Category: Matthew - Wittenberg Door Campus Ministry

Matthew 21:1-9 - Lectionary for Advent 1

11/28/2019

11/28/19
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 historic one-year lectionary.

Our Gospel reading for Advent 1, from Matthew 21, shows a coming of Christ, as He enters Jerusalem, with a donkey, a sign of a humble and gentle king, not one coming in war. Jesus has apparently made arrangements beforehand, though they seem to be news to his disciples. The donkey and her colt are available for Jesus. Instead of leading the donkey, as a healthy man would, Jesus is seated on her. This is a sign of honor, as also are the cloaks and branches laid on the road. It was a sign of great importance for a man to walk on a rug or garments, rather than on the ground. The crowds further emphasize their reception of Jesus, shouting out, identifying him as the Son of David, not only the rightful king but also as the one who comes in God’s name. This is more than a kingly welcome. It is the welcome you would give to God.

The arrival in Jerusalem of Jesus is precisely that. God has come to dwell among His people. He has come as the humble, righteous, and merciful Son of David. He has come to rescue his people from the tyranny of the false kings. He has come in peace to overthrow worldly power. Matthew further notes that he has done it to fulfill the prophecy. As always, Matthew shows Jesus as the one who fulfills the requirements and predictions of God’s words. He is the mighty Lord who accomplishes all that has been written of him. He is the savior.

In this season of Advent, our prayer is that Jesus would show himself as the same kind of king in our lives, that he would come to us as the gentle but mighty king, and that he would rule in our hearts and lives as well. Hosanna to the King. 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.

Matthew 11:25-30 - Lectionary for the Commemoration of Matthias

2/21/2019

2/21/19
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, from Matthew 11:25-30, shows Jesus rejoicing in the way the Father has revealed the things of eternal life to even little children. The sublime God of all is revealed through God the Son, who invites “all who labor and are heavy laden” (Matt. 11:28a, ESV) to himself.

This is a wonderful call. After all, it isn’t easy to carry on life in this sin-cursed world, where we work and toil, gaining our sustenance by sweat. Even our children, young and sheltered though they be, become frustrated. There’s always something to draw our labor and leave us burdened. Who does Jesus call? He calls us all. Follow along with him, learn from him, benefit from his willingness to humble himself, find rest, peace, hope, and finally life.

The walk of the unbeliever is not easy. Its end is death. The walk of the Christian is not easy. But we tired and heavy laden people find Jesus with us, and at last a death which passes into a glorious resurrection. This is life 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.

Matthew 2:1-12 - Lectionary for Epiphany, Series C

1/3/2019

1/3/19
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 passage for Epiphany is drawn from Matthew chapter two. Here some wise men (no number specified) came to Jerusalem to try to find the king of the Jews, a newborn. Herod, who was already the king, was bothered by this bit of information. Not only did he not have a small child who would become king after himself, these people from a foreign land seemed to have supernatural knowledge of something. Maybe they were intending to find a child and place the child on the throne under their guidance? Maybe there was some deception afoot from Rome? Maybe there was something miraculous happening, but Herod would not have generally expected that.

The chief priests and scribes were able to find the prophecy which pointed them to Bethlehem. The wise men went on to find the child. They were apparently taken in by Herod’s insistence that he wanted to know the location so he could come and worship. After all, in verse 12, the wise men were warned by God in a dream not to disclose the location to Herod.

Jesus, the newborn king of the Jews, the newborn king of all creation, was found. He was presented with noble gifts, but of the sort that could also be used to prepare someone for death and burial. Here the Scripture foreshadows the fact that Jesus is going to die for those over whom he rules. This was the plan of God from time immemorial, revealed in these last days.

The word “Epiphany” means “a revealing.” During the time of Epiphany our readings will be about the way Jesus, God the Son, is revealed to be exactly the savior we need. I invite you to read along and to join with others as we look in wonder at this newborn king of the ages.

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.

