day.  We do not die without hope the day we leave this earthly life.  Peter tells us about this future in our text. He says we have been born again to a living hope, “to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you.” “Inheritance”–that is what you receive. God gives you the gift of an “imperishable” inheritance–it doesn’t have an expiration date. An “undefiled” inheritance–nobody can mess with it. An “unfading” estate–that won’t get weaker or watered down. And this inheritance is being “kept in heaven for you,” where it will remain safe and secure.  You have been born again to a living hope.  Christ is risen!Gracious Lord, we give you thanks that in Holy Baptism we receive forgiveness of sins, deliverance from death and the devil, and eternal salvation.  On our baptismal anniversary continue to bless us by your Word and Spirit that we faithfully keep the covenant into which we have been called, boldly confess our Savior and finally share with all your saints the joys of eternal life; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  (Prayer for Anniversary of a Baptism - modified - LSB page 310- Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 17, 2023Today's Reading: Acts 5:29-42Daily Lectionary: Exodus 22:20-23:13, Luke 4:16-30 “But Peter and the apostles answered, ‘We must obey God rather than men.’” - Acts 5:29In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Christ is risen! We hear quite a bit during the season from the book of Acts. On the second Sunday of Easter, Acts 5 speaks to us about the cost of confessing Christ. Peter and the apostles were rejected and even suffered for the confession of Christ.  We might not have been imprisoned or beaten for confessing Christ, but that doesn’t mean it will never happen. The extraordinary comfort we find in this reading is that the Church is an unstoppable force.  Starting with Acts, people hear the Gospel and come to faith in Christ.  People are being told of the freedom from sin; they receive Christ's fulfillment of the Law.  The world hates this and is opposed to this, but Jesus says very clearly that the gates of hell will not overcome the church.  However, that doesn’t mean that the church won’t be brought to the doorsteps of hell itself while here on earth. This is where we pick up Peter’s response… “We must obey God rather than man.”  It is essential to see how bold of a statement this truly is.  They just killed Jesus for doing the same thing; what’s to stop them from doing the same to the apostles?Here is where it gets exciting and compelling for the Christian faith.  An opponent to the faith, Gamaliel, stands up and gives a speech about all the messiahs who had a following in recent years and that when they died, so did their following. These religious leaders knew that Jesus had risen from the dead, so some were trying to do whatever they could to stop the spreading of this message.  But others did not want to be found on the side fighting against God.  Gamaliel’s words are profound“So in the present case I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or this undertaking is of man, it will fail; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found opposing God!” So they took his advice,”  The church today might seem like it is in an uphill battle, and reality, it is.  However, we can take heart that our forefathers in the faith, including the disciples, endured so much for the sake of the Gospel.  As they lived and breathed out the life of Jesus, they were also taking up the cross of Jesus and living out His life in them.  A life of opposition, a life of suffering, but also a life of rejoicing and endurance. He overcame death, and now all authority in heaven and earth has been given to Him!  His church will never fail!  Christ is risen! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.As true as God’s own Word is true, Not earth nor hell’s satanic crew Against us shall prevail. Their might? A joke, a mere facade! God is with us and we with God — Our vict’ry cannot fail. (LSB 666:3)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 16, 2023Today's Reading: John 20:19-31Daily Lectionary: Exodus 20:1-24 Luke 4:1-15“Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so, I am sending you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.”  John 20:21-23In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Christ is risen! I don’t like to call Thomas ``doubting Thomas.”  We are no better than Thomas; he was just blatantly honest about the whole Resurrection of Jesus thing.  Yet, despite the questions, fears, and doubts about the Resurrection, Jesus is still giving peace, forgiveness, and strength.  Jesus doesn’t sit down and re-catechize his disciples. He breathes the Holy Spirit and establishes the pastoral office through the disciples.  Why did Jesus institute the office of the holy ministry here? Why did He send out the apostles? Why did He send out pastors? Every ordained pastor hears these words from John 20, “As the Father has sent me, even so, I am sending you. And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of anyone, they are forgiven; if you withhold forgiveness from anyone, it is withheld.’” Jesus knows that no one is going to listen to anyone but Him. So how does He speak? Pastors speak in the stead and by the command of Jesus. Whoever receives the forgiveness of the pastor receives the forgiveness of Christ. Any pastor will tell you that we’ve had people object to this... ​who do you think you are... forgiving sins.​ This is why pastors do this.Not because we are better than others or more pious, but because Jesus sends them out to do this, and His spirit goes with them and is given. It is wild that from that upper room, with ten and eleven hiding disciples behind locked doors, this word of forgiveness has been breathed and spoken throughout the world. It could have died there (and by any earthly amount of reason, it should have!), but the apostles went out without fear. Thomas apparently went all the way to India. They were changed by the Spirit, given them through the Words and breath of Christ.Christ speaks today as well. Not by merely telling stories and information about Him but by proclaiming to all what He has done for us.  Who would make up a religion where a risen lord could even be doubted? Better yet, this risen Lord is patient. Thomas says that he will never believe, and how long does Jesus wait? Eight days. Why didn’t Jesus run to Thomas immediately and beg him to believe? Because He is not worried. He is patient. He is calm. He will do what is right and good. And so it will go for you. Take heart. Do not fear. The Peace of the risen Lord Jesus Christ is with you. Christ is risen! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, grant that we, who have celebrated the Lord's Resurrection, may by Your grace confess in our life and conversation that Jesus is Lord and God; through the same Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.  Collect for Easter 2- Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 15, 2023Today's Reading: Ps. 105:4-7; antiphon: Ps. 105:8Daily Lectionary: Ex 19:1-25, Heb 13:1-21Remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered,  Psalm 105:5.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Christ is risen! An old saying says, “those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it.”  This statement is typically used to remind us of our past failures and faults and that we hopefully learned from them and didn’t repeat them.  But what about the joyous parts of our history?  My dad passed away almost 20 years ago, and I have a long account of memories, joys, and sorrows I shared with him.  I often recall those things with my children and even try to imitate what I learned from my father. As Christians, we have a shared history recounted in the Holy Scriptures.Psalm 105 recounts and celebrates God’s history with Israel, closely connected to the psalm before and after. These three psalms follow Israel’s history from Creation and the Fall (Psalm 104) to God’s call of Abraham to the conquest of the land (Psalm 105), ending in Israel’s exile (Psalm 106). Today’s reading shares family stories of God’s faithfulness.The Psalmist calls people to “remember the wonders he has done” (v. 5). Later in the Psalm; we are reminded of the promise God made to Abraham to give his descendants the land of Canaan (vv. 8–11).   One theme runs through this psalm: God keeps His promises!   Even today, we are reminded of the history of the salvation that Jesus continues to give for the world's life.  In Divine Service One, during the Eucharistic Liturgy, we hear after the Words of Institution the proclamation of our history in Christ “As often as we eat this bread and drink this cup, we proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.  O Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father, in giving us Your body and blood to eat and to drink, You lead us to remember and confess Your holy cross and passion, Your blessed death, Your rest in the tomb, Your Resurrection from the dead, Your ascension into heaven, and Your coming for the final judgment.   As Jesus first gave the Eucharist to His disciples, this blessed meal has been passed down to us today to eat and drink.  We remember and recall Jesus’ passion, Death, and Resurrection in this meal.  We repeat and celebrate our history over and over each Sunday.  We recognize the Lord’s faithfulness and the works He has done. By this history, we are never doomed but redeemed and saved.  Christ is risen! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, God of grace, govern our hearts that we may never forget Your blessings but steadfastly thank and praise You for all Your goodness in this life until with all Your saints, we praise You eternally in Your heavenly kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Collect for Thanksgiving to God - LSB page 310)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 14, 2023Today's Reading: Acts 10:34-43Daily Lectionary: Ex 18:5-27, Heb 12:1-24 “So Peter opened his mouth and said: “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality”  Acts 10:34In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Christ is risen! Inclusion is a trendy word today and is constantly shoved in front of our faces.  There is nothing wrong with inclusivity, but the world’s views often seem one-sided.  If one group wants the freedom to live their own life, even if it's against God’s law, then we, as Christians, rarely are included in confessing what we believe.  We’ve gotten wrapped up in this for sure.  We have all worried about our words, actions, and social media posts and if they fit the need for inclusivity. Acts 10 today speaks volumes about our Christian call to love others without discrimination; too often, we make distinctions between them and us or classify some people as worthier than others before God.  God certainly shows no partiality concerning His Law and Gospel, and these gifts are not only for us but also for the life of the whole world.  Today Peter begins his discourse with the profound declaration: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right.” By saying this, he affirms that there is no distinction between Jew and Gentile – God looks at everyone equally. He then recounts how a vision he received showed him three times that foods once deemed “unclean” according to Jewish tradition were acceptable offerings to God. As the body of Christ today, we can recognize all people as part of God’s creation and the people for whom Jesus died. As one confesses their sins against God’s all-inclusive Law, there is all-inclusive forgiveness for everyone, no matter their sins.   “Everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” Salvation is available to all people – because Christ died for the sins of the whole world, every last one of them, committed by everyone.  So, yes, be inclusive, but be inclusive of what our Lord teaches us.  “Love your neighbor as yourself,” “Pray for your enemies….” Each person was made by our loving Creator and deserved respect regardless of whether they know Him. Yet we also pray that many more may be turned to repentance to receive the all-inclusive savior who died for all and rose for all so that we might have life to the fullest.  Christ is risen!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.All are redeemed, both far and wide,  Since Thou, O Lord, for all hast died.  Grant us the will and grace provide  To love them all in thee!   LSB 852 vs. 4- Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 13, 2023Today's Reading: Jeremiah 31:1-6Daily Lectionary: Exodus 17:1-16, Hebrews 11:1-29At that time, declares the LORD, I will be the God of all the clans of Israel, and they shall be my people.” Jeremiah 31:1In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Christ is risen!  We live and die by time. Whether getting up in time for school or getting to work on time, we have a clock on our wrists, phones, or computers.  Watching time consumes so much of our day. Today Jeremiah says, “At that time…” Jeremiah 31:1.  But what time is he talking about?  Is it something in the past, today, or in the future?  The answer is “Yes, but only through Jesus’ Resurrection!”  During the time of Easter, we tend to focus on Jesus’ victory over death and how that impacts us now and in the future. But what about the past?  Jesus’ Resurrection isn’t bound by time or space; it is for all people of all times, for He is the alpha and omega, the beginning and the end.  In our reading today, the people of Israel are told that they will be freed from the yoke of their captives, freed from slavery, and restored to the Promised Land. Jeremiah is speaking to the people as they are in exile in the land of Babylon. They have all been separated from the Land, the Holy City, and the Temple. They certainly are wondering what God thinks of them if He is even with them. Jeremiah’s words would have brought them comfort. But Jeremiah’s words are not just for those who lived in the past; they are for us today and in the future. Jesus speaks about this in Luke 24 with His disciples “And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets; He explained to them what was written in all the Scriptures about Himself.”  Luke 24:7Jeremiah speaks of Israel’s restoration today, but this is not just for those of the past; it is for all time!  This restoration is understood as a resurrection brought back into the heavenly Jerusalem.  But when will this be completed? What is the timeframe of the Messiah?  Scripture tells us, “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation” (2 Corinthians 6:2).   Christ Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever, for all time and into eternity.   We do not need to worry about the times of today, yesterday, or in the future.  By His Resurrection, Jesus “…has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart, yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.”  Christ is Risen!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Take heart, have hope, my spirit,  And do not be dismayed;  God helps in ev’ry trial  And makes you unafraid. Await His time with patience  Through darkest hours of night Until the sun you hoped for     Delights your eager sight.  LSB 754 vs. 3- Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR. Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 13, 2023Today's Reading: Jeremiah 31:1-6Daily Lectionary: Ex 17:1-16, Heb 11:1-29At that time, declares the LORD, I will be the God of all the clans of Israel, and they shall be my people.” Jeremiah 31:1In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Christ is risen!  We live and die by time. Whether getting up in time for school or getting to work on time, we have a clock on our wrists, phones, or computers.  Watching time consumes so much of our day. Today Jeremiah says, “At that time…” Jer. 31:1.  But what time is he talking about?  Is it something in the past, today, or in the future?  The answer is “Yes, but only through Jesus’ Resurrection!”  During the time of Easter, we tend to focus on Jesus’ victory over death and how that impacts us now and in the future. But what about the past?  Jesus’ Resurrection isn’t bound by time or space; it is for all people of all times, for He is the alpha and omega, the beginning and the end.  In our reading today, the people of Israel are told that they will be freed from the yoke of their captives, freed from slavery, and restored to the Promised Land. Jeremiah is speaking to the people as they are in exile in the land of Babylon. They have all been separated from the Land, the Holy City, and the Temple. They certainly are wondering what God thinks of them if He is even with them. Jeremiah’s words would have brought them comfort. But Jeremiah’s words are not just for those who lived in the past; they are for us today and in the future. Jesus speaks about this in Luke 24 with His disciples “And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets; He explained to them what was written in all the Scriptures about Himself.”  Luke 24:7Jeremiah speaks of Israel’s restoration today, but this is not just for those of the past; it is for all time!  This restoration is understood as a resurrection brought back into the heavenly Jerusalem.  But when will this be completed? What is the timeframe of the Messiah?  Scripture tells us, “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation” (2 Corinthians 6:2).   Christ Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever, for all time and into eternity.   We do not need to worry about the times of today, yesterday, or in the future.  By His Resurrection, Jesus “…has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart, yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.”  Christ is Risen!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Take heart, have hope, my spirit,  And do not be dismayed;  God helps in ev’ry trial  And makes you unafraid. Await His time with patience  Through darkest hours of night Until the sun you hoped for     Delights your eager sight.  LSB 754 vs. 3- Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 12, 2023Today's Reading: John 21:1-14Daily Lectionary: Ex 16:13-35, Heb 10:19-393 Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will go with you.” They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Christ is Risen! Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will go with you.” They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.How much proof do you need to believe something? If someone proves something to you, do you believe it or return to your old thoughts, beliefs, and ways?  In the Gospels, Jesus’ disciples were with Him for three and a half years.  They heard Him teach, saw and participated in the miraculous, and heard Him speak plainly about His Death and Resurrection.  Now in the whole course of the Resurrection of Jesus, we see Jesus over and over revealing Himself to His disciples once again. Just before today’s reading, Jesus reveals Himself to Thomas and the twelve and shows His hands and side.  He even tells them, “Do not disbelieve, but believe.” (John 20:27).  At the very beginning of John 21, the disciples have returned to their old life of being fishermen before Jesus ever called them.  How much proof do they need to believe that Jesus is true God and true Man and the King of Kings? There is confusion, chaos, and indecision in their minds regarding what this all means. Yet, notice that Jesus doesn’t try any new tricks to convince them. He goes back to Luke chapter 5 with the disciples.  Just at the beginning, the disciples catch many fish John 21.  They have come full circle to where it all began with them.  Instead of bashing these disciples for ignorance, take comfort from this passage.  Faith in Jesus is always a challenging road.  The Holy Spirit is willing, but our sinful flesh is always weak. We are constantly battling to return to the old ways of our Old Adam.  When we find life burdensome and question who Jesus is and has He truly loved us, we find ourselves like the disciples.  Yet, Jesus does not have any new tricks. He reminds us of our Baptism, where we were crucified and resurrected with Him and called to walk in the “newness of life” (Romans 6).  Your Baptism points you back to the waters where Christ gave you new birth from above. The baptismal font reminds you of who you are in Jesus despite your questions, doubts, or uncertainty.  Jesus also prepares a meal for you.  Just as the feeding of the 5,000 and the preparation of breakfast on the seashore (notice the bread and fish again!) Jesus feeds us as well.  Even after seeing the resurrected Lord Jesus and being invited to breakfast, one disciple dares to ask, “Who are you” - John 21:13.  Likewise, Jesus bids us to the feast even with our fears, doubts, questions, and uncertainty. In the Eucharist, He forgives you of all your sins and strengthens your faith in Him. Blessed are you who have not seen and yet believe. Christ is Risen! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.For today among His own  Christ appeared, bestowing  His deep peace, which evermore  Passes human knowing. Neither could the gates of death  Nor the tomb's dark portal  Nor the watchers nor the seal Hold Him as a mortal.  - LSB 487 vs. 4 - Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 11, 2023Today's Reading: Luke 24:36-49Daily Lectionary: Ex 15:19-16:12, Heb 10:1-18“Have you anything here to eat?” Luke 24:40In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.   Christ is risen! If you ever attend a funeral at a church and the pastor doesn’t preach on the physical Resurrection of Jesus and the promise of the same resurrection of the deceased, you’ve been cheated.  Jesus points to this important promise of the bodily resurrection.  He points to it with a question with six simple words. “Have you anything here to eat?”  What an odd question Jesus asks at the height of all the commotion and craziness of His Resurrection.  He rises from the dead, He appears to them, He shows His hands and feet, they still can’t believe it and then He asks for grub?  Believe it or not, this is an incredibly important question Jesus asks. So many in the early Christian church twisted and rearranged the Resurrection of Jesus.  They said His body was stolen or the disciples were seeing things, they were delusional in the middle of their fears.  Others have said that Jesus only rose spiritually but not physically.  However, if Jesus only rose spiritually then our faith is in vain. This is why Jesus asks for something to eat. Despite what the movie Ghostbusters portrays, spirits or ghosts cannot eat physical food.  You have to have a physical body to eat physical food. This is why Jesus asks the question, He shows them by eating, that He has physically risen from the dead!  Why is this important for you and me?It means that our resurrection will also be physical. You and I will one day be physically raised from the dead. Think of that: in your Baptism, you are promised that you not only have been crucified with Jesus but also risen with Jesus. (Cf Romans 6).  We say in the Creed “I believe in the resurrection of the body…” The promise of heaven is not the end but the beginning.  There always must be a resurrection.  Jesus eating fish means that our bodies after the resurrection will be changed, just like Jesus’ body was changed. Rather than me going on and on about this, let St. Paul remind you.  “Listen, I will tell you a mystery! We will not all die, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For this perishable body must put on imperishability, and this mortal body must put on immortality.” 1 CORINTHIANS 15:51-54. We will be raised from the dead, physically, and in the end, Jesus will call us out of our graves to rise physically in the new heavens and new earth forever.  Christ is risen!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Your name we bless, O risen Lord,  And sing today with one accord  The life laid down, the life restored: Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!  LSB 475 vs. 4- Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 10, 2023Today's Reading: Luke 24:13-35Daily Lectionary: Ex 15:1-18, Heb 9:1-28When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight. Luke 24:30-31In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  Christ is risen! Saint Luke recounts that on the Sunday of the Resurrection, two disciples of Jesus were going from Jerusalem to Emmaus. They were overwhelmed with all the news of hearing about the angel’s announcement that Jesus was alive (v. 22ff) but still had doubts about the Resurrection. They were so immersed in their sadness and confusion that they could not recognize the risen Jesus in the person walking alongside them.Do you notice how Jesus deals with these disciples?  There, without any fuss, Jesus appeared to them and walked with them, his conversation helping to alleviate their fears.  But then He speaks plainly with them “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.”  Luke 24:26-27, Jesus joins them as they go along their way, but He also speaks to them plainly about how the Scripture points to Him.  Soon He will be ascending to His Father and removed from their sight.  Later as He sits with His disciples, He takes bread, blesses it, and breaks it.  It isn’t until Jesus breaks the bread and vanishes that they realize they have seen the risen Lord Jesus.  But why does Jesus speak and break bread and then disappear?  There were so many more questions, so many answers needed, and so many fears to be calmed.  Jesus speaks, breaks bread, and then disappears from their sight to show them how He will be with us always to the very end of the age.  The Word and Sacraments are how He will work with HIs church after the Ascension.  Later Luke tells us in Acts chapter 2 that the early disciples followed this pattern of Jesus revealing Himself to all the world.  “They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”  Acts 2:42You may find yourself like these disciples, full of questions and doubts.  Is this Jesus real?  Did He rise from the dead?  Or you may have more significant fears concerning yourself, your family and friends, this world, and our daily darkness and decay.  But take heart; Jesus meets you in this life every time you gather around His gifts that are given to you. Just like those first disciples that Easter Sunday, Jesus He reveals Himself to us every Sunday as Scriptures and the Eucharist are spoken and distributed by Jesus through your pastor.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Here would I feed upon the bread of God, Here drink with Thee the royal wine of heav'n;  Here would I lay aside each earthly load,  Here taste afresh the calm of sin forgiv'n.  LSB 631 vs. 2- Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 9, 2023Today's Reading: Matthew 28:1-10Daily Lectionary: Ex. 14:10-31, Heb 9:1-28“He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay.”  Matthew 28:6In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.   Christ is Risen!! Heard any good jokes lately? Believe it or not there were some Church Fathers who said that at Easter God played a practical joke on the devil by raising Jesus from the dead. They called it the ‘Risus paschalis — the Easter laugh,'”.  As Lutherans being serious and liturgical types, this might seem disrespectful and distasteful. But maybe there is something to this. The world needs a serious laugh, because everyone has become so serious.As church people we can take ourselves much too seriously. Life can be hard. Life can give us fears. Life is painful. But Easter means that life is God’s, and God has the last word. So today why not smile, relax, and laugh. He is risen!Because this is the one thing that actually matters, and if it’s not true, then everything else is pointless, and your life is just waddling towards the grave. But no, in fact, Christ is risen!They killed Him! Crucified Him! The world, we all, turned our back on Him! The best friend we’ve ever had, and we betrayed Him! God Who has become our dear Brother! And yet our efforts  are a colossal failure. Jesus is right. Forgive them for they know not what they do.  We don’t know what we are doing, and we never really have. The world survives on grace and that is absolutely amazing.  Amazing enough to cause us to laugh a little or a lot.  Jesus told them pretty explicitly that He would be raised on the third day. And they run to the tomb, and see the Angel of the Lord sitting on the rock that was sealed shut. God sends his messenger to show and declare He sits on death and laughs.  “Death, where is your victory?”This really is the most remarkable thing that has ever happened. Christ is risen! The women  run to the other disciples! ​I have seen the Lord!  Mary’s words are enough. ​ And ever since, the church has said these words, on this day, early on the first day of the week. ​I have seen the Lord!​ What joy! If a crucified Jesus is raised from the dead, death is overthrown! There will be more Resurrections. You will be raised, for death cannot grip you, for all you who have been baptized into His death have also been baptized into His Resurrection! He is not worried. He is not angry. He is alive! Truly alive! Be of good cheer and do not lose heart! Let out a little laughter and joy today.   Christ is risen! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, for our redemption You gave Your only-begotten Son to the death of the cross and by His glorious Resurrection delivered us from the power of the enemy. Grant that all our sin may be drowned through daily repentance and that day by day we may arise to live before You in righteousness and purity forever; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. - Collect for Easter Sunday- Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 8,  2023Today's Reading: Matt 27:57-66Daily Lectionary: Ex 13:17-14:9, Heb 7:1-22Matthew 27:59–60: “And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen shroud and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had cut in the rock. And he rolled a great stone to the entrance of the tomb and went away.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Bible isn’t much on the in-between.  We have Christmas, then nothing until Jesus’ Ministry. No teenage Jesus. We get the cross and resurrection. Then some stuff about the last day.  But not much in the middle, where we spend every day. So people write books to try and fill in the gap. We’re stuck in between Easter and the Last Day. And the in-between is where all my problems and sins and trials live. I think Easter vigil is for this.  Christ is dead and buried. He will rise tomorrow. But how do we feel today? Diet sad? Lowkey happy? What do we do in between? The Creed defines it for us in four words. He descended into hell. This was the in-between of the cross and resurrection. And even then, Jesus proclaimed the victory to the spirits in prison. Jesus kicked down the doors to hell. The cross was a real victory over the power of Satan, over the power of death. The reality was then, even before the triumph of Easter.  We live in the in-between, waiting, but the victory is already won. The devil still exists. But he lost. You still have sins, but they’re forgiven. You still have trials, but you’re a saint, a member of the host of heaven, waiting for the resurrection. You’re tied to it today. Because Jesus who died is risen. Our Life is in between the already and the not yet, but we have the victory even now. Just as we know what’s coming tomorrow, we know for ourselves too. Christ is risen. We will rise. The in-between is already answered. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Christ Jesus lay in death’s strong bands For our offenses given; But now at God’s right hand He stands And brings us life from heaven. Therefore let us joyful be And sing to God right thankfully Loud songs of alleluia! Alleluia! (Christ Jesus Lay in Death’s Strong Bands (LSB 458:1)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 7,  2023Today's Reading: John 18:1-19:42Daily Lectionary: Ex 12:29-32, 13:1-16, Lam 5:1-22, Heb 6:1-20, Psalm 22In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Everybody’s made the joke about “Good” Friday.  Good for us. Bad for Him. It’s not just of boomers, but of the devil. Satan can never undo what was finished when Jesus died to save you. So he tries to twist it, whispering that this sacrifice might not be good in Jesus’ eyes. That you should feel guilt when you look at the cross.  Look at the suffering our Lord endured because you sinned.  Could you really meet His eye there? Satan tries to work guilt from the cross Jesus willingly bore to bring you comfort. He didn’t die on the cross so you would feel bad about it. He died to forgive you.  Yes. He hurt for you. He hurt because of you. Why’s that bad? Not just good for us, but for Him too. He was willing to drink of this cup to the dregs for you. He rejoiced to see this hour where you were saved. If you want to feel guilt, look to the Law, look to the Word of God whom you say you love and then disregard so quickly, look to the people you hurt, look to the damage you do to yourself even though God calls you precious. See the damage your sin has done, the things you’ve broken. Sin is bad. It breaks stuff. Feel bad about that, but when you feel guilty that Jesus suffered and died for you, it's really only guilt that someone would dare to love you that much. That’s a value question that you don't get to decide. God shows your value. More than silver or gold. Holy precious blood. Innocent suffering and death. This is what you are worth. This is how priceless you are. You are worth that much. It was Love that put Him there for you, and yes it hurt, yes it’s graphic, but He said it Himself, if this is how to save His beloved, He will go, not just against His will, but even gladly.  Good Friday wasn't just good for you and bad for Jesus. It was good for Him too, because He got to do for His beloved that which He was given to do. He got to love you, because love looks like something. Not just a feeling. An expression.  A sacrifice. Love looks like this. And Jesus loves you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Here we have a firm foundation, Here the refuge of the lost: Christ, the Rock of our salvation, Is the name of which we boast; Lamb of God, for sinners wounded, Sacrifice to cancel guilt! None shall ever be confounded Who on Him their hope have built. (Stricken, Smitten, and Afflicted, LSB 451:4)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 6,  2023Today's Reading:  Matt 26:17-30Daily Lectionary: Ex 12:1-28, Lam 4:1-22, Heb 5:1-14, Psalm 31Matthew 26:26–28: “Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Communion is actually the true Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ under the bread and wine, instituted by Christ Himself for us Christians to eat and drink.  Like...really. Jesus' blood. Same blood that flowed down from His hands and side on the cross. For you. Drink it. Seriously. We have to admit that's off putting. When the funny looking pastor in funny clothes holds it up and says "the peace of the Lord be with you always" he's showing you where peace comes from. It’s not in the air. It’s not in each other. It’s in the bread that is His body.  These words "Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins" show us that in this Sacrament forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation are given us through these words. If you eat Jesus' Body and drink His Blood your sins will be forgiven and you will have life and salvation. Not symbolically. The cardboard-tasting thing called bread and bottom shelf wine are the most precious gifts in all of creation. Eat and drink them and you'll have everything God has to give you. It's so hard to believe that the Holy Spirit has to do it for you. It still leads people to recoil. It's ridiculous. Invite someone to church, and see how quickly the Communion talk feels like more of a burden than a gift. But Communion is not an excuse. It's not a burden. It's not something we need to reason away or struggle to justify. It's an answer. A gift. A hope given for us to cling to in the darkest of days for the worst parts of us. This is for sinners. This is for you, full of jealousy, guilt, shame, rage, and sin. We don’t get fixed by ignoring reality, cramming in a room for a meal and pretending everything is OK when it isn't. We’re saved by the God who feeds us with His body and blood. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Be Thou my consolation, My shield, when I must die; Remind me of Thy passion When my last hour draws nigh. Mine eyes shall then behold Thee, Upon Thy cross shall dwell, My heart by faith enfold Thee. Who dieth thus dies well. (O Sacred Head, Now Wounded, LSB 449:4)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 5,  2023Today's Reading: Luke 22:1-23:56Daily Lectionary: Ex 10:21-11:10, Lam 3:1-66, Heb 4:1-16Luke 22:46: “and he said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation.””In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.The Garden of Gethsemane is where I brought every idea of what my life should be like, then stared dumbfounded as they were dashed to pieces in front of me.The Garden of Gethsemane is where I came to the painful realization that my life was not turning out according to plan.I think that’s what it’s there for. It forces us to be honest about our weaknesses. Peter wandered into Gethsemane with hopes of steadfastness, promising to never abandon, let alone deny his Lord. He came with a sword, ready to cut ears off for Jesus. Before the rooster crowed, that all fell apart. Judas came with schemes to profit. By the end of the weekend, he died broke and alone. Mark showed up just not wanting to do anything stupid to embarrass himself. He accidently ran away naked. All of the disciples entered Gethsemane with zeal and daydreams of God’s wonderful plan for their lives. They were ready to seize every great thing they were sure He had planned. Then they all fell asleep. Twice.The Spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.The Garden of Gethsemane is where we find that out. But none of them came to the garden alone. Jesus was there all along, praying through sweat and tears of blood. “Thy will be done.” God’s will is done in Gethsemane. It always is.God’s will is done among us also. The Garden of Gethsemane isn’t where God walks me from where I am to where I want to be. It’s where my quest for power like Peter, love of money like Judas, sheer stupidity in the face of reality like Mark, and laziness like all the sleeping disciples are called exactly what they really are. Sin.Yet, Jesus abides in the Garden of Gethsemane for sinners. For me, for you. For when everything falls apart, and for us who broke it. Christ willingly walked down the only path left to Him. He died for the sake of the people. For us. To forgive our selfish sins that condemn us. To bear God’s wrath Himself in order to save us. He will drag us out of our sins, through Gethsemane to the cross, and all the way to the Resurrection on Easter morning. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.What language shall I borrow To thank Thee, dearest Friend, For this Thy dying sorrow, Thy pity without end? O make me Thine forever! And should I fainting be, Lord, let me never, never, Outlive my love for Thee. (O Sacred Head, Now Wounded, LSB 449:3)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 4,  2023Today's Reading:  Mark 14:1-15:47Daily Lectionary: Ex 9:29-10:20, Lam 2:1-22, Heb 3:1-19Mark 14:30–31: “And Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” But he said emphatically, “If I must die with you, I will not deny you.” And they all said the same.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. I don’t know why, but we love the idea that God would test our faithfulness. Peter doesn’t hear this as a sad statement of reality, a warning he’s going to need some help. It’s a challenge. A test. Peter would never do that. He responds. “Nuh uh.” If I must die with you, I’ll never deny you. Everyone else might fall away but I won’t. I’ll prove I’m better than them. I’ll prove I deserve your blessingFirst, He’s God, He would know…but rather than learn from it, for some reason we have this desire to say, “if I were there I’d have never denied Him” sort of like arguments won later in the shower. We take our surroundings, and imagine ways we can prove to be steadfast. Heroes of the faith. We imagine the awfulness of the present day is a challenge to us. Society. Sin. Suffering. We’ll prove we’re faithful in the face of them. Is this some sort of test? Do you think God just wants to make sure we’re good enough? First, He’s God, He would know….but second, you prove what you are all the time. It’s called sin.You can measure it. Look to the Ten Commandments. How are you really doing?  Hear the sad statement of reality from our Lord. Before all this is over, you’ll make idols out of power and popularity. You’ll be afraid. You’ll doubt. You’ll despair. It’s a warning you’re going to need some help that we insist is some kind of challenge.  We respond. “Nuh uh.”  Why do you want this to be on you? It’s on Jesus, who bore the cross for Peter who denied, for you who were afraid. And He has not left you alone in your struggles. Breathe. Look to the cross. See Jesus there for you. Know who you are, not based on what you’ve earned, but based on what He’s given. You are baptized. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.What Thou, my Lord, hast suffered Was all for sinners’ gain; Mine, mine was the transgression, But Thine the deadly pain. Lo, here I fall, my Savior! ’Tis I deserve Thy place; Look on me with Thy favor, And grant to me Thy grace. (O Sacred Head, Now Wounded, LSB 449:2)-Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 3,  2023Today's Reading:  Matt. 26:1-27:66Daily Lectionary: Ex 9:1-28, Lam. 2:1-22, Heb 3:1-19Matthew 26:11: “For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It’s easy to question the LORD when He encourages expensive perfume being poured on his feet rather than sold to care for the poor. This is the thing that drove Judas to the chief priests for silver to betray Him. Jesus responds, “The poor you will always have with you”.  There will always be sinners who don’t care for them. And it’s unjust. It’s not ok.  We sinners have learned to speak in polarity. Black or white. Full or empty. So on one side, Judas is just wanting to care for the poor. On the other, social justice has become a topic reserved for the ungodly.  What we should see is the importance of God. And somehow we’ve found ourselves in a position where we turn our backs on either the least of these, which will end poorly on the last day according to Jesus, or Jesus, which…also will end poorly on the last day. Either we seek justice in the world or joy in our Lord, but both times come up wanting.  Instead of contrasting helping the poor with time in church, justice and joy, let them both be found in Christ. He is our justice and our justification. He is our joy. Judas assumes he loves the poor more than the God who took flesh to die for them. Jesus refuses to let poverty imposed by other sinners divorce someone from the kingdom of heaven. There will be days when it is hard to find Jesus. There will be days when the poverty of this world is overpowering. On those days, the cross matters more, not less. Christ bore the cross for the oppressors and the oppressed. For the sinners and sinned against. We gather around His gifts because no matter what we build otherwise, justice will always be out of reach. No matter how hard we try, how much we give, there will always be more pain, but there is always enough Jesus.  That doesn’t mean don’t try to care for the poor. It means make sure that above all else, the Gospel is the measurement of justice, because in Christ we are justified now. There, joy can endure all things.  n the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O sacred Head, now wounded, With grief and shame weighed down, Now scornfully surrounded With thorns, Thine only crown. O sacred Head, what glory, What bliss, till now was Thine! Yet, though despised and gory, I joy to call Thee mine. (O Sacred Head, Now Wounded, LSB 449:1)- Pastor Kent Schaaf is Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Little Rock. AR.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 2,  2023Today's Reading: Matt. 27:11-66 Daily Lectionary: Ex 8:1-32, Heb. 1:1-14Matthew 27:54: “When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!””In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Palm branches are for victory. Jesus rode into town to the palm leaves thrown down by the crowd who today yells hosanna, save us, but will yell crucify in a week. The first to lay them down were the apostles who couldn’t be prouder to find him a donkey to ride only to deny Him three times like Peter.  Marching in the parade are the ones who fought each other over who the greatest is and wrote books with subtle snubs against their neighbor like John, or as he insists on calling himself, the apostle whom Jesus loved for the whole book just to annoy Peter. Like brothers and sisters in Christ who nurture petty grudges claiming superiority is more important than reconciliation in Christ. I can’t help but wonder if the insurrectionist Barabbas would have been there, prison notwithstanding, because the idea of a religion that addresses politics before souls is all too appealing in a world where you don’t get your way, even if it does completely miss the point. The traitor Judas was there, and since he was introduced as “the one who would betray Him”, we can save ourselves the trouble of having to be concerned for his fall. After all, there are sinners, and then there are sinners, and it’s easier to just write those kinds of souls off as object lessons to the rest of us. In case it escaped your notice, we’re the same kind of sinners that populated Jerusalem years ago. This is the heavenly band for whom He rode into Jerusalem. His disciples did not understand these things at first.  We still struggle with them too. So we’re shown Jesus glorified on the cross. It was for them. He died for Peter and Judas. He died so the criminal Barabbas could escape death. He died for the Pharisees.  For all. For you. We lay down palms of victory. Palms are for winners. It doesn’t look like much until you see them waved in heaven. Behold the glorious band. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and everlasting God, You sent Your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ, to take upon Himself our flesh and to suffer death upon the cross. Mercifully grant that we may follow the example of His great humility and patience and be made partakers of His resurrection; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. - Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

April 1,  2023Today's Reading:  Introit for Holy Week Ps. 24:7-10; antiphon: Ps. 118:26Daily Lectionary: Ex 7:1-25, Mark 16:1-20Psalm 24:8: “Who is this King of glory? The LORD, strong and mighty, the LORD, mighty in battle!”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. I can see why the crowds who gathered to cry Hosanna missed it.  Hosanna.. Save us. And He does. But we measure might differently than God does. The crowds went looking for war horses. Rebellion. Jesus rode a donkey into town to die. We know the schtick about strength being made perfect in weakness. But a little might now and then still sounds…not terrible. These devotions are always the same.  I love the forgiveness of sins, but it’s still in the back of my mind.  Why can’t the LORD go do battle with Alzheimers and ALS and cancer and everything else wrong? He does. We just don’t see it until the Resurrection. In Christ, cancer has claimed 0 lives.  In the cross, God remembers us even where we forget. We are engraved on the palms of His hands. On the last day, we’ll leap out of wheelchairs and tear out the oxygen tubes and run and not be weary. But today, the crowds cry Hosanna and still mean more than God intends to give. And it’s heartbreaking to hear the words “not yet” in the face of the things that are killing us.  So Jesus rides into Jerusalem and doesn’t address the crowds. There aren’t words or explanations that will make the reasons behind our desperate prayers hurt less. Which is sort of why He rides into town, in might to die on a cross. Hurting is harder than not hurting. Jesus doesn’t ride into town to not hurt. Instead, He is mighty enough to suffer for you. For your desperate prayers that defy “not yet”, Jesus promises it is finished. He dares us to imagine the same.  You are mighty because in Him you are now strong enough to suffer. You are already bound to the victory, so you don’t need a path around the pain to get there. He makes you mighty. Might like the Lord’s doesn’t kneel to afflictions of today. It kneels to the God who drags us through them with all the same unstoppable force that drove Him through the crowds who cried Hosanna. Save us. He did. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Ride on, ride on in majesty! In lowly pomp ride on to die. O Christ, Thy triumphs now begin O’er captive death and conquered sin. (Ride On, Ride On in Majesty, LSB 441:2) Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 31,  2023Today's Reading:  Daily Lectionary: Ex. 5:1-6:1, Mark 15:33-47Mark 15:34: “And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?””In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It’s the commemoration of St. Joseph, but the Bible story is Jesus. It’s the wrong story, except it’s not. Joseph is a story about descent and then resurrection to save his people. It’s Jesus.  It’s Jesus when He is turned on by His brothers and left for dead. It’s Jesus when God works this for good. It’s Jesus when Joseph points to a savior in dreams, because the dreams are about the real Savior, the Christ. It’s Jesus when Joseph becomes a prisoner unrighteously. It’s Jesus when he becomes a servant. It’s Jesus when all this sin committed against an innocent man is somehow worked to save the same sinners. It’s Jesus when he is at last restored.  The crucifixion is the story of all of scripture. It points to the redemption of sinners in so many ways. We remember Joseph, the Patriarch, because he was a forerunner of his Savior, our Savior, the Savior of all the world who was betrayed and mocked, condemned to bear the cross for you.  Where it looked as if God had forsaken Joseph, as years passed by, God was at work. Where it looks like God has forsaken you, remember. We are not the Christ anymore than Joseph was. Joseph was not forsaken. Jesus was. He is the fulfillment of the things Joseph’s life only pointed to. When you feel far from God, abused, and cast aside, understand this is the image of your Savior, but God is not far off. He is very near, because it is here that He fulfilled all of these things and did them for you.  We have a God who not only works good out of evil, as He did in the life of Joseph, and chiefly in the suffering and death of His Son, but we have a God who promises not to be far off when evil is at hand.  That’s where He draws closest so that He can save. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Down through the realm of darkness He strode in victory, And at the hour appointed He rose triumphantly. And now, to heav’n ascended, He sits upon the throne Whence He had ne’er departed, His Father’s and His own. (Christ is the World’s Redeemer, LSB 539:3) Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 30,  2023Today's Reading:  Daily Lectionary: Ex 4:19-31, Mark 15:16-32Exodus 4:21–23: “And the LORD said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you do before Pharaoh all the miracles that I have put in your power. But I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go. Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the LORD, Israel is my firstborn son, and I say to you, “Let my son go that he may serve me.” If you refuse to let him go, behold, I will kill your firstborn son.’””In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. This is somehow more uncomfortable than the next verses where Moses’ wife throws a child’s foreskin on his feet.  God told Moses he was going to harden Pharaoh’s heart and kill firstborn kids. It leaves us struggling to find goodness in God. It seems to lend the attacks of internet atheists that much more credibility. God kills people.  A lot of the problem is that we start the same way Pharaoh does. With ourselves. We see ourselves in this world in terms of what’s ours. We see the world in terms of our rights.  Rights are a government word rooted in the Law. God doesn’t give rights. He gives gifts. He promises to Moses, a sinner, not only forgiveness of sins, but freedom. It’s not that He chooses some and condemns others. It’s that He chooses and refuses to let anyone lay claim to His redeemed. The LORD takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but He will not let the life of the wicked rob you of His promises.  Right and wrong seem to have different flavors depending on what side of the argument you’re on. Not just here. Always. So instead, look to the nature of God. He simply IS good. The gifts that He gives are good too, because they’re of Him. Even in the midst of terrible and painful realities, God does not turn back, but bears it Himself for us. He gave His own Son to fulfill even this demand. God gives good gifts to sinners. The Lord gives and the Lord takes away, but everything He does is a gift. Even when these gifts are abused. Even when they eventually break. But even your life is a gift from God. And when He takes you in death, that’s a gift too, because He gave His Son upon the cross to grant you resurrection. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.What God ordains is always good: He never will deceive me; He leads me in His righteous way, And never will He leave me. I take content What He has sent; His hand that sends me sadness Will turn my tears to gladness. (What God Ordains Is Always Good, LSB 760:2) - Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 29,  2023Today's Reading:  Luther’s Small Catechism – Ten Commandments - Third CommandmentDaily Lectionary: Ex 4:1-18, Mark 15:1-15Remember the Sabbath Day by keeping it holy. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. God wasn’t tired after making everything. The Sabbath isn’t a chance to parrot God catching His breath. The focus on abstaining from work on the Sabbath day misses the point.  The point of the Commandment is in the word holy.  You will not be holier by sitting on the couch eating junk food.  Jesus insists the Sabbath was created for man, not man for the Sabbath because this day was not given as a measuring stick for you to prove yourself to God by…doing nothing.  It only serves to prove how sinful we are that we somehow fail at even doing nothing to the point that the Pharisees would pick at each other and even our Lord.  Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.  So instead of looking to your works, look to something actually holy.  Look to Jesus. The Sabbath day won’t become holy to you who are unholy in your sins.  There’s nothing you can do to make the day holy.  It’s like trying to clean a table with a dirty rag.  The Sabbath day becomes holy for you when you’re exposed to something holy.  The Sabbath day becomes holy to you when you do not despise preaching or God’s Word, but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it.  Go to church.  Receive God’s gifts.  He insists a day be set aside to make you holy.  The reason God set aside the seventh day wasn’t because He was tired. It was so God could spend time with you. Our rest is found in receiving the Word and Sacraments that take away our sins and leave us holy.  It's also why we celebrate the Sabbath on the first day, not the seventh.  This is the day Jesus rose from the grave.  This is the day a holy God conquered unholy sin and death.  It isn’t about the day.  It’s about the gifts.  He gives you His Body and Blood to eat and drink.  He gives you His Word, promising peace, forgiveness, and joy.  He sets aside time and insists you join Him so that you would not remain in your unholiness and sin, but that He would dwell with you to cleanse you and bring you with Him to the last great day when the sabbath rest will be unending.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“You shall observe the worship day That peace may fill your home, and pray, And put aside the work you do, So that God may work in you.” Have mercy, Lord! (“These are the Holy Ten Commands” LSB 581:4)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 28,  2023Today's Reading:  Hebrews 9:11-15Daily Lectionary: Ex 2:23-3:22, Mark 14:53-72Hebrews 9:15: “Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. A covenant is a promise God makes with us.  Is the first covenant made in the garden with two trees? Eat from one, not the other? Is it made with Abraham, who believed and it was counted to him as righteousness? Moses, who gave the instructions for the shedding of the blood of goats and calves for the forgiveness of sins? The text talks about dead bulls so I can take a guess, but the last verse leaves options. There just hasn’t been a promise God has made to a people who haven’t turned around and sinned. And for what it reveals to us about Him, I’m grateful.  It isn’t just that all the dead bulls pointed to a dead Jesus. It’s that Jesus died for us. The ones who have been given the promise who turned around and transgressed against the Lord. Like Adam. And Abraham. And Moses. And Peter. And every other saint until the last great day when sins are left behind as we enter the resurrection.  Ours is the God who makes promises to sinners, then fulfills what we are unable to do. A covenant isn’t a two party deal when it comes to God. He keeps both ends. So when we find a church full of sinners, a generation of Christians who look like they tear down more than they build, a label that fits all too well on the Christians that leave you frustrated, understand that Jesus makes them promises too. He shed His blood for them, and for you too. For forgiveness for every place we transgressed in the first place. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.But Christ, the heav’nly Lamb, Takes all our sins away; A sacrifice of nobler name And richer blood than they. (Not All the Blood of Beasts, LSB 431:3)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 27,  2023Today's Reading: Ezekiel 37:1-14Daily Lectionary: Ex 2:1-22, Mark 14:32-52Ezekiel 37:4: “Then he said to me, “Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the LORD.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. This story isn’t just Ezekiel. It’s every pastor of every church, called out into a valley full of sinners cut off from one another. Addicts with secrets and not-so-secrets. Monsters.  Victims. Bones. You see it in the gossip that runs rampant in churches, in anxiety and anger, depression and fear, suffering and death. We are the valley of dry bones. And someone told us that Christian soldiers are supposed to march. The hymn might be lying. So your pastor preaches sermons. A few of us are actually good enough to make you feel better for an hour or two after church. But does it really get better? Can these bones live? O Lord, You know. I don’t.  I can tell you what His word says, but can’t make you believe it. I can tell you a sin is wrong, but can’t break your addiction to it. I can give names to every sin in Ten Commandments, but it won’t make them hurt less. But God tells the prophet, unsure of what to do or say that it’s really pretty simple. Preach the Word.  Know who your God is. He is Jesus, who opens your grave and makes you live. That’s a promise given to dry bones whether or not they’re afraid, whether or not they’re sinners, whether or not they even draw breath. God’s Word still preaches and the dying still live. Because it’s measured in Him, not the Valley.  Peace isn’t a lack of problems or a perfect church. Peace isn’t a handle on your life and a morality that doesn’t look at the Ten Commandments and find only hypocrisy.  Peace is a present God, speaking life to the dying, speaking hope to you.  The church doesn’t call us simply to strive to climb out of the valley where the bones are. It promises Jesus joins us and makes us, even us, live. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Like a mighty army Moves the Church of God; Brothers, we are treading Where the saints have trod. We are not divided, All one body we, One in hope and doctrine, One in charity.  Onward, Christian soldiers, Marching as to war, With the cross of Jesus Going on before. (Onward Christian Soldiers, LSB 662:2)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 26,  2023Today's Reading: John 11:1-45Daily Lectionary: Ex. 1:1-22, Mark 14:12-31John 11:21: “Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. I think John made sure to get this in the story not to leave us with a bad impression of Martha marked on one of the hardest days of her life. I think it’s to give us the words to speak on our own. Its bitterness and genuine anger rolled up in a confession of the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting. It isn’t just an accusation. It’s a recognition. It doesn’t ignore the problem because of Jesus. But it doesn’t dismiss it either. Something wrong happened. God could have stopped it. There will be a resurrection someday. But today, hope feels far off. Because we tend to root hope in the answer to prayers, not the God answering them.  Hope is a Lazarus who didn’t die. Hope is a Lazarus who will rise on the last day. But that leaves hope very far away when he’s four days in the tomb and rotting. It might be worth noting that throughout this entire story, every time the followers of Jesus presume to know His plans, they’re wrong. Every time they put their hope in something He can control, but not in Him, it falls apart. Because hope is not found in God answering prayers. Hope is found in God. Where God is, there is hope. And Jesus draws near to dead Lazarus.  He could have stopped it. He could have chosen not to go into Jerusalem to die. He could have chosen to punish sinners for insolence and impoliteness…and you know…sin. Instead, His will is done as absolutely done, confounding the imaginations of everyone. So maybe hope in Jesus, not what you think He’ll do. Hope is not measured in anything other than the presence of Jesus. Everything else is turned upside down. The body should never have died. The dead body should stink. And in all of it, hope is measured in something else. Jesus is near.  Which may be why He gives us His Body and Blood in church. So that hope can be measured in more than “Did I get what I wanted?” or “Did I die and go to heaven and on the last day rise?”. It’s measured in “Is Jesus here for me?” and the answer is Yes. Amen. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, by Your great goodness mercifully look upon Your people that we may be governed and preserved evermore in body and soul; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. - Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 25,  2023Today's Reading:  Luke 1:26-38Daily Lectionary: Gen 49:29-50:7, 14-26, Mark 14:1-11Luke 1:28–29: “And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Two angels visited young women. One was evil. The other good. Both made promises of greatness. One promised a life of freedom, hidden knowledge, and independence.  The other promised a cross. One pointed to something that would be so easy to take. The other spoke of something all but impossible. One offered options. The other never gave the young woman a choice.  If you were to ask the world which was good and which was evil, the answer would be near unanimous, but it was the evil angel Satan who spoke lies to Eve promising independence from God, knowledge of good and evil, and whispered of “free will” right within her grasp. Gabriel told the truth. You shall conceive and bear a son, and you shall call His name Jesus – He shall save His people from their sins. As crazy as it sounds, nothing will be impossible with God. There is no choice. No free will. This is your blessing. The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.  Therefore the child to be born will be called holy. The Son of God.The Annunciation marks just one pregnancy until Christmas, almost always in the middle of lent. They’re as joined together in the grand narrative as the two angels. The tree of the garden revealed sin. It was always meant to be answered by the tree of the cross that reveals salvation. The cross lets us call evil, evil and good, good. It lets us acknowledge our sin, and in repentance, be not afraid. Nothing is impossible with God. That’s not for you to do. It’s for Christ to do for you. Even the part where we acknowledge our sin, and in repentance, be not afraid. He will descend from heaven to become a fetus, born of a virgin and walk the road to the cross to undo death itself and then rise again just to save you. This isn’t just an arbitrary connection. It’s the presence of hope among so much that seems strange, terrifying, and upside down. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Lord, as we have known the incarnation of Your Son, Jesus Christ, by the message of the angel to the virgin Mary, so by the message of His cross and passion bring us to the glory of His resurrection;through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. - Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 24,  2023Today's Reading:  Daily Lectionary: Gen 47:1-31, Mark 13:24-37Mark 13:37: “And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.””In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Stay awake. It’s ominous. It reads like a threat that isn’t even all that veiled. It leaves us looking to the Lord returning on the last day to catch us, not to save us. It’s actually not because of how it’s written. It’s because of us.  It’s because when we hear the Lord is near, it brings to the surface everything we don’t want Him to be around to confront. We expect the Lord to show up to judge the living and the dead in great power. But there’s a missing word there. But He promises to come in great glory too. So remember the hour in which the Son of Man was glorified.  It was the cross. Jesus bore it for you to forgive you all your sins. The Lord returns on the last day with the same glory. It’s mercy in action, applied to save you. He shows up with great power, the ability to rescue you from all that is in decay down here, even yourself, and glory as of the Son of God who loves to save sinners. So stay awake. It’s not a call to avoid being caught off-guard, but to remain faithful. Hopeful. And even that He does for you. In Word and Sacrament, God calls you out of sleep. Awake o sleeper. Rise from death, and Christ will shine on you. The last day is not a trap, but a blessed hope of all Christians, because here we join our Lord, at last, to fully see our freedom from sin and death. He has already delivered us in our Baptism. He has promised to keep us to that last great day. To remain awake is to cling to these promises. To pray, come Lord Jesus, with all the Church, and to know our future, and count it as a joy. Why would we flee that to hide from the pains of this world in vice and sin and darkness? We are called to stand firm against them knowing we don’t need to hide. We don’t need to self-medicate. We are given, every week, the medicine of life in the Body and Blood of Jesus. Stay awake. Gather around the gifts. It’s a call God makes to all. Let more sinners join us in the mercies of Christ made new every day. Let more find peace that endures to the last. Stay awake, because even now you have Christ.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.For us Christ lived, for us He died, And conquered in the strife; Awake, arise, go forth in faith, And Christ shall give you life (Awake, O Sleeper, Rise from Death (LSB 697:4)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 23,  2023Today's Reading:  Ephesians 5:8-14Daily Lectionary: Gen 45:1-20, 24-28, Mark 13:1-23Ephesians 5:14: “for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.””In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Shine light on everything. If it’s of the light, it will reflect. If it’s of darkness, it will flee. It’s a simple approach to life that will guide so many decisions. If you feel like you have to hide what you’re doing, you probably shouldn’t do it. If you feel like it needs to be a secret, what are you afraid of? If it is good and of the light, it will be known for what it is. It sounds so simple. It gets so messy.  Because the world hides their sins. Honestly, we do too. We hide so much in the words, “I a poor miserable sinner” we want nobody to know.  We bury so much in our pasts. In our secrets. In our hearts.  I understand why.  But Paul promises that the thing that becomes visible in light isn’t just our misdeeds. It’s Christ.  He calls the sleeper to wake. He promises to shine, even on those who sleep under death, which only comes from sin.  Shine light on everything. Because Jesus forgives your sins. All of them. The hidden ones are not yours to keep secret. They’re Christ’s to leave buried under the cross.  For every burden we shelter in our hearts that should belong to the light, Paul implores us, not simply to behave and not drink too much.  He calls us to let the Light of the World confront our sins because He does so in order to call us out of the burdens they bring. It doesn’t mean shouting your secrets from the rooftops. But it means we have a place to bring the darkness in us. Expose it to the light and watch it flee. Our sins are brought to the Light of the World and forgiven where the Light of the World conquers death even as the sun is blotted from the sky. Light shall dwell in darkness, and the darkness shall not overcome it.  Let the light shine even where we hide our sins. Let them be forgiven. Not hidden. Not excused. Atoned for. Walk as children of light.  That means take your sins to Jesus. It is pleasing to the Lord. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lo, on those who dwelt in darkness, Dark as night and deep as death, Broke the light of Thy salvation, Breathed Thine own life-breathing breath. Alleluia, alleluia! Praise to Thee who light dost send! Alleluia, alleluia! Alleluia without end! (Thy Strong Word, LSB 578:2)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 22,  2023Today's Reading:  Luther’s Small Catechism – Ten Commandments: Second CommandmentDaily Lectionary: Gen 44:1-18, 32-34, Mark 12:28-44You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Ask ten strangers what they think about Christianity. They’ll tell you. You’ll hear some heartbreaking stuff. You’ll hear about a hateful God who despises the sinners who don’t sin like the rest of us. You’ll hear about a deadbeat God who abandoned His kids to a world of suffering.  Worse, you might just hear about a perfect God, who reserves Himself for the ones who earn His love.  The Almighty who answers the prayers of the popular kids who get strangers to pray for them or the rich kids who give money to church.  This is what happens when we break the Second Commandment.  The Second Commandment isn’t chiefly about what bad words you say when you stub your toe. Those are still bad, but worse still is when we teach falsely about who our God is.  When we attach lies to His name. It’s called false doctrine. It matters. Millions of people know the name Jesus. They just think He’s a liar.  When we attach God’s favor to our works, it’s a sin. When we teach about a far away God, it’s a great evil. Every single time, the cross is diminished. The mercy won there for you and for all the world there is hidden behind lies. God calls us not to misuse His name.  God doesn’t give you His name only to tell you not to use it. Don’t misuse it. He wants you to have it.  Pray. Praise. Give thanks. Remember who your God is. Remember what He’s done for you. For all. Pray as if it were true. Praise Him for never being far off, but always being in the midst of suffering to bear it Himself upon the cross. Give thanks that He would not save only the wealthy or the popular, but the least of these, the sinners. Us. The Second Commandment matters because it’s actually worth knowing you have a God who loves you. You have a God who won’t stand back from your misery or from your sin. He wants you to use that name. Call upon me in your day of trouble, and I will rescue you”, says your God.  “Come to me all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”  That’s worth remembering rightly. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“Do not My holy name disgrace, Do not My Word of truth debase. Praise only that as good and true Which I Myself say and do.” Have mercy, Lord! (These are the Holy Ten Commands, LSB 581:3)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 21,  2023Today's Reading:  Isaiah 42:14-21Daily Lectionary: Gen 43:1-28, Mark 12:13-27Isaiah 42:21: “The LORD was pleased, for his righteousness’ sake, to magnify his law and make it glorious.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Everyone always talks about God’s patience like it has no end.  We want things now. He’s content to wait until the right time. Isaiah disagrees. He paints a picture of the LORD so eager to act that, like a pregnant woman, He can hold back no longer so He screams, gasps, and pants.  It isn’t just a picture of God’s eagerness to punish the wicked. It’s an image of His need to forgive you.  Each day of creation that passed by before the Lord bore the cross for the world was not time spent reading a book or whatever patient people do. It’s time. It’s now. The LORD is so ready to forgive He angry screams.  Because He sees what it looks like down here. He’s not content with the suffering, the dying, or the sin and the evil that brings it.  He’s not content to see a few carve out relatively comfortable lives in a world this dark. He’s not content to see the faithful strive with morality only to fall ill and die. It’s because our best isn’t good enough. It isn’t good enough to fix what’s wrong down here. The law doesn’t show us how to behave. It shows us how things are supposed to be. And they’re not.  So the LORD magnifies the law. Shows us what things are supposed to look like. Jesus. Because anything less than Jesus’ perfection isn’t enough. The law upheld outwardly by the most moral isn’t enough. He magnifies the law on His servant, Jesus. The law is shown, finally, in its fulfillment.  Jesus is glorified.  He dies on the cross undoing sin’s wages. Forgiving you. The Father sees the cross and becomes deaf and blind to your sin. It’s on Jesus now.  It has to be, because the LORD can’t stand to see it on you. So, with a cry of pain mingled with joy and relief, even as a pregnant woman screams.  It is finished. Darkness is turned to light. Your sin is forgiven. The death of the faithful is undone.  And we can look at how things are supposed to be as a promise of God to restore them, not a standard to live up to.  We can look to Jesus and find hope. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.The Gospel shows the Father’s grace, Who sent His Son to save our race, Proclaims how Jesus lived and died That we might thus be justified. (The Gospel Shows the Father’s Grace, LSB 580:1)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 20,  2023Today's Reading:  John 9:1-41Daily Lectionary: Gen 42:1-34, 38, Mark 12:1-12John 9:2: “And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?””In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The disciples find a man born blind. They ask a reasonable question.   Whose fault is it?  There has to be someone to blame. Sometimes you can find fault.  The Ten Commandments paint a picture of how things are supposed to be. All of us fall short of this standard.  Sin breaks stuff. Sometimes that’s my fault. Sometimes it’s yours. Sometimes the sin that breaks stuff is just so ground into the dust that there’s no way to figure out who to blame, short of Adam. He brought sin into the world. He passed it through DNA to the blind man and his parents, to you and me. If you want to assign blame for misery, there’s no shortage of it. But there’s no help there either.  So when the disciples ask Jesus who to blame, He doesn’t answer the way they want. He answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.” Jesus wants more for us than wandering around in darkness finding blame to sling on each other like mud.  There’s no help in that pit. There’s no comfort. There’s nothing but darkness, dust, and death. There’s wisdom here. The law shows us our sin. Sometimes we can learn from that and aim for better, but when we can’t find a commandment being broken, stop. If you can’t find a place to learn, leave. Don’t play in that pit. You only get covered in the same darkness.  He points to Himself. He doesn’t explain this man’s blindness in a way that makes us feel better about it.  There is no feeling better about it. Even knowing who to blame doesn’t fix anything.  He points to Himself, and in doing so He addresses the real problem the disciples have. They called him Rabbi. Teacher. That’s what folks call Jesus in the Bible when they want to make clear they don’t think He’s the God He claims to be.  Where is God visible in all this?  They wanted a teacher to explain away what’s wrong and learned nothing. Rather, Jesus heals the man and shows where God really makes Himself known. In the darkness, working mercy. It’s ugly, but God reveals Himself in the darkness, in the spit and the mud. In the suffering and death. On the cross.  For the sinners and the ones marked by it. For you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Lord God, let us ever find you working in darkness to bring us light, mercy, and healing, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. - Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 19,  2023Today's Reading:  Matt. 2:13-15, 19-23Daily Lectionary: Gen 41:28-57, Mark 11:20-33Matthew 2:13: “Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.””In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Joseph’s fiancé was pregnant. He knew it wasn’t his child. People talked about it. Legend puts him a lot older than Mary. Old enough people talked about that, too. I wonder what he dreamed about before God-given warnings took over his nights.  “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”  “Rise, flee to Egypt.  Remain there until I tell you. Herod is about to search for the child to destroy him.”  I’m guessing “abandon everything and flee to Egypt to protect the kid someone else fathered with your wife” might not have been on the 5 year plan. Joseph disappears before Jesus begins His ministry.  It would be easy to remember him for his patience, selflessness, and sacrificial care for Mary and Jesus.  It would even be possible to mark him as one taken advantage of by those looking for a patron saint to represent their own feelings of insecurity and insufficiency. It might be best, though, to remember him only so far as the Scriptures do. He was the guardian of Jesus. The Husband of Mary. Faithful. In worry, he was near Jesus. In trial, near Jesus. Until death, near Jesus. Immanuel means God with us. Joseph is marked as one who was near to Jesus because Jesus was near to him. There are plenty of fathers and husbands marked for doing the right thing, and plenty more for feeling bitter about not getting enough attention. Joseph is simply the one near Jesus, and being near Jesus is enough. We remember Joseph as we can now see each other. Near to Jesus, hearing His promises and believing them, that even if we disappear from the story, we will ever be near Jesus in eternity. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, from the house of Your servant David You raised up Joseph to be the guardian of Your incarnate Son and the husband of His mother, Mary. Grant us grace to follow the example of this faithful workman in heeding Your counsel and obeying Your commands; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.- Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 18,  2023Today's Reading:  Introit for Lent 4 Ps. 27:4-6; antiphon: Ps. 25:15Daily Lectionary: Gen 41:1-27, Mark 11:1-19Psalm 25:15: “My eyes are ever toward the LORD, for he will pluck my feet out of the net.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. As a pastor, when the Lord promises rescue, I secretly get scared. I’ve been around cancer that isn’t healed.  Paralytics that still can’t walk. Addicts who relapse. I’ve heard poor sinners' desperate words and joined them in their litanies. God still said no. And I’m afraid He’ll do it again. I’m embarrassed. Of my lack of faith. But also, a little bit of Him. It’s easier to preach about a God who’s miracles work more like a vending machine. The 27th Psalm is for my fear and shame. David shows us where to look in days of trouble. We look for rescue in the things of this world. God promises it in His house. The shelter is in the House of the Lord.  The victory is given where the sacrifices are. It isn’t just a “look on the bright side, one day you’ll go to heaven” platitude.  It’s a question of which is stronger. The prayers I’ve wanted to be answered were rooted in a fear God wouldn’t help. He already has.  The temple is where He gives the victory. Forgiveness that relapse can’t undo. Salvation that isn’t measured in remission. Resurrection that accident and age can’t cripple.  The things we’re so afraid of can’t actually hurt us here. We are gathered in a fortress that stands as a shield against everything else. It’s a question of where God works. Of how He answers prayers. The desperate litanies are met by a Jesus already risen from the grave, promising us the same. Look at where Jesus is, not where you’re afraid He won’t be. He’s in your church, giving good gifts of victory over all you’re so afraid of.  In a world where everything falls down, David pleads to be found in the house of the Lord.  Because it will be left standing afterwards, even as Christ is risen. Sometimes I’m afraid God will say no. Joy isn’t found in the fear and the shame of it. So God lifts me up out of it and sets me on the rock, that is Christ. In Him, in His death and resurrection, I have a yes already given for me, and for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Why spend the day in blank despair, In restless thought the night? On your Creator cast your care; He makes your burdens light. (Rejoice, My Heart, Be Glad and Sing, LSB 737:3) - Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 17,  2023Today's Reading:  Mark 10:32-52Daily Lectionary: Gen 40:1-23Mark 10:45: “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.””In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Patrick tends to get belittled. Faithful teaching about the Holy Trinity is truncated to a 3 leaf clover or maybe a satirical youtube video in select circles. His time in Ireland is reduced to fables and jokes about snakes being driven into the sea.  In reality, Patrick was kidnapped when he was 16 and enslaved for 6 years before escaping the country of Ireland where he was brought only to return to preach the forgiveness of sins in Christ Jesus to the very nation that took Him from His family and made him a slave. He was a fierce defender of the Triune God to a culture set against the idea. Somehow, it’s easier to imagine a God who helps the faithful drown snakes than a God who is glorified in suffering. James and John want to sit at either side of Jesus in the hour of triumph. They don’t know what they’re asking for. That hour is the cross. Those seats are reserved for two thieves.  Sinners go looking for power. Jesus reveals Himself in mercy. The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve. Patrick not only confessed the Triune God, but preached to the sinners Christ died for, assuming the role of servant even to those who held him captive. There’s a reason. Stories of glory only help the powerful, and I guess the ones who hate snakes.  There’s no help for the sinners or the ones without a great escape story. When we go looking for power, only the devout end up glorified, never the sinners.  When Jesus works mercy, even thieves can be saved, and all of us join Christ in the humility of the cross  that we would be raised with Him in glory. This is a Christianity with room for sinners, with room for the lowly, with room for you. Your faith is not measured in the great works you accomplish but in the sins Christ forgives. All of them. The snake's head was crushed at the foot of the cross where your salvation was won, whether or not you chased the rest out of a country. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.I bind unto myself today The pow’r of God to hold and lead, His eye to watch, His might to stay, His ear to hearken to my need, The wisdom of my God to teach, His hand to guide, His shield to ward, The Word of God to give me speech, His heav’nly host to be my guard. (I Bind unto Myself Today, LSB 604:3)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 16,  2023Today's Reading:  Daily Lectionary: Gen 39:1-23Genesis 39:23: “The keeper of the prison paid no attention to anything that was in Joseph’s charge, because the LORD was with him. And whatever he did, the LORD made it succeed.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Whatever Joseph did, the Lord made it succeed. Joseph, of course, being the guy wrongfully imprisoned. But, like, really successfully. I wonder if Moses smirked as he wrote this stuff. If it wasn’t for this verse, we could have an inspiring “when life gives you lemons” peptalk. Roll with the punches. Make the best of it. But this happened because the LORD was with Joseph. This is the Lord’s definition of success, too. I’d rather be a normal guy lots of people ignore than the second most important person in prison.  It might be something to consider before quoting an out-of-context Bible verse about God having a plan for your life. I’m not saying He doesn’t. I’m saying you might not like it. The Lord doesn’t measure success by power over this world, but by salvation within it. The Lord measures success by the cross.  Joseph isn’t a story of rolling with the punches, but of a son being cast down and raised up to save His people.  Joseph’s story begins with a robe, a pit, and jealous betrayal and ends with a meal that sustains a people dying in a world of not enough. Success isn’t measured in power, but in the Lord moving among sinful people to work mercy and salvation where there should be none. It looks like Christ coming down from heaven to walk the road to the cross to bear your sins and die, only to rise and send forth the Holy Spirit to deliver this salvation to you in a meal of Holy Communion. Jesus being in control of the nation of Israel without bearing the cross for her is no success at all.  And for you, the Lord doesn’t mark success in wealth or power or the things of this world that pass away, but by keeping you in faith now, through death, and unto the same resurrection. Look to the Word for that. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Come, Thou incarnate Word, Gird on Thy mighty sword; Our prayer attend. Come and Thy people bless, And give Thy Word success, And let Thy righteousness On us descend. (Come, Thou Almighty King,, LSB 905:2)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 15,  2023Today's Reading:  Luther’s Small Catechism – Ten Commandments: First CommandmentDaily Lectionary: Gen 37:1-36, Mark 10:1-12We should fear, love, and trust in God above all thingsIn the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Idols are good things. The money you love more than God isn’t evil. The love of it is. The people we value more than God are the neighbors He gave you. The power you trust more than God isn’t sinful to have. It’s sinful to use it selfishly. It’s foolish to think it will save you eternally.  That’s the point. An idol is a part of creation we worship instead of the creator. That stuff isn’t God. It can’t save you.  Not even when you put the name Jesus on it. That’s my favorite trick. I name all my idols Jesus. Jesus wants me to be successful. Happy. Rich.  At least that’s what I tell myself. You can see it go wrong in two ways. First, the Scriptures never promise Jesus wants you to have those things. Second, if Jesus is only a means to an end, the end is your real god. Not Jesus. Idolatry is like getting a Christmas present and saying thank you to the present instead of the person who gave it to you. It’s not just rude. It misses the greatest thing about presents. Someone loves you enough to give you something. That’s the real gift. Idolatry takes for granted the love of the Savior and trades it in for things that moth and rust destroy. None of the things we fear, love, and trust in will be around for eternity. None of them can get you to eternity either. But Jesus already has.  It's the other side of the First Commandment coin. If God says, “You shall have no other gods”, what He also means is that He insists on being God to you. For you. He insists on being the one you trust in above all because He is trustworthy. He insists on being the thing you fear above all because His wrath consumes in a way nothing in this world can express. He insists on being what you love above all things because to see God is to see the source of all good things, and know He insists on giving them to you.  Idols aren’t bad things. They’re good gifts from God that blind us to the giver. He insists you have good things so fiercely that He gives them even to idolaters like you, then forgives you, saves you from your idols, and even from yourself by the cross that becomes our treasure.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“I am alone your God, the Lord; No other gods shall be adored. But you shall fully trust in Me And love Me wholeheartedly.” Have mercy, Lord!  (These are the Holy Ten Commands, LSB 581:2)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 14,  2023Today's Reading:  Romans 5:1-18Daily Lectionary: Gen 35:1-29, Mark 9:33-50Romans 5:8: “but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Spiritual warfare is easier when it’s us against the devil, but I am a sinner.  The problem is me. It’s the devil who would have you think the only enemies are outside of yourself and outside of our walls. In true spiritual warfare, there is no us against them. There is only Jesus for sinners. WE were the enemies of God. Not the world. Not the devil. Us. So Jesus died for you. Your sins are forgiven. So are your enemies’. The devil lost.  Now, the battleground is your conscience. It’s more than “this isn’t how it’s supposed to be”. It’s “I’m not how I’m supposed to be.”  I haven’t done enough. I haven’t trusted enough.  Spiritual warfare is the devil pointing away from the cross where Christ already won the victory for you. Christ was crucified. Christ is risen. But I’m still scared. I’m still struggling. I’m still sinning. Even if all the problems in the world went away, I’d still be stuck with me. This is where the devil fights.  So Jesus wages war for your conscience and your soul both. He fights back against the accusations of the evil one. “For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.” For you. The free gift is not like the trespass. The free gift is not found in the Law that accuses and shows what’s wrong.  It’s in the Gospel that reconciles enemies. “Now you are reconciled to God through the death of His Son.”  I am a sinner Jesus died for. No, I haven't done enough. I haven't trusted enough. I haven’t fought hard enough. But Jesus has. Now there is grace given to sinners that reconciles us to God and so reconciles us to each other. If you can’t see past the picture the law would paint of your enemies and of yourself, your spiritual warfare is simply to receive the Gospel. Receive pardon and mercy. Receive forgiveness, life, and salvation that unite us to the victory already won when Christ burst from the tomb. That unites us even to each other. We are the enemies that were reconciled to God together. We are the sinners Jesus died for. We are the baptized. We are brothers and sisters in Christ. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Preserve Your Word and preaching, The truth that makes us whole, The mirror of Your glory, The pow’r that saves the soul. Oh, may this living water, This dew of heav’nly grace, Sustain us while here living Until we see Your face. (Preserve Your Word, O Savior LSB 658:4)- Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 13,  2023Today's Reading:  Ex. 17:1-7Daily Lectionary: Gen. 29:1-30, Mark 9:14-32Exodus 17:7: “And he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the quarreling of the people of Israel, and because they tested the LORD by saying, “Is the LORD among us or not?””In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Moses is tired of the people complaining and fighting.  So the Lord tells him to hit a rock with a stick to shut them up.  The Bible is full of uncomfortable things about Jesus. He rose from the dead.  It’s easier to paper over the miracles and teachings that don’t jive with common morals today.  But when you take Jesus out of the book, it gets even weirder.  Nobody tells the story of water from a rock to prove a political point or win an argument online.  This doesn’t demonstrate kindness unless you squint.  It's easier to complain about the world that’s falling apart than recognize they’re only asking the same questions Israel did of old.  Is the LORD among us or not? Because it doesn’t really look like He is.  They asked that to the guy who ripped the sea in half and marched them through on dry ground while a pillar of fire watched.  They saw.  Society asks it surrounded by death and tragedy.  And we ask because people won’t stop being sinners.  It’s funny how we want their miracles, and they want our comforts, but we both manage to ask the same questions about God. It’s almost like the real problem isn’t how the world looks, but the sinful state of our hearts. So Jesus answers. Not in temper tantrums but in promises. The Bible makes more sense if Jesus is always in the center of it.  There is a rock, from whose side comes living water, struck to put an end to the sinful rebellion of God’s people, and that rock was Christ. He was struck. He was beaten. He was crucified and pierced for you, and from His side comes life giving water. The Lord was among His sinners to save them. It hasn’t changed. It’s been fulfilled. It answers the worry of the people not by setting them apart from the things they’re afraid of, but by forgiving their sins, our sins, so that life can be more than just an escape from the thing that isn’t the real problem. There can be hope in Him who has already saved. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Yet, O Lord, not thus alone Make me see Your passion, But its cause to me make known And its termination. Ah! I also and my sin Wrought Your deep affliction; This indeed the cause has been Of Your crucifixion (Jesus, I Will Ponder Now LSB 440:3) - Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 12,  2023Today's Reading:  John 4:5-26Daily Lectionary: Gen 27:30-45, 28:10-22, Mark 9:1-13John 4:10: “Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.””In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. This lady’s a sinner.  She has to work herself up every time she goes out in public.  She hears what she is whenever she goes out.  She’s not Jewish enough. Not married enough. She would rather not go out to that well anymore.  How can I not come back here anymore?  She actually confesses it.  Give me the water so I don’t have to get more.  I don’t want to have to come here anymore.  I don’t want to be what they stare at.  I don’t want to be what they talk about. I don’t want to be the object lesson to nice little boys and girls anymore.  Jesus asked for water and never got any.  He asked after her husband and never got an answer either.  Jesus asks after everything she needs and never gets it.  She can’t give it.  Sin is still sin.  It breaks stuff.  Salvation did come from the temple of the Jews, but Jesus is there to do more than correct her about her church-going habits and get her married.  He’s there to give.  He doesn’t wait until she feels appropriately sorry.  Her biting answers toward Jesus say plenty about how she really saw herself.  He just starts promising living water to bitter sinners.  He’s so blunt that the rest of us get uncomfortable too.  There’s no condition. It’s here. It’s free. We’d like to imagine it’s because Jesus isn’t being as polite as we imagine, but really it’s deeper.  The whole conversation points out a truth we’d rather not see.  Nobody’s saved by measuring their shortcomings, whether they be the sins acceptable by the public or not.  We’re saved by Jesus, the rock.  We’re saved by the living water that comes from His pierced side.  He shows up. He dies. He saves.  And it’s for you too.  There are no conditions. It’s free. For the sins you hide away, for the statistics you’ve become on purpose or on accident, for your guilt, for you, peace. Jesus died for you. Your sins are forgiven. You are baptized. You have the living water promised. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy, be gracious to all who have gone astray from Your ways and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast to the unchangeable truth of Your Word; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.- Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 11, 2023 Today's Reading: Introit for Lent 3 Ps. 84:1-4; antiphon: Ps. 84:5 Daily Lectionary: Gen 27:1-29, Mark 8:22-38 How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of hosts! My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the LORD; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God. (From the Introit for the Third Sunday in Lent) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Churches come in all shapes and sizes. The massive and beautiful cathedrals of Europe, The climate-controlled and cushioned-pew buildings many of us know, and the rickety lean-tos often seen in disadvantaged nations. But all of these buildings have something in common: the altar. The place upon which the elements of the Sacrament are placed for the assembled saints to receive in Holy Communion. It might be a massive and ornate slab of marble, it may be a card table, but that altar is the place where the Lord God sits in glory when we gather in worship. The presence of God is what truly makes his dwelling place lovely. Reality gets very thin around altars. Eternity begins to bleed through into our world around those places where God sits. You see it happen to Isaiah in the temple (Isaiah 6). Zechariah has a close call, too (Luke 1). No, there is no Ark of the Covenant in the Holy of Holies at your church, or any church on earth. But the altar functions in the same way. It is the Mercy Seat, the place where our Eternal God sits to bestow his gifts upon us. And when the Lord God is present among us, He doesn’t come alone. We proclaim it every time we celebrate the Sacrament: “therefore with angels and archangels and all the company of heaven we laud and magnify Your glorious name.” The indescribable beauty that is the eternal throne room of God shines into our world in a mystical way as Jesus is physically present in the Sacrament. You can joyfully sing in a cavernous building, in the room of a nursing home, around a kitchen table, or in your own pew because God himself is present there, for you. Tomorrow, when you walk into your church, look closely at the altar and take note of what makes it special. The wood or stone, the fabrics or candlesticks that adorn it, the flowers that bring it color, the Bible resting upon it. All of those things are there to remind us of God’s presence, but the biggest and most glorious clue is the communion ware set there ready for you to receive from the ever-present God of salvation Jesus, given for you. It is lovely, indeed! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. God Himself is present: Let us now adore Him And with awe appear before Him. God is in His temple; all within keep silence; Humbly kneel in deepest reverence. He alone On His throne Is our God and Savior; Praise His name forever! (God Himself Is Present LSB 907:1)-Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 10, 2023 Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary:Gen 24:32-52, 61-67, Mark 8:1-21 And they began discussing with one another the fact that they had no bread. And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember?” (St. Mark 8:16–18) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It’s easy to give the disciples grief. Today we have the benefit of hindsight and we are absolutely positive, 100% certain, without a doubt in our minds, that we would have been better and more perceptive disciples. Except not. We’d be just as bad, if not worse. Jesus had just fed 4,000 people with seven loaves of bread and a few fish. He and His disciples crisscrossed the Sea of Galilee dodging inquisitive Pharisees and their sign-seeking. Jesus is trying to make a point (as usual), and all the Twelve can think about is dinner. They’re arguing about who forgot to pack the ice chest, and Jesus has to be the parent and calm them down and try to focus their attention. They are so worried about the right now, that they have completely forgotten that the sun will rise tomorrow, whether or not they have enough to eat today. Do you see yourself in the Twelve now? It’s easy to get wrapped up in the despair and disaster of everyday troubles. Admit it, your mind has wandered during church more times than you can remember, other things have suddenly become more important than the Word of God. And that’s what Jesus is trying to get the disciples to understand; that he fed the 4,000 and had seven baskets of food left over, that he fed the 5,000 before that and had twelve baskets of food left over, that wherever He goes, abundance and healing abound. The Pharisees and Herodians were only thinking about the now, living day-to-day on the hope that they had just enough power and authority to stay in charge of things, and the disciples are getting dangerously close to that attitude. He wants them to remember that when He is with them, they will always have plenty. And that’s true today as well. Jesus is with us, providing what we need most in abundance: His Word and gifts. Along the way, He provides for our earthly needs, too, through our families and occupations. Even when we think about and focus on the wrong things, Jesus is with us to bring us back to reality; to the certainty of his presence with us to sustain, guard, and keep us always in the one true faith. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Lord, take my hand and lead me Upon life’s way; Direct, protect, and feed me From day to day. Without Your grace and favor I go astray; So take my hand, O Savior, And lead the way. (Lord, Take My Hand and Lead Me, LSB 722:1) -Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 9, 2023 Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Gen 24:1-31, Mark 7:24-37 And taking him aside from the crowd privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and after spitting touched his tongue. And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.” And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. And Jesus charged them to tell no one. But the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. (St. Mark 7:33–36) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Have you ever seen an old-time Bible movie about Jesus? They really bother me, because Jesus is always so clean and well groomed, wearing white and floating through the movie as if he was almost not even really there. We see a different Jesus in the gospels, especially today. This is the Jesus we really need to keep in our minds. This is the Jesus who lives among His people, bearing their burdens, sharing their pain, and healing their infirmities. This is the Jesus who laughs and cries, because He knows exactly what it is like to live on earth, with sin and evil around every corner; and with family and friends by your side. Jesus pulls the deaf man aside so he knows Jesus is focused on him and his needs. Sure, this isn’t very hygienic by today’s standards (what, no hand sanitizer?!?), but this is the Son of God we’re watching. Fingers in ears that don’t hear; fingers on a tongue that can’t speak. Looking to the heavens from which our help comes, and a deep sigh. All of these actions show the deaf man that Jesus is here for him. Specifically to help him and to show His might and power to those nearby. Touching, sighing, and speaking, Jesus restores what was broken. He heals what caused pain. You might not be deaf or mute, but you are afflicted by sin and death every single day. Jesus breaks into your world on a regular basis and restores you, ever so briefly in this world, but for all of eternity in the Divine Service. There, He puts his Word into your ears, and He touches your tongue with His Body and Blood to restore you. To forgive you. To grant you everlasting life and eternal salvation. You may not always understand what is happening, but Jesus sees you in your struggles, and He speaks directly to you, touches you, and assures you of His mercy, now and forever. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty and most merciful God, in this earthly life we endure sufferings and death before we enter into eternal glory. Grant us grace at all times to subject ourselves to Your holy will and to continue steadfast in the true faith to the end of our lives that we may know the peace and joy of the blessed hope of the resurrection of the dead and of the glory of the world to come; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (Collect for Times of Affliction and Distress) -Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 8, 2023 Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism - Table of Duties: To Everyone Daily Lectionary: Gen 22:1-19, Mark 7:1-23 For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Romans 13:9) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Back at the beginning of catechism class, and maybe even well before then, most kids don’t love the Ten Commandments. In fact, it’s usually the opposite, isn’t it? Between memorizing them and their meanings, many catechumens develop a hostile relationship with the Ten Commandments. Rather than looking at the Commandments as a list to be wrestled into submission though, see them instead as a guide for loving your neighbor. I always ask my catechumens “who is your neighbor?” and they eventually learn the right answer: “anyone who isn’t me!” Realizing who your neighbor is and how your relationship with all of your neighbors is affected by how you live out your faith and life is essential. It’s pretty easy to say that you’ve never murdered anyone or robbed a bank. It isn’t so easy to say you haven’t wished someone harm or pocketed something that wasn’t yours to take. The key in all of this is remembering the First Table: Commandments 1-3, which deal with our relationship with God our Father. When we get that straight, when we love the Lord our God and gather together for worship and the study of his Word, that sets us on the path of loving our neighbor. It gets us in the right frame of mind. Then, knowing how to love our God informs our love for our neighbors. The Golden Rule (which isn’t in the Bible, by the way) does help: treat others the way you want to be treated. In theory, this makes the Christian life easy—all the rules are there. All the possible ways to treat everyone are laid out in the open. In reality, though, sin makes it a lot more difficult to love our neighbors as ourselves. Their sin against us, and our sin against them complicates things. Thanks be to God that our Lord Jesus has already kept these Commandments perfectly for us, that His Death and Resurrection forgives our failures, and His Holy Spirit guides us in the way to go. How do you love Jesus? By loving your neighbors. And when you fail to love them as you should, Jesus loves you through them; especially parents and pastors who remind you that we love because Jesus first loved us. Thanks be to God that His love never fails! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty and ever-living God, You make us both to will and to do those things that are good and acceptable in Your sight. Let Your fatherly hand ever guide us and Your Holy Spirit ever be with us to direct us in the knowledge and obedience of Your Word that we may obtain everlasting life; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. (Collect For Divine Guidance) -Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 7, 2023 Today's Reading: Romans 4:1-8, 13-17 Daily Lectionary: Gen. 21:1-21, Mark 6:35-56 For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith. (Romans 4:13) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Yesterday, we looked at how Abraham was blessed by God through a promise that he would father a great nation, that all the faithful would be able to trace their lineage back to him.It is important to remember how that happened, and who was in charge. As I always like to ask, “Who’s running the verbs here?” Who was doing the blessing and promising? It was God the Father, of course, the Great I Am, who would later promise to Moses that He would guide God’s people back to the ancestral lands promised to Abraham. All of those things happened through the work of God on behalf of his people. Sure, along the way, He gave Moses the Law, the Ten Commandments, the moral and ceremonial rules for life as God’s people until the Messiah’s coming. But none of those promises came based on Abraham’s behavior or gumption. That is important to remember in our day, as well. God blesses His people. He makes promises to His children. And none of these things are based on us. God never says, “If you behave well enough, then I’ll save you.” No, He says instead: “This is my promise to you: Jesus is for you!” That’s the thing about the power of the creative and performative Word of God. It does what it says, even without your input! The living Word of God bounces off your eardrum and travels into your brain where the Holy Spirit creates faith in a mysterious way. God declares you righteous by the work of his Son, Jesus, speaks that righteousness upon you while wetting you with the water of Baptism, and when your pastor proclaims your absolution, and when that Word is tied to bread and wine made Body and Blood. In none of these things are you driving the narrative; it is all God, all the time. He declares you His child. He makes you righteous. He instills faith in you. All of it by His power and might, for you, so that you (like Abraham) would trust that He has you in His hands, safe for all eternity. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. All depends on our possessing God’s abundant grace and blessing, Though all earthly wealth depart. They who trust with faith unshaken By their God are not forsaken And will keep a dauntless heart…If my days on earth He lengthen, God my weary soul will strengthen; All my trust in Him I place. Earthly wealth is not abiding, like a stream away is gliding; Safe I anchor in His grace. (All Depends on Our Possessing, LSB 732:1-6) -Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 6, 2023 Today's Reading: Gen. 12:1-9 Daily Lectionary: Gen. 18:1-15, Mark 6:14-34 Now the LORD said to Abram…“I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Genesis 12:1-3) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. God always blesses His children, even when it doesn’t seem like it. Abram messes up. A LOT. Yet God is faithful to His promise and watches over and guides him so that He may fulfill the promise He made. Abram leaves Ur and goes on this journey to what will become the Promised Land, within which the Messiah will eventually be born. Along the way, Abram’s journey takes him through trouble in Egypt, God renames him Abraham (because of the promise), he prays for his nephew Lot’s safety in Sodom, he is faced with the unbelievable decision to sacrifice Isaac, his only son… The challenges he faces are incredible. Yet, through all of them, and even in the times when Abraham and Sarah wrest the decisions away from their gracious God and go their own way (always into deeper trouble than if they’d followed God’s direction!). The Lord is faithful to His promise. Remember that, dear baptized child of God. Your Lord and God is the same God of Abraham, the same God who guided and directed His people down through the ages until the time had fully come, and His Son was born of woman, in the same flesh as Abraham, and lived for you, and for Abraham, and for all the faithful. One of Abraham’s blessings is that billions and billions of people on earth still know his name and hold him in esteem as a great hero of the faith. No, he wasn’t perfect, and I’m sure he’d be the first to call you out for making him more than he is, but he was faithful, and that is enough. Your life might not take the same number of twists, turns, surprises, or tragedies; but I’m sure this world will cause you enough grief to wonder some days if the Lord still remembers His promises to you. Be assured that He does; He remembers you and His promise because His one and only Son, your risen Lord Jesus, intercedes for you before the Father. He does it always, because you’ve been washed in His blood, marked with his holy cross, and named in his Book of Life, just like Abraham. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Gracious God, You send great blessings New each morning all our days. For Your mercies never ending, For Your love we offer praise. Lord, we pray that we, Your people Who Your gifts unnumbered claim, Through the sharing of Your blessings May bring glory to Your name. (Gracious God, You Send Great Blessings LSB 782:1) -Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 5, 2023 Today's Reading: John 3:1-7 Daily Lectionary: Gen. 16:1-9, 15:17-22, Mark 6:1-13 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” (St. John 3:1–2) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Remember the last time the power went out? Unless you had a flashlight or your cell phone handy, you likely stumbled around for a bit trying to find your way without tripping or banging your shins into the furniture. Being lost in the darkness can be a big deal, especially when you have no idea where you are going. Nicodemus was in the dark, both literally and metaphorically. St. John says he came to Jesus “by night,” which makes sense. After all, he doesn’t want the other Pharisees to find out he’s hanging out with this guy they’ve spent so much time trying to cancel. But Nicodemus is in the dark in another way. St. John uses darkness again and again in his gospel to show us how people come to understand who Jesus is by moving from darkness into light. From not believing that Jesus is God, to understanding and believing His divinity. From the darkness of sin and death into the light of Christ, the certainty that Jesus has come for you and your salvation. Nicodemus admits that both he and his fellow Pharisees know that Jesus is a teacher from God, but they just can’t connect the last of the dots, they can’t get the cord plugged in to turn the light on. Actually, they refuse to plug it in, because they prefer the darkness. And so they stumble, they trip, they bash their shins against the cornerstone, the “stumbling block,” the scandal, that is God in the flesh. Thankfully, it isn’t up to us to plug in the cord, or to come to an understanding about Jesus on our own. This is the power and the might of the Word of God. He does it all for us. He plugs in the light, turns it on, focuses its power and brightness upon us, warms us with its glow, and makes sure it never goes out again. Jesus is able to do these things not because God is with Him, but because He himself is God. God in the flesh, for you, working to do what you cannot to bring you to faith and salvation in His mighty works. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. O God, You see that of ourselves we have no strength. By Your mighty power defend us from all adversities that may happen to the body and from all evil thoughts that may assault and hurt the soul; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. (Collect for the Second Sunday in Lent) -Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 4, 2023 Today's Reading: Introit for Lent 2, Ps. 105:4-7; antiphon: Ps. 105:8 Daily Lectionary: Gen. 15:1-21, Mark 5:21-43He remembers his covenant forever, the word that he commanded, for a thousand generations. (From the Introit for the Second Sunday in Lent) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. God always remembers, even when we forget. That can seem terrifying, can’t it? God our Father will never forget. He will always remember. And if you’re stuck on thinking that he will always remember everything wrong you’ve done, every time you’ve messed up, every instance of back-talking and “massaging” the truth for your own purposes, you’ll be terrified of him. But here’s the thing. God forgets because he remembers. It seems to not make sense, but look at what He says in His own words. In Psalm 103 the Holy Spirit inspires King David to write, “as far as the east is from the west, so far does He remove our transgressions from us.” God remembers his covenant, and his covenant says that He forgives those who repent, and that repentance is made sure in the shed blood of Jesus. That sin that has been bugging you for weeks, maybe months? Have you confessed it to God? Then He’s forgiven it! He forgives and forgets it, because He remembers that Jesus bore that sin to His cross on Golgotha. You should treat your sins the same way. Once you’ve confessed them, forget them. If God can’t remember them, then why should you? Oh, I know. It was such a terrible sin. You hurt people so badly when you committed it. And for the longest time, you didn’t really care. Then it started to bother you, so you still carry it around now as some sort of reminder about how bad a person you are. But that is not how God remembers it, or you. When God looks at you, He has to look through Jesus to see you. And when He sees Jesus, he remembers that He has forgiven all of your sins, because Jesus took them all from you and died for them, left them in His grave, and rose without them. Jesus doesn’t carry those sins anymore, so God can’t remember them. What God does remember is His promise that He forgives you, He has made you His child, and life everlasting is yours, because He has washed you in Jesus’s blood and taken all that sin away to the point that not even God remembers them. God remembers that you are His child, washed white in the blood of the Lamb. He remembers that He’s made a place for you with Him forever. Thanks be to God that He remembers, even when we forget. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty and everlasting God, direct, sanctify, and govern both our hearts and bodies in the ways of Your laws and in the works of Your commandments that through Your mighty protection we may ever be preserved in both body and soul; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (Collect for Divine Guidance)-Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 3, 2023 Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary:Gen. 13:1-18, Mark 5:1-20 As (Jesus) was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed with demons begged him that he might be with him. And he did not permit him but said to him, “Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone marveled. (St. Mark 5:18–20) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Sometimes people think that the best way to serve Jesus is to go overseas on a mission trip. Certainly, foreign missions are an integral part of spreading the Gospel, but they aren’t for everyone. Our long-term missionaries make a tremendous commitment when they move to a foreign land to preach the Gospel. Thanks be to God for them! Jesus stays local today. He heals the man possessed with demons and tells him to stay home and tell his friends and neighbors what Jesus had done for him. Sometimes, that’s the hardest thing to do. You see these people all the time. They see you all the time. They know you inside and out. Maybe you think they won’t listen to what you have to say because they know your failures. Maybe you think they’ll stop being your friends because of what you say. Not all of us have such a spectacular story to tell as this man: he went from living in a cave and wailing and breaking chains and cutting himself to ribbons with rocks to being a gentle, mild-mannered citizen once again. He probably thought, much like we do, that the same thing would happen to him. That no one would listen, that no one would appreciate what Jesus had done for him, so it would be easier to run away to a far country with Jesus to where life had to be better. But that’s not what he was given to do. The strength of our faith is its mundane and plain nature. That so much of it is…normal and boring. The day-to-day experience of our faith doesn’t have all the flash and magnificence that we often think it needs, and that’s okay. Because what you do have is Jesus. And he has done marvelous things in your life, even if you can’t see them. You were rescued from sin, death, and demons in your Baptism. Jesus feeds you his very self in Holy Communion, even if it looks rather bland. He speaks salvation into your ears every week. These are all magnificent and wonderful works, done for you. And you’ve been placed in exactly the right place to share that good news with others as Jesus has gifted you to do. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Come, celebrate, your banners unfurling, Your songs and prayers against the darkness hurling. To all the world go out and tell the story Of Jesus’ glory. (Rise, Shine, You People, LSB 825:3)-Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 2, 2023 Today's Reading: Daily Lectionary: Gen. 11:27-12:20, Mark 4:1-20 “Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path…Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil…Other seed fell among thorns…And other seeds fell into good soil and produced grain…” (St. Mark 4:3-8) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. This Gospel text tends to cause a lot of navel-gazing. It makes us look at ourselves too much; and sometimes, we use this text to judge others, too. We try too hard to figure out which kind of soil we (and the people around us) are. We look too much at ourselves and others and forget the whole point of what is happening here at the very heart of the text. So, let’s focus on the sower. Today’s farmers are very meticulous. Soil analysis, moisture content, drainage, nutrient levels—these all contribute to a successful harvest. The sower seems a bit foolish when you look at things that way. We are all about harvesting the most produce with the least amount of input. But the sower is just foolish. He throws the seed all over the place, flinging it all over the ground with not the least bit of care as to where it lands. Sure, he ultimately gets a good crop that produces thirty, sixty, and a hundred times more than he planted, but what about the wasted seed? What about it, indeed? Later, Jesus says this seed is the Word of God, and the types of soil reflect the types of people who hear it. Yes, it is imperative to be the soil in which the Word grows, but you didn’t make yourself that good soil, did you? The Sower has already plowed and prepared that soil to receive the Word. Isaiah proclaims that God’s Word never returns to him empty; it always accomplishes what He sets out to do. So also with you. God’s Word has been landing in the soil of your ears for years. The Holy Spirit has been at work, creating and sustaining your faith. Plowing and turning the ‘soil’ within you so that you might reflect that faith to those around you. The Word of God will continue to be scattered upon the earth, and there will be places and times when it lands on the road, between rocks, or among thorns. Thanks be to God that he, by the power of that same Word, can change even those hostile places into fertile ground to produce saving faith in the most unlikely places! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Blessed Lord, You have caused all Holy Scriptures to be written for our learning. Grant that we may so hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them that, by patience and comfort of Your holy Word, we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. (Collect for the Word) -Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

