The Law and the Gospel

Text: Matthew 22:34-46 In our Christian Book of Concord, the Lutheran confessors write,  The distinction between the Law and the Gospel is a particularly brilliant light. It serves the purpose of rightly dividing God’s Word and properly explaining and understanding the Scriptures of the holy prophets and apostles. We must guard this distinction with special …

Sabbath Humility

Text: Luke 14:1-11 In our readings this week, we seem to have two streams of thought going on. The first stream we heard in the Old Testament reading, in St. Paul, and the second half of the Gospel text. The word that comes to mind in all three readings is humility. Our Lord encourages us …

Life Through Death

Text: Luke 7:11-17 I will extol you, O Lord, for You have drawn me up and have not let my foes rejoice over me. O Lord my God, I cried to You for help, and You have healed me. O Lord, You have brought up my soul from Sheol; You restored me to life from …

Altar Guild Workshop 2019, Pt. III

Welcome back to the third and final session of this year’s altar guild workshop. So far, we have reviewed our Lutheran confession of faith when it comes to the Lord’s Supper. We have explored the idea that what we believe about something should be reflected in our actions. And, we have learned about the items …

Altar Guild Workshop 2019, Pt. II

Administration of the Sacrament Welcome to session 02 of our workshop covering the Sacrament of the Altar. The focus of this workshop to remind ourselves of what the Scriptures teach and what we, as Lutherans, believe about the Lord’s Supper. It’s my opinion and, I think, the Lutheran one, that what we believe should be …

He Will Command His Angels

Text: Psalm 91:11-12 We sang together in the Psalm, “He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.” (Psalm 91:11-2, English Standard Version) In the Gospel, we heard our Lord say, “See that you …

When God Blesses You

Text: Luke 17:11-19 St. Paul wrote to the Galatians in the Epistle reading that those who belong to Christ Jesus, “have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” (Galatians 4:24, English Standard Version) He wrote this to encourage them and us in our walk as Christians, that we do not fall backward into the …

Altar Guild Workshop 2019, Pt. I

Altar Guild Workshop 2019 - Session 01, “What is the Lord’s Supper?” An Overview of the Sixth Chief Part Our most gracious Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, promised us in the Gospel that He would never leave us nor forsake us, that He would not, “leave [us] as orphans.” He made these promises with His …

Doctrinal Catechesis 01 – Ten Commandments, Pt. I

Doctrinal Catechesis 01: The Ten Commandments, Pt. I Bible Text: Luke 16:19-31 Discussion Questions: What kind of man was the rich man? What kind of a man was Lazarus? Why did the rich man go to hell? Why did Lazarus go to heaven? How is someone made a Christian? What is the First Commandment?  When …

Old Testament Catechesis 02 – Adam and Eve: The Creation of Man and Institution of Marriage

Text: Genesis 2:4-25 Discussion Questions How did God create man? What was different about that? What had God given man in the Garden? What did God say about the Tree of Knowledge? Why wasn’t it good for man to be alone? How did God create woman? Who brought the woman to the man and joined …