Reflections

Today's Reading: Matthew 2:1-12

Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 66:1-20; Luke 3:21-38

When 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.

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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 3:1-20

So 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 Husbands

Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 64:15-65:2; Luke 2:41-52

Husbands, 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 destroy

Love’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 3:23-29

Daily 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. 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 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 6:22-27

Daily 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 2:21

Daily Lectionary:Isaiah 61:1-11; Luke 1:57-80

And 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 12:35-40

Daily Lectionary:Isaiah 60:1-22; Luke 1:39-56

You 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 1:1-12

Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 58:1-59:3, 14-21; Luke 1:26-38

He 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 52:7-10

Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 55:1-13; Luke 1:1-25

Break 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 2:13-18

Daily Lectionary: Isaiah 52:13-54:10; Matthew 2:13-23

Then 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.