March 1, 2023 Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism - Table of Duties To: WidowsDaily Lectionary: Gen. 8:13-9:17, Mark 3:20-35 She who is truly a widow, left all alone, has set her hope on God and continues in supplications and prayers night and day, but she who is self-indulgent is dead even while she lives. (1 Timothy 5:5-6) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. For the last few centuries, the human lifespan has grown longer and longer. Even so, women still tend to live longer than men, as has been the case for most of history. Whether it was because of war or other more dangerous occupations, wives have outlived their husbands, regardless of nationality. This leaves a pretty consistent group of widows in our world, many of whom need care and assistance as time passes and they age. St. Paul’s words to the young pastor Timothy might seem to be a bit harsh, especially if we think about how we are to love our neighbors as ourselves. But these words are both words of love and warning from St. Paul. Sometimes, widows will remarry after the death of their husbands; often, they will not. Losing that life-partner, that one to whom they were tied in the bonds of marriage, can be a very difficult and unsettling experience. Sometimes they aren’t sure of their place in the world once the “other half” of their lives has died. How should we love these women, then? And how should they see their lives moving forward in this world? According to St. Paul, should these women find themselves all alone, with no one else to care for them, they should set their hope and focus on their Lord and God, who will sustain them. Should they forget that the Lord cares for them—even in their grief—and they go forth trying to live a life that fills a void that only their Loving Father can fill, this rejection of His mercy and grace is a terrible thing; rendering them dead inside, even though they may seem vibrant and alive. These are the times when we can extend a hand of love to them, being that one who loves them even when they might feel alone. Jesus’s Life, Death, and Resurrection was for them, just as it was for us, and they might need the reminder that their loving God has not forgotten them. As you can, be Jesus for those around you, even the widows of your church. They need to hear that Jesus loves them just as much as you do, and your love for them might be the perfect antidote in this season of penitence and remembrance that helps them rejoice that Jesus is for them, as he is for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Visit, O Lord, the homes in which Your people dwell, and keep all harm and danger far from them. Grant that we may dwell together in peace under the protection of Your holy angels, sharing eternally in Your blessings; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (Collect for Home and Family) -Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

February 28, 2023 Today's Reading: Romans 5:12-19 Daily Lectionary: Gen. 7:11-8:12, Mark 3:20-35 Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous. (Romans 5:18–19) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Yesterday we talked about the wrath of God falling upon Adam and Eve because of their sin of listening to the serpent instead of God in the Garden of Eden. And that God’s wrath falls upon us because of our own sin, too. But we also talked about how that wrath doesn’t end us. It doesn’t cast us away from our God and Father, our Savior and Redeemer. He doesn’t leave us alone to try and find our way back to Him in this world of darkness and despair on our own. Because there is no way we can manage that; we can’t claw our way back to Him by ourselves. The gap is too wide. One man (Adam) brought all of God’s wrath down upon creation, but one man (Jesus) also repaired what was destroyed. Actually, He didn’t repair it, he made it new, and He promised that newness to us, too. We won’t see it until the Last Day, but your Lord and God, made flesh in Jesus, took the rebellion and disobedience of every human being that ever lived (and ever will live) and soaked it up into himself to carry it to his cross on Golgotha. He wrestled that sin and death and disobedience and rebellion and back-talking and cheating into His grave and left it there when He rose again on Easter Sunday. Just one sin from one man set all of humanity on this path of death and destruction. And all it took was for Almighty God to look at one man’s perfect obedience to restore everything. And not just any man, but the God-Man; Jesus, the Christ. The Messiah, God made flesh. His only-begotten Son. In our everyday struggles and sins, it’s easy to forget the mercy and grace of God for you. But He always remembers. He always gives. He always blesses His children because of Jesus, who took all your sin from you, so that you could live forever with all the faithful. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In Adam we have all been one, One huge rebellious man; We all have fled that evening voice That sought us as we ran. But Thy strong love, it sought us still And sent Thine only Son That we might hear His Shepherd’s voice And, hearing Him, be one. (In Adam We Have All Been One LSB 569:1, 3) -Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

February 27, 2023 Today's Reading: Gen. 3:1-21 Daily Lectionary: Gen. 6:1-7:5, Mark 3:1-19 By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” (Genesis 3:19) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Last Wednesday was a stark reminder of our future, wasn’t it? “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” Those are words no one likes to hear, especially if there has been a recent tragedy. It’s hard to hear those words when they are so close to a raw, open wound. Yet that’s what Adam and Eve hear from their loving and eternal God and Father right after the Fall into sin. God doesn’t give them time to process their grief, he doesn’t wait for them to find a safe space or a Comfort Dog; He just unloads on them with all His might and fury. Of all people, they had it all right before them. They knew life in Paradise. They knew what it was like to behold God face-to-face. They knew a peace we will never know in this life. And even so, they were led astray. In an act we will never understand this side of eternity, Adam and Eve turned from God to listen to the sweet, deceptive voice of Satan. It is something that we do all the time, too. Abandon or ignore God’s Word to go our own way, because we somehow know better.  Sometimes, it earns the wrath of our parents, our school authorities, or even law enforcement! This is not what God wants from his children. Yet, sin and Satan lead us astray over and over again. But God the Father doesn’t leave us there in that pain and wrath. He fixes it the only way he can; by sending his Son into our flesh to right what has gone so wrong. To fix what is so broken. Even though Adam and Eve were cast from the Garden, God was with them every day of their lives and He had spoken a promise into their ears that echoed down the centuries until the time had fully come and God’s only Son was born of woman to redeem, to buy back, to make right, to save everyone who suffered because of Adam and Eve’s sin. You can’t out-sin God. He always has more forgiveness than you have sin. Even when you think there’s no hope, his promise still stands. Jesus is still for you, and his love will never fail. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Now from that three of Jesus’ shame Flows life eternal in His name; For all who trust and will believe, Salvation’s living fruit receive. And of their fruit so pure and sweet, the Lord invites the world to eat, To find within this cross of wood The tree of life with ev’ry good. (The Tree of Life, LSB 561:4)-Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

February 26, 2023 Today's Reading: Matt. 4:1-11 Daily Lectionary: Gen. 4:1-26, Mark 2:18-28 The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” (St. Matthew 4:3-4) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The meaning of the First Commandment says that “we should fear, love, and trust in God above all things.” This can be hard to do. Especially when we think we know better. Isn’t that how it works? The Lord God speaks and we say, “Well, yeah God, BUT…” And away we go into sin and selfishness. It never ends well, does it? There are so many times we want God to do things our way. Or we try to tell God to do things our way so that we can triumph over some challenge all by ourselves, just like a grown-up! The root of Satan’s first temptation of Jesus is the desire to supplant God the Father for another authority. It isn’t just about food and hunger, but who provides what you need to live. Satan wants Jesus to assert His power and authority as the Son of God over the power and authority of the Father. After all, how does God the Father, who is spirit, know what it is like to be hungry? How can the perfect and Almighty Lord of all creation understand what life is really like here on earth? In Jesus, of course! Jesus lives your life and suffers your pains and eventually dies your death so that he can sympathize with you and know exactly how rough your life can be. Because Jesus knows how difficult life can be, God the Father also knows. They understand your struggles and challenges more than you know, and can indeed hear your prayers with full knowledge of their implications. When you aren’t sure if God hears your prayers, or knows how rough you have it, remember Jesus in the wilderness—that He set aside His power and glory to walk in your shoes, to live your life for you, and to die your death so that you won’t have to suffer without him for all eternity. Jesus lived and was tempted for you so that all of these challenges you face might be washed away in his blood, buried in his death, and left behind in his resurrection. All of it is for you, that you may be at peace in him. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. O Lord God, You led Your ancient people through the wilderness and brought them to the promised land. Guide the people of Your Church that following our Savior we may walk through the wilderness of this world toward the glory of the world to come; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for Lent 1)-Pastor Duane Bamsch is the Pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley, CA  and the President of Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

February 25, 2023 Today's Reading: Introit for Lent 1, Ps. 91:9-13; antiphon: Ps. 91:15-16Daily Lectionary: Job 20:1-23, 29, John 8:21-38 You will tread on the lion and the adder; the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot. (Ps. 91:13) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. If I were to ask you to list five words that come to mind when you hear “Lent,” I doubt that ‘victory’ would be one of them. Usually we look forward to the victory of the resurrection, and sing, “This is the feast of victory for our God!” Yet, even without the alleluias, this psalm tells us that the resurrection isn’t the only place we have victory. There is victory even in the middle of bearing the cross. It doesn’t look or feel like victory! It seems like the devil wins so often when he keeps unbelievers in blindness and steals away our weaker brothers. It doesn’t look like victory when we’re told we have to “celebrate” people’s carnal lusts or we’ll be canceled. It doesn’t feel like victory when we struggle against persistent weakness in our flesh, giving into temptation yet again. Yet, we do have victory over sin, over death, and over the devil, because God has won it. We aren’t going to see it in this evil world or in the sinful human heart. Remember Jesus tomorrow in the Gospel, who calmly rebukes each accusation and temptation of the devil with His Word. His Word is what we cling to when we bear that enmity from the ancient serpent, who is the devil. In His good timing, God will show His victory to be true. Unbelievers will be turned to fervent faith. The world and its desires will pass away. As you abide in His Word and prayer, you will grow in holy living. Finally your fallen flesh will return to the dust, but you will have eternal rest and resurrection. God gives His Word to strengthen us in this victory. James encourages, “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.” (James 4:7-8) John brings us back to our baptismal identity saying, “Everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.” (1 John 5:4) It’s not foolish optimism to say we have victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. And with such faith, we cling to the rich promises at the end of Psalm 91: “Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him; I will protect him, because he knows my name. When he calls me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.” In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.    Lord, be our light when worldly darkness veils us; Lord, be our shield when earthly armor fails us;   And in the day when hell itself assails us,  Grant us Your peace, Lord. (LSB 659:3)-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

February 24, 2023 Today's Reading: Matt. 11:25-30Daily Lectionary:Job 19:1-12, 21-27, John 8:1-20 “Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Sometimes older congregations will compile a history book, which will include the unique contributions of each of their pastors. Maybe one started a school outreach. Another oversaw a building project. Still another had a radio ministry. What did Matthias do for the Church?  We have absolutely no record of it. He was the first man to receive a divine call which the Church extended after the Ascension of Jesus. But that is the very last we hear about him, or any sermons he preached, or unique things he did. And after all, that’s better for the Church, because the Church doesn’t belong to any particular pastor. She belongs to Jesus. The Church lives by the gifts Jesus gives: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” In Jesus our souls have rest, a true Sabbath that refreshes our innermost being. In Him we are built up and grow as disciples. Whenever the Church falls in love with an individual, she forgets her true love, her true source of rest and life. Rest is replaced by excitement about what’s happening next. A charismatic leader can lay his yoke on the congregation and get them to do a lot of things and seem very active in their faith. Meanwhile, sadly, the souls of those who labor and are heavy laden go unhealed. The commemoration of St. Matthias puts a silhouette of a pastor before us, which any faithful shepherd of the Lord can stand in. The Lord puts him there to proclaim His living Word, to effect the Father’s mysterious election, to bind up the broken hearted and crush the proud. Will each man have unique gifts, and accomplish different things during his time with a congregation? Certainly, and we thank God for His wisdom in arranging for that! But each faithful pastor is simply a servant of the Lord Jesus. It is the Lord’s ministry, the Lord’s compassion, the Lord’s absolution, and the Lord’s resurrection that give His Church reason to rejoice. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.    God of the prophets, bless the prophets’ sons;  Elijah’s mantle o’er Elisha cast.    Each age its solemn task may claim but once; Make each one nobler, stronger than the last.   Make them apostles, heralds of Your cross;  Forth let them go to tell the world of grace.   Inspired by You, may they count all but loss  And stand at last with joy before Your face. Amen. (LSB 682:1, 5)-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

February 23, 2023 Today's Reading: Joel 2:12-19Daily Lectionary: Job 18:1-21, John 7:32-53 Who knows whether he will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the Lord your God? (Joel 2:14) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When do you go to the doctor? Of course, it’s when you’re sick. Nobody in their right mind goes through the trouble of scheduling an appointment, answering a bunch of diagnostic questions, and maybe even ordering labs just for the fun of it. You want to feel better. It’s similar to confession and absolution. In today’s reading, the Lord calls His people to return to Him. Returning is not pleasant, especially because it brings up all the ways that we have been distant from him. Confessing our sins is painful.The rite of Individual Confession guides us through it: “I have lived as if God did not matter and as if I mattered most. My Lord’s name I have not honored as I should; my worship and prayers have faltered. I have not let His love have its way with me, and so my love for others has failed. There are those whom I have heart, and those whom I have failed to help. My thoughts and desires have been soiled with sin.” (LSB 292) But we don’t just go to confession to feel bad about ourselves. We’re not about self-flagellation and perpetual frustration at our failure to act better. The purpose of confession is the holy Absolution: “In the stead and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ, I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” “Who knows whether He will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind Him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the Lord your God?” (v. 13, 14) The blessing of having peace with God is what our penitent hearts look forward to. And here is the picture of how the Lord makes that peace even more tangible! His Body and His Blood (grain and wine) are given to us after confession to strengthen and preserve us. Sin is ugly. But God would not have that sickness crush us. He lifts the burden and places it on His Son. The crucifix is ugly because of your sin and that of the whole world. Once sin is on the cross of Jesus, however, it has been removed from you and it becomes beautiful. Your sins are forgiven. Take eat; take drink. This is the very Body and Blood of Christ given and shed for you. Go in peace. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty God, You know we live in the midst of so many dangers that in our frailty we cannot stand upright. Grant strength and protection to support us in all dangers and carry us through all temptations; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

February 22, 2023 Today's Reading: Matt. 6:1-6, 16-21Daily Lectionary: Job 16:1-22, John 7:1-13 And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. (Matt. 6:4) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” [Genesis 3:19] This is a spiritual truth, which we need as Christians living out of our faith. Without this reminder, our “practice” of Christianity can become like so many other world religions. It can become a matter of what we’re doing or not doing. I’m a Christian, so I pray. I’m a Christian, so I don’t watch lewd movies. But our life before God is not simply a matter of what we do. Charity, prayer, and fasting are spiritual disciplines. No matter how they may seem like sanctified works, we can never bring ourselves closer to God by them. The Lord comes first to us, as He has from the beginning. He breathes into our dust the breath of life so that we live (Genesis 2:7) The Holy Spirit breathes eternal life into us by the Gospel (John 20:22-23). If it were not for this, we would not exist and not have faith. It’s only with these gifts to us that we can even think about everything that belongs to the daily walk of a Christian. In Psalm 103, we’re taught, “As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear Him. For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust” (vv. 13-14). Even though you are of the dust, you have a God who is your heavenly Father. Charity, prayer, and fasting are all the lived experiences of such children. You put your offering in the plate at church for the ministry of the Gospel, and you are generous toward people in need because you know your Father’s generosity. You pray because the Ruler of All has opened His door and promised to answer. You fast because it reminds you of your dust, especially at times when your Father is chastising you with hard times. Your life as a child of God is so much more than what you do. It’s who you are in your Baptism. According to your natural birth, you are dust bound to return to the earth. But in Jesus Christ, you are bound to be raised on the Last Day (see 1 Corinthians 15:49). So take heart this Ash Wednesday, and gladly receive the ashen cross on your forehead. Even though you are dust, your Father has shown compassion to you, and when everything else has passed away, He has made you His forever. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty and everlasting God, You despise nothing You have made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent. Create in us new and contrite hearts that lament our sins and acknowledge our wretchedness that we may receive from You full pardon and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. -Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

February 21, 2023 Today's Reading: 2 Peter 1:16-21Daily Lectionary: Job 16:1-22, John 7:1-13 “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation” (2 Pet. 1:20 NKJV) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. One of the major tenets of the Reformation is Sola Scriptura, Scripture Alone. But what does that look like in practice? Originally, it was said against the papacy, who claimed that popes and councils had the authority to add doctrines over and above Scripture. What happened in practice is that many people became their own “pope” in a sense, and offered their own interpretation from isolated Bible verses, and then claimed, “Scripture alone!” This still plagues the Church, especially in the age of YouTube prophets and dispensationalism. The Bible for these is simply sacred source material to mine, in order to shore up their own ideas. We still desperately need to hold to the tenet of Scripture alone. If we let go of it, we will “turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths” (2 Timothy 4:4) and we’re liable to listen to visions of an angel who proclaims a different Christ and a different gospel [Galatians 1:8-10]. We believe ‘Scripture Alone’ because of what it is: God’s Word. God’s Word that does what it says, from making creation to working faith in the souls who hear it. “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17).  God’s Word is that lamp in the darkness which shines against the darkness of this world and that of our own hearts. “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16). God’s Word is our source of life. Mary models this for us: When the angel announced her conception and said, “For nothing will be impossible with God,” she replies, “Let it be to me according to your word.” (Luke 1:37-38). The Bible is not a matter of private interpretation, and it doesn’t need someone’s clever explanation to have it stick. God sends His Word with the Holy Spirit who interprets. “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth” (John 16:13). The Holy Spirit also protects us against false interpretations. John writes, “I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you. But the anointing that you received from Him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as His anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in Him” (1 John 2:26-27).  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Blessed Lord, You have caused all Holy Scriptures to be written for our learning. Grant that we may so hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them that, by patience and comfort of Your holy Word, we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

February 20, 2023 Today's Reading: Ex. 24:8-18Daily Lectionary:Job 15:1-23, 30-35, John 6:60-71 “Moses went up into the mountain of God.” (Exodus 24:13) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When God gave the Law to the people at Mount Sinai, there were three distinctions for how close one got to the Lord: The blood-sprinkled people; Moses, with the priests and the 70 elders; Moses in the mountain of God. The people worshiped from afar; the elders ate and drank in the Lord’s presence; and only Moses entered the cloud. The closer you got to God, the closer you were to the holiness, and the more risk to sinful humans. This was all meant to prepare us for what God would ultimately do. When the fulfillment of all of this came, it was not about man ascending to God, but holy God descending to sinners. He did not come in bright glory which made people tremble, but the fulness of deity was veiled in mortal human flesh (Colossians 2:9). An Infant weak and suckling grew into a Man seized by Moses’ disciples, the elders, and crucified as a criminal. On the mount of Calvary, Jesus Christ did what the Law could not do—bring sinners to God. Now all of those divisions have been removed in Jesus Christ: His is the blood which sprinkles you (Hebrews 12:22-24). He is the great High Priest who intercedes for you (Heb. 6:19-20). He is the holy and true Son who can ascend the hill of the Lord (Psalm 24:3-5) The Lord has come down to you in order to raise you up into His presence. With a holiness which surpasses that of Moses, you are covered in Christ. You are a beloved child through God’s Son. You have been given boldness and access that surpasses even the Levite high priest standing in the Holy of Holies (Ephesians 3:12). So what can we do with such access to God? We come to Him as Father, bringing the needs of the world and those of the people we know. We live as pilgrims in this world in the confidence which our Baptism gives, that we have an advocate whose blood speaks on our account and who has put His authoritative forgiveness on human lips (Matthew 18, John 20). We have peace when this world is raging and trembling in Him “who makes wars cease to the end of the earth” (Ps. 46:9). And when everything in creation has been shaken and crumbles away, He has promised us a new heavens and new earth in which righteousness dwells. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.    Hope of the world, God’s gift from highest heaven,  Bringing to hungry souls the bread of life,   Still let Thy Spirit unto us be given  To heal earth’s wounds and end our bitter strife. Amen. (LSB 690:2)-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

February 19, 2023 Today's Reading: Matt. 17:1-9Daily Lectionary: Job 14:1-22, John 6:41-59 “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” (Matthew 17:5) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It’s important for us to ponder the eyewitness testimony of Jesus’ transfiguration before we ponder His suffering. There is plenty of human suffering around us. We wake up with it. We see it in the lives of those around us—our family and friends, the ambulance rushing by, the people sleeping in makeshift shelters. We hear about it in the news. But Jesus is not merely one more victim of the injustice and cruelty of this world. Peter, James, and John were given front-row seats so that they would know the whole of Jesus—truly God and truly man. This is who Jesus is. Unlike Moses, whose glow would fade after he left the mountain, in Jesus, “the fullness of deity dwells bodily” (Colossians 2:9). The fully-divine, fully-human Jesus goes down from the mountain with His disciples. This is who He is, whether we can see it in Him or not. This is true, even as He is betrayed, condemned, carrying His cross, dying, and breathing His last. Hold this image in your faith as you behold Jesus. Hold onto this during the Lenten journey to the tomb. He is not just another suffering victim under the cruel reign of human wrath, the devil’s oppression, and the prison of death. He came to conquer them! Today, we hear one of those eyewitnesses, Peter, tell us, “we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place.” (2 Peter 1:19). We don’t see this victory with our eyes very much, if at all. So like the disciples watching Jesus being condemned, carried away, and crucified, we have to believe the Word that is spoken of Him. “This is Jesus, King of the Jews” is what hung above His cross. This is Jesus, Savior of the World, King of Kings, and final Judge. In this Transfiguration vision, we also see (by faith) our future. Who is with Him? Moses and Elijah in glory. Can you see your future life with the Lord? Not with your eyes. But it will be there. This Jesus will also command your lowly body—even if it’s decayed in the ground—to be transformed to be like His glorious body (Phil. 3:21). Behold Him by faith, and even now hear His voice! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. O God, in the glorious transfiguration of Your beloved Son You confirmed the mysteries of the faith by the testimony of Moses and Elijah. In the voice that came from the bright cloud You wonderfully foreshowed our adoption by grace. Mercifully make us co-heirs with the King in His glory and bring us to the fullness of our inheritance in heaven; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

February 18, 2023 Today's Reading: Introit for Transfiguration, Ps. 99:1-5; antiphon: Ps. 99:9Daily Lectionary:Job 13:13-28, John 6:22-40 “Exalt the Lord our God, and worship at His holy mountain; for the Lord our God is holy!” (Psalm 99:9) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Scripture tells us, “The Lord is great in Zion.” Christopher Hitchens, renowned atheist, tells us, “god is Not Great.” His book is a #1 New York Bestseller, so many people have been listening to him. Many of your friends and people you meet have been listening to him, also. In his book, Hitchens makes several supposedly rational cases against world religions, but it quickly becomes clear that he does not know the Lord. He knows sinful people, and offers atheism as a substitute religion which claims “Man is great.” But the claim that man is great instead of the Lord only brings more problems. History and our own experience shows that human beings are tragically flawed. Or, as St. Paul put it, “If righteousness were through the Law, then Christ died to no purpose” (Gal. 2:21). Man is not great; man needs a great Savior, who is the Lord! “The Lord is great in Zion; He is exalted over all the peoples.” He alone does what no man could do. He alone is holy, set apart from fallen mankind. He alone is to be adored by all the sinful race. Yet, though the Lord is holy, and He could stay far away from mankind and all our failings, He doesn’t. Holy as He is, He embraced our miserable condition and was born of the Virgin Mary. Even as man, He was still holy because He was “made like His brothers in every respect…yet without sin” (Hebrews 2:17, 4:15). The Holy Lord in human flesh did for all what we could never achieve ourselves: perfect righteousness, just retribution for all sins, and rescue from death itself. Atheism and all man-made religions cannot offer what the Lord Himself gives as a gift to the fallen world. No tower of Babel project can unite all people the way God can (Genesis 11). No earthly utopia of Karl Marx which promises to eliminate class divisions can remove the poison of sin in our hearts; only our Lord can. Therefore, we exalt the Lord alone, for He is holy. May the Lord increase our joy at worshiping at His footstool, and bring those without such hope eternal peace and hope through Jesus Christ. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.    Thou camest to our hall of death,  O Christ, to breathe our poisoned air, To drink for us the dark despair   That strangled our reluctant breath. How beautiful the feet that trod, The road that leads us back to God!   How beautiful the feet that ran To bring the great good news to man! Amen. (LSB 834:3)-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

February 17, 2023 Today's Reading: Job 13:1-12Daily Lectionary: Job 13:1-12 “But I would speak to the Almighty, and I desire to argue my case with God.” (Job 13:3) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Martin Luther said, “Oh, faith is a living, busy, active, mighty thing” But can faith be active even in arguing with God? It would seem so. Job is ready to speak and argue with the Almighty, but he’s not the only one. Remember the patriarch Jacob? He wrestled with God (Genesis 32:22-32) and insisted that God bless him. How could he be so presumptuous? It’s because God had already promised him, “I will surely do you good, and make your offspring as the sand of the sea” (v. 12).  Jacob was on his way to meet his bloodthirsty brother, and insisted that God’s blessing was essential for that trip.Arguing with God is a proper exercise of faith, when that argumentation is built on the foundation of confidence in what God has promised. Job’s friends were arguing for a god who is incredibly shallow: obey and I will do good for you; disobey and I will make your life miserable. This sounds a lot more like the Muslim Allah than the true God in whom we believe. The true God speaks and, by the Holy Spirit, faith works in us and clings to that Word. So, when it looks like that Word is being trampled, or that God isn’t living up to His revealed character, it’s time to argue with Him (think also of the Canaanite woman in Matthew 15).The Psalms give us wonderful examples of arguing your case with God (see Psalm 56 and 79 for example). Not that we ourselves have a leg to stand on (and that’s where Job began to err), but we hold fast to the covenant God made with us in Baptism, and that He made with His Church by the shedding of His blood. On the ground of His promises, we hold Him to it. We know Him as He has revealed His heart to us. This is a true exercise of faith because it holds to God, even when our eyes and experience seem to show the opposite.This faith-filled arguing is more than complaining, “What’s happening to me isn’t fair.” Taking an honest look at our situation and the state of God’s people in this shattered world, we go where God tells us. You, Lord, promise to come to our aid—“Call on me in the day of trouble. I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.” (Psalm 50:15). We rest in the assurance, that such prayer—such argumentation—is pleasing in His sight, “because He has commanded us to pray and promised to hear us.” In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.   O God, save me by your name, and vindicate me by your might.  O God, hear my prayer; give ear to the words of my     mouth. (Psalm 54:1-2)-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

February 16, 2023Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 3:1-9Daily Lectionary: Job 12:1-6, 12-25, John 5:30-47“So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.” (1 Cor. 3:7)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. You might really like your pastor. You might think your pastor is out to lunch. Maybe your church has more than one pastor, but there’s one you’d rather go to.What Paul is warning us of here is “behaving only in a human way.” (v. 3) when it comes to pastors. The Church at Corinth was having a big problem with this. Earlier in chapter 1:12, it was reported that people drew lines between following Paul, Apollos, Cephas (Peter), or Christ. Imagine that! Pitting the servants of Christ against the Lord Himself! The “human way” places the worthiness and power on the individual.I’ve been told, “Pastor, you’ve done so much for us” and “I want you to preach my funeral.”  It’s high praise, to be sure. But, the “human way” wants to say there’s something indispensable about me. You can probably imagine what praise Peter or Paul had gotten because of their personal history with the Lord. It’s only natural (not in a good way) to want to put all your eggs in your chosen basket.It’s really kind of funny that we do this, because when Jesus came to His hometown to preach, the congregation was so enraged by His preaching that they were set to throw him off a cliff (Luke 4:16-30). To be honest, some congregations have done that to their pastors, too.We need to repent of our “human way” of looking at pastors, and be on guard against this kind of jealousy and strife. While every pastor has individual strengths and weaknesses, that’s not where our faith should be. What are we pastors? “Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each.” Pastors are fellow sinners who have a special place in the church, but their labors are only ever in service to the Lord.Pastoral vacancies can put this to the test. Although it hurts to lose a beloved pastor, it also chastises us for how we make too much of the man. In the vacancy, the congregation asks, “What are we looking for in a pastor?” blind to who that man may be. That’s because for a servant of Christ, the essential thing will be the same no matter who it is. He will be the man through whom the Good Shepherd ministers to His flock. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. O Gracious Father, You led Your holy apostles to ordain ministers for the proclamation of Your Word and the faithful administration of the Sacraments of Christ. Grant to each congregation the guidance of the Holy Spirit to choose a suitable pastor according to Your will for the blessing of Your Church in every place; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

