Category: Lectionary - Wittenberg Door Campus Ministry

Mark 6:14-29 - Lectionary for Pentecost 8B

7/12/2018

7/12/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

Our Gospel reading for this week is found in Mark chapter 6, beginning at verse 14. Immediately before, Jesus had sent out his disciples to preach, teach, and heal.

King Herod heard of the miracles. He wanted to explain them somehow. The most likely explanation he can come up with is a resurrection. If, for instance, Jesus were a prophet who had been raised from the dead, maybe he could do these miracles. Herod decided he must be a resurrected John the Baptist.

This idea gives Mark an excuse to tell the story of the way John had been killed. We notice that Herod didn’t want to have John killed. However, because John had been speaking out against Herod’s sin, he couldn’t simply release John.

In a moment of passion, at a birthday party, Herod promised to do whatever his neice/stepdaughter asked. She demanded the execution of John. Herod really had no choice but to comply.

John never rose from the dead, though he will in the last day. But Jesus still had God’s power working in Him. He had no need for anyone else’s resurrection. Jesus alone makes a valid claim to be the resurrection and the life. We can take the risk of trusting Jesus and the power of His resurrection. He acts as the power of God. It’s really no risk at all.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Ephesians 1:3-14 - Lectionary for Pentecost 8B

7/11/2018

7/11/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

Our reading from Ephesians 1:3-14 speaks of God as “blessed.” It then proceeds to speak of the blessings God gives to his people. We may well ask how God can be blessed. A similar question is how we could possibly bring glory to God.

When we speak of blessing God or glorifying him, we are not speaking of anything God needs to make himself complete or fulfilled. We are rather talking about recognizing what God is actually like. by his very nature He is the one who already possesses every possible blessing there is. By his grace, he passes those blessings on to us.

What are those blessings of Ephesians 1? God chose us to be holy. He predestined us to be his children. He redeemed us since we couldn’t do it ourselves. He revealed his will which is for our good. He gave an inheritance to us. He placed the Holy Spirit upon us. All this he has done through His grace and by his good pleasure.

God, the blessed and glorious one, has poured out His blessing for his people. For this reason, we return blessing and honor to Him.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Amos 7:7-15 - Lectionary for Pentecost 8B

7/10/2018

7/10/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

In Amos chapter seven, the prophet sees God measuring His people. The Lord is no longer going to spare them. He will see who is straight and who is crooked. Those who have not built rightly are going to fal, even though they are a part of God’s chosen people, Israel.

The king and his priest took exception to the prophet’s message. After all, God had placed the king over His chosen people. The king attempted to bar Amos from being a prophet.

Amos had a very simple answer to this. He had not chosen to be a prophet. God chose him. The work of the prophet is to make God’s Word clear. Since God’s Word endures forever but God’s king does not, the work of the prophet bears an authority which no king can claim.

Our world seems easily driven from one crisis to another. We enter into panic mode whenever events turn out differently than our desires. This focus on the temporary is always destructive. Why not rather be guided by God’s Word which endures forever? That’s what Amos would tell us.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Psalm 85:8-13 - Lectionary for Pentecost 8B

7/9/2018

7/9/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

God’s provision, as described in the Bible, is quite the opposite of all we could expect. Before this raises your hackles, let me explain a bit. After all, we are used to thinking of God as the one who is limitless in His love. Why would we not expect everything to work out? It’s not because of God. But in Psalm 85:8 the prayer is that God’s people would not return to their foolish ways.

We’ve all seen pictures of people doing what will surely be harmful. Many times we seem to time our foolishnessto coincide with holidays, alcoholic beverages, and a buddy holding ap hone to record us executing that triple back flip off the airborne minibike into a kiddie pool. What could go wrong?

Our spiritual foolishness, on the other hand, doesn’t seem to need any of those circumstances. We enter into that kind of foolishness when we exalt ourselves as if we were God. We decide we know best. We depart from the clear commands and promises of Scripture. May the Lord keep us from foolishness.

When we listen to the Lord, when we depart from foolishness, what can we expect? Our Psalm gives us some indicators. We can look for salvation, glory, love, truth, righteousness, and divine provision. All the care of God is available to His people who trust in Him. Thanks be to God.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Mark 6:1-13 - Lectionary for Pentecost 7B

7/5/2018

7/5/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

In Mark chapter six we find Jesus running into a brick wall. He is not able to do miracles in his home town. We may well ask why not. The people didn’t believe him. They rejected him, saying that he was merely a guy they knew, taking him for granted, assuming that there was nothing special about him. They despised his authority, his ability, and his claims to divinity.

Yes, Jesus is able to do miracles regardless of our attitude toward him. But when he is rejected and despised, his miraculous grace is not delivered effectively to his opponents. It is as if he says, “Fine! You wish to reject my love, mercy, and grace so as to work out salvation on your own terms? I will leave you to it. Go ahead and deal with sin and death as well as you can.” This is, after all, why not all are saved even though Jesus is the savior of the world.

