Reflections

October 15, 2024

Today's Reading: Hebrews 3:12-19 

Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 13:1-18; Matthew 13:1-23

But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. (Hebrews 3:13)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Hebrews is a definitive book that states so well the freedom we have from fear, death, and the Devil. So exhortation/ encouragement is spoken of here as an ongoing action. It is for today, for each other, that we provide exhortation, encouragement, and comfort… and that can be accomplished in no other way than in preaching the full counsel of God. At first, this sounds overwhelming, doesn’t it? That would mean we’d need to know the entirety of Scripture, all that God has done for us… and that’s certainly true… reading, marking, and hearing the Word of God is certainly important enough for God to give us a commandment that says we should gladly hear the Word of God. There’s more, though… we hear the Word of God together, we talk about what our Lord says to us in the Word of God, and we wrestle with the text and discuss it. What better place to do this than the Lord’s church? As St. Paul mentions to us in Acts 20, he never failed to preach the whole counsel of God… what does this mean? Just this: that Christ Jesus was born to suffer for us, bear our sins to the cross, die, and rise again for our justification! That’s the whole counsel of God, and here’s the best part… what does the writer of Hebrews mean when he writes, “as long as it is ‘today?’”  

A friend of mine once asked me a good question… “Do you live in yesterday? Perhaps you believe that you live in tomorrow?” “Of course not,” I said… to which he replied, “Of course you’re right!” It’s always today. What greater joy do we have as the baptized children of God than to believe and trust that our Lord Jesus has been raised from the dead to bestow to us eternal day, the light of His word, and His forgiveness today and forever! It’s always today, and yet, within each day, we are bought and redeemed. The deceitfulness of sin continues, the temptations of the Devil and world seek to harden us… so it will be until the Last Day… so our Lord gives us His good counsel, sends the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, to attend to the Word, and to give faith, hope, and trust in the Lord Who abides with us in His church. So we exhort, provide good counsel and correction to erring brothers, encourage one another with the word of Christ the Crucified, and always are given to the comfort and the stilling of troubled consciences in the word of forgiveness. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Almighty God, for my many sins I justly deserve eternal condemnation. In Your mercy, You sent Your Son, my dear Lord Jesus, Who won for me forgiveness and everlasting salvation. Grant good and faithful exhortation from my brothers in the faith that in contrition I would make a true confession, that dead to my sin, I may be raised up by Your life-giving Absolution. Grant, I pray, your Holy Spirit, that I may be ever watchful and live a godly life in Your Service and in service to my neighbor. Amen. 

-Rev. Adam DeGroot, pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, KY.

In Embracing Your Lutheran Identity, Author Gene Edward Veith Jr. will guide readers through that heritage, starting with the Early Church and moving through the Reformation to Lutheranism today. Readers will learn about key people in the history of Lutheranism, from two teenagers who were the first martyrs of the Reformation, through the Saxon immigrants who left everything behind so they could practice Lutheranism freely, to the Lutherans who have stood strong for the faith in our own day.

October 14, 2024 

Today's Reading: Amos 5:6-7, 10-15

Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 12:13-32; Matthew 12:38-50

They hate him who reproves in the gate, and they abhor him who speaks the truth. (Amos 5:10)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Amos was a shepherd who tended sycamore trees. More important than that, though, was the truth that God, according to His good pleasure, made Amos a prophet to Israel. God made Amos a prophet… and wonderfully, it pleased God to send a sinner as a prophet to preach to sinners both to repent of their wickedness and to receive the forgiveness of God. But they hated Him Who spoke at the gate. Sure, they hated Amos… it was easier for them to do that… the truth, though, was not that they hated Amos… they hated God… because they hated the word of God that Amos was sent to speak. 

The Israelites took advantage of the poor, they cheated in business, they lied and shouted down those who told the truth, they neglected the beggars, and they remained silent when they should have spoken against the sin around them. They worshiped golden idols… every sin against God and men could be found among the people Amos preached to.