Matthew

4/5/2018

Thursdays are for the New Testament
4/5/18
Carson, D.A., and Douglas Moo An Introduction to the New Testament - Second Edition. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2005. "Matthew" Carson & Moo pp. 134-168

CONTENTS
The discussion of the outline of a book of the Bible has always seemed curious to me. Carson & Moo are no exception in this chapter. They review various means of outlining the book, seeing that some authors have identified geographic frameworks, some have looked at christological development, and some have looked at a series of multiple discourses. It strikes me that we do best to observe important features of a text but not worry too much about what framework the author had in mind if it is not patently obvious.

AUTHOR
Authorship of books of the Bible is a difficult issue. After all, many of the texts in Scripture have no internal ascription. Scholars of a more liberal bent will frequently suggest that false claims to authorship were rampant in antiquity so where we have a claim to authorship in the Bible we should assume it is false. It does appear that the Gospels had the names of the evangelists attached to them prior to A.D. 140 and that the identification of authors may well have been present from very early on. After all, we don't seem to have any question about which Gospel is attributed to which author, as might have happened if there were a lengthy period of doubt. There are suggestions that Matthew may have originally been written in Hebrew or Aramaic. However, this claim may have been misplaced, as it may also be a claim made about another writing from the apostolic age. The place of authorship is not known. It would seem from the text that it was written in a place where there was both a significant Jewish cultural foundation and a substantial number of Gentiles who would not be completely familiar with Jewish customs.

DATE
Many scholars consider that Matthew was influenced by Mark, dating Matthew at A.D. 80 or later. Yet a number of scholars are now dating all the synoptics prior to 70 and suggesting that Mark may not have had primacy. The early church fathers viewed Matthew as the first of the evangelists to write.

DESTINATION
We should hesitate to assume that the gospels were written to incite conversion to Christ. They seem aimed at those who believe on Jesus and need ongoing encouragement in their faith. Matthew seems to be aimed at a predominantly Jewish audience. Yet he explains many of the Jewish customs, which may indicate that he intended the gospel to be useful to Gentiles as well.

PURPOSE
Matthew does not state why he wrote the Gospel. There are many different themes in the text. So it's difficult to say what his purpose was. We do see among the primary themes a description of events in the life of Jesus, as well as a good deal of Old Testament justification for the actions of Jesus. Jesus is clearly presented as the Messiah promised by God, the one who is rejected by Jewish leaders, and the one who is bringing in his eschatalogical kingdom, reigning over and protecting all who trust him.

TEXT
The text of Matthew is well attested. There are places where attempts to harmonize Matthew with other Gospels will be frustrating. Yet the text itself is stable and understandable.

ADOPTION INTO THE CANON
Matthew was universally accepted in antiquity except by Marcion, who rejected all things which seemed Jewish. The book's canonical status has never been seriously questioned.

MATTHEW IN RECENT STUDIES
Matthew's Gospel tended to be ingnored by English-language scholars until the latter part of the 20th Century. In recent years there have been more major commentaries. Text-critical studies have been fairly common until recently, as scholars wish to see how the text may have been pasted together from various other sources. But in recent years more commentators have been looking at the text as a cohesive whole.

THE CONTRIBUTION OF MATTHEW
Matthew contributes to the canon especially in his preservation of "large blocks of Jesus' teaching" (p. 163), by giving us the story of the incarnation from Joseph's point of view, by emphasizing Jesus' life and work as the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies, by viewing Jesus as the one who fulfills the law of God, by looking forward to the relationship between Israel and the Church, and by emphasizing roles of Jesus such as "Christ, the Son of David, the Son of God, the Son of Man, the Servant of the Lord" (p. 164) etc.

Matthew 25:31-46 - Lectionary for Last Sunday of the Church Year, Series A

11/23/2017

11/23/17
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, from Matthew 25:31-46, speaks of a separation of the righteous and unrighteous in the last day. God will gather his people and separate them as a shepherd would separate sheep and goats.