What’s really surprising in this passage, though, is that Jesus sends out some of his disciples and gives them the power to do the same kind of healing works that he would do. In their dependence on Jesus, they are also able to heal and cast out demons. Jesus’ power even works through his followers who believe. And we might question their belief as well. They seem genuinely surprised that they are able to do what Jesus sent them to do.

The principle in operation here is simply trusting Jesus enough to take him at his word. He says he is the savior. He speaks the truth. We expect that he will do what he has said, and he does it. Thanks be to God.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

2 Corinthians 12:1-10 - Lectionary for Pentecost 7B

7/4/2018

7/4/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

The apostle Paul was an unusual person, to say the least. He seems extremely intelligent. He apparently didn’t do anything halfway. He went from persecuting Christians very forcefully to being persecuted himself as a Christian. He had plenty that he could boast about, but rarely did so.

In 2 Corinthians 12 Paul tells us that he had plenty of reason to think highly of himself, but that he endured suffering in such a way that it would keep him from becoming proud. He faced some sort of a weakness, which he called a “thorn in the flesh,” and which served as a reminder to him that we are weak and frail.

None of us likes suffering. Sometimes we are able to (sinfully) delight in the way we can complain about our suffering and gain sympathy from others. But given the choice, we want to feel well, be healthy, happy, well-fed, and in positive relationships with others. It’s decidedly a blessing when that happens.

What about when it doesn’t work out so very well? What do we do, how do we react, when we find we are frail, weak, and endure various trials. Over the years I have known many people who deal with chronic illnesses. I myself have a health issue which causes numerous side effects that are far from pleasant. The trials we endure can knock the wind out of our sails and draw us up very quickly. What’s going on? How should the Christian endure these trials?

First, as with the apostle Paul, we realize that our trials will help us avoid being proud. They show us that we are not the masters of our destiny. They show us that we are fragile. They show us that all our plans, our hopes, our dreams are subject to the sovereign and gracious will of our Lord. By his grace he will accomplish through us what he desires. We don’t need to worry about it too much. Our Lord can take care of it.

Second, as the Lord told Paul, his grace is sufficient. When we act in our weakness we find that God is the one who is strong. When we have no wisdom for our challenges we find that God’s wisdom is sufficient. When we are out of love, care, patience, and kindness we find that our Lord’s resources are abundant. When we fear for our health or even our life, we realize that Jesus is the one who has triumphed over death itself. When we endure suffering God shows us that his grace can carry us through, from beginning to end.

Most of us don’t have nearly the reasons for pride that the apostle Paul did. But we all have just as much reason to see that God’s grace is sufficient. We will never find it lacking.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Ezekiel 2:1-5 - Lectionary for Pentecost 7B

7/3/2018

7/3/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

Ezekiel is one of the prophets who apparently was not very popular. He couldn’t say he wasn’t warned, though. In Ezekiel 2:1-5, the Lord spoke to Ezekiel very frankly about the fact that he would be rejected. Not only that, but in verse three, God calls the Israelites “rebellious pagans.” Those are pretty hard words for God’s chosen people. What do we learn about the role of those in ministry, based on this passage from Ezekiel?

First, a calling to ministry as a pastor, teacher, or any of the other churchly roles is a calling from God. Though we expect it to be ratified by our church body as a whole and the local congregation in which the minister will serve, it is primarily a call from God. The pastor follows God’s Word. He follows God’s instructions. He has to maintain God’s priorities. It is no kind of a popularity contest.

This does not mean that the pastor should be indifferent to the congregation. After all, God is calling him to be the shepherd of Christ, leading his people to trust Jesus and share with one another in time, talent, finances, and care. Did you ever wonder if you should invite the pastor to your child’s birthday party? The answer is that you absolutely should, but that you should make it clear that no present is expected and that you will all understand if the pastor can’t make it. A good pastor cherishes the opportunities to enter into the lives and interests of his congregants, old and young.

The people of Israel weren’t going to treat Ezekiel that way. The Holy Spirit warned Ezekiel about that. Ezekiel went anyway. He spoke God’s commands to the people, he called them to repentance, he asked them to turn to the Lord for forgiveness. This is a second thing we should take from this passage. Ezekiel’s call was not to be successful in turning Israel. His call was to speak God’s word faithfully, whether it was received or not. In the case of Ezekiel, the Word of God was rejected. Some pastors serve in congregations which will refuse God’s Word. Some missionaries serve in mission fields where they may labor for decades without seeing one single convert. Some pastors, including some I know personally, are called to serve the Lord in places with shrinking and aging populations. They fully expect their church congregations to shrink and age because that’s simply the demographic reality of their community. If the pastor is being faithful to God’s Word, ministering in Word and Sacrament, distributing God’s gifts to any who will receive them, the ministry is not in vain. It is still precious in God’s sight.

