Reflections

By Higher Things, Inc.Religion & Spirituality

Reflections episodes

October 13, 2021 Wednesday of the 19th Week after Trinity
What 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: Sacrament of the Altar, pt. 3)
In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Why do we eat and drink the Supper of our Lord? Well, first, because Christ has commanded it. But this command is not to be seen as law to be heaped upon us and to burden our conscience. It is a command of love from our gracious Savior who gives what He has promised to give, in the very way that He has promised to give it.
On the Cross was where all sins found their end. Christ took them into His body and crucified them to that tree. His blood poured out upon all sins to cover them in a sacrifice that atones for them and washes them away. And so, the victory has been won on the Cross. It is finished! But the victory is not given to us at the Cross.
We are temporal creatures who live in a temporal world with the things of time and space. Because 2000 years separate you from that Good Friday, you can't go back to the Cross to receive what Christ has won for you there. But Christ doesn't ask you to go back to the Cross. He doesn't ask you to go to Him. Instead, He comes to you. He places on your tongue the gifts of the Cross: His Body broken there for you, given to you here in time and space. And He pours down your throat the gifts of the Cross: His Blood poured out for you there, given to you here in time and space.
How can you be sure that you have the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation? Because Jesus is in you. And not just, "in you" in some sort of mystical way, but in a real and tangible way, a touchy and feely way, a tasty and certain way. Take eat, His Body given for you! Take and drink, His Blood poured out for you! In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.
Thy holy body into death was given, Life to win for us in heaven. No greater love than this to Thee could bind us; May this feast thereof remind us! O Lord, have mercy! Lord, Thy kindness did so constrain Thee
That Thy blood should bless and sustain me. All our debt Thou has paid; Peace with God once more is made: O Lord, have mercy! ("O Lord, We Praise Thee" LSB 617, st.2)
Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Duane Bamsch
6 min
October 12, 2021 Tuesday of the 19th Week after Trinity
Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. (Ephesians 4:25)
In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. You have a new life in Christ. That is the gift of your Baptism. Christ's Cross has been brought to you. His victory over sin, death and the grave has been splashed down upon you in the wet Word of the font. You have been buried into His death and raised to new life in His resurrection. This is who you are. It is done. You are a righteous, holy, justified, saint in Christ.
And as such, sin has no place in your life. How could it? The ways of the Old Man are now dead to you. Christ has killed them. Nailed them through His hands and feet and buried them in the cold dead ground. Put away those old ways. Speak the truth, for that is who you are. Love your neighbor even as Christ has loved you, even when your neighbor has made himself to be your enemy. Absolve those who have sinned against you. Do it now! Do it today! Do not let the devil have any opportunity to breed hate and vengeance within you.
But the Old Man is still alive within you. He wakes up each and every morning with the rising of the sun. That is why it is good to begin each day with the sign of the Cross and to remember your Baptism. For the Old Man still rages and must be put to death daily, hourly, minute by minute.
It is a battle to be sure, but it is a battle that has already been won. That is the key to it all: The victory is yours! You have been baptized. You are of Christ. Of that, there is no doubt! His death on the Cross, His empty tomb, His ascension into heaven with all things placed under His feet, all of that has been given to you. You are washed and wetted and spoken clean in Christ. You are a New Man in Christ!
And so when you fail in the things of the New Man, fear not. Return to your Baptism. Drown the Old Man once again. Receive the forgiveness of your sins. And live your forgiven life in Christ! 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!
"You shall not steal or take away What others worked for night and day, But open wide a gen'rous hand
And help the poor in the land." Have mercy, Lord! ("These Are the Holy Ten Commands" LSB 581, st.6, 8)
Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Duane Bamsch
6 min
October 11, 2021 Monday of the 19th Week after Trinity
Today's Reading: Genesis 28:10-17
Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 9:23-10:22; Matthew 11:20-30
"Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you." (Genesis 28:15)
In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Jacob is on the run. He is in fear for his life. He had tricked his father into giving him a blessing that shouldn't have been his. He had stolen from his brother (not once, but twice) something that belonged to him. He had made a mess of his life all because he found it impossible to stand in the promises of the Lord.
The Old Testament is filled with scoundrels. The fathers of the Church are not the great and pious men that we sometimes think them to be. They all have their times of doubt. They all have their times of deep and egregious sin. None of them have fulfilled the Law placed before them. But they are all counted as righteous: not for the sake of themselves, but for the sake of Christ.
The sinner in us hears the promises of our God and then goes about trying to make them our own. How foolish! We can't make these things our own. God is the One who has promised these things to us and so He is the One who is going to bring them to fruition. But the sinner always wants to give God a helping hand. The problem, of course, is that our "helping hand" always makes everything worse.