Amos and all the Prophets were sent because God loved His people… and yet, all many of God’s people could see were pesky men who came to lay out every sin before them. That usually had the result of making the people feel bad, and it made them angry. So it’s important to know that Amos and the prophets weren’t sent to make them feel bad… Amos was sent so that the people of God could see what was killing them… and in this, Israel was to see God’s love and care for them: their dire need and lack, and God’s abundant forgiveness and peace. How would the people know that God loved them? He’d sent them a prophet… God’s mouthpiece to turn them to repentance… God’s prophet to give them the forgiveness of God. 

Amos was booted out of Israel… Jesus was tortured and killed… St. Paul was ultimately killed in Rome… and a man is sent to preach and rightly divide law and gospel to you. In great love, our Gracious Lord loves us and sends a pastor to assure us that Jesus has removed our sin, shame, and guilt. He puts His words into our mouths, and He fights the powers of darkness. Jesus restores our voice to speak in faith toward Him and in fervent love toward one another. What a wonderful blessing and promise that even in the sinful and fallen world, we don’t fight alone! In fact, we don’t do the fighting at all; Christ does all that is needed for you. “It is finished,” He said… finished for you. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Almighty God, 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 will fulfill Your command and preach nothing contrary to Your Holy Word. Grant also that we, being instructed, warned, nurtured, and comforted by Your Word, may do those things which are pleasing to You and profitable for our Salvation. Through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.

-Rev. Adam DeGroot, pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, KY.

In Embracing Your Lutheran Identity, Author Gene Edward Veith Jr. will guide readers through that heritage, starting with the Early Church and moving through the Reformation to Lutheranism today. Readers will learn about key people in the history of Lutheranism, from two teenagers who were the first martyrs of the Reformation, through the Saxon immigrants who left everything behind so they could practice Lutheranism freely, to the Lutherans who have stood strong for the faith in our own day.

October 13, 2024

Today's Reading: Mark 10:17-22

Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 11:26-12:12; Matthew 12:22-37

“Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. (Mark 10:18)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Law questions get law answers. The rich man has two things on his mind as he approaches Jesus. First, Jesus is one of the Good Guys… a man wise in teaching about the things of God. Second, the rich man wants to know how eternal life is inherited. What should become apparent to us is the strange nature of the man's second thought. Inheritances aren’t earned… Inheritances are bestowed.  

The problem for the rich young man is often our problem; we understand that Eternal Life is the greatest thing of all, but unfortunately, we’re often tempted to think that it’s something we earn by what we do. Being “good” is necessary for salvation, but we don’t ask often enough, “What does ‘good’ mean?” While we often place a lot of emphasis on doing good… we often fail to ask WHO is doing the good and for Whom is the good one doing it. Jesus asks, though… “Why do you call me good?”  Do you say I’m good because of what I’m teaching or how you’ve seen me acting? He calls Jesus a teacher… Jesus is certainly that, but why does the man call Him good? The answer to this is that the rich man sees Jesus as a teacher, which He is, and that He sees Jesus as just one good teacher among many.

Jesus is so much more than a teacher, though; as He says to the rich man… “No one is good except God alone.” These words are both true and comforting. They’re comforting in the sense that God has come into our midst. Jesus is Goodness in the midst of sinners who aren’t good, and He’s come not just to teach, not to give new laws, new paths, or to provide an example… He alone is the Good One… sent by His Father, as the blessed Good One, Who fulfills both tables of the law, crediting His work to us by Baptism and bestowing the inheritance of forgiveness and life freely.