Yes, we want all church congregations to be thriving and growing. Every pastor in the world hopes for a steady increase in attendance, for people to be turned from sin to righteousness, and for people to be growing in grace and the knowledge of the Lord. But Christianity is not a numbers game. It’s a matter of faithfulness. Are we willing to be faithful and to let God take care of the numbers? Ezekiel was.

We learn a lot when we look at the prophets. We learn even more when we let the prophets inform us. May this passage draw us to trust our Lord in his wisdom and grace.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Psalm 123 - Lectionary for Pentecost 7B

7/2/2018

7/2/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

Usually when we think of a position of servitude we expect, well, servility. The master or mistress we assume to be oppressive. The servant can expect ill treatment. Psalm 123 gives us a very different picture of the Lord God. When we are servants of the very God enthroned in heaven, it is a position of relief. We’ve had enough contempt and scorn from those lesser masters, like the ones we work for on earth. It is the servants of the Lord who are pleased with the favor we receive. We watch the Lord attentively because we know He is the one who will give favor and relief, not contempt and scorn.

I think this may be something our postmodern society, so heavily influenced by Marxist and liberation theology biases, has trouble understanding. The voices in society, really all around us, look at everything through the lens of power and oppression. This struck me not long ago, when I was having a conversation with a member of the history faculty of a Christian University. He has long operated in a setting where there are some fairly strong remnants of historic Christian worldview in effect. All of a sudden, during our conversation, he laughed. He asked me if I had noticed that I referred to our meeting area as a safe space for free expression. He wondered if I had noticed that I was rather automatically rephrasing my point of view in terms which would be readily understood by a Marxist. I really had not thought about it. Maybe I was playing softball with him. I’m not sure. I know we were thoroughly enjoying our pizza.

When we are used to understanding life as a struggle against oppression and violence, when we understand our role as that of resisting authority, when we see ourselves as those who would overthrow those in power because they are, by definition, dangerous, we may fail to see that there is one master, the God of all, who is above all soverign, wise, and good. Let us never mistake that. Otherwise, we condemn ourselves and all who are around us to more contempt and scorn. We overthrow the powers of this world only to become powers which must be overthrown. This is not the position we want. In Christ, there’s something better. I’d rather be a servant of the Lord God than a master of those who would overthrow me. It’s in God’s Kingdom that we find favor and security.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Mark 5:21-43 - Lectionary for Pentecost 6B

6/28/2018

6/28/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

In Mark 5:21-43 we are in the habit of noticing how Mark tells of the healing of a woman in between parts of his story about Jesus raising the synagogue leader’s daughter from the dead. We use this situation to observe how Jesus can accomplish several things at once.

What we frequently ignore is the overall setting. Jesus has arrived at the shore of the Sea of Galilee with his disciples. He’s surrounded by people who are hungry for his teaching about the kingdom of God. Mark tells us several times in short order that it’s a large crowd. The people are pressing toward him, crowding him, following him.

Any normal human being who wants to gain a following is going to do one and only one thing in this setting. He will give the crowd what they want. He will preach and teach, maybe heal a few people in the crowd, and he will make sure everyone knows what he is doing. That’s the way we gather followers. That’s the way people make a name for themselves. That’s the path to fame and fortune.

Jesus does quite the opposite. He is told of the daughter’s condition. He leaves the crowd. When they get to the house, the crowd is shut out. Even the friends and family who have gathered to mourn are closed out. With the girl lying dead on the bed, and accompanied by her parents and Peter, James and John, Jesus raises the girl from the dead. There are only seven people in the room.

The New Testament doesn’t describe a Christ who is begging for attention. It describes a Christ who cares for individuals, who gives his life for them. It describes a Christ who has given his life for you and for me. It tells of a way of salvation that passes through death and into resurrection, not the way an earthly ruler would choose to go. Jesus is no earthly ruler. He’s the divine Lord of all, who cares even about the little girl at her home, away from the crowd. He’s the Lord who lavishes his care on all who believe. He’s much more than a guy with a Messiah complex. He is the true Messiah, the anointed deliverer.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

2 Corinthians 8:1-9, 13-15 - Lectionary for Pentecost 6B

6/27/2018

6/27/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

Our Epistle for this week, from 2 Corinthians chapter 8, uses the churches in Macedonia as an example to the Corinthians. Though the Macedonians at the time were undergoing trials and poverty, they acted in a generous manner, begging to be allowed to give for relief of others. The apostle Paul uses this example to urge the Corinthians, who are not in need, to dedicate themselves to helping others.

We notice a few important takeaways from this passage. First, all the giving was voluntary. There was no compulsion to help others, except the compulsion which come from a conscience stricken by the suffering of those in need. Second, there were still clear distinctions between rich and poor. Although we see a suggestion of equality in verse 14, it is immediately followed by verse 15 which allows for differences in wealth. Third, and probably most important, the churches in Macedonia were in no position to engage in charity. Apparently the Christian leaders were discouraging them from giving from their poverty. But they were determined to care for the needy. They recognized that the Lord of all had graciously provided them with what they needed for their daily life, and that they had the opportunity to be God’s instrument in helping others. They begged to be allowed to contribute to the care of the needy.