February 15, 2023Today's Reading:Luther’s Small Catechism - Table of Duties To: Youth (1 Peter 5:5-6)Daily Lectionary: Job 11:1-20, John 5:19-29 “‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.’ Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time.” (1 Peter 5:6) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It’s hard being a teenager.  You’ve come so far, and yet there’s still so much you aren’t allowed to do. Don’t you sometimes feel like it isn’t right? If you could be honest, you might say, “I can handle it! Leave me alone so I can shine!”  It’s true that experience has shown we do grow from having greater responsibility, even if it means we fail sometimes. But what we need at every age is for God to keep our hearts humble.  We have a bent in our hearts toward thinking too much of ourselves.  Our self-appraisal is often more flawless than reality. Yes, even if you suffer from depression and sometimes tell yourself that you’re a worthless failure, that’s your broken mind thinking too much of your personal problems, magnifying your flaws and problems so they seem mightier than God. When God humbles us, He teaches us once again to be receptive to learning. Most of all, we learn from Him through His Word, where He teaches us that, “His delight is not in the strength of the horse, nor his pleasure in the legs of a man, but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love.” (Ps. 147:10-11) He also places His humbled children in the communion of saints, the Church. In this community, it is good for the young to learn from those more experienced. “Listen to your elders!” isn’t just something your grandma says because she’s cranky; it’s godly wisdom. In Titus 2, St. Paul shows how it is good for older men to be mentors, older women to be examples to the young. Even pastors learn from those more seasoned in the ministry. With God’s gift of being humbled, we see that it’s not a bad thing to be a youth or inexperienced. It can be frustrating at times, and not everyone is automatically a good example. Yet, God does bless His children at every stage to receive His Word and grow in grace and holy lives in His Son. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.    Make ye straight what long was crooked;  Make the rougher places plain.  Let your hearts be true and humble,   As befits His holy reign,  For the glory of the Lord,  Now o’er earth is shed abroad, And all flesh shall see the token   That His Word is never broken. Amen. (LSB 347:4)-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: John 5:1-18 (Valentine, Martyr)Daily Lectionary: Job 10:1-22, John 5:1-18 “Jesus said to him, ‘Get up, take up your bed, and walk.’ And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked.” (John 5:8-9) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Valentine has been remembered as a martyr since the early centuries of the Church. A priest and physician from Rome, he and his family ministered to those being persecuted by Emperor Claudius II. Soon Valentine also was arrested and martyred on February 14, 270. He was soon remembered for his acts of mercy, in spite of the bodily danger it would bring him. The association with romance actually comes from an observation in England in the Middle Ages that birds began choosing mates around St. Valentine’s Day. People took that as a cue to do the same by choosing eligible suitors for their children. It wasn’t until the 19th century that the Roman god, Cupid, came on the scene, and we know what the people of today do “in the name of love.” Today, we’re told, “Love is love.”  Yet, what they mean is a strong feeling. Love is actually much more than butterflies in our stomach or devotion to another person.  “God is love,” St. John tells us, and he follows that up by saying, “the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent His only-begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him…Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” (see 1 John 4:7-12) This is the purest expression of love, called in Greek, agape. Jesus exhibited that love to the lame man in John 5 by calling him to faith and healing his body.  Valentine reflected that love by ministering to his brothers and sisters in Christ as they were martyred by the authorities, eventually suffering the same cruelty. Agape love is what we have from God. All other kinds of love grow out of it: Philos, friendly affection; storge, a natural, familial love; and eros, desirous love. Too often, we are told that love is merely the eros kind of birds and other creatures “pairing up.” But today, when the unbelievers tell you, “Love is love,” show them how God is love, and what that love did: God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him may not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16). In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Love divine, all loves excelling,  Joy of heav’n, to earth come down!  Fix in us Thy humble dwelling,All Thy faithful mercies crown.  Jesus, Thou art all compassion,  Pure, unbounded love Thou art;Visit us with Thy salvation,  Enter ev’ry trembling heart. Amen. (LSB 700:1)-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Deut. 30:15-20Daily Lectionary: Job 9:1-35, John 4:46-54“Obeying his voice and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days” (Deuteronomy 30:20)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. If there were ever a passage that seems to support decision theology, it’s this one. “I have set before you today life and good, death and evil…therefore choose life!”  Martin Luther strongly debated a popular scholar of his day, Erasmus of Rotterdam, on this very passage. Erasmus that since God gave the command, “Choose,” it must mean we’re able to do it. Luther countered that just because God commanded it, doesn’t mean we have the power to do it. Rather, this is how the Law humbles us and drives us to Christ.is giving a description of faith versus unbelief, manifested in how one reacts to God and His Word. Loving the Lord, walking in His ways, keeping His Word—only faith is able to do this. A heart turned away, refusing to hear, being drawn to other gods—this is our default because of sin.You can think of it like a magnet. Unbelief reacts to God’s Word the way that same poles on a magnet repel. “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him.” (1 Corinthians 2:14) Our sinful flesh pushes away the Word of God.  On the other hand, faith is attracted to and clings to the Word of God. It says, “Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day…I hold back my feet from every evil way, in order to keep your word.” (Psalm 119:97, 101)But how did we come to believe and gladly be reading a Higher Things Reflection? This is the work of the Lord your God. The One who called Israel out of Egypt and brought them with a mighty hand, has also come to you with His life-giving Spirit. the Word of God reached you—in the waters of your Baptism, shared by your family, perhaps later in life by a Christian friend—and He powerfully raised you from spiritual death.God has created this faith in you, achieving the polar opposite of sin. As His Spirit works in you, you do love the Lord, delight to walk in His ways, and keeping His Word sacred with a glad heart. It’s far from perfect or constant this side of the resurrection. Nevertheless, God promises to be continually at work in you, His child. He will bring you at last to Himself, victorious over sin, the devil, and death itself! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Oh, what blessing to be near You  And to listen to Your voice;  Let me ever love and hear You,Let Your Word be now my choice!  Many hardened sinners, Lord,  Flee in terror at Your Word;But to all who feel sin’s burden  You give words of peace and pardon. Amen. (LSB 589:2)-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matt. 5:21-37Daily Lectionary: Job 8:1-22, John 4:27-45 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell. (Matthew 5:30)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. This is the Gospel of the Lord? Praise to you, O Christ! Today’s Gospel gets us coming and going. If we came to church thinking we had it together, these words of our Lord are set to humble us deeply. Anger, lust, divorce, and taking the Lord’s Name in vain. It’s a good thing we have a week to recover before we hear him talk about retaliation, loving our enemies, and being perfect even as our Father in heaven is!But there’s a reason Jesus pulls out the hammer of the Law. Each section begins, “You have heard that it was said to those of old…” What had been taught among His audience was that being faithful to God was just a matter of following the rules. The stricter the better. The more self-denial you can muster, the more righteous you are. This is what the Old Adam thinks the Law and the Prophets teach. And this is what the people were hearing from the Pharisees. It’s what people still hear from the Mennonites, the Wesleyans, and other holiness groups.Yet, these words are on the lips of Christ, and that is the difference between being damned eternally and being saved by the forgiveness of our sins. Do you remember the three uses of the Law? This is the second use of the Law big time: the mirror that shows us how we have sinned against God. It leaves no stone unturned. Our hatred toward others means we deserve to be hated by God. Our lusts that look for pleasure with someone not our spouse have us dangling over the hell of fire. Our lips are quick to aggrandize our cause and drag God into it, but this has the hiss of the Evil One.For every one of these, your sins, Christ has been sacrificed. His blood has answered the righteous wrath of God. He was forsaken, cut off, and conquered the Tempter—all for you. This is what makes you a Christian—not that you’ve kept God’s standard of perfection, but that Christ has kept it in your place so that He could give you peace with God and eternal life. And only that can bring us to the third use of the Law: the guide which steers us away from sin and toward living as God’s true children. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. O Lord, graciously hear the prayers of Your people that we who justly suffer the consequence of our sin may be mercifully delivered by Your goodness to the glory of Your name; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for Epiphany 6, Ps. 98:7-9; antiphon: Ps. 98:2Daily Lectionary: Job 7:1-21, John 4:7-27“Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; the world and those who dwell in it!” (Ps. 98:7)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. What do these two things have in common? A child tugging at his mother’s sweater, each time saying louder, “Mama!” and the prophets of Baal limping around their altar and cutting themselves (1 Ki. 18:26)?Both are examples of times when our sinful flesh assumes that the authority—ultimately God—must not hear them.  They make a noise; they heap up empty phrases [Matt. 6:7] in an effort to get God to listen to them. The squeaky wheel gets the grease, right?But Psalm 98 says we have it all wrong, if that’s how we’ve thought about God the Lord.  Worship is not about trying to get God’s attention. That is actually a feature of pagan, man made gods. Rather, the True God acts first upon us, and we respond in loud shouts of praise!  While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us [Rom. 5:8].  He’s told us that His righteousness and our salvation have been since the foundation of the world (Matthew 25:34, Ephesians 1:4-5).So, if God accomplished His work of saving us before any of us were even born, what should make us think that we need to shout into His ears to get His attention now?  To put it another way, “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:32) He comes to deliver His salvation in Christ and His fatherly care. That means for us that His hearing our prayers, accepting our worship, and blessing our days is based on something more sure than our heart-felt effort. It’s anchored in His promises spoken to us and His Holy Spirit, who gives and sustains our faith.Since God is the One who has done such great things, then our response of praise is that much sweeter.  Together, we sing the new song of the psalms in the Introit and Gradual. We are freed to sing hymns which proclaim His mighty works: “This is the feast of victory for our God.” We joyfully sing spiritual songs which meditate on what our God has done. With the aftertaste of Christ’s true Body and Blood on our tongues, our hearts ring out, “Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace.”Our own religious ideas can never bring such peace, but Christ can and does. As you prepare to go to the Divine Service, take a cue from creation: He has not only formed you in your mother’s womb, but He has also redeemed and promised you eternal life. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Joy to the earth, the Savior reigns!  Let men their songs employ,  While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains Repeat the sounding joy,  Repeat the sounding joy,  Repeat, repeat the sounding joy. Amen. (LSB 387:2)-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Job 6:1-13Daily Lectionary: Job 6:1-13, John 3:1-21 “Have I any help in me, when resource is driven from me?” (Job 6:13)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Human suffering: It’s universal. It’s agonizing to bear, and heartbreaking to witness. It’s caused by wickedness in the world. It’s caused by our own foolishness. It’s sent by God.Wait! What did you just say? Surely God wants us to be happy! Surely, I haven’t deserved to have my parents divorce, to lose my friend to lymphoma, to be laid off from my job that I worked hard at.  What you’re facing is the problem of suffering, and you’re hardly the first person to be there.Not that you can think away suffering, but consider these three truths which we know: God is good. God is omnipotent. There is profound evil in the world.When we suffer, we venture into the land of theodicy, which means “to justify God.”  There, we wrestle with these three truths. We know God is good and He can do all things. So, what does it mean that so much evil is in the world and on our doorstep? If we dwell in theodicy too long, our sinful reason starts with doubts: Maybe God isn’t really good. Maybe He’s not really omnipotent. Maybe His Baptismal promise to never leave or forsake me isn’t so powerful after all.  Suffering is a dark place to be. Theodicy is even darker.Our refuge in suffering is not our own minds. It’s not in being crushed, like Job prayed for. God’s answer to our suffering is found in Jesus Christ alone. Listen to how St. Peter explains it, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.” (1 Pet. 4:12-13) This is not theodicy; it is theology of the cross.Your Baptism is not an immunity potion against worldly trouble. It is a promise that you are joined to Jesus Christ—in His suffering now and in His exaltation at the last.  “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” (Luke 9:23)  So to answer Job’s complaints, “What is my strength, that I should wait? And what is my end, that I should be patient?”  It is to look to your crucified and risen Savior, who ascended into heaven and rules all things for your good…even the suffering which He wisely sends to you. You do not bear it on your own, but as His own. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Be gracious to me, O Lord! See my affliction from those who hate me, O you who lift me up from the gates of death,that I may recount all your praises, that in the gates of the daughter of Zion I may rejoice in your salvation. Amen. (Psalm 9:13-14)-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism - Table of Duties: To Employers and SupervisorsDaily Lectionary: Job 5:1-27, John 2:13-25“Do not threaten them, since you know that He who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with Him.” (Eph. 6:9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. “My boss is such a jerk!”  This is a judgment we’re quick to pronounce. It’s socially acceptable.  And what did he or she do to earn that label?  Make you work Saturday when you’d rather sleep in?  Deny your vacation request?  Too often, we berate those in authority over us because they’re calling the shots and not us.But when’s the last time you prayed for your supervisor?  I mean, think about the tasks and responsibility God has given to them.  Maybe they’re a business owner. They might have their manager breathing down their neck.  They are responsible for the schedules, productivity, and welfare of their staff.  But above even their manager, is a Master who is in heaven.  He is your Master, too, and there is no favoritism with Him.When we remember who is the Master of us all, we realize how much trouble we all cause Him.  If you don’t believe me, just read the accounts of Israel in the wilderness!  Yet, look at how our Master in heaven treats us!  Worse than the gross-factor cleaning the public restroom, worse than the tedium of sorting the file room, harder than bearing a piano down five flights of stairs—is what the Son of God has done for us.  He became sin for us, wearing our filth and shame on the cross.  He agonized in Gethsemane and submitted to the Father’s will to save humanity. He bore in His own body the sins which merited the eternal wrath of God.  If this is how your Master in heaven acts, then maybe we can learn a thing or two from His example.  St. Peter teaches, “Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust.” (1 Pet. 2:18)Those in the seat of responsibility can also learn that they, too, are servants of God.  They are given their management for the good of someone’s business, for the good of those under them, and for how we all together are used by God to provide and maintain order in His world.  Remembering our heavenly Master who manages all for our good, we “commend ourselves, our body, soul, and all things” to Him.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Lord, help us walk Your servant way, Wherever love may lead, And, bending low, forgetting self, Each serve the other’s need. You bid us bend our human pridem Nor count ourselves above, The lowest place, the meanest task, That waits the gift of love. Amen. (LSB 857:1, 4)-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: 1 Cor. 2:1-16Daily Lectionary: Job 4:1-21, John 2:1-12Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away. (1 Cor. 2:6)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Would you like to level up your Christianity?  What would you say if I told you there was some “secret and hidden wisdom from God”?  All you have to do is buy my book and I’ll show you how to unlock this hidden potential!  Maybe Simon Magus, who thought he could buy the Holy Spirit from the Apostles (Acts 8:18-24) had thoughts of writing a book like this.  But the fact that books like this sell should tell us something.We crave to have power over our lives.  Anxieties and manic behavior plague us, especially in our age which promises ultimate knowledge, ultimate mastery over disease and the body.  This desire for some control also seeps into the spiritual realm, driving some to dabble in astrology or numerology, and perhaps even witchcraft. That is not the message which the servants of God, like St. Paul, preach.  Contrast Paul to a peddler of spiritual ’truth’: “I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom.”  So much for Paul selling them on his winning smile and charisma!  No, the wisdom and power are of God.The wisdom from God is given as a gift, not unlocked by the wise of this world. “These things God has revealed to us through the Spirit.”  There is real, ultimate power there! The power to know the mind of God!  But what is God thinking about?  How He condescends to us, lowly and sinful though we are.  “What is man that you are mindful of him and the son of man that you care for him?” (Ps. 8:4)God the Holy Spirit reveals what we could never find ourselves—what we would never even think to ask!  That God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit would redeem His fallen creation through self-giving, suffering and that He would powerfully call people back to Himself by lowly-appearing means: words, water, bread and wine.  This truly is the “foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God [which] is stronger than men” (1 Cor. 1:25). Thanks be to God!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Creator Spirit, by whose aid, The world’s foundations first were laid, Come, visit every humble mind;Come, pour Your joys on humankind; From sin and sorrow set us free; May we Your living temples be. Amen. (LSB 500:1)-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Isaiah 58:3-9aDaily Lectionary: Job 3:11, John 1:35-51 “Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’” (Isaiah 58:8-9a)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. What makes a person a “good Christian”?  Is it because they don’t swear?  Is it because they don’t listen to explicit songs and don’t drink alcohol?  Is it because they wear a purity ring and refuse even to kiss before marriage?  Is it because they volunteer twice a week at the local food pantry?For many people, it’s a moral life that defines a “good Christian.” But this is really all upside-down.  It’s not good morals that make a person a good Christian. The whole idea of a “good” Christian needs to be rethought.  Isaiah was speaking to “good” Israelites, who pouted that God wasn’t pleased with their dedication and obedience.What’s missing was the more important thing: Faith in the God who redeems poor, miserable sinners.  As soon as we look for any good in us, we will be deceived into thinking we’re really something.  Jesus told us yesterday in Matthew 5, “Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.”  You and I need a righteousness that is nowhere found among the children of Adam and Eve.Except One. There is One who perfectly kept the Law.  His fasting was sincere. His humility was of one who is gentle and lowly in heart.  By His affliction, He loosed the bonds of wickedness that held you, and let you who are harassed and helpless go free. With His pure garments of righteousness, He covers your shame and nakedness.  And now that He has so served you, you are called righteous on His account, holy and acceptable, blameless before God.  You have been given such wonderful promises as His healing, His righteousness, His glory to guard you, and His ear for your every prayer.And from this faith come the new desires.  Going to church isn’t a chore, but something you long for because your Savior is there.  You’re respectful when you talk with others. You turn away from lewdness and discipline your body to not give into its lusts. You see someone in need and would gladly give them the shirt off your back.  All this, not to assure yourself how “good” you are, but because God alone is good, and by that goodness, He has made you His child. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Faith clings to Jesus’ cross alone, And rests in Him unceasing; And by its fruits true faith is known,   With love and hope increasing. For faith alone can justify; Works serve our neighbor and supply   The proof that faith is living. Amen. (LSB 555:9)-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 5:13-20Daily Lectionary: Job 2:1, John 1:19-34 “You are the salt of the earth…You are the light of the world” (Matt. 5:13, 14) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Anchovies. Love ‘em or hate ‘em, they give us a clue into what Jesus is saying: Salt is a preservative. It keeps meat from decaying into stench and worms.  So, Jesus compares us to salt for the earth—a preservative against the stench that comes from the lawlessness that happens on earth. In the Cold War, they had air raid drills. During them, everyone would either have to turn out their lights because, if they didn’t, the enemy could see where to attack.  Our Lord says we are the light of the world, a city set on a hill. That sure makes us stand out in the darkness of this world. St. Paul writes that the children of God “shine as lights in the world…in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation” (Phil. 2:15)  Christians have a unique calling from God toward the decaying stench and deep darkness of this world.  It is why He makes us hang around.  He doesn’t want the world to be left to its own “flavor” or overrun by the darkness of the sinful heart.  It is our task to pray for the world, as Abraham interceded for the wretched cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.  We’re placed where we are in 2023 in order to shine light upon those who dwell in darkness.  Sometimes, we selfishly ask God to just give us some shelter from the world and rest from having uncomfortable conversations with trans friends. Our own salt loses its saltiness and it’s easier to cover up our light.Jesus came not only to expose the rot and blindness of humanity, but to save and shine the pure light of God upon us.  His coming is not a divine “Just Kidding” about the wrath and death of sinners in the Old Testament.  His birth and life, His suffering and death, and His glorious resurrection show both God’s just wrath and His mercy toward our sinful race. His mercy toward you, and extending to every single human being.  If we were to relax His Commandments, it may make things selfishly easier, but it’s not the loving thing to do. The loving thing is what God has done, to send His Son to rescue us from the mire and bring us into His marvelous light.  In God’s Son, we are the salt of the earth, the light of the world.  He makes our lives testify that God’s righteousness and salvation is found nowhere else than in Jesus Christ, the Light of the world.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Lord, keep Your family the Church continually in the true faith that, relying on the hope of Your heavenly grace, we may ever be defended by Your mighty power; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading:  Luke 2:22-32Daily Lectionary: Zech. 14:1-21, Titus 2:7-3:15“Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word… (Luke 2:29)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Yesterday the Church celebrated the Presentation of Jesus (Luke 2:22-32). We heard about Simeon who  came to  the temple  to see Jesus. The Holy Spirit had promised Simeon he would see the Messiah before he died, and Simeon had waited a long time for this day. He held baby Jesus in his arms and praised God. Simeon sang “Lord, now are letting your servant depart in peace, your word has been fulfilled.” That should sound familiar. We regularly sing Simeon’s words in the Nunc Dimittis (Latin for “Now let your servant leave”) after Holy Communion.We see the Holy Trinity working in this reading. All Christians confess faith in the Holy Trinity. There is only one God, but there are three distinct persons in God - the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Each is God, but they are not separate gods. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are one God (The Athanasian Creed (LSB p. 319) and the Small Catechism section on the Apostle’s Creed are good places to learn more about the Trinity.)At Jesus’ Presentation, the Holy Spirit sent Simeon to see the Messiah. The Son, Jesus, is present in the flesh. And the Father lovingly sent His Son to do this gracious work. Simeon is led by the Holy Spirit to take up the Son in his arms and speak praise to the Father for what Christ will do to save.When we go to Holy Communion, we know that the Holy Trinity is active. The Spirit draws us to faith through the Word and Sacraments. He gives us faith that Jesus died and rose to forgive our sins. The Son, Jesus, is truly present in the Supper. We partake of His body and blood under the bread and wine, and He gives us forgiveness, life, and salvation.  We thank and praise the Father for sending His Son to us, and together we pray to Him in the Lord’s Prayer.At the Supper, you’re blessed in a similar way as Simeon was. You don’t see Christ with your eyes or lift Him in your arms, but you truly have Him. The Holy Spirit gives you faith, Jesus gives you Himself, and the Father gives you His Son.  So let us sing praise to God with the beautiful words Simeon spoke and remember the work of our triune God to save us. Amen. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and everlasting God, I thank and praise You for feeding me the life-giving body and blood of Your beloved son, Jesus Christ. Send Your Holy Spirit that, having with my mouth received the holy Sacrament, I may by faith obtain and eternally enjoy Your divine grace, the forgiveness of sins, unity with Christ and life eternal; through Jesus Christ, my Lord. Amen.-Pastor Jeffrey Horn is Pastor at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Escondido, CA,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Purification of Mary and Presentation of Our LordLuke 2:22-32Daily Lectionary: Zech. 12:1-13:9, Titus 1:1-2:6…as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every male who first opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord” (Luke 2:23)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. On this day, 40 days after Christmas, Mary and Joseph took baby Jesus from Bethlehem to the temple in Jerusalem to present Him before the LORD. There is a beautiful meaning behind this day. We can understand it better when we think of 5 sons.The First son is Israel. Israel had been cruelly enslaved by the Egyptians. They cried to God for help and God sent Moses to deliver them. God’s message to Pharaoh was that Israel was God’s son, so Egypt should let Israel go. If not, Egypt would lose their firstborn son. (Exodus 4:22,23)The Second son is the firstborn of Egypt. God sent 10 plagues against Egypt to convince them to let Israel go. The 10th plague happened in conjunction with the Passover (Exodus 13). On that night, God provided the blood of the Passover lamb so that death passed over the children of Israel. Where there was no blood on the doorposts, the angel of death took the firstborn son of the household. After this, Egypt let Israel go. Israel rejoiced to be free, but the grief in Egypt was unmeasurable.The Third son is all the firstborn sons of Israel. Because God delivered Israel from Egypt at the cost of the death of the firstborn sons of Egypt, now all firstborn sons among the Israelites belonged to God. They would not be sacrificed but would be redeemed by an offering. Each firstborn son was a living reminder that one day God would send the Messiah to deliver the world from sin.The Fourth Son is Jesus. Jesus is the only begotten Son of God from eternity. He is also the firstborn son of Mary, the son who opened her womb. As the firstborn, He was consecrated to the LORD. (Gal 4:4-5).  God would redeem the world from slavery to sin, death, and hell. He gave His own Son to die on the cross as the sacrifice that gives peace. What incredible love that He would do that for us!The Fifth son is all the baptized. You are washed in the blood of Christ in Baptism and God adopts you as His child in Christ (1 John 3:1).  The victory Jesus won is given to you by grace through faith. You live in this world as one who is set free, as one who is walking with Jesus to the Promised Land of heaven. All the baptized are set apart to belong to God by the grace of Jesus the Holy Son of God. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and ever-living God, as Your only begotten Son was this day presented in the temple in the substance of our flesh, grant that we may be presented to You with pure and clean hearts; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Jeffrey Horn is Pastor at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Escondido, CA,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism - To Workers of All KindsDaily Lectionary: Zech. 11:4-17, 2 Timothy 4:1-18Bondservants, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart, as you would Christ… (Ephesians 6:5)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In the season of Epiphany, we celebrate that the light of Christ shines forth into darkness. God uses our work, including our jobs, to let that light shine forth and bless others. Do you have a job? Then Ephesians 6 speaks to you. Paul tells us that when we are at work, we don’t just work to please our earthly boss, but we are working for Jesus Himself.In Ephesians 6, Paul is speaking to people who were bondservants. They couldn’t quit or leave their jobs until they fulfilled the terms of the bond. Paul was comforting them with the promise that Jesus was with them. Even in their bonds, they were free in Christ because of the salvation won for them on the cross. When they did their work, Christ went with them. They could work for Him, not just for their master on earth.  If God could be with bondservants in their work even though they had no freedom, how much more can he be with you in your work when you are blessed with more rights today!Serving God isn’t limited to churchwork. Every job contributes something good for your neighbor, and you can do it with a sincere desire to serve Jesus. He’s right there with you, sustaining you and blessing you. (There are some jobs that are sinful. They harm your neighbor and require breaking the 10 Commandments. A Christian should avoid these jobs. If a person who has a job like this converts and comes to Christ, they should figure out how to change jobs.)When you work for Christ, you’re reminded that your daily bread comes from God, not just a paycheck—so you have more peace about how you’ll survive hard times. Working for Christ, and not just an earthly boss or company, also adds dignity to any job you have.  Even jobs that seem unimportant have meaning when you frame it with “How does my work serve my neighbor?” These blessings help you find joy in your work as you go through life, which is no small thing.Students should be dedicated to their studies as if learning from Christ. What you learn can help you serve your neighbor, now and in the future.  Pray for wisdom to work well, for protection from danger, and for strength to grow in your abilities. If you want to learn more about this, read the Table of Duties in the Small Catechism. Luther has a lot to say on this topic in just a couple of pages. Jesus loves you. He is with you each day as your Savior and Shepherd—as you rest and as you work. Thanks be to God. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, grant Your mercy and grace to Your people in their many and various callings. Give them patience, and strengthen them in their Christian vocation of witness to the world and of service to their neighbor in Christ’s name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.-Pastor Jeffrey Horn is Pastor at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Escondido, CA,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:18-31Daily Lectionary: Zech. 10:1-11:3, 2 Timothy 3:1-17For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.   (1 Corinthians 1:22-24)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In the season of Epiphany, we celebrate that the light of Christ shines forth into darkness. His light shines through the preaching of Christ crucified.To preach Christ crucified, the pastor proclaims the Law; the Law shows us that we have sinned and deserve death and damnation. But the pastor doesn’t leave us there. He proclaims the Gospel of Christ—that Jesus’s death on the cross washes away our sin so we are free from death and damnation. Christ sacrificed himself for us. Finally, the pastor proclaims Christ’s resurrection—Jesus rose from the dead to show that He paid for all sins, that death has no power over Him, and all who believe in Him will rise again and have eternal life. There is no other to salvation other than the cross of Christ. Christ alone can save. He saves us by grace through faith alone.This is such a beautiful message, who could possibly find fault with it? Sadly, many reject it. Some hate it vehemently. (Lord, have mercy and draw them all to You!)St. Paul tells us that some reject the gospel because they want sure proof of these mighty claims. They demand that God perform powerful acts to remove their doubt that Christ is the way to salvation. Others insist that God convince them into salvation with eloquent reason and human philosophy. They demand a salvation that the wisdom of man can discover, understand, and deserve. When Christ crucified is preached, there are none of these false proofs. Jesus is known to be the Christ because He fulfilled the ancient prophecies, died on the cross in perfect obedience to the Father, and rose from the dead as no one else ever has. We know Christ through the testimony of the apostles and prophets in the Holy Scriptures. No human wisdom can save anyone. We bring nothing to God but our sin and death. Jesus alone saves. He saves the infant and the infirmed in the same way as He saves eminent doctors and philosophers – by grace through faith.  This faith is worked by the Holy Spirit through the Word and Sacraments, so we cannot even claim that as our work. God saves us. He alone does it. And He does it through the death and resurrection of Jesus. Thanks be to God! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lamb of God, pure and holy, Who on the cross didst suffer,Ever patient and lowly, Thyself to scorn didst offer.All sins Thou borest for us, else had despair reigned over us:Have mercy on us, O Jesus! O Jesus!(LSB 434 vs 1)-Pastor Jeffrey Horn is Pastor at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Escondido, CA,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Micah 6:1-8Daily Lectionary: Zech. 9:1-17, 2 Timothy 2:1-26“Hear what the LORD says: … “O my people, what have I done to you? How have I wearied you? Answer me!”  (Micah 1a, 3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In Epiphany, we celebrate that the light of Christ shines forth into the world, proclaiming the truth of His word —that people are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. We celebrate that God has raised up people to serve in His church through the ages, from prophets and apostles, to pastors, teachers, parents, and every vocation.God chose Micah to call Israel to repentance—to speak the truth in power to Israel (3:8). The princes in the government took bribes and oppressed the people with their injustice. The priests refused to perform sacrifices unless they were paid, and they practiced divination for money. The false-prophets proclaimed that the LORD would never bring trouble upon Israel in spite of their sins (See Micah 3:9-12).Micah called Israel to repent (6:8) and to come to God for the forgiveness they desperately needed (7:18-20). But most importantly, Micah prophesied that one day the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem and would rule faithfully over the people.We learn from Micah how important it is for everyone to repent—in every station and vocation in life. We all need to remember that God loves justice, kindness, and humility. His Law defines righteousness and makes it clear how we are to live. Repentance teaches us to take God’s Law seriously. The Law shows how we are to live in love with all people. Repentance takes God’s command seriously that we are to love God and our neighbor (Matthew 22:37-40). But when we hear the Law, we learn that we have sinned against God and deserve punishment. So we run to Jesus for the forgiveness He won for us on the cross. He bestows his grace upon us in our Baptism, in the Supper, and in His Holy Word (That’s why we call them the Means of Grace). We are saved by His grace through faith. And having been forgiven, we strive to walk in love. The love we show does not earn forgiveness from God. We are forgiven freely by grace. But having been forgiven each day we strive for the justice, kindness and humility which God desires and our neighbor needs.False messages about God permeated Israel in Micah’s day. False messages about God bombard us in our day, too. Micah preached the truth to the people so they would be saved. We thank God that His truth is still available to us. He has never abandoned His Church. So let us gather faithfully around the right preaching of the Gospel and serve one another in Christ.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“My faithful God, You fail me never; Your promise surely will endure. O cast me not away forever if words and deeds become impure. Have mercy when I come defiled; Forgive, lift up, restore Your child.” (LSB 590 vs 3 Baptized into Your Name Most Holy)-Pastor Jeffrey Horn is Pastor at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Escondido, CA,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 5:1-12Daily Lectionary: Zech. 8:1-23, 2 Timothy 1:1-18“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. During Epiphany we celebrate that the light of Christ shines forth to people in need of His grace and mercy. In our reading today, crowds of people were following Jesus to hear Him speak, so He led them to a mountainside and began to teach them. He starts by listing who is “blessed” in God’s eyes: The poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, the merciful, the pure in heart, the peacemakers, and the persecuted.Those who have been wronged, who are grieving, and those who work for peace and righteousness often don’t feel blessed. But God sees them, and He pulls them near. He blesses them and shines the light of the Gospel upon their hearts. He did on that mountainside 2000 years ago—and He blesses you today, as well.Jesus blesses those who are in desperate need. The gifts He gives cannot be earned by any kind of good works. We’re not worthy of receiving them—they are too great. Our Savior offers forgiveness for sins, eternal life, the blessings of salvation in this world and in heaven. Only the Holy Spirit can cause you to know how profound your poverty is before God, and only the Spirit can bring you to know and believe that the blessings of Christ are truly yours. The Spirit brings you into those blessings in your Baptism. The Spirit comforts you in those blessings through the Word. The Spirit strengthens you in those blessings in the Lord’s Supper. Through these gifts you find the blessings of Christ to help you through the hardships of this world.So, when you go through life and mourn, face troubles that need peace, hunger for God’s righteousness in these dark times, or must bear with meekness the vanity of the world—you face all these things in Christ. Even when you are persecuted for your faith in Him, He is with you and blesses you. He endured all these things for you on the cross.  When you suffer, He knows how to comfort you with blessings rich and free. He gives you those blessings He proclaimed from the mountain, the blessings He won for you on the cross. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, You know we live in the midst of so many dangers that in our frailty we cannot stand upright. Grant strength and protection to support us in all dangers and carry us through temptations; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Jeffrey Horn is Pastor at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Escondido, CA,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for Epiphany 4, Ps. 22:27-31; antiphon: Ps. 22:22Daily Lectionary:Zech. 6:1-7:14, Romans 16:17-27I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will praise you… (Psalm 22:22)Today, our reading is the last section of Psalm 22. It speaks of the power and glory of Christ Jesus. We glorify Him who conquered sin and death by His crucifixion and resurrection. We rejoice that the light of His Gospel shines forth to all nations and will continue to be proclaimed from generation to generation until He returns in glory. Amen.The main part of this psalm has a very different feel however. It describes His crucifixion in graphic ways. It’s a vivid description of how Jesus suffered when He was nailed to the cross.  It’s such an important prophecy of the crucifixion that Jesus Himself quoted the beginning of the psalm while He was on the cross: “And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46)Read the rest of Psalm 22. Behold Christ on the cross. Think for a moment about what he endured. Realize that He suffered this for your sake. He died like this to bear your punishment. He shed His blood to wash you from your sins. The agony He endured was great, but He obeyed His Father and suffered it for you to save you from sin, death, and hell. He did this to rescue you because He loves you with an everlasting love.Toward the end of the psalm the message shifts from describing the crucifixion to celebrating the resurrection. Verse 24 says, “For he has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted, and he has not hidden his face from him, but has heard, when he cried to him.” The Father raised Jesus from the dead. Christ did not stay in the tomb but rose again in glory! Alleluia, Christ is risen!The Gospel of salvation —that Jesus died and rose to save people by grace —has been preached from generation to generation until it came to us today. In Baptism you were joined to the death and resurrection of Christ (Romans 6). This is such a wonderful thing that we cannot keep it inside! We praise God for rescuing us. And we join with our family at church, and with believers around the world speak of the glory of Jesus who triumphed to save us. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Jesus, light of all below, the fount of life and fire,surpassing all the joys we know, all that we can desire:May every heart confess Your name, forever You adore,and, seeking You, itself inflame to seek You more and more! (LSB 554 vs. 3,4)-Pastor Jeffrey Horn is Pastor at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Escondido, CA,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luther’s Small Catechism - Table of Duties: To Children  Daily Lectionary: Zech. 4:1-5:11, Romans 15:14-33Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.  “Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” (Ephesians 6:1-3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Today we hear from the Table of Duties in the Small Catechism about what God expects of children. St. Paul quotes the 4th Commandment teaching children that they should honor their parents. (BTW, one of the best places to read about what the 4th Commandment means for children and parents is in Luther’s Large Catechism.  It’s only a few pages long, and if you have parents or children, it will help you.)God sent His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross and rise again to be the propitiation for the sins of the world. He is the sacrifice that pays for our sins, so that by grace through faith in Christ, we are forgiven and declared just. From the moment people fell into sin, through to when Christ died and rose, and onward to the end of the world —God wants people to hear the Gospel and be saved. The 4th commandment is so important because in each generation, God has given parents the responsibility to bring their children to Christ and to teach His word to them (Deuteronomy 6:4-7).Parents start by bringing their children to church to be baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Parents then are to bring their children to church to hear the Word, learn about Christ and His work, sing His praises in the liturgy and hymns, and partake of Holy Communion when they are ready.Since God has given this role to parents, He also commands children to honor their parents. When children honor their parents, they are ready to receive the good teaching and wisdom that God wants parents to give them. So, children are to respect their parents, speak well to them, help them, learn from them, and regard them as those whom God Himself has sent to bless them.Many children struggle to give the honor which parents deserve. Many parents struggle to raise their children to walk with God. But when parents and children repent of their sins, are forgiven in Christ, and walk with Him as He intends, the blessings that follow are rich. They are blessings that last all through life in this world and in Heaven. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, heavenly Father, You have blessed us with the joy and care of children. Give us calm strength and patient wisdom that, as they grow in years, we may teach them to love whatever is just and true and good, following the example of our Savior, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.-Pastor Jeffrey Horn is Pastor at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Escondido, CA,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 10:1-9Daily Lectionary: Zech. 2:1-3:10, Romans 15:1-13Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. (Luke 10:3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Through these last three days, the Church gives thanks to God for the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We’ve already praised God for the work He did through St. Timothy. We praised God for bringing St. Paul to faith and sending him out as an apostle. Today we praise God for the work He accomplished through St. Titus, Pastor and Confessor.Titus was a friend and co-worker with St. Paul, traveling with him on his third missionary journey. Paul had Titus remain on the island of Crete to serve as pastor. He was tasked with establishing good order in the congregations and to identify and train other men who could be faithful pastors. Paul wrote a letter to Titus, describing  what qualifications and duties pastors should possess. This letter still instructs the church to this day.Serving in Crete was not easy for Titus. Some people were teaching false things about Christ and how we are saved. Paul encouraged Titus to teach the truth of the Word against these adversaries. The new pastors who were being trained also had to be equipped to stand against these false teachings.  Pastors still need to protect the church against false teaching today. Satan and the world always bring new lies against the Gospel to try to deceive people away from Christ.  Jesus and the Apostles specifically warned the church that these attacks would keep coming (see Luke 10:3 and Acts 20:28-31). So pastors not only proclaim the Gospel in love. They also need to recognize false teaching and counter it with the truth to protect Jesus’ sheep in their care.  Always pray that God would raise up faithful pastors and equip them for the work. We thank God for our faithful seminaries at Ft. Wayne and St. Louis and all the programs that prepare the next generation of pastors to serve.But God also calls each believer to learn the Word so they can be mature in faith, strong in love, and avoid false teaching. You grow in the Word by attending worship and Bible Study, reading your Bible, and faithfully studying Luther’s Small Catechism. The Catechism contains simple explanations of the key teachings of Scripture. If you know it well, you will be well protected against those who lie about Christ.As we thank God for St Titus, we also thank God for all who train new generations of pastors. May God equip them for faithful service to the Church. We also praise God for all faithful Christians serving in all the vocations that God has given them. May we all be mature in Christ, faithful to the Word, and ready to serve in love. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, You called Titus to the work of pastor and teacher. Make all shepherds of Your flock diligent in preaching Your holy Word so that the whole world may know the immeasurable riches of our Savior, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Jeffrey Horn is Pastor at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Escondido, CA,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Acts 9:1-22Daily Lectionary: Zech. 1:1-21, Romans 14:1-23Now as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him.  And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”  (Acts 9:3,4)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. During Epiphany we celebrate that the light of Christ shines to people who are in darkness. Saul was immersed in that darkness. Blind to the truth, Saul “ravaged the church, entering house after house and dragging off men and women and putting them in prison (Acts 8:3).” Looking back at his behavior at this time, Paul told Timothy that he was “the chief of sinners” (1 Timothy 1:15). But Jesus Christ is the Light of the world, the light no darkness can overcome.  He could’ve struck Saul down to stop him —yet instead  Jesus confronted Saul on the road to Damascus so that He could bring Saul into His light. He condemned Saul’s actions with the simple words “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” Saul realized he’d been fighting against God’s Messiah. Christ’s light had literally struck him blind.Saul deserved punishment and damnation. But Jesus came to save sinners, including Saul. Jesus had died on the cross to take the punishment Saul had earned. When Saul regained his sight after 3 days, Ananias baptized him into Jesus. Instead of darkness, he now knew the light of the truth that Jesus is the Christ —he knew God forgave him of his crimes, and he had eternal life in Christ.Such grace could not be held in silence. Saul went forth as Paul and preached Christ Jesus to Jews and Gentiles. He journeyed tirelessly to bring the light of Christ to those in darkness. He was a shining example of the grace of God: If God could save even him, the chief of sinners, God could save anyone -- no matter what they had done. Christ comes to you, just as he came to Saul. He calls you to repent, He washes away your sins in Holy Baptism, and He gives you eternal life completely by His grace. He stays with you throughout this life until He takes you home to heaven. May the peace of Christ that comforted Paul also be with you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, You turned the heart of him who persecuted the Church and by his preaching caused the light of the Gospel to shine throughout the world. Grant us ever to rejoice in the saving light of Your Gospel and, following in the example of the apostle Paul, to spread it to the ends of the earth; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Jeffrey Horn is Pastor at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Escondido, CA,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 24:42-47Daily Lectionary: Joel 3:1-21, Romans 12:14-13:14“Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time?   Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes.” (Matthew 24:45,46)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. After Jesus rose from the dead, the apostles went out into the world — faithfully preaching, teaching, baptizing, and witnessing to His resurrection. But because they would not be here on earth forever, they wrote down their witness about Christ, which we have in the New Testament. They also took up the work of training pastors so they could continue to preach Christ, baptize, and teach the Scriptures to those in their care.It’s likely that all the apostles participated in training up pastors in whatever places Christ sent them, but they didn’t write about how they did it – except for St. Paul. His letters to Timothy and Titus are known as the Pastoral Epistles because he writes to them about how they should serve as pastors and how they should train up new pastors. These letters continue to shape how new pastors are trained to this day.On January 24, 25, and 26 the Church celebrates how Christ established and sustains the office of the Holy Ministry by remembering St Timothy, St Paul and then St Titus. The day for St Paul stands between those of the two early pastors to remind us how Paul faithfully trained them to serve.  These three days remind us that it is dear to Jesus Himself that new generations of pastors and servants in the Church are trained to bring the Gospel and Sacraments to all nations until the Last Day.Jesus calls you to help with this work too: Consider whether you have the gifts to train to serve as a pastor, teacher, or deaconess. Encourage your friends or family members who might have these gifts to pray about faithfully serving. Support the work of our Concordia universities and seminaries with your prayers and offerings. Share encouragement and pray for those who are already serving as pastors, teachers, deaconesses, and lay leaders in your congregation.We give thanks to God that He sent Timothy to serve as a faithful pastor and confessor of Christ and that He has continued to provide shepherds to serve His flock through the ages. Pray God to raise up more men to serve as pastors and for dedicated men and women to serve as teachers and deaconesses and lay leaders in the Church, here and around the world. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“God of the prophets, bless the prophets’ sons; Elijah’s mantle o’er Elisha cast. Each age its solemn task may claim but once; Make each one nobler, stronger than the last.” (LSB 682 vs 1)-Pastor Jeffrey Horn is Pastor at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Escondido, CA,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Isaiah 9:1-4Daily Lectionary:Joel 2:18-32, Romans 11:25-12:13The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness,on them has light shone. (Isaiah 9:2b)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When Isaiah wrote this, the Northern Kingdom of Israel had been invaded. God punished Israel for their sin and rebellion against Him by raising up the mighty armies of Assyria against them. The Assyrians were extremely cruel and violent — so much so that God later punished them for their cruelty.The first attacks took place in the lands of the tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali. The suffering these people endured was legendary — when Isaiah mentioned these territories, everyone remembered and shuddered.Isaiah speaks a prophecy of hope to the people of these burned and shattered communities. These regions which had endured such darkness and desolation would be a place where the greatest light that has ever shined would beam forth -- God would send the Messiah, Jesus, who is the Light of the world. (You can read about this in Matthew 4:12-25, the reading for yesterday’s devotion.)Jesus lived and ministered in Galilee, in Naphtali. He journeyed around this region preaching, teaching, healing, and calling people to repent and find forgiveness of sins in Him. People who had been lost in the darkness of sin and death saw the light of eternal salvation when they heard Jesus and believed in Him.The darkness the people had suffered under the Assyrians was terrible. But the light that they were comforted with by Jesus was so pure and true that it still shines today and will shine forever. The light of Christ shines for you.Jesus did not just come to save the people of Israel. He lived to show all people in every place and time the love and mercy of God. He died on the cross to pay for the sins of the whole world. He rose from the dead to give eternal life to all who believe in Him.Jesus brings light that shines forever. He brings light that shines into all darkness, even the darkness which you endure in your life. Fear not the darkness of sin, death, and suffering. Jesus has brought you light, forgiveness and peace.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, grant us a steadfast faith in Jesus Christ, a cheerful hope in Your mercy, and a sincere love for You and one another; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.-Pastor Jeffrey Horn is Pastor at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Escondido, CA,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 4:12-25Daily Lectionary: Joel 2:1-17, Romans 11:1-24“Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” (Matthew 4:19)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. During the season of Epiphany, we rejoice that the light of Christ shines to people who are in darkness. When Jesus began His earthly ministry, He went about Galilee preaching, teaching, and healing. The people who heard Him were called to repent of their sins and they found forgiveness and life from Jesus, the King who had come to save.As Jesus did this work, He was not alone. He first found Peter and Andrew, James and John, and He called them to follow Him. Each time Jesus entered a village, they were with Him. They heard each sermon, listened to people ask questions, and learned from Jesus’ answers. They watched Him have compassion on the sick and oppressed and saw His power to save. And each sermon, each answer, each miracle strengthened their faith in Jesus.After Jesus ascended, the light of Christ continued to shine through the ministry of the apostles as they witnessed the resurrection of Christ to all the people they encountered. They preached what Jesus preached, taught as He taught, and had mercy like He did. They brought Jesus to people. But the light of Christ needed to continue to shine even after the Apostles died — so the Holy Spirit inspired the apostles and evangelists to write down what Jesus had done and how they had carried His light wherever they preached.The light of Christ continues to shine forth in the Gospels and Epistles in the New Testament to all who hear them preached and to all who read them. As you read how Jesus called the people of Galilee to repent of their sins and believe in Him, you know that Jesus is also calling you to repent and believe. When Jesus teaches in the synagogues of that region, you know He is in your church on Sunday, teaching you through the preaching of the Word of God and blessing you in the sacraments. When Jesus has compassion on people in need, you know He invites you to come to Him in prayer with your needs.Jesus is not far away. He came near to the people of His day in His daily work and life. He stays near to you today through the blessings of life and forgiveness that He gives you in the Word and Sacraments. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty and everlasting God, mercifully look upon our infirmities and stretch forth the hand of Your majesty to heal and defend us; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Jeffrey Horn is Pastor at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Escondido, CA,Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the Third Sunday after the EpiphanyDaily Lectionary:Joel 1:1-20; Romans 10:1-21I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the LORD, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you.For kingship belongs to the LORD, and he rules over the nations.All the prosperous of the earth eat and worship; before him shall bow all who go down to the dust, even the one who could not keep himself alive.Posterity shall serve him; it shall be told of the Lord to the coming generation;they shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn, that he has done it. (Psalm 22:22, 27-31 – The Introit for the Third Sunday after Epiphany)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Text of the Reflection. Who’s in charge here?  That’s a question a parent or a teacher might ask when things are getting out of hand.  Psalm 22 sees a world where things seem to be getting out of hand. The Messiah cries out, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?”  He is surrounded by those who mock Him and shake their heads at him.  It certainly looks like things have gotten out of hand.  Yet, near the end of Psalm 22, it becomes clear that things are not out of hand at all.  All the earth will remember the work of the Lord because kingship belongs to the Lord.No matter how it was intended, Jesus hanging on the cross under a sign that declared Him “The King of the Jews” seems out of control.  But the work of God is never out of control.  Instead, the Lord rules over the nations and over all creation from the cross.  How out of control and backwards looking is that?  But no matter what it looks like, the reality of the Lord ruling over all things in death and in resurrected life is exactly the way things are.  The Lord’s righteousness for you is seen in His death and resurrection.  From His cross flows mercy and grace for you.  You don’t have all things under control.  You might feel like you don’t have anything in control.  Kingship belongs to the Lord who loves you, and that is the best news for you.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Christ Jesus lay in death’s strong bands,  For our offenses given,  But now at God’s right hand He stands,  And brings us life from heaven.Therefore let us joyful be, And sing to God right thankfully, Loud songs of alleluia! Alleluia! (Lutheran Service Book 458, stanza 1)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary:Ezekiel 47:1-14, 21-23; Romans 9:19-33As I went back, I saw on the bank of the river very many trees on the one side and on the other.  And he said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, and enters the sea; when the water flows into the sea, the water will become fresh.  And wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish. For this water goes there, that the waters of the sea may become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes. (Ezekiel 47:7-9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The prophet Ezekiel had a vision, but many things in Ezekiel’s visions can be difficult for us.  A river flowing from the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem downhill into a lake seems a little odd, but not too difficult to understand.  Around that lake there are trees and animals and fish.  In fact, where the river goes, everything will live.  The wrinkle is that the lake where the river flows is called “the Arabah” – what we know as “The Dead Sea.”  The Dead Sea is so salty that nothing can live there.  There aren’t any trees alongside it, there aren’t fish in it, and nothing really lives there.  Common sense says that if fresh water flows into saltwater, the fresh water becomes salty.  But Ezekiel’s vision stands everything on its head.  This fresh water flows from the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem and it transforms the salty Dead Sea into the Sea of Life.  That’s backwards!  There will be trees and fish and life around the sea because what comes from the temple transforms everything.  So it is with the work of Jesus.  When Jesus takes on flesh, His divinity is not corrupted by humanity.  Instead, when He takes on flesh, His divinity transforms His humanity.  The Athanasian Creed confesses, “Although He is God and man, He is not two, but one Christ: one, however, not by the conversion of the divinity into flesh, but by the assumption of the humanity into God.”  In other words, Jesus being God in the flesh pulls His humanity into righteous perfection.  The fact that humanity is pulled into the Godhead is good news for you.  The same Jesus who is God and man also calls you His brother.  He has formed you in His own image because of His great love for you.  This isn’t like human relationships, where people can be criticized for their friends.  Instead, He transforms you because of His loving and gracious relationship with you.  The Lord who led Ezekiel to see a salt sea transformed to a place of life sees poor, miserable sinners transformed into forgiven, righteous children of God. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.He lives and grants me daily breath;  He lives, and I shall conquer death; He lives my mansion to prepare; He lives to bring me safely there. (Lutheran Service Book 461, stanza 7)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Table of Duties:To ParentsDaily Lectionary: Ezekiel 44:1-16, 23-29; Romans 9:1-18Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. (Ephesians 6:4)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When Holy Scripture addresses parents, this is not just parenting advice.  If you want a book to make you a better parent, there are whole shelves of parenting books at the local bookstore, and blogs and podcasts all over the place online.  Scripture’s goal isn’t to make you a better parent, but Scripture is concerned about making you a better Christian.  For those who are called to be parents, that includes making them Christian parents.  Therefore, this command isn’t about consequences or discipline or routines or consistency.  This is about parents providing their children discipline and instruction in the Lord.  Parents are called to teach their children faith in Jesus.  This is important, even for people that haven’t been called to be parents now.  Whatever callings you have are callings to do what you do as a Christian.  You are called not only to be a high school student, but to be a Christian high school student.  You aren’t only an employee, but a Christian employee.  You aren’t just a friend, but a Christian friend.  You aren’t only a son or a daughter, but a Christian son or daughter.  In all things, Jesus is the focus.  This isn’t merely to say that you are called to make other people Christian by any means necessary, but to live out your faith in Jesus Christ in a way that bears witness to the fact that Jesus is the Christ, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.  As your parents serve you in Christ, providing instruction and discipline in the Lord, listen to them.  Receive their discipline and encouragement as from the Lord, since He is the One who commanded it.  Where you have opportunities to serve others in Christ, do that.  Life as a Christian student and friend, son or daughter, employee and everything else you do is service to Jesus.  Apart from Jesus, you would be just like everyone else.  By His precious blood, Jesus has made you in His image and covered you with His blood.  That makes all the difference. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.In what You give us, Lord, to do, Together or alone, In old routines or ventures new, May we not cease to look to You,  The cross You hung upon—  All You endeavored done. (Lutheran Service Book 853, stanza 4)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Mark 8:27-9:1Daily Lectionary:Ezekiel 40:1-4; 43:1-12; Romans 8:18-39And he asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Christ.” (Mark 8:29)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Text of the Reflection.  “Who is Jesus?” is the question that runs through all the readings this week, starting with John the Baptist’s identification of Jesus as the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world and continuing with Isaiah identifying Jesus as the Lord’s Servant and Paul mentioning that we have fellowship with our Lord Jesus.  Today, as we celebrate the Confession of St. Peter, Jesus bluntly asks the question.  He starts by asking “Who do people say that I am?”  That’s a question that you would hesitate to ask even of a friend, in case they would tell you something that people are saying behind your back about you that you don’t want to know.  But after the disciples answer that question, Jesus asks them who they, the disciples, say He is.  Peter answers that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah.  You would expect a recognition that Peter was right or some kind words from Jesus.  Instead, Jesus tells the disciples not to talk about His identity as the Christ.Then, He goes on to say that it’s necessary for Him to suffer and die and after three days, rise from the dead.  That doesn’t seem very Messiah-like, does it?  Messiahs don’t die, Christs don’t suffer, and the Lord’s servant shouldn’t go through these things that Jesus said He would go through.  This seems absurd to the point that the Christ-confessing Peter pulls Jesus aside to ask, “Are you sure?”  What a difference between “You are the Christ” and “I’m not sure you’ve thought this through.”  How often do we look at the actions of God and think, “It doesn’t seem like God is doing what He should.”  You struggle with God’s actions seeming ridiculous to you, or to anyone else.  That’s why it’s so important that Jesus is the Christ.  What you think of God’s actions isn’t nearly as important as who Jesus is.  He is the Messiah, the Christ who has come to save you from your sin, even your sin of thinking that Jesus is being God wrong.  Your Lord is the Christ who saves you with His great love. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, You revealed to the apostle Peter the blessed truth that Your Son Jesus is the Christ. Strengthen us by the proclamation of this truth that we too may joyfully confess that there is salvation in no one else; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.-Pastor Peter W. Ill is Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:1-9Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 39:1-10, 17-29; Romans 7:21-8:17God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. (1 Corinthians 1:9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. During His earthly ministry, Jesus called disciples including Simon and Andrew.  John tells us how Jesus called himself and his brother James from fishing with their Father to follow Jesus.  Matthew tells us how Jesus called him from his tax booth to follow Jesus.  But the calling of those disciples is not an exception.  Paul writes to the Christians in Corinth that God called even them into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.  The call to follow Jesus isn’t something that was reserved for special Christians or Christians a long time ago.  In Luther’s Small Catechism about the Third Article of the Creed, we confess, “I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith.”  Notice that we confess the Holy Spirit has called me.  This isn’t a call to someone else or people who are disconnected from you.  No, this is personal!The call to follow Jesus is personal.  The water of Baptism and the word of God for you in your Baptism is personal.  The certain words of the Absolution declaring your forgiveness are personal.  The body and blood of Jesus given and shed for you are personal.  These aren’t given only for the salvation of the world, but for the salvation of you, a sinner in need of God’s grace.  The devil, the world, and your sinful flesh all try to convince you that you are alone and isolated.  “See,” they tell you, “you’re like a lost lamb that nobody cares about.  No one else is like you, and nobody understands the problems you have.”  That is what the voices of temptation say.  But Jesus, along with the Holy Spirit, shout in response, “That’s not true!”  Your God has taken on flesh for you.  The Holy Spirit has called you.  You are not alone.  Jesus has promised to be with you always, even to the very end of the age.  (Matthew 28:20)  In all things, you are not alone.  You are not lacking in any gift.  The Lord Jesus Christ will sustain you to the day of His return.  (1 Corinthians 1:7-8)  These are personal promises for forgiven sinners that Jesus dearly loves.  You aren’t missing anything because you have the grace of Jesus, and that grace will last forever.  In the Name + of Jesus. AmenLet us also live with Jesus. He has risen from the dead,  That to life we may awaken.  Jesus, You are now our head.  We are Your own living members;  Where You live, there we shall beIn Your presence constantly,  Living there with You forever. Jesus, let me faithful be, Life eternal grant to me. (Lutheran Service Book 685, stanza 4)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Isaiah 49:1-7Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 38:1-23; Romans 7:1-20he says:“It is too light a thing that you should be my servant    to raise up the tribes of Jacob    and to bring back the preserved of Israel;I will make you as a light for the nations,    that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” (Isaiah 49:6)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In the second “servant song” in Isaiah, the Lord speaks about His servant to come.  In verse 3, the Lord says, “You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified.” It is impressive to be the Lord’s servant, and it is a big deal that God will be glorified in this servant.  But this servant isn't just a run of the mill hero or world leader.  The servant is ultimately fulfilled not in any human governor nor in the people of Israel but in Jesus.  Jesus doesn’t just lift up the tribes of Jacob and the people of Israel.  Jesus, God in the flesh, brings salvation not only for the people of Israel but for all people.  He is the light of the nations and brings salvation to the end of the earth.  This is the same Jesus who declared, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12)  It is Jesus who was called forth from His mother and worshiped by Gentile Magi because He is their Savior, too.  Jesus has come so all people, Jewish and Gentile alike, know the salvation of God.  God isn’t the Creator of only some, nor is He the Redeemer of only a few.  The Lord loves all people, just as Jesus died for all people.  He calls all people to repent and confess the holy name of Jesus.  Those who repent and believe are those who will be saved. When in Luke 13, someone asked Jesus if those who would be saved were few.  Instead of answering with a simple, “No,” Jesus calls His disciples to focus on their own faith and on His work for them.  Jesus is the Savior of all, yes, but He is your Savior.  Not only is He the glory of Israel and the Light of the Gentiles, but He is your Lord as well.  He came to shed His precious blood for you and to rescue you from sin, death, and the devil. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.This is the Savior of the world,  The Gentiles’ promised light,  God’s glory dwelling in our midst,   The joy of Israel.  (Lutheran Service Book 937, stanza 2)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: John 1:29-42aDaily Lectionary: Ezekiel 37:15-28; Romans 6:1-23And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.” (John 1:34)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Who is Jesus?  The answer to this question changes everything.  In the reading today, it changes everything for Simon and Andrew, just like it changes everything for John the Baptist.  If Jesus is the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world, He is worth following and worth believing.  That means that He is not just another teacher, or just someone with wisdom and insights.  If Jesus is the Son of God, like John the Baptist declares, then everything is different.  Jesus has come to change everything.  The One who was baptized by John when John saw the Holy Spirit descend on Him is the same One who calls Simon and Andrew to follow Him.  Why should Simon and Andrew follow Jesus?  Because He is the Son of God who takes away the sin of the world!  If He was anything less than that, following Jesus might lead to a better life or a path of wisdom.  But that’s not worth following Jesus completely and totally.  Jesus doesn’t call you to a project or a side-project.  Jesus calls you to a life of devotion, because Jesus has devoted Himself to you.  He is the One who unites Himself with you in the waters of baptism.  You have a death like His, and you have a resurrection like His because you are baptized into Him.  Jesus is certainly the Lamb of God who has taken away the sin of the world, but never, ever lose sight of the fact that Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away your sins.  Jesus isn’t a Savior “in general” but He is a Savior for you. Jesus is the Messiah who invites you to “come and see” all His goodness.  Is He your Savior?  Come and see!  Does He forgive your sins?  Come and see!  Does He love you?  Come and see!  He came for real people with real names, like Simon and Andrew and you.  He has called you His own when He claimed you in the waters of Holy Baptism.  There, He placed you in His name, and He will never give up on you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and everlasting God, who governs all things in heaven and on earth, mercifully hear the prayers of Your people and grant us Your peace through all our days; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.-Pastor Peter W. Ill is Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the Second Sunday after the EpiphanyDaily Lectionary: Ezekiel 36:33-37:14; Romans 5:1-21Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge.There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard.Their measuring line goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun.Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit;as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.  (The Introit for the Second Sunday of Epiphany, Psalm 19:1-4, 14)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Text of the Reflection. In Psalm 19, David and the Church pray that God would let the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in the sight of God.  That’s in Psalm 19:14, but earlier in the same psalm, all the talking isn’t done by you or by David.  The heavens declare God’s glory.  In the daytime, speech pours out.  All creation does the talking, from the sky and the sun.  After that comes God’s law and testimony and precepts.  There is nothing in all creation that isn’t made by God.That includes you.  You have been made in the image of God, not merely because God breathed the breath of life into Adam’s nostrils, but because the crucified and risen Jesus breathed the breath of the new life of forgiveness into His disciples and into you.  The words of your mouth and the meditation of your heart are acceptable to God, not because you’re alive but because you have been recreated and restored from sinfulness. The image of God was lost when Adam and Eve fell, but you are in the image of God because Jesus has restored the image of God for you.  When you were an enemy of God, Christ Jesus died for you.  Jesus’ act of righteousness in death and resurrection rescues you from death and condemnation and makes you alive again.  Now, your mouth opens and your lips declare the praises of God who has called you from darkness into His marvelous light.  You join all creation, not because you want to, but because Jesus has died and risen for you and you have eternal life in Christ Jesus your Lord.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.From all that dwell below the skies  Let the Creator’s praise arise;  Alleluia, alleluia  Let the Redeemer’s name be sung Through ev’ry land by ev’ry tongue.  Alleluia, alleluia!  Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia! (Lutheran Service Book 816, stanza 1)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois..Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 36:13-28; Romans 4:1-25No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God,  fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised.  That is why his faith was “counted to him as righteousness.”  (Romans 4:20-22)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Abraham was a man of faith.  God gave Abraham a promise, and Abraham believed God.  God counted that faith as righteousness.  But sometimes, reading the New Testament (like Romans) about people who lived in the days of the Old Testament (like Abraham in Genesis) makes us think, “There was a lot of time between Abraham and Paul.  How does Paul know that Abraham didn’t waver?”  After all, today we face all manner of challenges to our faith.  The world condemns us as outdated, the devil tells us that we misunderstand God, and our own sin-fallen flesh and mind says that we’re irrational.  That makes us sound very different from Abraham who didn’t waver concerning the promise of God.  Is Abraham our Father?  Do we have the same faith that Abraham did?Stop!  Thinking like that takes your eyes off Jesus.  Abraham isn’t saved because he was so good at believing.  Abraham is saved because Jesus died and rose for him.  When you worry that your faith is weak or that you might waver or that you might not be able to withstand the devil who prowls around you like a roaring lion, your concerns are all about yourself – are you strong enough, good enough, faithful enough?  You’re not.  If you hope to be righteous because you are good enough, you have no chance.  You aren’t saved by the quality of your faith, but by Jesus whom your faith rests in.  The Holy Spirit calls you to believe the promises of Jesus.  Your faith might waver.  You might doubt.  Certainly, you will not be able to commit to perfect faith.  Your Lord, the Holy One, makes you holy.Abraham isn’t saved because He was so good at believing.  Abraham is saved because God took on flesh to die and rise for him.  You aren’t saved because your faith is so good, or because you have done such a good job of being faithful, or anything like that.  You are saved because Jesus died and rose for you and because the Holy Spirit has called you by the Gospel, enlightened you with the light of Christ, gathered you with the Church, and sanctified you in God’s holiness.  Your faith isn’t about you, but in Jesus who is the resurrection and the life for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.The God of Abr’ham praise, Whose all-sufficient grace  Shall guide me all my pilgrim day,  In all my ways. He deigns to call me friend; He calls Himself my God. And He shall save me to the end  Through Jesus’ blood. (Lutheran Service Book 798, stanza 3)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois..Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 34:1-24; Romans 3:19-31For there is no distinction:  for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus (Romans 3:22b-24)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. All have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory.  That’s a stark word of judgment.  God’s Law tells you this.  You haven’t kept the Ten Commandments.  You haven’t loved the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and all your mind.  You haven’t loved your neighbor as yourself.  But that’s not the end of this passage, or even the end of the sentence.  The same “all” that have sinned is also the “all” that are justified by God’s grace as a gift.  Jesus died for all sinners.  Everyone is covered by Jesus’ shed blood.  Not everyone believes, but Jesus has come in the flesh to die and to rise for all sinners.That matters to you because you can never say, “I’m such a terrible sinner that Jesus shouldn’t care about me.”  It isn’t true to think, “My sin is so great that Jesus won’t forgive me.”  Certainly, the devil, the world, and your sinful nature might try to convince you that Jesus doesn’t forgive you, but consider the source!  Christ declares that He has shed His blood for you.  Your guilt is covered over by Christ.  You are justified by the One who is just.  God brings justice, not on your terms but on His terms.  Is God’s grace fair?  You might not think so.  You might not think it's fair for someone who has hurt you or who has lived a certain way to be forgiven.  But God acts in His justice and mercy, not just for you, but for everyone.  He brings His justice through faith and by faith to all people.  There is no distinction, and that means that you aren’t beyond God’s desire or ability to forgive.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord, I believe Thy precious blood, Which at the mercy seat of God Pleads for the captives’ liberty, Was also shed in love for me.  (Lutheran Service Book 563, stanza 3) Text: Public domain-Pastor Peter W. Ill is Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois..Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Table of Duties: To WivesDaily Lectionary: Ezekiel 33:1-20; Romans 3:1-18“And you, son of man, say to the house of Israel, Thus have you said: ‘Surely our transgressions and our sins are upon us, and we rot away because of them. How then can we live?’  Say to them, As I live, declares the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways, for why will you die, O house of Israel? (Ezekiel 33:10-11)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Lord hates sin.  Scripture is clear about this.  The Lord judges sin, and the unrepentant, unbelieving souls are judged too.  But the Lord isn’t like a schoolyard bully, sneaking around waiting to beat up sinners with judgment.  He Himself warns sinners to watch out, to turn, to repent.  Sometimes, when people are warned about a terrible thing that might happen, they get hopeless.  If you’ve heard about that algebra test, you might just think, “Well, what’s the point of studying, since I can study for days and I’ll still fail?”  That’s what the people that Ezekiel was prophesying to said.  “How can we live?”  The Lord spoke through Ezekiel to call them to repentance.  God wanted them to leave behind their wicked ways and live.  1 Peter 3:1-6 speaks in a similar way.  Go check it out, then come back.  Peter writes to wives that even if they are married to a nonbeliever, they prophesied in their actions to the truth of God’s mercy.  Peter writes to women who were married and then became Christians.  They weren’t to divorce their husbands, but to continue being married to them, submitting to them in love even though the men weren’t Christians.  These faithful wives, adorned with a gentle and quiet spirit, might win their husbands to the Christian faith.  But these words apply to you if you’re not married, and even if you’re not a woman.  The quiet and gentle spirit of faith testifies as a watchman, giving the hope of Jesus Christ to believers and unbelievers alike.You are full of hope because Jesus Christ has died and risen for you.  He submitted in quietness and gentleness to death so that you won’t die.  Because He lives, you also will live.  He has won you to faith in Him.  You are part of the Church, the bride of Christ.  There is no hopelessness for you.  The Lord has turned you from the wickedness of unbelief so that you have everlasting life with Him. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Come, join in Cana’s feast,  Where Christ is honored guest. He welcomes all who come to taste,The wine His hands have blessed. (Lutheran Service Book 408, stanza 1)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois..Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Romans 6:1-11Daily Lectionary:Ezekiel 18:1-4, 19-32; Romans 2:17-29For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. (Romans 6:5)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It seems pretty normal to think about your baptism in the past tense, like it’s something from which you’ve moved on. But no Christian ever moves past their baptism.  Baptism into Christ Jesus isn’t something that you move on from.  It’s not something that you grow out of, like a set of clothes you wore when you were younger.  Your baptism into Jesus is something that you grow into.  It is the very truth of eternal life, and you will live forever in your baptismal grace.  Jesus says so!  Since you are connected with Him, you will live with Him forever.  The eternal life that you have with Jesus makes you free from sin.  Now, you are a holy saint of God, not suffering from the curses of sin or death or your sinful nature anymore.  Those problems have been answered through the baptismal waters that Jesus has washed you into.  But it wasn’t the water that did such great things, it’s the blood of Jesus shed on the cross for you that did it.  Jesus delivers His shed blood and His own death and His glorious resurrection for you in that baptism.  While it didn’t look like much other than some splashes of water from a font of water, it is there that Jesus made you His own.  That’s what makes the gift of baptism so great – it is the work of Jesus for you.  Just like His death on the cross and just like His resurrection from the dead, He did it for you and delivers you from all your sins, now and forever.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.God’s own child, I gladly say it: I am baptized into Christ! He, because I could not pay it, Gave my full redemption price. Do I need earth’s treasures many? I have one worth more than anyThat brought me salvation free.  Lasting to eternity! (Lutheran Service Book 594, Stanza 1)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois..Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Isaiah 42:1-9Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 3:12-27; Romans 2:1-16“I am the Lord; I have called you in righteousness;    I will take you by the hand and keep you;I will give you as a covenant for the people,    a light for the nations,7     to open the eyes that are blind,to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon,    from the prison those who sit in darkness.8 I am the Lord; that is my name;    my glory I give to no other,    nor my praise to carved idols.9 Behold, the former things have come to pass,    and new things I now declare;before they spring forth    I tell you of them.”  (Isaiah 42:6-9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Through the prophet Isaiah, the Lord spoke about the One that He would send into the flesh to save humanity, to save you.  The Lord said that He called His Son in righteousness, to make the blind see and to free the prisoners.  He would fulfill everything that He had promised.  The Lord’s word never refers to Him empty or void.  The Lord keeps His promises, so we shouldn’t be surprised that the words of the Lord through the prophet Isaiah and the voice from heaven at Jesus’ baptism are so similar, even though about 600 years separate the two sets of words.  The fact that the words are similar isn’t enough to change your life, though.  What is enough to change your life is what the words say.  These words that describe Jesus are life-givingly important to you.  The Lord Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, has come to free the captives and to make the blind see.  The old things have passed away and new things are coming.  He is the Lord enfleshed.  That changes everything for you, because it is you that He forgives.  It is you that He loves.  It is you that receives the promise of eternal life.  You don’t need to hope or wish that Jesus likes you.  Instead, He makes you confident that you are someone He has forgiven.  You are someone that He has baptized.  You are someone that He calls by His own name.  It’s certainly not fair, but it is gracious, and your Lord is nothing if He is not gracious to you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Go, My children, sins forgiven,  At peace and pure. Here you learned how much I love you, What I can cure. Here you heard My dear Son’s story; Here you touched Him, saw His glory.  Go, My children, sins forgiven, At peace and pure.  (Lutheran Service Book 922, Stanza 2)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois..Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 3:13-17Daily Lectionary: Ezekiel 2:1-3:11; Romans 1:18-3213 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. 14 John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15 But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. 16 And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; 17 and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”  (Matthew 3:13-17)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. John the Baptist was right.  According to human reason and understanding, Jesus didn’t need to be baptized.  He was perfect, being that He is God in the flesh.  On the other hand, John the Baptist, as a sinner, did need the waters of baptism and the grace that it gives.  The reality is that sinners need baptism.  According to what sinners know and understand, God’s Law condemns them as breaking the words and commandments of God.  Or, more specifically, God’s Word of Law convicts YOU of breaking His commands.  You are a poor, miserable sinner.  When you look at Jesus, it is right for sinners like John the Baptist and you to recognize that you have nothing to offer Jesus but that He has everything to offer you.According to human logic, that might be true that Jesus doesn’t need to be baptized.  Thanks be to God that He doesn’t let you do His thinking for Him!  According to His divine wisdom, He does need to be baptized.  It is there, in those baptismal waters, that your Lord Jesus is united with you in those muddy waters.  Better yet, it is in the waters of baptism that He is washed into and that you are washed into that you and Jesus, God in the flesh, are united.  In your baptismal unification, you receive the unification with His cross and with His empty tomb.  When you are united with Jesus, His perfection and His righteousness and His peace become true of you as well.  From your perspective, He doesn’t need those baptismal waters.  On the other hand, you need those baptismal waters, and from His abundant grace, your Savior gives them to you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Father in heaven, at the Baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River, You proclaimed Him Your beloved Son and anointed Him with the Holy Spirit. Make all who are baptized in His name faithful in their calling as Your children and inheritors with Him of everlasting life; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.-Pastor Peter W. Ill is Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois..Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the Baptism of Our LordDaily Lectionary: Ezekiel 1:1-14, 22-28; Romans 1:1-17I will tell of the decree: The Lord said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you.Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession.You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.”Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth.Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling,for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessèd are all who take refuge in him. (Psalm 2:7-11, 12c)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Reading these words probably makes you ask, “Who are these words about?”  Are these words about you?  Are you the Lord’s son?  Will the nations be your heritage and will you possess the ends of the earth?  Will you use an iron staff to break the nations like clay pots?  Will kings and rulers listen to you?  If you’ve ever thought, “If I were the king of the world, I would do this!” These words are hopeful!  But sadly, taking these words from Psalm 2 and applying them directly to yourself isn’t how we read this Scripture.  It’s not all about you.Instead, these words are about Jesus.  He is the only begotten Son of the Father who has not come to condemn the world but to save it.  (John 3:16-17)  He has all authority in heaven and on earth, and at His name every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord.  (Matthew 28:19, Philippians 2:10-11)  No king or ruler or government official has more power or authority than Jesus.  No nation can claim that Jesus doesn’t triumph over whatever they think is best.  Every nation is like a fragile clay pot, and every ruler and all people should be warned that God’s wrath is coming.  Everyone should take refuge in Jesus Christ, the all powerful one.  This all powerful One was revealed to the Magi and submitted Himself to baptism in the Jordan river.  There, the words of Psalm 2 were echoed by the heavenly voice that declared that Jesus is God’s Son to whom all people must listen.  When you listen to the words of Jesus, that’s when the words of Psalm 2 start to apply to you.  Because you are baptized into the baptism of Jesus, you are also God’s son.  You possess the heavenly inheritance of God.  You triumph over all things. That’s not because you are just awesome, but because Jesus the all-powerful One to whom you listen has died and risen for you, and He gives you every good and perfect gift from above.  Are these words about you?  Because of Jesus' grace for you, they are indeed! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.This the baptism that our Savior, Greatly longed to undergo; This the crimson cleansing needed So the world God’s love might know; This the mission of Messiah,  As He stepped from Jordan’s stream,He, the chosen and anointed, Son of God, sent to redeem.  (Lutheran Service Book 404, stanza 3)-Pastor Peter W. Ill is Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois..Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 2:1-12Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 66:1-20; Luke 3:21-38When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary, his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. (Matthew 2:10-11)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. If you’ve ever been on a long trip, you’ve asked the question, “Are we there yet?”  The anticipation of finishing the trip and stretching your legs makes you really excited when you realize that you are almost to the destination.  When you see the final highway exit sign or when you hear the pilot lowering the landing gear, you get excited.  The Magi on their way to see the Messiah were excited when the star they had been following stopped.  They rejoiced!  But they hadn’t even gotten to their destination yet. They still had to finish the last little bit of their journey and meet the Christ-Child.The journey of God’s people through the Old Testament was also drawing nearer and nearer to its fulfillment.  There is a reason for joy as that star stopped.  All the promises and prophecies of the Old Testament were about to meet their fulfillment.  The Magi aren’t the only ones who should have excitement.  You should be filled with joy too because Jesus is about to be seen by people that He has come to save.It’s striking that Jesus comes to save these star-gazing Gentiles.  Their very livelihood centered on telling the future by reading the stars, a breaking of God’s second commandment.  No matter their sin, Jesus came for them.  Not only was He born, not only was a star set in the sky so they would come see Him, but He also took up His cross to suffer and die for these non-Jewish sinners.  For you, a sinner, it is right for you to be filled with joy.  Christ the Lord has been born for you, and He reveals Himself to you.  You don’t see Him in a house or cradled in Mary’s arms, but you see Him in the words of Scripture and in sermons preached to your ears, you see Him in the waters of Holy Baptism, and you see His body and blood given for you at Holy Communion.  Rejoice with the Magi as you see the same Jesus! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, by the leading of a star You made known Your only-begotten Son to the Gentiles. Lead us, who know You by faith, to enjoy in heaven the fullness of Your divine presence; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.-Pastor Peter W. Ill is Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church, Millstadt, Illinois..Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 65:8-25; Luke 3:1-20So with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people. (Luke 3:18)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  A blessed and joy filled Christmas to all the Saints of God!  John the Baptist is making ready the people of God for the beginning of Jesus’ ministry.  We have journeyed with the Christ child through this season of Christmas.  The angels have sung, the shepherds have shared, Jesus is named and circumcised, the Magi are arriving, and we are getting ready for the Baptism of Jesus.  John is proclaiming the law and Gospel to the people of Israel.  The kingdom of God is at hand and John is preparing the people as the last of the prophets.  John is that final prophet that ushers in the era of the Kingdom of God in our presence.  Christ will come to the waters of the Jordan, the Heavens will be open, the dove will descend and the voice from Heaven will proclaim the arrival of God's Son.  John the Baptist prepares the way for the Messiah.The final day of Christmas connects us to the ministry and work of Christ as our redeemer.  John not only proclaims the Law, but he also proclaims the “good news.”  He proclaims the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  He proclaims that the Messiah is here to deliver the people of God.  The Law will be fulfilled, and the final sacrifice will be given for the forgiveness of sins.  John’s words of the Gospel are for us too!  We have journeyed through Christmas and are on the eve of Epiphany.  The way for our salvation is prepared.  We have heard the message of repentance and forgiveness.  We are washed in the waters of Baptism.  We are brought into His family.  We are declared the first-born son and are given the inheritance of life everlasting. The world works on hearts and minds to deceive us that we are not ready or nor worthy of this free gift but through our Baptism we are made ready and prepared for eternal life and the glorious return of our Savior Jesus Christ.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Grant us, O God, the strength and courage, To live the faith our lips declare; Bless us in our baptismal calling; Christ’s royal priesthood help us share. Turn us from every false allegiance,That we may trust in Christ alone; Raise up in us a chosen people, Transformed by love to be Your own.(LSB 600-Mark How the Lamb of God’s Self-Offering stz 3)-Pastor Timothy Paul Davis is Pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church  in Athens Georgia.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Table of Duties: To HusbandsDaily Lectionary: Isaiah 64:15-65:2; Luke 2:41-52Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them. (Colossians 3:19)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The gift of marriage between a man and a woman is a paradigm of the relationship Christ has with His holy bride.  As we begin to close out the season of Christmas we are drawn once again to the manger where our savior is laid.  In the manger is the church’s groom who has come to redeem her and bring to her everlasting life.  The world around us delivers to us a perverse understanding of marriage.  Sin has corrupted the beautiful gift of husband and wife living as God intended.  Marriage is no longer held in high esteem rather it is seen as a cumbersome relationship where contracts are entered into before any vows are made to one another.  Marriage is for convenience and the gratification of one’s desires and not for the mutual love towards a man and woman.  In many parts of the world marriage is no longer considered a part of the lives of the people.  The gift of marriage that God instituted has become a trinket of glamor and selfish adoration focused primarily on the wedding itself.  Paul directs his hearers at the church of Colossi to uphold marriage as God had intended.  It is a relationship between a man and woman that is formed under the order of creation.  God gave Eve to Adam as his wife.  The two are to become one.  The relationship between Adam and Eve is not a relationship of control and demeaning behaviors but one of love and servitude.  Husbands are to love their wives as Christ loved the church (Eph 5).  Husbands are not bitter towards their wives but rather protect them, provide for them, and procreate with them.  The husband stands between his wife and the adversary just as Christ does on the cross.  As God exacts His judgment upon His Son for all the sins of the world our Holy Groom stood between us and that wrath.  He took the wrath of God upon himself that we may be given life.  He presents us Holy and blameless without blemish before His Father in Heaven.  His robe of righteousness covers His Holy Bride.  When we fail, He does not become bitter and cast us off, rather He draws us in and washes the stain of sin through Holy Absolution. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Gracious Savior, grant Your blessing, To this husband and this wife,That in peace they live together In Your love throughout their life, Christ, defend them from the tempter, And from all that would destroyLove’s foundation You have laid here,And its threshold paved with joy. (LSB 860-Gracious Savior, Grant Your Blessing stz 1)-Pastor Timothy Paul Davis is Pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church  in Athens Georgia.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Galatians 3:23-29Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 63:1-14; Luke 2:21-40“for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” (Galatians 3:26-27)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. A blessed and joy filled Christmas to all the saints of God!  Paul gives to the church at Galatia a reminder of who they are and whose they are through the waters of Baptism.  Their identity had been stripped from them as the Judaizers had infiltrated the church and imposed the law upon the people of God.  Their identity was no longer about Christ but about what they had fulfilled in their attempts to live perfectly under the law. They had lost their identity.Our world works diligently to take away our identity.  Various social media platforms use different criteria to identify who we are as individuals.  We fill out forms that ask where we were born, where we currently live, what is our ethnicity, what religion we practice, what grade we are in, what we want to do after high school.  All these factors make up our identity.  As Paul writes, he reminds his hearers that there is only one identity necessary and that is our Baptism.  Our Baptism identifies us as the oldest son in God’s family.  The oldest son is the one who receives the inheritance.  When the people of Galatia heard these words of Paul they were reminded of the customs and traditions that the oldest son was the recipient of the family’s estate by nature of the birth order.  Even if the eldest son didn’t deserve it, he still got it because he was the oldest.  We are certainly not worthy of the inheritance that is promised to us through Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. In Baptism we are baptized into the name of Christ.  We have His name on us and we receive all the blessings and benefits of being the first-born son of God.  The world uses a plethora of ways to identify us but in Christ there is only one marker and that is our Baptism. In the Name + of Jesus. AmenGod’s own child, I gladly say it; I am baptized into Christ! He, because I could not pay it, Gave my full redemption price. Do I need earth’s treasures many?  I have one worth more than any, That brought me salvation free, Lasting to eternity! (LSB 594-God’s Own Child, I Gladly Say It stz 1)-Pastor Timothy Paul Davis is Pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church  in Athens Georgia.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Numbers 6:22-27Daily Lectionary:Isaiah 62:1-12; Luke 2:1-20“So shall they put my name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them.”(Numbers 6:27)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. A blessed and joy filled Christmas to all the saints of God!  We have just been given the name of Jesus as He was circumcised eight days after His birth and now we again hear about the name of God’s people and that His name will be upon them.  His name will be their name.  In the history of God’s people, names are very important.  We have names of individuals, names of families, names of tribes and names of nations.  In all the names that are given, the only name of the Lord God is the one that will bring salvation.  When the people of God have His name on them His blessings accompany that name.  The people of God didn’t always want His name upon them.  They liked the names of the other gods around them.  The names that would appear on the statues and monoliths of the pagan nations.  The names of the false gods were appealing to the people as those names were associated with the desires of the flesh.  The names of the other gods had earthly freedoms connected to them and with those freedoms came earthly wealth and power.The world around us wants to give us other names.  The world wants us to indulge in the philosophies derived from sin and Satan.  The world wants to draw us away from the name given to us in Baptism and immerse us in the names of deceit, selfishness, self-centeredness, greed, and all the vices of the world.  In our Baptism, the name of Jesus is placed upon us.  We are baptized into the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  The waters of baptism are poured over us as the name of the one true God is spoken marking us in His name.  All the benefits and blessings of His name are given to us free of charge.  The name of God the Father is upon us, the name of Jesus the Son of God is upon us, the name of God the Holy Spirit is upon us.  In our Baptism we stand firm in the name of God and hold fast to His blessings and promises. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.What is the world to me, With all its vaunted pleasure. When You and You alone, Lord Jesus, are my treasure! You only, dearest Lord, My soul’s delight shall be; You are my peace, my rest. What is the world to me! (LSB 730-What Is the World to Me stz 1)-Pastor Timothy Paul Davis is Pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church  in Athens Georgia.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 2:21Daily Lectionary:Isaiah 61:1-11; Luke 1:57-80And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb. (Luke 2:21)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It takes eight days before the baby Jesus is finally given His official name of Jesus.  Up until that point in time everyone knew what His name was to be, but it wasn’t official until the eighth day when the priest circumcised Him.  The priest would perform the duties of the law as the foreskin was removed.  It is the event in which Jesus’ entire family had been waiting for, in eager expectation.  No longer was He referred to as Joseph and Mary’s baby boy but rather Jesus.  The name that was given to them by the angel nine months ago.In the Christmas hymn Away in the Manger, it states that Jesus did not cry as He lay in the manger.  On this day as He is brought before the priest, there is a different set of circumstances compared to when Jesus was lying in a manger.  The earthly parents of Jesus give Him to the priest and the priest goes through the rite of circumcision.  Now blood is shed from the baby Jesus.  A foretaste of what is to come.  As a baby in the arms of the priest, He is no longer silent as the knife is laid to the child and skin is removed.  The mark is placed upon Him as the law is fulfilled.  The mark of circumcision is only the beginning for Jesus as He will fulfill all aspects of the law for the redemption of His people.  The fulfillment will culminate in the shedding of blood.  It won’t be just a mere removal of the foreskin but rather a vicious and brutal beating delivered by the hands of the Roman guards.  It will be nails in the hands and feet and spear thrust into His side.  Blood, lots of blood, will be poured out as the Messiah is sacrificed upon the cross.Today circumcision is no longer the mark that is placed upon us to identify us as God’s people.  Instead, Christ has given to us the sacrament of Holy Baptism.  In our Baptism we are baptized into His circumcision.  No more blood is to be shed as Christ has all the blood necessary for our salvation. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord God, You made Your beloved Son, our Savior, subject to the Law and caused Him to shed His blood on our behalf.  Grant us the true circumcision of the Spirit that our hearts may be made pure from all sins; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit; one God, now and forever. Amen. -Pastor Timothy Paul Davis is Pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church  in Athens Georgia.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 12:35-40Daily Lectionary:Isaiah 60:1-22; Luke 1:39-56You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” (Luke 12:40)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Tonight, many will be celebrating the ringing in of the New Year.  Tomorrow families will gather around the dinner table again as the celebration of a New Year begins.  Unfortunately for many in our midst the true significance of these two days will be overlooked.  The Circumcision of our Savior Jesus Christ.  As Luke leads his reader to the faithful witness of Jesus Christ and delivers the certainty of the events he witnessed, he delivers the words of Christ regarding being ready for the return of the Son of Man.  Christ did not come to just die and resurrect but the rest of the narrative is His glorious return.  The world around us does not want to be a part of that message.  Main line Christianity focuses only on our death and life in Heaven but forgets the rest of the story, “The return of Christ.”  Christ reminds His hearers to be ready for His return.  He likens it to the thief in the night.  We do not know when he is coming, only that he is coming.  We do not know the day or the hour when He will return but we do know for certain that He is going to return.  He merely says, “Be ready.”  We have been made ready for the return of Christ in our Baptism.  We have been marked in the waters of reconciliation and carry the name of Christ both upon our hearts and upon our heads.  We have been given faith that holds fast to the promises of Christ that His works are sufficient for our salvation.  We are made ready!On the eve of Jesus’ Circumcision, He was made ready for the next day.  He would be presented before the Priest and part of His body would be removed.  The night before He was prepared for that significant day in His life.  The day that He received the mark of Circumcision.  In the same manner we are made ready for the Day of Christ’s return.  We wait as if each day were the eve of His return.  We are anxious for His return.  We do not know the exact day or hour, but we do know that He is coming again, and we are ready. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Prayer:Eternal God, we commit to Your mercy and forgiveness the year now ending and commend to Your blessing and love the times yet to come.  In the new year, abide among us with Your holy Spirit that we may always trust in the saving name of our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with You and the holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (ToDP 1075)-Pastor Timothy Paul Davis is Pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church  in Athens Georgia.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Hebrews 1:1-12Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 58:1-59:3, 14-21; Luke 1:26-38He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, (Hebrews 1:3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. A blessed and joy filled Christmas to all the Saints of God!  The glory of God is in the manger wrapped in swaddling clothes.  He is the perfection of God in the flesh.  The baby in the manger is the creator of all things and in Him all things came into existence.  Our God has come to us in the flesh to redeem flesh by flesh.  The author of Hebrews delivers to us the message of satisfaction.  Jesus is the satisfaction for the sins of the world.  He is the Holy, unblemished, first-born sacrifice for all the sins of the world.Christ Jesus will make purification for our sins. Sin which we have inherited from Adam brought death and condemnation into the world.  No longer is the world deemed “good” as God declared it in the first two chapters of Genesis.  In sin, death was brought into the world.  The desires of Adam and Even were to be like God.  They bought into the lie of Satan and ate the forbidden fruit.  The consequences of their selfishness were that mankind would be condemned to eternal damnation.  Nothing that we could ever do would make it right.  We could not and can not make satisfaction for our sin.  We are no longer pure.  We are no longer Holy as God created us.  We needed to be restored from outside of ourselves.It was at just the right time that Jesus came into this world to make satisfaction for our sins.  Jesus’ fulfillment of all the requirements of the law brought our purification.  He lived the perfect life that we can not live.  He died the perfect sacrificial death that was the purification of our sins.  He conquered the grave so that we may have life eternal.  He restores the dead creation to life by His life.  Now we wait.  Just as the first Christmas came in long expectation we wait for the return of Christ.  Christmas is more than just about looking back but it is also about looking forward to the return of Christ on the last day when He will raise our lowly immortal bodies to immortality. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.The infant Priest was holy born  For us unholy and forlorn; From fleshly temple forth came He, Anointed from eternity. (LSB 624-The Infant Priest was Holy Born stz 1)-Pastor Timothy Paul Davis is Pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church  in Athens Georgia.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Isaiah 52:7-10Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 55:1-13; Luke 1:1-25Break forth together into singing, you waste places of Jerusalem,for the Lord has comforted his people; he has redeemed Jerusalem. (Isaiah 52:9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  A blessed and joy filled Christmas to all the saints of God our Father!  The hymns’ of Christmas are still coming from the lips of His saints.  We sing without ceasing the praise of our eternal Father and the birth of our savior Jesus Christ.  Our God and creator have brought comfort upon His people through Christ our Savior.  We break forth into singing!The singing is not coming from the high places or where the Lord resides according to the prophet Isaiah.  The singing is coming from the waste place of Jerusalem.  The city of Jerusalem has been besieged and its walls have been laid low in captivity.  The city is in ruins and yet it proclaims its rebuilding.  The coming of the King is at hand.  The birth of Christ is a restoration of Israel.  Israel reduced to one.  The child in the manger is the fulfillment of the promises of God that Israel is restored.  No longer do we wait for the salvation of the Lord because the salvation of the Lord is manifest in Jesus Christ.  Restoration is in the manger.  As we celebrate the birth of Jesus, we look back while looking forward.  We know that as Christ came into this world on Christmas, He will return to restore this world to its original glory.  The world may seem like the waste places described by Isaiah with all the chaos that surrounds us.  The world wants to pursue the desires of the heart and selfish living.  Sin kills and destroys the perfect creation of God. Satan tempts and jeers at us relentlessly in all facets of our lives.  Amid all the waste places around us, God delivers us through His one and only Son Jesus Christ.  He brings to us comfort in the promises of His restoration in the forgiveness of sins.  We will be taken from the waste places of this present world and delivered to the New Jerusalem, a restored creation, at the resurrection.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.All idols then shall perish, And Satan’s lying cease, And Christ shall raise His scepter, Decreeing endless peace. Proclaim the Savior’s birth; “To God on high be glory And peace to all the earth.” (LSB 383-A Great and Mighty Wonder stz. 4)-Pastor Timothy Paul Davis is Pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church  in Athens Georgia.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 2:13-18Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 52:13-54:10; Matthew 2:13-23Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men. (Matthew 2:16)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. A blessed and joy filled Christmas to all the saints of God as we celebrate the birth of our savior Jesus Christ!  As we celebrate Christmas and the birth of Christ there seems to be a lot of death lurking in the background.  Hymns are being sung, families are still gathering, and the tide of Christmas is still on the increase.  On Holy Innocents we mark the darkest day of Christmas.  The day that we remember the rage and anger of King Herod and the death of the innocent males under the age of two in Bethlehem.  The Magi have arrived, gifts have been delivered and the true King is worshiped.  Herod, on the other hand, is furious.  The Magi arrived to worship the king and it is not him!  Herod wanted the glory and honor of being the only true king.  In Herod’s mind there is only one king, and it is himself.  The child the Magi speak of must be destroyed.  Yet it was not the right time for Christ to die.  The Son of God has come into this world to die but not as an infant but as a grown man.  The fulfillment of the entire law needs to take place.  A circumcision, a baptism, all the requirements of the law completed and then the final sacrifice and shedding of blood.  The deliverance of God’s people in His Son Jesus Christ will come at just the right time.  On Holy Innocents we remember the babies of Bethlehem who were killed because of Herod’s pride, arrogance, and selfishness.  We see ourselves in Herod as we tolerate the plethora of cultural behaviors that normalize the killing of innocent children before they are born under the guise of choice and freedom when it is really a choice of convenience and selfishness.  It is in Christ that we find our hope in the forgiveness of sins and life through His life and death.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, the martyred innocents of Bethlehem showed forth Your praise not by speaking but by dying.  Put to death in us all that is in conflict with Your will that our lives may bear witness to the faith we profess with our lips; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen (TODP 1065).-Pastor Timothy Paul Davis is Pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church  in Athens Georgia.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: John 21:19-24Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 51:17-52:12; Matthew 2:1-12This is the disciple who is bearing witness about these things, and who has written these things, and we know that his testimony is true. (John 21:24)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  “Just give me the truth!”  It is a common thought that resonates to many people today.  We all want to know the truth.  We all want to hear the truth.  We do not want to be lied to or have the truth embellished, just give us the truth.  As John writes his Gospel, he has one thing in mind, “To bear witness to the truth.”  He wants to be a reliable witness about the events that have taken place before his very eyes.  He wants the world to know that Jesus is the Son of God and that by believing in the works of Christ as sufficient for our salvation, salvation is delivered.  John is a reliable witness.Our world around us seeks to deconstruct the truth.  We live in an era where words like misinformation and disinformation are common in our daily vocabulary.  We can’t make it through one round of surfing channels or scrolling through our social media feeds without being reminded that certain information contains inaccuracies or only partial truths.  Notifications on various feeds will indicate that information is missing or that appropriate verification has not taken place.  Doubt and uncertainty surround us.  John the Apostle wanted nothing more than to deliver the truth and remove all doubt about Jesus Christ.  It is just two days after Christmas, and we recognize St. John, Apostle and Evangelist.  His primary purpose was to deliver the message that God the creator of all things is revealed to us in the flesh in Jesus Christ.  He begins his Gospel with creation and closes it with a testimony to the accuracy of what is written.  John’s Gospel takes the reader around the cross and delivers the message that our God has come down to us in the flesh.  He died and rose from the dead and ascended into Heaven.  The truth of the historical narrative of Jesus gives to us the assurance of the promise that He is returning in all His Glory to raise the dead.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Merciful Lord, cast the bright beams of Your light upon Your Church that we, being instructed in the doctrine of Your blessed apostle and evangelist John, may come to the light of everlasting life; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen (TODP-pg 1061)-Pastor Timothy Paul Davis is Pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church  in Athens Georgia.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Acts 6:8-7:2, 51-60Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 49:22-26; 50:4-51:8, 12-16; Matthew 1:18-25 And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep. (Acts 7:60)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. A blessed and joy filled Christmas to everyone!  The 26th of December gives us a little reprieve during all the Christmas celebrations.  The day after Christmas brings us to the first martyr in the Scriptures, Stephen.  He is called out for speaking the truth about Jesus Christ and the local church leaders do not like the message he is proclaiming.  He is delivering a faithful law and Gospel sermon and the hearers want nothing to do with the message of Jesus Christ.  The result?  Let’s bring him before the authorities and drum up some bogus charges so that this man will just be quiet about all this nonsense regarding Jesus Christ!  Stephen does not back down.  He keeps pressing forward with the message of salvation through Christ.  The local leaders have heard enough!  Kill him!  Even during his stoning, he begs God to not hold this sin against them.  In his life and death, he lives in the forgiveness of sins through Christ alone.  Each rock pummeling him is yet another opportunity for him to ask God to exact His judgment upon them, but he doesn’t.  Instead of vengeance and wrath he seeks God’s forgiveness for them.In our lives today, we are confronted with the chaos of sin.  The same sin that consumed the church leaders of Stephen’s time consumes us too.  We want to silence the Gospel.  We want to appeal to our own flesh.  We want the credit for our achievements, and we certainly desire to participate in our own salvation.  God’s law confronts us and exposes our sinfulness.  His holy law reveals our unholiness and shows us the need for a savior.  The day after Christmas death confronts us in the remembrance of St. Stephen.  We are given that example in Stephen that even in the most difficult times of lives the forgiveness of sins prevails. We no longer must carry the burden of our own sin.  Our savior Jesus Christ has come into this world to redeem the world.  He has come into this world to die for all our sins.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, in the midst of our sufferings for the sake of Christ grant us grace to follow the example of the first martyr, Stephen, that we also may look to the One who suffered and was crucified on our behalf and pray for those who do us wrong; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen (Treasury of Daily Prayer, pg 1057)-Pastor Timothy Paul Davis is Pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church  in Athens Georgia.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 2:1-20Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 49:1-18; Matthew 1:1-17And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. At just the right time, Jesus was born.  At just the right time, God sent His son to be born of a woman.  At just the right time God sent His son to be born under the law.  Our savior Jesus Christ came into this world at just the right time.  God chose the time and the place where His son would be born.  On Christmas Day we rejoice and celebrate the gift of salvation that came into this world.  The day that the Word made His dwelling amongst us.  As we celebrate the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ, we engage in numerous activities that help reinforce the magnificent gift of salvation through Jesus.  We go to church and sing the familiar hymns of Christmas.  We receive His body and blood for the strengthening of faith and the forgiveness of sins.  We hear the message of the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in a manger.  We sit around the family dinner table and reminisce of years gone by and reflect on loved ones who are no longer with us.  We open gifts and extend gratitude towards family and friends who have taken time to remember us in their Christmas giving.  All these activities give us the remembrance that our savior Jesus Christ came into this world for the salvation of the world; certainly, some activities more than others.  When it comes to Jesus, He is the gift.  Christ brings to us exactly what we need.  In the manger is the Son of God that has come to redeem the world.  In the manger is forgiveness of sins and life everlasting.  In the manger is the threefold office of prophet, priest, and king for the people of God.   In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, grant that the birth of Your only-begotten Son in the flesh may set us free from the bondage of sin; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen-Pastor Timothy Paul Davis is Pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church  in Athens Georgia.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Isaiah 7:10-14Daily Lectionary:Isaiah 44:21-45:13, 20-25; Revelation 12:1-17 “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Advent is over. The preparation for the coming of our Messiah is complete.  In the Divine Service we shift our hymnody from Advent to Christmas.  We celebrate the birth of Jesus, Immanuel, God with us!  The prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled in the baby lying in a manger.  Our creator gives us exactly what we need.  We need a savior.  As King Ahaz dialogues with Isaiah, he thinks he needs an army to stave off the encroaching army from the north.  Isaiah reminds King Ahaz that the Lord God of this universe will guard the kingdom from the enemy.  Ahaz wants nothing to do with the Lord. (Is 7:12) Ahaz wants to lead the people on his own terms with the help of men not God.  He desires the credit of being the one who overthrew the enemy.  His pride has consumed him, and he no longer trusts in God.Isaiah’s prophecy of the virgin giving birth to a son reminds King Ahaz that it is God’s plan not his that matters.  Today it is God’s plan that brings to us salvation through the forgiveness of sins in Christ.  The Old Adam in us wants Christmas to be about us and what we want.  “What’s in it for me?” is what the sinful self asks.  The world constantly reminds us of what we need for peace and comfort. His Holy Word reminds us that the birth of our savior Jesus Christ is the only gift we need.  In Christ the word became flesh.  The fulfillment of the prophets is at hand. Salvation has come into this world.  The kingdom of God is before us.  We take comfort daily knowing that our sins have been paid for with the one gift of God’s only son Jesus, Immanuel-God with us. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, You make us glad with the yearly remembrance of the birth of Your only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Grant that as we joyfully receive Him as our Redeemer, we may with sure confidence behold Him when He comes to be our Judge; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen (Collect for Christmas Eve-LSB)-Pastor Timothy Paul Davis is Pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church  in Athens Georgia.Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House. 

Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 43:25-44:20; Revelation 11:1-19I, I am he, the one blotting out your rebellions for mine own sake, and your sins I will not remember.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Blotting out rebellions?  What?  It’s almost Christmas Eve. That little Advent calendar almost has Jesus nestled in the manger. Blotting out rebellions?  We know how the game works this close to Christmas, why don’t we just keep it simple?  If you’re naughty, you get nothing. If you're nice, well then today, tomorrow and the next day look pretty good for you.  But Isaiah the Prophet writes that naughty and nice aren’t going to figure at all into “I AMs” becoming Emmanuel. Isaiah says; Jesus comes regardless. In fact, Isaiah says this Jesus is coming for the rebellious ones, the sick ones, the dead ones, and He’s not just come to blot out rebellions but literally to wipe out/ annihilate sins.  Like an old-fashioned floppy computer disk that’s had a magnet run over it (ask your parents or google it),  Jesus comes to annihilate sin and even the memory of YOUR sin.  Then Isaiah says why Jesus is going to do it “for Mine own sake.”  Jesus is true to His promise but also we see that this text infers that Jesus does it for us. He comes for rebels (and He’s not talking about whether you’ve dyed your hair or some other crazy cool thing). Jesus comes for those who have spoken and acted against Him. He’s come for the sick ones that can’t heal themselves, the ones who’ve spoken out against Him, called Him names, tweeted, snap chatted and tik-tocked all sorts of slanderous, nasty things about Him. He’s even come for you as you hold yourself in higher regard than your neighbors, classmates, and so on. He’s come to annihilate, wipe out your sins of chastisement, gossip and self-righteousness and He’s come as a lowly, meek, and humble child.It’s not about naughty or nice. Jesus the Savior came not to remember your sins, but to annihilate them.  It is His coming to us that reminds us that it is Christ alone who Has, IS, and will sustain us. He will willingly take that which causes our death, make it His own, put it to death (annihilate it) by His death all in order to save us; to provide the most blessed exchange, our sin for His Redemption and forgiveness; our rebelliousness exchanged for His perfect obedience; our death exchanged for His life given freely to us.    You and I have a future, not because we’ve been nice, not even because we’ve only been a little naughty. Ours is a future pinned on the certainty that not even our sins could defeat our Lord and God. No amount of guilt, shame, or remorse is a match for Our Savior, as Isaiah says “He does for His own sake.”  Jesus your God, came as your Servant to willingly bear the burden. He’s borne the burden to remove even the slightest spot of rebellion and transgression away by becoming a man like us, to forgive (blot out) sins by His innocent suffering and death, by His blood shed that covers us in His righteousness, innocence, and blessedness. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.The One Whom angels tended comes near, a child, to serve; Thus God, the judge offended, bears all our sins deserve.  The guilty need not cower, for God has reconciled through His redemptive power all those who trust this Child.  (LSB 337 “The Night will soon be ending” St. 2-Pastor Adam DeGroot is Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Table of Duties: To SubjectsDaily Lectionary: Isaiah 43:1-24; Revelation 9:13-10:11“Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for any honest work” (Tit. 3:1).In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In the explanation of the 4th Commandment, we’ve learned what it means to honor.  To honor is to hold them in high esteem, to show dignity that God has rightly given to them as those who are given by God to look after us, and take care of us.  The Small Catechism explains what honor looks like by also telling us what we are not to do.  Do not despise or anger our parents or other authorities.  This section of the Table of Duties teaches us that citizens are to honor the civil government and to show dignity to those given to rule over us; this is important but it is not the whole story.  God also places us in positions to participate in the activities, governance, and care of our society.  We are to care as Christ cared, to honor as our Lord honored the authorities. How was that? He suffered under Pontus Pilate; Jesus willingly subjected himself to Pilate and the office that Pilate had been given by God. To say that Christ suffered under Pontus Pilate is simply to say that Jesus suffered unto God the Father who placed Pilate in his governorship.  As the children of God then we are governed by the Word of God. Not only are we encouraged to participate in civil discourse, and conversations with our classmates, teachers, and public officials. We may also be afforded the opportunity to run for public office at the school or public level, and opportunities for service in the military or to volunteer in the community are other options too.  This duty: of citizens reminds us first and foremost, that acts of charity and mercy for the temporal support of their neighbors in need are founded in Christ Jesus who first subjected Himself to the temporal authorities for our sake.  Thankfully this article isn’t just about paying taxes and obeying the laws of the land, although that is included.  We are given to pray for our rulers, participate in the general welfare of the nation, and “be ready to do whatever is good.” In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Merciful Father, grant us faith to pray for the civil authorities and to trust that You will accomplish Your good and gracious will through them.  Teach us to live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness and to be ready to do whatever is good in service to others in our community and nation, through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.-Pastor Adam DeGroot is Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: John 20:24-29Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 42:1-25; Revelation 9:1-12“Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.” (John 20:25) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The title of the reflection says it all: St. Thomas, Apostle.  That’s how we should remember Thomas.  But we’ve loved to give him another nickname, haven’t we?  But Thomas isn’t a doubter at all, at least not any more than anyone else.  When Jesus announced to his disciples that He was going to Judea, some of his disciples tried to stop him (John 11:8). Thomas was not dissuaded; instead He boldly proclaimed: “Let us also go, that we may die with him”Thomas is an Apostle; one sent out by Jesus Himself to teach and to preach, to heal wounds, perform miracles and proclaim the mysteries of the Gospel.  That’s precisely what Thomas did on that first Easter Sunday and eight days later.  I know, it sounds like Thomas is balking at the idea that someone could be raised from the dead. It’s more profound than that. He disbelieved the Resurrection, but let’s face facts, all of us balk at the Resurrection too.  So Thomas demands to see the One with holes in hands and side, meaning that if this resurrection thing is true, then I only wish to see Jesus; the One who said He’d be crucified. And if you guys aren’t going to show me that One, well then, I’ll never believe.  Show me Christ Crucified. That IS a good confession!!! Indeed, it’s the greatest and only Confession; that Christ Crucified is the One who came to earth as the Son of David, the Son of God, bore our sinful flesh to death, and died with nails in His hands and feet and a pierced side, for Thomas and for you.St. Thomas Apostle; the sent-out guy.  That’s the good and right way to see Thomas and to commemorate the day that marks his death in the year 72 AD.  Thomas, the Apostle, the one who refused to believe in anything but the Crucified Christ.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and ever-living God, You strengthened Your Apostle Thomas with firm and certain faith in the resurrection of Your Son.  Grant us such faith in Jesus Christ the Crucified One that we may never be found wanting in Your sight; through the same Jesus Christ, Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever, Amen.-Pastor Adam DeGroot is Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Romans 1:1-7Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 40:18-41:10; Revelation 8:1-13Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh (Romans 1:3b).In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  God became a man, meaning that all that was common to fallen men was what Jesus understood, knew, lived, and bore with.  Jesus cried, felt pain, knew ridicule and being made fun of. He knew sorrow and sadness, watched people He loved go through pain, scarcity, and worry. Jesus Christ, fully God (that’s 100%); fully man (that’s 100%) bore all the sin, weight, guilt, sorrow, and so on, and all this without sin. To say this doesn’t make sense is perhaps the understatement of the year. 100% plus 100%; that’s 200%.  Isn’t it wonderful then that to our world, to our feeble and simple minds Jesus simply came, not to make everything in this world of law make sense? He came because in the fallen world very little, if anything, has made sense; people get sick and die, tragedies and misunderstandings plague each and every day. Since the Fall, although we like to think that we’re logical, reasonable and that most things make sense. in reality very little actually makes sense at all.  He came to a people, to us, in the depths of the ocean who've only known darkness, depths, and weight and has come to believe that that’s the only normal way.To a world of darkness came The Light, and the world hated the light.  He came bringing peace and the world hated it because they’d grown used to strife, darkness, pain, misery, and the like.  He came into a world that we said made sense, a world in which we said He’d have to assimilate. Jesus takes sin, darkness, death, destruction, and depravity and hangs them with Him and dies; God-Man. THE God-Man dies and with Him our guilt, shame and heaviness. Jesus was long spoken about by God in the Garden “I will put enmity between thee (the serpent) and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel (Genesis 3:15.)  That seed is Jesus. Hear St. John: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, except a seed fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit (John 12:24). The seed of David?  Jesus is THE MAN, the seed that Crushes the serpent's head?  That’s Jesus too!  The seed that dies and bears much fruit?  You guessed it–Jesus; The God-Man come for you.  In the Name + of Jesus. AmenThe everlasting Son, Incarnate deigns to be, Himself a servants form puts on to set His servants free. (LSB 331 “The Advent of our King” St. 2)-Pastor Adam DeGroot is Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Isaiah 7:10-17Daily Lectionary:Isaiah 40:1-17; Revelation 7:1-17Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz:“Ask a sign of the Lord your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven.” But Ahaz said, I will not ask, and I will not put the Lord to the test. (Isaiah 7:10-12)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Throughout the Holy Scriptures, with few exceptions, there are two voices.  The consistent, compassionate, merciful, correcting, loving voice of Almighty God who’s always reminding His people of His great love, grace, mercy, and peace.  But there are also the voices of God’s creatures who seem to always be fighting and arguing against God, not necessarily in violent or offensive ways, at least as we’d determine violence and offense. But like ole Ahaz “I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the Test”;  St. Peter’s another, whether it’s saying to Jesus “Far be it from you, Lord, this shall never come to You'' (in response to Jesus saying HE MUST go to the cross) or later in Acts chapter 10:13-16 when Peter sees the vision of all the wonderful animals descending to earth. God says “Get up Peter, kill and eat.”  And Peter says no Lord, I’ve never eaten anything impure or unclean, to which God says,  “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.”  Peter recalls that this happened three times.  That, brothers and Sisters ought to show you just a little about the long-suffering of God for us.We’d think then that long-suffering and patience might only be extended to nice people, like Peter. But what about the nasty people like King Ahaz the 12th King of Judah, you know, a king whose governance was considered to be disastrous to the political and religious state of Israel, never mind his offering of His own son to the false god Molech (2 Kings 16:18)?But there’s Yahweh, speaking to, loving, and teaching Ahaz, the earthly King of the people of God. Yahweh says “Ask for a sign” and then goes on to say the equivalent of “it can be as hair-brained as you could imagine.”  But Ahaz who loved the law, not wanting or desiring to blaspheme the Name of God (1st Commandment) says, like Peter, no, I won’t do it.What consternation we’d expect from Yahweh?  But there is none to be found. Sure there will be all sorts of terrible things that come to Judah and Israel because of the unbelief of the people, which Yahweh will send. But through it all Yahweh will send the one who will, like Jonah, be three days in the belly of the earth after being crucified for the sins of Judah, Ahaz, Peter, you, and me.There’s a lot of voices in the Holy Scriptures; a lot of arguing, a lot of nu-uhs and no-ways from the people of God. But our Lord and God who’s been speaking from the beginning, speaks to Ahaz, to Peter, and to us that we might be comforted and consoled by the only message that’s ever mattered: “Christ Jesus, crucified for the forgiveness of your sins.” (1 Corinthians 1:23). In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Yet nights will bring their sadness and rob our hearts of peace, and sin in all its madness around us may increase.  But now one Star is beaming Whose rays have pierced the night: God comes for our redeeming from sins oppressive might. (LSB 337 The Night will soon be ending St. 4)-Pastor Adam DeGroot is Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 1:18-2Daily Lectionary:Isaiah 34:1-2, 8-35:10; Revelation 6:1-17She will bear a Son and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins. (Mt. 1:21)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Names mean a whole lot. Your mother and father chose yours for a reason. Maybe it was a relative's name, maybe your name was found on an internet search for neat, contemporary names; regardless of how you were given your name, your name is how you’re known, remembered and the means by which you’re addressed.God became a Man and was given a name too; Gabriel the Archangel as he comforts worrying Joseph says that the name of the Child in Mary’s womb, the Child that is to come into the world was conceived by the Spirit and was going to do some extraordinary stuff.  What though?  He’d have a name, and He’d save His people from their sin.  The name Jesus, is derived from the name Joshua. Joshua in the Old Testament is pronounced Yeshua and Yeshua who was and is and will be Jesus (remember how we talked about this on Friday?) Yeshua is Jesus, Jesus was in the OT, you probably remember Him there by another Name (Yahweh: the pre-incarnate Christ). So Yeshua was the Promise that God gave to His people through the prophets and all History.  Yeshua/Jesus is the one long promised Who was bringing salvation. Salvation by His blood, His death and His atonement for our sin.To help this make a little more sense, understand that the word salvation, in Hebrew, literally means “Yeshua”. Psalm 14:7 for example: "Oh, that the salvation (Yeshua) of Israel would come out of Zion! Or Psalm 51:12 “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation (Yeshua) and sustain me with a willing spirit.  Gabriel says the same to Joseph and us: Jesus comes to save us; from sin, from death and the power of the Devil.  But don’t forget one of the other Names this Yeshua has: Emmanuel. This Savior Who is true man like us, is God with us.There’s a whole lot in a Name and now you know a little more about Jesus. But lastly know this, Yeshua, Jesus, Emmanuel has come to give you a name, a family, a life, peace, joy and forgiveness.  The day when the old Adam was drowned in your Baptism you were given another Name. The very name of your Lord and Savior, Christ-ian.  He names you!  He claims you and says that all this is rightly His has been bestowed to you.  In the Name of Jesus + Amen.Stir up Your power, O Lord, and come and help us by Your might, that the sins which weigh us down may be quickly lifted by Your grace and mercy; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.-Pastor Adam DeGroot is Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading  Introit: Psalm 130:5–8; antiphon: Isaiah 64:1Daily Lectionary:Isaiah 33:1-24; Revelation 5:1-14Shower O heavens, from above, and let the clouds rain down righteousness; let the earth open, that salvation and righteousness may bear fruit; let the earth cause them both to sprout. I, Yahweh, am creating it. (Isaiah 45:8)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  There was a day, a long time ago, when your pastor and I, the writer of this reflection, learned Hebrew.  Your pastor and I also learned Church history. Both are very important for preaching, teaching, and writing devotions; but what about you?  All this talk about the heavens raining and righteousness coming down?  Salvation and righteousness bearing fruit and so on and so forth?  What does it mean?Jerome, one of the church fathers, wrote a long time ago that the Introit for the 4th Sunday of Advent (Isaiah 45:8) was better translated as: “let the earth open up and bring forth a Savior.”  Jerome wrote that this Introit was “a prayer to the Holy Spirit to come down like dew upon the Virgin Mary so that she would conceive and bear the Savior of the Nations”; the Righteous One; Jesus Christ our Lord.  What’s even better though is that all this righteousness, which needs to be showered down on us because we were conceived and born in sin, because we are unrighteous, comes to us as the rains come to water the ground.  Just as we can’t cause the clouds to form up, Just as we can’t tell the rain where to fall, the salvation that this Jesus wins, the righteousness He imparts bears fruit. God gives growth, God gives comfort, God sends the abundant rains of His own Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, to be poured out abundantly here in His creation, for His people, for you and me.  The final part, let the earth cause them to sprout; what a joy this is, because this God of ours takes heed, takes care to come to us, His people, not because we’re righteous or lovely, but to MAKE us righteous and lovely. That's what this Father of yours did; that’s what this Christ Child did for us. He came to us, in this dry and barren land, took on our flesh and our sin to put it to death with Him that new, abundant, and overflowing streams of life-giving water would flow over you in baptism “I, Yahweh, am creating it” He’s done it FOR YOU. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Come, O Come Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel, that mourns in lonely exile here until the Son of God appear.  Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to Thee O Israel.  (LSB 357 O Come, O Come Emmanuel St. 1)-Pastor Adam DeGroot is Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Harrison Goodman.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 32:1-20; Revelation 4:1-11“Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!” (Revelation 4:8)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. So which is it?  Was, Is, or Is to come?  It’s the 16th of December 2022, a Friday, one more day of School before the weekend, perhaps you have a date tonight, or tomorrow?  Perhaps there are preparations you’re making for the upcoming Christmas break. We’re a NOW kind of people, TikTok and YouTube keep us up to speed about what’s happening NOW and that’s about all that really matters; you’re teenagers, youth; in the prime of your lives. Just what is St. John up to citing the old-timey Prophet Isaiah with words about what was, is, and is to come?  This citation St. John uses from the book of Revelation covers two parts of the was, is, and is to come Phrase.  Isaiah the prophet spoke and wrote in a time that he’d have called contemporary If TikTok had existed He’d have written the same thing. Isaiah wrote about what was to be, Immanuel, the King, the Savior, the one born of a virgin would be born and die. Isaiah wasn’t a future teller, he was just a guy that the Almighty chose to write down what was going to happen. St. John then, somewhere in around the year 90 AD, wrote that the one Isaiah wrote about was now enthroned in heaven, glorified and reigning as the Lord of the heavens and the earth, reigning as the one who said definitively before He died “It is finished.”  St. John sees a day that not even we have seen yet.  So that covers the Was and Will be part, so what about the Is part?  That’s today, Friday the 16th of December. The Holy One that Isaiah was told would come; has come; It’s finished; salvation is accomplished, delivered to you and me by water and the Word. The Holy One who John saw enthroned is surrounded by the saints, the elders, and so on; not angels, but real people. John saw Jesus but He also saw you, you who’ll head out for school and work today, who’ll head into this weekend guarded and protected by the Holy One who goes before you, who fights for you, who’ll feed you with His own word and body and blood in the Divine Service soon, very soon.  He who was with His people, He who’s sitting enthroned already in the heavens is the Holy One who’s with you today, tomorrow, and forever.  Jesus who was, Is here now and will be forever.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Make ye straight what long was crooked; make the rougher places plain.  Let your hearts be true and humble, as befits His Holy reign.  For the glory of the Lord now o’er earth is shed abroad, and all flesh shall see the token that His word is never broken. (LSB 347: Comfort, Comfort Ye My People: St. 4)-Pastor Adam DeGroot is Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Harrison Goodman.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary:Isaiah 30:27-31:9; Revelation 3:1-22Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. (Revelation 3:19)Advent is about wrath and mercy, repentance, and faith so St. John reveals in the book of Revelation… sort of puts things into perspective as we make preparation for the nativity of our Lord.  Advent prepares us and makes us ready; not in the sense of getting our bags packed or checking off the shopping lists for friends and family. In Advent, God reproves and saves, disciplines, and loves us.  Advent reveals both the Alien work of God and His Proper work.So what’s the alien work of God?  Alien doesn’t have anything to do with little green men. Hear in Revelation 3, “I reprove and discipline”. In some translations of the Bible, the word chastise is used.   Reprove, discipline, and chastise… Yikes!  But chastisement isn’t God making fun of us, far from it; Our Triune God loves us in that, He points out where we have faltered, failed, and fallen short; He allows and even sends natural punishments to reprove (turn us/ He repents us). This is the alien work of God, the reproving, the chastisement that causes us to cry out in our sin and desperation for Emmanuel, the Savior of sinners from sin and death.  He’s Emmanuel in a very alien (strange or peculiar) way to reprove us, to turn us, to repent us. That’s right. God turns us, opens our eyes, unbinds our shackled tongues, and opens our stopped-up deaf ears in order that we would see the great need for His proper work for us. His proper work?  Becoming sin for us, bleeding and dying to save us, fulfilling all the law for us, facing down the fulness of the Father’s wrath for us. We’d see none of this, see no need at all of His love, mercy made known in His bloody death unless we were first reproved and chastised to see that of ourselves we are lost and condemned.  Having seen that we are lost and condemned, Christ comes to bleed and die in order to make us alive in Him. What this Lord and God of ours does, He does for those He loves. He loves you. Sometimes it seems a bit strange, a little alien, but rest assured that even the pointing out of your sins, your shortcomings, and the many and varying places that you’ve come up short over the last week or year are for reproof; to put the old Adam in each and every one of us to death. Reproof hurts, chastisement and discipline are unpleasant; it’s alien, a foreign concept, but fully part of how God loves you, wholly part of His work for you; to turn you to see Who Jesus is and how He properly comes to you. Your Jesus is Emmanuel (God with us), God as a Man, and a baby man at that!  Meek, lowly and humble to save, to buy us back, and to mark us as ones purchased and won from sin, death, and the devil.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. He comes the broken heart to bind, The bleeding soul to cure, and with the treasures of his grace to enrich the humble poor. (LSB 349 Hark the Glad Sound St. 3)-Pastor Adam DeGroot is Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Harrison Goodman.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Table of Duties: Civil GovernmentDaily Lectionary: Isaiah 30:15-26; Revelation 2:1-29Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. For he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil (Rom. 13:1-4).In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. One of the great comforts of Jesus becoming Incarnate man is that Jesus knows about life here in this fallen world.  You’re not the only ones who have lived under the rule of earthly kings and princes; Your Lord Jesus did too.  Our Table of Duties from the Small Catechism teaches what our life looks like in this fallen world.  We, the baptized, are instructed about Civil Governance not just so we can live, breathe and have our being when they do their job well. We’re to be subject to governing authorities even and especially when the people who bear the sword of the Law of God aren’t Christian, even when they act in ways that are contrary to the very word of God. God cares so much about order, safety and care for all people that He appoints servants to bear the sword of wrath, the sword of Justice and civil punishment for varying violations of the 10 commands; it’s good to have order, it’s good that the wicked are punished for crimes and we are given the promise that God ordains this sword for order, for good and not in vain.  Out of Chaos, darkness and nothingness God said “Let there be light…” and there was; evening and morning the first day.  There God appointed Adam as steward, caretaker of the creation, Adam named animals, called them by the names that have stuck since then.  But the reading gets sorta strange when we see that God the Father appoints ministers, that is, avengers to execute wrath on those who practice evil.  This passage in the table of duties isn’t talking about your pastor, or even a vigilante Christian who seeks to impose morals and virtues across the land. No, the table of duties reminds us that God has appointed authorities, by His good and gracious will, to maintain order here in the land we sojourn through.  Ministers, persons given authority by God to punish criminals, law breakers and the like.  This ought to be.  But what do we owe to those men and women God has appointed for our good; yes, even when they act out of line… gulp!Why do we owe them honor?  Simply put, Our Gracious God has placed them over us to execute their charges for our good. Yes, there will be tyrants and despots and we pray the Lord will be merciful to them when they abdicate their calling. We should pray for our President, Congress, Governors and Mayors, Police and School Boards that their ears would be opened to hear the gracious care of our Lord. We pray that they be given strength and integrity to govern us in a way that is good and right in the sight of God; we owe them honor not because THEY are good, but because our Lord and God is good and He has graciously given them to us as a defense, for our safety and good.  In the Name of Jesus, amen. Lord, keep this nation under Your care.  Bless the leaders of our land that we may be a people at peace among ourselves and a blessing to the other nations of the earth.  Grant that we may choose trustworthy leaders, contribute to wise decisions for the general welfare and serve You faithfully in our generation; Through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.-Pastor Adam DeGroot is Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, New Mexico..Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Harrison Goodman.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: James 5:7-11Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 29:15-30:14; Revelation 1:1-20… behold, the Judge is standing at the door. (James 5:9b)In the name of Jesus, amen. Yikes!!!  This text sounds a little too scary for Advent; but here we are 12 days from Christmas; maybe we “aughta” temper the strong judgey language… Nah…. Instead, let's dig in a little deeper as to who the judge is and at which door He stands.  What else is Advent than the 1st coming of our Lord, the breaking in, the deluge, and the life-giving flood of Jesus' blood that covers the sins of all the world?  The Judge is standing at the door, 12 days now away from breaking down the door, the curtain, the wall, and the chasm that had separated us from God.  Here’s where you’re saying “Wait just a minute, you’re telling me a precious little baby is the Judge!?  This precious little child is standing at the door looking to bust it all to pieces and break into the prison of this fallen world, to breathe our poisoned air and dwell with us in our sin, death and filth?  C’mon…. That’s precisely what St. James writes: He writes about farmers waiting for the precious fruits of the earth, he writes about waiting for early and late rains, and behold, here in the dark doldrums of winter, the stark bitter coldness, the ever darker days of December we prepare again to celebrate the birth of the Judge, the birth of the Just One, the Justifier. The wait is over, the fields are ripe, into the darkness and dwindling light comes the light of the world, Jesus the Judge.  But notice dear saints of God how He comes to you; lowly, a baby, not pounding down the door but instead breaking into a Silent Night; barely a whisper, a murmur or even one in Bethlehem who will notice that the Judge is on earth, past the door, dwelling with us as OUR SAVIOR, come to judge us not by what we have done or failed to do; but to judge us according to what He has done FOR US!This is His first Advent; the Savior comes meek and mild, lowly, our Judge, our Savior comes as a child. Surely we can see how He is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love?  But this Judge Jesus is steadfast in His meekness; this Savior comes willingly to bear your sin, to suffer and die, to bleed His own blood to save you.  Yes, the Judge is at the door, but this Judge has come to willingly be judged for you. The Innocent One became your sin, died as the guilty one in your place, and has bestowed to you by simple water and word His own righteousness, innocence and blessedness; yes He’s at the door to tell you today, tomorrow and forever; you’ve been judged already; judged innocent, forgiven for the sake of Christ Jesus. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. O Savior, rend the heavens wide; come down, come down with mighty stride; unlock the gates, the doors break down; unbar the way to heaven's crown. (LSB 355 O Savior, Rend the Heavens wide. St. 1)-Pastor Adam DeGroot is Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Harrison Goodman.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Isaiah 35:1-10Daily Lectionary:Isaiah 29:1-14; Jude 1-25And the ransomed of the LORD shall return and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. (Isaiah 35:10 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Isaiah the prophet writes of the desert; a wasteland, dry and barren with burning sand.  But a vivid and accurate picture of the desert isn’t the only thing Isaiah writes about; He writes about the people who are weak, with feeble knees, anxious hearts, and blind eyes; Isaiah writes of bodies that are lame and tongues that are mute.  Isaiah gets it, and knows what life is like, not just in the real desert of his homeland, but writes of the world we live in and the desert that IT really is.  More than that; Isaiah writes that here in this wilderness of sin we are prisoners.Many of us don’t know much about having to scavenge for food or about having to walk for miles to find water but we Christians, in our day, certainly do know something about the arid, hot, and angry winds that still blow in this land that we sojourn through.  Friends who backbite, gossip, hatred online, bullies and the strain that goes with confessing Christ Crucified. The weakness, feeble knees, anxious hearts, blind eyes, bodies that are lame, and tongues that are mute are not just a thing of the past. They’re real today; really real for you and for me.Our text from Isaiah 35:10 is a definitive conclusion; a promise for you and me of gladness and joy.  Before that conclusion though Isaiah reminds us that there is comfort, strengthening, and compassion even in the midst of the wilderness wandering.  He… that is, Jesus comes to you just as He did for Isaiah and all those who know the sting of the wilderness.  He comes to abide with you, comfort you, and still your anxious hearts. Jesus comes to save you from sin, death, and the Devil, but also to save you from despair, anxiousness and fear today; to save you from hunger and thirst and to save you from, and comfort you in, your wilderness wandering.  What about this saving that Jesus does?  Isaiah says Jesus pays a ransom, that is, Jesus buys you back (the fancy theological word is redeems) at a great price, both because of Who Jesus is and because of how much He loves to love you; your life ransomed (bought back) by Jesus blood. Jesus comes smack dab into the middle of this desert wilderness of ours to give you joy, for today. But even better than that; Isaiah says this joy Jesus gives is everlasting, never-ending, forever and ever joy that will replace sorrow and sighing.  The whole desert will rejoice with joy and singing; like water breaking forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert, the burning sands become a pool; it’s all around us, as close as the Divine Service, the waters of baptism, the body and blood that He still gives and the word He puts right into your ears.   In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Yea her sins our God will pardon, blotting out each dark misdeed; all that well deserved His anger He no more will see or heed.  She hath suffered many a day now her griefs have passed away; God will change her pining sadness into ever-springing gladness. LSB 347 Comfort, Comfort Ye my people (St. 2)Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Harrison Goodman.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.-Pastor Adam DeGroot is Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, New Mexico..

Today's Reading: Matthew 11:2-15Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 28:14-29; 1 John 5:1-21Go and tell John what you hear and see… (Matthew 11:4)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. John the Baptizer was done for, imprisoned for rightly calling out Herod Antipas for His marriage to Herodias. John the Baptizer had a good run… I guess that’s one way to look at it.Yet Jesus, true God and fully man, knew both the tormenting agony John the Baptizer was going through and what would soon become of John. Jesus, God with us, sent comfort to John in Prison, not in the form of a file baked into a cake or a kind card. Jesus, the Word in flesh, sent Himself… Go and tell John of me… tell Him what you hear and see.  But this seems like such small consolation, doesn’t it?Jesus sends comfort in the midst of imprisonment, peace in the midst of impending death, and a gentle reminder that all that John himself had spoken and done in the Name of Jesus was not in vain… Tell Him what you hear and see… meaning; Tell Him that the One John jumped in the womb of his mother over, and sends peace that passes through prison walls.  Tell John that the repentance he preached on the banks of the Jordan River and to Herod Antipas was not in vain… tell Him that though He will lose his head and die at the request of Herodias; tell Him that nothing in all creation will be able to separate Him from the love, mercy, peace, and forgiveness that Christ Jesus freely gives; tell Him that the sins of the whole world, washed onto Jesus in the Jordan River are going with Jesus to be put to death on the cross, tell John that though He dies, yet He will live as His Jesus will live as the firstborn from the dead.Those blinded by fear will be soothed, comforted, and protected by Christ the light Who overcomes all darkness.  The lame, the deaf, lepers, the blind, and even the beheaded, will live again, forever.  Lepers, yes, sinners are cleansed, those who are deaf will hear the word that gives life and the poor.  Yes, even poor imprisoned John, even in the face of death, has the good news Jesus put into them.  Blessed are you John, blessed are you dear saints of God who have the Good news preached to you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord Jesus Christ, we implore You to hear our prayers and to lighten the darkness of our hearts by Your gracious visitation; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. (Collect for Advent 3)--Pastor Adam DeGroot is Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, New Mexico..Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Harrison Goodman.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit: Psalm 71:14–18; antiphon: Philippians 4:4Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 26:20-27:13; 1 John 4:1-21“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. I will hope continually and will praise you yet more and more.” (Introit for Advent 3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Back in my seminary days, there was a sainted professor who, upon entering the classroom, would ask, “Are we rejoicing in the Lord, brothers?” We see in the antiphon words of St. Paul to the Philippians: “Rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say, Rejoice” (Philippians 4:4) He then would tell us that if we were not rejoicing in the Lord, then we didn’t need to be there, for there is never a time where we should not be rejoicing in the Lord.Because of God what God has done for us in Jesus, we should constantly be rejoicing. By His life, death, and resurrection, Jesus has won for us everlasting life. We should want to shout that from the rooftops, that Christ has forgiven me and given me eternal life, just as it says in the Introit: “My mouth will tell of your righteous acts, of your deeds of salvation all the day, for their number is past my knowledge” (Psalm 71:15). This is something that Jesus has done, not only for me but all of creation. We should always be in a state of rejoicing for what God has done for us, but our sinfulness doesn’t always want to rejoice. I didn’t get the promotion I was seeking. I didn’t pass the chemistry test. My loved one just died; how could God do that to me? There are many things that happen in our lives that are not worth rejoicing about, but there are even more things that are worth rejoicing. Even if I didn’t get the promotion, I still have forgiveness by Jesus’ death on the cross. Even if I didn’t pass my chemistry test, I still have God’s name on me, marking me as His beloved child. Even though my loved one has died, they are now resting in the loving arms of their Savior, Jesus Christ.There is much for us to rejoice in this life, but nothing more important than the life we have received in Christ Jesus, for Jesus is the cause of our rejoicing, both in this life and the life everlasting. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Rejoice, O pilgrim throng! Rejoice, give thanks, and sing; Your festal banner wave on high, The cross of Christ your king. Rejoice! Rejoice! Rejoice, give thanks, and sing! (Rejoice, O Pilgrim Throng, LSB 813:1)- Pastor Jared Tucher serves the dual-parish of St. John – Farmer’s Retreat in Dillsboro and St. Paul, Cross Plains, Indiana.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 26:1-19; 1 John 3:1-24“See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.” (1 John 3:1)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. What’s in a name? It identifies you. It tells you where you came from and to whom you belong. My last name harkens back to my Italian heritage. But my last name doesn’t define who I am, though I do have a name that does just that: child of God.Above all other names, all other titles I might have, none is greater than being called a child of God. With that title, it declares that I belong to God, that I have God’s name placed upon me. In Holy Baptism, God places His name upon you, forever marking you as one who belongs to Him. It means that I am God’s. Because I am God’s, I can’t help but sing, “God’s own child, I gladly say it, I am baptized in Christ!” (LSB 594:1)It is not only one thing to be called a child of God but we should also live our lives as children of God. It means live like you are baptized because you are baptized. It means live as one who is forgiven for Christ’s sake because you are forgiven. It means to live as one for whom Christ has died. But know this: not only are you a child of God but so are others. It means that they are also the ones for whom Christ has died. This is as John writes: “For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another” (1 John 3:11). Great love has been shown to you by God through Jesus. Jesus comes and lays down His life so that you may have eternal life. Just as Christ has laid down His life for us, so we should be willing to lay down our lives for our neighbor: “By this, we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. (1 John 3:16) It is as Luther says, that we “help and support him in every physical need” (5th Commandment).While God could condemn us and rightly should, He shows His great mercy in Jesus. Though we are not deserving, God sees fit to forgive us our sins out of love, so that we may be united to God once again. This is done for us by Jesus as He lays down His life so that we may take up eternal life. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord God, heavenly Father, out of great love for Your creation, You have sent Jesus into creation to restore and unite man to You once again. Help us to show love to our neighbor, that we may help and support them in every need. In Jesus’ name, amen.- Pastor Jared Tucher serves the dual-parish of St. John – Farmer’s Retreat in Dillsboro and St. Paul, Cross Plains, Indiana.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Romans 15:4-13Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 24:14-25:12; 1 John 2:15-29“For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.” (Romans 15:4)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Apostle Paul wrote 13 letters in the New Testament, directed mainly to churches. One such letter was to the Church at Rome. This church was in a rather unique situation. Rome was a great city of commerce. This brought with it a large amount of foot traffic. While this could be an advantage to the Church, this also proved to be a disadvantage as well, for this brought with it an influx of pagan non-believers. With this pagan influence, it was very easy for the Romans to forget who they were, blood-bought and redeemed children of God. They needed a gentle reminder of who they were, much like we need the same reminder today. And so Paul reminds them to return to their roots, that is, return to God’s Word and what it means for them. There in God’s Word, they would be reminded of the promise God made to them and what it meant for their daily life, for there they would find their hope.What was written in former days was God’s promise of salvation, not just for His people in the Old Testament, not just for the Church at Rome, but for all people everywhere. God’s instruction was for them to remain faithful to Him, just as He promised He would remain faithful to them. Ultimately, what was written in former days was the promise of the Messiah. This is what God intended for His people, then and now. He intended to be with them forever. Due to sin, that was no longer a possibility. That is why He made the promise of a Savior so that the relationship between God and man would be restored to what it should be. It is through that Word of God, the promise He made so long ago and recorded in Holy Scripture, that we find our hope. Our hope isn’t found in ourselves or in the things of this world but in Jesus. At times, the Romans forgot where their hope was to be found. We too can forget that as well. That is why this season of Advent is so important for us, to help us prepare to receive Jesus as our salvation, for it is in Jesus do we have our hope, both now and forevermore. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Blessed Lord, You have caused all Holy Scriptures to be written for our learning. Grant that we may so hear them, read, mark, learn, and take them to heart that, by the patience and comfort of Your holy Word, we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the Word)- Pastor Jared Tucher serves the dual-parish of St. John – Farmer’s Retreat in Dillsboro and St. Paul, Cross Plains, Indiana.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Table of Duties: To HearersDaily Lectionary: Isaiah 24:1-13; 1 John 1:1-2:14“Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you.” - Hebrews 13:17 Table of Duties: What the Hearers Owe Their PastorsYou know the Third Commandment, right? You keep it every time you enter the sanctuary, right? Sadly, we do not. We do not always hold God’s Word sacred and gladly hear and learn it, do we? That is what Luther says we should do. We should want to hear God’s Word of salvation for us. That is what your pastor is there for, to proclaim to you God’s salvation won for you by Jesus Christ. Stop and listen to the words that he speaks: “...in the stead and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ…” The words that he is about to speak are not his words but God’s words. In fact, everything that your pastor speaks comes from God. They tell you what God has already said and declared about you. Your pastor has your best interests at heart, that is, you hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ, repent of your sins, and be saved. How should we listen to our pastors? We obey them because they are our God-sent pastors who are charged with proclaiming both Law and Gospel to us, absolving us from our sins, and feeding us Christ’s body and blood for the forgiveness of our sins. They do this because God has called them to the Office of Holy Ministry to bring and declare God’s gifts to His people. This task is not taken lightly by them, for they must give an account to God of their actions. We do not want to be a burden on our pastors. We want to make their vocation as easy as possible, even though pastoral ministry is often anything but easy. Just as preaching the Gospel is a good and noble task, so is hearing that Gospel as it is preached to us and placed into our mouths. Bring a smile to your pastor’s face by telling him you’ll be there Sunday and every Sunday after that, receiving the gifts which God delivers through your called and ordained servant of the Word. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O holy and most merciful God, You have taught us the way of Your commandments. We implore You to pour out Your grace into our hearts. Cause it to bear fruit in us that, being ever mindful of Your mercies and Your laws, we may always be directed to Your will and daily increase in love toward You and one another. Enable us to resist all evil and to live a godly life. Help us to follow the example of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and to walk in His steps until we shall possess the kingdom that has been prepared for us in heaven; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (Collect for Obedience to the Word)- Pastor Jared Tucher serves the dual-parish of St. John – Farmer’s Retreat in Dillsboro and St. Paul, Cross Plains, Indiana.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 14:1-23; 2 Peter 3:1-18In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. “Jolly Old Saint Nicholas, Lean your ear this way!” What we know as a fun and light Christmas song has some truth behind it. Saint Nicholas was an early Christian bishop in the city of Myra. Nicholas is considered by some traditions the patron saint of numerous types of people, including children. This gave way to a reputation for secretly giving and leaving gifts for children. His actions led to the modern-day model of Santa Claus.Some believe that Christmas is all about Santa Claus and giving, or more importantly, receiving gifts. While leaving gifts for children is great, there are greater gifts. The thought that Christmas is all about gifts is indeed true, but no greater gift has ever been given than that of Jesus. He comes to bring the greatest gift that one could ever want or need, that of forgiveness and eternal life. The gifts that Jesus comes to bring are not gifts that come just once a year as Saint Nicholas gave. No, these gifts are given to us daily as we receive our daily bread. These gifts are given to us in our Baptism where we have been made God’s child. These gifts come in our Lord’s Supper as we feast upon His body and blood in the bread and wine. These are gifts that God desires for you and graciously gives to you. It’s hard to believe that God has wrapped up all He desires to give in a simple gift of a baby born to unsuspecting parents. While the angel had told them what Jesus was destined to do, they would not be able to fully understand it until our Lord began His ministry, and even then, they could not grasp the full weight of His ministry on our behalf.These gifts which God gives, He gives to us freely. He gives them to us for our benefit. He gives them to us that we may be His beloved children. Very soon, God’s gift of Jesus will be laid in the manger, but we do not have to wait until Christmas to receive that gift, for it is yours now in Christ. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, You bestowed upon Your servant Nicholas of Myra the perpetual gift of charity. Grant Your Church the grace to deal in generosity and love with children and with all who are poor and distressed and to plead the cause of those who have no helper, especially those tossed by tempests of doubt or grief. We ask this for the sake of Him who gave His life for us, Your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for Nicholas of Myra)- Pastor Jared Tucher serves the dual-parish of St. John – Farmer’s Retreat in Dillsboro and St. Paul, Cross Plains, Indiana.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Isaiah 11:1-10Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 11:1-12:6; 2 Peter 2:1-22“He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth…” (Isaiah 11:3b-4a)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. As we prepare for the Nativity of Jesus, as we prepare for the celebration of our Lord coming into creation, we also look ahead to our Lord’s Second Coming. What does that mean for us? What will happen? Isaiah gives us a glimpse as to what that will look like for us.As God looks at creation, what does He see? He sees a people who have sinned, not just once, but over and over again. In fact, we are people who are sinners to our very core. It is because of that sin that God can and should destroy us, and yet He doesn’t do that. By what His eyes see and His ears hear, there should be every reason for God to exact His wrath upon us. Because of Jesus, He judges the poor with righteousness. We are the poor, the poor in spirit, the poor due to sin. God does not choose to exercise His wrath upon us because Jesus intercedes for us. Jesus comes into creation to plead on our behalf. His life, His death, His resurrection do what is expected of us because we cannot do it. He keeps God’s Law in our place. He makes us His holy people by His shed blood which washes over us.When Jesus judges us, He judges us with righteousness and faithfulness, except it’s not our righteousness and faithfulness; it is Jesus’ righteousness and faithfulness. Jesus is righteous because He is without sin. Jesus is faithful to God’s Law in its entirety. By what Jesus does for us, He makes us righteous before God. Instead of God exercising His wrath upon us, He exercises it upon Jesus, the sinless one. Jesus takes our place in this great exchange, where we put on His holiness and righteousness and He puts on our sin. We are judged innocent before God, while Jesus is judged guilty. He takes on everything that would keep us from God and it is purged from us. By Christ’s actions, we are declared righteous. Jesus does this because it is the Father’s will, that all would be saved. God was not content with sin and so He sends Jesus. As Jesus comes into the world, He seems insignificant by others, looked at as a heretic. Despite what people thought of Jesus, He came to save even them. He comes to give His life as a ransom for all people. Even more, Jesus comes to give His life for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O come, Thou Dayspring from on high, And cheer us by Thy drawing nigh; Disperse the gloomy clouds of night, And death’s dark shadows put to flight. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel Shall come to thee, O Israel! (O Come, O Come, Emmanuel, LSB 357:6)- Pastor Jared Tucher serves the dual-parish of St. John – Farmer’s Retreat in Dillsboro and St. Paul, Cross Plains, Indiana.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 3:1-12Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 10:12-27, 33-34; 2 Peter 1:1-21“For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight.’” (Matthew 3:3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. On the Second Sunday in Advent, we meet an Old Testament carryover in John the Baptist. John’s purpose is to prepare the way of the Lord as Isaiah records. John, the cousin of Jesus, has a very early encounter with Jesus in the womb where he leapt for joy in the presence of Jesus. Fast forward some 30 years and John sets the stage for Jesus. John’s singular purpose is to prepare the people for Jesus’ arrival; John is to be the opening act for Jesus’ headline performance. To do that, John takes all focus off of himself and places it on the One who is to come. When people confront John about being the Messiah, he makes it abundantly clear that He is not the Messiah, that he is unworthy to fill that role. Instead, his singular job is to point to Jesus as the Messiah, not to be the Messiah.This was not going to be an easy task for John. The people had a preconceived notion of the Messiah. Put some of the pieces together and John was Messiah, except he wasn’t the Messiah. He begins baptizing people for the forgiveness of their sins; the Pharisees and Sadducees come, not looking for what John has to offer but to challenge his purpose. John does what is expected of him, he prepares the way of the Lord. As John begins his ministry, Jesus is poised to begin His ministry. His ministry is markedly different from that of John. While both will baptize, Jesus will baptize with the Holy Spirit. John will preach repentance for all while Jesus will separate the repentant from the unrepentant and will bring them to Himself, that they may be with Him forever.Jesus comes so that He may do the Father’s will, and that will is for you to be saved. John prepares for Jesus to make Himself aware to creation, that He may save it by His death and resurrection. John makes us ready to receive Him, not just at His Nativity but to receive Him on the cross and ultimately when He comes again to take us with Him for all eternity. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Stir up our hearts, O Lord, to make ready the way of Your only-begotten Son, that by His coming we may be enabled to serve You with pure minds; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. (Collect for Advent - Pastor Jared Tucher serves the dual-parish of St. John – Farmer’s Retreat in Dillsboro and St. Paul, Cross Plains, Indiana.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House