No one is Good but God alone, that’s true… but St. Mark writes and the Spirit opens our ears to see that Christ alone has accomplished all that is good and right. He’s fulfilled all the law, bore the weight of our sin, died to put our death to death, and has risen again to justify us… that is… to bestow forgiveness and life to us… to bestow the inheritance of the kingdom of God, salvation and eternal life to us in the church. The Good Teacher IS the Good Shepherd… who has bestowed His goodness to us, Who lives in us by His word and makes us good, beautiful, righteous, and perfect. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Lord Jesus Christ, whose grace always precedes and follows us, help us to forsake all trust in earthly gain and to find our treasure in You, our Heavenly treasure; for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen

-Rev. Adam DeGroot, pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, KY.

In Embracing Your Lutheran Identity, Author Gene Edward Veith Jr. will guide readers through that heritage, starting with the Early Church and moving through the Reformation to Lutheranism today. Readers will learn about key people in the history of Lutheranism, from two teenagers who were the first martyrs of the Reformation, through the Saxon immigrants who left everything behind so they could practice Lutheranism freely, to the Lutherans who have stood strong for the faith in our own day.

October 12, 2024 

Today's Reading: Introit for Pentecost 21 - Psalm 112:3-6; antiphon: Psalm 112:1

Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 11:1-25; Matthew 12:1-21

Praise the Lord! Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in his commandments (Psalm 112:1)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Blessed is the one who fears? Yes! And not only that, but the Psalmist says that we praise the Lord because of this fear.  

Isn’t it a sin to fear, though? It is a sin to disbelieve, distrust, and to trust other words than the word of God. So the blessedness the Psalmist speaks of is the same fear Martin Luther writes of and that we have proclaimed for years in our Catechism studies… we are to fear, love, and trust in God above all things. Our Lord says in Matthew 10:28, “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” And yet, this fear of the Lord isn’t terror… it isn’t even a quaking or trembling before Him because of uneasiness… there is no uneasiness at all. Jesus our Lord tells us exactly Who He is, what He’s done, and that He’s doing it for us. Jesus became sin for us… and St. John records in 16:33, “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart (FEAR NOT); I have overcome the world.”

Don’t fear the world… there’s nothing left to fear. Don’t fear death… it’s been overcome. We believe, teach, and confess that Christ has justified us and saved us by His blood… but the Psalmist writes that we are blessed: not just in temporal ways, not just eternally, but the God who saved us is pleased to go with us on our way… what a blessing that is.

We’re blessed that God’s stern law causes us to despair of our own righteousness and be brought to our knees in humble repentance before the Lord Who has died to save us. We are blessed that we are redeemed, bought back, reclaimed, washed, renewed, and given a new name in Baptism… He’s saved us from evil, from the Evil One, and proclaims that we should cease to do evil. We’re blessed because Jesus not only increases our hunger and thirst for righteousness but provides the very feast of forgiveness and righteousness to His church.  

Luther puts it this way: “God here praises us for our good life and are promised eternal comfort against all trouble. We are blessed because we are given to a sincere confidence in God’s grace.” (Reading the Psalms with Luther: 271)  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

O Lord, the Reward of them that fear You, and the Defense of Your people, Who in Your Son Jesus Christ, had promised grace and everlasting righteousness to them that believe, establish our hearts by Your grace that, rooted in the faith of Your Word we may be able to stand in the day of trial. Strengthen us to resist the enticing lust of sin, and triumph over Satan, death and hell through Jesus Christ. Amen (“Praying the Psalms with Luther” Psalm 112; page 272)

-Rev. Adam DeGroot, pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, KY.

In Embracing Your Lutheran Identity, Author Gene Edward Veith Jr. will guide readers through that heritage, starting with the Early Church and moving through the Reformation to Lutheranism today. Readers will learn about key people in the history of Lutheranism, from two teenagers who were the first martyrs of the Reformation, through the Saxon immigrants who left everything behind so they could practice Lutheranism freely, to the Lutherans who have stood strong for the faith in our own day.