As God has blessed us, we care for others. Sometimes we have a greater ability to do so than other times. Sometimes we are the people who are cared for. Some of the care is financial, as in this Bible passage, while some is not. Whatever we have opportunity to do loving our neighbors as ourselves, we do, not because we are compelled, but because we see and care for the needs around us.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Lamentations 3:22-33 - Lectionary for Pentecost 6B

6/26/2018

6/26/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

Lamentations was written at a very bleak time in Israel’s history. The nation was falling apart, and it was doing so because of the unfaithfulness of the people. Families were being torn apart, deported, resettled, many were killed, everyone was plundered. The city Jerusalem, which had fallen to the enemies, was an occupied city but it showed all the signs of a seige. There were food shortages, the buildings which were destroyed were not being rebuit, and the defensive wall was gone.

In the midst of this time of lamentation, the prophet observes that God’s mercy is still present. He is faithful to his people. He brings salvation.

The prophet can also look around and see that the city is a wreck. Maybe we can see destruction all around us. Maybe our landscape is desolate. What’s the conclusion to take from that? God disciplines his people.

We all respond badly to news like that. Really? No, it’s all those other people who disagree with me that are being disciplined. I’m just collateral damage and it’s bothering me. After all, I’m superior to the people who would be disciplined by God.

What are God’s demands in the Bible? He requires perfection, of everyone, all the time, no matter what. We are all guilty. We are all under the discipline of God. This doesn’t seem like good news, on the surface. The good news, however, is that the Christian life is a life of repentance. If we weren’t aware of our failure, how would we ever see God’s blessing? If we were not aware of our suffering, how would we know God’s compassion? If we weren’t aware of our sin, how would we know forgiveness? The life of repentance is also a life full of forgiveness.

It’s according to God’s great grace and love that he shows compassion on us, as we walk about in desolation and chaos. The Lord is good. He rescues his people.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Psalm 30 - Lectionary for Pentecost 6B

6/25/2018

6/25/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

It is amazing how easily we find ourselves feeling either secure or insecure. Our highs are often remarkably high. We feel fine, confident, secure, unshakable. One of my co-workers would occasionally come into the office feeling “nine feet tall and bulletproof.” And frequently all it takes to convince us of that is a good night’s sleep, a nice breakfast, and somebody treating us well.

Even more easily than we trust ourselves as bulletproof, we can find ourselves certain of impending doom. It seems the lights turn out, the clouds gather, and we are certain that they are going to rain on us. Maybe the rain won’t be rain at all. Maybe it will start raining grand pianos and safes, like it always did in the cartoons from my childhood. Of course, they will fall directly on us, not on anybody else. Why? Well, why not?

The Psalmist reflects on the underlying cause of our euphoria and our despair. We feel self-confident because we trust the Lord who makes us strong. What happens then? Our reaction, as sinful humans, is to begin trusting ourselves or our circumstances. Everything’s great! We must be really great ourselves! No need for God, then? No, we’ll just trust ourselves.

What happens then? In verse 7, when God hides his face, we see we are standing out there all by ourselves. It’s terrifying. After all, deep down, we realize that we aren’t nine feet tall and we are far from bulletproof. Worse still, this isn’t just a game of cards, in which we might be able to bluff our way through. No, this is life. We’re playing for keeps.

What do we do? We call out to the Lord. We ask him to be gracious. We ask him to be the one who helps us. And he does exactly that, dressing us in gladness, filling us with hope. We don’t trust ourselves. We trust in the Lord.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Mark 4:35-41 - Lectionary for Pentecost 5B

6/21/2018

6/21/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

Jesus’ actions, as reported in the Gospels, are sometimes very intimidating. The Evangelists are apparently persuaded that Jesus is, in fact, divine. He certainly acts upon that assumption. This account, which we should be reminded was written during the time period when there were still living eyewitnesses of the resurrection of Christ, and was apparently written by a companion of one of the people in the boat with Jesus, is no different.

I’d like us to notice quickly that Jesus, after working very hard, was tired. He was tired enough to be asleep in a boat, pitching on the water, probably with a bit of commotion as the fishermen guiding the boat were becoming fearful for their lives. This was no pleasure cruise. The fishermen were familiar with boats and with these waters. They knew when to be afraid they would drown.

It’s amazing how we sanitize Jesus and let him take a little nap because he isn’t good at rowing. On the contrary, he is bone tired and sleeping because he is exhausted. He is familiar with hardship. No matter how hard we work, and many times we work hard, we are no more exhausted than he. He knows our weakness.

