Reflections

Today’s Reading: 1 John 3:1-3

Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 18:1-7, 20-19:8; Luke 11:1-13

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. The god of many world religions seemingly might have something in common with the God of the universe: usually such a deity is viewed as lord and king over all things.

Christianity is unique in many ways, not the least of which is that we Christians insist that God is not only our King, He is also our Father! God has adopted us. He invites us to call Him “Father” and to ask Him for anything. God seats us at His own table. God promises to give us an inheritance.

This is huge! God shows us special favor. He values us and loves us in a way that an earthly king cannot value or love his subjects. Thus, we can approach God with confidence, even when we have sinned. We can be certain that God will forgive us. We are His kids, after all!

Why do we think that God considers us His children? Jesus, the Son of God, told His followers that God is His Father…and that He is our Father. Jesus gave His life as a ransom payment in exchange for our lives (Mark 10:45). By suffering the penalty for our sins, Jesus made it possible for our God to not merely pardon us, but to adopt us.

This is why we remember our Baptism. At the font God forgave your sins for the sake of Christ and He adopted you into His family. Every time you remember your Baptism, you remember who you are, namely, a child of God. If you are His child, then you are forgiven and loved by Him. If you are His child, then you will live with your Father forever, receive an imperishable inheritance, and rule alongside your elder brother, Jesus.

So make the sign of the cross, receive Absolution from your pastor, remember your Baptism. Rejoice, for God loves you as His own child! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Once 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. O God, for Jesus’ sake I pray Your peace may bless my dying day. (Once in the Blest Baptismal Waters, LSB 598:1)

Today’s Reading: Lamentations 3:22-33

Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 17:1-16; Luke 10:23-42

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.” (Lamentations 3:22-24)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Lamentations is not fun to read. It is a lament. The author is grieving the destruction of Jerusalem and the suffering of God’s people. God’s people sinned, and thus, God condemned them and sent Babylon to punish them.

Our text for today is the only bright point in the whole book. It sits right in the middle of Lamentations, indicating that it is the most important part of the book and the key to grieving faithfully.

Tragedy happens. Sometimes it is a result of our stupid, sinful choices. Other times tragedies seem random and unfair. Regardless, God’s people often suffer trauma. And it is okay to grieve and lament whenever something bad happens!

That being said, St. Paul reminds us that we grieve, but not without hope (1 Thessalonians 4:13). We know that the worst tragedy in world history was the crucifixion of Jesus. We also know that God reversed this tragedy: Jesus was raised from the dead. God also used this tragedy to accomplish the greatest good: the salvation of mankind!

Because of Jesus, we know that God is loyal and full of a never-ending love. His faithfulness is so great that we can depend on our Lord and wait for Him with confidence. The exiles hoped that the Lord would resurrect the nation of Israel, bring the exiles back to their land, rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple, and send the Messiah. We hope that our Lord Jesus Christ will return to raise us from the dead, grant us access to the new creation, and dwell with us forever.

Yes, we grieve, because tragedies happen. However, that’s not the end of the story. The story ends with Jesus coming and bringing an end to evil once and for all! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Almighty and most merciful God, in this earthly life we endure sufferings and death before we enter 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 the glory of the world to come; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (Prayer in Times of Affliction and Distress, LSB p. 317)

Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 16:1-24; Luke 10:1-22

Honor your father and mother. What does this mean? You should fear and love God, so that you do not anger or despise your parents and other authorities, but honor them, serve and obey them, love and cherish them. (Small Catechism: Fourth Commandment)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. You have a Father in heaven. He loves you. He provides for you and He protects you. He teaches and guides you. He disciplines you. He sees your good works done in Christ and He gives you gifts freely, out of love.

Your heavenly Father works through means. He deputizes your fellow humans, giving them a calling, with responsibilities and authority. God gives you little “F” fathers.

He gives you a biological father or an adoptive father to provide for you and protect you in your home. He gives you a spiritual father—a pastor—to guide you with His Word and to give you the forgiveness of sins. He gives you civil fathers—presidents, governors, and judges—to protect you from criminals and to order society for your benefit.

Every earthly father is a mask of God, an instrument of your heavenly Father. God blesses you on account of Christ, who was crucified for your sins and raised for your salvation. How do these blessings get to you? God blesses you through these authority figures. Yes, even God’s spiritual and eternal blessings come through fathers, although you probably call them “pastors” rather than “fathers”.