October 11, 2024 

Today's Reading: Matthew 11:20-30

Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 9:23-10:22; Matthew 11:20-30

At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. (Matthew 11:25-26)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. What a strange statement… “I thank you that You’ve kept things hidden.” Isn’t the ‘job’ of the Christian church and of Jesus’ ministry to reveal all the good stuff that Jesus does and accomplishes for us? Don’t we as Christians want to know that the church we’re a part of is ‘making a difference’ in the world around us?  

What are the things that the Father has kept hidden? From whom has He kept them hidden? He’s kept hidden the reality that Jesus is the Messiah, come to save people from their sins… and He’s kept it hidden from the Galileans (specifically) who refuse to repent of their sins and hear that Jesus is the One who’s come to forgive them. It’s a case of the Father giving the ‘wise and understanding’ over to their own devices and their own sin. It’s not as if Jesus has hidden anything from the Galileans; John the Baptist had also proclaimed Jesus to be the Christ… it’s just that the Galileans had thoughts of their own… ways that they said and thought things should go.  

But to the little children… that is, to the desperate, despairing, and penitent sinner who had seen their great lack, their great need of forgiveness– it’s to these that Jesus gave forgiveness.  

We’ve been taught much about what being a Christian ought to look like, and unfortunately, it usually revolves around what we do to clean our acts up, do all the right things, and be seen as the shining light and example to those around us… but here in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus tells another story; it is to the penitent sinner… the one crushed by the law, the one who is sorrowful over their sin, the one who wonders just how they can be redeemed and saved… it’s to these little ones, these little children (babies, teenagers, moms and dads and grandmas and grandpas) who are little children not because of age… but because we are completely and fully dependent on Jesus, who forgives their sin and bestows life now and unto eternity. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Almighty and everlasting God, for my many sins I justly deserve eternal condemnation. In Your mercy, You sent Your dear Son, my Lord Jesus Christ, Who won for me forgiveness of sins and everlasting salvation. Grant me a true confession that, dead to sin, I may be raised up by Your life-giving Absolution. Grant me Your Holy Spirit that I may ever be watchful and live a true and godly life in Your service; through Jesus Christ, my Lord. Amen

-Rev. Adam DeGroot, pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, KY.

In Embracing Your Lutheran Identity, Author Gene Edward Veith Jr. will guide readers through that heritage, starting with the Early Church and moving through the Reformation to Lutheranism today. Readers will learn about key people in the history of Lutheranism, from two teenagers who were the first martyrs of the Reformation, through the Saxon immigrants who left everything behind so they could practice Lutheranism freely, to the Lutherans who have stood strong for the faith in our own day.

October 10, 2024 

Today's Reading: Catechism - Table of duties: To wives

Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 9:1-22; Matthew 11:1-19

Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. (Ephesians 5:22)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. We hear Paul’s text with modern ears and are, at best, surprised. We hear ‘submit’ and begin to wonder: “My goodness, if we were to return to this way of thinking, then all the progress we’ve made for women and little girls will be undone!” Submission is a dirty word… a word that sounds like something we’d say to a subject or slave of a King. It makes sense in our sin… in a world that we’ve been tempted to believe is run and ruled by power. So regardless… in our sinful minds, it’s not that we don’t like the word submit… we’re more concerned with who will submit to whom.

That’s where the second part of the text comes in… submission is to be ‘as to the Lord.’  So submission has less to do with power and everything to do with what Jesus has done for us. “Submit to your husband” is, of course, a directive, a command, but Paul also tells us why wives submit… they submit to husbands as to the Lord because the whole bride of Christ, the Christian church, submits– gives herself over to the care of Jesus. Jesus isn’t interested in ruling over us as a tyrant king… He’s not looking for us to do things for Him. He’s true God and true man. As God, He has need of nothing… and as a man willingly became sin for us, to carry sin, put it to death in order to buy back His precious bride from sin, death, and the Devil. He’s the perfect Husband, the Perfect Man, and willingly becomes the least, the weakest, the servant of all in order to redeem His bride.