Today's Reading: Introit: Psalm 105:4–8; antiphon: Isaiah 40:3bDaily Lectionary: Isaiah 9:8-10:11; 1 Peter 5:1-14“Remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered… He remembers his covenant forever, the word that he commanded, for a thousand generations.” (Psalm 105)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. I promise. Have you ever said those words before? Did you mean them or did you say them because that was what was expected of you? Our words, our promises, often fall flat. We don’t mean them, we break them, we put all sorts of stipulations on them. Thankfully, God’s words and promises are not carelessly spoken. When God makes a promise, God follows through with His promise. Of all the promises that God has made, they all stem from a singular promise, that of Jesus: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel” (Genesis 3:15). That promise set the tone for God and His creation. Could God have left creation in its state of sin? Yes, He could, but He wouldn’t, He couldn’t. God had created man so that man would live with Him forever. Satan had made that an impossibility. God would do something to make sure that that would not happen. There, God made a promise, a promise made not only to Satan but a promise made to man as well. That promise was for salvation.God’s promise made is a promise fulfilled.  Psalm 105, gives thanks for God’s faithfulness to the covenant He made with Abraham, a covenant which said that Abraham would be the father of many nations. How does that covenant relate to God’s promise of salvation? In both instances, God makes and God keeps a promise. God’s promise is a promise made to you and for you; but not just for you but for all of creation. This promise is one that will bring the blessings which God desires for all people - blessings that bring life for all who believe, the forgiveness of sins, and life for all believers in Christ.This promise is for a thousand generations. To put that into perspective, there are 76 generations between Adam and Jesus. What does that mean for us? It means that God’s promises, His blessings, His Word extends beyond the generations to all of creation, in every time and every place. His promises are not reserved for a select few but are intended for all. In turn, that means that His salvation is intended for all as well. His promise of salvation is for you, now and forevermore. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord God, bless Your Word wherever it is proclaimed. Make it a word of power and peace to convert those not yet Your own and to confirm those who have come to saving faith. May Your Word pass from the ear to the heart, from the heart to the lip, and from the lip to the life that, as You have promised, Your Word may achieve the purpose for which You send it; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (Collect for Blessing on the Word)- Pastor Jared Tucher serves the dual-parish of St. John – Farmer’s Retreat in Dillsboro and St. Paul, Cross Plains, Indiana.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Harrison Goodman.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Romans 13:8-14Daily Lectionary:Isaiah 8:9-9:7; 1 Peter 4:1-19“Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.” (Romans 13:11)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Apostle Paul gives a great summary of the Second Table of the Law and how one loves their neighbor. This isn’t the easiest thing for us to do; in fact, it’s impossible for us to do. However, Jesus has come and has kept the Law, all of it, in our place. He has kept the First Table with regard to God and has kept the Second Table with regard to our neighbor. Jesus has shown love, great love, the greatest love to us, His redeemed brothers and sisters.St. Paul tells us that the hour for us to wake up has come. The reason for that is important - salvation is near. As we embark on this Advent journey, we draw ever closer to God’s promise of salvation coming to fruition. We see the great love of God for us in that He sends us Jesus. Because we cannot keep God’s Law, salvation by the Law is not possible. In fact, the Law can do nothing but condemn. Man failed to keep God’s Law in the Garden and sin was the result. From that moment on, keeping the Law was not possible. Because we could not keep the Law, God sends Jesus as the only one who can keep the Law. He keeps the Law perfectly in order to make full satisfaction for our sins. So that you do not have to face God’s all-consuming wrath for sin, Jesus comes into creation and makes the ultimate sacrifice on our behalf. He comes into creation and becomes one with creation, one of creation, in order to redeem creation. It’s hard to imagine that an ordinary-looking baby born to average parents could be the fulfillment of God’s promise. What’s even harder to imagine is that this baby will grow to be a man who has a date with the cross. Jesus comes to fulfill the Law in its entirety. What we could not do, Jesus does. As Paul says, “love is the fulfilling of the law” (Rom. 13:10).That is what Jesus does, He fulfills the Law. He shows the greatest act of love by standing in our place. Even more, He dies in our place. He dies and you live. There is no greater act of love than that someone lay down his life for his friends, of which you and I are counted (John 15:13). Salvation is near, near to you as the promise comes to you in the manger. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“The everlasting Son Incarnate deigns to be, Himself a servant’s form puts on To set His servants free.” (The Advent of Our King, LSB 331:2)- Pastor Jared Tucher serves the dual-parish of St. John – Farmer’s Retreat in Dillsboro and St. Paul, Cross Plains, Indiana.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Harrison GoodmanStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism, Table of Duties: To Bishops, Pastors, PreachersDaily Lectionary: Isaiah 7:10-8:8; 1 Peter 3:1-22“He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.” - Titus 1:9 (Table of Duties: To Bishops, Pastors, Preachers)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Do you know why your pastor does what he does? Do you know why he preaches what he preaches? It’s because God has called him to an Office to do one thing (actually, more than this, but especially this): preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That’s what he does, week in and week out. And the best part: he does this for you! That’s right, he preaches that Gospel message for you, that you may hear of the Good News of Jesus, that He has come into creation, to live among creation, to die for creation, and to rise again for creation.It might not seem like that’s a hard thing to do, to preach the Gospel, but rest assured, it’s harder than it seems. The world is very hostile to the Gospel of Jesus. The world doesn’t like what your pastor has to say because he might hurt their feelings or say something that they don’t agree with. But that’s what he said he would do, to “preach the word; be ready in season and out of season…” (2 Timothy 4:2).The reason why this is so important is because it is Jesus who saves. Preaching Jesus is preaching salvation. And so, your pastor buries his nose in the Scriptures in order to proclaim the sweet words of salvation, that your sins have been forgiven for Christ’s sake. He does this because God has called him to do so, to bring Jesus to a people who are hurting, who are dealing with the messiness of life, so that they may be comforted by the Gospel of Jesus Christ for them and their sins.There is no greater joy for a pastor than to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ so that all who hear it would believe and receive the salvation which Christ has won for us. Remember your pastor, pray for your pastor, that he may faithfully preach the Word of God to you and to all. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and gracious God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, You have commanded us to pray that You would send forth laborers into Your harvest. Of Your infinite mercy give us true teachers and ministers of Your Word who truly fulfill Your command and preach nothing contrary to Your holy Word. Grant that we, being warned, instructed, nurtured, comforted, and strengthened by Your holy Word, may do those things which are well pleasing to You and profitable for our salvation; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (Collect for the Increase of the Holy Ministry)- Pastor Jared Tucher serves the dual-parish of St. John – Farmer’s Retreat in Dillsboro and St. Paul, Cross Plains, Indiana.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Harrison GoodmanStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: John 1:35-42aDaily Lectionary: Isaiah 6:1-7:9; 1 Peter 2:13-25“[Andrew] first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ).” (John 1:41)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. John has an early encounter with two of his disciples and Jesus. John confesses, not only to the disciples but to all, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” With such a great confession of who Jesus is, how could anyone miss it? Sadly, many missed not only John’s announcement of Jesus but also Jesus Himself! However, one of John’s disciples heard that pronouncement and sought Jesus - the apostle Andrew. The first apostle of Jesus, he found his brother Peter and declared to him, “We have found the Messiah.”Andrew’s declaration to Peter is just as important today as it was then, if not more important. Today, our focus grows ever more increasing on God’s promise of a Savior coming to fruition. It’s not a matter of wanting a Savior (because we don’t due to sin), but needing a Savior. We need Jesus to be who John says He is - the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Our sinfulness keeps us from God. Our sinfulness makes us an enemy of God and being an enemy of God only ends with death. God is not content with death and makes the promise of Jesus. As time passes by, more and more of God’s promise is revealed until John makes the startling revelation that Jesus is the Lamb of God. Andrew takes that revelation and expands on the fact that He is the Messiah.The Messiah has come and we await His glorious return on the Last Day where He will take all believers to be with Him in heaven forever. Until that Day comes, we continue to look forward to the day of our Lord’s Nativity where He comes to us in the most unlikely of ways - a baby born to unsuspecting parents.What Andrew proclaims to Peter continues to resonate with us today, that we have found God’s promised Savior, Jesus, the Messiah. We have found Him in the manger. We have found Him in His Word and in the bread and the wine and the water. We have found Him on the cross and we find Him as He is risen from the dead. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, by Your grace the apostle Andrew obeyed the call of Your Son to be a disciple. Grant us also to follow the same Lord Jesus Christ in heart and life, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen, (Collect for St. Andrew)- Pastor Jared Tucher serves the dual-parish of St. John – Farmer’s Retreat in Dillsboro and St. Paul, Cross Plains, Indiana.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Harrison GoodmanStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 5:1-25; 1 Peter 2:1-12“Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!” (Isaiah 5:20)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Do you know the difference between good and evil? What’s the definition of good? What’s the definition of evil? Who decided what is good and what is evil? Those are important questions in our world today. The difference between good and evil is defined by who is asking the question. We tend to come up with a definition that fits our wants and needs in a particular moment; what is deemed good today may be deemed evil tomorrow and vice versa.That’s the kind of response you would expect from a world vantage point. But what about from a godly vantage point? What does God say is good? What does God say is evil? How do you reconcile the two?In our sinful and fallen world, we have defined good and evil with definitions that are acceptable to us. However, what is acceptable to us does not always mean it is acceptable to God. That’s where we differ from God. God has a clear definition of what good and evil are and are not. During the time of Noah, man had become so evil that God was sorry that He had created man. Man clearly called evil good and paid the price for it. God destroyed creation for its sinfulness. However, Genesis records, “But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.” (Genesis 6:8)What Noah did exactly to find favor in the eyes of God is not said. Despite all the evil that creation had done, God found favor in Noah. Despite all the evil that creation continues to do to this day, God has found favor in another. God finds favor in Jesus. Jesus keeps the Law. Jesus does not sin. There is no evil to be found in Jesus. In turn, God finds favor in you. God finds favor in you because you are clothed with Christ’s righteousness. God finds favor in you because you have been forgiven all of your sins for Christ’s sake. What was once declared to be good and very good quickly turned to evil and the effects were devastating. Through Jesus, evil has been turned to good once again, and thanks be to God, that applies to us. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and eternal God, according to Your strict judgment You condemned the unbelieving world through the flood, yet according to Your great mercy You preserved believing Noah and his family, eight souls in all. Grant that we may be kept safe and secure in the holy ark of the Christian Church, so that with all believers in Your promise, we would be declared worthy of eternal life; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (Collect for Noah)-Pastor Jared Tucher serves the dual-parish of St. John – Farmer’s Retreat in Dillsboro and St. Paul, Cross Plains, Indiana.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Harrison GoodmanStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Isaiah 2:1-5 Daily Lectionary:Isaiah 2:1-22; 1 Peter 1:13-25“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” (Isaiah 2:3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It’s that time of the year, the Church Year, that is. It’s that time to reflect upon the Advent, the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Advent is that strange time of the Church Year when it’s a bit somber and joyful and hopeful at the same time.When you go back to the time of Isaiah, the people were not the greatest. Isaiah begins his book by saying, “Ah, sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, offspring of evildoers, children who deal corruptly! They have forsaken the LORD, they have despised the Holy One of Israel, they are utterly estranged.” (Isaiah 1:4) That’s not how anyone should want to be referred to, especially the children of God. But that’s who they were - a sinful nation. These people desperately needed God, but they had forsaken Him. But this goes beyond them, it goes back to Adam and Eve.Adam and Eve had the privilege of being with God, the way that God had intended. Due to the craftiness of the serpent, sin found its way into the Garden and everything fell apart. When everything fell apart, so did the people. They turned to their own ways, sinful ways. They forgot about God. They forsook God. God became irrelevant. Though the people forgot about God, God did not forget about them. Eventually, God’s people saw their need for God and proclaimed their desire to go to the house of the God of Jacob. Their intent: that he may teach them and they would talk in his paths.That’s where our Lord’s Advent comes into play. God comes in human flesh for the forsaken. God comes in human flesh for the sin-corrupt people, His people. God comes in human flesh for you. One has to ask the question of why God would do this if His people had forsaken Him. He does this because He has created them, and has created you. He does this because they have sinned because you have sinned. He does this so they may be “ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.” (1 Peter 1:18-19)Where God’s people decide to go up to God, God decides to come to them, to keep a promise made long before them. Jesus is coming; He is coming for them and He is coming for you, that you may be His redeemed children. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord Jesus Christ, as we prepare for Your coming Advent, prepare our hearts to receive You, that You may teach us Your ways and that we may walk in Your paths to life everlasting; who reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Pastor Jared Tucher serves the dual-parish of St. John – Farmer’s Retreat in Dillsboro and St. Paul, Cross Plains, Indiana.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Harrison Goodman.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 23:36-4; Introit Psalm 118:25–28; antiphon: Zechariah 9:9bDaily Lectionary: Isaiah 1:1-28; 1 Peter 1:1-12“But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.” (Matthew 24:36)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It’s the beginning of Advent, the preparatory season before Christmas. We know that Christmas is all about the keeping of God’s promise to send a Savior to creation. That promise was made to Adam and Eve. That promise was made to the people of the Old Testament. That promise was made to you and to me. But there was one slight problem with God’s promise: He never said when that promise would be fulfilled.People throughout time have tried to predict the coming of Jesus, whether it be His initial coming to creation or His Second Coming. But all of those guesses are wrong. God has the time in mind: “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law…” (Galatians 4:4) For whatever reason, God chose not to reveal that to His creation. In the end, it doesn’t matter when God’s promised Savior comes; what matters is that God made the promise!It is for you that God made the promise of a Savior. Sin was not meant to be a part of creation. And so, for creation, God made and God kept the promise. As for the timing of God’s promise, that was known only to God. When God made the promise to Adam and Eve, He never told them when it would be fulfilled. In fact, not even Jesus knew when His coming would occur. In the end, our Lord’s coming was not a surprise. It was an event in which God had foretold His people. As for the timing, why was this not revealed as well? Again, Jesus tells us, “Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” God’s people, wherever and whenever, are called to be ready to receive Jesus whenever He comes, for when He comes, He comes with that which we need the most: the forgiveness of our sins.As we begin the season of Advent, may our eyes ever be turned to Jesus, ready to welcome Him, as He fulfills God’s promise of salvation. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Stir up Your power, O Lord, and come, that by Your protection we may be rescued from the threatening perils of our sins and saved by Your mighty deliverance; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever, amen. (Collect for the First Sunday in Advent) -Pastor Jared Tucher serves the dual-parish of St. John – Farmer’s Retreat in Dillsboro and St. Paul, Cross Plains, Indiana.Audio Reflections Speaker: Harrison Goodman.Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Daniel 6:1-28; Revelation 22:1-21“Make me to know your ways, O LORD; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long.” (Psalm 25:4–5)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The church year ends, and the church year begins anew. One day is in the last week of the church year and the next is in the first week of Advent. In fact, the church year ends the same way that it begins, waiting for the savior. The cry of Maranatha can be a prayer for Jesus to come as well as a declaration that He has come. This is the reality of our lives lived between the comings of Jesus. We declare that He has come in the incarnation, and we await His second coming at the end.This makes the end of the church year different from the end of the calendar year. The end of a calendar year is treated as a time to take stock, to reflect, and to plan. A new calendar year is seen as a chance to start fresh. There is even the temptation to try and become a new you in the new year.       A new church year, on the other hand, is a time to pray for more of the same. We pray for God to keep us in His Word. We pray for Him to keep us in the faith. We pray for Him to continue to guide us in the way that leads to eternal life. While we wait for Him to return, we pray for Him to remain with us and continue to give us His gifts. A church year that was for you has come to an end; a new church year that is for you begins. The Jesus who was born of Mary is the Jesus who suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He is the Jesus who was raised on the third day and later ascended into heaven. He is the Jesus who is with you now as you walk through the valley of the shadow of death and is the Jesus that you wait for. Amen, Come Lord Jesus.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.What joy to know, when life is past, the Lord we love is first and last, the end and the beginning!He will one day, oh, glorious grace, Transport us to that happy place beyond all years and sinning! Amen! Amen!  Come, Lord Jesus! Crown of gladness! We are yearning for the day of Your returning! (O Morning Star, How Fair and Bright, LSB 395 st 6)-Pastor Grant Knepper is the pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, Hillsboro, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Daniel 5:1-30; Revelation 21:9-27“But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” (Revelation 21:27)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Just when the description of the new Jerusalem coming down from Heaven gets really good, you learn that there is a catch. The only people allowed to enter it are those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life. It’s almost as if the city is guarded by a guy with a clipboard who checks to see if your name is on the list before he lets you go past the red velvet rope. What can you do to make sure that your name is on the list? How do you get your name written in the book? Variations on this question have been posed throughout the centuries of church history, but the answers always seem to fall into the same category: there is something that you must do to get your name written in the book. What you have to do has some variation, sometimes the focus is on actions, sometimes the focus is on knowledge, and sometimes the focus is on mystical experience. No matter where the emphasis is, however, it all comes down to something that you have to do to get your name written in the book. You are responsible for putting your name on the list. Ultimately these answers and even the question itself gets you nowhere. Any attempt to get beyond the red velvet rope based on your own efforts is doomed to fail. A place in the Lamb’s book of life is not something that you earn, it’s something that is given. Being on the list is a gift. It is the Lamb’s book of life, and He does all the writing in it. He wrote your name in His book with His own blood. Nothing unclean will enter the city and you have already been made clean by Jesus himself. Your name was written in the book when he said, “it is finished” on the cross. You remain clean every time you remember your baptism, your place in the city is affirmed in every celebration of communion. There is no catch. The city itself and your citizenship in it are the gifts of God for you. Your booking is confirmed.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.My Savior paid the debt I owe And for my sins was smitten; Within the Book of Life I know My name has now been written. I will not doubt, for I am free, And Satan cannot threaten me; There is no condemnation! (The Day is Surely Drawing Near, LSB 508 st 5)-Pastor Grant Knepper is the pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, Hillsboro, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Daniel 4:1-37; Revelation 21:1-8“And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.” (Revelation 21:2)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Does where you live have anything to do with who you are? For a lot of people, it does. They are proud citizens of whatever town, city, or state they live in; it is part of their identity. They like to participate in the public life of their community.  Imagine if being a Christian impacted that part of your identity and you could no longer participate in the public life of your community. Imagine a place no longer being part of who you are. Imagine not being able to go out to eat, go to the big game, or even get a job. Imagine being told that you were a nobody simply because you were a Christian. This was the reality for many of the first Christians. The city they lived in was a large part of their identity. Citizenship came with expectations and responsibilities. There was even a religious aspect to everyday activities like shopping, working, or even attending public events that involved the worship of false gods. Those who became Christians no longer did such things, and this meant that they lost part of their identity. They could no longer participate in the public life of their city. Believers were even accused of being bad citizens. They were accused of being enemies of the very cities they lived in. Some even found themselves wondering who they were. This remains true in many parts of the world today where being a Christian comes at a severe social and economic cost. The Book of Revelation offers comfort to Christians facing that kind of identity crisis. It reminds them that they do have a place-based identity, they are citizens of the new Jerusalem come down from heaven. It reminds them that even though they live in a hostile world, they still have a place that is theirs. You too share in this identity. No matter where you find yourself in this world that is passing away, you are a citizen of the new Jerusalem. The city that will someday come down out of heaven is your city. The water of life that washed you in baptism will be yours to drink. No matter where you are from, the City of God is where you are going.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. See the holy city! There they enter in, All by Christ made holy, Washed from ev’ry sin: Thirsty ones, desiring All He loves to give, Come for living water, Freely drink and live! (Christ is Surely Coming, LSB 509 st 2)-Pastor Grant Knepper is the pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, Hillsboro, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Sacrament of the Altar, part 5Daily Lectionary: Daniel 3:1-30; Revelation 20:1-15But that person is truly worthy and well prepared who has faith in these words: “Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins” (Small Catechism Sacrament of the Altar, part 5) In the Name + of Jesus. Are you cool enough to commune? That seems like a silly question, but sometimes that is what it sounds like is being referred to when we talk about being worthy to receive the body and blood of the Lord in the Sacrament of the Altar. Is that what really lies behind the notion of being worthy to commune? Is admittance to the table based on some kind of ecclesiastical coolness factor and if it is, you want to be cool, don’t you?The language about worth makes it sound like there is something that you can do to make yourself worthy to receive communion. If this was the case, then communion would be the reward you got for being properly prepared for it. It would be the recognition that you had made yourself worthy. The Lord’s Supper would become the meal that you earned through your efforts. You did your part, now God is bound to do His. If worthiness to commune was based on your efforts how many times a year could you do the work necessary to commune?Thankfully this is not what the language of worthy to commune is referring to. There is no coolness factor, ecclesiastical or otherwise that you have to worry about or work towards. Communion, like baptism, like the gospel itself, is not a reward, it is a gift. Communion is not something that you earn the right to receive by making yourself worthy. Like all gifts, it is something that is given. You don’t get communion; you receive it as a gift. If communion is a gift, then so too is the status of being worthy to receive it. Belief in the words ‘given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins is what makes you worthy to commune. The belief that the Lord’s Supper is for you is all you need to approach the altar week after week without worry or fear that you are unworthy. The very faith that makes you worthy to receive the gifts of God is in itself a gift of God. He is the one who made you a Christian and He is the one who has made you worthy to commune. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.We dare not ask how this can be, But simply hold the mystery And trust this word where life begins: “Given and shed for all your sins.” (The Death of Jesus Christ, Our Lord, LSB 634 st 5)-Pastor Grant Knepper is the pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, Hillsboro, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11Daily Lectionary: Daniel 2:24-49; Revelation 19:1-21“But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.” (1 Thessalonians 5:8)In the Name + of Jesus. ‘No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service.’ You’ve probably seen the signs in stores or restaurants but have never thought about the biblical truth behind the saying. Did you know that as Christians you have to be properly dressed for the second coming of Jesus? What does one wear to the eschaton? Luckily, you won’t need a new outfit for the Parousia. The same armor of God that you don for your everyday life as a Christian is all you need to wear for the day of the Lord. The breastplate of faith and love and the helmet of the hope of salvation are something that you already have and something that you wear every day, you just know them by another name. They are the robes of righteousness given you in your baptism. In other words, they are your baptismal identity. God has already given you all that you need to be properly clothed for the second coming of His Son. This section of Thessalonians drips with baptismal language as Paul writes to Christians who needed to be reminded who they were. Members of the Thessalonian church were besieged by a hostile culture that caused them to question their very identity as Christians. Some even wondered about the fate of church members who died before Jesus returned. In response Paul reminds them who they are. They are children of the light; they have put on the armor of God. They are not destined for wrath. All this language came from the very liturgy that had been part of their baptisms. They are no longer what they were, they are no longer of the darkness, nor do they practice the pagan worship they used to. Not even death changes the reality of baptismal identity. The dearly departed have the same promise as those who are alive.  What was true for them is also true for you. Your baptism changed you and you were given a new identity and you put on Christ Himself.  Clothed with Christ in baptism, you have nothing to fear from the end. It may come like a thief in the night, but the armor of God will keep you safe until the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. In the Name + of Jesus. AmenOnce in the blest baptismal waters I put on Christ and made Him mine; Now numbered with God’s sons and daughters, I share His peace and love divine (Once in the Blest Baptismal Waters LSB 598, st 1)-Pastor Grant Knepper is the pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, Hillsboro, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Isaiah 65:17-25Daily Lectionary: Daniel 2:1-23; Revelation 18:1-24“For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind.” (Isaiah 65:17)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Dying and going to heaven is not the ultimate fate of the Christian. We are not promised a disembodied life floating on a cloud while playing a harp. To be sure there is life after death in the presence of Jesus. This is where all the dearly departed are even now as the Church in heaven waits for the full consummation of the kingdom of God. What the dearly departed are now experiencing, however, is only temporary. There is life after death and then there is life after life after death. There is the resurrection and an embodied life in the new heavens and new earth. This is the promise that awaits all of God’s people. This is the promise that awaits you. Your body is not to be escaped or shed; it is to be redeemed. The fix for broken creation, the fix for the fall into sin is a new creation. Before the fall God declared his creation good. God’s work of new creation has already begun. It started with the incarnation. It started with the coming of Jesus. The Creator Himself entered into His creation to make all things new. The healings and miracles of Jesus can all be seen as the response of creation to the presence of the Creator. On the cross, Jesus paid the price for all that was broken in creation. He took the punishment for the fall and changed the nature of death itself. Its rule over creation has been broken.  His resurrection signaled the inauguration of a new age where death has lost its sting. Creation remains fallen, but already the new age has dawned. You are part of God’s work of new creation. In baptism, you were created anew. You were washed clean in the water attached to the Word and made ready to live in the new heavens and new earth that are to come. Now you live as a new creation in a fallen world, you live as someone who is at the same time sinner and saint.  At the coming of the kingdom, you will be resurrected into a new heaven and a new earth, all saint and no sinner where nothing of the fall will come to mind.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O sweet and blessed country, The home of God’s elect! O sweet and blessed country That faithful hearts expect! In mercy, Jesus, bring us To that eternal rest With you and God the Father And Spirit, ever blessed. (Jerusalem the Golden LSB 672, st 4)-Pastor Grant Knepper is the pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, Hillsboro, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 25:1-13,  Introit: Ps. 39:4–5, 7– 8; antiphon: Is. 35:10Daily Lectionary: Daniel 1:1-21; Matthew 28:1-20“Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.” (Matthew 25:13)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. How are you supposed to be prepared for the ending when you have no idea when the ending is coming? The ten virgins in our reading couldn’t even stay awake until midnight when they knew the bridegroom was on his way. Half of them didn’t even bring enough oil for their lamps. The parable comes to an end without letting us know what happened. Did the 5 foolish virgins gain entry to the celebration or not?  The Church has been waiting for Jesus to return for almost two thousand years, that is a lot of lamp oil.  Is that all the Christian life is, living in a constant state of wakeful watching? If your concentration slips for just a second, will you wake to find yourself on the wrong side of the door to the party? How do you make sure you have enough oil when you don’t know how long it will have to last?To make a long story short the oil for your lamp is a renewable resource and God is the one who keeps your supply topped off.  The resurrection of Jesus marked the inauguration of a new age that has not yet come to fulfillment. You are Christians for the long haul. This is a faith that can take you from cradle to grave. It is a faith for a lifetime. At the same time, it is faith that must be taken care of, faith that must be fed and nurtured. It is a faith that comes from hearing the word and receiving the sacraments. In other words, it is faith that needs oil so that its light does not sputter and die. Oil comes from the one baptism for the remission of sins, oil comes from the absolution, oil comes from the communion of the saints. Your lamp remains lit because God Himself tends the flame. The church is not a one and done kind of place. You are not left alone waiting. This is why we gather every week around the word of God and receive the gifts of God. We may not know when Jesus is coming back but because he has made us into his people and continues to be with us even unto the very end of the age, we will be ready when he comes back. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Lord, absolve Your people from their offenses that, from the bonds of our sins which by reason of our frailty we have brought upon ourselves, we may be delivered by Your bountiful goodness; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, on God, now and forever. Amen. -Pastor Grant Knepper is the pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, Hillsboro, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 38:1-28; Matthew 28:57-66“Behold, you have made my days a few handbreadths, and my lifetime is as nothing before you. Surely all mankind stands as a mere breath! “And now, O Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in you. Deliver me from all my transgressions. Do not make me the scorn of the fool!” (Psalm 39:5)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. “We’re all going to die!” is something you hear a character exclaim in a movie as the plane goes down, the ship sinks, or the building explodes. More often than not, in many movies, these words are used as comic relief as if the notion of death is something to be laughed at. Truth be told, death is no joke. It is the one thing that we all have in common. Someday each of us will die. The end of the church year offers us the perfect opportunity to reflect on all things eschatological including the end of our own lives. At first glance, the words of Psalm 39 that make up the Introit might seem to offer no help. They describe our lives as fleeting, nothing but a few handbreadths. No matter how many years we have, our lifetimes are nothing before God. If our lives are nothing, then do they mean anything? If death is what awaits us all after a life that puts a breath before God what is the point?   As it turns out, death is not the end of the world. Death is not final, death is not the end, and even if our earthly lives are nothing before God, we are something before God. In other words, your death is not the end of you. God has seen to it that you continue after death. Here is the truth of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus for you. You were baptized into the death of Jesus and now He is your hope. Death did not hold Jesus, and death will not hold you. Jesus conquered death on the cross and he will lead you through death to eternal life in the new heavens and the new earth that awaits us all. Your life may be a few handbreadths before God, but it is not the only life that you have.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Christ, who shared our mortal life And ended death’s long reign, Who healed the sick and raised the dead And bore our grief and pan: We know our years on earth are few, That death is always near. Come now t us, O Lord of Life; Bring hope that conquers fear. (O Christ, Who Shared Our Mortal Life LSB 552, st 1) -Pastor Grant Knepper is the pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, Hillsboro, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 37:1-21; Matthew 27:33-56“And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” When Jesus speaks these words from the cross, he is doing more than making a cry of lament. The words he speaks would have been recognized by those witnessing his crucifixion as coming from Psalm 22.  This means that He is not just complaining to God. In speaking these words, Jesus is bringing the entire psalm into play. This lament, in the mouth of Jesus, becomes a way to understand the cross itself. With these words, Jesus shows that the psalm is about Him. Even more than being about Him, Psalm 22 is spoken by Him. Psalm 22 starts with a lament, but it does not end there. The psalm quickly moves from the questioning of God to a declaration of confidence in salvation and the future of God’s people. In other words, Jesus does not lament in despair but in faith. His suffering is real, but so is His expectation that the suffering serves a purpose. He is forsaken, but He will not remain forsaken. And because He is forsaken no one else needs ever be forsaken. Because He was forsaken you will not be forsaken. The speaker of Psalm 22 describes His suffering, the mocking of the people, the piercing of His hands and feet, and even the casting of lots for his clothes. He also speaks of the deliverance of God, the comforting of the afflicted, and all the nations of the earth worshiping the Lord. Out of the suffering of the one comes salvation for all. In the midst of his crucifixion, Jesus gives us a way to understand it. He gives us a way to see in the cross victory and not defeat. He gives us a way to see in His cross, His glory.  The forsakenness of Jesus becomes a message to future generations that will be added to the people of God. The psalm that begins with lament ends with a proclamation of hope. “Posterity shall serve him; it shall be told of the Lord to the coming generation; they shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn, that he has done it.” (Psalm 22: 30-31) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Can we fathom such deep mercy? Do we see what God has done? Who can grasp this great reversal: Love that gives His only Son? Christ, the sinless for the sinners, For the many dies the One. (Jesus, Greatest at the Table LSB 446 st 4)-Pastor Grant Knepper is the pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, Hillsboro, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 33:1-22; Matthew 27:11-32“In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David, and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In those days Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will dwell securely. And this is the name by which it will be called: ‘The LORD is our righteousness.’” (Jeremiah 33:15–16)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. High school might seem like the perfect preparation for the end of the world. After all, each semester is eschatological in nature. At the end of every academic term, you are judged and must prove your worth to move on. You take exams to prove your righteousness, and your worthiness, to advance to the next class or even the next school year. This is especially true in your senior year where you have to prove you’re righteous enough to leave high school while at the same proving that you are righteous enough to be let into whatever is next in your life. Your grades, your extra-curricular activities, and your accomplishments are all judged by those with your future in their hands.Some think that the end of the world seems to be very similar in nature. On the last day you will be judged, and your eternal fate will depend on your righteousness. All of the stuff that you have done will be used to determine what kind of afterlife you move on to. That is a fully frightening thought. Imagine being in the presence of God with nothing but your works, your thoughts, and your sins in your admission packet. This would be like taking the final for a class you never attended, never did the reading, and didn’t even know you were in. Thankfully what is true for high school is not true for the Kingdom of God. The righteousness you have now, the righteousness by which you have already been judged is not yours. You have been given the righteousness of Christ Himself. The Lord is your righteousness and because of that, you have nothing to fear from the end. The righteousness needed to move from this world to the next is not an earned righteousness, it is gifted righteousness. It is a righteousness that God has given to you because of Jesus. You have nothing to fear from the judgment to come because Jesus already experienced that judgment for you on the cross. There he exchanged your sins for His righteousness. The end will come but you are already saved, and you will dwell securely. For you, there will be no final exam.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.May we in faith its message learn Nor thanklessly its blessing spurn; May we in faith its truth confess And praise the Lord, our righteousness. (The Gospel Shows the Father’s Grace LSB 580 st 6)-Pastor Grant Knepper is the pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, Hillsboro, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Sacrament of the Altar, part 4Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 31:1-17,23-34; Matthew 27:1-10“Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.” These words, along with the bodily eating and drinking, are the main thing in the Sacrament. Whoever believes these words has exactly what they say: “forgiveness of sins.” (Small Catechism: Sacrament of the Altar, part 4) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Does your diet define you? Do you eat to live or live to eat? The answer to those questions probably depends on what you are eating and why. Some meals are celebrations while others are merely fuel stops to keep you going. We eat a variety of things for a variety of reasons often without thinking too much about it. Regular family dinners, holiday meals, burgers from the drive-thru, and even the last stale pop-tart from the back of the pantry can be part of what we eat on any given day. No matter the what or the why this kind of eating is mainly about our bodily life. For better or worse, what we eat has an effect on our physical health. The Sacrament of the Altar, on the other hand, is a completely different kind of eating. Here is a meal that delivers far more than nutrition.  It has even been called the medicine of immortality. This eating is about our spiritual life. Here is a meal that strengthens faith and forgives sins. Here is a meal that is specifically given to and for the Christian. This is the meal of the baptized. This is a meal that is God’s gift to you. This is a meal where God serves you. Communion is not something that you do, it is something that you receive. This is a meal where Jesus himself is present giving Himself to you. Here is a place where what happened on the cross for all is applied to you personally. What makes this eating so special? This is a meal instituted by Christ for his followers. This is a meal that combines the elements with the Word and promise of God. This is a meal where in and under the bread and wine are the body and blood of Jesus given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. This is a meal that benefits you in the here and now while at the same time serving as a foretaste of the feast to come.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Thy body, given for me, O Savior, Thy blood which Thou for me didst shed, These are my life and strength forever, By them my hungry soul is fed. Lord, may Thy body and Thy blood Be for my soul the highest good! (Thy Body, Given for Me, O Savior LSB 619 st 1)-Pastor Grant Knepper is the pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, Hillsboro, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: 2 Peter 3:3-14Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 30:1-24; Matthew 26:57-75“The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Inigo Montoya put it best in The Princess Bride when he said, “I hate waiting.” Waiting is torture, waiting is terrible. Even worse than waiting are those that make people wait. Dinner is ready, but one guest has yet to show up. Everyone is ready to walk out the door, but someone is still getting dressed. In each of these cases, anger and frustration are directed at those causing us to wait. They are the problem, they are rude, and they are only concerned with themselves. What if God is the one you are waiting for? Jesus promises in the gospels that He is coming back, in Revelation he even says that He is coming soon. Yet here the Church sits two thousand-plus years later still waiting. Peter even warns us that this waiting will cause scoffers to question all the promises of God. Can God really be for you? Is He making you wait like this? Does a God who never shows up even exist? Should the fact that Jesus has not returned yet cause you to question your faith?Is God being rude? Is he punishing you with this seemingly endless waiting or is something else going on? Waiting on God is not like waiting for a guest to arrive or for someone to get ready. What some people think is a delay in the return of Christ is actually part of God’s mercy. God does not wish that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. In other words, Jesus has not come back in part because He was waiting on you to be part of His people. In addition, He is waiting for all the others who will be part of the uncountable multitude that is the Church. This waiting is not an individual activity, it is a group activity. You don’t wait on God so much as we, the Church, wait on God. While we wait God will continue to serve His gifts and His people will continue to serve their neighbors.At some point, the waiting will be over and we will all dwell in the new heavens and new earth where there will be all righteousness and no waiting.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.A thousand ages in Thy sight Are like an evening gone, Short as the watch that ends the night Before the rising sun. (O God, Our Help in Ages Past LSB 733, st 4)-Pastor Grant Knepper is the pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, Hillsboro, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Daniel 7:9-14Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 29:1-19; Matthew 26:36-56“And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.” (Daniel 7:14) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. At the end of a movie, the credits roll and the screen goes dark, signaling the end of the story. At the end of a book, there is nothing after you get to the back cover, there are no more pages to turn. What about the end of the world? What happens after the end times?  Movies and books now come in multi-part series; will human history get a sequel? Many in the ancient world thought that history was cyclical and without meaning. Times were good and times were bad in a never-ending cycle that wasn’t headed anywhere. In other words, they didn’t ask about the next story because there was no story to begin with. The Bible teaches us that human history has a beginning and an end. Even better than that history has a planned end, a telos, a goal that God is moving it towards. This means that the end does not mean that the story is over. This means that we get more than a sequel, more than a continuation of the narrative. What awaits us is life in the everlasting dominion of the one like a son of man. This will be life as it was meant to be, life without the consequences of the fall. Life in the very presence of the Creator; life that will never end. This is the life that Christ obtained for you through his death on the cross. Jesus conquered sin, death, and the devil for you, and even now you are citizens in His everlasting dominion. This life is not all that there is. There is more to come and what is to come includes you. You have a place in God’s kingdom because He sent Jesus to secure it for you. This life and this world will come to its conclusion, but you will continue to the world without end. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Christ sits at God’s right hand, His saving work complete, To reign till ev’ry foe will lie Beneath His feet—All that the Father planned, The Son sought to fulfill, When first He said, “Lord, here am I To do Your will.” (“Christ Sits at God’s Right Hand” LSB 564, st. 1)-Pastor Grant Knepper is the pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, Hillsboro, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 25:31-46, Introit: Ps. 85:1, 7, 9, 11; antiphon: Jeremiah 29:11a, 12Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 26:1-19; Matthew 26:20-35“Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’” (Matthew 25:37–39)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  The end of the church year focuses on the eschatological judgment of God, and where there is judgment language, there is also talk of good works. Good works can be the third rail of Lutheran theology. We say that words like ‘necessary,’ ‘should,’ and ‘must’ can be used when speaking of the relation between Christians and good works. At the same time, we also reject the language that good works are necessary for salvation or that salvation cannot happen without them (FC Ep IV). If that wasn’t confusing enough, the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats shows us that good works are also invisible. Neither those on the left nor the right are aware of their works. The sheep wonder when they did them while the goats ask when they didn’t do them. This is because good works, strictly speaking, are not something that we do. Good works are the result of God working in us. In other words, good works arise naturally in the believer because of God’s actions in them. God is both the source and the doer of your good works. Your good works began with God working on you in the waters of Baptism, and your good works continue as you live out your baptismal identity. They continue as you fulfill the various vocations that God has given you.They are largely invisible because you have been freed from having to count them, track them, or keep any kind of record of them. You don’t have to pile up good works like extra-curricular activities for a college application. Good works flow from faith. They do not lead to it.  This is the truth of what Christ did for you on the cross. Without faith in Christ, no work is good. With faith in Christ, even the most mundane action can become a good work that only God can see. May the Lord, who has begun this good work in you, bring it to completion in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Lord, so rule and govern our hearts and minds by Your Holy Spirit that, ever mindful of the end of all things and the day of Your just judgment, we may be stirred up to holiness of living here and dwell with Your forever hereafter; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. -Pastor Grant Knepper is the pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, Hillsboro, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the Second-Last Sunday of the Church YearDaily Lectionary: Jeremiah 25:1-18; Matthew 26:1-19“Faithfulness springs up from the ground, and righteousness looks down from the sky” (Ps. 85:11).In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. This is a remarkable Scripture passage. Ps. 85 is a cry from God’s people for His blessing. Reminding God of His previous good favor for His undeserving people, the psalmist remembers how God restored the fortunes of Jacob (meaning His people, Israel) at times in their history. When God brought destruction, enemy armies, famines and disease, God’s people were brought to their knees to repent of their sins. But then they trusted in the Word of hope that the prophets brought. This cry of repentance moved God’s heart at times past, and He spared His people and brought them blessings. Even if it didn’t always seem like a blessing at the time.Today, the psalmist also reminds us about the nature of faithfulness. Faithfulness, he says, “springs up from the ground.” This is partly a reminder of Gen. 2. When God made the first man, He fashioned Adam out of the dust and dirt. Then breathing in His Holy Spirit, the man became a living person. In that sense, Adam also “sprang up from the ground.” The fact that Ps. 85 uses this language suggests it has Gen. 2 in mind. Faithfulness is created. It is not something that we can make or help make. We are on the receiving end of coming to faith. God the Holy Spirit is the creator of faith, just as He first brought Adam’s lifeless body to new life that had been made from the dirt.Faithfulness springs up from the ground. That’s because God grows it. He plants the seed of the Word in hearts, and brings the hearers to faith as they grow up in the Word. Faithfulness is created. It is therefore a gift of God. Meanwhile, Ps. 85 also says that “righteousness looks down from the sky.” God’s righteousness means being right with God. This happens by the Gospel that does not charge your sins against you, but counts you as pure and innocent despite them. Now that Jesus is ascended into heaven, God’s righteousness also looks down on you from heaven. For God’s righteousness is found in Jesus.  The Holy Spirit takes this righteousness and presses it to you. He applies it, taking Christ and His righteousness from heaven, and by the means of grace bringing Jesus to you on earth. By this He sustains you even in times of hardship as well as good times. Faithfulness springs up from the ground. Righteousness looks down from the sky. Remarkable. But that’s always how God is. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord, look upon Your people with favor on account of Christ, and sustain us in faithfulness.  Amen.-Pastor Robert Mayes is Pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church and Zion St. John Lutheran Church in Beemer and Wisner, NE.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 25:31-46Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 23:21-40; Matthew 25:31-46“Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.’” (Mt. 25:34)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Jesus’ parable of the sheep and the goats can be confusing. This parable is about judgment day, when all people have to stand before Jesus and be judged. But Jesus will not welcome many to eternal life and salvation. Many will go to eternal death and condemnation.Who can be saved? In Mt. 25, it seems like Jesus is saying that salvation comes by doing enough good works. He praises those who fed Him, clothed Him, visited Him, etc. But He condemns many who thought they had done enough good works and tells them He never knew them. If you have to rely on your works to be saved, you will never be certain of your salvation. You will doubt, because there’s always some sin in your history. Further, you won’t be able to be saved. No one has done enough, not you, not your pastor, no one. No one can be saved by doing enough works.  But the parable of the sheep and goats is not about salvation by works. It is about salvation through faith in Christ alone. How so? Jesus tells the sheep that they get to ‘inherit’ salvation. How does one inherit?  Not by works! Rather, one must be chosen by a person before he dies. Then after he dies, his will and testament announce that the heir can now receive the inheritance. For Christians, Jesus has chosen you out of great love to redeem you from your sins. He lived perfectly in your place, and gave His innocent life to die for your sins. But before He died, Jesus set up His will and testament – the new testament in His blood given at the Lord’s Supper. Here He offers you forgiveness, life and salvation. And His death for you makes that inheritance real. You can reject it in unbelief. You can reject this inheritance His death has provided. But, why would you want to? By this inheritance that you did not work for or earn, you receive eternal salvation. The good works Jesus mentions in Mt. 25 are the proof your faith in Christ was real. These works were evidence of faith, but not reasons why you can be saved. God be praised. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“I do not merit favor, Lord, My weight of sin would break me; In all my guilty heart’s discord, O Lord, do not forsake me. In my distress this comforts me That You receive me graciously, O Christ, my Lord of mercy!” (LSB 625:4; public domain)-Pastor Robert Mayes is Pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church and Zion St. John Lutheran Church in Beemer and Wisner, NE.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Jeremiah 23:1-20Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 23:1-20; Matthew 25:14-30“I will set shepherds over them who will care for them, and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall any be missing, declares the Lord.” (Jer. 23:4)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Today God teaches you why you have a pastor.  And that is, God gives you a pastor so that you might be spiritually cared for, that you wouldn’t be afraid, that you wouldn’t feel hopeless and that you wouldn’t wander off into grave danger.  Also that you wouldn’t be afraid of death and damnation, let alone fears of a hopeless future.  This is the task and the calling of pastors.  And they carry this task out especially as they teach you Holy Scripture, as they proclaim the Good News of Jesus to you, as they warn you and as they forgive you, as they offer the Body and Blood of Jesus to you in the Lord’s Supper.  These are the tools pastors use to care for God’s sheep, which includes you.In the prophet Jeremiah’s time, however, those who were tasked with the teaching and proclamation of God’s Word were false teachers.  They did not speak God’s Word but their own dreams and ideas.  These shepherds did not care for the people entrusted to them.  Their sermons were full of ideas of God’s peace.  However, they would not warn people away from their sins.  These false prophets made it seem like God loved sins and wanted people to continue in their sins.  Because of that, God’s anger was against the false prophets and the people who supported them.You are a sheep of God.  You are called to be His and to be loved by Him through the mouth of your pastor.  But you have to listen.  Listen to the Word.  Listen carefully.  Something is right and true not because even a pastor says it, but only if it agrees and confesses what God’s Word says.  However, your pastor also might say something that is from God’s Word, and you just weren’t aware of it.  If you hear something off in a sermon, politely ask him if he meant what you heard.  It could be that you just heard it wrong.What if you don’t have a pastor now?  What if your church is “vacant”?  Pray that God fulfills His promise in today’s passage.  Pray that God sends you a shepherd who will care for you, that you may not be afraid or dismayed.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Lord, guard and keep us under the care of faithful pastors who proclaim Your Word purely and protect us even from dangers we don’t know.  Amen.-Pastor Robert Mayes is Pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church and Zion St. John Lutheran Church in Beemer and Wisner, NE.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Sacrament of the Altar, part 3Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 22:1-23; Matthew 25:1-13What is the benefit of this eating and drinking? These words, "Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins," shows us that in the Sacrament forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation are given us through these words. For where there is forgiveness of sins, there is also life and salvation. (Small Catechism VI, Lord’s Supper, 3rd question)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. There is much benefit to taking the Lord’s Supper at your congregation. It may not seem like it. Don’t go by what it seems like. As with everything in the Lord’s Supper, what it seems like is not what it is. What it is, is what Jesus’ Word says. So close your eyes and open your ears, hearing the Word of the Lord. That Word today says, ‘Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.’Forgiveness of sins is not a small, trivial matter. Forgiveness of sins is the difference between life and death. Now here one might object and say, ‘But I have forgiveness of sins without the Lord’s Supper!’ That may be, but remember what holds on to the forgiveness of sins – that is, faith. Faith is not an arrogant, stubborn attitude that objects to what God gives. Anyone who objects to what God wants to give should also look carefully at himself and ask himself if he even has faith. Because faith in Christ gladly receives what Jesus wants to give. Faith in Christ can never get enough of what Jesus wants to give, especially where the forgiveness of sins is concerned. Smug unbelief and arrogance, however, object to what Jesus gives. Smug unbelief and arrogance don’t want the forgiveness Jesus gives nor does an unbeliever think he needs that forgiveness. Thus, smug unbelief and arrogance will be condemned on the last day, no matter how many times that person says to Jesus, ‘Lord, Lord.’Jesus knows what you need more than you do. He sees clearly, your vision is distorted. So trust the One who died and rose, who also says His Supper is ‘Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.’ Trust this Word and find spiritual comfort in it. By taking the Sacrament in faith and the same confession of the faith, you take this precious gift for your forgiveness and sanctification. Despite your sins, Jesus says this Sacrament is given for you. Trust Him then, and gladly receive.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“In these last days of great distress, Grant us, dear Lord, true steadfastness That we keep pure ‘til life is spent Your holy Word and Sacrament.” (LSB 585:2; text, copyright Concordia Publishing House, 1982)-Pastor Robert Mayes is Pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church and Zion St. John Lutheran Church in Beemer and Wisner, NE.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 20:1-18; Matthew 24:29-51For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.  (1 Thes. 4:16-17)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Ancient Rome had a unique way to celebrate a visit from the emperor. If the emperor was coming to a city for a state visit, watchmen would play trumpets to let the people of the city know the emperor had come. When they heard the trumpet blast, the people went out of the city walls to welcome the emperor.  Then they all processed back into the city, the people going along with the emperor and his men.Something like this is going to happen on the last day. But we have more than an earthly emperor who is coming. We have Jesus. He who died and is risen, who ascended and fills all things, who is the king of kings and lord of lords, He is coming! Like the ancient Romans, so believers also will go to meet the Lord as He is coming, and join with Him as He comes to earth in judgment. What Paul is describing in 1 Thes. 4 is not some kind of ‘holy hovering,’ but a welcoming party of believers for their long-awaited Lord.Why can you anticipate Jesus’ final coming with joy? It’s because He has redeemed you from your sins. Without faith in His Word, a person can only fear Christ’s coming, for He comes to judge the world and the people in it. Only through faith in God’s Word and promise can you have joy and confidence before Christ the judge. Not by your efforts, not by your cheery attitude or your abilities, not by anything that is in you can you have this confidence and boldness on the last day. The only way to welcome Jesus without fear is trusting His Word of absolution. You stand forgiven on account of what He has done. Because of that, you gladly await the heavenly trumpet so that you might welcome Jesus and join Him.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen“Come, O Christ, and loose the chains that bind us; Lead us forth and cast this world behind us. With You, the Anointed, Finds the soul its joy and rest appointed.! (LSB 679:5).-Pastor Robert Mayes is Pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church and Zion St. John Lutheran Church in Beemer and Wisner, NE.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Exodus 32:1-20Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 11:1-23; Matthew 24:1-28“And he received the gold from their hand and fashioned it with a graving tool and made a golden calf. And they said, ‘These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!’  (Ex. 32:4)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. A translation issue from the original Hebrew helps unlock this text, and an archaeological discovery helps too.  The translation issue is this – the Hebrew word for “God” is in the plural.  This means the Hebrew translator has to decide if the text is talking about God or false gods when he sees the same word (Elohim).  In Ex. 32:4, it should be, ‘This is your god.’  There was only one golden calf Aaron made, so how could he say that was multiple gods? That makes no linguistic sense at all.  Instead, Aaron built the calf and said this was Israel’s God.  It’s just that he was wrong.An archaeological issue also unlocks Ex. 32.  Carvings have been discovered of ancient idols standing on the backs of animals, usually bulls or lions. Idolaters thought that their (false) gods had power over these creatures if they stood on their backs.  Notice, Aaron does not make a graven image standing on the calf.  There’s nothing but empty air there.  That’s because God commanded that He should not be made into idol form.  Aaron was careful to follow that word.  But Aaron also borrowed pagan religious practices for God’s worship.  Apparently, Aaron thought the substance of the true God’s worship would stay the same, even if the style changed to be more relevant to his day. But this blended worship angered God.God’s worship should never be designed by popular opinion poll, or what we think relates to sinners best.  That’s because we are sinners in need of salvation we cannot come up with.  God alone has won salvation for us in His Son Jesus, by His death for our sins.  And God delivers this salvation by the Word of the Gospel and the sacraments.  Worship practices are to correspond to this. The historic liturgy does correspond to this.  The worship of the historical Lutheran church is based chiefly on what conforms to the Word of God and its doctrine best.  God is the God who justifies sinners freely on account of Jesus’ death.  In worship, we come on holy ground, and leave the infatuations of our pleasure-seeking world at the door.  Lutheran worship is not bound to this time. It is timeless. And that all makes it good.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, guide our worship that we do not anger You by conforming it to what this evil world thinks is best, and grant that we may be Christ-centered and counter-cultural in worship.  Amen.-Pastor Robert Mayes is Pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church and Zion St. John Lutheran Church in Beemer and Wisner, NE.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 24_15-28,  Introit:Ps. 130:1–2, 7–8; antiphon: Ps. 130:3–4Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 8:18-9:12; Matthew 23:13-39“Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it.  For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.”  (Mt. 24:23-24)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. This passage from Mt. 24 is often read as if Jesus was meaning it only for those of His time.  In the 1st century, when many Jews were expecting God’s Messiah (or Christ) to appear, some falsely proclaimed themselves as that promised savior.  And Jesus rightly warned His hearers to not follow those other guys, because they were frauds.  So this did apply then.But Jesus also warns us today.  For there are false christs today too.  Today, false christs tend to go by the same name as the true Christ: Jesus.  One church proclaims Jesus as a social radical who now teaches that sin is no longer sinful.  One church preaches a Jesus who will make you financially wealthy if you believe enough.  One church proclaims Jesus as a cheerleader who gets you to do enough good works to enter heaven.  Still another church says that Jesus has done His part to save you, but the rest is up to you now.  All of these are false christs.  So if anyone says, “Look, Christ is here in this church,” but the pastor proclaims these false doctrines?  He is pointing you to a different guy than the savior we know, a false christ.  It’s just that their false savior also happens to have the same name as our true savior.The true Christ is the One who saves sinners as a free gift.  The true Christ is the sacrifice whose gory bloodshed and disturbing death is your peace.  The true Christ is a physician for the afflicted and tormented soul, but He has nothing to give those who think they are already well without Him.  The true Christ is risen from the dead and sits at God’s right hand.  The true Christ washes sins away by the water of Baptism and adopts those baptized into God’s family.  The true Christ gives His body to eat in and under the consecrated bread, and His blood to drink in and under the consecrated wine.  The true Christ is the Shepherd of lost sheep.  God be praised.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, our refuge and strength, the author of all godliness, hear the devout prayers of Your Church, especially in times of persecution, and grant that what we ask in faith we may obtain; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.-Pastor Robert Mayes is Pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church and Zion St. John Lutheran Church in Beemer and Wisner, NE.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the Third-Last Sunday of the Church YearDaily Lectionary: Jeremiah 7:1-29; Matthew 23:1-12“If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared.” (Ps. 130:3-4)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. A guilty conscience cannot hide.  Try as one might, God sees what is done in secret.  He knows the secrets of man’s heart.  He threatens a wrathful judgment against any who is charged with sin.  Adam and Eve in Gen. 3 could not hide from God.  They stood before Him ashamed as God cursed them for listening to the devil’s word.  Likewise, if you try to hide your sins from God, you cannot.  You will have to give an account of your sinful thoughts, words, actions, and the good that you failed to do.But who then can stand before God’s awful throne of judgment?  No one.  Not you.  Not the most moral person you know.  Not even the psalmist who wrote Ps. 130.  While Adam and Eve did technically stand before God when He cursed them, it was more like cowering instead of actual standing.  To stand before God in Ps. 130 means to stand with boldness and confidence.With God there is forgiveness.  For with God is His Son Jesus whom He sent to take your place.  Your iniquities and sins were not marked against you but against Him.  Jesus, God and Man, lived perfectly in your place, and gave His innocent life for your sins.  Whatever is deserving of condemnation in you, Jesus took as His own to give you a righteousness that was His own.  His blood was shed for you.  Jesus suffered God’s wrath so that you might stand before Him on the last day, and with a smile on your face.  Beaming, thankful, radiant because there is forgiveness with God for you on account of His Son.Faith trusts this promise and breathes easier.  For your sins are blotted out, covered over, taken away from you.  You will not have to give an account for those covered sins, because there is nothing needing to account for.  In place of your sin and curse is Jesus’ free righteousness and blessing.  In place of terror is now joy.  In place of sorrow at what you have become is comfort because of what you will become in Christ.  True, Jesus is the only one who can stand before God the Father.  But through faith alone, you stand with Him and your sins are not charged to you.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, thank you for Your deep love for me in Your Son, Jesus.  Grant me a strong faith that with all boldness and confidence, I may stand before You on the last day with joy.  Amen.-Pastor Robert Mayes is Pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church and Zion St. John Lutheran Church in Beemer and Wisner, NE.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Ephesians 5:15-21Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 5:1-19; Matthew 22:23-46“Be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart.” (Eph. 5:18b-19)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Christians are encouraged to learn psalms.  More than any other book of the Bible, the Psalms speak to every situation and every emotion a believer may ever face in his life.  The psalms speak both from our perspective to God in prayers, laments, thanksgivings and recounting of what God has done previously in Scripture.  But the Psalms also are God’s Word to us.  They give God’s voice to us addressing our sorrow, hope, trust, guilt, anger and more.  And the very words we say in the Psalms are given by God to us.  Yes, even those destructive and bloody psalms about bashing in heads with rocks or calling on God to break the teeth of enemies!  Even these are God’s Word, holy and sacred above the words of men!The apostle Paul encourages us to address other believers (probably in church, but also in our families) with psalms.  There was a time, long before MP3s and playlists, when people were encouraged to learn psalms by heart.  In the early centuries of Christianity, believers were encouraged to sing psalms while they were working.  At a time when you didn’t have the background music of the radio or a playlist, singing the Psalms was a great way to be grounded in God’s Word.Did you know that Jesus is in the Psalms?  Often, He is even the one speaking the psalms.  These poems point to the Savior of sinners, the Redeemer of man, the fulfiller of creation and the key to life.  Jesus and His death and resurrection for our salvation stand at the heart of the Psalms.  They must be, for the Holy Spirit who fills the hearts of psalm-singers also reveals our Lord and Savior to us.  Even here.  It is no surprise that any Word inspired by the Holy Spirit also proclaims the crucified and risen Jesus who forgives sinners freely. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.We sing of mercy and judgment unto You, O Lord, our Savior and Judge; help us with the one, warn us with the other.  Grant us Your humble servants, O Lord, that a stubborn heart may depart from us, and that wicked things before our eyes may not allure us, but that walking in the simplicity of innocence, You may lead us on in Your pity and love, and absolve us as a truthful Judge; who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end.  Amen.-Pastor Robert Mayes is Pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church and Zion St. John Lutheran Church in Beemer and Wisner, NE.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Isaiah 55:1-9Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 3:6-4:2; Matthew 22:1-22“Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.” (Isa. 55:6-7)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Seek the Lord while He may be found.  For a time will come when people will seek Him, but won’t be able to find Him.  They will call on Him to save them, and He will not.  This will come on the Last Day, when the door is closed and many who were Christian in name only cry out to Jesus, “Lord, Lord,” as if that was the same thing as faith in Christ.  Before that day comes, seek the Lord.  Seek Jesus.  Pursue receiving the means of grace.  Prioritize it.  Drop everything else and come hear your pastor preach the Gospel at the times set for this.For at this time, the Lord is near.  Now, the Son of God has come close to us, by taking on our human flesh.  Likewise, He has bridged the gap between fallen sinners and the righteous God by shedding His blood as the innocent Savior who dies in place of sinners.  The Lord is near now, but He won’t always be near.  So seek Him where He may be found, when He may be found, where He wants to be found.  That is, seek Him in the means of grace when they are offered.“Seeking the Lord '' according to Isaiah means that the wicked person must forsake his way, and the unrighteous man must forsake his thoughts.  You cannot truly seek the Lord who rescues you from sin, if you want to remain in your sins.  Yet it is the work of the Holy Spirit alone who creates a clean heart in you.  He applies Jesus’ righteousness to you.  And the Holy Spirit guides you into the path of righteousness by leading you to faith in Christ.  From faith, comes both a converted will that wants to do works, and the strength to do good works that cooperates with the Holy Spirit to bear the fruits of faith.These works do not save you.  Works never do.  Faith in Christ alone is what saves.  Therefore, seeking the Lord means repentance and faith in Christ.  It is by this that you find God’s compassion and abundant forgiveness as the prophet says today.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, guide our hearts to trust in Jesus Your Son for our justification, and guide our steps to forsake our sins and thoughts.  Through Jesus’ name we pray.  Amen.-Pastor Robert Mayes is Pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church and Zion St. John Lutheran Church in Beemer and Wisner, NE.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Sacrament of the Altar, part 2Daily Lectionary: Jeremiah 1:1-19; Matthew 21:23-46Where is this written?  The holy Evangelists Matthew, Mark, Luke and St. Paul write: Our Lord Jesus Christ, on the night when He was betrayed, took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it and gave it to the disciples and said: "Take, eat; this is My body, which is given for you. This do in remembrance of Me." In the same way also he took the cup after supper, and when He had given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, "Drink of it, all of you; this cup is the new testament in My blood, which is shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me." (Small Catechism, 6th Chief part, section 2)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. God’s written Word, Holy Scripture, is the only fountain and source of what Christianity teaches, believes, and practices.  We see this especially with the Lord’s Supper.  Scripture alone tells us what the Lord’s Supper is, what it does, and why our communion service is how it is. We dare not rely on Scripture mixed with human reason, or Scripture mixed with sacred tradition, or Scripture mixed with our emotional reactions.  Or anything else for that matter.  God’s Word alone determines what is true, not the mind or emotions of man or even churches.What is the Lord’s Supper?  It is Jesus’ true body and blood, in and under the consecrated bread and wine, for us Christians to eat and drink.  Man’s reason hates this.  Branches of Christianity that rely on Scripture plus reason object to the Biblical Lutheran teaching.  But Scripture plus reason always leads to reason outranking Scripture.  If you deny Jesus’ body and blood in the Supper based on Scripture plus reason, you really don’t have a logical reason to also believe in the resurrection of the dead, the forgiveness of sins, or the existence of God.  Reason denies all this.  And then you’d have no reason for hope, certainty of salvation, or lasting happiness, for that matter.Holy Scripture alone is our foundation and source.  What Scripture teaches about the institution of the Lord’s Supper is clear.  Jesus’ body and blood are given to be eaten and drank.  Sinners who repent and confess the faith the same way eat and drink His body and His blood with their mouths, and they do this for the forgiveness of sins.  Though Jesus ascended into heaven, He is able to join His body and blood into the bread and wine on earth by His Word, that we might have these gifts of forgiveness and strength.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“O Jesus, blessed Lord, to Thee My heartfelt thanks forever be, Who hast so lovingly bestowed On me Thy body and Thy blood.” (LSB 632:1; public domain).-Pastor Robert Mayes is Pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church and Zion St. John Lutheran Church in Beemer and Wisner, NE.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 5:1-12Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 34:1-12; Matthew 21:1-22“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Mt. 5:3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. All Saints’ Day is a day of backwards blessings. Our Lord sets it up this way, as He pronounces blessings upon people who don’t seem like they are blessed at all.  It’s backwards from what natural man’s reason and senses think it should be.  Instead of the popular, the talented, the good-looking or the rich having such blessings, it’s backwards.  Those who mourn, who are poor in spirit, who hunger and thirst for righteousness, who are pure when purity is mocked, even those persecuted for righteousness’ sake, Jesus says, “You are blessed.”What nonsense is this?  For our fallen reason, this is backwards.  Jesus picks people who seem the least blessed by God, and says they are blessed.  But something very profound is going on here.  Jesus blesses people not because of their current situation.  He instead blesses people because of what their future will be.  He is speaking here to those who trust in Him, His invisible church of all believers.  It is as if Jesus is saying, “Because of what your future will be through faith in Me, you are blessed now.”Because yours is the kingdom of heaven, blessed are the poor in spirit.  This is you if you know your sins, regret them, and want to be clean.  So trust in God, from whom all blessings flow.  Trust His Son, crucified for your sins and risen for your justification.  Trust that His forgiveness is for you.  Because you will be comforted with the blessings of everlasting salvation, blessed are you who mourn now.  In this life, the devil remains our enemy, and grieves us.  But by God’s blessing through faith in Christ, you overcome the devil, even if sometimes tears flow.  While these may seem like backwards blessings, it is actually we who were turned around, and not these blessings.  We could not put them right. Now through faith in Christ and hearing His Word, we are set straight again to receive God’s blessings because of what Jesus will do for those who believe Him. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and everlasting God, You knit together Your faithful people of all times and places into one holy communion, the mystical body of Your Son, Jesus Christ.  Grant us so to follow Your blessed saints in all virtuous and godly living that, together with them, we may come to the unspeakable joys You have prepared for those who love You; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen. -Pastor Robert Mayes is Pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church and Zion St. John Lutheran Church in Beemer and Wisner, NE,Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Romans 3:19-29Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 32:28-52; Matthew 20:17-34 “But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it” (Rom. 3:21). In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. A young Martin Luther trembled at the fear that the all-knowing, wrathful Judge was watching his every move and weighing it on the cosmic scale of right and wrong. It was not the first time Luther trembled at the thought of being judged by Jesus. As a boy, the wrathful image of Jesus in the stained glass windows of his church in Mansfield brought him terrors. Every funeral he attended and every death he heard of drove home the fact that one day he would have to give an account of his own life before the all-righteous God.  And Luther knew he couldn’t do it. Frankly, you can’t either. There is blood on your hands and sin on your account. God’s Law makes His perfect righteousness known – the impossible-to-keep Law that yet demands perfection from you in all things. That time you lied to your parents about where you had gone? Or the lustful desires for beautiful flesh? Or the fact that you think your life isn’t fair when you should be content with what God has given you? All of that stands against you, and the righteous God has more than enough to strike you down. But there is a righteousness of God not connected with His Law. There is a being right-with-God aspect that is all a gift for you who cannot do it.  The innocent Son lives perfectly in your place. Jesus the perfect sacrifice on the cross is made a substitute for your faulty works. Now, His perfect righteousness of His life and won by His death is credited to you. Your debt is paid. Your account is clean. Not because of what you have done, but because of what Jesus has done for you. This is the righteousness of the Gospel that Martin Luther rediscovered. This is made known not by judgment against you, but the imparting of Jesus’ righteousness won for you. All Scripture bears witness to this Gospel for you.  Your judge is merciful. You will have to give an account of your life after you die, sure. But for believers in Christ, this is a merciful thing! It’s an accounting where all your sins are covered and nothing stands against you. Believers are judged mercifully, for the death of Jesus is their judgment. Christ for you. This alone comforts your trembling heart, just as it comforted Luther’s. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. “Lord, help us ever to retain The Catechism’s doctrine plain As Luther taught the Word of truth In simple style to tender youth.” (LSB 865:1; public domain).-Pastor Robert Mayes is Pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church and Zion St. John Lutheran Church in Beemer and Wisner, NE.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 22:1-14, Introit: Ps. 48:1, 9–11Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 31:30-32:27; Matthew 20:1-16“Everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.” (Mt. 22:4c)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Today the Lord bids you to feast at the house of the King!  You know the food will be good. The meals at regular wedding receptions are always tasty - with cake, too! How much better would the meal be at the wedding reception for the King’s Son?But in the parable, the people who were invited won’t come. They make excuses why they’d rather not go. “Sorry, just got married, and we wanted to just watch TV tonight...”  “Sorry, can’t come. Cows matter but you don’t...”  How lame are these excuses!God invites you to a different kind of wedding feast, the wedding feast of the Lamb and His Church. That will happen in heaven, surely.  But it also happens every Sunday where the Gospel is purely proclaimed and the Sacraments rightly administered according to God’s Word, in the liturgy.  The service of the Sacrament is rightly called “a foretaste of the feast to come,” that feast of forgiveness that will come eventually on the last day.  But today, God invites you to sit at Jesus’ feet and hear His Word, and taste His body and drink His blood for the forgiveness of sins in the Lord’s Supper.  But do you make excuses to God why you can’t go?  (If you’re sick or something, that’s an ok time to stay home from church.  Just be in God’s Word if that happens).In the parable, the king destroyed the murderers and everyone in their city, then he invited others who seemed to be less worthy. God’s Law thunders from heaven.  It silences every mouth by holding the whole world guilty.  But it also puts our sins to death as it leads us to repent and actively turn away from our sins. Then, for we who are unworthy guests who repent of our sins, God invites us to trust His love and forgiveness in Christ. This is the Gospel, the invite to this heavenly feast on earth as well as the robe of Christ’s righteousness that covers your sins. But are you worthy to go?  Not by your efforts or works. But always because of Christ! Trusting that his invite is for you is what makes you feast-worthy – therefore, come and receive. You are worthy in Him. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Lord, grant to Your faithful people pardon and peace that they may be cleansed from all their sins and serve You with a quiet mind; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. -Pastor Robert Mayes is Pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church and Zion St. John Lutheran Church in Beemer and Wisner, NE.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the 20th Sunday after TrinityDaily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 31:1-29; Matthew 19:16-30Psalm 48:1 The Lord is righteous in all he has done to us, for we have not obeyed his commandments. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Lord is righteous in all he has done to us, for we have not obeyed his commandments. It’s not reassuring.  You deserve everything that you get.  The blame you sling at others. The excuses you craft for yourself.  It all melts away under the Lord’s justice.  He didn’t just see it. He acts righteously in response.  You deserve this. The sinner recoils.  We think we know what righteousness looks like.  But we can only seem to measure it in “better than us.”  The Lord won’t belittle the word righteousness to mean “didn’t mess up as bad as you.”  Righteousness isn’t a state for Him.  It’s an action.  If you spend every moment flinching away from God out of fear of punishment, you’ll miss it too.  If the Lord was simply “fair” in what He has done to us, we’d be in hell.  All of us are doing way better than we deserve.  The Lord is righteous in all He has done to us.  He has redeemed us.  Righteousness was a verb.  He made you Righteous too. It fills the mouth of the psalmist.  Glorify Your name, O Lord; and deal with us according to Your great mercy.  We have not obeyed the Lord’s commandments, so He has crucified us with Jesus in our baptism. And He has raised us, free, forgiven, and holy.  It’s what righteousness looks like.  Not just better than someone else, but wholly without sin.  Jesus isn’t content being without sin Himself.  He wraps you up in the same.  So that righteousness isn’t an action for you. It’s a state.  You are baptized. You are righteous.  You are the one who has received mercy.  You don’t earn it. You don’t do it. You receive it. You are it.  You are righteous. Mercied. Forgiven.  Loved.  Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised.  We can spend our days rejoicing in God’s steadfast love that takes action and shape.  It bears the cross for you, and makes you into one who doesn’t need to hide from God, but can rejoice in His judgments.  He has judged the Son that you would be judged righteous.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.It brings the Savior’s righteousness To robe our souls in royal dress; From all our guilt it brings release And gives the troubled conscience peace. (The Gospel Shows the Father’s Grace, LSB 580: 3)-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: John 15:12-21Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 30:1-20; Matthew 19:1-15You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. (John 15:6)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Saints Simon and Jude did not choose to be of the Apostles, their Lord Jesus called them. First, to be his Disciples, learning from his teaching, his practice of connecting the Love of His Heavenly Father into the lives of those who needed to hear it, sinners one and all. Sinners received the Gospel of Christ and after believing and being baptized, their lives changed and they started seeing things in a new light, the light of Christ’s Resurrection. Second, to follow the instruction of their Lord Jesus to take what they learned as Disciples, and upon being given the authority from their Lord Jesus, connected it into people’s lives as they spread the Gospel to people in need of knowing hope beyond this world of trial and tribulation.You may say, ‘that’s not me’. Yet it is you. Through your Baptism, you are called to learn God’s Word, it’s connection and application into first your own life, but then second, having learned the power in God’s Word to turn you from your sinful thoughts, words, and actions, to receive Jesus Christ’s forgiveness continually, you are compelled to share this life-changing Word with those you meet day in, day out. Saints Simon and Jude were not of the disciples mentioned regularly like Peter, Matthew, and Luke. Yet, they lived their place within the Disciples of Jesus, learning from him, and when the time came, shared their learnings of God’s Word and its connection into life, as they took the message of the Gospel up to Persia. Though spoken of very little in the accounts of Jesus and the Disciples, Saints Simon and Jude followed the instructions of Jesus and bore the fruit of the Gospel into the lives they came into contact with as they traveled and settled in Persia. Should you find yourself not a Peter, Matthew, or Luke, but rather relate to Simon and Jude, be encouraged that you still have an important part in the kingdom. Jesus chose you and appointed you in your baptism to learn and then go and bear the fruit of the Gospel into the lives of family, friends and all people you meet each and every day. Be strengthened in the promise that though this seems impossible, you can ask your Heavenly Father for help in bearing fruit, and he will give it to you.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“Lord, here am I:” Your fire impart To this poor cold self-centered soul; Touch but my lips, my hands, my heart, And make a world for Christ my goal.  (LSB 831 v4 of  “How shall they hear,” Who have not heard)-Rev. Carl Thiele is the Parish Pastor in Rosewood, Queensland, AustraliaAudio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Ephesians 4:22-28Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 29:1-29; Matthew 18:21-35Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members of one another. (Ephesians 4:25)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Have you ever told a lie? The thing with telling a lie is that you have to remember who you told it to and what you said. But as a lie is not the truth of what should have been spoken, in order not to be found out you have lied, most likely another lie is going to have to be made up. Is this starting to seem a bit complicated? Would it not have been all the easier to speak the truth in the first place?St. Paul in writing his letter to the Ephesians speaks of what sits behind a lie. Your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires (Ephesians 4:22). This is talk of what life is like before the renewal of your minds, the renewal that takes place through putting your baptism into practice by confessing your thoughts, words, and actions that are at odds with living a God pleasing life. Having confessed your sins, you are forgiven in Christ’s death on the cross, and through his resurrection, you get to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness (v 24). Through practicing your Baptismal life, confessing your sins, and being forgiven, the last thing on your mind is to lie. You prefer to speak the truth, because you do not need to hide your wrongdoing as it has been removed in the waters of baptism, and Christ’s forgiveness saturates you. This gives you the confidence to speak the truth with your neighbor. You will want to serve your neighbor in love, doing what is best for them. Let them not continue to live in falsehood but move towards bringing them to the awareness they are not living a God-pleasing life. Encourage them to put off their old self and put away falsehood and receive forgiveness so they may live in true righteousness and holiness. For they too can live in the forgiveness of Christ and in turn, have something to share with anyone in need. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Let us daily die to sin; Let us daily rise with Him, Walk in the love of Christ our Lord, Live in the peace of God. (“Father Welcomes” LSB 605 st. 3)-Rev. Carl Thiele is the Parish Pastor in Rosewood, Queensland, AustraliaAudio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Sacrament of the Altar, part 1Daily Lectionary:Deuteronomy 28:1-22; Matthew 18:1-20What is the Sacrament of the Altar? It is the true body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ under the bread and wine, instituted by Christ himself for us Christians to eat and to drink. (Luther’s Small Catechism: Sacrament of the Altar, Part 1)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. How do you know something is what it is? Is it in the conviction you are told of it? Is it that you have seen or touched it? Is it because the person who told you of it, you already respect and trust? When it comes to the true body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, you can have full confidence it is what it is. We are told by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and St. Paul recording these words, Our Lord Jesus Christ, on the night when He was betrayed, took bread … “Take eat; this is My body, which is given for you.” And “He took the cup after supper … “this cup is the New Testament in My blood, which is shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.” We trust these words are what they are and do what they say, “forgive”. And to receive the full benefit of this “forgiveness” is to participate. But to participate, you will not find this specific meal at the diner of IKEA, or COSTCO, or your family’s favorite haunt for Sunday brunch. You will only find this specific meal where it has been designed and instituted to be, where the gathered Brothers and Sisters in Christ gather to hear God’s Word and receive His Sacrament, Church. Sadly though, not all churches teach and practice as our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ intended this meal to be. Some do not believe it possible for Jesus to be physically present in the bread and wine. Some believe the bread turns into Jesus' body, the wine turns into Jesus’ blood. Unfortunately, their human minds are unable to take Jesus Christ at his Word, and in so doing, miss out on receiving Heaven on earth and all the blessings that come with this. This is why it is so important to trust the words Jesus Christ spoke. In the bread IS Christ’s body. In the cup (wine) IS Christ’s blood. Christ is truly present in both, enabling you who receive this, Heaven on earth. This is a blessing which goes beyond all human understanding. Keeping your hearts and minds fixed on the true hope when you breathe your last in this world, you continue in the one to come beyond death, Heaven itself. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.He speaks the Word the bread and wine to bless: “This is My flesh and blood!” He bids us eat and drink with thankfulness This gift of holy food. All Human thought must falter – Our God stoops low to heal, Now present on the altar, For us both host and meal! (“Wide Open Stand the Gates” LSB st. 2) -Rev. Carl Thiele is the Parish Pastor in Rosewood, Queensland, AustraliaAudio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Genesis 28:10-17Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 27:1-26; Matthew 17:14-27Gen. 28:12. And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it!In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Jacob goes camping.  Finds a nice spot.  Lays his head on a rock and looks up at the stars.  It sounds kind of nice.  Peaceful.  Put it on Instagram.  It’s the chunk of our lives we want others to see.  Never mind the rest.  Jacob is “camping” because he stole from his brother out of his own father’s hand and his brother is literally trying to kill him.  His father’s heart is broken.  His mother put him up to it.  Dad’s health is failing, so when Jacob left, stealing the blessing, he isn’t sure he’ll ever see him in this world again.  But that picture of him laying there looking up at the stars looks good. Millions of people do the same thing.  We hide the ugly. If we’re so afraid of each other knowing, do you really want a God who looks down on you and sees it all? How is that comforting?  I’m not sure I want to be fully known. But it feels like heaven is a long way from here, and God, I need some help.  So God won’t just look down on us from heaven.  He doesn’t even just drop a ladder down for us to climb out of the pit we dug for ourselves in our sin.  He becomes the ladder. Heaven is not so far away.  Jesus doesn’t just connect heaven and earth.  He’s the location of heaven.  Heaven is wherever Jesus is.  And Jesus descends to this world for you. To pull you out of the pit and take your place. To die for sinners and grant you His life.  You are forgiven.  All your sins are bled for.  All the things you hide. God doesn’t just see. He saves.  Church isn’t a place to pretend things are fine.  It’s a place to take your sins because God will meet you there to forgive them all.  In the Name + of Jesus. AmenIn a wat’ry grave are buried All our sins that Jesus carried; Christ, the Ark of Life, has ferried Us across death’s raging flood. (Water, Blood, and Spirit Crying, LSB 597:2)-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 9:1-8Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 25:17-26:19; Matthew 17:1-13And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven.” (Matthew 9:2b)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Time and time again, the same story plays itself out.  Disaster. Fear. Despair. Frustration. Christians pray. Things are still a mess.  Never mind the questions of “why did this happen?”  Those questions don’t get asked when you still can’t catch your breath. These days, we ask “What happens now?”  We know God answers prayer, but sometimes the medicine we ask for isn’t the medicine we’re given.  Sometimes God doesn’t seem too concerned with what we want to talk about.  Folks bring a paralyzed man to Jesus for a reason.  He needs help.  Jesus looks upon him with compassion.  Sees his troubles.  He can’t walk. He can’t care for himself. He can’t care for his family.  So He says to the paralytic, “Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven.”  But what happens now? He still can’t walk. We google what’s wrong with us and ask for the cure we’re sure will help.  Oddly enough, they still send doctors to medical school.  Your doctor shouldn’t just give you what you want, but what actually addresses what’s wrong with you.  Jesus takes aim at the deadliest disease first.  Sin. It’s a condition. A disease. A cancer that won’t be tamed by eating better or trying harder.  It brings death and all its trappings.  All the sins you commit and all the ones you hide are symptoms of what’s really wrong.  So that gets cured first. Jesus bears the cross for you.  To forgive you all your sins.  He dies.  He rises.  Because death and all its trappings are undone.  The rest follows when the time is right.  Sometimes that’s soon, and answers the question “what happens now?”  Sometimes that’s the last day and we can’t answer “when”.  But we can know that it’s coming.  Your healing was already paid for by the cross. Already shown in the empty tomb.  And that does help with “What happens now?”  Now, we gather around Jesus, the source of strength and healing.  Sometimes we have to carry each other for a while.  But we know where to take what’s wrong.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Ev’ry wound that pains or grieves me By Your wounds, Lord, is made whole; When I’m faint, Your cross revives me, Granting new life to my soul. Yes, Your comfort renders sweet Ev’ry bitter cup I meet; For Your all-atoning passion Has procured my soul’s salvation.  (Jesus, Grant That Balm and Healing, LSB 421:4)-Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Acts 15:12-22, Introit:Ps. 78:1–3, 4b; antiphon: Ps. 35:3b; 34:17a, 6b; 48:14aDaily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 24:10-25:10; Matthew 16:13-28Therefore my judgment is that we should not trouble those of the Gentiles who turn to God, but should write to them to abstain from the things polluted by idols, and from sexual immorality, and from what has been strangled, and from blood. (Acts 15:19, 20)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. What wise words are spoken from the mouth of St. James in Acts 15:19,20. On this day each year, we remember the life of St. James of Jerusalem, Brother of Jesus and Martyr. He is not mentioned much in Scripture, but these words that he speaks are filled with wisdom and gentleness. Spoken at a time of an important meeting in the life of the early Church. Paul and Barnabas were working amongst the Gentiles in the land of Judah, when preachers came to the area from Jerusalem, teaching falsely with the claim, “unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved” (Acts 15:1). This was at odds with the Apostle’s teaching of being saved through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.What were the people of Judah to believe, that of these false preachers or that of the Apostles? Unlike Jewish people who were familiar with what we know as the Old Testament, the Gentiles most likely would not have known of such teaching. Similar things happen in the world we live in today. We have the teaching of the Gospel whereby we are saved through baptism and believing Jesus Christ died and rose for you. Whereas other churches and religions teach of being saved through other means apart from Christ. Should we, or friends, or family, face such teaching that leads to questioning the Gospel in Jesus’ death and resurrection, take the lead from Paul and Barnabas, and take it to the Church Leaders, seeking guidance as to how to respond.We may expect those who are teaching falsely should be reprimanded. But St. James of Jerusalem knows that he has no authority over such preachers as they were not part of the Jerusalem Church. He instead gives the guidance to encourage the Gentiles in Judah who had turned to God and basically practice spiritual circumcision, enacted by them not partaking in activities that are considered sinful according to God’s Word. By not partaking of such activities, they would not be influenced nor at danger of being led astray to believe the false gospel as they heard the false teachers. Pray that God would give us leaders in our Congregations and wider Church, to deal gently with situations where people are affected by false preachers, and guide with wisdom us and our fellow Brothers and Sisters in Christ to remain in the true Church where only Jesus is our true Lord and Savior.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, shepherd of Your people, You raised up James the Just, brother of our Lord, to lead and guide Your Church. Grant that we may follow his example of prayer and reconciliation and be strengthened by the witness of his death; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect of the Day – LSB Altar Book)-Rev. Carl Thiele is the Parish Pastor in Rosewood, Queensland, AustraliaAudio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the 19th Sunday after Trinity (Psalm 78:1–3, 4b; antiphon: Psalm 35:3b; 34:17a, 6b; 48:14a)Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 21:1-23; Matthew 16:1-12Say to my soul, “I am your salvation!” (From the Introit for the 19th Sunday after Trinity)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The psalmist says to God, “Speak to my soul and say, ‘I am your salvation.’” And indeed, God does speak these words to our souls! This is what happens every Lord’s Day. The saints draw near to God and the Lord speaks to us. He speaks in the Absolution, in the lessons from Holy Scripture, in the sermon, in the Words of Institution, and in the Benediction. And He always says the same thing: “I am your salvation!”In Matthew 9:2, Jesus spoke to the soul of the paralyzed man. He said, “Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven.” In other words, “I am your salvation!” He demonstrated His power to save this man from sin by reversing one effect of the curse—his paralysis. Sin brought death into the world, along with disease and disability. This man lay still like a dead man, but when Jesus told him to rise he got up and walked.Jesus demonstrated the extent of His power when He laid down His life and then took it up again. He stepped into the jaws of death, allowing the grave to swallow Him. Then, the grave was opened up and the body was not there. Death was reversed in this Man. And if the curse of death is reversed, then sin has been dealt with once and for all.Thus, the risen Lord comes to us, saying, “I am your salvation!” He comes proclaiming that He suffered the full effects of the curse, so that we might be spared. Your sin was punished in the body of Jesus. Then, His body was resurrected, proving that the curse has been reversed! Therefore, take heart! Your sins are forgiven! And everyone will know that your sins are forgiven, when your body leaves behind its grave and is granted the very immortality and glory of the risen Lord. The paralytic lay still, until he heard the voice of Jesus. Likewise, your dead body will get up at the Lord’s command. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Speak, O Lord, Your servant listens, Let Your Word to me come near; Newborn life and spirit give me, Let each promise still my fear. Death’s dread pow’r, its inward strife, Wars against Your Word of life; Fill me, Lord, with love’s strong fervor That I cling to You forever! ("Speak, O Lord, Your Servant Listens" LSB 589, st.1)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 20:1-20; Matthew 15:21-39“When you go out to war against your enemies, and see horses and chariots and an army larger than your own, you shall not be afraid of them, for the Lord your God is with you, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.” (Deuteronomy 20:1)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Israelites were about to enter the Promised Land. Moses knew that the Canaanites would raise armies to meet them. He told the Israelites to fear no army, because the almighty Lord would be with them.  The Church faces far greater foes. The whole world hates Jesus, and thus hates the Church (John 15:18-19). Entire governments and institutions seek to destroy the Church. And we have greater enemies still! The devil and his legions of demons oppose the Church (Ephesians 6:12). If that wasn’t bad enough, every Christian has an enemy within himself. The sinful flesh resists the Spirit constantly (Galatians 5:17).Do not be afraid, dear Christians. Do not be afraid of the devil, the world, and the flesh, although they are great. God is greater and He is on your side! “If God is for us,” Paul asks (Romans 8:31), “who can be against us?” Indeed, your Lord is with you at all times.And the devil, the world, and the flesh are scared spitless of your Lord. The world tried to destroy Jesus on a cross, but failed. He was crucified and killed, but then was raised from the dead. The devil wields sin and death against mankind. He tried to wield them against Jesus and found Himself disarmed. Your sinful flesh might be a nuisance, but when Christ was nailed to the Cross your sin found itself pinned to that wood, too. Jesus is an impenetrable fortress. Those of us baptized into Him never need to fear our evil foes. He is our mighty champion, who won the battle that we could never win. So, no matter how much they rage, we can sing the victor’s song. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Cast afar this world’s vain pleasure And boldly strive for heav’nly treasure. Be steadfast in the Savior’s might. Trust the Lord, who stands beside you, For Jesus from all harm will hide you. By faith you conquer in the fight. Take courage, weary soul! Look forward to the goal! Joy awaits you. The race well run, Your long war won, Your crown shines splendid as the sun. ("Rise! To Arms! With Prayer Employ You" LSB 668, st.2)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:4-9Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 19:1-20; Matthew 15:1-20I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus,… who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 1:4, 8)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. I think that Paul might have written these words for himself as much as he wrote them for the Christians in Corinth. You see, Paul wrote a series of letters to the Corinthians, in order to correct and rebuke them. They were terribly divided, full of pride, confused about basic Christian teachings, and were committing very gross sins. Paul was probably worried that he had labored over them in vain—that they were forsaking God and returning to the world, and that they would forsake his teachings and lose their salvation.So, as he begins this letter, he reminds them (and perhaps himself) that the grace of God had really been given to them. God actually received these messed-up sinners into His Kingdom. And not only that, but Jesus will sustain them to the end. God won’t begin something, only to give up halfway. God is intent on finishing what He started. God will continue to give them grace; He will continue to forgive their divisions, pride, false doctrine, and vices. Therefore, when the Day of the Lord arrives, they will stand guiltless before their Lord.In our American context, Lutherans frequently address the issue of conversion. We remind our Protestant neighbors that we cannot come to God on our own, but the Holy Spirit must convert us. Paul is talking about the other side of that coin—perseverance. He’s reminding us that the Holy Spirit doesn’t merely give us faith only to leave us alone. No, the Spirit constantly nourishes and defends our faith. He doesn’t give us grace once, but He gives us grace daily, so that we remain in Christ and are found safe in Him on Judgment Day. Perhaps you have friends or family who you are worried about, concerned that they might forsake the Lord in the future. If so, take refuge in these words of Paul, who was a father to the Corinthians. Remember that the crucified and risen Lord is committed to His people. He intends to see them through to the end. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, our heavenly Father, because of Your tender love toward us sinners You have given us Your Son that, believing in Him, we might have everlasting life. Continue to grant us Your Holy Spirit that we may remain steadfast in the faith to the end and finally come to life everlasting; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for Steadfast Faith, LSB p.311)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Office of the KeysDaily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 18:1-22; Matthew 14:22-36What is the Office of the Keys? The Office of the Keys is that special authority which Christ has given to His church on earth to forgive the sins of repentant sinners, but to withhold forgiveness from the unrepentant as long as they do not repent. (Small Catechism: Office of the Keys)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Keys represent power—the ability to go places and to do things. You cannot go into the locked house unless you have the key. You cannot drive the car unless you have the key. The prisoner cannot go free unless he is given the key to his bonds.Jesus came to die on a cross, thereby taking away the sins of the world. He entered our prison, so that we can enter His Father’s home. He went to the gallows, so that we can go free. Jesus died, so that there is now forgiveness—enough to cover every sin!Jesus gave the Keys to His Church and He also gave pastors to use the Keys whenever the Church gathers together. What are the Keys? They are power—the power to distribute or withhold the forgiveness of sins. The first time the Keys are mentioned is in Matthew 16:18-19. First, Jesus blesses Peter and promises that the gates of Hades will not prevail against the Church. Then, He gives the Keys of the Kingdom to Peter and the other apostles. What do these Keys do?On the one hand, these Keys bind and loose. Sins are like iron chains that bind us and weigh us down. The Law tightens the chains, but the Absolution loosens them, so that they fall off the repentant sinner! On the other hand, we might say that these Keys open doors. In Matthew 16:18, Jesus speaks of the gates of Hades. Then, in verse 19, He mentions the kingdom of heaven. How do sinners get into the kingdom? The gates must be opened with a key. You get into the kingdom by receiving the forgiveness of sins! Jesus speaks similarly about Baptism in John 3:5. He says that you enter the kingdom of God by being born of water and Spirit. Baptism brings you into the kingdom, because Baptism is an Absolution!Are you feeling weighed down by sins and outside the kingdom? It is time to go to your pastor. He’s got the Key! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.When ministers lay on their hands, Absolved by Christ the sinner stands; He who by grace the Word believes The purchase of His blood receives. ("'As Surely as I Live,' God Said" LSB 614, st.6)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 10:1-9Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 17:1-20; Matthew 14:1-21“Heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’” (Luke 10:9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Before Luke became a missionary and an evangelist, he was a doctor. He bandaged wounds, set broken bones, and prescribed medicines. He did his best to make bodies whole and to extend temporal lives.When Jesus preached, He also healed the sick, not with bandages and medicine, but with a word or a touch. He gave that power to the Twelve, and then to the 72, and after Pentecost to many other Christians, especially to those who held some office in the Church. Since Luke was a companion of Paul and an evangelist, he probably received that same spiritual gift.And what a gift, especially for a physician! I am sure Luke had dreamed of having such power, so that he could cure any patient that came to him. What fame and what fortune! A doctor who can heal you with a touch would go down in history as the greatest doctor of mankind!Of course, Luke was not given such a gift so that he could continue his practice, nor was he to use it for fame and fortune. The miraculous healings of the New Testament served a specific purpose: They advertised that Jesus possesses and distributes the final cure for death.We see this in Luke 5:30-32, where Jesus compared Himself to a physician: “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.”) Then, He explains that He is talking about sinners. Jesus comes to heal the soul by taking away our sins. After making us right with God on the Cross, Jesus steps out of the grave to grant us eternal life. “With his wounds we are healed,” (Isaiah 53:5). Ministers are not given the gift of healing today. Your pastor cannot take away your cancer with a touch, but he can take away your sins with a word! Like Luke, he is a physician of the soul, for he carries on his lips the Good News about Jesus. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, our Father, Your blessed Son called Luke the physician to be an evangelist and physician of the soul. Grant that the healing medicine of the Gospel and the Sacraments may put to flight the diseases of our souls that with willing hearts we may ever love and serve You; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the Feast of St. Luke)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Deuteronomy 10:12-21Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 15:19-16:22; Matthew 13:44-58“Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn.” (Deuteronomy 10:16)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. God commanded the sons of Abraham to get circumcised. Circumcision was a sign attached to the covenant promise that God would bless the offspring of Abraham and also bless the nations through Abraham’s offspring.The Law told Israel, “If you, the offspring of Abraham, wish to receive God’s blessing and pass it along to the nations, you must obey my statutes.” Of course, genuine obedience is not merely external. Genuine obedience begins in the heart. It includes fearing God and loving Him (Deuteronomy 10:12), as well as loving your neighbor (Deuteronomy 10:19). So, Moses calls the Israelites to deal with their sinful hearts. “Don’t merely cut off your foreskin. Cut off the stubborn attitude that clings to your heart!” Here circumcision is a metaphor for repentance. Cut off the Old Adam and let him die!Moses admits that they won’t circumcise their hearts, and so the Law must curse them (Deuteronomy 28:15-29:29). Then, Moses predicts that God would have compassion on them. He will circumcise the hearts of His people, so that they truly love Him and obey Him gladly (Deuteronomy 30:1-6).In His mercy, God sent Jesus, the true Offspring of Abraham (Galatians 3:16). He obeyed the Law with a pure heart. He had no need to cut away sin from His heart, because there was no sin found there. Nevertheless, He was cut off and left to die on the cross. Why? He suffered the curse of the Law in our place, so that we disobedient sinners can live forever.Then, the risen Christ sent His Spirit. The Holy Spirit comes to us through the Gospel and He enters our hearts. He circumcises our hearts. He causes us to repent of our sins and love the One who loved us first. Indeed, Paul says that we were circumcised in Holy Baptism, where the Old Adam was put to death, so that we might rise with Christ (Colossians. 2:11-15). Since you were baptized and have heard the Gospel, the Spirit has circumcised your heart. Therefore, you love the Lord and your neighbor, albeit imperfectly, until the Day of Resurrection when sin is cut away and removed entirely. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, You gave Your only-begotten Son to take our nature upon Himself. Grant that we, Your adopted children by grace, may daily be renewed by Your Holy Spirit; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for Spiritual Renewal, LSB p.312)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 22:34-46, Introit: Ps. 122:1, 6, 8–9Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 14:1-2, 22-23, 28-15:15; Matthew 13:24-43Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question, saying, “What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?” They said to him, “The son of David.” (Matthew 22:41-42)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Pharisees sent a lawyer—an expert of the Torah—to Jesus. He asks Jesus a Law question: “Which commandment is the greatest?” The Pharisees probably hoped that they could accuse Jesus of elevating some commandments above the others.Jesus answers the question by giving two commandments, which perfectly summarize the entirety of the Law. When Jesus says, “Love God and neighbor,” He is basically saying, “The whole Law is important.” You cannot trap Jesus.The Pharisees thought that understanding the commandments of God is crucial to understanding the Old Testament. Jesus agrees that the commandments are important (Matthew 22:40). Still, there is a more important question, namely, “Who is the Christ?” Jesus believed that the entire Old Testament testified about Him (see Luke 24:44 and John 5:39). Therefore, if you do not understand what God said about the Christ and do not see how various people, events, and ceremonies foreshadowed His work, then you do not truly understand the Old Testament.The Pharisees did not understand the Bible, because they did not understand the Gospel. The Scriptures contain both Law and Gospel. Both are good and important. Nevertheless, the Gospel is the central message of the Bible. In fact, the Law serves to prepare us for the Gospel. By revealing our sin, the Law leads us to Christ. The Bible is not so much about what you should do as it is about what Jesus has done for you.Remember this when you search for a new church, or read a book by a scholar you don’t know, or listen to some Christian radio program. Are they preaching Jesus? Is Christ the main message? If not, beware! They are missing the very heart of the Bible. Like the Pharisees, they know the Bible, and yet don’t know it. Do not follow them. Instead, follow those teachers who will lead you to the crucified and risen Christ. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, because without You we are not able to please You, mercifully grant that Your Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the 18th Sunday after Trinity)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the 18th Sunday after Trinity (Psalm 122:1, 6, 8–9; antiphon: Liturgical Text)Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 13:1-18; Matthew 13:1-23Give peace, O Lord, to those who wait for you, and let your prophets be proven faithful.” (From the Introit for the 18th Sunday after Trinity)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In our Introit for tomorrow, we ask for two things. First, we ask that the Lord would give peace to His saints, to those who wait for the Lord. Second, we ask that the prophets of the Lord would be proven faithful. These two petitions go hand-in-hand.What is the prophet to do? A prophet speaks the message that God has given Him to speak. False prophets say that they speak for the Lord, but deliver a message of their own invention. Faithful prophets speak the Word of the Lord. Prophets proclaim the accusing Law, of course. They proclaim the Gospel, too, however. Indeed, this is their proper work: to announce the Good News to those sinners who wait for the Lord!And what does that Good News do? It gives peace to the saints. It calms their troubled consciences and gives them hope for the future. They hear that God delights in them now and forgives their sins. And so, they do not dread the coming of the Lord. Instead, they eagerly anticipate it, for they know that he comes to give them eternal life.What a fantastic prayer with which to open the Divine Service! We pray that our modern day prophets—our pastors—would speak the Good News that God has given them to speak. We ask that our pastors would preach about Jesus, who obeyed the Law in our place, and paid our debt in full, and then reversed death on Easter morning. And then, we ask God to use that Good News to give us that peace which surpasses all understanding. Is it any wonder why the saints are glad to go to the house of the Lord? They are glad, because they know what they will hear there. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord Jesus Christ, giver and perfecter of our faith, we thank and praise You for continuing among us the preaching of Your Gospel for our instruction and edification. Send Your blessing upon the Word, which has been spoken to us, and by Your Holy Spirit increase our saving knowledge of You, that day by day we may be strengthened in the divine truth and remain steadfast in Your grace. Give us strength to fight the good fight and by faith to overcome all temptations of Satan, the flesh, and the world, so that we may finally receive the salvation of our souls; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (For Blessing on the Word, LSB p.308)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 12:13-32; Matthew 12:38-50“Take care that you do not offer your burnt offerings at any place that you see, but at the place that the Lord will choose in one of your tribes, there you shall offer your burnt offerings, and there you shall do all that I am commanding you.” (Deuteronomy 12:13-14)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Moses warns the Israelites that they cannot offer their sacrifices just anywhere they please, but they must offer their sacrifices to God only in that place that God chooses for Himself. If a Jew wanted to make a sacrifice, he had to go to the Temple in Jerusalem. In this way, God marked Jerusalem as the place of atonement—the place where the Lamb of God would be slain on a cross to take away the sins of the world.In many ways, this text doesn’t apply to us today. We are not required to sacrifice animals, since Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice. We no longer have a holy building located in one place. Now, the Church is the Temple and can be found all around the world.Nevertheless, there is some important application to be made here. Moses says that we must worship God in the way that God wants to be worshiped. That’s still true today! Every church must call a pastor. Pastors are not optional, for the Lord instituted the pastoral Office. Likewise, Christians must gather together in person. Jesus wants His followers to live and to worship as a community. The proclamation of the Word is essential. The Lord’s Supper is crucial. The proper response to the grace given in Word and Sacrament is always prayer, praise, and thanksgiving.Whenever we fail to worship the way our Lord told us to worship, we risk missing out on some gift that our Lord would have us receive. Indeed, we risk stirring up His wrath, for one is terribly proud if he thinks that he can decide how best to worship His Creator and Redeemer. However, if we take to heart our Lord’s instructions and draw near to Him in the way that He prescribes, then we are sure to please Him and to receive the Gifts that He desires to give. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.This day, God’s people meeting, His Holy Scripture hear; His living presence greeting, Through bread and wine made near. We journey on, believing, Renewed with heav’nly might, From grace more grace receiving, On this blest day of light. ("O Day of Rest and Gladness" LSB 906, st.3)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 11:26-12:12; Matthew 12:22-37“See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse.” (Deuteronomy 11:26)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Boy, that sounds familiar. Blessing and curse are important words in the book of Genesis. In the beginning, God created man and woman, and then, “God blessed them” (Genesis 1:28). Later, we learn about the Tree of Life, which represents what God wants for humanity—eternal life with God.There is another tree, however. In the beginning, God alone determines what is good, such as His creation (Genesis 1:31), and what is not good, such as man's being alone (Genesis 2:18). The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil presents the man and woman with another path. Instead of trusting God to decide what is good for them, they can decide for themselves what is good and then seize it. The man and woman decide to take this path—the foolish way of sin. The result of this decision was a curse.Moses sets before Israel a blessing and a curse. Indeed, the Law set these two words of the Lord before every generation of Israelites. Like Adam and Eve, each generation chooses sin and the curse.This is precisely why we need Jesus, the New Adam. He’s the Man who chose the path of blessing. He loved and trusted God above all things. He loved His neighbors, putting them even before Himself. Jesus rightly possesses the Father’s blessing. Nevertheless, He was cursed—forsaken by His Father on the Cross; suffering the penalty that we deserve.Having exhausted the curse, He reversed it on Easter morning. The New Adam was granted immortality and a seat at God’s right hand—everything that the Tree of Life promised. And Jesus shares that blessing with us—with every sinner who has been given faith in Him.Moses set before the people of Israel a blessing and curse—a blessing for those who obey the Law; a curse for those who disobey. Now, Jesus puts forth a blessing and a curse—a free, undeserved blessing for those who seek mercy in Him; a curse for those who want no intercessor, but would rather get what they deserve. May we all come to the Cross—the new Tree of Life—and find in the crucified Christ the free blessing of God. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.As by one man all mankind fell And, born in sin, was doomed to hell, So by one Man, who took our place, We all were justified by grace. ("All Mankind Fell in Adam’s Fall" LSB 562, st.5)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: ConfessionDaily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 11:1-25; Matthew 12:1-21What is Confession? Confession has two parts. First, that we confess our sins, and second, that we receive absolution, that is, forgiveness, from the pastor as from God Himself, not doubting, but firmly believing that by it our sins are forgiven before God in heaven. (Small Catechism: Confession)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Your pastor has probably been confronted by a visitor once or twice who was deeply offended and disturbed by the public Confession and Absolution. “Who are you to forgive sins? God alone forgives sins!”Funny enough, no one ever protests when I marry people. No one ever says, “Who are you to marry them? Only God can make them one flesh!” Marriage and Absolution are not that different from each other, if you really think about it.God alone joins together a man and a woman. God alone forgives sins. God works through society to marry couples. You aren’t married until you give the state your marriage license. Likewise, God works through the Church to forgive sinners. See John 20:22-23, if you need proof of that. Of course, a particular person—an agent of the state—needs to pronounce a couple married. Likewise, a particular person—an agent of the Church—must pronounce people forgiven. When I say, “I pronounce you man and wife,” I am acting as an agent of the state and speaking for God. Likewise, when I absolve people, I act as the public servant of the Church and speak for God.When you confess your sins to your pastor, he doesn’t give you his forgiveness. He gives you God’s forgiveness! He acts as God’s mouth. He can do that, because Jesus died for the sins of the world, and then the risen Jesus gave the Church the Keys—the authority to forgive sins in His stead—and the Church appointed your pastor to wield the Keys for the Church. If Jesus authorizes pastors to speak for Him, then they can speak for Him, and you should believe what they say. These are not their words. They are His words. I wish that everyone who heard the Absolution would receive it with joy. It truly is a precious gift. You get to hear the Lord’s message for you—a message of free, unconditional forgiveness. There is no penance, no restitution; just mercy ringing in the ears. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.The gifts of grace and peace From absolution flow; The pastor’s words are Christ’s For us to trust and know. Forgiveness that we need Is granted to us there; The Lord of mercy sends Us forth in His blest care. ("The Gifts Christ Freely Gives" LSB 602, st.3)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Ephesians 4:1-6Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 9:23-10:22; Matthew 11:20-30I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. (Ephesians 4:1-3)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In our Epistle lesson, Paul talks about the unity of the Christian Church. He says that there is one Body of Christ, one Church. This one Church is animated by one Spirit—the Holy Spirit. Believers of all times and places share a common Father and a common Lord. There is one faith that we confess and there is one Baptism that brings us into the Church. This is the unity that Paul celebrates.He also urges us to live a certain way. He wants us to practice humility, gentleness, and patience. These virtues are the ways love expresses itself when handling sinners. When someone sins against me, love says, “True, he did sin, but you have sinned often yourself.” When someone sins against me, love corrects him gently. When someone sins against me, love doesn’t want to condemn him and dismiss him quickly, but wants to give him another chance. Basically, Paul wants us to forgive each other, just as God forgives us for the sake of Christ crucified.And this is an important admonition. If we do not mortify our flesh, which is proud, mean, and impatient, and if we do not practice love, then we risk severing the bond of peace. You see, our good works don’t create or maintain our relationship with God. That relationship is created and maintained by the blood of Christ. However, our love does maintain our relationships with each other. Without love, schism occurs. And schism displeases our Father and breaks the heart of our Savior.Did Jesus die merely so that we could have a private relationship with Him? No! He died to bring us into His family. He unites us to Himself, so that we are united to each other. Our Baptisms into Christ create that unity, and His Spirit and Word maintain it. In the Name + of Jesus. AmenThough with a scornful wonder The world sees her oppressed, By schisms rent asunder, By heresies distressed, Yet saints their watch are keeping; Their cry goes up, “How long?” And soon the night of weeping Shall be the morn of song. ("The Church’s One Foundation", LSB 644, st.3)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Proverbs 25:6-14Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 9:1-22; Matthew 11:1-19Like clouds and wind without rain is a man who boasts of a gift he does not give. (Proverbs 25:14)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Rain is a precious thing in the Middle East. In some parts of that land, they receive as little as eight inches of precipitation each year! Without enough rain, your crops will fail, which means hunger and poverty. If a severe drought hits, then the rivers and lakes might run dry, in which case you might not have much clean water to drink.In such a climate, there is nothing more disappointing or annoying than a cloud that appears as if it could give you rain, but then doesn’t. Likewise, a person who promises great gifts, but never gives them, brings great disappointment and frustration.There are lots of churches and teachers who promise great gifts. They promise good news, but never give any. Instead, they give conditions: “Do this and you’ll live!” Since we are all sinners, they might as well say, “You won’t do it. So, you won’t get it!” They don’t say that, however. They are not that honest. So, they promise a gift, which is received by none in the end. I expect that you may have family and friends who go to these churches. I bet they feel disappointed and frustrated. They have received the Mass and done penance, but don’t feel any more righteous. They have heard hundreds of "Seven Steps to a Better Life" sermons, but their lives are no better.Just think, you can be that person who brings them joy and relief! You can be the person who offers great gifts and actually delivers! You can give them that life-giving rain—the Word of God (Isaiah 55:10-11). You can tell them, “Do you want to live forever with God? Do nothing! Everything necessary was done for you by Jesus! Just go to Him and receive! Want to know more? Come with me to my church!” And what will they get at your church? Gifts promised and given! Indeed, they will hear your pastor speak the Absolution in the first five minutes of the service. How refreshing! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord God, bless the Word wherever it is proclaimed. Make is a word of power and peace to comfort those not yet Your own and to confirm those who have come to saving faith. May Your Word pass from the ear to the heart, from the heart to the lip, and from the lip to the life that, as You have promised, Your Word may achieve the purpose for which You send it; through Jesus Christ, my Lord. Amen. (For Blessing on the Word, LSB)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 14:1-11, Introit: Ps. 119:1–2, 5–6; antiphon: Ps. 119:137, 124Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 8:1-20; Matthew 10:24-42“For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Luke 14:11)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In the Collect, we ask that God would help us to withstand the temptations of the devil. One of the greatest temptations of the devil is the idea that we must climb the ladder to get to the top, so to speak. We must seize power, freedom, wealth, and the like. We must create our own honor. The devil said it best to the first woman: “Take the fruit. Seize the wisdom that God is withholding from you. Become as great as God Himself!”Notice that if you are seizing, then you are not receiving. A gift is not something earned or taken. It is possible that God was withholding some wisdom from Adam and Eve, intending to give it to them at the proper time. However, they did not allow God to give them good gifts, because they seized what they coveted. They tried to make themselves great. Thus, God was cheated of the opportunity of giving them greatness.This is the point that Jesus is trying to make. If you are at the bottom, then God can elevate you. If you have nothing, God can give you everything. If you are not earning or taking, then God can give freely.God desires to give every good and perfect gift to all sinners. So, what is He to do with those who are desperately climbing and selfishly seizing? He knocks them down with the Law. He empties their hands with a word of condemnation. Those who think they are at the top are pushed over by the uncompromising commandments and fall to the bottom. And that act of condemnation is an act of mercy. At the bottom, sinners can find Christ! He humbled Himself and went to the very bottom, so that, when the Father exalted Him, He could carry us up to the top with Him.In our Gospel lesson, Jesus warns that the day will come when God will humble the wicked and won’t bring them up again. They will fall, this time into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:15). Our Lord doesn’t want that to happen. So, in the meantime He does His alien work of humbling sinners, so that He can do His proper work—justifying and exalting them! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord, we implore You, grant Your people grace to withstand the temptations of the devil and with pure hearts and minds to follow You, the only God; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the 17th Sunday after Trinity)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the 17th Sunday after Trinity (Psalm 119:1–2, 5–6; antiphon: vv.137, 124)Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 7:1-19; Matthew 10:1-23Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord! Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart. (Psalms 119:1-2)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The psalms were the songs and prayers of Israel. Men like David composed them and for centuries the people of Israel used them for worship. Therefore, the psalms are truly the songs and prayers of Jesus. He is Israel-Reduced-to-One, after all. He came to represent Israel as Her Head. He came as a substitute, obeying the Law in Israel’s place to reverse the curse of the Law. Therefore, the psalms find their rightful home in His mouth.Who is the Blessed Man, the Man in whom God delights? Jesus! His way was completely blameless. He walked in the Law of the Lord, treasuring every testimony of God and seeking the Father with His whole heart. His eyes were fixed on the commandments and He never wavered in keeping them.The good news is that Jesus swaps places with us. Although He was completely blameless, He took the blame for our sins and was punished for them. Then, He gave us the credit for His obedience, so that we would not be put to shame on Judgment Day.And that’s not all. While Jesus did experience the shame of our sin on the Cross, He was not left naked and ashamed. No, the Father raised Him from the dead and clothed His obedient Son in glory. Then, the risen Jesus poured His Spirit out on us, so that the Spirit might change our hearts. The Holy Spirit pours the love of God into our hearts, so that we begin to seek God. He leads us, so that we walk in the law of love. Hence, we can pray these psalms with Jesus. Sometimes our flesh gets the better of us. Often our eyes glance at idols or we stumble on the way. Thankfully, such sins are forgiven for the sake of Christ. That grace turns our eyes back to God and helps us stand. We begin to keep His testimonies and live according to the commandments, until that day when sin’s poison is removed from our souls and we can serve God perfectly. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Speak, O Lord, Your servant listens, Let Your Word to me come near; Newborn life and spirit give me, Let each promise still my fear. Death’s dread pow’r, its inward strife, Wars against Your Word of life; Fill me, Lord, with love’s strong fervor, That I cling to You forever! ("Speak, O Lord, Your Servant Listens" LSB 589, st.1)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 6:10-25; Matthew 9:18-38“And when the Lord your God brings you into the land that he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give you—with great and good cities that you did not build, and houses full of all good things that you did not fill, and cisterns that you did not dig, and vineyards and olive trees that you did not plant….” (Deuteronomy 6:10-11)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Lord gave Israel a home. He gave them land. However, He gave them so much more than that. He gave them a land full of plunder! They won’t build their own cities, but will take the cities built by the Canaanites. They won’t have to fill their houses with furniture, but will move into houses already furnished by their previous owners. They won’t have to dig cisterns or plant orchards. The Canaanites already did all that hard work.On the one hand, this is the reality of military conquest. Israel will conquer a land and this means inheriting whatever their enemies leave behind. On the other hand, this is an example of God’s gracious ways. God loves giving gifts to His people. And you don’t earn a gift, or work for it, or make it for yourself. You simply receive and enjoy it!Whenever sinners interact with God, they expect no gift—only a wage, something for which you must labor. This is the point of the Divine Service. We draw near to God week after week to be surprised by grace—to receive anew His Gifts. The baptized receive a kingdom that they did not build. They receive an eternal reward that they did not earn. They don’t work as servants, but rather sit at the King’s table as His family.As we experience God’s grace in the Divine Service, we learn to see His grace throughout our lives. We come to see everything as a good gift! We do not deserve food, clothes, house, family, friends, or the like. We deserve nothing but hell. Since Jesus died for all, God gives to all men these good things.And, of course, as we experience God’s goodness in this life, we wait to enter at last our Promised Land—the new creation—where we will experience the fullness of God’s goodness. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, God of all grace, govern our hearts that we may never forget Your blessings but steadfastly thank and praise You for all Your goodness in this life until, with all Your saints, we praise You eternally in Your heavenly kingdom; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for Thanksgiving to God, LSB p.310)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary:Deuteronomy 5:22-6:9; Matthew 9:1-17And Jesus said to them, “Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.” (Matthew 9:15)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. For those who have the ears to hear, Jesus has just revealed who He is and what He came to do. First, He revealed that He is the Bridegroom. That might appear at first to be a quaint metaphor, but actually Jesus is calling Himself Yahweh, the God of Israel. Remember, in the Old Testament the covenant is often compared to marriage and idolatry is often compared to adultery. Israel was considered the Bride of Yahweh. If Jesus is the Bridegroom, then He is God!The disciples cannot fast now, because they are with the Bridegroom. Now is the time for feasting! And so, the disciples eat many meals with Jesus, sitting alongside sinners and tax collectors. However, there will come a time when the Bridegroom is taken from them. They will fast then. This is the first Passion prediction. Jesus will be taken from His disciples when the Sanhedrin arrest Him and crucify Him.So, what about now? Is now a time of fasting or feasting?It is indeed appropriate for Christians to fast now. After all, Jesus ascended into heaven and, although He is truly with us, He is hidden from our eyes. We are waiting for His reappearing and the wedding feast of the Lamb to begin. As we wait, the Church suffers the abuse of the devil, the world, and the flesh, who take advantage of the Bridegroom’s absence. So, fasting is appropriate.On the other hand, fasting cannot be the sole practice of Christians or even the most prevalent practice. The Bridegroom was crucified, but He is not dead. He lives and will never die again. Thus, we have a joy that none can take from us. While we cannot see Him, we know that He is present, especially when the Word is preached and the Sacrament is celebrated. Indeed, every Sunday is a Feast Day—a time of celebration. Christ has won the victory and will return shortly. Where the Spirit makes this known, there must be joy.So, you are free to fast and grieve, but never lose your Easter joy and hope. He is risen and He will come again! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.All the earth with joy is sounding: Christ has risen from the dead! He, the greater Jonah, bounding From the grave, His three-day bed, Wins the prize: Death’s demise—Songs of triumph fill the skies. ("All the Earth with Joy Is Sounding" LSB 462, st.1)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Baptism, part 4Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 5:1-21; Matthew 8:18-34What does such baptizing with water indicate? It indicates that the Old Adam in us should by daily contrition and repentance be drowned and die with all sins and evil desires, and that a new man should daily emerge and arise to live before God in righteousness and purity forever. (Small Catechism: Baptism)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Church has a long history of immersing people in water when baptizing them. Only recently have we preferred sprinkling and pouring, and only to defend our Christian freedom from the legalists who require immersion.The practice of immersion is reflected in Luther’s answer. The Old Adam should “be drowned,” and then a new man should “emerge.” Then, Luther connects this practice to Romans 6. The baptized is plunged beneath the water to indicate that he is being buried with Christ. He is brought out of the water to indicate that he will live a new life, just as Christ was raised from the dead.Another practice of the Church has been lost. Once you were baptized naked. Before you could enter the water, you had to take off your clothes. When you stepped out of the pool, you were wrapped in a white robe. This practice was based on Galatians 3:27, Ephesians 4:20-24, and Colossians 3:9-10. Through Baptism, the old is stripped away and Christ is put on.The traditions are not as important as the message they convey. When you come to the font, you come as a child of Adam. You leave the font a child of God. You were covered in sins, but these were washed away in the water and nailed to the Cross. Now, you are dressed in Christ. He is your righteousness. As a sinner, you should inherit death. At the font, you get death out of the way, and then you emerge, signifying that you are joined to the risen Christ and will live forever.Here’s the point: Baptism is a new beginning. It isn’t an event in the past to be forgotten, but it creates a new reality in which you live. You live in your Baptism. The pattern of dying and rising, or taking off and putting on, continues every day by the grace of God. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Merciful Father, through Holy Baptism You called us to be Your own possession. Grant that our lives may evidence the working of Your Holy Spirit in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, according to the image of Your only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior. Amen. (Prayer for Life as a Baptized Child of God, LSB p.310)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Ephesians 3:13-21Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 4:21-40; Matthew 8:1-17Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us,to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (Ephesians 3:20-21)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When that widow at Nain saw Jesus outside the gate of Nain, staring intently at her and at her son’s body, what do you think went through her mind? Did she know it was Jesus? If so, what did she expect Him to do?For some reason, I doubt that she expected Jesus to resurrect her only son. My guess is that the miracle was a surprise to her. After all, nothing seems more permanent than death. Furthermore, only Yahweh can give life and every Jew expected the dead to rest until the Day of Resurrection. Her reason, experience, and theology would prevent this widow from asking Jesus to resurrect her son.As Paul says, the Lord is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think. Sinners don’t grasp God’s power and God’s mercy. Our doubting hearts try to limit God. We don’t expect God to do the impossible and we don’t pray for the unbelievable. What fools we are! Jesus said, “Ask, and you will receive” (Matthew 7:7). Such a promise should cause us to ask for the moon and more!I think that Paul realized that his imagination was once too small and that it limited God. Once he hoped that God would save Israel. Then, the risen Jesus appeared to him and revealed that He has taken away the sins of the world. Therefore, the people of God will consist of people from every race, tribe, and kingdom. After his conversion, Paul observed the nations streaming into the Church. He witnessed Jews and Gentiles receiving the Lord’s Supper together, reconciled to God and to each other. Paul saw what he never expected, and he could only fall on his knees in awe and praise God. Consider what little things you ask for. Also, consider the marvelous things God gives you—more than you dare ask or imagine! He gives you His grace, His Spirit, His Kingdom, and eternal life for the sake of His crucified and risen Son. Consider all this, and then join Paul in giving glory to this God of surprises. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Jesus, advocate on high, Sacrificed on Calv’ry’s altar, Through Your priestly blood we cry: Hear our prayers, though they may falter; Place them on your Father’s throne As Your own. ("Hear Us, Father, When We Pray" LSB 773, st.3)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: 1 Kings 17:17-24Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 4:1-20; Matthew 7:13-29And he cried to the Lord, “O Lord my God, have you brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by killing her son?” (1 Kings 17:20)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We have yet another confrontation with death. Once again, death has taken the only son of a widow. The parallels between this story and yesterday’s Gospel lesson are apparent to all. Still, more important are the differences!This time the prophet Elijah is confronted by death. He behaves quite differently than Jesus, doesn’t he? Jesus was so calm, but Elijah freaks out. He cries out to the Lord and in a dramatic show stretches himself out on the boy three times. I think that Elijah is quite aware that he is not death’s equal. No, death has him beat. Like all mortals, Elijah lives beneath the reign of death. The only one who can beat something as great as death is Yahweh, the One who gave man life in the first place. So, Elijah throws himself at God’s mercy.Another thing: Elijah comes very close to blaming God for the boy’s death. In verse 20, he says, “O Lord my God, have you brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by killing her son?” Obviously, there is truth in these words. God is the sovereign Lord, who kills and makes alive. Certainly, He permitted the boy to die. Still, I think Elijah feels that God has forsaken this family.We react the same way to death. Whenever we see death, we conclude that God has sent the Grim Reaper to destroy us. We think that death is a sign that God has forsaken us. We must remember that Jesus became a curse for us on the Cross (Galatians 3:13). He was forsaken by His Father (Matthew 27:46). Therefore, we can be sure that God is not against us. He won’t forsake us. Indeed, Jesus suffered death, so that He might conquer the grave.Death is a defeated enemy, forced to serve us. The Christian doesn’t fear death, knowing that his death brings his soul into the presence of Jesus. Eventually, death must release our bodies. On the Last Day, we will be resurrected, and soul and body will be reunited. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.For me to live is Jesus, To die is gain for me; So when my Savior pleases, I meet death willingly. ("For Me to Live Is Jesus" LSB 742, st.1)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 7:11-17Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 3:1-29; Matthew 7:1-12As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her. (Luke 7:12)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Whenever I read Luke 7:12, I imagine that classic Dr. Seuss story called The Zax. It is a story encouraging children to compromise. You see, a North-Going Zax finds himself facing a South-Going Zax. Neither of them is willing to take a step east or west to let the other pass. And so, the two stand there, stubborn and stuck, until a highway is built around them!Jesus and His disciples come to the city gate of Nain. Just as they are about to pass through, a funeral procession begins to come out of the gate. If Jesus was the compromising sort, He would realize that He must step aside to let the funeral procession pass. If He doesn’t, they cannot get out of the city and Jesus cannot get in.Well, Jesus won’t compromise with death. When death faces Him, Jesus won’t take a step to the east or the west. So, what does this mean? Are the two equals, doomed to sit there, stubborn and stuck? Has an unstoppable force met an immovable object?No. Death is not Jesus’ equal. During His earthly ministry, Jesus will restrain Himself and live under death’s reign, but in truth death is not His equal or superior. Jesus is the Son of God, after all. Death cannot take away Jesus’ life, although for our sake Jesus will hand Himself over to death.As if to prove that death is not His equal, Jesus doesn’t move. Instead, He grabs the bier—before the funeral procession gets any ideas about backing up—and Jesus says, “Young man, arise.” The young man takes a breath, opens his eyes, and sits up. And there is nothing that death can do about it.This confrontation between death and life is simply a prelude of what is to come. Like I said, Jesus will give Himself over to death and for a time it appears that Jesus is stuck. He’s not. Jesus lays down His life in order to take it up again. And He takes it up again, in order to share His life with you! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Lord, we pray that Your grace may always go before and follow after us, that we may continually be given to all good works; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the 16th Sunday after Trinity)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the 16th Sunday after Trinity (Psalm 86:1, 7, 12–13; antiphon: vv.3, 5)Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 2:16-37; Matthew 6:16-34For great is your steadfast love toward me; you have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol. (Psalm 86:13)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. I hope you enjoyed Psalm 86 last Saturday, because the lectionary has given us yet more of it. And who can blame the framers of the lectionary? It truly is a great psalm.Once again, we hear the pleas of King David. He is crying out to the Lord and he hopes that God will be gracious and incline His ear to him. In the middle of the psalm, David expresses confidence that God will indeed hear and save him. The loyal love of God is so great that He has rescued David from death in the past and He will certainly do so again!That’s what we are talking about—death. Sheol is the abode of the dead. We might translate it “the grave.” Also, the word translated “soul,” probably refers to David’s life. David is saying that God rescues his life from the grave.I think there is beautiful logic connecting the 14th Sunday after Trinity with the 15th Sunday after Trinity. First, we hear that God will take care of us in this life, for we are more valuable than birds or lilies. But we leave church that Sunday with a feeling that something is left unresolved. God won’t always preserve our life, will He? I mean, we will die someday, right? If God will let us die, then does He really care? Thus, the 15th Sunday after Trinity addresses death head-on.Yes, even the children of God die. Indeed, even the only-begotten Son of God died! However, that doesn’t mean that God is unfaithful or uncaring. God’s ultimate goal is not to sustain this mortal life indefinitely. He has something better to give us—what the Bible sometimes calls “eternal life,” or, “abundant life.” We might call it, “resurrection life,” or, “immortality.” Ultimately, God wants to free us from pain, suffering, and decay. He doesn’t want us to live forever under the reign of death. So, God allows us to pass through death and out the other side. We die, only to rise again on the Last Day. We will be delivered from Sheol, because death was reversed in the flesh of Jesus. What happened to the Head on Easter morning will happen to every member of His Body. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, grant Your unworthy servants Your grace, that in the hour of death the adversary may not prevail against us but that we may be found worthy of everlasting life; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for a Blessed Death, LSB p. 313)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 1:37-2:15; Matthew 6:1-15“Joshua the son of Nun, who stands before you, he shall enter. Encourage him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.” (Deuteronomy 1:38)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Moses would not lead Israel into the Promised Land. He would die just outside the land, because he sinned against God. Thankfully, God raised up a man like Moses named Joshua. He would guide Israel into the Promised Land and lead the Israelites into battle against the Canaanites. Therefore, Moses tells Israel to encourage Joshua. All the responsibility has been laid on his shoulders. Use your words to build him up, so that he can bear it. With their amazing God-given faculties, humans can achieve difficult tasks, but insults and criticisms can break a man’s spirit and cause him to fail. Words of kindness and praise, on the other hand, can make a man stand tall, even when he is confronted by a mountain of problems. Jesus opened the way to the true Promised Land—eternity in the new creation. Sin should exclude us from entering Paradise, but Jesus took our sins and He died for them. The way is open! The risen Lord gives you pastors to help lead you into the Promised Land. They announce the Gospel, telling you that the way is open. They address your fears and doubts with the Word. They help you resist the devil through meditation and prayer. They feed you the Bread from heaven to give you the strength to move forward. Therefore, encourage your pastor. A lot of responsibility has been put on his shoulders. He needs your help bearing it. Speak kindly to him. Praise his successes. Ask him if he needs any prayer. Be ready to comfort him when he experiences his own troubles and tribulations. Encourage him, for by his preaching of the Word he shall cause you to inherit the Promised Land. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Keep me from saying words That later need recalling; Guard me lest idle speech May from my lips befalling; But when within my place I must and ought to speak, Then to my words give grace Lest I offend the weak. ("O God, My Faithful God" LSB 696, st.3)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House