We are all like Jacob in that way: God has given us the promise of life and salvation but we go and screw everything up. However, the Christian must not fear, even when he has turned his life into a giant mess. For we have a God who is faithful, even and especially when we are faithless. And so He still has the authority to bring about good, our ultimate good, our eternal good, even after all of the evil that we have brought upon ourselves. Fear not, fellow sinners! We have a Jesus who is greater than all of our sin. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen
Yea, Lord, 'twas Thy rich bounty gave My body, soul, and all I have In this poor life of labor. Lord, grant that I in ev'ry place May glorify Thy lavish grace And help and serve my neighbor. Let no false doctrine me beguile; Let Satan not my soul defile Give strength and patience unto me To bear my cross and follow Thee. Lord, Jesus Christ, my God and Lord, my God and Lord In death Thy comfort still afford. ("Lord, Thee I Love with All My Heart" LSB 708, st.2)
Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Duane Bamsch
6 min
October 10, 2021 The 19th Sunday after Trinity
Today's Reading: Matthew 9:1-8
Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 9:1-22; Matthew 11:1-19
"For which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, ‘Rise and walk'?" (Mathew 8:5)
In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We need Jesus to be more than just a miracle worker, more than just some carnival barker who sells us snake oil medicine out of the trunk of his car, more than some magic genie who is ready to grant us three wishes in order to make our life a little better. The problem is, we don't realize that we need a Jesus who is better than all of that. "All of that" is what we want Jesus to be. And when He isn't, we get a little angry.
We tend to not care all that much about the forgiveness of sins when temporal suffering and pain are at play. I can just imagine the look on the paralytic's face, on the faces of his friends who had lugged him all that way to see this miracle-man Jesus. For Jesus doesn't immediately heal him of his crooked legs and atrophied muscles. Instead, Jesus forgives the man's sins and tells him to take heart in that.
My goodness! If that isn't the Theology of the Cross, I don't know what is! Jesus doesn't seem to be all that concerned about the temporal, at least not until the eternal is taken care of. We could have everything under the sun placed at our feet (health, wealth, popularity, a great future) but what is all of that when our sins are still upon us?
Jesus doesn't promise us the things of temporal glory. We may very well receive those things from time to time. Then again, perhaps we won't. Maybe we won't be healed of that disease or our parents will still go through with their divorce or our boyfriend/girlfriend will still break up with us. We have no assurance of those things. The assurance that we do have is that we are forgiven. Our temporal life may be in complete disarray, but our eternal life is as sure and steadfast as a crucified Jesus and an empty tomb. And even through all of the trials and tribulations that we endure in this earthly life, the victory over them all is our victory in Jesus Christ and His Cross; for it is there that we receive the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.
Almighty and merciful God, of Your bountiful goodness keep from us all things that may hurt us that we, being ready in both body and soul, may cheerfully accomplish whatever You would have us do; 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 19th Sunday after Trinity)
Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Duane Bamsch
6 min
October 09, 2021 Saturday of the 18th Week after Trinity
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 8:1-20; Matthew 10:24-42
We will tell the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and His might, and the wonders that He has done. (From the Introit for the 19th Sunday after Trinity)
In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Is the idea of evangelism frightening to you? Why? I don't know many people who really love the idea of going around and telling strangers about Jesus. Are we even supposed to want to talk to random people about Jesus? Remember, don't talk to strangers... unless it's about Jesus? I don't know many people who do this. I think we're afraid of it.
Perhaps the reason why the broad brush approach to evangelism is so scary is because it seems impossible. Of course, it isn't. The Gospel has been preached to the ends of the earth, which must have seemed absolutely insane to the apostles. How were they supposed to do that? Could they even have imagined that you and I would come to hear of the glorious deeds of the Lord, of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ?
Maybe it wouldn't be so scary if we focused and thought about the next generation instead of a bunch of people whom we don't know. Fathers and mothers teach their children. Children learn and come to fear, love, and trust in the Lord above all things. Evangelism is accomplished primarily through your vocations. It may happen that someone you don't know asks you to explain the hope that you demonstrate, but more often than not, you will be called to give witness to your friends and neighbors.
This is how many of us were brought to the faith. Fathers and mothers brought their sons and daughters to the waters of Baptism, to hear the Word, and receive the Sacrament. Friends and neighbors eventually are brought along, and the coming generations will all hear of the mighty works of the Lord. It has worked this way so far!