Submission isn’t ceding power, and it isn’t a matter of who’ll be the boss… God alone is the Creator, Redeemer, and Sanctifier– everything necessary for this body and life and the life to come is taken care of… submission is a deference… a deferring and a trust that the man will lay aside everything, bear the burdens and sins of his family, his wife, die unto himself, and perhaps even physically die for the sake of wife and children. It’s a trust that husbands will be the heads of households, take responsibility for the instruction of the family, take them to the house of God to receive what the Good Shepherd freely gives, and to give of himself as Christ gave Himself for His Bride the church. Submission isn’t about power or even losing power… it is about true trust that the Lord of us all takes care of us by the church: in families and in husbands and wives who by grace have children… who in turn become husbands and wives themselves… and so creation and the Church continues from generation to generation. Submit to, as you do to the Lord, who has died and risen FOR YOU. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Most Gracious God, we give thanks for the joy and blessings that You grant to husbands and wives. Assist them always by Your grace that with true fidelity and steadfast love, they may honor and keep their marriage vows, grow in love toward You and for each other, and come at last to the eternal loys that You have promised; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen

-Rev. Adam DeGroot, pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, KY.

In Embracing Your Lutheran Identity, Author Gene Edward Veith Jr. will guide readers through that heritage, starting with the Early Church and moving through the Reformation to Lutheranism today. Readers will learn about key people in the history of Lutheranism, from two teenagers who were the first martyrs of the Reformation, through the Saxon immigrants who left everything behind so they could practice Lutheranism freely, to the Lutherans who have stood strong for the faith in our own day.

October 9, 2024 

Today's Reading: Matthew 10:24-42

Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 8:1-20; Matthew 10:24-42

“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)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Jesus has come to forgive sins… as much is mentioned earlier in Matthew’s Gospel (1:21). So our text for today tells us not why Jesus came but the result of Jesus coming among us. This means we are to think of the text in this way… “Do not think that I came only to bring peace upon the earth, I came not only to bring peace but even more a sword.” (Gibbs; Concordia Commentary Matthew 1:1-11:1 pgs 536, 538).

Jesus came to bring peace (Luke 2:14) through His innocent and bloody death, and that forgiveness of sins will be preached to all people in the church and by the people Christ has died to save… but many reject this teaching of peace given in forgiveness. Many say, “I don’t need what you say your Jesus has come to give.” It can be frustrating for sure, especially if we take that rejection personally… but why would we take it personally? Are those who reject Christ’s innocent suffering and death, His free forgiveness, and the bestowal of life and salvation rejecting us or our works? We might think so… missionaries are sent far and wide– sometimes they’re heard, and other times they are not… Pastors sometimes preach to closed ears and hardened hearts; Jeremiah the prophet himself was told that the people of Jerusalem would not hear him (Jeremiah 7:27), and it may be that as you proclaim the truth of Christ’s victory over sin and death, as you proclaim salvation won by Christ alone, that parents, siblings, or others close to you will not listen.  

It is the Gospel, the truth of life and salvation given and bestowed freely, that is the stumbling block and the rock of offense… this Gospel stands in opposition to our inborn temptations to believe that we, of ourselves, by our good works, by our merits can save ourselves… such is not so. We are saved by grace, through faith in Christ alone. He has bestowed unimaginable peace to us… peace between God and us, us and our neighbor through the forgiveness of sins. It is the peace that passes understanding– and it is yours by Baptism, by the graciousness of Christ your Lord. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Almighty and most gracious God and Father, we implore you to turn the hearts of all who have forsaken the faith once delivered to Your Church, especially those who have wandered from it or are in doubt through the corruption of Your Truth. Mercifully visit and restore them that in gladness of heart, they may take pleasure in Your Word and be made wise to salvation through faith in Your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen

-Rev. Adam DeGroot, pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, KY.