Today's Reading: Luke 10:17-20Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 1:19-36; Matthew 5:21-48Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation? (Hebrews 1:14)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Angelology (the study of angels) is fascinating. There are different kinds of spirits: cherubim, seraphim, angels, archangels, etc. They have different jobs: Some are messengers or warriors, while others worship God, guard sacred space, etc. There are a lot of interesting details that Scripture gives us, and yet many more questions are left unanswered!But let’s keep things simple. There are spirits, who serve God specifically for our sake. Angels are servants. Since Jesus has paid for your sins and reconciled you to God, our heavenly Father specifically commands them to help us. We are God’s children. Angels are mere servants. What fascinates me most about the existence of angels is what this tells us about God. Apparently, God likes to achieve His goals through others, even in heaven. In other words, God could simply make things happen by sheer will. He is almighty, after all. Nevertheless, God invites creatures to participate in His work. In heaven, the angels participate in the work of God.And what about on earth? On earth, God invites humans to participate in His work. For example, God gave the Church the Holy Scriptures through prophets and apostles. He didn’t have to do it that way, but He wanted to. Likewise, God distributes the forgiveness of sins through the work of pastors. He speaks through ministers of grace. And guess what? God works through you, too! He might use you to give someone their daily bread. He might use you to protect someone from harm. He might use you to teach or encourage someone. He might use you to lead someone to Christ. God gives us vocations, making us His ministers on earth.So, go about your daily work, knowing that you are participating in God’s work. Also, know that you are more than mere servants. You are His children on account of Christ. Therefore, God will send His angels to care for you and protect you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Everlasting God, You have ordained and constituted the service of angels and men in a wonderful order. Mercifully grant that, as Your holy angels always serve and worship You in heaven, so by Your appointment they may also help and defend us here on earth; through Your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the Feast of St. Michael and All Angels)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Baptism, part 3Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 1:1-18; Matthew 5:1-20How can water do such great things? Certainly not just water, but the word of God in and with the water does these things, along with faith which trusts this word of God in the water. For without God’s word the water is plain water and no Baptism. But with the word of God it is a Baptism, that is, a life-giving water, rich in grace, and a washing of the new birth in the Holy Spirit, as St. Paul says in Titus, chapter three: “He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by His grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. This is a trustworthy saying.” (Small Catechism: Baptism)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When Naaman dipped himself in the waters of the Jordan, he was healed of his skin disease (2 Kings 5). How could water do such a great thing?Ironically, the same Protestants who scoff at Baptism and wonder how water could ever do such great things treat the muddy water of the Jordan River with special reverence (or rather, superstition). They seem to think that the Jordan River is something special, something holy. Many long to be baptized in the Jordan and countless tourists have filled small bottles with water from the Jordan to take to their homes.We know that the water of the Jordan is just water, no different than the water in your tap. You won’t find any fountain of youth or water with any kind of magical properties. Water is just water.How did the Jordan heal Naaman? God connected a promise to the Jordan: “Dip yourself in the Jordan and be healed.” The Word of God is effective and does what it says.In the same way, the Lord connects His promises to the waters of Baptism. He promises that Baptism will wash away your sins (Acts 22:16), crucify and bury you with Christ (Romans 6:3), give you new life (Titus 3:5-8), make you a disciple (Matthew 28:19), and save you (Mark 16:16). Faith believes the promise and receives what was promised in Baptism. It’s as simple as that. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.The gifts flow from the font Where He calls us His own; New life He gives that makes us His and His alone. Here He forgives our sins With water and the Word; The triune God Himself Gives pow’r to call Him Lord. ("The Gifts Christ freely Gives" LSB 602, st.2)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Galatians 5:25-6:10Daily Lectionary: Malachi 3:6-4:6; Matthew 4:12-25Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches. (Galatians 6:6)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. No one likes to talk about money in church. No one wants to talk about what they give or get a lecture about how they ought to give. Trust me, pastors really don’t like preaching about the offering plate! Regardless, Paul talks about it a lot. And so, we need to talk about it.Paul talks about it because he sees it as a Gospel issue. The Gospel is at stake here! Think about it: If your pastor has to work a second job to feed his family, how much time does he have to deliver the Gospel to sinners? If a congregation isn’t taking care of its pastor, eventually that church might find itself without a pastor. And then, who will preach the Gospel? Who will absolve? What becomes of the ministry when the saints won’t support it?In 1 Kings 17, Elijah and the widow are living through a famine caused by a lack of rain. There are worse things, however. One might experience a famine of the Word. One might live in a town where there are no preachers proclaiming the Word of God—that Word which delivers forgiveness and eternal life. “Man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord” (Deuteronomy 8:3).The offering is an essential part of Christian worship. Our Father provides for our bodies and our souls. He provides for the soul by sending us pastors who preach Christ crucified and absolve sinners in His stead. Pastors deliver the Gifts, and the saints receive them by faith. When the saints truly receive the Word with faith, they receive the Word with joy and thanksgiving. In gratitude, those who receive the Word share all good things with their pastors, which includes their income. They give without grumbling, for they know that what they have received in the Divine Service is far more precious than money. And whenever Christians receive the Word by faith with thanksgiving, God is sure to provide more of that Word. Since God feeds and clothes the pastor through the generosity of the saints, he can continue to deliver the Word to them. In the Name + of Jesus. AmenAlmighty God, all that we possess is from Your loving hand. Give us grace that we may honor You with all we own, always remembering the account we must one day give to Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for Proper Use of Wealth, LSB p. 311)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: 1 Kings 17:8-16Daily Lectionary: Malachi 2:1-3:5; Matthew 4:1-11The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah. (1 Kings 17:16)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When sinners are given an abundance, they become selfish. They want to receive far more than they need. In times of scarcity, things are different. When we have nothing, we become quite grateful when we receive only a little.Thus, during a great drought, Elijah didn’t come to the widow expecting a great feast. He only asked for a morsel of bread (I Kings 17:11). He asked only for a few bites of food. The drought was so severe that even this was too great a request. The widow said she had enough flour and oil to make a small cake or two to feed herself and her son—their last meal. They planned to eat a few bites and then wait to die.Our God is able to take something so small and insignificant and do great things with it. Elijah spoke a promise from the Lord. That Word of God attached itself to the flour and oil, thereby multiplying it, albeit in a way that was unseen. The widow saw a little flour and oil in small containers, but as she poured, the flour and oil just kept coming out! Thus, God saved Elijah, this widow, and her son!We live in a land of plenty and rarely experience physical hunger. Thanks to the Spirit, we recognize that we lack righteousness, and so we hunger for it (Matthew 5:6). We come to God, believing that He can fill us. He puts into our mouths a morsel of bread, not even a mouthful. It seems rather insignificant, doesn’t it? Nevertheless, God can take something so small and insignificant and do great things with it.The pastor speaks a promise from the Lord. The Word of God attaches itself to the bread. It doesn’t multiply, but it does become something far more than it once was. Although it remains hidden to our eyes, the bread becomes the very Body of our Lord—yes, that same body that was nailed to the Cross. The bread isn’t enough to fill up our bodies, but the Body of our Lord does indeed satisfy the soul. For as we receive the Lord’s Supper, we are given the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O living Bread from heaven, How well You feed Your guest! The gifts that You have given Have filled my heart with rest. Oh, wondrous food of blessing, Oh, cup that heals our woes! My heart, this gift possessing, With praises overflows. ("O Living Bread from Heaven" LSB 642, st.1)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 6:24-34Daily Lectionary: Malachi 1:1-14; Matthew 3:1-17“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We worry. We worry a lot. We worry about what we will eat and what we will wear. We worry about this life, which must end. And make no mistake, it will end, no matter how much food we have on hand or how many outfits are hanging in our closet. We need to get our priorities in order.Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. Don’t seek food and clothes first. That’s what the heathen do. No, seek first the favor of God and His saving works. Seek the Lord and His grace. For you see, if you have the Almighty on your side and He cares for you, then you don’t have to worry about anything. The One who can feed the countless birds and dress the countless flowers can certainly feed and dress you! If you have the grace of God, then everything else will be added to you!Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. You have already found it, or rather it found you. When you were baptized, you became a citizen of God’s kingdom—nay, even more than that! You became a member of the royal family, a child of God! A good king takes care of his citizens, but even wicked kings take care of their own children. How much more will your King and Father take care of you?You are members of the kingdom. You have been dressed in a righteousness that far surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees (Matthew 5:20). Jesus wrapped your sins around Himself, and then He dressed you in His righteousness. This isn’t the story of the prince and the pauper. It is the story of the Savior and the sinner—the righteous Savior takes our place on the Cross, so that the sinner can take His place at His Father’s table.So, stop worrying! The heathen want to extend their lives another week, another month, another year, but you will live forever in the Kingdom of God!  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Lord, we implore You, let Your continual pity cleanse and defend Your Church; and because she cannot continue in safety without Your aid, preserve her evermore by Your help and goodness; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the 15th Sunday after Trinity)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the 15th Sunday after Trinity (Psalm 86:4, 6, 15a, 16; antiphon: vv.1a, 2b, 3)Daily Lectionary: Nehemiah 9:22-38; 1 Timothy 6:3-21Give ear, O Lord, to my prayer; listen to my plea for grace. (Psalm 86:6)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Read Psalm 86 in its entirety. Clearly David composed this psalm in a time of trouble. David calls himself “poor and needy” (Psalm 86:1). He asks God to preserve his life and to save him. At the end of the psalm, David says that insolent and ruthless men are seeking his life (Psalm 86:14, 17). Thus, David asks the Lord to listen to his prayer and to save him.Are ruthless men trying to kill you? Probably not. Still, you might feel like your life is in danger at times. Perhaps a terrible economy or unemployment has you shaken. You fear that one day your cupboards will be bare. Or perhaps your family has not been able to pay the bills and you are worried that they will turn off your electricity. That means no A/C during hot summer days and no heat during the cold winter. Or maybe your fears are not money related. Maybe you fear that your doctor will return with your tests and give you some really bad news.The point is that we live in a dangerous world. So, we fear death. In Matthew 6:24-34, Jesus calms our fears. He reminds us that we have a good and gracious Father in heaven, who will surely feed and clothe us. We are never in true danger, since we rest in the hands of a loving God.David knew this. He confesses that God is “merciful and gracious” (Psalm 86:15). And so, instead of wringing his hands and pacing the floor, David brings his fears to his God. “Listen,” David says to God, and indeed the Lord does listen. He listens to your prayers, too. “Ask,” the Son of God said, “and it will be given to you” (Matthew 7:7).Of course, this doesn’t mean that we won’t suffer or die. It means that God will deliver us from death. And sometimes that means taking us through death and out the other side. This is what happened to Jesus. He prayed that His Father would deliver Him from death. God heard His Son, allowed Him to die on a Cross, and then made death release Him on Easter morning! And what happened to the only-begotten Son of God on Easter morning must also happen to the adopted children of God on the Last Day. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Children of the heav’nly Father Safely in His bosom gather; Nestling bird nor star in heaven Such a refuge e’er was given. ("Children of the Heavenly Father" LSB 725, st.1)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary:Nehemiah 9:1-21; 1 Timothy 5:17-6:2Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. (1 Timothy 5:17)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In many Lutheran churches, there are a group of laymen called elders who aid the pastor in his ministry. Frankly, it is a bit odd to call these laymen elders. In the New Testament, the elders of the congregations are pastors.According to the Bible, Christians should assemble with other Christians, and every Christian assembly needs a pastor. And Christians are expected to treat their pastors a certain way. First, they should give extra honor and respect to their pastors. Second, we are told in 1 Timothy 5:18 that Christians should pay their pastors for their work. Third, Paul knows that pastors will make enemies, and so he tells us to never admit a charge against a pastor, unless there are two or three witnesses (1 Timothy 5:19). In sum, you should respect and love your pastor, provide for him, and protect him.Why? Pastors do important work. They oversee the ministry of the congregation. This means giving guidance and encouragement when needed, of course. It also includes leading the Divine Service—giving the Gifts of the Lord, and then leading the people in prayer, praise, and thanksgiving. They preach the Word of God, applying the Law and the Gospel to us. They teach the Christian faith—milk to new converts and meat for the spiritually mature.This is important work, indeed. Where the Word is preached, the Spirit works. The forgiveness of sins was won on the Cross, but gets distributed to individual sinners in the Church through the ministry of the Word. No ministry, no forgiveness. No ministers, no ministry. If you don’t respect and love your pastor and he gets burned out, or if he doesn’t get paid and must get another job, or if you allow false accusations to result in your pastor’s removal, then who will give you the Word?  Your pastor is a sinner, to be sure. He is also a wonderful gift. God placed him in your congregation so that you always have access to His Word. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and gracious God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, You have commanded us to pray that You would send forth laborers into Your harvest. Of Your infinite mercy give us true teachers and ministers of Your Word who truly fulfill Your command and preach nothing contrary to Your holy Word. Grant that we, being warned, instructed, nurtured, comforted, and strengthened by Your holy Word, may do those things which are well pleasing to You and profitable for our salvation; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Baptism, part 2Daily Lectionary: Nehemiah 7:1-4; 8:1-18; 1 Timothy 5:1-16What benefits does Baptism give? It works forgiveness of sins, rescues from death and the devil, and gives eternal salvation to all who believe this, as the words and promises of God declare. Which are these words and promises of God? Christ our Lord says in the last chapter of Mark: “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” (Small Catechism: Baptism)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Our Lord has attached so many great and wonderful promises to Baptism. Jesus told His disciples to make more disciples by baptizing them (Matthew 28:19). A disciple is a forgiven sinner. Indeed, Peter told the Jews gathered in Jerusalem to be baptized for the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38) and Acts 22:16 tells us that Baptism washes away our sins. Paul says that the Church is cleansed “by the washing of water with the Word” (Ephesians. 5:25-26).Jesus also said that you enter the Kingdom of God by being born of water and the Spirit (John 3:5). If Baptism brings you into the Kingdom of God, then it takes you out of the kingdom of darkness (Colossians 1:13). Baptism rescues us from the devil.Baptism grants us life and salvation. Jesus promises that Baptism saves us in Mark 16:16. Peter affirms that Baptism saves in 1 Peter 3:21. Also, Paul says that God saved us through the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5).Of course, our Protestant friends will protest that water cannot save you. Faith alone saves you. Well, it is true that faith saves us, but faith in what? We put our faith in the promises of the Lord. When He makes a promise, we believe Him. If the Lord says, “Pick up that straw and live,” faith doesn’t sneer at the straw and say, “How can mere straw save anyone?” Faith trusts the Lord and picks up the straw. Likewise, when our Lord connects His promises to Baptism, faith believes and receives the Gifts offered in the water.To despise Baptism is to doubt the Lord. Faith is ready to receive His Gifts, no matter how the Lord chooses to deliver them. The Lord brought the world out of water (Genesis 1:2). He rescued Israel by sending them through a sea. If He wants to give me eternal life and rescue me from sin and the devil by means of water, He can certainly do that! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.All who believe and are baptized Shall see the Lord’s salvation; Baptized into the death of Christ, They are a new creation. Through Christ’s redemption they shall stand Among the glorious heav’nly band Of ev’ry tribe and nation. ("All Who Believe and Are Baptized" LSB 601, st.1)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 9:9-13Daily Lectionary: Nehemiah 5:1-16; 6:1-9, 15-16; 1 Timothy 4:1-16“Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.” (Matthew 9:12 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. This spring I got sick—right before Holy Week, no less! I was coughing, blowing my nose all the time, and felt tired and weak. And that darn cold wouldn’t quit! It took three weeks before I had no more symptoms. Should I have gone to my doctor? Perhaps, but I was certain that he couldn’t help me. He would tell me, “Take some cold medicine and rest,” and then charge me for such, “wisdom.”Sometimes the Bible describes sin as a sickness. If sin is a disease, it’s a bad one. It lasts a lot longer than a few weeks. It lasts a lifetime! And sin is deadly. Those sick with sin will die. You can’t fight it. Sin is far worse than cancer. And you’ve got it! This disease is passed from Adam to his descendants, and you caught it from your mom and dad!If sin is a sickness, then Jesus is the good physician. And He’s the kind of doctor you can trust. He won’t look you over and say, “Yep, its sin. Sorry, I can’t help you. Just take some cold medicine and enjoy life while you still can. Here’s the bill.” No, Jesus can help the sin-sick soul. He can do something that no other doctor can do: He can take your sickness and let it kill Him, and then give you His health and life!Matthew the Evangelist describes in his Gospel how Jesus, “took our illnesses and bore our diseases,” (8:17 ESV). He took our sin, and then He suffered the fate of all sinners. He died, while feeling the full weight of God’s displeasure. Since He paid for our sins, Jesus can grant us His life. He can apply the sweet balm of Absolution to our wounds. He can feed us the Medicine of Immortality—His Body and His Blood. Through Word and Sacrament, His life is bestowed upon us! Jesus takes our sickness and gives us His health. He suffers our death and shares with us His life. Luther called this the Joyous Exchange. Are you a sinner? Then Jesus is the doctor for you! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Son of God, our blessed Savior Jesus Christ, You called Matthew the tax collector to be an apostle and evangelist. Through his faithful and inspired witness, grant that we also may follow You, leaving behind all covetous desires and love of riches; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the Feast of St. Matthew)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Galatians 5:16-24Daily Lectionary: Nehemiah 4:7-23; 1 Timothy 3:1-16“For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.” (Galatians 5:17 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Once you were ruled by the flesh. Once you were a slave of sin. You gratified your wicked desires. No longer! You are now a slave of Christ. Jesus is your Lord and Master. He rescued you from sin. On the cross He paid the price for your freedom. Then, He marked you with His own name in Holy Baptism.The Law could not rescue you from sin. The Law is good, but sin used the Law to keep you imprisoned (Gal. 3:22-23). Like gasoline added to a fire, the Law made sin abound (Rom. 5:20). The Law didn’t merely reveal sin. The Law increased sin, for its threats stirred up resentment toward God, dread of His wrath, and a covetous desire for whatever God forbids. Grace, on the other hand, extinguishes the fire. Your guilt is absolved and your heart begins to love the God that first loved us.Does this mean that I can sin however much I want? Of course not! If we intentionally sin, we are returning to our former master. We are intentionally gratifying the desires of the flesh, as if we were slaves of sin yet again. We were liberated from sin, so that we might be led by the Spirit. To follow the Spirit is to walk away from sin, for the two are against each other. Remember these words of our Lord: “No one can serve two masters,” (Matt. 6:24 ESV).This is the life of repentance: to turn your back on sin and to walk with the Spirit; to renounce the works of the flesh and to put your faith in Jesus—and such faith will produce the fruit of the Spirit. When we repent of our sins and give them to Jesus, they cannot harm us. When we cling to our sins, Jesus cannot help us. Therefore, repent of your sins and give them to Jesus. Crucify the flesh (Gal. 5:24), so that you might walk in newness of life (Rom. 6:4). In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, give us grace that we may cast away the works of darkness and put upon ourselves the armor of light now in the time of this mortal life in which Your Son, Jesus Christ, came to visit us in great humility, that in the Last Day, when He shall come again in glorious majesty to judge both the living and the dead, we may rise to life immortal; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for Newness of Life in Christ, LSB page 311)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Proverbs 4:10-23Daily Lectionary: Nehemiah 2:11-20; 4:1-6; 1 Timothy 2:1-15“Keep hold of instruction; do not let go; guard her, for she is your life.” (Proverbs 4:13 ESV)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. There are two roads: the Way of Wisdom and the Way of Folly. The Way of Folly is the Road of Unbelief and Sin. It is the path that leads to death. This is the path that Jesus walked for you. He bore your sins and went to the cross to die in your place.According to Proverbs, “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight,” (9:10 ESV). The fear of the Lord is contrition over your sin and confidence that the Lord will save you from those sins. Simply put, those who repent and believe are on the Way of Wisdom—a path that leads to life. How do you remain on that path? Proverbs tells us to keep hold of the instruction and to guard it. The instruction is your life! Likewise, we read these words: “My son, be attentive to my words; incline your ear to my sayings. Let them not escape from your sight; keep them within your heart. For they are life to those who find them, and healing to all their flesh,” (Prov. 9:20-22 ESV).The Word of the Lord creates faith. The Word also nourishes, sustains, and strengthens faith. The Word delivers Jesus to you. The life won on the cross is delivered through the good news: “You are absolved for the sake of Jesus!” When you doubt, return to the Word. When you have sinned, cling to the Word. This is how you stay on the Way of Wisdom.And those that remain attentive to the gracious Word and guard it in their hearts will receive eternal life on the Last Day, when their decaying flesh is healed by the risen Lord. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord Jesus Christ, giver and perfecter of our faith, we thank and praise You for continuing among us the preaching of Your Gospel for our instruction and edification. Send Your blessing upon the Word, which has been spoken to us, and by Your Holy Spirit increase our saving knowledge of You, that day by day we may be strengthened in the divine truth and remain steadfast in Your grace. Give us strength to fight the good fight and by faith to overcome all the temptations of Satan, the flesh, and the world, so that we may finally receive the salvation of our souls; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (For Blessing on the Word, LSB pg. 308)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 17:11-19Daily Lectionary: Nehemiah 1:1-2:10; 1 Timothy 1:1-20And he said to him, “Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.” (Luke 17:19)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Our English translations have to make a couple of interpretive choices when they translate Luke 17:19. Jesus literally says, “Arise! Journey!  Your faith has saved you!”First, how do you translate “saved”? Obviously, Jesus saved this man from his skin disease. The ESV translates it this way: “Your faith had made you well.” However, Jesus did more than just heal his disease. He saved him from the state of exile caused by his impurity. An incurable skin disease would prevent anyone from entering a holy space, such as the temple. Also, in extreme cases you would be excluded from society, lest you pass your impurity to them. Jesus healed this man’s disease, but He also healed both the rift between this man and God and the rift between him and his fellow men. Jesus saved him!Second, when Jesus tells this man to get up and journey, what does He mean? The ESV assumes that Jesus is telling this man to move along—to go back home and to normal life. This is possible, but it is also possible that Jesus is inviting this man to journey with Him—to follow Him as a disciple and travel with Him to Jerusalem. That second interpretation certainly fits the theme of this Sunday. The Propers for this Sunday emphasize that after Jesus purifies you of your sins, you must follow Jesus and remain with Him. Thus, Proverbs 4:10-23 invites us to stay on the way of wisdom and the path of righteousness. In Galatians, Paul encourages us to walk by the Spirit, which means to crucify your flesh and to produce the fruit of the Spirit. The Introit speaks of dwelling with the Lord in His house.You are pure in the eyes of God as long as you are in Christ. He is your righteousness, sanctification, and redemption (1 Corinthians 1:30). In Christ you find the grace of God. To leave Christ is to leave God’s grace. Salvation is not a one-time event that occurred in the past. It is a reality that you live in. You were baptized into Christ. In Him you must stay. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Lord, keep Your Church with Your perpetual mercy; and because of our frailty we cannot but fall, keep us ever by Your help from all things hurtful and lead us to all things profitable to our salvation; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the 14th Sunday after Trinity)-Pastor Alexander Lange is pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Albany, Oregon.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the 14th Sunday after Trinity (Psalm 84:1-2a, 4, 10b, 11b; antiphon: v.9-10a)Daily Lectionary: 2 Chronicles 36:1-23; Colossians 4:1-18 Blessed are those who dwell in your house, ever singing your praise! (From the Introit for the 14th Sunday after Trinity) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Are you looking forward to tomorrow? Are you looking forward to entering the house of the Lord to receive His Gifts and sing His praise? Or is tomorrow just the end of the weekend? Is tomorrow the last day of freedom before going back to work or school on Monday morning, the end of something good? Are you looking forward to gathering with the Body of Christ to hear God's Word, or are you dreading how slowly that hour of worship goes by? Does it seem like church isn't the most exciting or entertaining thing or your pastor's sermons are a little long and dry and boring and you just don't seem to get anything out of them? Does it seem like sometimes you would rather be any place other than in the house of God? What do we do when we don't really feel like going to church?Don't go. Well, don't go for you. Go for your neighbor. Go whether you feel like it or not because maybe your neighbor is struggling, and they need to see you there. Go and confess the faith because maybe your neighbor will be encouraged by hearing your confession. Go and sing the hymns because maybe your neighbor needs to hear your voice, whether it's on key or not. Go because maybe your pastor needs to see you and be encouraged that his preaching is not in vain even if it isn't the best preaching you've ever heard.But more importantly, go because whether it feels like it or not, the Lord's house is a good place to be. It may not be the most exciting, entertaining, or your favorite place to be, but it is the place where God's Gifts are delivered. It is the place where God's blessings are delivered, His Word is preached, and His Sacraments are administered. It is the place where your sins are forgiven for the sake of the crucified and risen Christ. And just maybe it will be the place where you are encouraged because your neighbor showed up even when he didn't feel like it, confessed his faith for you to hear, and joined with you and the millions in heaven and on earth to sing to God and to the Lamb. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. To God and to the Lamb I will sing, I will sing; To God and to the Lamb I will sing; To God and to the Lamb, Who is the great I AM, While millions join the theme, I will sing, I will sing, While millions join the theme, I will sing. ("What Wondrous Love Is This" LSB 543, st.3)-Rev. Brett Simek is pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Hilbert, WI. He also serves as catechesis coordinator for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: 2 Chronicles 35:1-7, 16-25; Colossians 3:1-25 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. (Galatians 3:17) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The world demands a lot of us. Parents, teachers, friends, bosses, and coworkers demand that we "do this" or "do that." Sometimes, the Bible seems no different. "Set your minds on things that are above" (Galatians 3:2). "Put to death therefore what is earthly in you" (Galatians 3:5). "As the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive" (Galatians 3:13). "And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him" (Galatians 3:17).Even that only names a few of the list of demands Paul gives to the Galatians and to you and me. Often the Bible can seem very Law-heavy and demanding. It preaches the Gospel, like Paul does to the Galatians, but then Paul seems to undo it with a list of demands. Sometimes, even the Gospel can seem like a demand. "Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit" (Acts 2:38). So what are we supposed to do? What demand does the Bible put on Christians?None. Even here, Paul is not demanding anything of the Christian, nor anything of you. No, he is appealing to our freedom. He is rejoicing in the freedom that we have because of Christ. Jesus has done everything that is necessary and fulfilled every demand for your salvation. Nothing is left for you to do. Even repentance and Baptism isn't for you to do, but it is God's work. He does it all for you. He dies and rises for you. It is all His work for you, to make your salvation sure and certain apart from your works. Nothing more is demanded from you or of you. You are free from every demand and command.What a wonderful gift to be free! How wonderful it is to have our freedom from sin. We are no longer held by sin but are raised with Christ. We are free to love as Christ has loved us. We are free to do whatever we want, in word or deed, in the Name of Jesus, giving thanks to God. We are free to focus on higher things, to glorify God, to bring our neighbor into God's kingdom with us to set them free. We are free to be God's means to save others. We are free from worrying about ourselves because Christ has done it all for us. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Where charity and love prevail There God is ever found; Brought here together by Christ's love By love are we thus bound. ("Where Charity and Love Prevail" LSB 845, st.1)-Rev. Brett Simek is pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Hilbert, WI. He also serves as catechesis coordinator for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Baptism part 1Daily Lectionary: 2 Chronicles 34:1-4, 8-11,14-33; Colossians 2:8-23 Baptism is not just plain water, but it is the water included in God's command and combined with God's word. (Small Catechism: Baptism) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Why do we baptize? Why do I need to be baptized? Is it just because God said so? Don't you hate that? When your parents tell you that you have to do something, "Because I said so"? If it was such a good thing to do, don't you think they would have an explanation as to "why" it is such a great idea? It makes you think they want you to do it for some random, arbitrary, reason without any real purpose or point to it other than, "Because I said so."As a pastor and a parent, I can tell you it's not always for no reason that we tell you to do something, "Because I said so." Sometimes I just don't have time to explain the "why" behind what I want you to do. Sometimes it's because you just might not understand the reason or purpose behind doing what is commanded and so the command stands alone.There are things, times, and lessons we have to learn without knowing the whole picture or reason behind them. There are times when we just have to trust that God's knowledge is bigger than our own and that something is good or will at least work out okay, "Because He said so." Baptism is not one of those times.In Baptism, there is more than just God's command to baptize all nations. In Baptism, the water is combined not only with the command, but also with God's Word, God's Promise. God tells us why we baptize and are baptized. Baptism makes disciples. Baptism puts Christ upon us. Baptism crucifies us with Christ and raises us to new life. Baptism saves you, "not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 3:21). Your Baptism is for the comfort of your conscience. It is God's Promise to you that for the sake of the death and resurrection of Jesus, your sins are forgiven, your salvation has been won, and your eternal life is secure. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In Baptism we now put on Christ- Our shame is fully covered With all that He once sacrificed and feely for us suffered. For here the flood of His own blood Now makes us holy, right, and good Before our heav'nly Father. ("All Christians Who Have Been Baptized" LSB 596, st.4)-Rev. Brett Simek is pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Hilbert, WI. He also serves as catechesis coordinator for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: John 12:20-33Daily Lectionary: 2 Chronicles 33:1-25; Colossians 1:24-2:7 "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit." (John 12:20-33) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Not many people wear jewelry depicting a needle or the electric chair. I don't see many gold noose necklaces proudly displayed dangling from a chain on someone's chest. Maybe I hang out with the wrong crowd, but I don't see many guillotine charm bracelets adorning wrists. These are all instruments of death, means that have been used throughout history to carry out the death penalty. I do, however, see crosses on necklaces, bracelets, earrings, on clothing or tattoos. Maybe I am hanging out with the wrong crowd.The cross was the chosen instrument and means of death in carrying out the death penalty for the Romans. It wasn't a humane way to die. In fact, it was designed to maximize the pain and agony of the one being crucified. But if this is one of the most gruesome, painful, and agonizing ways to die in all of human history, why do we wear it with pride and adorn ourselves with it? Maybe it's because the Cross is more than a symbol of death. Or maybe it's because the death that happened there to Jesus wasn't just the end of someone's life. Maybe it's because it was there on the Cross that the grain of wheat, the seed and source of life, fell into the earth and died so that it might bear much fruit. Maybe it's because that instrument of death is a true sign of triumph that life conquers death, that Christ rises from the dead, that the fruit of that Tree is the forgiveness of sins, eternal life, and salvation. Maybe it's because the Cross is the symbol of the world's redemption from sin and death.Maybe it's all of that. We lift high the cross, parade it around in churches and on our bodies in gold and jewels, because it is from that Cross of Christ, from the body and life that is given then, from the blood of God which is shed there, that we do not remain alone but are united with God and all the faithful who wish to see Jesus in life everlasting. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Faithful cross, true sign of triumph, Be for all the noblest tree; None in foliage, none in blossom, None in fruit thine equal be; Symbol of the world's redemption, For the weight that hung on thee! ("Sing, My Tongue, the Glorious Battle" LSB 454, st.4)-Rev. Brett Simek is pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Hilbert, WI. He also serves as catechesis coordinator for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Galatians 3:15-22Daily Lectionary:2 Chronicles 32:1-22; Colossians 1:1-23 This is what I mean: the law, which came 430 years afterward, does not annul a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to make the promise void. (Galatians 3:17) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. What came first: the Law or the Gospel? Does it matter? Paul seems to think so. Once a covenant is made, you cannot change it. Once a contract has been signed, you don't add to it or subtract from it. If that's true with the agreements we make with one another, then how much more so is this true for a covenant God makes with us?But what is the covenant that God makes with us, and with Abraham? It is Law, or is it Gospel? Which comes first, or do they go together? Is it like a vending machine where I put my money, my work in and get the gifts out? Then the Law must come first. But if the Law comes second, 430 years afterward, then that changes things. If the promise of the Gospel is given to Abraham first, and the Law doesn't come to Moses until 430 years later, then the Gospel, the covenantal Promise, is ratified, it's made, it's signed by the hand of God apart from works of the Law.That is my kind of vending machine! No works, no money, without so much as a quarter, yet out come the gifts of God. God promises and fulfills His promise to Abraham by grace alone. God's own Son, our Savior, comes not because of our own merit, but by grace and grace alone. Because of His merit, that of Jesus, and the free gift of faith given by the Holy Spirit, we have eternal life.So what then of the Law that comes 430 years later? Those are the instructions that show us how to put this good Gift into use. They don't change the Gift. The covenant, the Promise, the Gospel, is not annulled, canceled, added to, subtracted from, or changed because of them. The death and resurrection of Christ for the forgiveness of your sins is sure and certain. The instructions, too, are a gift that we might share the Gospel to others so they would have the Gift of life, also. They don't take the Gift away, but aid us in presenting that Gift to others so that they might know God's grace as we do. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. By grace God's Son, our only Savior, Came down to earth to bear our sin. Was it because of your own merit That Jesus died your soul to win? No, it was grace and grace alone, That brought Him from His heav'nly throne. ("By Grace I'm Saved" LSB 566, st.3)-Rev. Brett Simek is pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Hilbert, WI. He also serves as catechesis coordinator for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: 2 Chronicles 28:8-15Daily Lectionary: 2 Chronicles 31:1-21; Philippians 4:1-23 And the men who have been mentioned by name rose and took the captives, and with the spoil they clothed all who were naked among them. They clothed them, gave them sandals, provided them with food and drink, and anointed them, and carrying all the feeble among them on donkeys, they brought them to their kinsfolk at Jericho, the city of palm trees. Then they returned to Samaria. (2 Chronicles 28:15) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Judah and Jerusalem had been defeated and taken captive. 200,000 of them were taken as slaves along with their possessions as spoils of war. They were being taken from their land, their city, and the temple in which their God dwelt. Their lives and their world were being turned upside down and God had allowed it all to happen. In fact, He didn't just allow it, He was the one behind it, working through their captors to call them to repentance and faith. They had sinned against God and He was punishing them for their unfaithfulness.It's hard to argue with what God was doing. The people deserved it. They had turned their backs on God and disobeyed Him and His commandments. They deserved for God to forsake them, to turn His back on them. It's what we deserve for our sin. We turn our backs  on God when we sin against Him. We follow the devil and deserve to follow him into slavery to sin, all the way to death and hell, but we never get there.Israel never got there, either. Certain men of Ephraim stepped in and intervened. God stepped in to rescue His people from slavery. He took those who were destined for slavery and returned them to Judah. He cared for them not just to set them free, but that they would be clothed, given sandals, food, drink, anointed, carried and delivered back to their land. What great mercy He shows to Israel!What great mercy He shows to us who are destined for slavery, death and hell. By the blood of His Son, He intervenes, rescues us, and returns us to the Promised Land. He clothes us with Christ's righteousness, with the shirt on our backs and the food in our bellies. He cares for us in body and soul now and to eternity with the promise that He will never leave us or forsake us. God's promise is to be with you always, even when your life seems like it's being turned upside down, and especially when it is ending, that you would enter into His kingdom. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, forsake me not! Your gracious presence lend me; Lord, lead Your helpless child; Your Holy Spirit send me That I my course may run. O be my light, my lot, My staff, my rock, my shield- O God, forsake me not! ("O God, Forsake Me Not" LSB 731, st.1)-Rev. Brett Simek is pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Hilbert, WI. He also serves as catechesis coordinator for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 10:21-37Daily Lectionary: 2 Chronicles 29:1-24; Philippians 3:1-21 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" (Luke 10:25) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The lawyer thinks he knows it all. He tries to test Jesus to see how smart He is, to see if Jesus is any match for him. Little does he know that he is asking the wrong question to the wrong person. He asks, "What shall I do to inherit eternal life?" (Luke 10:25) Jesus tells him what he must do if he wants to inherit eternal life. If he wants to earn his way into heaven, if you want to earn your way into heaven, be like the good Samaritan. You must have compassion on the poor, downtrodden, and needy. You must care for them, give them everything they need, the donkey you're riding on and the shirt off your back, and pay the full price to restore their life. Nothing short of doing everything will suffice.Ouch. Jesus brings the full weight and hammer of the Law down on this lawyer. He wants to be put under the Law, so Jesus brings the Law. The Law beats him and convicts him down to its last detail, that even a foreign Samaritan outsider is better than this lawyer. He is stripped of the self-righteousness he is seeking and left in a ditch to die. That's what the Law does to us, too. "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself" (Luke 10:27).Thanks be to God for that Samaritan, that man passing by who has come from a foreign place to pick us up and restore our life. He takes our broken sinfulness, our self-righteousness, and carries them for us. He bears the wounds and carries the scars that our sins make in His body for us. He carries us to the inn of His Church where He nurses us back to health and life by washing our wounds in the waters of Holy Baptism, by feeding and nourishing us not just with bread and wine but with every Word that comes from the mouth of God, even His very Body and Blood. He pays the full price for our lives not with gold or silver, but with His holy precious blood and His innocent suffering and death that we might be His own, and that by His work we might inherit eternal life. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty and everlasting God, give us an increase of faith, hope, and charity; and that we may obtain what You have promised, make us love what You have commanded; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the 13th Sunday after Trinity)-Rev. Brett Simek is pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Hilbert, WI. He also serves as catechesis coordinator for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the 13th Sunday after Trinity(Psalm 74:1-2, 19b, 21b; antiphon: v.20a, 21a, 22a, 23a)Daily Lectionary: 2 Kings 9:1-13; 10:18-29; Philippians 2:12-30 Do not forget the life of your poor forever. Let the poor and needy praise your name. (From the Introit for the 13th Sunday after Trinity) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Psalm 74 is not full of cheerful thoughts, fluffy teddy bears, and bright rainbows. It speaks about the temple in Jerusalem lying in ruins and there being no more prophets who proclaim the Word of the Lord. The psalmist even goes so far as to say that the Lord God who is their shepherd has turned bright red in anger, smoke billowing from His ears, and the sheep are the source and recipients of God's anger. Not a happy thought. Life for the psalmist is about as depressed and cheerless and miserable as it can get. Ever felt that way? Of course you have. We all have. That's part of sinful human existence. Sin has corrupted us through and through, breaking and destroying God's good creation. This is the beauty of the psalms. They get you. Ever feel like God has forgotten about you? So did the psalmists. Ever feel like God just doesn't care what happens to you? So did the psalmists. The Word of God which they wrote speaks to every human condition and emotion. Most of all, the psalms point you to Jesus. God does not forget His children. He does not abandon them. What He does is send His only-begotten Son into the world to save the poor in spirit, those who feel downtrodden and abandoned and hopeless. The poor and needy of the Scriptures are those who have been so broken by sin that they have nothing left but to cry to Jesus for salvation. And salvation they received. Freely. All gift because Jesus has taken your sins and brokenness and hopelessness to Himself on the Cross and gives to you His glorious life, death, and resurrection. Jesus has purchased and redeemed you, as the psalmist begs. All the prayers of the psalms, all your prayers, are answered in Jesus. Therefore, you who were once poor and needy, praise the Name of the Lord your God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in the midst of His congregation for He has remembered and redeemed you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In suff'ring be Thy love my peace, In weakness be Thy love my pow'r; And when the storms of life shall cease, O Jesus, in that final hour, Be Thou my rod and staff and guide, And draw me safely to Thy side! ("Jesus, Thy Boundless Love to Me" LSB 683, st.4)-Rev. Daniel Voth, pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Grand Forks, ND.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: 2 Kings 6:1-23; Philippians 1:21-2:11 Then Elisha prayed and said, "O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see." So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. (2 Kings 6:17) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In Isaiah 6, the prophet is given a vision of heaven's throne room. The six-winged seraphim shouted out, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts" (Isaiah 6:3). In the great Sanctus of Divine Service Setting Three, we leave "host" untranslated as "Sabaoth." They mean the same thing: a heavenly army. The Lord God of heaven's army, whom Isaiah saw, was again seen by Elisha and his servant. Heaven's army was on full display, even if at first Elisha's servant did not see it. This army of horses and chariot all ablaze was there to save God's people from destruction and deliver them from their enemies. That same Lord God of Sabaoth came to do battle for you. This time it was not hidden, but on full public display. Yet as visible as it was, most do not see it. It looks like a huge loss. Instead of being cloaked in fire with a vast army sounding Him, this time the Lord God is alone, hanging on a cross, dying. Not very victorious to the human eye. When the Holy Spirit opens the eyes of faith, then you see a very different picture. Though your enemies of sin, death, and the devil try to surround you, you have Christ Jesus, the Son of the Lord God, and all of heaven's armies. He has saved you from destruction and delivered you from your enemies. His death is your salvation and by His resurrection He has won the victory. Satan and his demonic horde have been defeated and are going down kicking and screaming like a toddler throwing a temper tantrum. Your sin is forgiven. Death is no longer a threat. Now, in the presence of these defeated enemies, the Lord prepares a great feast of victory, His Body and Blood in the Holy Sacrament, as we join with the seraphim and angels and archangels and all the company of heaven to sing "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God of heaven's army!" On the day that Christ welcomes you home to the eternal feast, your enemies will never come to raid you again, for Christ is your victory now and forever. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Sing, my tongue, the glorious battle; Sing the ending of the fray. Now above the cross, the trophy, Sound the loud triumphant lay; Tell how Christ, the world's redeemer, As a victim won the day. ("Sing, My Tongue, the Glorious Battle" LSB 454, st.1)-Rev. Daniel Voth, pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Grand Forks, ND.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: 2 Kings 5:9-27; Philippians 1:1-20 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The answer: No. Nei. Nope. Nada. Nein. No way José. Non. Nullus. Impossible. Inconceivable. The question: Can anything separate you from God's love toward you in Christ Jesus? The devil will try. The world and culture around you will try. Your own sinful flesh will try. None of them change the fact:. God has loved the world, has loved you, and sent His only-begotten Son Jesus Christ into this world to die for the sins of the world, for your sin, that whoever believes in Him, in Jesus, will not perish but have eternal life. Period. No exceptions. 100% guaranteed. Even the believing is gift to you, not something you have to strive to do. Staying in the faith, to keep believing — guess what, that's all gift to you as well. Talk about a crazy love! God does it all. The Father does the sending of Jesus. Jesus does the saving by His death on the Cross. The Holy Spirit gifts you and keeps you believing in Jesus. It's all God from beginning to end. No wonder nothing in all of creation can separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. God is on your side. He loves you and wants you to be with Him, now and eternally. "If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?" (Romans 8:31-32) Look at what He gives. He has washed you in the waters of Holy Baptism in His Name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He has absolved you of all your sins. He feeds you with Jesus' Body and Blood in bread and wine to put the forgiveness won on the Cross into you. He preaches His Word into your ear. All gift from the Father through the Son by the Holy Spirit. What can stop God's love for you in Christ Jesus? Nothing. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. For no one can condemn me Or set my hope aside; Now hell no more can claim me: Its fury I deride. No sentence now reproves me, No guilt destroys my peace; For Christ, my Savior, loves me And shields me with His grace. ("If God Himself Be for Me" LSB 724, st.5)-Rev. Daniel Voth, pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Grand Forks, ND.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Lord's Prayer, ConclusionDaily Lectionary: 2 Kings 4:48-5:8; Ephesians 6:1-24 For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen. What does this mean? This means that I should be certain that these petitions are pleasing to our Father in heaven, and are heard by Him; for He Himself has commanded us to pray in this way and has promised to hear us. Amen, amen, means, "yes, yes, it shall be so." (Small Catechism: Lord's Prayer, Conclusion) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Church has a way that She prays. The Prayer of the Church in the Divine Service ends each petition with, "Lord in your mercy; hear our prayer" or "In peace, let us pray to the Lord; Lord have mercy." We find a similar addition to the psalms or Introit with the Gloria Patri (Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit), to give glory and praise to the One to whom we have just prayed. And so we also have a Church ending, or better, a liturgical ending to the Lord's Prayer, which is not found in most translations of the Bible. It is part of the language of the Church in prayer. This ending is threefold, a doxology, reminding us that as we pray to our Father who art in heaven, we are also praying to the Son and Holy Spirit, the Triune God. To this Triune God alone belongs the eternal kingdom opened to us by the death of Christ, the power which saves us now and eternally, and the glory and praise which we sing in the Church on earth and will sing with the Church in eternity. To all of our prayers we add, "Amen." This is an affirmation by Christians that all for which we have prayed, in the Lord's Prayer, in our liturgical prayers, and in our individual daily prayers, has been heard by our God and He is answering those prayers with His, "Yes!" As Paul assures us by inspiration, "He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?" (Romans 8:31) The death of Jesus for you and your salvation is the assurance, the pledge and promise, that God will answer every one of your prayers with His "Amen," according to His gracious will. Thus we boldly and confidently pray, "Amen," knowing that God has heard and answered our prayers and caused His will to be done in all things, even our salvation. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We trust, O Lord, in Your great mercy to hear and answer us; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.-Rev. Daniel Voth, pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Grand Forks, ND.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: 2 Corinthians 3:4-11Daily Lectionary: 2 Kings 4:8-22, 32-37; Ephesians 5:15-33 For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. (2 Corinthians 3:6b) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The letter kills. What letter? Maybe the letter "t," because it looks like a sword standing on end? No! The letter of the Law. If you try to justify yourself before God based only on your ability to keep the Law, the Ten Commandments, you won't be successful. You will die because no one can keep the Law perfectly enough. As a matter of fact, the more you stare at the Law, the more you see that you are a sinner who sins in thought, word, and deed, and deserves nothing but God's temporal and eternal punishment. Alright, say it with me: The Holy Spirit "has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith." The Spirit gives life by the Gospel, the Good News that on account of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection, your sin is forgiven and you have life now that lasts into eternity. This is not your work, accomplished by your keeping the letter of the Law, as if you could, but on account of Jesus for you. He kept that holy Law perfectly in your place and gives His obedience as a gift to you. This is the Good News that Paul and other pastors proclaim to you. It is not because they have kept the Law perfectly on their own. They must rely on Jesus the same as you do for their forgiveness. God is the One who calls them and gives to them the ministry of reconciliation, the ministry of proclaiming Jesus for the forgiveness of sins. This is why, when they stand before you in the Divine Service or private confession, they can say, "In the stead and by the command of Christ Jesus, I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." God has given them this Word. It does not come from them, but from God for you. And this Word is more sure than even the words that were carved into rock for Moses. These words have permanent, eternal glory, for they are Christ's words of forgiveness and salvation for you account of His death. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The gifts of grace and peace From absolution flow; The pastor's words are Christ's For us to trust and know. Forgiveness that we need Is granted to us there; The Lord of mercy sends Us forth in His blest care. ("The Gifts Christ Freely Gives" LSB 602, st.3)-Rev. Daniel Voth, pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Grand Forks, ND.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Isaiah 29:17-24Daily Lectionary: 2 Kings 2:19-25; 4:1-7; Ephesians 4:25-5:14 Is it not yet a very little while until Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be regarded as a forest? (Isaiah 29:17)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. With the fall into sin, the world was turned upside down. The lush garden of the Lord was turned into a wilderness of thickets and thorns and all sorts of things that can hurt you. Instead of perfectly formed bodies that worked at full capacity, sin brought sicknesses like deafness, blindness, cancer, flus and viruses, muscle aches, papercuts, and hangnails. Instead of listening to the Word of the Lord, we closed our ears and sinned against God and one another. We have lived in this broken, sinful world so long that we don't even realize how upside-down the world is. The prophet Isaiah comes with words of turning the upside down world right side up, and it sounds strange to our ears. In a little while, Isaiah proclaimed, God will come to restore all things to the way He created them to be. There will be a day, he promises, when the desolate wilderness will be a fruit-filled field, when the deaf will hear the words of a book proclaimed, when the blind will be able to see, and the poor who have had no reason to rejoice will sing for joy because the Holy One of Israel has acted to redeem creation. This restoration of creation began in the life and ministry of Jesus. He has made the deaf to hear the Word of the Holy Scriptures that proclaim life in His Name. He has opened the eyes of all who are spiritually blind and dead in their sins and trespasses by calling them out of darkness into His marvelous light. Sinners are forgiven on account of the craziest upside down action ever to occur: The Son of God dies! Yet by this action, the Lord redeems the world, and sets the upside down world right side up. He has opened your ears to His Word of salvation and declared you His child, the work of His hands in Holy Baptism. You are still living in the upside-down world and are not able to see this restoration fully, but by His death, Jesus has turned things right side up. One day He will make it all visible when He returns in glory and brings you into His right-side-up eternity, so that you may stand in awe of the God who saves you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Creator of the stars of night, Thy people's everlasting Light: O Christ, Redeemer, save us all And hear Thy servants when they call. ("Creator of the Stars of Night" LSB 351, st.1)-Rev. Daniel Voth, pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Grand Forks, ND.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Mark 7:31-37Daily Lectionary: 2 Kings 2:1-18; Ephesians 4:1-24 And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, "Ephphatha," that is, "Be opened." (Mark 7:34) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Jesus sighed. You know this sigh. It's the one you might make when you can't believe what you are dealing with. Part frustration. Part sadness. Mix in some disappointment and anger and you have this sigh. How long, O Lord? How long? A man who cannot hear has been brought to Jesus, but he has no idea that he should go to Jesus. Not hearing the voice of a loved one is painful. Not hearing the voice of God through the Holy Scriptures? That is eternally dangerous. Remember, they didn't have printed Bibles in their homes to read like you and I do. "Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ" (Romans 10:17), and this man can't hear the Word of Christ who is standing right in front of him. How often have you turned a perfectly good ear from hearing the Word of Christ? Thus Christ sighs. Frustration, sadness, maybe some anger, at what sin has wrought on mankind. Jesus takes hold of this man to do for him what no one else can do. Jesus saves him. With healed ears, the man can hear the saving Word of Christ. His tongue is released so that he might proclaim salvation by faith in Christ to others who will hear. The Word of Christ to which Paul refers is the entirety of the Bible, climaxing in the Word made Flesh, Christ Jesus, who was sacrificed on the Cross in order that heaven would "ephphatha," be opened, to all who confess with their mouth, their released tongue, "that Jesus is Lord and believe in [their] heart that God raised him from the dead" (Romans 10:9). The preaching of Jesus Christ and Him crucified for sinners opens the ears and releases the tongue that you might hear the Good News of your salvation and sing the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. By Jesus' death on the Cross, heaven has been opened to you, that hearing the Word of Christ, confessing with your tongue that Jesus is Lord, and believing in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, you will be saved. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty and everlasting God, give us an increase of faith, hope, and charity; and that we may obtain what You have promised, make us love what You have commanded; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the 12th Sunday after Trinity)-Rev. Daniel Voth, pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Grand Forks, ND.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the 12th Sunday after Trinity (Psalm 70:2b, 4a, 5b; antiphon: v.1-2a)Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 19:1-21; Ephesians 3:1-21 Make haste, O God, to deliver me! O Lord, make haste to help me! (From the Introit for the 12th Sunday after Trinity) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The words of our text are familiar words. They begin both Matins and Vespers. They are the prayers of David and all the saints, asking that the Lord God not remember our sins, but remember His children. God has the worst and greatest memory. Because of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection, God has the worst memory, an incurable case of amnesia. He can't remember your sins. They have been forgiven, absolved, removed from you completely. Like that answer on the test you just cannot remember, so God cannot remember your sins any longer. They are forgiven in Jesus and forgotten eternally. Because of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection, God has the greatest memory the world has ever known. He knows and remembers you all the time. You are His child with whom He is well pleased. There is no sin in you on account of Christ. The Triune God has written His Name on your forehead with the sign of the Holy Cross in your Baptism. You are marked as one redeemed, one who has been delivered from sin, death, and the power of the devil. That is why when we sing these words, you may see people make the sign of the Holy Cross upon themselves as they remember their Baptisms. Just as God remembers us whom He has delivered, so we remember the One who has delivered us. There will be times in your life when your sins will be hard to forget. They haunt you. Others will remind you of those sins so that you cannot forget them. That is the work of the devil as he seeks your life for himself. It is the devil, the evil one, who remembers your sins and uses them against you to destroy faith.O Lord, "you are my help and my deliverer" (Psalm 70:5b), David prays and teaches us to pray. When the devil, the world, and your flesh seek your life with remembrance of past sins, turn to your Father, who for the sake of Christ remembers your sins no more. What He does remember is that you are His. You are His fully forgiven child with whom He is well pleased on account of Christ Jesus. Make haste, O Lord, to help us remember this each and every day. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. I trust, O Lord, Your holy name; O let me not be put to shame Nor let me be confounded. My faith, O Lord, Be in Your Word Forever firmly grounded. ("I Trust, O Lord, Your Holy Name" LSB 734, st. 1)-Rev. Daniel Voth, pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Grand Forks, ND.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 18:20-40; Ephesians 2:1-22 And Hannah prayed and said, "My heart exults in the Lord; my horn is exalted in the Lord. My mouth derides my enemies, because I rejoice in your salvation." (1 Samuel 2:1)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. I once heard a pastor say that God answers prayer in four ways: "Yes," "No," "Let's do it my way," "You've got to be kidding me!" Paul writes, "For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we proclaimed among you … was not Yes and No, but in him it is always Yes" (2 Corinthians 1:19). God's answer to prayer is always, "Yes." It may not seem like it this side of heaven, because that "Yes" often includes "In God's time, according to God's way." Hannah had no children. She prayed to God for a son and in due time, God's "Yes" was manifest. Hannah's boy was Samuel, a great prophet and last judge in Israel. After Samuel was born, Hannah "lent him to the Lord" (1 Samuel 1:28) and sang a prayer, the opening verse of our text for today. Does it sound familiar? Hannah's song foreshadows another sung prayer we call the Magnificat, the Song of Mary in Luke 1. Both of these faithful women rejoiced in the promises of the Lord God that He would provide salvation for His people. For Hannah, it would be the life-long service of her boy child to minister to the people of God. For Mary, it would be the life-giving sacrifice of her boy child to save the world. Both of these faithful women believed the Word that God's messenger delivered to them, no matter how unlikely it seemed that that Word could be fulfilled. This, then, is what we learn from God's Word via these faithful women: What God has spoken through His Word, He will bring to fulfillment. God promised Eve that a day would come when one of her sons would crush the works of the devil. God inspired Hannah's son Samuel to prophesy that one of David's sons would sit on God's throne forever. Mary's Son was the fulfillment of these promises. Jesus is the Son of David, the Christ, by whom the ancient serpent is crushed as Jesus dies on the Cross to forgive sin, all sin, your sin. In Holy Baptism, God has declared you His child, born not of a woman, but of the Spirit. When you pray to your Father in heaven, like Hannah, He will answer you with a resounding, "Yes," according to His will. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. To Hannah, praying childless Before Your throne of grace, You gave a son and called him To serve before Your face. Grant us her perseverance; Lord, teach us how to pray And trust in Your deliv'rance When darkness hides our way. ("For All the Faithful Women" LSB 855, st.6)-Rev. Daniel Voth, pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Grand Forks, ND.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 15:1-10Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 18:1-19; Ephesians 1:1-23 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. (1 Corinthians 15:3-4) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Paul makes it very simple. There is one message, one Gospel, that saves: Christ died for your sins in accordance with everything God has ever said in the Bible. Christ was buried. Christ was resurrected on the Third Day, again in accordance with everything God has ever said in the Bible. Believe this, hold fast to this, cling to this for dear life, for it is life, eternal life, life that knows no end. Change the message and you don't have the Gospel. Make the message about you and your life, not the death and resurrection of Jesus, and you don't have the Gospel. Ignore the Old Testament and you lose the richness of the Gospel that looked forward to and predicted that Jesus would have to die to forgive your sins and be raised to life again to grant you eternal life. Skip Good Friday and the death of Jesus, and there's no reason for an Easter Sunday. Leave Jesus dead on the Cross and you've got no hope in this life and certainly not in the age to come. This is of first importance, the most important of the importants: Jesus died for your sins, was buried, and three days later arose to life that will not end. Nothing else changes your life now and your life to come in eternity. This earliest version of our creeds, and their source, is why we confess the creeds every day and especially on Sundays. When something is important you want to remember it all the time. So confess the creed every day. It will guard and protect you from ever forgetting what is the most important thing in life: the Good News, the Gospel in which you stand, by which you are being saved. Christ died for your sins in accordance with the Scriptures, He was buried, and was raised to life on the Third Day in accordance with the Scriptures. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. If Christ had not been raised from death Our faith would be in vain, Our preaching but a waste of breath, Our sin and guilt remain. But now the Lord is ris'n indeed; He rules in earth and heav'n: His Gospel meets a world of need—In Christ we are forgiv'n. ("If Christ Had Not Been Raised from Death" LSB 486, st.1)-Rev. Daniel Voth, pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Grand Forks, ND.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Lord's Prayer, Seventh PetitionDaily Lectionary: 1 Kings 16:29-17:24; 2 Corinthians 9:1-15 But deliver us from evil. What does this mean? We pray in this petition, in summary, that our Father in heaven would rescue us from every evil of body and soul, possessions and reputation, and finally, when our last hour comes, give us a blessed end, and graciously take us from this valley of sorrow to Himself in heaven. (Small Catechism: Seventh Petition) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Yesterday, we heard about the temptation which Cain gave into that caused him to sin. The Lord had warned Cain that sin was "crouching at the door" (Genesis 4:7), waiting to pounce like a lion ready to kill its prey. Peter writes, "Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour" (1 Peter 5:8). You can hear the same language in what Peter writes as you do when the Lord speaks to Cain and which Luther echoes in the catechism. Evil is all around us. We don't have to go searching for it. It finds us. Like a lion crouching in readiness to pounce on its prey, so the devil, along with the world and our own sinful flesh, is ready to unleash all sorts of evil on us in an effort to cause us to reject God and His gift of salvation in Christ Jesus. Thus Jesus teaches us to pray for ourselves and all other Christians that our Father in heaven would save us. Save us from the assaults of the evil one. Save us from the unbelieving world that wants us to be just like it. Save us from our own flesh that would rather indulge in sin and  would reject salvation by grace through faith in Christ Jesus. Save us He does. In love, the Father sent His Son into this world to rescue, to save us from sin, death, and every evil, including the evil one, the devil. Jesus has taken an evil death away from us by His death on the Cross and given to us His blessed resurrection, so that when our time on this earth comes to its end, we can fall asleep in Jesus in peace. In Jesus, we have been delivered from the great evil of unbelief and we look forward to the day when Jesus will call us to Himself where we will be eternally freed from all evil of body and soul. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Lead us not into temptation, O Lord, but help us by Your Spirit to subdue our flesh, to turn from the world and its ways, and to overcome the devil with all his wiles. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer. Amen.-Rev. Daniel Voth, pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Grand Forks, ND.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Genesis 4:1-15Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 12:20-13:5, 33-34; 2 Corinthians 8:1-24 And the Lord said, "What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground." (Genesis 4:10)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Lord says to Cain, "What have you done?" It echoes what the Lord said to Adam and Eve, "Where are you?" (Genesis 3:9) We all have Cain in us. In his anger, Cain was tempted to sin. You are tempted in various ways to sin. The Lord comes to you through His Word to empower you to resist temptation and not sin. Yet, because like Cain you are a child of Adam and Eve, you give into temptation and sin. Sin results in consequences. For Cain, it means he becomes a fugitive and wanderer of the earth, always on the verge of death. You and I, because of our sin, are fugitives from God and wanderers of this earth, too, always on the verge of death. Along comes another shepherd, the Good Shepherd who is led outside of the city to be killed. Abel points us to Jesus. The Good Shepherd has been killed outside the city to save sinful fugitives and wanderers. Jesus has been killed to forgive you all your sins, all the times you have given into temptation and sinned. Then He was buried. His bloody corpse was laid in a tomb in the ground. Your brother's blood cries to the Father from the ground. And what does it cry? The Lord says, "What have you done?" and the voice of your brother Jesus' blood cries out, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34). The blood of Christ Jesus, your brother, cries out forgiveness, for you. Therefore, you are no longer a fugitive. "Now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ" (Ephesians 2:13). You are no longer a wanderer. "In my Father's house are many rooms. . . If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also" (John 14:2-3). You have been marked with the sign of the holy Cross in Holy Baptism, so that death can no longer kill you eternally. The voice of the blood of your brother Jesus, the Good Shepherd, has cried out a better Word than the blood of Abel, a Word of Absolution for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In Adam we have all been one, One huge rebellious man; We all have fled that evening voice That sought us as we ran. But Thy strong love, it sought us still And sent Thine only Son That we might hear His Shepherd's voice And, hearing Him, be one. ("In Adam We Have All Been One" LSB 569 sts.1, 3)-Rev. Daniel Voth, pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Grand Forks, ND.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Mark 6:14-29Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 11:42-12:19; 2 Corinthians 7:1-16 When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed, and yet he heard him gladly. (Mark 6:20b) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. John the Baptist was not out to win friends. He was sent by God to call people to confess and repent of their sins, to change their sinful ways, and return to the Lord God and His way. Your pastor is called to do the same thing. He is called to make you uncomfortable, so uncomfortable that you might want to shut him up and tuck him away where he can't be heard anymore. John also pointed to Jesus as "the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). Your pastor is called to do the same thing. We call this preaching Law and Gospel. The Law as contained in the Ten Commandments shows us our sins, like committing adultery in the case of Herod and Herodias. It makes us uncomfortable because we don't like to think of ourselves that way. We don't like hearing that we are sinners who sin in thought, word, and especially in deed. That's why we need preachers to put God's Law into our ears and hearts to convict us of our sins and call us to repentance. The Gospel is the Good News that Jesus is the Lamb of God, who was sacrificed on the Cross to take away the sin of the world–to take away your sin, all your sins of thought, word, and deed. Again, you need a preacher to put God's Gospel into your ear so that by the Holy Spirit you believe it. Then, like Herod, you can gladly hear God's Word of Law and Gospel through your pastor. It may often perplex you, it may confuse you, and it might not always make sense, but you should gladly hear and learn it. As strange as it may sound that God would send His only-begotten Son into this world just to kill Him on the altar of the Cross, that is the Gospel, the Good News of salvation for you. By His death on the Cross, Jesus has taken away your sin and forgiven you all your offenses against the Ten Commandments, in order that when you are laid in a tomb, you will be with Jesus, kept safe for eternity. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Our thanks for John the Baptist Who, till his dying day, Made straight paths for the Savior And heralded His way! In witnessing to Jesus Through times of threat or shame May we with faith and courage The Lamb of God proclaim. ("By All Your Saints in Warfare" LSB 518, st.24)-Rev. Daniel Voth, pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Grand Forks, ND.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 18:9-14Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 11:1-26; 2 Corinthians 6:1-18 "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!" (Luke 18:13b) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. You there! Do you think you are basically a good person who does good things when given the opportunity? Do you talk about yourself and your accomplishments every chance you get? Are there more selfies on your phone than pictures of others? Is everything you do posted on social media for others to like or comment on? Do you talk trash or gossip about those who are not in your friend group or who are just plain different? That is the Pharisee in our reading. He's self-assured, with no self-esteem issues. He's who we all are according to our human nature. And that's not a good thing in the eyes of God. Stare into the mirror of the Ten Commandments. See what a poor, miserable sinner you are. See that you sin in thought, word, and deed, all the time. Confess, that is, say back to God what He says about you. You are dead in your sins and trespasses. You have sinned by your fault, your own fault, your own most grievous fault. For you, Jesus died. God has been merciful to you, a sinner. God has in Christ Jesus absolved you of all your sins and washed them all away in the waters of Holy Baptism. The Holy Spirit brings you to repent of your sins like the tax collector does, so that the mercy of God overwhelms you with His forgiveness and justifies you because of Jesus's death. In Jesus, you have been exalted with Jesus. Not your doing, but His doing for you. Jesus came to save sinners. He came to show mercy to those who do not deserve it in any way, shape, or form. Jesus came for you. In mercy, the Father sent His Son Jesus to be the One who justifies, saves you, so that you can stand up straight and lift your eyes up to heaven to see the place of your salvation — Jesus on the Cross for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty and everlasting God, always more ready to hear than we to pray and to give more than we either desire or deserve, pour down upon us the abundance of Your mercy, forgiving those things of which our conscience is afraid and giving us those good things that we are not worthy to ask, except through the merits and mediation of Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.(Collect for the 11th Sunday after Trinity)-Rev. Daniel Voth, pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Grand Forks, ND.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the 11th Sunday after Trinity          (Psalm 68:1, 3, 7a, 10b, 19; antiphon: v.5b, 6a, 35b)Daily Lectionary:1 Kings 9:1-9; 10:1-13; 2 Corinthians 5:1-21 O God, when you went out before your people, in your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy. Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears us up; God is our salvation. (From the Introit for the 11th Sunday after Pentecost)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Introit for tomorrow is drawn from the words of Psalm 68. Like all the other psalms, the 68th is a prayer. It doesn't seem to us like much of a prayer because it doesn't ask for anything. Instead, it is a song of thanksgiving for the great works of God. That's how prayer is sometimes. There are days when we can only cry out to God from within our pain. Sometimes we run out of words to say or are so beaten down that we have to rely on the Holy Spirit to cry to God on our behalf (Romans 8:26). And then there are days when we are filled with joy and our prayers reflect it. If you take a quick look at just a handful of psalms, you'll find both kinds of prayer. We are blessed to have the psalms to pray from our own lips.Psalm 68 moves us to praise God for His goodness. He is the God who rescues His people. He scatters His enemies and those who hate Him flee before Him! He gives power and strength to His people and provides for the needy. He bears us up and He is the God of our salvation. When the devil, the world, and your own sinful flesh tell you that God is not for you, pray this psalm. When your guilty conscience shouts that you could never be forgiven, pray this psalm. When shame over sin makes you feel completely unlovable, pray this psalm. When the events of your life scream at you that God is absent, pray this psalm. For the One who bears you up is the One who was lifted up on a cross to remove the burden of your sin and shame. Jesus is the One who settles you into a home called the Church. Jesus is the One who is your salvation from death! Indeed, blessed be the Lord, who daily bears you up. God is your salvation. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.  Father like He tends and spares us; Well our feeble frame He knows; In His hand He gently bears us, Rescues us from all our foes. Alleluia, alleluia! Widely yet His mercy flows. ("Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven" LSB 793, st.3)-Rev. David Magruder is pastor of Peace With Christ Lutheran Church, Fort Collins, CO.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 8:22-30, 46-63; 2 Corinthians 4:1-18We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. (2 Corinthians 4:8-10)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When Christianity is depicted apart from crosses, it always makes them scarier when Christians find out God actually does give them things they can't handle all the time, despite clinging to a mistranslated verse that doesn't actually say what they think it does.  Because it isn't you who handles all the stuff that's bigger than you. It's Jesus. Christianity is never depicted apart from suffering because our symbol is Christ crucified for us sinners. A God who won't associate with suffering is not a God who exists to be crucified for you. So there will be suffering because Jesus suffers for you to forgive you.  There's still suffering now, too, and it's maddening. On its own, it's soul-destroying. So Paul gives us something to cling to. We carry in our bodies the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in us. We are baptized into Jesus' death. Into Jesus' resurrection. That changes things. The world is bigger than you and full of things you can't handle. But you carry with you the death of Jesus, suffering used for salvation, so the world cannot crush you. You carry in your body the Baptism He gives you, so you cling to the resurrection that gives you hope in the face of questions you can't answer. You are not forsaken, because God is in the suffering with you and for you. So you are already brought through suffering. It cannot destroy you.  The existence of God doesn't preclude the existence of suffering. It confirms it. You have a God who saves through the Cross. That's a God who dives into suffering to save, so He's a God who dives into suffering to carry you through yours, even if it's more than you can handle. This is what it is to remember your Baptism. You are baptized. Make the sign of the cross. Read 2 Corinthians 4:8-10. The life of Jesus that you carry speaks to your pain. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Despised and scorned, they sojourned here; But now, how glorious they appear! Those martyrs stand, A priestly band, God's throne forever near. On earth they wept through bitter years; Now God has wiped away their tears, Transformed their strife To heav'nly life, And freed them from their fears. They now enjoy the Sabbath rest, The heav'nly banquet of the blest; The Lamb, their Lord, At festive board Himself is host and guest. ("Behold a Host, Arrayed in White" LSB 676, st.2)-Rev. Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Lord's Prayer, Sixth PetitionDaily Lectionary: 1 Kings 7:51-8:21; 2 Corinthians 3:1-18 Lead us not into temptation. (Small Catechism: Lord's Prayer) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. After "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us," God teaches us to pray, "lead us not into temptation." I wonder if it's to remind us that Christian life isn't linear. You can take the Fifth Petition and run in a straight line one of two ways. The first is the idea of onward and upward. "I'm forgiven and now I build and that only goes one way. Constant improvement until perfection. Until I basically don't sin. Christian life is only measured by progress." The second way is straight on in what we were doing in the first place. "Since I'm forgiven, I might as well keep sinning." We read, "Shall we sin that grace may abound?" and then quickly stop reading before it says, "BY NO MEANS."  That leads to "Since I know I'm forgiven I'll just do whatever I want." Don't worry about who your sins hurt, don't worry about the God who calls us to strive against those desires. Christian life is measured only in freedom to do whatever you want while yelling stuff about grace. Both are wrong. You're given this petition so you remember not just that you're forgiven, but that you're still in a bad spot. We pray, "Lead us not into temptation." It's not onward and upward or right on in sin. It's death and resurrection. We are constantly in need of the forgiveness that comes through the Cross, and constantly strive to live in the resurrection's freedom from sin. We constantly beg to be free from temptation because we're constantly falling into it. It's war against Old Adam, but it's fought in Christ, not in you. He has already won the victory.   There is no comfort in beating the drum of the Law. There is no real comfort in claiming that your actions should have no consequences while everything else falls apart because you keep doing dumb stuff. There is comfort in the Lord who tempts no one. We pray in this petition that God would guard and keep us so that the devil, the world, and our sinful nature may not deceive us or mislead us into false belief, despair, and other great shame and vice. Although we are attacked by these things, we pray that we may finally overcome them and win the victory.   We pray that we would see the victory we already have in Christ and cling to Him until we see it face to face. Christian life is measured by Jesus' bringing us through sin and death to resurrection. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Lead not into temptation, Lord, Where our grim foe and all his horde Would vex our souls on ev'ry hand. Help us resist, help us to stand Firm in the faith, a mighty host, Through comfort of the Holy Ghost. ("Our Father, Who from Heaven Above" LSB 766, st.7)-Rev. Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Luke 22: 24-30Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 5:1-16; 2 Corinthians 1:23-2:17 "But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves." (Luke 22:26)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. St. Bartholomew is my favorite apostle. He's the Charlie Brown of the blessed Twelve. He's the kid who never fits in. He has one of the best lines in Scripture, as the first person to recognize the divinity of Jesus, but John calls him by the wrong name because John's too busy nursing a grudge he still has with Peter 40 years after they argued about who the greatest is. Bartholomew never got to do any of the cool apostle stuff like see the Transfiguration. After Luke closed the letter to Theophilus by talking about the all-stars, like Peter and Paul, St. Bart was martyred in modern-day Turkey for faithful preaching. They skinned him alive. So the Roman Catholics made him the patron saint of leatherworkers, which is amazing. They pray to the guy who got skinned alive for wallets. And this dude just points to Jesus, despite being overlooked and degraded. And he still sings for us in heaven with angels and archangels and the rest of the bunch. In the movies, he would get superpowers and finally be the cool kid. Or take off his glasses so everyone at the dance would see he's been handsome all along. In the movies, people like Bartholomew aren't the main character unless something extraordinary happens. In real life, Bart was never the main character, but he served. There is no real lordship in being the greatest, just idolatry. See St. Bart, patron saint of the bullied and the neglected. Praying to him won't get you a wallet or a moment in the spotlight. He'd rather you pray to Jesus, whom he confessed as Lord, whom he faced the grave to meet in the resurrection. If you see yourself in St. Bart, know that the Lord sees you, too, and joins you as the same. He is the One who serves. He is the One who bears the Cross for those who can't save themselves. He is the One who gathers into Sabbath rest those who find none in this place. And He knows your name, and calls you out of this vale of tears to the resurrection, to sing with the blessed saints who have gone before you, while the angels sing along. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. For Barnabas we praise You, Who kept Your law of love And, leaving earthly treasures, Sought riches from above. O Christ, our Lord and Savior, Let gifts of grace descend, That Your true consolation May through the world extend. ("By All Your Saints in Warfare" LSB 518, st.7)-Rev. Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Romans 9:30-10:4Daily Lectionary:1 Kings 3:1-15; 2 Corinthians 1:1-22 But that Israel who pursued a law that would lead to righteousness did not succeed in reaching that law. Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as if it were based on works. (Romans 9:31-32a)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. There is nothing wrong with trying to do your best. It is what is expected of you at school, at home, and at work. Your neighbors (teachers, family, and your boss) are blessed by such efforts. But don't bring that idea into your relationship with God. It didn't work for Israel and it won't work for you. The huge rock of the Law will crush you under the weight of its demands; the perfection that God's Law requires of you will always be out of reach. The apostle Paul works this truth to a fine point in our reading for today. Israel couldn't reach a right relationship with God because they had the devilish idea that it was up to them to make it happen. They ran smack into the promise of God to save the world by His mercy. They stumbled over it, and kept on going with the idea that they had to do more good things to gain God's approval.You get sucked into thinking that way as well. Repent. "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes" (Romans 10:4). No more struggling and striving to keep the Law for salvation! The Law works as a pointer, an arrow aimed straight at the target of Christ. Christ Jesus is where we find that the demands of God's Law have been met. God's righteousness is met in Him as well. Jesus' perfect keeping of God's Law is what makes you right with God. His perfect life is given into death in your stead—instead of you! You get all the benefits of what Jesus did with no strings attached. Faith trusts this promise, and faith is what you have been given as pure gift from the Triune God! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Law reveals the guilt of sin and makes us conscience-stricken; but then the Gospel enters in the sinful soul to quicken. Come to the cross, trust Christ, and live; the Law no peace can ever give, no comfort or no blessing. ("Salvation Unto Us Has Come" LSB 555, st.8)-Rev. David Magruder is pastor of Peace With Christ Lutheran Church, Fort Collins, CO.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Jeremiah 8:4-12Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 2:1-27; 1 Corinthians 13:1-13 "Even the stork in the heavens knows her times, and the turtledove, swallow, and crane keep the time of their coming, but my people know not the rules of the Lord." (Jeremiah 8:7)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. A bird has more sense than you do! That is the message God used to invite His people to return to Him. We call that the preaching of repentance. The people rejected the invitation and yet Jeremiah kept up the call. The meaning of Jeremiah's preaching is clear: Even the birds, irrational creatures, know their appointed time and return to their homes, which they have left. Instinctively, they follow the pattern fixed for them by their Creator: They travel hundreds of miles, because that's what they've been created to do. Unbelieving Jerusalem had sunk below the common sense of a bird!  What is sadder than the people's refusal to hear the Word and return to the Lord their God is that they had forgotten how much God loved them. "My people know not the rules of the  LORD." That is a tricky translation. The Hebrew word is mishpat, which means righteous judgment. It's not just rules to be followed but also a declaration of innocence. The people were so caught up in themselves that they pushed aside the mercy and promises of God: His just decrees and the justice He had done and would do for them. That is a picture of us, too. Sad to say, but we know it is true. Thankfully, God still sends Jeremiah to stick His Word into our ears and to call us to repentance and faith. God the Father would fulfill all His righteous promises in Christ. Instead of pouring out the punishment for sin upon the world, the Father pours it on His Son. At the Cross, the righteous judgment of the Law is proclaimed. Jesus is overthrown in death, but only for a time. Jesus, the perfect One, rises from the grave and brings you along with Him. Jesus took your place in death on a cross and in a stone-cold tomb so that you would know God's righteous judgment: You are free from sin and death in Jesus. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Now my conscience is at peace; from the Law I stand acquitted. Christ hath purchased my release and my ev'ry sin remitted. Naught remains my soul to grieve: Jesus sinners doth receive. ("Jesus Sinners Doth Receive" LSB 609, st.7)-Rev. David Magruder is pastor of Peace With Christ Lutheran Church, Fort Collins, CO.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 19:41-48Daily Lectionary: 1 Kings 1:1-4, 15-35; 1 Corinthians 12:14-31 And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, "Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes." (Luke 19:41-42)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Interesting, isn't it? Jerusalem contains the word "peace" (salem) in its name yet does not recognize the peace of God in the flesh as He prepares to enter her gates. As Jesus wept at the death of His friend Lazarus and the lack of faith that doubted Jesus could call him out of the grave, so Jesus weeps over a people who cannot know and see (believe) that He has come to bring them peace. But those tears do not keep Him from His appointed task. In Luke 18, Jesus told His disciples what would take place in Jerusalem: "See we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished. For he will be delivered over to the Gentiles and will be mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon. And after flogging him, they will kill him, and on the third day, he will rise" (Luke 18:31-33). Ironically, Luke tells us that this news was hidden from the disciples' eyes as well. Why would these things be hidden from their eyes? Because Jesus needed to fulfill His work. Nothing of what He said or did would make complete sense until He died and rose from the dead. The people of Jerusalem sought peace by other means. The disciples wanted a "Son of Man" who would be triumphant, not someone who would die nailed to a Roman cross. We tend to make our own "peace" treaties with God on our own terms.But it is the Cross and, finally, the resurrection of Jesus that changes everything. Your eyes have been opened to see and your hearts made new to believe: "Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:1). Jesus does not now weep over you. He rejoices over you who are baptized and receiveHis peace! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. O God, You declare Your almighty power above all in showing mercy and pity. Mercifully grant us such a measure of Your grace that we may obtain Your gracious promises and be make partakers of Your heavenly treasures; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Rev. David Magruder is pastor of Peace With Christ Lutheran Church, Fort Collins, CO.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the Tenth Sunday after Trinity          (Psalm 55:1, 4-5, 16; antiphon: v.16a, 17b, 18a, 22a)Daily Lectionary: 2 Samuel 12:1-25; 1 Corinthians 12:1-13 I call to God, and he hears my voice; He redeems my soul in safety. (From the Introit for the Tenth Sunday after Trinity)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Object fixation is when a kid rides his bike into the tree he doesn't want to hit because he can't stop looking at the thing he wants to avoid. I'm fine, if you were wondering. Object fixation is when Christians are so afraid of something summed up under "sin, death, and the power of the devil," that they lose sight of everything else and it becomes their only prayer, which ignores the Cross of Christ, even though the things summed up under "sin, death, and the power of the devil" are the very things undone by the Cross of Christ.   The Introit begins out of order, but not. It grabs verses 16, 17, 18, and 22 and knits them together to teach the Church to begin to pray with the same Cross that is woven throughout this and every psalm. We pray based on the redemption won in Christ Jesus. I call to God, and He hears my voice; He redeems my soul in safety. It confronts our object fixation with the Jesus who wasn't afraid to run into the thing we're trying to avoid but keep crashing into. He dives into the mess of sin, death, and the power of the devil and conquers them by His death for you. Read the Introit, and start with the redemption, the victory, and the burdens, the pleas for mercy, the fear, and trembling that are met by a God who will hear your prayer as surely as He has already redeemed you back from the things you pray for refuge from. Your salvation isn't measured by whether or not you find yourself running into some form of those ugly three things anymore. It's measured by whether or not Jesus ran into them for you. He did. So if you find yourself barrelling towards death like I theoretically ran into a hypothetical tree (really, I'm fine), start with the Cross, and find the victory over that thing that's bigger than you. Christ has guaranteed your safe passage into the resurrection by His death. You are redeemed. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In faith and confidence draw near, Within the holiest appear, With all who praise and pray; Who share one family, one feast, One great imperishable Priest, One new and living way. ("No Temple Now, No Gift of Price" LSB 530, st.3) -Rev. Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: 2 Samuel 11:1-27; 1 Corinthians 11:17-34 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. (1 Corinthians 11:26)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. You can take communion wrong. It's not just that it's rude to party in front of starving people. To eat or drink unworthily is to be guilty before Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead on the Last Day. That probably warrants more than a halfhearted hope that someone reads the fine print on a communion card hidden in the back of the pew. If we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged. That says something about those who, misjudging, leave the gates wide open. Shall the apostle commend you in this? Nah. Instead, he gives them the gift anyway. "For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, 'This is my body, which is for you…'" I'd have taken the gifts away. Paul only reinforces what the Sacrament is, what it does, and who it's for.  It's still Jesus for sinners. The Lord doesn't dangle the forgiveness of sin in front of the worthy. To a church full of sinners, He gives a gift so powerful that it warrants care. This is not a chapter about withholding the Sacrament. It's a promise that God won't withhold His presence from His Church, even if there are wicked people there. That's good news. God will not stand back from you. He meets you at the altar in Body and Blood to forgive your sins. If you would stand before Him in unbelief, woe to you, but your unbelief cannot deter Him from standing before you.  It shapes the proclamation you make of the Lord's death. It's not for the worthy. Jesus died for sinners. Jesus died for you. Your proclamation at the Supper is that your worth is found in the price paid for you: the very blood you drink for the forgiveness of your sins. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Unworthy though I am, O Savior, Because I have a sinful heart, Yet Thou Thy lamb wilt banish never, For Thou my faithful shepherd art: Lord, may Thy body and Thy blood Be for my soul the highest good! ("I Come O Savior, To Thy Table" LSB 618, st.3) -Rev. Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 10:6-13Daily Lectionary: 2 Samuel 7:18-20; 1 Corinthians 10:23-11:16 Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. (1 Corinthians 10:12)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The apostle Paul was a super-religious guy in his previous life. We also know him as Saul of Tarsus, a Pharisee of Pharisees. He had his religious life all neatly packaged up, ready to give to God with the expectation that God would reward him for his good efforts and works. Paul would learn, in baptismal wonder, that such ideas were foolish (Acts 9). Salvation does not rest in any human. It is a gift granted for the sake of the death and life of Jesus alone. It seems like Paul is quoting a proverb he surely had memorized in his Pharisee days: "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall" (Proverbs 16:18). Some in the church at Corinth prided themselves on their own super religiosity and spiritual strength. They should be careful, Paul warns, not to fall from grace. That is a good warning for us as well. It keeps us from centering our life of faith on us instead of the One who really makes it all possible. It works repentance in us and moves us back to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. Along with Paul's warning, he adds a beautiful word of promise: We will not be tested beyond our God-given capacity. When faced with trials, we can count on God's faithfulness. "God is faithful, and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation He will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it" (1 Corinthians 10:13).God remains faithful to the promise He made to you in Baptism. He will be with you always (Matthew 28:20). He has joined you to Jesus, the One who overcame every temptation and trial by His perfect obedience and death. The resurrected Jesus is there with forgiveness and mercy when you do fall. With every trial He will give you strength to endure, and will, in His own time, create the "way out"! In Christ, there is no need to stand on anything but His promise! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Why should cross and trial grieve me? Christ is near with His cheer; never will He leave me. Who can rob me of this heaven that God's Son for me won when His life was given? ("Why Should Cross and Trial Grieve Me" LSB 756, st.1)-Rev. David Magruder is pastor of Peace With Christ Lutheran Church, Fort Collins, CO.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Lord's Prayer, Fifth PetitionDaily Lectionary: 2 Samuel 7:1-17; 1 Corinthians 9:24-10:22 Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. (Small Catechism: Lord's Prayer) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. This is one sentence we wish was two separate things. Having my forgiveness and my willingness to forgive others linked together is a damning thing. Still, Jesus is clear. In Matthew 6:14–15 He says, "For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." It sounds like my grudge from the sixth grade is enough to undo my Baptism. It sounds like my heart is enough to undo the Cross.  That's because looking in my heart for forgiveness never goes particularly well. Ask the kid I still don't like from middle school even though I can't remember his last name anymore. Forgiveness doesn't come from your heart. It comes from the Cross. The forgiveness for your sins comes from the Cross, not from your asking for it. Jesus died 2000 years before you could ask Him to forgive you. Faith clings to this forgiveness and finds comfort there.  It works that way for your neighbor, too. Forgiveness for their sins comes from the Cross to address your heart, too. All forgiveness comes from the Cross. When we stop looking there for forgiveness, that's a problem. We pray in this petition that we would see our enemies the same way Jesus sees them: died for. Either there's forgiveness for sinners or there's not. Saying there's no forgiveness for sinners isn't going to work out well for you. Taking your grudges to the Cross and seeing that your neighbor's sins against you were so vile that He had to bleed to cover them is a gift. Look at a crucifix and see the nails in the hands of our Savior. That is where your neighbor's sins are punished. That is where wrath is abated. Seeing justice was done lets you see your neighbor as someone who doesn't owe you anything anymore. Jesus paid it.  Forgiveness isn't about what we deserve. It's about what was given. You don't earn your forgiveness by forgiving others. Instead, you get to see the God who forgives whether you're angry or not, and you get to say, "Amen." This is true. I'm angry, but they're still forgiven. Lord, address my heart with comfort so that I can find peace in your Cross, forgiveness for my sins, and forgiveness for my neighbors, too. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Forgive our sins, Lord, we implore, That they may trouble us no more; We, too, will gladly those forgive Who hurt us by the way they live. Help us in our community To serve each other willingly. ("Our Father, Who from Heaven Above" 766, st.6)-Rev. Harrison Goodman is content executive for Higher Things.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: 2 Samuel 22:26-34Daily Lectionary: 2 Samuel 6:1-19; 1 Corinthians 9:1-23 He makes my feet like the feet of a deer and sets me secure on the heights. (2 Samuel 22:34)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Really, David? Your elderly feet like the feet of a deer? You couldn't even protect your old self from the Philistines and had to be told by your soldiers to just stay home and not get yourself killed (2 Samuel 21:17). David believed something that his soldiers would not: God the LORD was at work for the sake of His people. Whether David lived or died, it was the mercy of the LORD that would endure. The perfect Word of the LORD always proves true; He is a shield for all who take refuge in Him, old and young alike. David believed the promise that God had made to Adam and Eve, confirmed to Abraham, and restated to him: God would send One who would redeem the world from sin and the death that comes through sin. He would send One who would be King over all the world and live forever. The LORD kept His promise and sent to the world David's greater son, Jesus. Jesus brings the light of forgiveness and life into the darkness of the world. Jesus is the mercy of God in the flesh. Jesus is blameless yet bears our blame and guilt on the Cross. Jesus rose from the grave and will give our dead bodies their resurrection, too. Jesus sets us secure on the heights, washed and fed at His font and table. Old David wasn't delusional, he was filled with faith by the mercy of God. He lived by faith in God's promise that even his tired old bones would be renewed in resurrection life. His sin would be answered for by another, Jesus, and his way made pure and blameless for all eternity.Such is your life. The merciful LORD has redeemed you in His Son. Your sin is answered for and your death overcome by the Christ. "This God – His way is perfect; the word of the LORD proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in Him" (2 Samuel 22:31). In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. This is a sight that gladdens – What peace it doth impart! Now nothing ever saddens the joy within my heart. No gloom shall ever shake, no foe shall overtake the hope with God's own Son in love for me has won. ("Awake My Heart, with Gladness" LSB 467, st.3)-Rev. David Magruder is pastor of Peace With Christ Lutheran Church, Fort Collins, CO.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 1:39-55Daily Lectionary: 2 Samuel 5:1-25; 1 Corinthians 8:1-13  And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name." (Luke 1:46–49)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Church honors significant people of faith throughout the year. They serve as witnesses to us of the faithfulness of God and we are therefore encouraged to follow their example in faith and life. This day, we give thanks to God for Mary, the mother of Our Lord. In his magnificent commentary on the Song of Mary, Luther wrote these words: "Whoever, therefore, would show her (Mary) the proper honor must not regard her alone and by herself, but set her in the presence of God and far beneath Him, must there strip her of all honor, and regard her low estate, as she says; he should then marvel at the exceedingly abundant grace of God, who regards, embraces, and blesses so poor and despised a mortal. Thus regarding her, you will be moved to love and praise God for His grace, and drawn to look for all good things to Him, who does not reject but graciously regards poor and despised and lowly mortals. Thus your heart will be strengthened in faith and love and hope. What do you suppose would please her more than to have you come through her to God this way, and learn from her to put your hope and trust in Him, notwithstanding your despised and lowly estate, in life as well as in death?""Notwithstanding your despised and lowly estate"—what wonderful words! Mary recognizes the truth. She is not worthy of this gift from God, yet she receives it in faith. Mary is a picture of us! We deserve the fruits of our sin—death! But in Mary's Son we are given resurrection life. Notwithstanding our despised and lowly estate, we are highly exalted by God and remembered in His mercy. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty God, You chose the Virgin Mary to be the mother of Your only Son. Grant that we, who are redeemed by His blood, may share with her in the glory of Your eternal kingdom, through Jesus Christ, Your Son, Our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God now and forever. Amen.-Rev. David Magruder is pastor of Peace With Christ Lutheran Church, Fort Collins, COAudio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 16:1-13Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 25:1-22; 1 Corinthians 3:1-23"You cannot serve God and money." (Luke 1:13)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Yes, Jesus, we get it. We cannot serve God and money. If only it were that simple. The new you in Christ says a loud, "Amen," to the word of Jesus that concludes the parable of the rich man and the shrewd manager. However, the old sinful you cannot say, "Amen," to Jesus' conclusion. We are faithless in the management of much and very little. We love money and the security it brings. If only we had more. We serve money with our time and talent as if it were a god and not a gift from the One whose hand supplies all our needs of body and soul. We get it all backward: We live in service to money instead of recognizing that money serves us. So this parable becomes a call to repentance. Put to death the dishonesty and idolatry that dogs you day by day. We pray with saint/sinner David, "Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin" (Psalm 51:1-2).The key to wrapping your heart and mind around the meaning of this parable is to focus on the mercy of the rich man, not the dishonesty of the manager. Mercy.The dishonest manager was commended because he chose to serve his lord, whom he trusted would be merciful. He used unrighteous wealth to achieve his goal, though he trusted not in the wealth but in his merciful master. In Luke 12:34 Jesus said, "For where your treasure is, there also your heart will be." Faithful disciples will be commended for seeing that the crucified and risen Jesus is their treasure, and for trusting in His mercy. And that mercy is delivered to and for you this day in Jesus' Body and Blood which keeps you, body and soul, now and forever. That's mercy! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Let your merciful ears. O Lord, be open to the prayers of Your humble servants; and that they may obtain their petitions, make them to ask such things as shall please You; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the Fifth Sunday after Trinity)-Rev. David Magruder is pastor of Peace With Christ Lutheran Church, Fort Collins, CO.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschStudy Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the Ninth Sunday after Trinity (Psalm 54;1-3, 7; antiphon: v.4-5)Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 31:1-13; 1 Corinthians 7:1-24To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments. A Maskil of David, when the Ziphites went and told Saul, " Is not David hiding among us?"(Introduction to Psalm 54)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We're already familiar with the jealousy and murderous actions of King Saul's attempts to take the life of David. Psalm 54, the Introit for tomorrow, was written by King David during this same period, when he was in hiding from the murderous rage of Saul, and was betrayed by Ziphites who told the King his whereabouts.   Like David, you may have experienced betrayal. It's a terrible, hurtful experience. All kinds of emotions arise; from confusion and sadness, to hurt and anger, to fear and doubt. Psalm 54 gives voice to these emotions and helps us to commend our circumstances to God. David prays, telling God of his situation: "Strangers have risen against me; ruthless men seek my life" (Psalm 54:3). He prays for God's help: "O God, save me by your name, and vindicate me by your might" (Psalm 54:1). He expresses his trust that God will make things right: "Behold, God is my helper; the Lord is the upholder of my life. He will return the evil to my enemies; in your faithfulness put an end to them" (Psalm 54:4-5). And finally, he remembers how God has delivered and helped him in the past: "For he has delivered me from every trouble, and my eye has looked in triumph on my enemies" (Psalm 54:7).  David couldn't have known how his prayer would perfectly parallel the experience of his descendant Jesus. Jesus was betrayed by Judas, with a kiss. He was abandoned by the rest of His disciples in His time of need. He was betrayed by His own people who shouted, "Crucify Him! Crucify Him!" But His trust in the Father never wavered. Perhaps He even prayed this psalm that day. God vindicated Him by raising Him from the dead, and now He stands in triumph over all His enemies. If you have been betrayed, look to Christ who was betrayed for you. See in His Cross and resurrection the embodiment of God's faithfulness to you. Take upon your lips the words of Psalm 54, commending yourself to God. And know that your faith in Christ will be vindicated on the Last Day.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty God, graciously behold this Your family from whom our Lord Jesus Christ was willing to be betrayed and delivered into the hands of sinful men to suffer death upon the cross; through the same Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for Good Friday)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 28:3-25; 1 Corinthians 6:1-20Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. (1 Corinthians 6:9-11)In the Name + of Jesus.  Amen. The above list is not exhaustive. You could add "murderers" and "persecutors" to the list, and Paul himself would be included. Paul, like the Christians whom he served, had a past. He was part of the mob that stoned Stephen, the first New Testament martyr (Acts 7:58; 8:1), and he was a persecutor and violent opponent of the first Christians (1 Timothy 1:13). But Jesus had lovingly and firmly called him to repentance on the Damascus road (Acts 9), sent him to a preacher where he heard the Gospel and was washed in Baptism, sanctified by the Holy Spirit, and justified in the Name of Jesus Christ. Paul was a changed man. So were the Christians in Corinth, whom Paul had evangelized. Some of them had similarly dark pasts. But they, too, had been brought to repentance and faith through Paul's preaching of Law and Gospel. They were changed men and women, but that didn't mean that their struggles with sin were over. They were constantly tempted to slip back into the sins which once held such sway over their lives and sometimes, in weakness, they gave in to those temptations. Their lives would be those of daily repentance and faith, living in the forgiveness of sins. As Christians, their sins no longer defined them. No longer were they sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, etc. They had a new identity in Christ. Paul was warning them not to abandon their new identity and return to a life defined by unrepentant sins, but instead to embrace their true identity in Christ and live as those redeemed by Christ.       The same is true for you. Like Paul and the Corinthians, you may have a past, too, one that still tempts and troubles you. But that past doesn't define you. Christ does. You have been watermarked in your Baptism, sanctified by the Holy Spirit and justified in Jesus' Name. And that life, the life of the redeemed is far better. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Now my conscience is at peace; From the Law I stand acquitted. Christ hath purchased my release And my ev' ry sin remitted. Naught remains my soul to grieve: Jesus sinners doth receive. ("Jesus Sinners Doth Receive" LSB 609, st.6)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 26:1-25; 1 Corinthians 5:1-13It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you. . .  a man has his father's wife. . .  deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord. (1 Corinthians 5:1-5)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Paul had some difficult things to say to the church in Corinth. They were tolerating sexual immorality in their midst. A man had even taken his father's wife to be his own. Apparently, none of their pastors or leaders were willing to exercise church discipline and in failing to do so, they had failed to truly love this man.  Now, that might sound strange to you. Most people think of love as a feeling. We feel loved when those around us do and say things that make us feel good, and we often conclude that it would be unloving to ever say anything that might make a loved one feel bad. Even though the Bible speaks of reproof, rebuke, and correction, according to God's Word, as loving acts (2 Timothy 3:16; 4:2), we find ourselves hesitant to do such truly loving works, for fear of being "unloving."    "My son, do not despise the Lord's discipline or be weary of his reproof, for the Lord reproves him whom he loves as a father the son in whom he delights" (Proverbs 3:11-12). Just as a father disciplines his children out of love, Paul was loving this man and the Corinthian congregation when he boldly rebuked them. And even though he instructs them to take the extreme measure of delivering the man to Satan (excommunication), his ultimate desire is that this act of church discipline would finally bring him to repentance "so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord."Being called to repentance is not a pleasant experience, but it is necessary. Holding on to our sins in unrepentance is to despise Christ and His sacrifice for sinners. Those who gently, or when necessary, firmly, call us to repentance, are people who truly love us. They care more about our salvation than they do about our approval. Let us thank God for them, heed their loving rebuke, repent, and return to Christ our Savior who has delivered us from our sins and freed us to walk in newness of life. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Breathe, O Breathe Thy loving Spirit Into every troubled breast; Let us all in Thee inherit; Let us find Thy promised rest. Take away the love of sinning; Alpha and Omega be; End of faith, as its beginning, Set our hearts at liberty. (Love Divine, All Loves Excelling" LSB 700, st.2)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Fourth Petition of the Lord' s PrayerDaily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 25:23-44; 1 Corinthians 4:1-21Give us this day our daily bread. (Small Catechism: Fourth Petition of the Lord' s Prayer)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Luther's explanation says, "God certainly gives daily bread to everyone without our prayers, even to all evil people." If that's true, then why do we need to pray for it? If our praying doesn't earn our daily bread, then why pray at all?Luther's list of the things included in "daily bread" are the very things we spend our lives trying to get. Our lives are filled with anxious work and worry because we think our daily bread depends on our own efforts. Look at Luther's list and consider how much of your life is filled with the pursuit of these things: "Daily bread includes everything that has to do with the support and needs of the body, such as food, drink, clothing, shoes, house, home, land, animals, money, goods, a devout husband or wife, devout children, devout workers, devout and faithful rulers, good government, good weather, peace, health, self-control, good reputation, good friends, faithful neighbors, and the like."We need to pray for daily bread so that we might be set free from our worry and anxious labor. We need to "realize this," that God is the source of our daily bread, and to confess this with our mouth by asking Him for what He has promised to give. In so doing, we will receive our daily bread—not as something we have earned, but as a gift from God—"with thanksgiving."For we do have such a gracious God who can be trusted to provide. After all, has He not already given us the far greater gift of salvation in His Son, Jesus Christ? "He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?" (Romans 8:32) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving; make melody to our God on the lyre! He covers the heavens with clouds; he prepares rain for the earth; he makes grass grow on the hills. He gives to the beasts their food, and to the young ravens that cry. His delight is not in the strength of the horse, nor his pleasure in the legs of a man, but the LORD takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love. (Psalm 147:7–11)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Acts 20:27-38Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 25:1-22; 1 Corinthians 3:1-23And there was much weeping on the part of all; they embraced Paul and kissed him. (Acts 20:37)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Why was there so much weeping from the Ephesian elders? Why did they hug and kiss Paul, sad to see him go? They were emotional because of their great love for Paul. And they loved Paul, most of all, because he had proclaimed the truth to them.The last couple of Reflections have warned us against false teachers and their wicked fruit of false doctrine. We are to "watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that [we] have been taught" and "avoid them" (Romans 16:17). But how should we respond to those who proclaim God's truth to us?The Ephesian elders provide us with a good example. Among them were Jews who had spent their whole lives desperately trying to earn God's favor by keeping the letter of the Law. Also among them were Greeks, raised in idolatry and wickedness. All had been lost in sin, futilely trying to save themselves. But now they knew the true God of love who sent His Son to rescue them from their sin. And who was it that brought them this good news? Paul! They loved him so, because he had delivered to them the greatest gift of all—God' s true words of freedom and life.Paul didn't tell them what they wanted to hear. Paul says, "I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you in public and from house to house, testifying both to Jews and Greeks of repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ" (Acts 20:20–21). The Holy Spirit accompanied his preaching, bringing each of these men to repentance and faith. In many ways, then, they owed their eternal lives to the man who had proclaimed this saving Gospel to them.So have you been blessed with people who have proclaimed and taught you God's true Word. Whoever they are, be they parents or grandparents, other relatives or friends, and especially your pastors, God has worked through them to give you the greatest gift of all—repentance and faith in Jesus Christ leading to eternal life. Recognizing the great gifts that they have brought to you, how can you not treasure them, love them, and thank God for them? In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Christ, our true and only light, Enlighten those who sit in night; Let those afar now hear Your voice And in your fold with us rejoice. ("O Christ, Our True and Only Light" LSB 839, st.1)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Jeremiah 23:16-29Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 24:1-22; 1 Corinthians 1:26-2:16"Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you, filling you with vain hopes. . . they say continually to those who despise the word of the Lord, ‘It shall be well with you' ; and to everyone who stubbornly follows his own heart, they say, ‘No disaster shall come upon you.' " (Jeremiah 23:16–17)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Again, we see how seriously God warns us about the dangers of false prophets. Jesus said, "You will recognize them by their fruits" (Matthew 7:16). One fruit of false teachers is that they are quick to tell you what you want to hear. The hard thing about speaking the truth is that sometimes folks don't want to hear it. Paul warned young Timothy, "The time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from the truth. . . " (2 Timothy 4:3–4). Any pastor who tries to preach and teach God' s truth as revealed in Holy Scripture quickly encounters those with itching ears who will reject him for his message. And immediately following that, he is faced with the intense temptation of the flesh to tell people what they want to hear in order to avoid suffering and be liked by all.That is why Paul exhorted Timothy to "be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort with complete patience and teaching" (2 Timothy 4:2). God's truth demanded that Timothy do unpleasant things like reproving, rebuking, and exhorting. Our challenge is that God's Word says things we don't want to hear. No one enjoys being reproved or rebuked. But as unpleasant as it is, you need your sins exposed, or else you will go on in your sins, despising God's Word, and stubbornly following your own heart, all the while thinking "all is well with me" and "no disaster shall befall me."What you need is a faithful preacher, willing to speak the truth, not false teachers telling you what you want to hear. Salvation is not a vain hope in yourself; it is sure hope in Christ crucified and risen for you. Faithful preachers are willing to say the hard words to you, so that you will be ready to receive the good words in faith. And the good Gospel words are these: "It shall be well with you IN CHRIST," and, "No disaster shall befall you IN CHRIST." In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Preach you the Word and plant it home To men who like or like it not, The Word that shall endure and stand When flow' rs and men shall be forgot. ("Preach You the Word" LSB 586, st.1)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 7:15-23Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 20:24-42; 1 Corinthians 1:1-25"Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits." (Matthew 7:15–16a)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Why can't we all just get along? Why is the Church so fractured, divided, and engaged in endless doctrinal arguments? Wouldn't it be better to set aside our differences and try to work together for the sake of the Church? You know, people who believe the Bible is God's Word and those who don't; those who celebrate homosexuality and those who call it sin; those who teach that Baptism saves and those who say it's only a symbol. Are these issues (and so many others) really worth dividing the Church? Can't we all just get along? It certainly would make for more peaceful lives and a more peaceful church. But there's just one little problem: Jesus won't have it!He's dead serious about the dangers of false teaching. He calls the false prophets "wolves"—a demonic name. They are rotten trees with bad fruit which shall be cut down and thrown into the "fire"—a designation for hell. It sounds harsh, but Jesus is trying to impress upon us the seriousness of false doctrine. Our God is a God of truth. The truth He reveals in His Word is for our good and for our salvation. Any teaching that contradicts the truth is an attack on our salvation."Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 7:21). All the false religions of men teach that the will of the Father is salvation by works. But in truth, this is the will of the Father: that the Son drink the cup of His wrath, and spill His blood on the Cross. The will of the Father is that you take and drink the lifeblood of His Son in Holy Communion, for the remission of your sins. The saving truth is that Christ has paid your debt. Your sins are forgiven. You are blessed and loved by Him. And if Jesus needs to get a little harsh with the false teachers to protect that truth, so be it. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Grant to us, Lord, the Spirit to think and do always such things as are right, that we, who cannot do anything that is good without You, may be enabled by You to live according to Your will; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the Eighth Sunday after Trinity)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Introit for the Eighth Sunday after Trinity (Psalm 48:1, 3, 11, 14; antiphon: v.9-10)Daily Lectionary:1 Samuel 20:1-23; Acts 28:16-31We have thought on your steadfast love, O God, in the midst of your temple. (From the Introit for the Eighth Sunday after Trinity)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Tomorrow is the Lord's Day. Once again, we will go to the house of the Lord for worship. And it's good for us to occasionally ask ourselves: Why do we do this? Why do we go to church? Do we go to stroke God' s ego and tell Him how great He is? Do we go to church because God said we have to, and will be mad at us if we don' t?"We have thought on your steadfast love, O God, in the midst of your temple." That's what the Old Testament saints thought about church. To be sure, God commanded them to go, and the psalms they sang were full of praise for God. But God is not insecure. Nor does He issue commands simply to burden His children with yet one more thing to do to appease Him. Instead, God's faithful people knew that He only commanded that which was good for them. And when it came to praising God, well, they just couldn't help it. Why? Because there, in the temple, they received the greatest gifts of all. There they meditated upon God's steadfast love, remembered His mercies, and received that love again in the forgiveness of their sins. There in the temple they met with God and received His gift of forgiveness through the Old Testament sacrificial (sacramental) system.When their weak flesh tried to convince them that they had better things to do, God's command rebuked their flesh, and God's promises motivated them to come in faith. And as they received the Gifts, they could not help but praise His holy Name.Tomorrow is the Lord's Day. Your flesh may offer up reasons not to go to church, but God's command is there to curb the flesh, and His promises of forgiveness, life, and salvation remind you of the great blessings you will receive there. It's really quite amazing and wonderful! God Himself shows up in every congregation where the Word of God is preached purely and His Sacraments are administered according to Christ's institution. There, love and forgiveness are poured out upon God's faithful people as they gather in His presence. And in receiving these Gifts, God's people cannot help but thank and praise their gracious God. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Open now thy gates of beauty; Zion let me enter there, Where my soul in joyful duty Waits for Him who answers prayer. Oh, how blessed is this place, Filled with solace, light, and grace! ("Open Now Thy Gates of Beauty" LSB 901, st.1)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 19:1-24; Acts 28:1-15And Jonathan spoke well of David to Saul his father. (1 Samuel 19:4)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. David's troubles with Saul continue in today's reading. Saul is still plotting and scheming to take David's life. But here we learn that David had an intercessor and friend in Saul's son Jonathan, who spoke on behalf of his friend David. How bold Jonathan was in his dealings with his father for the sake of his friend. In faith and love he obeyed the Eighth Commandment, defending David and speaking well of him, all at great risk to himself.In this, Jonathan is a picture of Christ, our truest friend and intercessor. The circumstances are not exactly the same. After all, we are guilty, whereas David, as Jonathan said, "has not sinned against you (Saul), and his deeds have brought good to you" (1 Samuel 19:4). Furthermore, Saul was a wicked man, motivated by sinful jealousy, but God is righteous, holy, and pure.This means Jesus, as our friend and intercessor, has a much harder job defending us than Jonathan did defending David. We are not innocent. We have earned God's righteous wrath. We have sinned against our king and deserve to die. How will our intercessor and friend, Jesus, appease God our king?In a far greater way than Jonathan, Jesus took all the risk upon Himself. To save us from God' s righteous wrath, He took our place, bearing the punishment that was meant for us. Risen from the grave, and seated at God' s right hand in glory, Jesus is our advocate before the Father. He says to His Father, "Behold My friends. See how I have paid for their sins, forgiven them Myself, washed them clean in Baptism, and filled them with My own life. Not a spot, not a blemish, not a stain of sin remains in them."Jesus welcomes us into His kingdom and presents us before His Father cleansed and redeemed, righteous, holy, and pure. And the Father cannot but agree with His Son. He relents from His righteous wrath and welcomes you into His presence with open arms.What a wonderful friend and intercessor you have in Jesus! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Jesus, hail! Enthroned in glory, There forever to abide; All the heavenly hosts adore Thee, Seated at Thy Father's side. There for sinners Thou art pleading; There Thou dost our place prepare, Ever for us interceding Till in glory we appear. ("Hail, Thou Once Despised Jesus" LSB 531, st.3)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 18:10-30; Acts 27:27-44 Saul was afraid of David because the LORD was with him but had departed from Saul. (1 Samuel 18:12)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Speaking of tyrannical kings (recall the Reflection from the Seventh Sunday after Trinity) and evil plans and purposes of the devil (yesterday's Reflection), we have in 1 Samuel 18:10–30 the incarnation of both. Saul had become a wicked king, and God had withdrawn His blessing from him. David, however, had already been chosen by God as Saul's successor, and it was clear that God's blessing rested upon him. Not only did God give David success in battle, He also led David to love and be respectful of his enemy. This seemed to enrage Saul even more. By trickery, deceit, and outright violence, Saul tried time and again to end David's life. But God hindered the evil plans and purposes of Saul (which were of the devil) and protected and defended His chosen servant, David.David foreshadows another chosen servant of the Lord: Jesus the Christ. He, too, was hated by jealous foes who tried and even succeeded in killing Him, "although he had done no violence and there was no deceit in his mouth" (Isaiah 53:9b). As was the case with Saul, so it was with Jesus' enemies. The devil and his evil plans and purposes lay behind their jealous rage. But even though they succeeded in putting Him to death, God did not abandon His soul nor let His body see corruption (Psalm 16:10). Even death could not defeat Him.And death cannot defeat you, either. The devil and all this world's tyrants rage against Christ, against the Church, and against you. Even though, in Christ, you love your enemies and seek their good, so often your faithfulness and love enrage them even more. Their evil plan and purpose is for your destruction. But you are God's chosen in Holy Baptism. You are His own beloved people. They can rage, plot, and try their best to bring about your destruction. But all their plans shall fail. For you are the ones redeemed by the blood of your Savior, Jesus. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Though devils all the world should fill, All eager to devour us, We tremble not, we fear no ill; They shall not overpow'r us. This world's prince may still Scowl fierce as he will, He can harm us none. He's judged; the deed is done; One little word can fell him. ("A Mighty Fortress Is Our God" LSB 656, st.3)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Third Petition of the Lord' s PrayerDaily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 17:48-18:9; Acts 27:9-26Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. (Small Catechism: Third Petition of the Lord' s Prayer)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. God's will is done when He breaks and hinders every evil plan and purpose of the devil, the world, and our sinful flesh. God gave His Word to Adam and Eve—His good command not to eat of the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. The devil hated God and enacted his evil purpose and plan for the downfall of the man and woman whom God had created in love. He tempted them to disobey God's Word of life, bringing sin and death into the world. Since then, Satan's evil purpose and plan have continued to be the downfall of man. And ever since the Fall, the sin-corrupted world and our sin-corrupted flesh have been his allies. Luther called the devil, the world, and our sinful flesh the "unholy trinity," a united terrible force bent on our eternal destruction. Only one man stood in their way—the God-man, Jesus Christ. Here the Creator of the world, who had taken on uncorrupted human flesh, stood stronger than the devil. Only He could oppose the "unholy trinity" and have a prayer of winning. Imagine the devil's sinister glee when his greatest enemy was crucified, dead, and buried. Little did he know that the Cross was his undoing. For there at the Cross, God offered Himself in the place of sinners. Jesus "overcame the assaults of the devil and gave His life as a ransom for many." He "was sacrificed for us and bore the sins of the world. By His dying He has destroyed death, and by His rising again He has restored to us everlasting life."This is God' s will—to save you, to defeat the "unholy trinity" in His Cross and resurrection, to baptismally unite you to Jesus in His dying and rising, to give you faith so that you hallow God' s holy Name, live as a citizen of His kingdom, and be strengthened and kept firm in His Word and faith until you die and are raised to live with Him forever. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Christ the Lord of hosts, unshaken By the devil's seething rage, Thwarts the plan of Satan' s minions; Wins the strife from age to age; Conquers sin and death forever; Slams them in their steely cage. Jesus came, this word fulfilling, Trampled Satan, death defied; Bore the brunt of our temptation, On the wretched tree He died. Yet to life was raised victorious; By His life our life supplied. ("Christ, the Lord of Hosts, Unshaken" LSB 521, st.1, 4)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Romans 6:19-23Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 17:20-47; Acts 26:24-27:8The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:22–23)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Adam earned his wages when he ate the forbidden fruit, and death has reigned ever since. Adam was the first, but you have earned your wages, too. Death is coming for you. Death is what you have earned for your sins.How foolish, then, is the idea that anyone could earn salvation. And yet, that is the one thing  religions apart from Christianity have in common. All non-Christian religions, and sadly, even some who claim to be Christian, teach ways you can save yourself, whether by obedience, sacrifices, right worship, or going after a kind of intellectual or spiritual enlightenment. Even those who claim no religion at all seek to make themselves righteous by strongly (and sometimes obnoxiously) supporting the latest social causes of the day. They may not even believe in God or in heaven or hell, but with religious enthusiasm they try to make themselves righteous through activism.The Holy Spirit, speaking through the writings of Paul, demolishes all such schemes. "The wages of sin is death." If you have sinned, even once, then you have already earned your wages, and they will be paid. "The soul who sins shall die" (Ezekiel 18:20). If you wish to escape this fate, it will not be the result of anything you do, because everything you do is done by a sinner. Salvation, then, cannot be achieved, won, or earned by you. Instead, it is achieved, won, and earned by Jesus and then given to you. And it's given freely, because there is nothing in you worthy of the gift. To be sure, it's good, even demanded, that we "learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, and plead the widow' s cause" (Isaiah 1:17). These things are good, but they are not Jesus. Only Jesus can save.Receive salvation from Jesus. Rejoice in it. Thank the Lord and praise His holy Name. Study the Bible and grow in wisdom, understanding, and good works. Serve your neighbors and bless them. But never forget that "the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Thy love and grace alone avail To blot out my transgression; The best and holiest deeds must fail To break sin' s dread oppression. Before Thee none can boasting stand, But all must fear Thy strict demand And live alone by mercy. ("From Depths of Woe I Cry to Thee" LSB 607, st.2)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Genesis 2:7-17Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 17:1-19; Acts 26:1-23The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. (Genesis 2:9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Artwork often portrays the Tree of Life as bright and beautiful, green and full of delectable fruit, while the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil is dark and ugly, scraggly, with a single poison apple attached. This is inaccurate. God called all that He made very good. Both trees were beautiful, reflecting the beauty of their Creator. Both trees were good.If anything, the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil was the most beautiful and most precious of all the trees, since this tree had God's Word attached to it. Before the Fall, God's Word of command was received by Adam as a gift from God. "For man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God" (Matthew 4:4). Luther, in his great Genesis commentary, pictures this tree as the place of worship. Adam and his wife would have gathered at the tree. Adam would preach God's Word about the tree, and they would worship their good God by keeping His Word—admiring the tree but leaving the fruit alone.God's words are good. His commands are good and beautiful and precious. Only sin makes disobedience attractive. Because of sin, the minute God tells us, "No," we want to do it more than ever. How sad it is that the serpent tempted them, and that they were deceived and transgressed the command, plunging the world into sin and death. Now God's commands seem burdensome rather than good. Now every forbidden fruit seems irresistible."To Jesus we for refuge flee, Who from the curse has set us free, And humbly worship at His throne, Saved by His grace through faith alone" ("The Law of God Is Good and Wise" LSB 579, st.6).We flee to Jesus, the new and greater Adam, whose obedience is credited to us, and whose payment for guilt has set us free. And basking in His forgiveness and life, we learn, more and more, to love God's Word, and even His good commands. And soon, in the resurrection of all flesh, our lives will wholly conform to God's good and beautiful Word. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Our works cannot salvation gain; They merit only endless pain. Forgive us Lord! To Christ we flee, Who pleads for us endlessly. Have mercy, Lord! ("These Are the Holy Ten Commands" LSB 581, st.12)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Mark 8:1-9Daily Lectionary:1 Samuel 16:1-23; Acts 25:13-27"I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat." (Mark 8:2)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Speaking of kings (see yesterday' s Reflection), here we see Jesus, doing what good kings do: providing for His people in their time of need. Jesus has gone into the wilderness and crowds have followed Him, eager to hear His words of eternal life. In their eagerness, they took no thought for their own provision, and now they are in danger of fainting from hunger on the way home.Jesus has compassion on them. But it's also a test for His disciples. He wants them to learn to imitate His compassionate ways. There are a few factors that might get in the way of their compassion. First, the crowd is made up of mostly Gentiles, people traditionally looked down upon and despised by the Jews. Second, one could argue that the people are in this situation due to their own negligence. What were they thinking, wandering off into the wilderness without bringing provisions? How irresponsible of them! Third, the disciples themselves have only seven loaves of bread and a few small fish. If they share what they have, they may find themselves fainting on the way home.With these three strikes against compassion, the disciples fail the test. "How can we feed THESE people in this desolate place? They're Gentile sinners. They should have been more responsible. They have only themselves to blame. We came prepared. Why should we share with them and go hungry ourselves?"Jesus is undeterred. He has compassion on the people. And, as God in the flesh, He provides for their needs. His compassion also extends to His disciples. He doesn't condemn them for their failure. He has them distribute the food so that they will learn to love sinners as He loves sinners. He feeds them, too, with more to spare. Thus, they learned to trust Jesus, and to be generous, even in times of scarcity. And by this example, so do we."Praise Him for His grace and favor To His people in distress; Praise Him still the same as ever, Slow to chide and swift to bless: Alleluia, Alleluia! Glorious in His faithfulness" (LSB 793, st.2). In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. O God, whose never-failing providence orders all things both in heaven and earth, we humbly implore You to put away from us all hurtful things and to give us those things that are profitable for us; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the Seventh Sunday after Trinity)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Introit for the Seventh Sunday after Trinity      (Psalm 47:3, 6-8; antiphon: v.1-2)Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 15:10-35; Acts 24:24-25:12Clap your hands, all peoples! Shout to God with loud songs of joy! For the LORD, the Most High, is to be feared, a great king over all the earth. (Psalm 47:1–2)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Americans have a hard time with the idea of God as our king. We threw off the rule of King George III in the American Revolution and haven't had a king since. We red-blooded, freedom-loving Americans wouldn't want a king, either.And there are some good reasons for that. Samuel warned the people of Israel about the negative consequences of having a king over them (2 Samuel 8:10–18). Jesus acknowledges that earthly kings often abuse their authority: "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you" (Matthew 20:25). When sinful men are given that much power, there is always a temptation toward corruption and tyranny. The annals of history are filled with stories of wicked kings.Is that the kind of king God is? Certainly not! Our God and king does not rule over us for His own gain or benefit. He does not abuse or take advantage of His subjects. He has no sinful nature to tempt Him to corruption or tyranny. Our God who is love (1 John 4:8) has committed Himself to us, and uses His almighty power for our benefit and for our good. To have such a king is a blessing, not a curse. So when you think of God as king, remember that He is king in the very best sense of the word, a king who provides for His people, who defends them from their enemies, and who fights for them, giving them victory over their foes.In fact, the most helpful way to think of God as king is to look to Jesus Christ. Learn from Him what a good king is. See how Jesus, the compassionate king, provides for His people as you read tomorrow' s account of the feeding of the 4,000. That was but a preview of the ultimate provision of salvation and eternal life that His reign will bestow on His people. For Jesus will come into His kingdom on the Cross, and there win the victory for us over sin, death, and the devil, providing for us the forgiveness of sins and eternal life. Here is truly a king worth praising! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen..Praise, my soul, the King of heaven; To His feet your tribute bring; Ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven, Evermore His praises sing: Alleluia, Alleluia! Praise the everlasting King. ("Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven" LSB 793, st.1)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 14:47-15:9; Acts 24:1-23"Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him." (John 11:10)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Today the Church commemorates three siblings and friends of our Lord: Mary, Martha, and Lazarus of Bethany. Jesus had friends! Sometimes we forget that. But Jesus calls His disciples "friends" (John 15:15). And Jesus had other friends as well, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus included.In the two famous accounts of Jesus' interaction with these friends, we see Jesus doing the kinds of things friends do. He visits Mary and Martha for a dinner party (Luke 10:38–42) and teaches them an important lesson about the priority of hearing His Word. Later, Jesus grieves over the death of their brother Lazarus (John 11). We can relate. We've probably all been over to a friend's house for dinner, and many of us have grieved the death of a friend.Can you imagine what it would be like to have Jesus as your friend? He who fed thousands with a few loaves and fishes might be a pretty awesome dinner guest. And look at what Jesus did for Lazarus, raising him from the dead! (Read John 11 for the whole story.) Being friends with Jesus is a wonderful thing!You might think, "I could never be Jesus' friend. He's so powerful and holy, and I'm a dirty, rotten sinner. Even if He were my friend, I would just let Him down." And there's a lot of truth in that, for in your sin, you made yourself His enemy. You broke the relationship and betrayed your friend. There's nothing you can do to ever make that right. Only Jesus can.You have failed, but Jesus was faithful. "Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:6–8). You have no truer friend than Jesus, who loved you while you were His enemy and gave His life for you. And He has made you His friend by the gift of faith.One day soon, you will sleep as Lazarus slept. But fear not! Jesus, your true and faithful friend, who is the "resurrection and the life" (John 11:25), will come to awaken you to eternal life. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Thee will I love, my life, my Savior, Who art my best and truest friend. Thee will I love and praise forever, For never shall thy kindness end. Thee will I love with all my heart—Thou my redeemer art. ("Thee Will I Love, My Strength, My Tower" LSB 694, st.2)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Romans 6:3-11Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 13:1-18; Acts 23:12-35So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. (Romans 6:11)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Through Baptism you are united with Jesus Christ in His death and resurrection. His death counts as your death, and His resurrection is the certainty of your own resurrection.There' s no doubt that you deserve to die. "The wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23). Just one sin, one little white lie, one selfish thought, one slip of the tongue. . . just one of these deserves death, eternal death. If you think this is unjust, it simply proves again the depth of your rebellion against your creator. You're so sinful you think it's no big deal! So yes, you deserve to die.One way or another, you will die. If you die going your own way, you die forever. But there's another way to die, without dying forever. Paul speaks of it in Romans 6. "Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?" (Romans 6:3). This means that God' s gift of Baptism has bridged the gap between you and Calvary. Jesus' death is now your death. It's as if you were there with Him as He hung on that Cross, as He gave His last breath. It's as if you were the one there dying for your sin. On the Cross Jesus was carrying the sins of the whole world. All God's wrath, all His anger over your sin, was taken out on Jesus, and He died. Your death is no longer required as payment for your sin, all because you are joined to Jesus in Baptism.But wait, there' s more. Jesus died, but He didn't stay dead. Paul goes on to say, "If we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his." If His death is your death, certainly His resurrection is your resurrection. "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" (1 Corinthians 15:55). Your death will be "but a slumber" (LSB 938, st.1). No need to fear death. Your death will be like His. Your death will end in resurrection and eternal life. And all because you are baptized! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.In baptism we now put on Christ—Our shame is fully covered With all that He once sacrificed And freely for us suffered. For here the flood of His own blood Now makes us holy, right and good Before our heavenly Father. ("All Christians Who Have Been Baptized" LSB 596, st.4)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Second Petition of the Lord' s PrayerDaily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 12:1-25; Acts 22:30-23:11Thy kingdom come. (Small Catechism: Second Petition of the Lord's Prayer)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. God's kingdom does not consist of a land with borders, a castle or palace, or an earthly ruler enthroned with a scepter in his hand, wearing a golden crown and royal robes. God's kingdom is Jesus. Jesus said, "The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!' or ‘There!' for behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst" (Luke 17:20). As He said these words, Jesus was literally standing "in the midst" of a group of Pharisees, so when He said, "The kingdom of God is in your midst," He was referring to Himself!The Pharisees weren't praying for God's kingdom to come—at least, not in the Person of Jesus Christ. The kingdom came to them without their prayers. They would reject and crucify their king, but He would still be their king. His royal scepter would be a reed, His crown a crown of thorns, and His royal robes a blood-soaked purple robe of mockery and shame. The Cross would be His royal throne, and from there the riches of His kingdom would be bestowed upon all mankind.You do not make Jesus your king by your prayer or decision. Some Christians imagine that Jesus can't be your king until YOU "make Him the Lord of your life," as if Jesus were incapable of being your king until you "let" Him be. Jesus is already the King of kings and Lord of lords. He rules over all creation by His divine power, and He will rule in glory for all eternity. You don't make Him your king; He makes Himself your king. That's what happened when you were baptized. Jesus, your king, chose you to be His own, to live under Him in His kingdom, the Church, which is His own Body, in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness.That's what we're praying for in this petition. We're thanking King Jesus for making Himself our king and we are asking our king to defend us from the evil one, provide for us the gifts of salvation, give us the Holy Spirit and the gift of faith, and rule in our hearts and in our lives until He comes again in glory. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Your kingdom come. Guard Your domain And your eternal righteous reign. The Holy Ghost enrich our day With gifts attendant on our way. Break Satan's power, defeat his rage; Preserve your Church from age to age. ("Our Father, Who from Heaven Above" LSB 766, st.3)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Exodus 20:1-17Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 10:1-27; Acts 22:17-29"I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery." (Exodus 20:2)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Before the Law is given, the Gospel rings forth. God reminds His people that He is their God and they are His people. He chose them to be His own. He delivered them from their slavery in the land of Egypt—a testimony of His love for them.The Ten Commandments, then, are not a list of arbitrary rules handed down from some distant, uncaring, "cosmic kill-joy god." They are the rules and statutes laid down by a loving Father for His own children. These commandments are good, each reflecting God's own goodness. They outline the good life according to God's design, protecting and upholding God's good gifts to us. Our creator God knows what is good for us, and when we keep these commandments, we are truly blessed, and also are a blessing to others.As our loving Father, God is also very serious about these commandments. They reflect God's holiness. They are not a collection of "divine suggestions." Your Father really wants you to lead a holy life, for your own sake and for the sake of others. When you fail to do so, God's good commandments condemn and convict you, showing how you have fallen short in your love for God and for your neighbor. By this word of Law, your loving Father disciplines and chastises you. "For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives" (Hebrews 12:6).Do not despise the discipline of the Lord, but confess: "I, a poor, miserable sinner. . . " You can speak this truth, because your Father is "merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever. He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities" (Psalm 103:8–10). Instead, He deals with you according to His Son, Jesus, who alone obeyed every commandment, and paid the ultimate price for sinners. On Thursday we will see how Baptism unites you to the perfect obedience and atoning sacrifice of Jesus, setting you free—free to be all that Christ has declared you to be. Now, in that freedom, you love the Law and strive to obey your loving Father who has given these commandments to you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.To Jesus we for refuge flee, Who from the curse has set us free, And humbly worship at His throne, Saved by His grace through faith alone. ("The Law of God Is Good and Wise" LSB 579, st.6)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Mark 10:35-45Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 9:1-27; Acts 21:37-22:16"But to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared." (Mark 10:37)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. James and John didn't know what they were asking. They imagined that Jesus, the Messiah, would come into His kingdom in a big, grand, and glorious way, and they wanted in on the action—power, glory, and popularity before men. We crave these things as well, wanting to be liked and glorified by our peers, measuring others' approval by the number of likes on our latest social media post or latching on to the popular people at work or school, hoping to share in their glory.But Jesus is not the way to earthly glory. Instead, those who trust in Jesus are more likely to be hated by the world. All of Jesus' disciples would drink the cup of suffering and be baptized in their own blood at the hands of their persecutors. James, who is remembered today, was the first apostle martyred for the faith, beheaded by King Herod—grandson of the Herod who attempted to murder Jesus in His infancy (Matthew 14:1–12 and Mark 6:14–29).Jesus' glory is completely different. His glory is His mercy and grace for undeserving sinners like James and John—and you. His glory was to drink the cup of God'  anger that sinners deserved and to be baptized in blood as God' s fiery wrath toward sinners was poured upon Him on the Cross. As King Jesus hung upon His royal throne, others were present at His right and His left. Strangely, two robbers received this honor (Mark 15:27). For "the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and give his life as a ransom for many" (Mark 10:45).The glorious ones in Christ'  kingdom are not the wealthy or famous or popular. The glorious ones in Christ'  kingdom are the ones for whom He died: Sinners, robbers, those without a shred of personal worthiness or goodness, who deserve no glory, but are glorified by Jesus' forgiveness, who are baptized in His Name and who drink the eucharistic cup of His Blood. Those two robbers stand for you. You are the glorious ones, made glorious by Jesus' redemption. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Lord, for James, we praise You, Who fell to Herod's sword; He drank the cup of suff'ring and thus fulfilled your word. Lord, curb our vain impatience For glory and for fame, Equip us for such suff'rings As glorify your name. ("By All Your Saints in Warfare" LSB 518, st.21)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Matthew 5:17-26Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 8:1-22; Acts 21:15-36"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them." (Matthew 5:17)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The "Law and the Prophets" are the whole Old Testament: every rule, penalty, prophecy, and promise, and even all the weird stuff, like that rule about not boiling a young goat in its mother' s milk (Exodus 23:19). Not an "iota or dot," that is, not even the tiniest letter or point of punctuation, is to be removed. Far from relaxing even one commandment, Jesus intensifies them all. Take the Fifth Commandment. You might say to yourself, "I'm no murderer. If there's one commandment I've surely kept, it's the fifth!" Then Jesus teaches you that the minute you got angry with your sibling, or insulted someone on social media, you became a murderer (Matthew 5:21–22). So, "unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and the Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." There's no watering down God's requirements to something "doable." The Gospel is not, "We're all sinners but God loves us anyway," as if God were not serious about His requirements. No, you must become more righteous than the most righteous people you can imagine. In Jesus' day those were the scribes and the Pharisees. Actually, "You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect" (Matthew 5:48).Thank God, that's what JESUS came to do: not to abolish the Law or the prophets, but to fulfill them, perfectly, right down to iotas and dots, even the really weird, obscure stuff. (That's right, Jesus showed His respect for God's gift of life to animals by never boiling a young goat in its mother's life-giving milk.) You might say, "So what if He kept them perfectly? I haven't!" True, you haven't, but He has, for you. Not only the rules and regulations but also the penalties. That's what He was doing on the Cross—taking the penalty you deserved into Himself. In Baptism you are joined to Him. The perfect obedience He rendered and the penalty He paid count for you. Scribes and Pharisees trust their own righteousness. You trust Christ's righteousness given to you in Baptism, and that is a far greater righteousness. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord of all power and might, author and giver of all good things, graft into our hearts the love of Your name, increase in us true religion, nourish us with all goodness, and of Your great mercy keep us in the same; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the Sixth Sunday after Trinity)-Rev. Jeffrey Ware is pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Charlotte, NC.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Introit for the Sixth Sunday after Trinity      (Psalm 28:1-2, 7; antiphon: v.8-9)Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 6:19-7:17; Acts 19:1-22To you, O Lord, I call; my rock, be not deaf to me, lest, if you be silent to me, I become like those who go down to the pit. (Psalm 28:1)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. David tells us that the Lord is his rock, his fortress, and his stronghold, the One to whom David turns when he is in need. David prays that the Lord will hear him. If the Lord does not act, then David will go down to the pit, the grave, and he will die. These pleas for mercy come from the heart and mind of one who was painfully aware of His sinfulness. David knew his faults, and by faith, he knew that God alone could save him. In verse 7 we read, "The Lord is my strength and my shield." This is a good reminder for us because the Lord alone is our strength. He is the shield that not only protects us in this life, but also gives us life. Like David, we are sinners. Our lives are filled with things we should not have done and things we should have done. We have failed to keep the commands of God, and without Jesus, we would go down to the pit. The wages of sin is death, and we can only be made right with God by the blood of Jesus shed on the Cross for us. Jesus our Savior died and rose from the dead, so we now have forgiveness and life in His Name. This mercy of God comes to us by faith, and it makes us alive so that we trust in Him and are strengthened in this life. The Lord is your rock. He is the stronghold of your life. He is not silent to us. No, the Lord speaks to us through His Word when we read it. His voice comes to us in church through preaching and teaching. The Lord's Word is proclaimed by the Absolution and when you receive the Body and Blood of Christ. All of these good things are poured out by the One who is never silent, for the Lord hears the prayers of His people and shows mercy to all who cry out to Him. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Lord, continue to hear the prayers of Your servants. Help us always to remember that You alone are our rock and our shield. Thank You for the forgiveness and life You give to us through Your Son, our Savior Jesus. We ask that You help us each day to live and serve You as obedient children. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen.  -Rev. William K. Stottlemyer is pastor of St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hancock, MD.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: John 20:1-2, 10-18Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 5:1-6:3, 10-16; Acts 18:1-11, 23-28Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned and said to him in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means Teacher) (John 20:16)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Mary Magdalene received a number of blessings from the Lord Jesus. In Luke 8:1-3, we read about how Jesus healed her by exorcizing seven demons. Once this miracle happens, Mary follows Jesus, and the blessings continue to come as she listens to the teachings of her Lord. Then in John's Gospel, we read that Mary is the first person to see the resurrected Jesus. At first she does not recognize Jesus. Maybe the tears, and the fact that she was an eyewitness to His death on the Cross, have so clouded her vision that the empty tomb, the angels, and even the appearance of Jesus Himself cannot cut through the sadness that fills her being. Mary is seeking a dead body, for she saw it taken down from the Cross. This living man standing before her could not be Jesus, so he must be a gardener. Mary only knows the truth when she hears, "Mary." The voice of her Savior is unique, it is powerful, and it has authority. Jesus speaks one simple word, and Mary knows who He is. And all is now good. Jesus, who died on the Cross for the sins of the world, is now alive, and He comes with life and salvation. Like Mary, all of us have received blessings from the Lord Jesus. Jesus called you by name. In Baptism He spoke your name and brought life, hope, and salvation to you. No longer are you dead in your sins. Now, because of Jesus, you are forgiven. The blessings of the Lord do not stop with Baptism. Weekly the Lord comes in bread and wine, and at the altar you receive His very Body and Blood, a blessing that forgives your sins, strengthens your faith, and preserves you all the days of your life. One day we will once again hear the voice of our Savior Jesus. On that day, He will call us by name, and we will arise from our graves to live and serve Him forever in Paradise. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, Your Son, Jesus Christ, restored Mary Magdalene to health and called her to be the first witness of his resurrection. Heal us from all our infirmities, and call us to know You in the power of Your Son' s unending life; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for St. Mary Magdalene) -Rev. William K. Stottlemyer is pastor of St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hancock, MD.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 4:1-22; Acts 16:23-40Then he brought them out and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" And they said, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household." (Acts 16:30-31)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The jailer thought he had failed in his duty. As a Roman jailer,  your life was over if your prisoners escaped while in your custody. This man was about to kill himself for his failure when Paul cried out to him. What a sweet message those words of Paul were to a man lost and without hope! This sinner realized that Paul and his companions were proclaiming a message of life and hope to those who were as good as dead. The cry of "What must I do to be saved?" is a cry that all who have been killed by the Law utter. For the Law always leads us to despair of ourselves, to see the gravity of our sins, and to look for help. At this point, when we are dead in sin, the Gospel can come and save us. "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ." The proclamation of the Gospel to the jailer and his family immediately led to Baptism. This man and his whole family received the washing and rebirth that comes to all sinners, regardless of age, when the Word of God is connected to simple water. This water is transformed into a life-giving water that gives faith and life to all who receive it. The Gift that was given that day to the jailer is also given to you. While you are dead in your sins, God calls you by name. He washes you. He makes you alive. He forgives all your sins. He makes you holy. This Gift you receive because of Jesus and the sacrifice that He offered on the Cross through His innocent suffering and death for your sins. Because Jesus has risen from the dead, you also will rise and live with Him in heaven. Rejoice in that gift and believe that the words and promises of God are for you, not just today, but every day of your life. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Dear Lord, awaken us that we may be prepared to receive your Son with joy when he comes and to serve him with a pure heart. Graciously hurry the coming of that day. Bless and prepare us with wisdom and strength that in the meantime we may walk wisely and uprightly. May we joyfully wait for the coming of your dear Son and so depart from this valley of sorrow. Amen. (Luther' s Prayers, ed. Herbert F. Brokering. Augsburg Fortress, p.106) -Rev. William K. Stottlemyer is pastor of St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hancock, MD.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: First Petition of the Lord's PrayerDaily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 3:1-21; Acts 16:1-22God' s name is certainly holy in itself, but we pray in this petition that it may be kept holy among us also. (Small Catechism: First Petition of the Lord's Prayer)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. God is holy, so His Name is always holy on account of who He is. Yet Martin Luther teaches us that we have a responsibility to keep God's Name holy. How can we do this? We can only do this by remaining in the true Word of God. How does this happen? Well, it happens when all of God's Word is taught exactly as God intends it to be taught. The problem we face as churches and as individuals is that our sinful flesh does not ever want to hear the truth. You see, the truth revealed in Holy Scripture shows us our failures. It reveals our sins. It tells us that God does not want us to live as selfish individuals who only think about our own pleasure. The Law of God is intended to kill us, and we don't want to die. That is why it is a struggle to listen to the truth. This difficulty is one of the reasons so many churches distort, change, or ignore portions of the Bible and instead teach some other nonsense. In so doing, they lead people astray and profane the Name of God. By faith we pray, "Hallowed be Thy Name." The Holy Spirit alone has the power to lead us to hallow God' s Name. It is only by faith that you or I can hear and believe all that the Law has to say to us. Then, as we come to a knowledge of the truth, we are able to confess our sins and turn to Jesus, for He alone can forgive our sins. As forgiven children of God, we are called to live holy lives according to the Word of God. All of us do this when we continue steadfast in the Word, listening to what it teaches and doing what it says. As long as we sinners are here on earth, we will continue to do this imperfectly. But because of the sacrifice Jesus offered up by His death on the Cross, we continue to be forgiven of all our sins. So we daily must return to our Baptisms, and there in the water and the Word, we arise new men in Christ, forgiven always. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, help us daily to hallow Thy Name. Protect us from all that would dishonor You and lead us to study Your Word with open hearts and minds. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen.-Rev. William K. Stottlemyer is pastor of St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hancock, MD.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: 1 Peter 3:8-15Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 2:18-36; Acts 15:22-41But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect. (1 Peter 3:15)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In 1 Peter 3, we are told how a believer in Christ is supposed to think, act, and live. What a list of expectations we are to follow! How are you doing? Do you show brotherly love? Are you humble? Do you keep your tongue from evil? Sadly, I know all of us have to confess that we are not good at doing these things. Our sinful flesh does not want to turn from evil. There is many a day that we cannot even go one hour before we fall into sin. So it is important that we always confess our sins and turn to Jesus because He alone can forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Then, as a forgiven sinner who has been washed in the blood of the Lamb shed on the Cross, we can once more go forth and honor Christ, living by faith and doing the things that the Holy Spirit has prepared for us each day. One of the greatest things that we Christians can do is to share the reason for the hope that is in us. This simply means that you have the privilege of speaking about Jesus. You may share with your friends, with your family, with everyone the message that while we were yet sinners, Christ came and suffered and died so that we might be forgiven and brought into the family of God. This is the message we have to share with those who have not yet heard.Peter tells us to do this sharing with gentleness and respect, for we who have been forgiven greatly by Christ know how important it is to speak with love and concern to those who have not yet heard the message of the Gospel. In this way, our words and our actions will mirror Christ and the message that He has for those still lost in sin. It is a message of love, forgiveness, and peace. Share that message as you are led by the Holy Spirit. In the Name + of Jesus. AmenGod, thank You for the forgiveness that You have given to us by Jesus' death on the Cross. Help us each day to live as You desire us to, sharing the hope that is in us so that all might come to a knowledge of Your truth. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen.-Rev. William K. Stottlemyer is pastor of St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hancock, MD.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: 1 Kings 19:11-21Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 1:21-2:17; Galatians 6:1-18And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire, the sound of a low whisper. (1 Kings 19:12)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The appearance of the Lord to Elijah in 1 Kings is not how I would come if I were God. If I were God, I would come in the earthquake and the fire. The full glory of my power would be displayed so that Elijah and the whole world would feel, hear, and see my divine majesty and power. The coming of the Lord should be an event that stops everything and makes everyone take notice. I would come with a vengeance, blasting everyone and everything that fails to do and live as I command. It's probably a good thing I am not God! In 1 Kings, the Lord comes to Elijah, not in an earthquake or fire but in the sound of a low whisper. And what's even more amazing, Elijah recognizes the Lord in the small, quiet sound. He wraps his face and goes out of the cave to listen to and receive God. As one of the greatest prophets, Elijah knew by faith that God works in ways beyond our understanding. The Lord comes often to the world in ways that the world considers weakness. A great example of this is Jesus' death on the Cross. The world looks at this event and cannot imagine how it accomplishes anything. Death is viewed as the ultimate weakness, yet God's power is greatest in the death of His Son. It is by Jesus' death on the Cross and His resurrection that all our sins are forgiven and we are made alive.The smallest whisper from God comes to Elijah that day with a message of hope and direction. This same whisper speaks to us through the pages of Holy Scripture. In a world filled with fires, earthquakes, and great noise, it is only by faith that you and I can stop looking at the world and quiet our hearts and minds to hear the whisper of God. This Word of God will always bring us peace, joy, and contentment, things we need so that we might set out each day doing the things God wants us to. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, we live in a world filled with distractions and turmoil. Help us to listen for Your quiet whispers so that we might find forgiveness, life, and direction in Your holy Word. Today and everyday, continue to pour out Your blessing upon us so that we might live as obedient children, trusting in You. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen.-Rev. William K. Stottlemyer is pastor of St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hancock, MD.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Luke 5:1-11Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 1:1-20; Galatians 5:1-26But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees saying, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord." (Luke 5:8)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The calling of the first disciples has always been a fascinating story for me. The fishermen's day was over. They were getting ready to head home and go to bed after failing to catch anything the whole night. The frustration and plain old tiredness must have pushed them to the very brink. One can almost hear the sarcasm and rising anger in the voice of Simon: "Master, we have toiled all night and took nothing!" After all, the fishermen of Galilee know that you do not catch fish with a net during the day. However, there must have been something about this man Jesus. Maybe it was His voice that commanded attention and obedience. Simon listened and obeyed.You know what happens next. The nets are filled to breaking. The men call for backup, and the catch is so great that both of the boats begin to sink. Simon realizes that he is standing in the presence of the Lord because only God can do such great things. Simon' s revelation, a gift from the Holy Spirit, immediately leads him to the only place that anybody can go when standing in the presence of God. Falling to his knees, he confesses, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man." This, too, must be our confession when we come into the presence of God. Today, as we do every Sunday, we gather in church before the presence of the almighty God. We join with all fellow believers in saying, "I, a poor miserable sinner." We confess that we do not deserve to be in the presence of the Lord, for sinners cannot remain before God.Christ hears this confession and speaks words of comfort to us just as He spoke to Peter. "Do not be afraid," and "I forgive you all your sins." What a gift you and I have received from Jesus on account of His sacrifice on the Cross! Like Peter, we are followers of Christ, blessed children of God who are now able to live and serve God in this life. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, You have prepared for those who love You good things that surpass all understanding. Pour into our hearts such love toward You that we, loving You above all things, may obtain Your promises, which exceed all that we can desire; through Jesus Christ, Your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the Fifth Sunday after Trinity)-Rev. William K. Stottlemyer is pastor of St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hancock, MD.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Introit for the Fifth Sunday after Trinity      (Psalm 27:1a, 11-12, 14; antiphon: v.7, 9b)Daily Lectionary: Judges 16:4-30; Galatians 4:12-31O, you who have been my help, forsake me not, O God of my salvation! The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? (Introit for the Fifth Sunday after Trinity)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Introit for today is from Psalm 27, which is a psalm of David. David was well aware of the work of the Lord in his life. From an early age, David had been watched over and cared for by God. With God's help, David was able to defend his father' s flock from the lion and the bear. With the assistance and protection of the Lord, David was able to defeat Goliath. It was God who kept David from the hands of King Saul, and it was the Lord alone who made David king over all Israel. All the days of David's life, the Lord was with him, and by faith David was able to recognize it and give thanks for it. "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?" Like David, we can give thanks to God for the protection, peace, and life that we have been given. By faith we, too, know that all things come from the gracious hand of our heavenly Father. Our daily cry needs to be, "Forsake me not, O God of my salvation!" For the devil, the world, and our sinful flesh are constantly trying to get us to forget God and to live as we want. If we were alone in this struggle, we would fail. But we are not alone. Jesus is the salvation that has come for us. He alone has paid the price for our sin and given to us forgiveness and life in His Name. When Jesus died on the Cross, all our sins were forgiven, and because Christ rose from the grave, we shall also rise. It is only by faith which comes from the Word that we can continue in the way of the Lord. The Word of God alone is the level path that leads us to the knowledge of the truth.In this life we will face many adversaries, and all of them seek our death. However, like David, we have One who is gracious and merciful. It is because of Jesus that we need not fear anything in the world, for He is our light and our salvation. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Lord, teach us Your way and continue to lead us on Your path. Help us to wait for You in the day of trouble and to take courage in Your promises. For the sake of Jesus we pray. Amen.-Rev. William K. Stottlemyer is pastor of St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hancock, MD.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Daily Lectionary: Judges 15:1-16:3; Galatians 3:23-4:11But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law so that we might receive adoption as sons. (Galatians 4:4-5)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. How often have you waited with eager expectation for something? Maybe it was a birthday, spring break, or Christmas. How did you feel? Did your expectations for that great day keep building until you couldn't wait anymore? I imagine that most of us at one time or another have been so excited for a day to arrive that we could hardly stand it. But no matter how much we tried, we could not make time go by faster to speed up the arrival of the special day. This was exactly how the people of God felt throughout the entire Old Testament. From the moment the first promise of the coming of the Messiah was made, the people watched, waited, and longed for Him to come. Days passed, years came and went, and then at just the right moment and exactly when the Father wanted it to happen, Jesus came. God sent His Son into a world filled with sin. Jesus was righteous and holy, yet He was born under the Law. Born a man just like all of us, the Son of God lived under the Law. Perfectly fulfilling all the commands of God, He did everything we could not. Suffering and dying in our place on the Cross, your Savior paid the price so that you might be received into the family of God.Jesus has forgiven you of all your sins. Now you are part of God's family.Because Jesus has fulfilled the Law for us, we are no longer slaves to it. Now, because of Christ, we are free to live as sons of God. This means that by faith the new man in us desires to love and serve God and to love and serve our neighbor. We do this by following the Law of God. However, we are still sinners, and this means that as long as we live on earth, we will daily fail to follow the Law. We still need Jesus, and because the fullness of time has come, He is here for us. When we return to our Baptisms each day, we receive forgiveness from Christ, and this is the greatest gift we can ever receive. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, we give thanks to You for sending forth Your Son, Jesus our Savior. Please keep us strong in the faith so that we might live and serve You. Amen.-Rev. William K. Stottlemyer is pastor of St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hancock, MD.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Daily Lectionary: Judges 14:1-20; Galatians 3:1-22But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. (Galatians 3:22)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In Galatians 3, Paul teaches about the Law and the Gospel. In order to understand the Bible, we need to be clear on the distinction between the two. The Bible was written in order that we might have an account of who man is and what he needs. According to Galatians 3:22, the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin. This came about when Adam and Eve desired to be like God and ate of the fruit that they were commanded not to touch. From that moment forward, everything on earth was held captive by sin. Death reigned, and all who failed perfectly to live up to the teachings of God' s holy Law were dead in their trespasses. This is the state all of us are in, for the Law clearly shows us our sins. It tells us what we have done and left undone. Left in that condition, we would be enemies of God and would receive the punishment of hell on account of our sins. What a horrible state in which to live!However, God loved His creation. He loved us, so He made a promise long ago that One would be born who would save His people from their sins. These words are the message of the Gospel. Jesus is the fulfillment of that promise. Jesus came, and by His death on the Cross, He offered up the eternal sacrifice for sin. We are justified by faith, and the promises of God have come true. The Gospel is that Jesus died for you and that on account of His blood shed on the Cross, all your sins are forgiven. This is the promise that is given for all those who believe. This is your promise. Because of Christ, the promise has now been fulfilled. We are children of Abraham and offspring of the promise. We have received Jesus through Absolution, through preaching, and by the Sacraments. These great blessings are ours by faith, and for these Gifts, we give thanks to God. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Father in heaven, we give thanks to You for Your words of Law that show us our sins and drive us to despair of ourselves. And we praise You for the words of the Gospel that give us Jesus who has bought us with His precious blood. Continue to keep us in the true faith so that we might at the Last Day hear the voice of our Savior calling us to be with Him. Amen. -Rev. William K. Stottlemyer is pastor of St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hancock, MD.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Introduction to the Lord' s PrayerDaily Lectionary: Judges 13:1-25; Galatians 2:1-21Our Father who art in heaven. (Small Catechism: Introduction to the Lord' s Prayer)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Martin Luther writes that God invites us to believe that He is our true Father. Have you ever thought about what this actually means? You are a child of the Almighty. Of all the people on the earth, the Lord chose you. As an enemy of God who was dead in your sins, you have done nothing to earn this right. Instead, this relationship between God and man can only come from above. Our heavenly Father alone is the actor, and we are the receivers. Think about our life here on earth. You and I do not get to choose our fathers. We do nothing to be conceived in our mothers' wombs. Instead, God created us, and He alone provides us with parents. Just as we have not chosen our earthly fathers, we don't choose our heavenly Father. In mercy, God calls us by faith. He makes us His by the Word, a precious gift given by the working of the Holy Spirit.This faith unites us with Jesus, the beloved Son of the Father. When this happens, we are crucified with Christ (Galatians 2:20), we are united with Jesus, and we receive the forgiveness of all our sins. Purified by the blood of Jesus shed on the Cross, we are now at peace with the Father, and we are viewed as beloved children of God. It is this work of Jesus done on our behalf that enables us to ask our dear heavenly Father with all boldness and confidence for the things that we need in this life. What a great and precious gift, that is freely given to you by your Savior! No longer do we need to fear the wrath of God or the punishment for our sins. Instead, you and I are part of God' s chosen family, brothers and sisters of Christ, who have been called by the Holy Word of God. We have a relationship with the Father that allows us to bring to Him all of our concerns, problems, requests, thanks, and praise, knowing that our heavenly Father will hear, listen, and give to us all that we need to support this body and life, not just on earth but also forever in heaven. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, we give thanks for the great gifts of love and mercy that You give to Your children each and every day. Help us to be ever mindful of the fact that You have chosen us to be Your children, so that we may boldly pray with confidence in the knowledge that You will hear and help us. Amen.-Rev. William K. Stottlemyer is pastor of St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hancock, MD.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Romans 12:14-21Daily Lectionary: Judges 7:1-23; Galatians 1:1-24If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. (Romans 12:18)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In the twelfth chapter of Romans, Paul writes to the church in Rome and to us about how we are to act and live in the midst of trials. As believers in Christ, the Church will always face hardship and persecution. Just as the world hated Jesus, the world will also hate all of us who follow Him. Because of this reality, we must prepare ourselves for what will come upon us so that we are able to give a faithful witness to the hope that is in us. The problem is that our sinful flesh does not want to live at peace. When we are mistreated and when evil is done to us, we want to get even. By nature we strike out against and impose our own vengeance upon those who have wronged us. Getting even feels good, and the sense of accomplishment that we get when we put someone in their place often leads us to do it again. However, this is sinful. It is not the example that Jesus has given to us, and as we have just read, it is not how the people of God are called to live. So by faith we must repent of our sins. We must confess to the Lord that we have failed to live in peace and that we have often repaid evil with evil. We must confess that we have failed to let the light of Christ shine forth through us.Jesus came to earth to forgive all who have done evil. His death on the Cross and the shedding of His blood brought forth our forgiveness. When Jesus received evil at the hands of all sinners, He overcame it by good. He is the perfect example for us who have been called by faith. This is how we are to live. When we are mistreated and when evil is done to us, we are to overcome it with good. With the help of God, we discipline our flesh and pray for those who have done harm to us. We pray for God to grant them the peace He has given to us. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, we ask that You would grant us Your peace so that we might live at peace with those who have done wrong to us. Help us be shining lights of the love of Christ so that the hearts of our enemies might be turned to You. Grant all this we pray for the sake of Jesus. Amen.-Rev. William K. Stottlemyer is pastor of St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hancock, MD.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Genesis 50:15-21Daily Lectionary: Judges 6:25-40; Acts 15:6-21"You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good to bring it about that many people should be kept alive as they are today." (Genesis 50:20)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Joseph's brothers hated him. They hated his dreams, his coat, his status as the favorite, and they especially hated his tattling. The brothers hated him, so they cast him into a dry well, sold him into slavery in Egypt, and convinced their father that he had been killed by a wild animal. In Egypt, Joseph was wrongly accused and placed in prison. At the death of Jacob, the sins of the brothers were once more brought to remembrance, and Joseph was finally free to pay them back for their mistreatment. Our sinful flesh understands vengeance. We cling to it. We naturally react to hurt and to pain by lashing out at those who wronged us. We feel a need to get even. We want our pound of flesh and to give back as good as we got. So it is not a surprise that Joseph' s brothers were worried. As the second-most powerful man in all Egypt, Joseph was capable of doing anything he wished to settle the score.However, by faith and the working of the Holy Spirit, Joseph clearly saw the good that had come about in his life because of his brothers' actions. In the midst of great evil, God had worked through His servant Joseph to bring about the salvation of his people. Joseph did not negate the sins of his brothers, but he was willing to forgive them. This forgiveness came only by the grace and mercy that God had first given to Joseph. In 1 John 4:19 we are told that, "We love because God first loved us." And this love comes by the blood of Jesus shed on the Cross for all of our sins. Joseph knew the promise of the coming of the Messiah; he awaited it. And it was this faith that enabled him to forgive and to love those brothers who had done such evil to him.You, too, are loved by God. Always remember that for those who love God, "all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose" (Romans 8:28). These words bring us comfort and peace as we live in a world filled with evil and sin. No matter what problems we face, our heavenly Father will work it out for our good because of Jesus.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Heavenly Father, help us to remember that Your almighty hand works all things for our good, not only here and now, but forever in heaven. Amen.-Rev. William K. Stottlemyer is pastor of St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hancock, MD.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Today's Reading: Luke 6:36-42Daily Lectionary: Judges 6:1-24; Acts 14:19-15:4"Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful." (Luke 6:36)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We judge everything, everywhere, all the time. Do you like the food you eat? Do you like the outfit your friend is wearing? Do you agree with the post you just read? Every day we determine whether we like things or not,  or if someone is right or wrong. Our lives are filled with constant judging. Judging, if done in light of the teachings of the Holy Scripture, is not a bad thing. We are told, "All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness" (2 Timothy 3:16). All of us are called by God to search the Scriptures and to use this knowledge and the teachings of Christ to judge right from wrong.However, there is a difference between using the measure of God's Word to judge and using our own measure. As sinful and selfish creatures, we want what we think is best for us and care little for the good of our neighbor. Often our heart's desire is contrary to the things of God. We condemn and judge on the basis of our authority instead of realizing the truth that all people are under the judgment of Holy Scripture. When this happens, we are no longer being merciful. Instead, we are condemning our brother for a speck, all the while ignoring the logs in our own eyes. This is wrong, it is sin, and we need to confess our transgressions to the Lord.The psalmist writes, "The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love" (Psalm 103:8). The mercy of the Father and the love that He had for His fallen creation is what brought Christ to earth. Jesus came, took our sins, received our punishment, was judged in our place, and died on the Cross so that we might receive everlasting mercy. Because Christ shed His blood for you, you are no longer condemned. Forgiven by God, we are now to show mercy and to forgive in the same way.What a great gift we received from the hands of Jesus! Using the same measure that we have received, we may–by faith–love, forgive, and live as God intends us to. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Lord, grant that the course of this world may be so peaceably ordered by Your governance that Your Church may joyfully serve You in all godly quietness; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the Fourth Sunday after Trinity)-Rev. William K. Stottlemyer is pastor of St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hancock, MD.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschChristians need to aspire to being people of THE faith. Not just any will do. In Faith Misused, Dr. Alvin Schmidt shares his case for a Christian reclaiming of the word “faith” from its ambiguous modern uses. Now available from Concordia Publishing House. 