What is surprising here is that the identity of the sheep and goats seems to be unknown to them. Both groups look identical. They can only be separated by God. Both groups seem to think they are doing things like feeding the hungry, clothing the poor, and visiting those who are sick and in prison. They both clearly recognize God in his glory at this time.

In the last day, God will engage in a work of separation. This is clear, not only from this passage of Scripture, but from many. He will pull out the people who have lived righteously, according to His will. Those will enter into some sort of reward. The rest will enter into condemnation.

Notice I used language which seems to expect works of some kind? What does it mean to “live righteously”? Elsewhere in Scripture we see that the heart of righteousness is to believe the LORD. We believe God is exactly who he says he is and that he has done exactly what he says he has done. Just as Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him as righteousness, we also believe God. Just as Abraham’s actions were influenced by his beliefs, our actions are influenced by our beliefs. Just as Abraham was moved to repentance by his sins, so we are moved to repentance by our sins.

This is heart and center of the difference between the sheep and the goats. The goats didn’t recognize their Lord’s priorities. They say they would have helped him but never noticed him in need of help. This says that God’s creation doesn’t really matter. It says that our priorities get to rule the day.

May we make no mistake. The Lord says that we care for the weak, the helpless, the hurting, the hopless. It is as we do things which will nurture them, and nurture their ability to trust in the Lord, since they see God’s provision through our hands, that we show ourselves to be the sheep. The irony is that we may well never notice that we are doing these works. They are simply habits. May the Lord raise up many sheep in this world, bringing hope, help, and comfort to all creation.

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.

Matthew 25:14-30 - Lectionary for Pentecost 24A

11/16/2017

11/16/17
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 is one of the more challenging passages in the Gospels. It seems to tie a reward to our activity. The servants who are entrusted with large sums of money make investments. Apparently they are good investments. They double their master’s money before he returns. We might assume from this, also, that he was really away for quite a long time.

What of the servant who simply hid his master’s money? Certainly the master received his money back, but with no gain. He condemns that servant as evil and lazy. He takes the money from him and banishes him.

First, we need to observe that this is not speaking of how one becomes a servant of the master. It doesn’t talk about earning our salvation in any way. Second, it doesn’t tell what would have happened if one of the servants had invested the money and, rather than doubling it, had only been able to return some 80% due to bad investments. We don’t know from this passage what the master’s opinion would be about that.

What do we know? We know that the evil and lazy servant knew his master’s habits. He knew that the master was always ready to make a profit. He knew that the master invested aggressively and did all he could to make gains. The servant, on the other hand, worked in the opposite way. He didn’t even choose a very safe investment. He simply hid the money away where it would probably be safe.

While I really hestiate to make too much application, I think some is appropriate. We know that God’s nature is to invest in this world. He already owns it all, but he pours out his life in many ways. He puts his resources to work for the good of his people. He even puts his resources to work for the good of those who are not his people. We have no idea how to measure the outcomes. They seem to defy logic. But they are pleasing to God. He gathers people into his kingdom. He gives them value. He makes them holy because he is holy. As we know God’s nature, whatever gifts He has given us, we can use them as He would use them. We won’t do it entirely well. But we don’t simply receive God’s gifts and let them sit, collecting dust. We invest in His kingdom.

That investment in Christ’s kingdom will look different from person to person and from time to time. It’s not very useful to try describing it. It is certainly not a good idea to prescribe specific actions for people. We know it’s related to doing good, exhibiting the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 2), evangelizing and making disciples (Matthew 28), and, in short, loving and serving our neighbors. But the individual details are going to be different for different people. We know our master. Let’s find out how to invest what He has given 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.

Matthew 25:1-13 - Lectionary for Pentecost 23A

11/9/2017

11/9/17
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 lesson from Matthew 25 makes some statements which, at first, appear odd. For instance, why would someone with an oil lamp bring an extra bottle of oil for such brief use? Why wouldn’t it be possible to share resources? If this is a picture of reception into heavenly places, wouldn’t you expect all who came, and especially those who went to correct their error, to be admitted?