So, honor your fathers. Serve them and obey them, not begrudgingly, but gladly. Know that when you honor and serve an earthly father, you are honoring and serving your heavenly Father. Love and cherish your parents and other authorities, for they are God’s gifts to you.

And don’t forget to enjoy your daily bread, your safety, and all of the other benefits of having fathers, including the forgiveness of sins and eternal life. Give thanks to your heavenly Father, who has ordered such things for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

“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! (These Are the Holy Ten Commands, LSB 581:5)

Today’s Reading: 1 Peter 2:11-20

Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 10:1-20; Luke 9:37-60

Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. (1 Peter 2:11)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Often I am asked, “How are we to regard the state of Israel and the Jewish people?” Many American Christians believe that there are two covenants that coexist: one for the Gentiles and another for Jews. They believe that many Old Testament promises have not been fulfilled yet, and thus, God has given the Jewish people their land and He will rebuild a physical temple there.

1 Peter exposes how misguided such notions are. Notice what Peter calls these Christians: “sojourners and exiles.” Those are labels traditionally given to Jews living outside the Promised Land. He also calls the Church a “holy nation” and a “royal priesthood” (I Peter 2:9). These are the titles Yahweh gave to Israel at Mt. Sinai.

The true Israel is the people of God. Jesus is the offspring of Abraham (Galatians 3:16), and all who share Abraham’s faith are his offspring (Romans 4). Therefore, the Christian Church is Israel and all of God’s promises are applied to us!

God’s promises are not only applied to us, they are ratcheted up. For example, the Temple of Solomon has been replaced with the assembly of believers. The Lord doesn’t dwell in a building, but He dwells within every congregation and within every believer. There are no more physical barriers between us and God!

Likewise, the Lord gave Israel an abundant land. This land foreshadowed a greater inheritance. You see, our Lord experienced the full weight of sin, death, and evil on the cross, in order to reverse it. Jesus is risen! Someday He will return to reclaim what is His: you and this creation. You will be raised from the dead and made immortal. This creation will be resurrected, too. It will be liberated from decay and renewed (Romans 8:18-23).

So don’t become too obsessed with the modern state of Israel. You are God’s holy people and you are the heirs of His promises. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Guide me, O Thou great Redeemer, Pilgrim through this barren land. I am weak, but Thou art mighty; Hold me with Thy pow’rful hand. Bread of heaven, bread of heaven, Feed me till I want no more; Feed me till I want no more. (Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer, LSB 918:1)

Today’s Reading: Isaiah 40:25-31

Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 9:1-24; Luke 9:18-36

“They who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength.”(Isaiah 40:31)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. My church is full of children between the ages of 2 and 8. You can see and hear them squirming throughout the Divine Service. As soon as the organist begins to play the postlude, the children burst out of their pews. For the next hour they will run, jump, and shout. Often the elderly say that they miss having that kind of energy.

“Even youths shall faint and be weary,” (Isaiah 40:30 ESV). Yes, even the energy of children has a limit. For example, my three-year-old daughter is full of energy, but lays limp and silent on the couch whenever she gets sick. The fever saps her of her strength and she becomes faint.

Isaiah says that God is not like human beings. He never grows faint, never grows tired, and never becomes weak. The nation of Judah was stripped of her power by Babylon, and the Israelites felt weary and burdened while laboring in Babylon. They were helpless, but thankfully Yahweh is their Helper. He has unlimited power and strength, which He will use to strengthen and empower His people (Isaiah 40:28-29).

Of course, this will happen in God’s own time. The Israelites must wait, but Isaiah promises that those who wait on the Lord will be renewed!

We are like the Israelites. We live in Babylon (i.e. the world). The temptations, the persecution, the diseases, and death make us weary and faint. We know that Jesus will rescue us. He laid down His life for us, after all. He won’t abandon us. We know that He will return…eventually. Still, it is hard to wait, isn’t it?