When the apostles awaken Jesus, they awaken him with an accusation. They think he doesn’t care for them and that he is letting them go to their deaths! Nobody has ever awakened me in the middle of the night by asking me why I don’t care and am trying to bring on his death for him. I’m not sure how I would react to that. I would probably smack the person as an idiot and then grumble over losing some sleep.

That isn’t what Jesus does. What does he do? He goes and acts like God. He doesn’t smack the wind and the waves. That won’t do anything. He rebukes them. This is a very divine thing to do. But the one who created all things by his word (Genesis 1) is also able to govern them that way. When you or I go outside and tell the weather to change it is utterly unresponsive. But when Jesus tells the wind and waves they don’t have permission to kill his disciples just yet, they obey. In retrospect, this is consistent with the idea I opened with. Jesus seems to act like he thinks he is God. And all creation responds as if he’s right.

One last idea and I’ll quit. Jesus doesn’t let his disciples off the hook. They were accusing him of sending them to their death. He is the one who said, in verse 35, they should go across the lake. That’s exactly what he intended. And if Jesus plans to cross the lake, they will get across the lake. Jesus points out to his disciples that he will make sure they get to the destination. They are, after all, with him. They may not understand how he’s going to do it. They haven’t foreseen all the obstacles on the route. But he’s going to finish what he started. Again, this is consistent with the Jesus pattern that we see throughout the Bible. When he says he will do something, he always does it, even if it’s something impossible for us. He’s the ultimate credible witness.

The disciples are rebuked for their lack of faith. What happens then? He doesn’t fire them. He doesn’t toss them out of the boat, take the boat himself, and leave them behind. He doesn’t distance himself from them in any way. He has corrected them and they are corrected. There’s restoration.

How have we failed God? Not in any way that will prevent forgiveness and restoration. God’s mercy doesn’t give us a free pass to complain about him. But it does mean that whenever we are conscious of our sin and failure He will bring forgiveness. He’s able to do that also. He said so.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

2 Corinthians 6:1-13 - Lectionary for Pentecost 5B

6/20/2018

6/20/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

This week’s Epistle reading, from 2 Corinthians 6:1-13, is especially timely. Christians in my country are opposed by an increasingly hostile cadre of secularists. News and social media have exploded in recent years over ideas which would be utterly uncontroversial within my adult memory.

For instance, when a corporation was found to have a policy saying that they didn’t want to offer an employee benefit package covering certain birth control products which, in their opinion, had a potential for causing harm to already conceived unborn children, they were assaulted both legally and socially. They were portrayed as a totalitarian organization which didn’t wish to allow their employees to have health care. Actually, they had a small handful of contraceptive options which they didn’t want to provide through their insurance coverage, although employees were certainly free to obtain them without the benefit of the insurance.

Another company was assaulted when their founder and CEO said that he thinks marriage is a matter for one man and one woman. This view had nothing to do with corporate policy or their business of selling fast food. The company promptly found itself the center of attention for holding a controversial view which has been held by virtually every people group for almost the entire history of the world.

On a daily basis I view social media statements, some of them which even feature correct spelling and grammar, showing a fascinatingly shallow understanding of the nuance of Christian doctrine and suggesting that Christians are hateful and bigoted people who simply want to crush all good out of the world. If you consider the two paragraphs immediately above this one, you will note that in the one case the Christian point of view was that human life is valuable even when that human life is still microscopic. In the other case, the Christian point of view was that marriage, as it has been historically conceived and has been proven to be a positive social force in study after study is a good thing and that in one person’s opinion it shouldn’t be redefined. Somehow these don’t seem like messages of hate to me.

How is this related to Paul’s message to the Corinthians? They live in a culture which can only be described as libertine. They have heard the positive and verifiable claims of Christianity. By faith in Jesus, who alone can bear their sins and atone for them, who is the only one capable of taking sin away and making eternal forgiveness and restoration to the true God, they can inherit an eternal hope. They can live a life as those who are restored and will bring peace and hope to their community. Paul asks how this can possibly be bad news. He pleads with the Corinthians not to reject the message. Despite their hostility toward him and his Christian message, the apostolic group has not rejected the Corinthians. The Corinthians are rejecting the only valid hope they can have.

Another theme which emerges in our current culture is that of rejecting Christianity because followers of Christ have shown themselves to be sinners in need of forgiveness. Paul lists many ways that Christians have shown the power of God’s grace. Among other things, they work hard, they receive affliction, they have been beaten and imprisoned for their faith, they have gone without basic necessities of life, they have sought to be pure, wise, patient and kind despite opposition.

In no way am I suggesting that everyone should pile hatred and hardship on Christians to make sure they are genuine. No, that happens enough in this world. What I am suggesting is that a whole lot of good is done in this world by followers of Jesus. They are the ones who do things like found orphanages, schools, and hospitals. They are the people who have always been at the forefront of fighting hunger, oppression, tyranny, and injustice. Why would they do that? It’s not because they are such very good people. On the contrary. The Christian realizes our propensity to sin. The Christian realizes how evil evil really is. The Christian realizes how fallen the world is. And the Christian knows a way of hope in eternity through Christ. There’s much to be learned about fighting evil with good, a concept that came from Paul’s letter to the Romans, an idea which is just as revolutionary today as it was in the first century.