In Embracing Your Lutheran Identity, Author Gene Edward Veith Jr. will guide readers through that heritage, starting with the Early Church and moving through the Reformation to Lutheranism today. Readers will learn about key people in the history of Lutheranism, from two teenagers who were the first martyrs of the Reformation, through the Saxon immigrants who left everything behind so they could practice Lutheranism freely, to the Lutherans who have stood strong for the faith in our own day.

October 8, 2024 

Today's Reading: Hebrews 2:1-13, 14-18

Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 7:1-19; Matthew 10:1-23

For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. (Hebrews 2:18)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. 

Isaiah the prophet told us: “Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us” (Isaiah 7:14).   That’s good news to we who live in a suffering and sinful world. It is wonderful news to we who suffer to know that there is One who was made lowly to suffer for us that we would be comforted in sorrow and sadness and forgiven of our sins which lead to death… AND having been thus forgiven, we wouldn’t fear death!

That’s a tall task! Who doesn’t fear death!? We can handle the fear of public speaking, the fear of flying, the fear of snakes or spiders… but death… that’s another deal altogether. Just how is this done? Think back to Holy Week… Jesus entering into Jerusalem to shouts of Hosanna… He wasn’t under allusions that the people in Jerusalem liked Him or even liked how He was going to save them. Jesus knew well what was required of Him; sin deserves death, and Jesus had become sin for us… not that He was sinful but that He carried ALL our sins in His body, for us. Death was necessary, and Jesus goes to Maundy Thursday and Good Friday willingly and joyously because what He was doing was all for you. So, Jesus wins salvation on the Cross and gives salvation by His resurrection through the church. He did it as God… but more importantly for us, He was a Man like us.

That means that He knew temptation, pain, suffering, and tears… that’s part of how He helps us when we’re tempted… that’s how He helps us in pain and sorrow and tears… not just that He knew them once back in the day… but because He’s with us now. He attends to us, cries with us, holds us to Himself in the church, and wipes our tears away while comforting us with His Word. He’s with us in our cradles, in the good and tough days of school and work. He’s with us when we’re old, and He’s with us in the hour of our death; He who has known death abides with us. He who has been risen from the dead provides comfort that though we die, Christ, Who was raised from the dead, will raise us on the Last Day. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Almighty God, grant us 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.

-Rev. Adam DeGroot, pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, KY.

In Embracing Your Lutheran Identity, Author Gene Edward Veith Jr. will guide readers through that heritage, starting with the Early Church and moving through the Reformation to Lutheranism today. Readers will learn about key people in the history of Lutheranism, from two teenagers who were the first martyrs of the Reformation, through the Saxon immigrants who left everything behind so they could practice Lutheranism freely, to the Lutherans who have stood strong for the faith in our own day.

October 7, 2024

Today's Reading: Genesis 2:18-25

Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 6:10-25; Matthew 9:18-38

“This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.” (Genesis 2:23)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Dominion, according to the dictionary, is supremacy or dominance, but our text from Genesis tells another story. God created man in His image, in His likeness, and in verse 19 of our text, we see God sitting back as He brought all of creation to Adam to see what he’d name the stuff… it must have been quite a sight. It was to Man… to Adam, the crown jewel of creation, that God brought all the creation and heard that Adam called them Aardvarks, Platypi, and Zebras. God created and waited to see what the crown jewel, Adam, would call them. We humans are God’s favorites! The dominion God gives to Adam to name stuff isn’t about control or power, though; it’s the same joy that a mother or father has in seeing what their little ones will call one of the things they created out of paper and crayons, mud, stones or macaroni noodles… there is joy, not because of power, supremacy or superiority, but because something has been created and has been given a NAME!  