Daily Lectionary: Judges 4:1-24; Acts 14:1-18     But Jael the wife of Heber took a tent peg, and took a hammer in her hand. Then she went softly to him and drove the peg into his temple until it went down into the ground while he was lying fast asleep from weariness. (Judges 4:21)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. And the people did what was evil in the sight of the Lord . . . once again. Of course they did. When do we not? I almost feel as if each section in the book of Judges is just an example of a year in the life of Eli Lietzau, or even a day for that matter.  I'm constantly falling back into sin, seeking after other gods, hurting and hating my neighbor, being crushed by the Law that oftentimes really does hurt, and then being saved in the most unexpected and impossible way. So the Israelites have been sold into the hands of Jabin the king of Canaan. And he has a pretty imposing general in his army, Sisera, who should by all accounts win every battle that he ever enters. But he doesn't win this one, not once the Lord fights for His people. Sisera's army is routed and he goes running, running for cover under the tent of an old friend. He thinks that he is safe and sound, hidden from danger. But as he is exhausted and falls dead asleep, the last thing that ever goes through his head is a spike nailed into the ground by Jael, the wife of his friend. Now I may be stretching this a little bit far, but in Sisera I see a little bit of Satan. At the Cross, Satan believed he was safe from his enemy, and more than that, he thought he had won the battle and the war. Rational logic would say that at Calvary, Satan found himself to be the victor as the Lord of life was dying. And so, I have to believe the last thing that went through Satan's head as the nails were pounded into Jesus' hands and feet was, "Victory is mine!"  But wouldn't you know it, both in the case of Jael and her tent and Jesus and His Cross, a spike and a hammer brings an unbelievable end to the enemy and an impossible victory to God's people, to you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Salvation unto us has come By God's free grace and favor; Good works cannot avert our doom, They help and save us never. Faith looks to Jesus Christ alone, Who did for all the world atone; He is our one Redeemer. ("Salvation unto Us Has Come" LSB 555, st.1)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Judges 3:7-31; Acts 13:42-52 After him was Shamgar the son of Anath, who killed 600 of the Philistines with an oxgoad, and he also saved Israel. (Judges 3:31)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The judges who we find in the book of Judges are saviors.  That is literally their job description, as laid out in Judges 2:16. Judges are mini-Jesuses, saving God's people from their enemies and pointing forward to the bigger Jesus to come. It's kind of amazing when you take the time to think about it this way, but then again, Jesus is all over the Old Testament. He is foreshadowed and promised and sometimes He even shows up in His pre-incarnate ways.  That's why it's no coincidence that the book of Judges, chock full of mini-Jesuses, begins with the death of Joshua, the man who led God's people into the Promised Land, whose name literally means " YHWH (God) saves,"  and is the Hebrew equivalent of the name "Jesus."  In today's text we get to hear about the first three mini-Jesuses who began the 400-year trek to Samuel, the final judge, and to the coronation of the kings. (Again, a foreshadowing of Jesus, but we will leave that for another day.) Throughout these four centuries there is a never-ending cycle that happens: The people fall away from YHWH and run after false gods. YHWH hands them over to their enemies. YHWH has compassion on His people and sends them a judge to save them. The people live under YHWH all the days of the judge's life. And then it begins all over again. The odd thing is, almost all of the judges come with sword and shield (or in Shamgar's case, an oxgoad) in order to save God's people. They go out to fight, violently, in order to save, bringing death to their enemies. All of this points forward to Jesus, except in an opposite way, like in a mirror. For even though Jesus is the fulfillment of all the judges and saves God's people from their enemies, and even though that salvation will come in violent ways, the violence is done to Him. He defeats the enemies of God's people, sin, death, and the devil, by death. But because He is risen from the dead, there is no need for another judge to follow.  Even as we fall daily into sin, He is and always will be the saving Judge who saves us. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Preach you the Word and plant it home To men who like or like it not, The Word that shall endure and stand When flow'rs and men shall be forgot. ("Preach You the Word" LSB 586, st.1)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Apostles' Creed, Third Article part 2Daily Lectionary: Judges 2:6-23; Acts 13:13-41 In the same way He calls, gathers, enlightens and sanctifies the whole Christian church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith. In this Christian church He daily and richly forgives all my sins and the sins of all believers. (Small Catechism: Apostles' Creed, Third Article) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We are not as special as we think we are. God does His saving work for you and me in the same way that He does His saving work for everyone else: It is through the Holy Spirit's calling us by the Gospel, enlightening us with His gifts, sanctifying and keeping us in the one true faith. It is all the work of God. He does it all, from beginning to end, and He does it all for everyone. As good Lutherans we love to be able to say, "I believe that I can't believe," but sometimes we have trouble believing that for the other guy. Sometimes we heap more and more guilt upon ourselves because we want to be able to say the right things in the right situations in order to get our neighbor to start believing in Jesus. Somehow we think that conversion is part of our job. But if you had nothing to do with your own conversion, how could you think you have anything to do with someone else's? It is true that we are told to always be ready to give a defense for that which we believe, but all that means is that we should know what we believe and why we believe it. And of course, we should. Christianity isn't a thing of silly blind faith, but it is built on the objective and historical fact of the resurrection. We should know that and always be ready to proclaim it. But that is where our part ends. Everything else is so far above our pay grade we can't even see the top. Leave the converting to the Holy Spirit. He's much better at it than you or I could ever hope to be. And then also be comforted in the fact that as the Holy Spirit is working in the heart of your neighbor to turn it from stone, so, too, is He continually working upon yours so that it might never return to that rocky place of unbelief. Daily and richly, He brings Christ and His Cross to you in Word and water and bread and wine so that you might receive Him who saved you, so that your sins might be forgiven, so that your faith might be forever strengthened. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.We all confess the Holy Ghost, Who from both in truth proceeds, Who sustains and comforts us In all trials, fears, and needs. Blessed, holy Trinity, Praise forever be to Thee! ("We All Believe in One True God" LSB 953, st.1)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.   