Let’s don’t go rejecting Christ, the only valid hope we have in this life and the next.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Job 38:1-11 - Lectionary for Pentecost 5B

6/19/2018

6/19/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

Job 38:1-11 depicts God as an eyewitness of the beginning of creation. It describes him as the truly eternal God, existing before anything else existed, bringing it into being, paying attention to all the intricate details of creation, and doing it all so as to bring forth shouts of joy and delight.

A purely naturalistic worldview struggles to explain the incredible complexity of the created order. Even if we grant the possibility that macroevolution could occur, the number of steps necessary to pull together even a single celled organism which would function properly require an unbelievable amount of time. To envision all this happening by accident is beyond belief. In comparison, a biblical view of a transcendent and preexistent God who created everything in an intelligent manner makes a tremendous amount of sense.

What is truly amazing about the description we find in Job, however, is not the creation or the eternity of God. It’s the little question in verses 6-7 (CSV). “Who laid its cornerstone while the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?” The answer is obvious. It’s God. But what of the circumstances? The morning stars are a choir singing for joy. The heavenly hosts, angels all, are shouting in joy that God has created the universe and all that is in it. All creation brings forth joy, because it sings of the wisdom and knowledge of God. It proclaims his intelligence. It mirrors his glory. It survives because of his mercy.

Christians sometimes have a reputation for being indifferent stewards of the planet. That isn’t a good biblical view, though all too often it is the view we will take. Rather, when we consider all creation, we should be moved to acknowledge the Creator, knowing that the Lord has made it all for his glory and praise.

For those who wish to deny the existence of God, the burden of proof is still upon you. Can you give compelling evidence of such a complex system springing into being without an intelligent creator? Please do so. Until you can, we’d best recognize the very simple idea that an all-powerful all-wise God created and sustains it all.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Psalm 124 - Lectionary for Pentecost 5B

6/18/2018

6/18/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

Our Psalm for this week, Psalm 124, speaks to the power of the real God to deliver real people out of real danger. Over the generations, the people of Israel have endured many dangers. They have been invaded by enemies, attacked physically, spiritually, and economically, even taken captive en masse and deported into the lands of their conquerors. It would see that this small nation would have passed from existence several times over. However, time after time, the people of Israel have returned from their captivity. They escape.

The Psalmist gives all the credit for these escapes to the LORD, the one true God of all. He is the one who has been on the side of Israel. For this reason, he says in verse six, “Blessed be the LORD, who has not let us be ripped apart by their teeth” (CSV). God’s glory is shown by his mercy demonstrated to his people.

Granted, we don’t ever have definitive knowledge of a “what if.” We truly don’t know what would have happened, given a different set of circumstances. But we do know this. The mercy of God shown to his people throughout history is impressive. There have been many times when all signs would suggest collapse and destruction. Yet God has always retained a remnant of the people He chose in Abraham to be a blessing to every nation.

In our current age, when it seems there is an air of hostility to all sorts of religions, but especially to Christianity, are we prepared to trust that the Lord will not abandon his people? Adopted by grace through faith in Christ, we can stand firm in the confidence that God has not changed. He is still the Lord who rescues people, just as he has always done in the past.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Mark 4:26-34 - Lectionary for Pentecost 4B

6/14/2018

6/14/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

Like many Americans of my age, I enjoy a little gardening. The scenario in Mark 4:26 and following makes some sense to me. I prepare the space and plant some things. The seeds don’t seem like much of anything. And, especially if it’s a little cold, we go through some time wondering if anything will come of it. However, there’s really not much to be done about it. We sleep, rise, work, rest, repeat. Some days or even weeks later, God provides an increase. We care for the garden as well as we reasonably can. Yet, ultimately we are unable to bring life where the conditions won’t sustain it.

Jesus describes the Kingdom of Heaven this way. We plant God’s Word in our hearts, in the lives of those around us, anywhere we can. The world is the field. We pray and hope for the best. By His mercy and grace, God takes His Word and makes it grow. We don’t know how. Our labor is used by God but it is according to His will, not ours. Our fear, our anxiety, our sleepless nights - these make no increase. Only God brings the increase. We can rest in faith, knowing that God will do His will, and that His will is good. May He bring a great increase.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

2 Corinthians 5:1-10 - Lectionary for Pentecost 4B

6/13/2018

6/13/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

I’d like to take a close look today at 1 Corinthians 5:4. Here, the apostle is referring to our earthly life as a tent. To most people at Paul’s time, a tend was not quite as disposable as it is to the average American wannabe camper. It was considered durable, often passed from one family member to another. But it was not permanent, like a house.