We see it in what Adam calls the creature taken from his own body. She’s different from him… and yet she’s wonderful. So wonderful, in fact, that Adam says, “At last… there’s the helper, taken from my own flesh… she’s me, and I’m her… but we’re different… beautifully different.” Woman is what she is: ‘from man.’ That’s the name Adam gives her, and yet she has another name: Eve… 

Eve… like Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve… meaning that from her will come other wonderful and blessed humans, little girls and boys… our greatest of grandparents all the way up to us. The man will leave His parents and cleave (hold fast) to his wife… sure, they’ll still be two distinct people, different in many ways, but in Holy Matrimony, they’re one… complete with all the differences, and, by the grace of God, of one mind, of one direction. Regardless of whether a man or woman gets married, there still remains the truth that man and woman are the two genders God created… we are different but complimentary. We don’t always think the same way, but that’s part of the beauty and wonder… that our Heavenly Father sent Jesus ‘the Man’ to buy back His wayward bride. He is the greater Adam who has given us His Name, ‘Christian,’ for all we have has been taken from and given to us from His precious blood and pierced side. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

The Church’s one foundation is Jesus Christ her Lord; she is His new creation by water and the Word. From heaven He came and sought her to be His holy bride; with His own blood He bought her and for her life He died. (LSB 644:1)

-Rev. Adam DeGroot, pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, KY.

In Embracing Your Lutheran Identity, Author Gene Edward Veith Jr. will guide readers through that heritage, starting with the Early Church and moving through the Reformation to Lutheranism today. Readers will learn about key people in the history of Lutheranism, from two teenagers who were the first martyrs of the Reformation, through the Saxon immigrants who left everything behind so they could practice Lutheranism freely, to the Lutherans who have stood strong for the faith in our own day.

October 6, 2024 

Today's Reading: Mark 10:2-16

Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 5:22-6:9; Matthew 9:1-17

Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it. (Mark 10:15)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. 

Children, especially the littlest children, are completely dependent. Adam and Eve were created perfect… and the gift of children that came by Holy Matrimony was not just a promise of a future for all mankind but was given as a joy and a gift that revealed to man just how God graciously takes care of us in all our dependency.  

Adam and Eve needed God to provide everything… and they loved their dependence. This didn’t mean they just sat around and did nothing, though… there was plenty for them to do for each other. Adam cared for Eve, taught her, and was overjoyed to love his wife. Eve was served by Adam, and she loved to serve her husband… and that’s what’s wonderful about what Jesus teaches the Pharisees and us in our text. The Pharisees weren’t arguing about who was the greatest just to be seen as the best… they sought to ‘be served’ by those who were not as great as them. Jesus teaches us and them that they’re not the greatest because of their high stature, their law-abiding, or anything that they do at all. The greatest is like a little itty bitty baby who’s dependent on mom and dad for EVERYTHING! The greatest is the servant, as Jesus makes clear in Matthew 23:11. The One who receives the Kingdom of God is like Adam and Eve before the Fall– totally dependent on God for all things. 

The person who will enter heaven is the person who is given the kingdom like a little needy child. That’s the person Jesus says “receives the kingdom of God…” That’s who Jesus (who, though He was God, became the servant of all) says enters heaven… the needy children who’ve been given everything. Receiving the Kingdom of God, receiving Jesus is simply this… He does everything for us… gives all that is His to us, forgives us, and He does so by means of water, bread, wine, body, blood, and the word in the Divine Service, and the Holy Spirit brings us there and gives us the faith of a little child… faith that says, “Amen, amen it is so!” Christ my Lord abides with me. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Merciful Father, Your patience and loving-kindness toward us have no end. Grant that by Your Holy Spirit we may always think and do those things that are pleasing in Your sight; through Jesus Christ, Your Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen

-Rev. Adam DeGroot, pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, KY.

In Embracing Your Lutheran Identity, Author Gene Edward Veith Jr. will guide readers through that heritage, starting with the Early Church and moving through the Reformation to Lutheranism today. Readers will learn about key people in the history of Lutheranism, from two teenagers who were the first martyrs of the Reformation, through the Saxon immigrants who left everything behind so they could practice Lutheranism freely, to the Lutherans who have stood strong for the faith in our own day.