Today's Reading: Isaiah 40:1-5Daily Lectionary: Joshua 24:1-31; Acts 13:1-12   Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the Lord's hand double for all her sins. (Isaiah 40:1-2) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Isaiah is probably one of the best-known prophets in the Old Testament. His book is prominent. He is quoted about as frequently as one could be, by Jesus, the evangelists, and Paul. Some have even called his book the "fifth Gospel,"  because salvation in Christ is dripping from each and every verse.Isaiah speaks to the people of God, many of whom have gone astray. He proclaims God's Law and calls the errant to repentance. He points forward to a savior, Cyrus, who would save God's people from captivity in Babylon and to a Savior, Jesus, who would save God's people from their enemies of sin, death, and the devil. He preaches the full counsel of God in season and out of season so that confident sinners can be crushed and terrified sinners can be comforted.Isaiah gives us the scene of the heavenly throne room: "Holy, holy, holy," is shouted by the seraphim as the foundations tremble and shake from the glory of God. He then shines a light on Christ's forerunner, telling John to proclaim comfort and peace and double forgiveness to all those who are terrified in their sin. Isaiah lifts our hearts with songs of the Suffering Servant, each one more Jesus-y than the next, capped off in chapters 52-53. He tells of the silent Lamb who goes despised, stricken, smitten, crushed, buried, and chastised to the slaughter in our stead. There is also the Mountain of the Lord, the future heaven and earth, and so very much more. For all of this we can give thanks to our God above who has given us the Words of the prophet Isaiah that we may know that the Suffering Servant has come, and that by His stripes we have been healed. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Isaiah, mighty seer in days of old, The Lord of all in spirit did behold High on a lofty throne, in splendor bright, With robes that filled the temple courts with light. Above the throne were flaming seraphim; Six wings had they, these messengers of Him. With two they veiled their faces as was right, With two they humbly hid their feet from sight, And with the other two aloft they soared; One to the other called and praised the Lord: "Holy is God the Lord of Sabaoth! Holy is God the Lord of Sabaoth! Holy is God the Lord of Sabaoth! His glory fills the heavens and the earth!" The beams and lintels trembled at the cry, And clouds of smoke enwrapped the throne on high. ("Isaiah, Mighty Seer in Days of Old" LSB 960)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: 1 Peter 5:6-11Daily Lectionary: Joshua 23:1-16; Acts 12:1-25 Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. (1 Peter 5:8b-9)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. There is no promise of a life without suffering, especially for the Christian. We think that there should be. We logically conclude that if we could just figure out the right steps to walk and the correct words to say, then we could find our way onto the simple and easy path to the Promised Land. But that just isn't the case. First, it's because we are sinners. Yes, we have been redeemed by Christ and are a new creation in Him, and yet the Old Adam still hangs on and must be continuously drowned in the baptismal waters that make us righteous. And second, the Lord actually promises persecution for the Christian. Just as your sinful flesh hates the things of Jesus, the things of the Church, the things of the forgiveness of sins and life and salvation, so, too, does the world. And the demons will drive all evil to come upon you like a lion hunting down his prey. I know that sounds daunting. I know being a Christian in an increasingly secular world is difficult. I know that sometimes it's just easier to hide your Bible at the bottom of your locker and change out your crucifix necklace for a simple silver chain. But know that you are not alone. Not only is your Lord and Savior with you in His Word, strengthening you each Sunday with His Sacraments, but there are millions of brothers and sisters all over the world experiencing the same exact things that you are. Cast all of these anxieties at the feet of your heavenly Father. Goodness, when it gets too much to handle, shake a fist or two at Him as well, but then stand in faith in the midst of things that seem too outside of you to control, because they are. Know that the Lord who has redeemed you through His precious blood is also the Lord who has promised to never forsake you, and will grant you all you need to be sustained until the day in which He comes again to take you home with Him forever. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Christ Jesus is my splendor, My sun, my light, alone; Were He not my defender Before God's judgment throne, I never should find favor And mercy in His sight, But be destroyed forever As darkness by the light. ("If God Himself Be for Me" LSB 724, st.3)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Micah 7:18-20Daily Lectionary: Joshua 10:1-25; Acts 11:19-30 Who is a God like you,pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in steadfast love. (Micah 7:18) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Micah is a hard man, a hard prophet. He says some things that are pretty difficult to hear, but of course, that is how the Law always is. Micah is a contemporary of Isaiah. He speaks some of the same words. It's almost as if the two of them have the same Word to speak, as if they have the same things to say about God and His Christ. There is quite a lot of reproving that Micah does throughout his ministry and throughout his book. The people have gone astray, lusting after idols and false gods who could never truly bring them joy and comfort. Micah also has a hard word for the shepherds of the people. Although each man is to be held to account for his own sin, the wrath of the Lord for a shepherd who fails to guard and keep his flock will be double. And of course it will, for the Lord sends shepherds to care for His flock, not to lead them astray. Inevitably the end result is that Israel and Judah will crumble in their sin and idolatry. The Lord will bring upon them the wrath of the nations, first the Assyrians and then the Babylonians. And although all of this will take place, the Gospel still prevails. Micah is the one who shines a light into the manger in Bethlehem and prophesies the birthplace of the Christ. And so, even though the Law is severe, the Gospel still prevails. Micah wraps up his book of woe and warning with a little bit of Gospel that comforts the conscience. Is there any other God who pardons sin and iniquity, who passes over transgression for the sake of another? No, there is none. Only our God has the language of " forgiveness"  in His vocabulary, winning it for and speaking it to poor miserable sinners who deserve to hear nothing but wrath and condemnation. Ours is the God who is faithful to us, despite our sin and adulterous idolatry. He is the One who keeps His covenant, even after we have broken it, so that our sins might find their way into the depths of the sea. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. By grace I'm saved, grace free and boundless; My soul, believe and doubt  it not. Why stagger at this word of promise? Has Scripture ever falsehood taught? No! Then this word must true remain: By grace you too will life obtain. ("By Grace I'm Saved" LSB 566, st.1)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 15:1-10Daily Lectionary: Joshua 8:1-28; Acts 11:1-18 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, "This man receives sinners and eats with them." (Luke 15:1-2) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Lord is surrounded by the "wrong" type of people. That is what the "right" type of people think, anyway. And, if truth be told, those "right" types of people make a lot of sense. If I took the time to think about it, I would assume that Jesus would spend the majority of His time with those who lived an upright and holy life, those who have shunned the things of the shadows, where shame and humiliation lurk about. The most rational thing would be for the shepherd to stay with the flock, the woman not to spend the day looking for a nickel, and the father to forget about his prodigal son and focus on the one who stuck around. But Jesus doesn't do that, because to be honest, there is no flock, no purse with nine coins, no perfect son who continuously does his father's bidding. I would like to think that I am all of those things. I would like to pat myself on the back for never running off in the country or getting lost in the couch cushions. That's not me, and it's not you, either. But that certainly doesn't keep us from pretending that we're the perfect ones. What is meant to be an insult from the "right" type of people is really a compliment, and Jesus takes it that way. For if a savior isn't dining with sinners then he isn't a savior. And no, forgiveness does not mean that when Jesus receives sinners, He grants them permission to remain in their sin. Haven't you read the parables? Jesus is bringing the lost ones back from their sin, back from their danger, back from their deaths. A shepherd isn't worth his weight in wool if he doesn't go and track down the silly sheep that lost its way. Because if he didn't do that today, tomorrow he would find himself with two lost sheep, and then three, and then the whole flock. Sheep don't stay in their pens: The shepherd places them there each and every day. And so, of course Jesus receives sinners and eats with them: They are the only type of people there are. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. O God, the protector of all who trust in You, without whom nothing is strong and nothing is holy, multiply Your mercy on us that, with You as our ruler and guide, we may so pass through things temporal that we lose not the things eternal; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the Third Sunday after Trinity)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 1:39-56Daily Lectionary: Joshua 7:1-26; Acts 10:34-48 "For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy." (Luke 1:44) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Pebble-sized preborn Jesus makes His way to visit His cousin, His forerunner, the one who will make His paths straight. At Mary's arrival, the other bitty baby, John, hears her greeting. But certainly this was so much more than a simple " Hello." Certainly this greeting had all of the trappings of a teenage girl blathering out every last detail of the past few weeks as fast as she could: the angel Gabriel, Joseph's initial and then secondary response, her simple reply in faith. Surely these are the words that John hears.Baby John leaps for joy: a little baby leap with little baby legs, exuberantly kicking at the walls of his fleshy abode. At six months gestation, John is in the exact place that a person of his size should be, both physically and spiritually. It is there, in that place, that Jesus, His Savior comes to him. Imagine that: The salvific Word of God is so authoritative that it can produce faith in the heart of an unborn child, through the simple greeting of a woman who is merely recounting the events of the recent past. But it was in the recounting of these events that the proclamation of the Incarnation took place. God's plan of salvation, taking form in tangible ways and being spoken of in real time and space. It is through this proclamation that John and his mother are brought to faith. And it is this faith, this objective faith in the Incarnation God for the salvation of mankind, that John is going to proclaim to the nations 30 years removed from that first Gospel encounter. With tender words, John is going to speak words of comfort to the people of Jerusalem, to you and me. Our warfare is ended. Our iniquity is pardoned. Every crooked place is now straight, every hill brought low, every valley brought level, every obstacle taken away. The Savior is coming, even as a speckle-sized dot floating down Mary's fallopian tubes. That dot is God in the flesh. That dot is the Savior of the world. That dot is Jesus the Christ, and He has come that we might receive from His outstretched and crucified hands double for all our sins. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty God, You chose the virgin Mary to be the mother of Your Son and made known through her Your gracious regard for the poor and lowly and despised. Grant that we may receive Your Word in humility and faith, and so be made one with Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the Visitation)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Joshua 6:6-27; Acts 10:17-33And [Peter] said to them, "You yourselves know how unlawful it is for a Jew to associate with or to visit anyone of another nation, but God has shown me that I should not call any person common or unclean." (Acts 10:28)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Just before our text, Peter has a vision. It's an odd one at that:  A giant picnic sheet is dropped down from heaven covered in all the animals that a good Jewish boy is supposed to shun: bacon and lobster and all things delicious. He is told to eat, but he can't, of course, because that would make him unclean. But the Lord tells him something different: What God has made clean must not be called common.Of course, this has to do with much more than food, for God isn't all that concerned with food. The food means something more, points to something more important. The Jews had, for a good number of years, seen the Gentiles as inherently unclean. They had a superiority complex over everyone else in the world, simply because of who their grandfather was. They believed that YHWH, God, was only for them and that the salvation that He brought was to stay within their borders.And this is all strange because Jesus had often spoken to the Pharisees about how lineage meant nothing, about how there would be many Gentiles seated at the heavenly banquet while the sons and daughters of Abraham gnashed their teeth while looking through the window. But it took a while for all of this to sink in for Peter. In fact, he needed a special vision just so that he could wrap his mind around it. No problem, just as long as the Good News of Jesus for all people was proclaimed.And it was by Peter, for a while. But we hear later in Acts and in Galatians that even the great Peter had difficulty keeping the "Gospel-For-Everyone" business free and clear. He fell in line with the circumcision party that said that a Gentile must first become a Jew if he wanted to be a Christian. But that's just the thing: In Christ there is no Jew or Greek, male or female, slave or free. There is just forgiven sinner. And no forgiven sinner is greater or less than his brother.Peter eventually figured this out (check out Acts 15) and spent the rest of his days proclaiming a Jesus for all, a Jesus for you. We give thanks to the Lord above for that! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O love, how deep, how broad, how high, Beyond all thought and fantasy, That God, the Son of God, should take Our mortal form for mortals' sake! ("O Love, How Deep" LSB 544, st.1)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Apostles' Creed, Third Article part 1Daily Lectionary: Joshua 5:1-6:5; Acts 10:1-17I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy, Christian church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen. What does this mean? I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith. (Small Catechism: Apostles' Creed, Third Article)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. There is a lot that the Holy Spirit does, but most of it is behind the scenes. He does have His big day on Pentecost. And Jesus explains in John 16 that unless He goes away, the Holy Spirit will not come. But usually the Holy Spirit is hanging out in the background, hovering over the waters at creation or leading Jesus out into the wilderness after His Baptism.And this is as it should be, as it must be, as He would have it. For the Holy Spirit always points to the Son. It is His job to shine a bright light into the dark space of Good Friday and early Easter morning. He is the One who says to the world, "Jesus has come and He has come for you! Don't fear any longer, your sins are forgiven, your death is dead, and even Satan's head has been crushed with a heel."His work is to show us Jesus. And it is a good thing that He does, because without Him, I wouldn't be able to see a thing. Dead in my trespasses, I can't reach out to the Son, make my way to the Christ, work my works of belief in Jesus. Dead men are dead! They can't grasp or choose or decide or make sense of, all they can do is lie dead.It is the work of the Holy Spirit that I believe. It is Him and not me. I believe that I can't believe and need the Holy Spirit to make me holy and keep me in the one true faith. And so He does, but He ties Himself to means so that I can know for certain that the victory won on the Cross has been delivered to me. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.We all confess the Holy Ghost, Who, in highest heaven dwelling With God the Father and the Son, Comforts us beyond all telling; Who the Church, His own creation, Keeps in unity of spirit. Here forgiveness and salvation Daily come through Jesus' merit. All flesh shall rise, and we shall be In bliss with God eternally. ("We All Believe in One True God" LSB 954, st.1)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane Bamsch Come on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Matthew 16:13-20Daily Lectionary: Joshua 4:1-24; Acts 9:23-43Simon Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." (Matthew 16:16)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It may seem strange that we celebrate the feast of Peter and Paul on the exact same day. After all, they probably didn't spend all that much time together. After the Damascus road, Paul was jet-setting all over the known world, and not spending a whole lot of time in Jerusalem. So how is it that we end up celebrating both on the 29th of June? It's really about tradition. There is evidence as early as 256 AD that churches were observing the Feast of St. Peter and St. Paul together. And that was because it was traditionally thought that Emperor Nero had both of them killed in the city of Rome on the exact same day Paul beheaded and Peter crucified upside down. It is generally believed today that Peter was martyred nearly three years prior to Paul, but whatever the case, tradition runs its course and we can still find ample reasons for celebrating these two pillars of the Church together. For indeed, who is responsible for the proclamation of the Gospel more than Peter and Paul?In our reading for today we hear Peter's confession, the confession upon which Jesus would build His Church. And it is within this Church, the universal Church, the Church founded upon the testimony of the prophets and the apostles, that Jesus places the Keys of the kingdom of heaven. Within Her walls we get to hear of the Son of God crucified as the Christ for the forgiveness of our sins. Within Her walls we get to receive this Cross of His, dripping from the baptismal font, placed upon paten and chalice, to be wetted and eaten and drunk for life everlasting.And it is for these reasons that we give thanks to our Lord above who found it meet, right, and salutary to send these two men (and many others) out to proclaim the Good News of Christ crucified for you! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Merciful and eternal God, Your holy apostles Peter and Paul received grace and strength to lay down their lives for the sake of Your Son. Strengthen us by Your  Holy Spirit that we may confess Your truth and at all times be ready to lay down our lives for Him who laid down His life for us, even Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for St. Peter and St. Paul)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Proverbs 9:1-10Daily Lectionary: Joshua 2:1-24; Acts 8:26-40[Wisdom] has sent out her young women to call from the highest places in the town, "Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!" To him who lacks sense she says, "Come, eat of my bread and drink of the wine I have mixed. Leave your simple ways, and live, and walk in the way of insight." (Proverbs 9:3-6)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Two women are contrasted in our text for today. Let's start with the latter: Lady Folly is a fool. She is a simpleton and knows nothing at all, but her ways are seductive. She sets herself up to look like the first lady. She does the same things and says the same words. It's all a ruse, but it's an effective one.And her purpose is not to offer an equally valid option. She might say as much, maybe even has her minions whispering that very thing into your ear. In the advertisements that she has plastered all over town she is billing herself as equal to Lady Wisdom, only better. But only death lies beyond her. There is no life to be found in her. But she is seductive. And she promises to you that she can grant you more life than Wisdom. She can't.For Wisdom has her house built on a sure foundation and she has already slaughtered her beasts to feed you with a full banquet. No stale water or crusty bread for you, just the choicest of wines and the fattiest of meats. Only the best for you: That is what Wisdom gives."The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight." This whole reading is all about Jesus. Contrast Him with whatever else and with whomever else you would like, because everything else is folly. Everything else only offers you the things that lead to death, eternal death, although they promise you the moon and all the happiness in the world. But it is all hollow and vapid, worthless and deadly. Only Christ Jesus calls His children inside His house and offers to them the things of life, the things of forgiveness, the things of Word and water and bread and wine, the things of Him and His Cross, given and granted free of charge to the simple and those who lack sense. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Since He is ours, We fear no powers, Not of earth nor sin nor death. He sees and blesses In worst distresses; He can change them with a breath. Wherefore the story Tell of His glory With heart and voices; All heav'n rejoices In Him forever: Alleluia! We shout for gladness, Triumph o'er sadness, Love Him and praise Him And still shall raise Him Glad hymns forever: Alleluia! ("In Thee Is Gladness" LSB 818, st.2)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: 1 John 3:13-18Daily Lectionary: Joshua 3:1-17; Acts 9:1-22By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. (1 John 3:16)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. What is love? We don't need to guess what it means to love someone. Jesus has shown us His and the Father's love for us, that He laid down His life for us. He did this in a sacrificial way, offering His body as a propitiation for our sin: a covering, a removal, a great exchange of His stuff given to us and our stuff taken away. See, the concept of love isn't that hard.Unfortunately, when the sinner exercises "love," he rarely cares about the other. Think about it: When I am in love with something or someone, the sinner within me really only cares what that something or someone can do for me. I care about how I feel and about how I see things. In loving something or someone, my hope is that my life is the one that is improved.But this isn't love. Sure, this might be what we think love is or what the world says love is, but this is never the way in which our Lord speaks about love. The love that He shows is always a love for the other, never for the self. The self is always sacrificed, the self always goes without, the self always suffers so that the other can have. That is the way of Christ and so this is the way of His Church.Bottom line is that you can't claim to be a Christian and not know how to love your neighbor. It is inherent in who Christ is and He speaks of what that means for us in His Word. We love our neighbor because it is commanded of us by our Lord. But do not think of this command as something you need to fulfill in order to be saved. Christ already has taken care of that. Remember the whole, "By this we know love," stuff? Instead, think of this command as something you need to fulfill because your neighbor needs to be served. Yes, your neighbor, never yourself. In Christ, love gives and sacrifices for the other, always for the other. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.In suff'ring be Thy love my peace, In weakness be Thy love my pow'r; And when the storms of life shall cease, O Jesus, in that final hour, Be Thou my rod and staff and guide, And draw me safely to Thy side! ("Jesus, Thy Boundless Love to Me" LSB 683, st.4)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 14:12-24Daily Lectionary: Joshua 1:1-18; Acts 8:1-25And the master said to the servant, "Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled." (Luke 14:23)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Jesus finds Himself at another banquet. Early on, people loved to invite Him to these kinds of things, that is, until He garnered for Himself a certain reputation. At this particular banquet, Jesus makes things a little bit uncomfortable by telling the man who threw the party that he only did so in order to become more popular with the "in" crowd. If he really wanted a heavenly reward, he should have gone and invited those sitting at the losers' table. Awkward . . .Someone tries to tamp everything down by making a bland, "Duh," sort of statement, meant to quiet the situation. So Jesus turns the awkwardness up to 11. The mysterious parable of the Great Banquet is then told: Everyone should clamor to come to this feast, but none of the cool kids want to. They all have better things to deal with: a new field, a new cow, a new wife. They seem like legitimate excuses, but are they really? The man isn't asking them to slave away in the coal mines. He is inviting them to a party. "Eat, drink, dance the night away. Don't worry about cleaning up afterward or inviting me to your party next week, just have the time of your life!" But everyone refuses.Such is the way of the sinner, especially the one who has become so very bored with the things of Jesus. Why would anyone refuse a party? Why would anyone refuse the eternal Gifts given by the Lord of Life? It sounds weird when you pose it that way, but that is exactly what the sinner does.And so the man invites the bums off the street and the wanderers of the byways. He invites the people who would never have hoped to be included in such a shindig. He invites the ones who couldn't pay Him back or throw a rival party. Those are the people who pack the banquet hall: the poor, the crippled, the blind, the lame, the losers, the nobodies, the worthless, the sinners. Yep, you guessed it, He invites you, and you get to feast with Him for all eternity at the best never-ending party ever thrown. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O Lord, since You never fail to help and govern those whom You nurture in Your steadfast fear and love, work in us a perpetual fear and love of Your holy name; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the Second Sunday after Trinity)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the Second Sunday after Trinity (Psalm 18:1-2a, 27, 30a, 49; antiphon: v.18b-19)Daily Lectionary:Proverbs 31:10-31; John 21:1-25 [O Lord,] I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me. (From the Introit for the Second Sunday after Trinity) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Let us pray . . . How long, O Lord? How long am I supposed to deal with these enemies who rail against me? How long am I going to have to deal with the evil that destroys all of the relationships I have in my life? How long will the guilt of my sin prick my conscience and trouble my heart? How long will the shame of the sin of others lay heavy upon me, smothering me to the point where I can't breathe anymore?Is this going to last forever? You promised that you love me, but is this love? I thought that all of this pain would be taken away. I thought that the bullies at school would find someone new to pick on. I thought that the demons running around my head would be told to be silent. I thought that the feelings and desires that seem to come so naturally to me wouldn't be so foreign to what you call good. How long, O Lord, must I suffer with all of this?Consider and answer me, O Lord my God. Grant to my eyes the light of your salvation. Give me comfort and the peace that passes all understanding in the midst of pain. For I know that my death looms over me; each day calling out a little louder. I know that my enemies lurk in the shadows, plotting and scheming against me. I know that the demons whisper into my ears, telling me that I am too far gone and am not yours.So deal bountifully with me once again, like you did on the Cross those many years ago. In fact, give me that Cross, today, right now, for now is when I need it. Graciously provide for me the Body that was broken there for me. Place it on my tongue. Mercifully share with me the Blood that was poured out there for the sins of the world. Pour it down my throat. Grant to me the faith I need to receive your crucified and empty-tomb victory, that I may sing your praises once again and proclaim unto the world, in the face of my enemies, that Jesus is for me! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Shine in our hearts, O Spirit, precious light; Teach us Jesus Christ to know aright That we may abide in the Lord who bought us, Till to our true home He has brought us. Lord, have mercy! ("To God the Holy Spirit Let Us Pray" LSB 768, st.4)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 1:57-80Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 30:1-9, 18-33; John 20:1-18 "And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins." (Luke 1:76-77) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Zechariah's tongue is finally loose. Nine months of silence. Nine months of not being able to speak with Elizabeth about this miracle within her, not being able to speak with Mary upon her visitation about the greater miracle that had been bestowed upon her. Nine months of a stopped-up tongue so he might know that when the Lord promises a promise, a promise shall be fulfilled.And so, on the day of his son's circumcision, the day in which his name is given to him before God and before his family, Zachariah is able to speak once again. But he doesn't just speak, he prophesies, he sings! He sings a song of salvation, a song of redemption, a song of forgiveness and life and promises everlasting. The fulfillment of the oath sworn centuries before, now being ushered in through this miracle son of his.I wonder if this was a spontaneous prophecy, or if it was the Holy Spirit working within Zechariah for the last nine months. Were these lyrics running around in his head to a tune that had never been heard before by anyone except himself, and now he gets to proclaim this well-crafted hymn to all of creation? Or did he beep-bop and scat this thing out like jazz, so overwhelmed and overcome with the Holy Spirit that he barely had time to recognize the very things that he was saying?In the end, it doesn't matter; it's just something fun to ponder. But whether this song of Zechariah was crafted or spontaneous, it pointed forward to a day that was fast approaching. Six months later the real miracle would be performed. And while the world would have to wait a couple of decades to see it all pay out with Jordan waters and a head on a platter and a Savior on a Cross, the time was at hand. Salvation had come to God's people in the very way that He had promised. And this eight-day-old boy named John was going to be the one to tell the world about it. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty God, through John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ, You once proclaimed salvation. Now grant that we may know this salvation and serve You in holiness and righteousness all the days of our life; through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the Nativity of John the Baptist)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 27:1-24; John 20:1-18 Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?" Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him,  "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away." Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned and said to him in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means Teacher). (John 20:15-16) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Mary Magdalene is more terrified and confused than she has ever been in her life. Her Lord has been crucified and now His body is no longer in the tomb. She came there that morning to find a small amount of peace in this world of death and destruction, and now even that is gone. Some graverobbers have stolen away the body of the Lord of Life and now she can't even commend Him to God above.Peter doesn't seem to offer much help, nor does John. Even though they are viewing with their own eyes the empty tomb that Jesus had continually prophesied about, they can't believe it. Dead men stay dead and full tombs remain full. Even when the angels miraculously appear, it seems as if Mary is too punch-drunk to even acknowledge the miraculous.So Jesus stands behind her. Was it the tears in her eyes that kept her from recognizing Him? Surely she could tell the difference between her Lord and some gardener she had never met before. Or maybe it is the mysterious miraculous impossibility of it all that keeps her mind clamped down in the rational and the logical.And so Jesus calls her by name. (There is that "name" stuff again.) And it is in calling her by name that she recognizes the risen Christ. She wants to grab onto Him and never let Him go. She never again wants to lose Him, or to be without Him. But He says, " No,"  for a risen Christ isn't just for her: He is for everyone. He is going to go away again, and in a little while will ascend to His Father and hers. He does this so that He can send His Spirit and in His Spirit give the Gifts of the Cross, the Gifts of the empty tomb to everyone that He calls by name. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Awake, my heart, with gladness, See what today is done; Now, after gloom and sadness, Comes forth the glorious sun. My Savior there was laid Where our bed must be made When to the realms of light Our spirit wings its flight. ("Awake, My Heart, with Gladness" LSB 467, st.1)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Apostles' Creed, Second Article part 3Daily Lectionary:  Proverbs 25:1-22; John 19:23-42 That I may be His own and live under Him in His kingdom and serve Him in everlasting righteousness, innocence and blessedness, just as He is risen from the dead, lives and reigns to all eternity. This is most certainly true. (Small Catechism: Apostles' Creed, Second Article) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Our Small Catechism teaches us that the Second Article of the creed is about our redemption. It tells us who the Second Person of the Trinity is and what He has done for us. It tells what He has accomplished for us on the Cross with those words of finality, "It is finished!" So we know the "Who," and the "what." Part three of this article tells us, "why." God does nothing without purpose. He is not random. He doesn't just tinker with things to satisfy His own curiosity. We are told that before the foundation of the world, God loved us in Christ. As He spoke us into existence and formed us out of the dust of the earth, He loved us. As we slithered our way to the Tree of Knowledge and consumed the evil that should have never been ours, He loved us. He loved us to the point of the Cross and back, paying for our sins with His precious blood. He would make atonement for us because we could not make it for ourselves. He would rather go through hell than live for eternity without us.And so the "why" of it all, the "why" of the atonement, the "why" of the incarnation, the "why" Maundy Thursday and Good Friday and Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday, the "why" of everything is so that we would be His once again. So that we would be wrestled from the deadly hands of sin and live in His kingdom: a kingdom of life, not of death.He did all of this by granting us His righteousness in exchange for our sinfulness, His innocence in exchange for our guilt, His blessedness in exchange for our curse. He did all of this so that we may live forever with Him, serving Him by loving our neighbors and declaring to them the atoning love that Christ Jesus has for them. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We all believe in Jesus Christ, His own Son, our Lord, possessing An equal Godhead, throne, and might, Source of ev'ry grace and blessing; Born of Mary, virgin mother, By the power of the Spirit, Word made flesh, our elder brother; That the lost might life inherit, Was crucified for all our sin And raised by God to life again. ("We All Believe in One True God" LSB 954, st.2)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: 1 John 3:13-18Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 24:1-22; John 19:1-22 Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth. (1 John 3:18) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. John is writing to the churches in Macedonia, which is modern-day Turkey. He had spent the greater part of his ministry up near Ephesus, preaching and teaching the Gospel of a crucified Christ. It was the Gospel that landed him on Patmos. Eighteen months later, once he had made his way back to Ephesus, he saw the congregations that he had once held so dear, now thrown into heresy and unbelief. It doesn't take long for the sinner to screw things up. And we are so adept at screwing things up that we even pull God's Word into the equation and use Him to justify our actions.One of the most deadly heresies that was circling the fledgling congregations was the thought that good works for our neighbor weren't important. Now as good Lutherans we like to say that good works aren't necessary, but that's not true: They just aren't necessary for salvation. But they are necessary, because even if God doesn't need them, your neighbor certainly does.And so, a lot of what you hear in 1 John is a proclamation of who you are. John isn't so much telling you what you should do, but instead he is telling you who Christ has made you to be in Him. "By this we know love, that He laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers." Christ has made us to be sacrificial servants for others because that is exactly who He is for us. One cannot help but be in Christ and love one's neighbor, not just in word or talk, but in deed and truth.Love looks like something. Love serves. Love cares for the other. Love never looks inward, but always looks to the neighbor. Love looks like Christ, and so should we, not to garner salvation or to make God smile upon us, but so that our neighbors might be provided and cared for, and that they might be loved. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. O grant that nothing in my soul May dwell, but Thy pure love alone; Oh, may Thy love possess me whole, My joy, my treasure, and my crown! All coldness from my heart remove; My ev'ry act, word, thought be love. ("Jesus, Thy Boundless Love to Me" LSB 683, st.2)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Genesis 15:1-6Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 22:22-23:12; John 18:15-20 And [the Lord God] brought [Abram] outside and said, "Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them." Then he said to him, "So shall your offspring be." Andhe believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness. (Genesis 15:5-6) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Abraham is a 75-year-old man when God first calls him, and promises that his offspring will inherit the most beautiful land his eyes had ever seen. But ten years later, there was still no son; and ten years for a 75-year-old doesn't leave much time for having children. So Abraham decides to give God a helping hand and have a son with a woman who was not his wife. (Best intentions always sound like a good idea, but they rarely ever are.)  It's another 15 years after the Hagar debacle that Isaac makes his way into the world and Sarah holds her one and only son.Bottom line: The Lord always keeps His promises. He may seem slow in doing so, at least from our point of view, but He isn't. When it is good and right, in His time, He fulfills what He has spoken and brings forth what He has always promised. For Abraham, a descendant finally came. And through Isaac, his lineage, as many as the stars in the sky,  spiraled forward all the way into the New Testament. But it wasn't because Abraham cut any sort of covenant with God. He tried to, time and time again, but that had always left things worse than when things began. Sinners do this to the things of God. Whenever we try to make things better, whenever we try to tell God how it is going to be, whenever we promise to Him that we will never fall away, we always end up screwing it up before we can take our next breath.Abraham is like us, and we are like him. In fact, we are his sons and daughters in faith, the exact same faith that grasps onto the promises of God, because sinners like us can never accomplish anything on our own. So a Son will come, has come, to be (and was) the Ram in thicket thorns who died in our stead and grants us His righteousness through faith. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The God of Abr'ham praise, Who all-sufficient grace Shall guide me all my pilgrim days In all my ways. He deigns to call me friends; He calls Himself my God. And He shall save me to the end Through Jesus' blood. ("The God of Abraham Praise" LSB 798, st.3)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Luke 16:19-31Daily Lectionary:Proverbs 22:1-21; John 18:1-14 He said to him, "If they do not hearMoses and the Prophets,neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead." (Luke 16:31) In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The two men in our text couldn't be any different. One feasted sumptuously. He had more than he ever needed, more than enough to support this body and life. He ate what he wanted, and lived how he desired. The other man had nothing. He lay in ruins. Sores covered his diseased body from head to toe. His only companions were the filthy dogs licking his sores, making him continually unclean. It's clear, from the world's perspective, which man was more favored. When you lack for nothing, when everything is placed at your fingertips, when life is easy and blessed and perfect all of the time, it's obvious that you live a semi-charmed kind of life. And this has to be because the Lord up above is pleased with you, for some unknown reason. If you want any proof, all you have to do is look at your temporal surroundings. But then when you do, you realize that everything isn't always so wonderfully perfect. Truth be told, your life probably resembles the leprous poor man's than it does the rich guy's. And if that is true, then you probably find it pretty easy to believe that your life is garbage for a reason. Some sin that you have committed along the way has made God so angry with you that He is going to curse you for however long it takes you to die.  But that's just it: Both men die, which means that they were both sinners, despite how it may have appeared. But only one of the men had a name, Lazarus. His name was known by God. He was known by God. And this certainly couldn't have come from his sinful self. The name had to be a gift.It's a Name that comes in the baptismal waters which cleanse you in the blood of Christ and make you alive in His empty tomb. It's a Name that speaks against everything that sin, death, and the world declare you to be. It's a Name that makes you partakers of the wondrous glories of heaven. Before the Father, a name means everything, and you have one for the sake of Christ. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. O God, the strength of all who trust in You, mercifully accept our prayers; and because through the weakness of our mortal nature we can do no good thing, grant us Your grace to keep Your commandments that we may please You in both will and deed; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the First Sunday after Trinity)-Rev. Eli Lietzau is pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Introit for the First Sunday after Trinity (Psalm 13:1-4; antiphon: v.5-6)Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 20:5-25; John 17:1-26Consider and answer me! (Psalm 13:4)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Desperation, abandonment, hopelessness and sorrow, enemies exalting themselves over me. Are there any words in this psalm that we have not spoken or thought? Yet the psalm gets real Hebrew, real fast. Psalm 13 teaches us to pray like a Hebrew: Give me an answer! "Consider and answer me" (Psalm 13:4) is the tidy way the English puts it. We like tidy prayers, just tiptoeing, whispering, muttering sheepishly. Oh, that we'd pray like a Hebrew, with a finger pointed to the sky, with ugly tears, with clenched teeth, yelling, screaming, and deep lamenting. Psalm 13 prays about big time problems to a Triune God who is big enough to handle it, gentle enough to stoop down to comfort us, merciful enough to take us up into His arms with our sloppy tears, broken hearts, and words that sound like what we'd hear at a truck stop rather than in church.Consider me! Hear me, take note of me, notice me! Do it now! It's nothing other than to pray as God has commanded us. Christ has taken notice of you, He's taken upon Himself your own sin and become your Savior. He notices you and cares for you because there's no one else He'd rather pay attention to than you. There's no need of yours that's too big, no hurt that His forgiveness and peace cannot soothe.Answer me! Let me hear what You're going to do about this! Let me hear your Word, your peace, your care for me. Tell me that I'm not alone, that I'm not the only one to suffer this. Tell me again that You'll never leave me or forsake me. Answer me in my hour of deepest need, delay not, come quickly! He considers you: "You are forgiven, by My blood and righteousness." He answers you: "I, too, have suffered as you do (Isaiah 53). I, too, have known injustice and hatred. I have borne your sin unto death, fulfilled the Law for you. Not only that, but I also weep with you, I abide with you still, today, tomorrow, and forever. Your tears are My tears, your joy is My joy, your guilt and shame I made My guilt and shame. You are the apple of my eye, my beloved, my child, my very Bride." In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and most merciful God, in this earthly life we endure sufferings and death before we enter into eternal glory. Grant us grace at all times to subject ourselves to Your holy will and continue steadfast in the true faith to the end of our lives that we may know the peace and joy of the blessed hope of the resurrection of the dead and of the glory of the world to come; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.-Rev. Adam Degroot is pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary:Proverbs 17:1-28; John 16:17-33A little while . . . (John 16:17)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. How long is a little while? The disciples wanted to know. Are we talking 15 minutes, 15 days, or 15 years? God's been talking like this since the Old Testament. "The daughter of Babylon is like a threshing floor; it's time to thresh her; yet a little while and the time of her harvest shall come" (Jeremiah. 51:33). "For in a very little while my fury will come to an end, and my anger will be directed to their destruction" (Isaiah 10:25). "A little while": words that mean there's going to be waiting, and with waiting all the headaches that go with it. The disciples witnessed the scourging, trial, and death of their Lord, and spent three agonizing and terrifying days waiting for the resurrection.We focus on the waiting. To be sure, Jesus says, "You will weep and lament, the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn to joy" (John 16:20). How long until we see the joy? A little while, but your sorrow will not be forever. Your joy, however, is and will be forever! Today you hear that it'll be a little while until we see the fulness of our Lord's blessings, but even in the little whiles, which might seem to last for a very long time, even there in the  waiting, sadness, sorrow, depression, grief, Christ our Lord abides with us still.Sorrows will be turned to joy. In a little while there will only be joy. But even now, for a little while, there is joy in the midst of all that we suffer. Waiting for loved ones to get better, suffering through a breakup, struggling to find a job–a little while where God attends to you, a little while where you will be sorrowful, when you will weep and lament. Yet it is Christ who sorrows with you. He cries tears with you, laments with you still. God sends you His good Gifts under bread and wine, in the sign of the cross that reminds you that you're marked as the apple of God's eye. For a little while you are filled with all that you need for this body and life that will give way to an eternity of peace and joy. A little while but not forever. Until forever, Christ finds you, wipes your tears away, forgives you your sin and loves to take care of you still. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, by the patient endurance of Your only-begotten Son You beat down the pride of the old enemy. Help us to treasure rightly in our hearts  what our Lord has borne for our sakes that, after His example, we may bear with patience those things that are adverse to us; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.-Rev. Adam Degroot is pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Romans 11:33-36Daily Lectionary:Proverbs 16:1-24; John 16:1-16Who has known . . . Who has counseled . . . Who has given? (Romans 11:34-35)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Paul wonders who has known the mind of the Lord (Romans 11:34). The answer, because of sin, is none of us. "You have not in mind the things of God but the things of men," Jesus says to Peter (Matthew 16:23). Paul also wonders who has counseled God. In other words, who has actually been able to give God advice about how best to be God? The answer? We've certainly tried, but our counsel is so deeply immersed in our sin that even the best of our advice is found wanting. Who has given a gift to God that he might be repaid? My goodness, that last phrase hits hard. The only thing that could be given is our very lives, and thankfully, God does not require that of us. According to the Law, because of our sin the answer to all three questions is none of us, not one.But Paul writes so that we would see that Jesus' death and resurrection, His tabernacling with us, addresses at least two of the questions. Who has known the mind of God? You have. He's given you His mind, given you Jesus. "If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him" (John 14:7). We "see" Him by hearing (Romans 10:17). But who has given God something? This is where the psalmist helps: "What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me? I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord" (Psalm 116:12-13). Our giving, then, starts in and finds its everlasting source in receiving: receiving what Jesus graciously gives in the Divine Service and the Lord's Supper, so we may call upon Him, pray, and confess the words He's given us to say.As for counsel, well, that's where Paul leaves us hanging. None of us has counseled God, and there is great comfort in this. He needs no help from us, but instead sends the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, to lead us to and  keep us in the Holy Christian Church, where daily forgiveness and life are given to you and me. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Triune God, be Thou our stay; O let us perish never! Cleanse us from our sins, we pray, And grant us life forever. Keep us from the evil one; Uphold our faith most holy, And let us trust Thee solely With humble hearts and lowly. Let us put God's armor on, With all true Christians running Our heav'nly race and shunning The devil's wiles and cunning. Amen, amen! This be done; So sing we, "Alleluia!" ("Triune God, Be Thou Our Stay" LSB 505, st.1)-Rev. Adam Degroot is pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Apostles' Creed, Second Article part 2Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 15:1-29; John 15:12-27I believe that Jesus Christ has become my Lord. (Small Catechism: Apostles' Creed, Second Article)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Jesus has become my Lord: It's not what the English versions of our catechisms say, but it is a good translation. Christ Jesus has become my Lord. You've perhaps met people who have spoken in this way before. Maybe someone has said that they've made Jesus their Lord, usually by some good thing they had done, said, or decided. But the Second Article of the creed and its explanation aren't saying this in the least. In a word, it says this: Christ saw me in my great sin, my sorrow, and need, took note of the great agony here on Earth, and did something about it. Paul says it, too: "God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8).Jesus says elsewhere, "I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance" (Luke 5:32). What does this mean? That even in your inborn sin and your actual sins each and every day, Christ Jesus, true God and true man, came to dwell among His enemies, came to bear your sin to the Cross, bore the whole weight of God's Law for you and me, suffered in your place, died your death, ascended to heaven to bring His very blood as the sacrifice for sin. And then, from heaven, Jesus comes still to give you the Gifts of heaven right here on earth. We say it like this: " . . .on earth as it is in heaven."How has Jesus become your Lord? He took all that stood between you and Him, all your sin that made you His enemy, all your grief, sorrow, and guilt, and provided full remission of sin by Baptism. Now, day after day, as you rise and pray the Morning Prayer, you are awakened to new mercies, gracious gifts, protection and peace brand new each day. He's always been your Lord and yet He becomes your Lord by His precious Body and Blood, given and shed for you in the Holy Sacrament. He graciously comes to you still, and mercifully rules you through the forgiveness of sins that He pours out to you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Thou art King of glory Christ; Son of God yet born of Mary. For us sinners sacrificed, As to death a Tributary, First to break the bars of death, Thou hast opened heav'n to faith. ("Holy God, We Praise Thy Name" LSB 940, st.4)-Rev. Adam Degroot is pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Daily Lectionary:Proverbs 14:1-27; John 15:1-11"Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing." (John 15:5b)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Elisha, son of Shaphat of the tribe of Issachar, was the prophet of God to the Northern Kingdom of Israel around 849–786 BC. Elisha assumed the prophetic office after his predecessor and teacher Elijah was taken up into heaven. Elisha is best known as the guy who asked for a double portion. He asked boldly for the blessings of Yahweh to be bestowed on him, and by grace it was granted to him. Our reading for today, particularly the portion that deals with bearing much fruit, is unfortunately often misunderstood. Bearing fruit is sometimes thought of as what we do, what we bear forth and give to God and neighbor. The problem here is that while the fruits we bear are for God and our neighbor, it's not the fruits that bestow salvation to us. The Vine bears the fruit, one of which is salvation. It's just one of many free gifts that Christ our Lord has won for us and has freely delivered in Baptism.Elisha is a wonderful example of a branch grafted to the Vine. Taken from the fields, taught by Elijah and given a double portion of the blessings of God Himself, Elisha learned daily what it meant to receive the grace and mercy of God. He was a branch, grafted lovingly to the life-giving Vine. Whether it was the poor widow and orphan of 2 Kings 4 who received the never-ending grain and oil, or the son of the Shunammite whom Elisha raised from the dead, God used weak and lowly Elisha for His good purposes. Finally, by Elisha's interactions with Naaman the Syrian, an enemy of the people of God who was healed of leprosy by washing in the Jordan river, our gracious Lord revealed His mercy and grace to all. Let us praise God as we remember Elisha and those who bring to us the certain hope of our resurrection in Christ. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord God, heavenly Father, through the prophet Elisha, You continued the prophetic pattern of teaching Your people the true faith and demonstrating through miracles Your presence in creation to heal it of its brokenness. Grant that Your Church may see in Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, the final end-times prophet whose teaching and miracles continue in Your Church through the healing medicine of the Gospel and the Sacraments; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.-Rev. Adam Degroot is pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Isaiah 6:1-7Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 13:1-25; John 14:18-31Woe IS me! (Isaiah 6:5)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. You've heard it before, you've said it before . . . woe is me! Thanks be to God that the prophet Isaiah gives us a fuller understanding of that phrase: "I AM woe. It's what I've known and all it seems that I'll ever know." Isaiah had witnessed something unbelievable, something not known on earth: a glimpse of holiness and perfection, but just a glimpse. For the six-winged seraph veils Isaiah's eyes from beholding it fully, for no man of woe, no sinful man, can see God and live! Woe is me. I am lost. I am a man of unclean lips. We can identify with Isaiah, for not only have our own lips muttered terrible things to friend and foe alike, but our scrolling fingers, typing thumbs and wayward minds have revealed the true fallen nature that plagues us each day. Not only that, Isaiah dwells with a people of unclean lips. It's funny how 800 BC is so much like AD 2022! Isaiah saw with His own eyes the holiness of God and it caused him to recognize how wretched he was. That's what the holiness of God does, it terrifies us, because we natural sinners know that perfection in and of ourselves is unattainable by even our best desires and works. That's how the Law works, especially the Law which sets us up alongside the perfect and Holy Christ.God our Lord, is pleased to come. With Him are the seraphs, messengers of God to still our shattered hearts, to grant solace to our precious and fragile hearts and lives, to cleanse not just our lips. We are not cleansed by fire but by the water of Baptism, water that drowns our Old Adam. It is cleansing water, pure, clean, and refreshing water that stills our souls. By the Word in and with that water that speaks the same words spoken to Isaiah, "Your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for" (Isaiah 6:7).Woe no longer IS you! Your woe has been taken up completely by Christ your Lord. Woe is not you for it has been drowned and died with all sin! Christ is in you, and you in Christ. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Gracious Lord, you have known me before I was in my mother’s womb, You have known me, my sorrow and my grief for You were pleased to dwell on this earth, You willingly humbled Yourself to bear my sin, there is nothing of me that You do not know, no sin of mine that You did not put to death; take heed of me in my great need this day and pour out again, abundantly and without end, Your, lovingkindness, Your perfect holiness and Your gentle mercies known n the forgiveness of my sins, open my ears to hear always,“Your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.” In Jesus’ Name, Amen.-Rev. Adam Degroot is pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: John 3:1-17Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 10:1-23; John 14:1-17For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him. (John 3:17)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Back in the day, I was told that in order to know something you must sometimes understand what that thing is not. John does just that  in our reading for today: He tells us that Jesus did not come as true God and true man to condemn the world. So now we know what Jesus hasn't come to do. What has He come to do? Of course, John says that Jesus has come to save the world, but He's also come to save you. On this blessed Feast of the Holy Trinity where we behold the Trinity in unity and unity in the Trinity, an unfathomable, unexplainable concept, it's wonderful to simply take in the fact that God the Creator, Redeemer, and Sanctifier is pleased to dwell with us. He comes among us not to condemn us or the world with us in our sin, but the Creator, God the Father, was pleased to send His Son to us. To send the Redeemer of the world to bear our sin, fulfill every last jot and tittle of the Law for us and to hang and die in our place. The Sanctifier, the Holy Spirit, gives us faith in the Word made flesh, to wake us, who by our own reason or strength cannot believe in Jesus our Lord or come to Him. The Holy Spirit, or the divine finger, as I've heard Him called, points only and always to what Christ Jesus has done for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty and everlasting God, You have given us grace to acknowledge the eternal Trinity by the confession of the true faith and to worship the Unity in the power of the Divine Majesty. Keep us steadfast in the faith and defend us from all adversities for You, O Father, Son and Holy Spirit, live and reign, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Rev. Adam Degroot is pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane Bamsch Come on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Mark 6:7-13Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 9:1-18; John 13:21-28So they (the apostles) went out and proclaimed that people should repent. And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them. (Mark 6:12-13)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Barnabas, which means "the son of encouragement," was a contemporary of Paul's and was originally from Cyprus. Through his generosity, he sold his land and offered all the proceeds to the preaching of the Holy Gospel. He was a cousin of Mark the evangelist, whose text we consider today: "So they (the apostles) went out and proclaimed that people should repent. And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them" (Mark 6:12-13).As described in Acts 1-12, the church in Jerusalem sent Barnabas up the coast to Antioch. While there, Barnabas preached and taught just as your pastor preaches and teaches, of the Lamb of God who has taken away the sins of the world. Barnabas even grabbed up an ornery, raucous persecutor of the new Christians, a man by the name of Saul, also known as Paul in the Greek, and convinced the frightened disciples that Paul's conversion and Baptism of Saul (Acts 9 and 13).Such is the way of the Lord, that during the years of His ministry He sent the apostles out two by two. So it was also in the days after His ascension that Barnabas and Paul were sent out to preach and teach, and to confirm every word they preached with the signs they did. Yet they were quick to assert that they were not gods, but men like their listeners (Acts 14:15). "We bring you good news," they said, "that you should turn from these worthless idols to the living God who made all things."Through many years Barnabas continued, finding himself back again in Cyprus, where he would labor until his death by stoning. Barnabas, the son of encouragement, endured hardships and traveled widely. God sustained him in his vocations, just as God is always with you as you carry out your own vocations. Thanks be to God for the encouragement He gives to others through you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Almighty God, Your faithful servant Barnabas sought not his own renown but gave generously of his life and substance for the encouragement of the disciples and their ministry. Grant that we may follow his example in lives given to charity and the proclamation of the Gospel; through Your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the commemoration of St. Barnabas)-Rev. Adam Degroot is pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Genesis 11:1-9Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 8:22-36; John 13:1-20So the Lord dispersed them from there over the face of the whole earth. (Genesis 11:8)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Tower of Babel has it all! Hardworking people trying to build a tower to God, and God's saying that now "nothing that they propose to do will be impossible for them" (Genesis 11:6). God's confounding the languages of the people and then . . . AND THEN scattering them all over the place.I thought God said that it wasn't good to be scattered and isolated! What gives?To be sure, it's good, right, and salutary that we do have people to talk to. But don't forget that what you talk about also matters. The people of Babel were of one mind, which teaches us that it's possible to be in agreement and be totally WRONG! The people of Babel had unanimously agreed that the best way to get to God was to make your own way to Him. If they think that they can build a tower to God, where will their ambition end?In His great mercy, God  mixed up the language of the people so they couldn't be one in their grave error. It's not possible to get to God by anything we do, not even if the whole world says you can, God comes to us! God abides with us. To teach this, He confuses the languages, casts the people all over the known world, but He never stops talking to them.God scrambled the languages, but new languages and new cities would pop up all over. The people would maintain these different languages until our current day, and by the day of Pentecost much of the known world would hear, in their own native languages, the clear and concise Word of God. Between Babel and Pentecost, God talked to them and continued to send prophets and judges, the pastors of old. All would have the Word of God to comfort them and to provide forgiveness of sins, to assure them that there's no need to build a tower to God. Indeed, we can't. Yet Christ, God and man, came down, the Word made flesh to bear our sins and become our Savior. He comes to us now each Lord's day by bread and wine to give us what we desperately need, now and forever. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord Jesus, Word made flesh, as it pleased you in the days of old to speak to your scattered people by many and various tongues, so come to us, by the preached word given to us by our pastors and church, come to us by your Spirit in hearing we would be given faith to believe that you find us, come to us, speak to us, comfort us and forgive us this and every day. Amen.-Rev. Adam Degroot is pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Acts 2:1-21Daily Lectionary:Proverbs 8:1-21; John 12:36b-50And they were bewildered. (Acts 2:6)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Bewilderment . . . what a fun word! Just rolls off the tongue. But if you've ever lived a day of life here on earth, you know that  bewilderment in reality isn't much fun at all. To be bewildered, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, simply means to be confused.There's plenty to be confused about in our day. Teachers tell you this, your pastor and parents tell you that, and your friends via Twitter and Instagram, well, they say something different all together. That's the world, and it's been this way ever since the tongues were confounded at the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1-9). But it's not just the words that describe everyday life that have gotten mixed up. The very Word of God left the people mentioned in Acts bewildered, too.How could it be that all those people were speaking in languages that none of them had ever heard or spoken? Maybe the mockers WERE right in saying that the apostles were filled with new wine (Acts 2:13). Thankfully, Peter clarifies: Though the people who speak are filled with great joy, they're not filled with wine but with the Spirit who has been poured out on all flesh (Acts 2:17). And if they have the Spirit then they also have what the explanation of the Third Article of the Creed promises: "The Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened us with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith." This explanation of Holy Baptism in the Small Catechism portrays Baptism not as just plain water, but "a life giving water, rich in grace, and a washing of the new birth in the Holy Spirit." What does this mean? There's plenty to be bewildered about here in this fallen world and many times we are, but in Baptism the Lord has given you His Holy Spirit. He's already yours, and you're already His. He opens your ears to hear and your tongue to speak, even in the midst of bewilderment. It's not a matter of understanding as much as it's taking hold of the fact that Christ has covered you in Baptism and still sends the Holy Spirit today by preaching and the Word. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Lord God, into this bewildering world You are pleased to come. Into our bewildered hearts and minds You bring the great joy, not of new wine but of Your life-giving Word! So continue to send Your Spirit to keep us with the Church and Jesus Christ in the one true faith. Amen.-Rev. Adam Degroot is pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Apostles' Creed, Second Article part 1Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 5:1-23; John 12:20-36aI believe that Jesus Christ, true God, begotten of the Father from eternity, and also true man, born of the virgin Mary, is my Lord. (Small Catechism: Second Article)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. "Jesus has become my Lord." That means that there was a time when Jesus was not our Lord. When was that? King David reminds us, "Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me" (Psalm 51:5). But it gets really tough when we see that little baby brought to the font. That little baby, looking all cute and cuddly, gentle and lowly, is actually a poor miserable sinner. It just doesn't make sense. After all, that little baby hasn't DONE anything sinful yet.Martin Luther's baptismal rite of 1523 included the following: The priest began by blowing three times under the child's eyes and saying, " Depart thou unclean spirit and give room to the Holy Spirit." The opening prayer of the baptismal rite implores God to "break all the snares of the devil with which he is bound." Later, there was a more extended exorcism of the child, concluding with the words, "I adjure thee, thou unclean spirit, by the name of the + Father and of the + Son and of the + Holy Ghost that thou come out and depart from this servant of God, (Name), for he commands thee, thou miserable one, he who walked upon the sea and stretched forth his hand to sinking Peter." What else is your Baptism, other than the work of God that allows the explanation of the Second Article to make sense? Jesus becomes your Lord in the water, with the Word that exorcised the demons and devil, that drowned and killed the Old Adam in you, and washed you clean in the blood of Jesus. He gave you the full inheritance and gave you His Holy Name! You've got it all! You lack nothing. Jesus says you're His, Jesus says He loves you and protects you and cares for you always. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Gracious Jesus, true God and true man, though I am beset with such grave sin that has caused me to be born as Your enemy, let not the devil and his demons torment me, for You alone have claimed me, You alone have made me your precious child, an heir of Your eternal kingdom and a blessed recipient of Your lovingkindness each new day. So lead me this and each new day to the waters of my Baptism, bring to my remembrance today and forever, Your gracious love and mercy toward me. In Jesus' Name, Amen.-Rev. Adam Degroot is pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: John 10:1-10Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 4:1-27; John 12:1-19"The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out." (John 10:3b)"He does all things well!" (Mark 7:37)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. A wise man I know once rejected the idea that we are sheep. "Sheep are dumb animals," he said. "I just can't stand the idea that God would talk about us like that!" Jesus does talk like that though. In fact, all Scripture speaks in that way so that we will hear that there is a Good Shepherd who is always tending to us.Our Merciful God knows precisely who He's dealing with. We are not the well-adjusted, got-it-all-together, never-been-better crowd. Christ came not just as a shepherd, but as the GOOD Shepherd. He came talking, always talking, chattering like an enthusiastic baseball fan in the right field bleachers. And what does He say? "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep" (John 10:11). That's you! Sheep: not dumb animals but those who desperately need shepherding. And it's not about what you'll eat for breakfast, where you'll work, or what college you'll go to. Instead, you are shepherded to hear the mercy and peace that Christ freely bestows in a world filled with hate and discord. Shepherded to a strong church in the midst of false shepherds who seek to lead you away from the Jesus who loves and cares for you. Shepherded to hear that there's no amount of your own blood, sweat, or tears that you could shed to make everything perfect. That's Christ's job. Our "job" is to hear. To hear that although we often find ourselves cut off from the herd, alone or afraid because of what we've done or failed to do or by what's been done to us:, Jesus is always taking care of us.He's the Shepherd, and He does that well. He's the Word, constantly talking, speaking His Law to put us to death in sin, but also speaking mercy and forgiveness for all that baggage we think we need to carry. That has all been borne by Him. He's the One who gives abundant life, who has taken on Himself all our careless wandering and our following after the false shepherds of this world. He's the One who gives us the ears to hear Him who has bought us back, leading us out of darkness into His marvelous light. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Perverse and foolish oft I strayed, But yet in love He sought me And on His shoulder gently laid And home rejoicing brought me. ("The King of Love My Shepherd Is" LSB 709, st.3)-Rev. Adam Degroot is pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: John 3:16-20Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 3:5-24; John 11:38-57For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him. (John 3:17)In the Name of Jesus + Amen. Ours is a dog-eat-dog world. Selfishness, greed, lust, envy, and strife pervade our world and our own lives. It's every man, woman, and child for himself. Who's watching out for you? If you believe much of what you see tweeted, or on Instagram and Facebook, it's difficult, if not impossible to find the answer to that question. Who's watching out for you? Thankfully John addresses this crucial question, at first objectively and then subjectively. "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16). That's quite a BIG statement. The world is a BIG place, with BIG things happening–what about little ol' me? God sent Jesus for the whole world: That's objective justification. But who is watching out specifically for you? This is where John makes the subjective point: God didn't send His own Son to hunt you down and punish you for your sin. Far from it. The Father sent the Son to seek you out and to bear your very sin to death. He came not to condemn, no, no, no–He came to seek you. He came and took on your flesh, became like you in every way but one. Jesus your Savior was without sin, yet He humbled Himself, lowered Himself into the Jordan River and had all your sin washed onto Him! Every bit of it! He carried the full weight of it all to Calvary's Cross and put it to death with Him, and when He went down into that tomb on Good Friday your sin stayed dead in that tomb! But even before all that–remember the blood and water that flowed from His side? That blood and water was FOR YOU! His blood flowed into the chalices of all Christendom, and the water is one and the same water that was washed over you on the day you were baptized! Who's watching out for you? The same Christ Jesus who knew you even before He formed you in the womb, the same Jesus who took on your very flesh, who took all your sin and suffered your death, the same Jesus who rose as the firstborn of the dead so that you, too, would rise forever with Him on the Last Day. He's got you covered. He's watching out for you by the blood and the water, the bread and the Word, now and forever. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty and everlasting God, You have given us grace to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity by the confession of a true faith and to worship the Unity in the power of the Divine Majesty. Keep us steadfast in this faith and defend us from all adversities; for You, O Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, live and reign, one God, now and forever. Amen.-Rev. Adam Degroot is pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: John 14:23-31Daily Lectionary: Proverbs 1:8-33; John 11:17-37"But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you." (John 14:26)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We all need a little help in life, with changing a flat tire, or that pesky calculus homework, but when it comes to matters of greater importance, we Lutherans confess in the Small Catechism, "I believe that I cannot believe." I believe that I cannot believe. Aren't we Christians supposed to have all the answers? Haven't we heard that we've got to have it all figured out when it comes to the trials and tribulations of life? There was a time–but alas, it ended with Adam's hiding for fear from the sounds of God walking in the Garden. A time, long past, when God's creatures used to expect only good from God. But those days are long gone. "I believe I cannot believe in Jesus Christ my Lord or come to Him."Thanks be to God, then, that He comes to us! The Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, and enlightened me with His gifts. Thanks be to God through Christ Jesus our Lord that He takes a vested, incarnational interest in us! Before ascending to the very throne of God, He sends the Helper, the Holy Spirit, to teach, and bring to our remembrance all that we've forgotten that Jesus has said and done for us.He teaches us by the Divine Service, catechism class, Sunday school and Bible study, showing us where we can go to find the words of eternal life. He teaches us who we can trust to give the most precious of all gifts: the forgiveness of sins.The Spirit is constantly bringing to our remembrance, that is, giving us His Word to remind, comfort, and give us the peace that the world cannot give. This strengthens us, enlivens us and opens our ears to hear and mouths to speak of the wonders Christ gives us still by Word and Sacrament. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.O God, on this day You once taught the hearts of Your faithful people by sending them the light of Your Holy Spirit. Grant us in our day by the same Spirit to have a right understanding in all things and evermore to rejoice in His holy consolation; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the Day of Pentecost)-Rev. Adam Degroot is pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.Audio Reflections speaker: Rev. Duane BamschCome on an adventure with author Eric Eichinger as he unpacks the saga of Jesus' Hero Journey. You'll see how aspects of this journey are seen in popular stories, and how God used Jesus to create the most action-packed one with a real Savior for all. Now available from Concordia Publishing House.

Today's Reading: John 14:15-21Daily Lectionary: Numbers 20:22-21:9; Luke 20:45-21:19 "Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him." (John 14:21)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Do you love Jesus? It seems like a silly question to ask a Christian, and yet it was just asked of you. How is it that you love Jesus? Was it something you decided to do one day? Did you will your love for Jesus into existence? Clearly those seem to be unlikely answers. Your love of Jesus, your love for God, did not and could not come from you. Such a love came about because of a Gift that you received, the Gift of faith. This Gift was given to you by the Holy Spirit. Jesus prepares us for that time when He will no longer be among us in the flesh. As upsetting to the disciples as that might have been, that day was drawing ever closer. But Jesus promised that the disciples would not be left alone. You, too, have received that promise, for Jesus has sent the Holy Spirit to you. He comes to give to us the Gift of faith which believes all that God has said and done. By faith, you have to come to know love, true love shown by God to us sinners. It is this love which led Him to send Jesus into creation, to make Jesus our sacrificial Lamb. God has made you known to Him, but more importantly, God has made Himself known to you. He has done so by giving you a name, one that is more important than any other name: child of God. That makes God your Father, and because God is your Father, He desires to give you the greatest Gift in all of creation, and that is the forgiveness of all of your sins. No greater Gift can be given than that, for it is by forgiveness that you are received into the kingdom of God. All that God desires to give you is yours because you have been made a part of Him. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Almighty and ever-living God, You fulfilled Your promise by sending the gift of the Holy Spirit to unite disciples of all nations in the cross and resurrection of Your Son, Jesus Christ. By the preaching of the Gospel spread this gift to the ends of the earth; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Collect for the Eve of Pentecost)-Rev. Jared Tucher is pastor of St. John's Lutheran Church, Farmers Retreat, IN, and St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Dewberry, IN.Audio Reflections Speaker: Rev. Duane BamschOver eight sessions, The Messiah: Revealing Jesus in the Old Testament will lead you through the entirety of the Old Testament with daily readings, questions, and discussion prompts. After a brief introduction that reviews Christ's earthly ministry, you will dive into the heart of the Holy Books that have spiritually nourished God's people from creation to today! Now available from Concordia Publishing House.