The Word, the Sacrament, the prayers and presence of fellow believers, and the liturgy help us to wait. They are given to encourage us with the Lord’s promises. We are reminded to wait for the Lord, for He will come back and fill us with His own strength. He will make our bodies immortal and our hearts immovable. Sin and death will never make us weary or faint again! 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 born 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. (Prayer for Patience, LSB p. 312)

Today’s Reading: John 16:16-22

Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 8:1-13, 30-36; Luke 9:1-17

“No one will take your joy from you.” (John 16:22)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. No one will take my joy from me? What do you mean, Jesus? It’s pretty easy to take away my happiness. It doesn’t take much to spoil my morning. I oversleep, spill my coffee, trip over something and nearly break my neck, and before you can say a four-letter word, I’m grumpy.

Christian “joy” is not simply an attitude created by happy circumstances, but it is an attitude created by remembrance of God’s deeds in the past, faith in His never-changing love, and hope for salvation in the future. Thus, Paul talks about joy “in the faith” (Philippians 1:25) and joy “in the Lord” (Philippians 3:1).

Christians rejoice or celebrate because our Lord Jesus paid for our sins, rescued us from God’s coming judgment, stripped the devil and the world of their power, and even conquered death itself. Joy is the response of faith when it hears the Gospel. And since the Gospel is certain and eternal, our joy never ends!

This doesn’t mean we suppress our sorrow and grief—even Jesus, who had perfect faith, felt fear and grief (consider Him in the Garden of Gethsemane or weeping because Lazarus died). Like St. Paul, we are sorrowful, yet always rejoicing (2 Corinthians 6:10). Even when we feel terrible, even when we are scared, depressed, or grieved, we know that Jesus gave Himself for us and that He was raised from the dead. Thus, we have every reason to celebrate!

Every Sunday we gather with our fellow Christians to celebrate Easter with them. We even share a meal together, talking about how Jesus has saved us, while eating His very Body and drinking His very Blood. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Almighty and everlasting God, the heavenly Father who shows the light of the truth to those who are in error, so that they may return into the way of righteousness, cause all who are admitted into the fellowship of Christ’s Church to avoid those things that are contrary to their profession and to follow all such things that are agreeable hereto; 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 Fourth Sunday of Easter)

Daily Lectionary: Exodus 40:17-38; Luke 8:40-56

He keeps our soul among the living, and does not allow our feet to be moved. (Psalm 66:9, from the Introit for Easter 4)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. In verses 6-7 of Psalm 66, the psalmist remembers God’s deliverance of His people at the Red Sea and the Jordan River: “He turned the sea into dry land; they passed by through the river on foot” (Psalm 66:6). These two events are foundational for Israel as a people, and centuries later they still remembered them in song.

The pattern of God’s work for and among His people in the Old Testament is a pattern of deliverance. Again and again, as Israel becomes enmeshed with the false gods and idols of the nations, God sends a deliverer, who returns them to His Word.

This is what it means that “He keeps our soul among the living.” All other gods finally lead to death. To be among the living is to be among the things of God.

Israel’s time of wandering and their anticipation of a land of their own to live in was bracketed by water. The Red Sea was their path out of Egypt and the Jordan River was their door to the land God promised to them. God’s great act of deliverance in the Old Testament was through water.

And so He keeps our souls among the living by His deliverance through water. Holy Baptism is the path out of slavery and death, and the door to eternal life. God’s greater act of deliverance in the New Testament is, like in the Old Testament, bracketed with water.

“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 6:4). Water joins us to Christ’s cross, and our old way of life is put to death. Water likewise joins us to Christ’s empty tomb, and our death is turned to life. So rejoice! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

With high delight Let us unite In songs of great jubilation. Ye pure in heart, All bear your part, Sing Jesus Christ, our salvation. To set us free Forever, He Is ris’n and sends To all earth’s ends Good news to save ev’ry nation. (With High Delight Let Us Unite, LSB 483:1)

Daily Lectionary: Exodus 39:32-40:16; Luke 8:22-39

The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, “Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.” And he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city how much Jesus had done for him. (Luke 8:38-39)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. When Jesus encountered the rich young man, who inquired what he had to do to inherit eternal life, Jesus responded that he should sell all he has and follow Him (Luke 18:22). But it’s not always necessary to leave everything and start an entirely new way of life to be a follower of Jesus,

When this particular man, from whom the legion of demons had been expelled, asked to go along with Jesus, our Lord denied him his request. “Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.” Here Jesus teaches that it is not necessary enter into a special vocation to be His follower and it is not necessary to be called as a pastor to proclaim the good news.