However, Paul’s comment in verse 4 speaks of the trials we endure while in our earthly tent. Greek philosophy, like much that we find in current Americans, says that death is a way for the real person to escape from the prison of the mortal body. To use Paul’s metaphor, we who live in a tend want the tent ripped away so we can be homeless. I suppose we would never worry about the tent leaking or catching fire if that were to happen. But it would have some definite disadvantages.

Paul says the Christian has a different approach. Rather than seeking to be unclothed, we pray that God would clothe us more. Picture the tent, but with some solid walls, then maybe a roof, a floor, and all the rest. The Christian sees this mortal life not as something to be escaped, but a time awaiting greater fulfillment. We endure trials now. One day the Lord will show us how He is our protector and the one who has made us safe from all harm. He has begun to do this in his resurrection. He will complete it in ours.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Ezekiel 17:22-24 - Lectionary for Pentecost 4B

6/12/2018

6/12/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

Ezekiel is notoriously difficult to interpret. I’m tempted to end this blog post right here.

Actually, our Old Testament passage for this week, from Ezekiel 17:22-24, is pretty easy to deal with. Here God, through Ezekiel, says he will take a cedar sprig, plant it, and make it grow to be fruitful and provide shelter for all. The challenging question here is what kind of fruit a cedar produces. But that doesn’t seem the point of the passage.

Here’s the point. God, by His mercy and according to His plan, provides shelter and care for all who recognize Him as the Lord of all. He does it not because the people are good or worthy, but simply because He can and He wants to. He makes it available to all, so that all will know He is LORD. And he does it as a good thing.

In these last days, Jesus, theo ne cut off from his people and raised up on a tree rose from the dead and promised eternal shelter to all who believe. This is God’s good and merciful will.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Psalm 1 - Lectionary for Pentecost 4B

6/11/2018

6/11/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

Psalm 1 comes up frequently in the reading calendar. Because of the content of our Old Testament and Gospel passages this week, I’d like to focus on the picture of a righeous man like a tree. Verse 3 describes him planted by water, yielding fruit, and not withering. This is a stable man. He has what he needs, and more. He is safe and secure. And he brings comfort and supply to others. This can all be demonstrated from the text.

The tree does not have its own supply of water. It finds it outside of itself. In the same way, the righteous man feeds on God’s Word.

The tree does not produce fruit for itself. It needs no fruit. But as it produces fruit, it can plant more trees and it can feed others. The righteous man’s righteousness produces fruit, such as love, kindness, and goodness. The fruit of the Spirit is good for others.

A tree does use its leaves. But others do also - for shade, comfort, rest, even economic gain as the leaves are used to improve soil. The righeous man gives people rest and joy as they find protection and peace in his shade. It is a great blessing to be a righteous man and to know others!

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Mark 3:20-35 - Lectionary for Pentecost 3B

6/7/2018

6/7/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

In Mark chapter 3 Jesus is portrayed as spending time preaching, teaching, and healing people. He has become so very busy that his family is worried about him. After all, when someone is involved in a work frenzy like that, after a while, all will fall apart. Disappointment and even offense will follow.

In the midst of this time, some of the scribes say that Jesus is working in the power of the devil. They say he is using demonic power to cast out demons. It is some kind of deception.

Jesus’ response is to call the scribes to himself. He doesn’t allow them to go on with their slander. He also doesn’t go to find the offenders. He calls them to him, and, for some reason, they come.

In the presence of some witnesses Jesus tells the scribes that they are confusing the power of God with the power of the devil. He is clear that there is no forgiveness for those who say God is the devil. All sorts of sins can be forgiven. However, for those who mistake God and Satan, there is no more forgiveness.

Occasionally people will come to me in fear. They have read this passage in Mark and are worried that they have sinned against the Holy Spirit. Yet they normally have no need to fear. Why is this? If they are afraid that they have offended God, they have not been saying He is Satan. Those who are utterly unconcerned have reason for concern. Those who are concerned apparently have repentance. They can expect the Lord’s forgiveness in their lives.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1 - Lectionary for Pentecost 3B

6/6/2018

6/6/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

Our reading from 2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1 points us to two main points. First, Christianity is rooted in history. Christians believe, teach, and confess that which has always been believed. By its nature, Christianity is not innovative. It looks to the past and believes that God has never changed in His nature. “I believed, therefore I spoke.” “We believe, therefore we speak.” When someone is always seeking a new revelation, a new experience, a new burning of the Holy Spirit, we should consider it with a healthy skepticism.

More than once I have seen promotional materials for new church congregations getting started. Sometimes they will advertise “a new thing.” One church said openly that they planned to “do church like it’s never been done before.” Frankly, I have no use for such a group. If you are doing church like it’s never been done before, you are arrogantly saying that all of Christianity in the past has been doing things wrong. That isn’t the model we see in the Scripture. Christianity is revolutionary in breaking from the idea that we can earn our salvation or manipulate God by our obedience. That idea influences our conduct in the world. But in no way does it provoke revolutionary innovation.