After all, you and I have heard of the wonders that the Lord has done and we will not be the last. 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 good courage, not knowing where we go but only that Your hand is leading us and Your love supporting us; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Duane Bamsch
6 min
October 08, 2021 Friday of the 18th Week after Trinity
Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 7:1-19; Matthew 10:1-23
"If anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town." (Matthew 10:14)
In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. How often have you worried about someone you love who does not believe in Jesus? It happens all the time. Fathers worry about their children's faith. You worry about your friends who do not love Jesus. I worry about people who have left the faith.
Stop that right now. If you have spoken the words of Christ to the people you love, then you have done enough. If you have forgiven your friends in the Name of Jesus, it is enough. If you have borne witness to Jesus Christ in your words and life, then it is enough.
We are not called to nag people into the kingdom of heaven, but rather to proclaim that it has come in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In fact, I don't know anyone who has successfully been nagged into the faith. You're also not called to come up with new and fancy ways to argue people into the faith. That won't work, either.
You've been called simply to tell the truth, which can be a difficult enough task in a world full of lies. But there's a funny thing that happens when you tell the truth and speak of Christ. Truth always prevails over lies. Lies fall away. Clever tricks are shown to be empty. Eventually the one doing the nagging goes away. But the truth sticks.
If you tell the truth and speak of Christ, then you have nothing to worry about. If they reject these words, shake the dust from your feet and move on. They will not forget The Word of God has a way of taking root in the hearts and minds of people. Move on and stop being afraid. If they reject you, they are rejecting Christ. We've seen this before. He was rejected all the way to the Cross. He was denied and buried. Jesus is not worried, either. No, He is risen and His will is done. Do not be afraid. He is patient and wise. He knows what He is doing. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.
If God Himself be for me, I may a host defy; for when I pray, before me my foes, confounded fly. If Christ, my head and master, befriend me from above, what foe or what disaster can drive me from His love? ("If God Himself Be For Me" LSB 724, st.1)
Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Duane Bamsch
6 min
October 07, 2021 Thursday of the 18th Week after Trinity
Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 6:10-25; Matthew 9:18-38
Jesus traveled through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness. (Matthew 9:35, Evangelical Heritage Version)
In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Matthew 9 is a whirlwind of activity. As soon as Jesus finishes healing one person, someone else is begging for His mercy. In one instance, He is on the way to heal someone, and another person chases Him down, trying only to touch His clothes, and even she is healed. Jesus brings forgiveness and life wherever He goes. Death flees before Him.
Do not be troubled by the apparent lack of miracles in our day. Remember that these people all saw and experienced great things, but still ended up nailing Jesus to a cross. You are not saved by miracles, but by grace through faith in Christ. I sometimes think of Jesus like the star quarterback, lifted on the shoulders of the crowd, who are just thrilled that He's done something amazing. I'm wrong. He was despised and rejected, even when He was doing these great things and forgiving sins.
Matthew 9:24 says that they laughed at Him when He said that a dead girl was just sleeping. He knew the truth: that her death had been overcome. They laughed. A few verses later, He is accused of casting out demons by the ruler of demons. He did not win many friends, and most of the friends He did have ended up rejecting Him.
And yet He continued to preach, teach, and heal their diseases and sickness, even though they rejected Him and nailed Him to the Cross to die, He still calls out for their forgiveness. He casts out demons and brings life. We have not always hailed Him as our king. Have you even laughed at Jesus? Have you mocked Him?
He has not rejected you. He still comes to you. His Word is still given to you, poured upon your head in Baptism, sung into your ears through the church's liturgy, and given into your mouth in Holy Communion. Jesus will not give up on you. He has come to you, and you have life. That is a miracle. 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.
Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Duane Bamsch
6 min
October 06, 2021 Wednesday of the 18th Week after Trinity
Today's Reading: Small Catechism: Sacrament of the Altar, part 2
Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 5:22-6:9; Matthew 9:1-17
Where is this written? (Small Catechism: Sacrament of the Altar)
In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. The Sacrament of the Altar is the true Body and Blood of Jesus Christ given for Christians to eat and drink. This is a strange thing to believe. It looks like mere bread and wine. All that we can see with our eyes and taste with our tongue is wheat and grapes. We like to believe what we can see, feel, taste, touch, and see.
Unfortunately, our senses are not the final authority on reality. Things can be real that we cannot sense. Your home can be filled with poisonous gasses that you cannot smell. This is why you have CO2 detectors. Likewise, humans understand about 5% of what exists in the universe, while the other 95% is referred to as "dark." We just don't know how it all works, only that it somehow does.
So we must have reasons for the things we believe, particularly when it comes to matters of the Christian faith. We can't just make up things or rely on feelings, or even on our senses.
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and Paul all tell us that Jesus says that this is His Body and Blood. John also speaks of it, but in different words that assume you already know about the Lord's Supper. The presence of Christ's Body and Blood in the Sacrament of the Altar has been the life of the Christian Church since Maundy Thursday, when it was first given. Why? Because our Lord Himself has given it to us.