Every Christian, by virtue of being delivered from sin, death, and the devil, has the call to proclaim the Gospel in his or her circle of influence. “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light,” writes St. Peter (1 Peter 2:8-9). In fact, the most effective place for Christians to spread the good news of Jesus is in their own homes.

One final observation about the content of this man’s proclamation: Jesus instructs him to “declare how much God has done for you.” But this man takes a little liberty with the message. He proclaimed throughout the whole city “how much Jesus had done for him.” The story of the legion of demons fleeing to a herd of pigs was certainly impressive, but the basis of this good news is that Jesus is truly God.

This is also your story to tell. Jesus is God, and He has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

If you cannot speak like angels, If you cannot preach like Paul, You can tell the love of Jesus, You can say He died for all. If you cannot rouse the wicked With the judgment’s dread alarms, You can lead the little children To the Savior’s waiting arms. (Hark the Voice of Jesus Calling, LSB 826:2)

Daily Lectionary: Exodus 38:21-39:8; Luke 8:1-21

And the twelve were with him, and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s household manager, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their means (Luke 8:2-3)

In the Name + of Jesus. It isn’t often that women get the spotlight in the Bible. But where the men often bumble along, fail to get what Jesus is saying, and suffer from a case of foot-in-mouth disease (we’re looking at you, Peter!), the women are depicted as steadfast, faithful, caring, and nurturing of Jesus and His mission.

Now this doesn’t mean that the women were perfect. Remember that Martha was corrected for working when she should have been listening like her sister. Yet Martha is also the one who confessed the resurrection when her brother Lazarus died. And just before this chapter of Luke (in yesterday’s daily lectionary) there is a certain “woman of the city, who was a sinner,” who loved much because she had been forgiven much.

This is simply to say that the women who followed Jesus were real flesh-and-blood humans like the men who followed Him. They were chosen not because they had some worth or nobility about them, but purely by grace.

In addition to supporting Jesus and the rest of the disciples out of their means, some of these women also played an important role in the Christian faith. They were the first witnesses of the resurrection. This is an important and often overlooked detail. If the followers of Jesus wanted to invent a story of His resurrection, they would not have chosen women to be the first witnesses. Their story would have had no credibility, because the testimony of women was not considered as reliable as that of men at that time,

More important than the women being real flesh-and-blood human beings, their role in the story is to show us that they and we worship a real flesh-and-blood, risen Lord Jesus Christ. Thanks be to God for the service of faithful women! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

That Easter morn, at break of day, The faithful women went their way To seek the tomb where Jesus lay. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia! An angel clad in white they see, Who sits and speaks unto the three, “Your Lord will go to Galilee.” Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia! (O Sons and Daughters of the King, LSB 470:2-3)

Daily Lectionary: Exodus 34:29-35:21; Luke 7:36-50

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. (Small Catechism: Third Commandment)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. It’s a curious thing that while the explanation of the Commandment is concerned with the Sabbath day, it never mentions a day. The Old Testament injunction for the Sabbath day goes all the way back to creation. “So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation” (Genesis 2:3). As justification for the Third Commandment, God Himself gives this commentary: “For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy” (Exodus 20:11).

The Sabbath day was written into nature, yet the Small Catechism doesn’t seem concerned at all about resting on the seventh day of the week! What’s changed?

It’s not that the Law has gone away. The principle of rest still remains—if you work and work and work, you’ll work yourself into an early grave. It’s necessary to rest. But the basis of rest isn’t just to take a breather in order to get back to work again. The basis for Sabbath rest is divine worship.

The Sabbath is a day for us to rest and for God to work. In the Old Testament, that day was the seventh day, or Saturday. But Christ fulfilled every Sabbath since the beginning of time with His rest in the tomb on the seventh day of Holy Week. And by His resurrection on the first day (eighth day) of the week, He brought God’s Sabbath rest to every day of the week.

Now, the holy day is every day that is sanctified by the Word of God and prayer (1 Timothy 4:5). God’s Word excludes all our work, and bids us rest in the work of Christ. And so we hold God’s Word as sacred and gladly hear and learn it. That is the true Sabbath rest. 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).