The other big issue in our passage today is that of the seen and the unseen, the temporal and the eternal. The apostle Paul here considers all that we can see to be temporal. It may seem to last a long time, but it is not permanent. It will pass away. This doesn’t mean that we despise or abuse what we can see, but it does mean we don’t treat it as ultimately indispensable. Our physical condition, our material possessions, even our cultural or national relics will pass away. Some may take a very long time. We recall that there are, after all, a few buildings still in this world which are well over two thousand years old. They seem permanent. But there was time before they were created and there will likely be time after they are gone.

What does last forever? God’s Word, His people in the resurrection, His kingdom, His grace. God’s unseen mercies last forever.

We find ourselves easily moved by the temporal, but amazingly resistant to the eternal. May the Lord change our hearts and minds that we may also look to him with an eternal hope.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Genesis 3:8-15 - Lectionary for Pentecost 3B

6/5/2018

6/5/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

In our Old Testament reading from Genesis 3:8-15 I would like to focus on the questioning and listening work of God. In verses 8-13 God, fully aware of all that has happened between the man, the woman, the serpent, and the tree, comes to visit his people and asks them what they are doing. Why did they hide? Why were they ashamed? Did they eat the fruit? What did they think they were going to accomplish by it? Through the course of the conversation, a very pleasant evening time in the garden was shown to be a terribly difficult time. The man and woman were confessing their sin against God, something they had never done before. It’s clear that the world will be in a fallen condition because of their disobedience. God speaks for the first time as one imposing a penalty, rather than as the one who brings blessing.

When God comes to his people through his word, we should not be surprised to find ourselves needing to repent. We live in a world cursed by sin. Our response, when confronted, should be to turn from the sin and seek God’s face. That will only ever happen as we are sorry for sin and as that, with God’s help, we may be restrained from entering into sin.

We see in our passage from Genesis that the Lord listens to the cries of his people. He doesn’t simply tell them to shape up. Rather, he tells them that he will provide a deliverer who will crush the head of the serpent. Here’s the good news of the Gospel. The people can’t save themselves by their obedience. They can only be rescued through God’s work on their behalf. This is the promise given.

As we see the results of a fallen world all around us, sickness, sorrow, sin, and shame, we can also look to Christ who has promised to adopt each and every one who believes on him. Here is the hope of the Christian.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Psalm 130 - Lectionary for Pentecost 3B

6/4/2018

6/4/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

This post was previously shared in March of 2017.

One tradition found in Lutheran churches and some other places is the opening of a church service with a confession of sins and declaration of absolution from the pastor. Psalm 130 reminds me of this practice. The Psalmist comes before the Lord and asks him to hear, listen to the plea for mercy. Why does the Psalmist ask this? Is it because he is righteous? Is it because he is a perfect person? Does he have his life in order, his act cleaned up? Not in the least. He confesses that nobody could stand before God if God were to count our sins. So what is the Psalmist going to do? He’s going to stand before God and remember that the Lord is forgiving. He’s going to stand before God and hope in him, because he will have an answer of peace and love. So he will wait. He will wait for God as eagerly as a night watchman waits for the morning.

In the Lord there is abundant forgiveness. In the church service the congregation confesses sin and guilt. The pastor responds with words on behalf of Jesus. You are forgiven of all your sins. It is God’s will to declare your complete forgiveness, not of your own merit, but because of the merit of Christ.

Does this mean we, the forgiven people of the Lord, get up and live however we want? Well, if we are genuinely and heartily sorry for our sin and we really didn’t want to continue in it, then we are to live how we want, fleeing from sin to righteousness. Since our confession and dedication to the Lord is halfhearted at best, we don’t necessarily live the way we want. We take God’s Word seriously and seek to live as he desires. What about when we fail? We come before him once again, throwing ourselves on his mercy, asking for his forgiveness. And so it continues.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

Mark 2:23-28 - Lectionary for Pentecost 2B

6/1/2018

6/1/18
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the three-year lectionary.

Our Gospel for this week shows us Jesus with his disciples on a Sabbath. They draw attention by picking a bit of grain to eat. This was considered by some to be the work of harvest, forbidden on the Sabbath. Jesus’ answer is that the day of rest is made for the good of humans. It is not a day of suffering, but of rest.

This theme of a rest from suffering extends throughout the Scripture. It is telling that the Old Testament speaks of rest from work, rest from slavery, and rest from the torment of sin all in one breath. In God’s eyes, the Sabbath is a sign of the relief we find in Christ, who rescues us from sin.

Here, then, is the bottom line of our passage in Mark. Jesus comes to give us rest from sin. We are no longer bound to it. We have Jesus, the bread of life, who feeds us with his riches, each and every day. The Sabbath is made for man. It has a Lord, the Son of Man, caring for his people. This is rest indeed.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.