Make sure that your beliefs come from the Word of the Lord. Humans have believed all sorts of weird things over the centuries, many of which have proven to be harmful and even fatal. Many have strayed from the Lord's Word and were led to destruction. The Lord, through His Word, will keep you on the way of life and preserve you from death.
Lutherans are sometimes criticized for putting so much emphasis on Holy Baptism, the Office of the Keys (Confession and Absolution) and the Lord's Supper. We only do this because Jesus has given these to us. We've kind of put everything behind Christ and His words. A man-made religion just won't do. It's got to come from the Lord.
Ask the question! Where is this written? And if it is written, then we ought to believe it. The Word of God is trustworthy and true. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.
His Word proclaims and we believe that in this Supper we receive His very body, as He said, His very blood for sinners shed. ("The Death of Jesus Christ, our Lord" LSB 634, st.4)
Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Duane Bamsch
6 min
October 05, 2021 Tuesday of the 18th Week after Trinity
Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:1-9
To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours…(1 Corinthians 1:2)
In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. I have a bad habit of skipping Paul's greetings. Get to the point, my friend. We can pretend I'm so pious that I just can't wait to get to the good stuff. The introductions are always more or less the same. You shouldn't recycle material, Paul. It's lazy.
When it comes to Corinth, I think maybe the introduction is the point. Read it. It doesn't sound like the Corinth that we hear about in the rest of the letter. This doesn't sound like a church divided. Full of sexual immorality, idolatry. Ignoring the widows in order to get drunk. Mishandling the Lord's Supper. Bragging about spiritual gifts to raise themselves above each other. Corinth is messed up. But Paul writes to the holy ones, sanctified in Christ Jesus.
Because that's who they are. The thing that unites us across time and space, that lets Paul write an introduction to Corinth that sounds like the introduction to Galatia and Ephesus and Philippi, is the Gospel: grace and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Corinth is not known by the cesspool of sin, but by the God who promises to give grace, forgiveness, and peace. The testimony is confirmed among the believers there. Their sins are forgiven because Christ is risen from the dead. Because Christ gives them His Body and Blood to eat and drink. Because Christ unites them into one Body. The proof of Christianity isn't in our works, but God's.
He joins us into fellowship across time and space into the mercy given by the Cross. The introduction is the point because God's Word does what it proclaims. It gives grace, mercy, and peace to them, and to you. That sustains us to the end. Guiltless. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.
Oh, blest communion, fellowship divine! We feebly struggle, they in glory shine; Yet all are one in Thee, for all are Thine. Alleluia! Alleluia! ("For All the Saints" LSB 677, st.4)
Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Duane Bamsch
6 min
October 04, 2021 Monday of the 18th Week after Trinity
Today's Reading: Deuteronomy 10:12-21
Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 4:21-40; Matthew 8:1-17
For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe. (Deuteronomy 10:17)
In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. "And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways, to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul." No big deal, right? Look at all the great stuff God has done for you. You owe Him. Honestly, you owe Him more than He asks. He hasn't just saved ancestors. He hasn't just given you all you have in this life. He sacrificed His Son to save you. Repent. Repent, because it isn't God who would use His good works as leverage to extract something from you. It's you who use your works as leverage to demand from God. It's you who think your good deeds require recompense from your neighbor. God did not send His Son to die as a guilt trip.
And more, it wouldn't have even worked. We are indebted to God. That's not in question. But it's like handing a 4-year-old a bill for room and board. They can't pay it. You can't, either. God doesn't want you to. He is not partial and takes no bribes. He just loves sinners. Even you, who can't hear His promises without thinking about leverage and paybacks. For even this, Jesus has died for you. You are forgiven. Not because you'll ever earn it, but because God loves you.
He loves us so much that He wants to see orphans and widows and sojourners cared for even though they can't pay. He gives it all as a gift. That which He requires of you? He fulfills it for you in the person of His Son. He works it through you for the good of your neighbor. The Law demands more than we could ever give. But God provides everything the Law demands. That way your works aren't your praise. Your God is. He is the one who has accomplished all for sinners. Jesus paid everything for you. You owe nothing. Rejoice in Him who made you free. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.
The royal banners forward go; The cross shows forth redemption's flow, Where He, by whom our flesh was made, Our ransom in His flesh has paid: ("The Royal Banners Forward Go" LSB 455, st.1)
Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Duane Bamsch
6 min

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Join HT for a reading of the days Higher Things Reflection. A short devotion directed toward the youth of our church, written by the Pastors and Deaconesses of our church, clearly proclaiming the true Gospel of Jesus Christ!