Let’s take those issues in order. The idea of a lamp, which we normally use here, isn’t altogether accurate. The people had lights. But the description sounds much more like a planned torchlight parade. The word can indicate a torch or a lamp. The fact that the torch would be extinguished, then trimmed, re-oiled, and re-lit makes perfect sense. And we do know that people would have torchlight parades for various occasions, including weddings. This makes the extra supply of oil perfectly natural. It is the kind of supply no normal person could forget.

What about sharing those resources? Again, if having extra oil for a torch was a perfectly normal piece of preparedness, it would naturally be infuriating to those who prepared adquately when confronted by others who didn’t care enough to make minimal plans. It’s like going to a restaurant and not having any money to pay for a meal. Asking others, possibly strangers, for help is not acceptable. You are sent home hungry and told to come back with money if you want to eat. Yes, certainly, Christians are to show charity. But they are not asked to simply supply everything for others who take no care and show no initiative. That’s different from caring for someone who couldn’t have resources.

This all makes the final situation perfectly plain. God receives those who have answered the call he put forth. We are called to come as repentant sinners, accepting the forgiveness and grace given by Jesus. If we come before God as repentant sinners but without the forgiveness and grace of Jesus, it is like trying to light a torch with no fuel. What we needed was readily available. Jesus stands ready to forgive all who are believing him. If we chose to do something in another way, we are sent away to make it work on our own. We miss the call of God.

Jesus calls all people to trust him and enter into his kingdom. We come equipped with his love, his grace, his forgiveness, all gifts from him. That’s the oil we use on the torch. May we ever shine in a glorious procession.

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.

Matthew 23:1-12 - Lectionary for Pentecost 22A

11/2/2017

11/2/17
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 Matthew 23:1-12 Jesus speaks against our desire to receive accolades from others. We naturally like to be respected and honored. And while there’s nothing wrong with being recognized and honored for who and what we are, there’s something wrong with seeking out that recognition no matter what.

A pastor I respect greatly would often remind his congregation that when we insist on getting our own way we are showing our values. Essentially, we have made an idol of the thing we are willing to sin in order to get, or of the thing we will sin about because we don’t get it. Respect is a big idol.

Wait a minute. Those of my readers who know me probably are aware that I almost always wear a “pastor uniform” - one of those funny clerical shirts with a strange collar, normally in black. In fact, last week when I appeared at a meeting of some friends and was in a blue clerical shirt, one of them expressed surprise that I was out of uniform. In some circles wearing clericals is seen as a violation of this passage. After all, it looks like we’re trying to be recognized.

Another thing which happened this last week will illustrate the difference. I was walking from a meeting to the place where I park, several blocks away. A lady on a porch called to me. “Pastor, will you come pray with me?” No, I had never met her before. Because of the clothes I was wearing, I had an opportunity to meet someone, pray with her and her fiance, and tell them briefly of Jesus’ love for them.

The point of the uniform is to show someone what service you can perform. It is to identify your legitimate qualifications. It is not to hold yourself above others in any way. It’s simply to show where you can help and, maybe, where you can’t help.

In the end, whatever we are wearing, we love and serve our neighbors. We leave our idol of self-centered respect and recognition behind. We live in our community, serving Jesus. That’s enough honor for me.

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.

Matthew 22:34-46 - Lectionary for Pentecost 21A

10/26/2017

10/26/17
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.

All you need is love, right? Matthew 22:34-46 refines this idea quite a bit. What is the greatest commandment of God? We are to love the Lord, God, the one revealed in the Bible, with all we are and all we have.

Many in our world want to fixate on the idea of love. But they have a warped idea of what love looks like. Maybe it’s self-love. Maybe it’s love of some sort of idea. Maybe it’s love of their family, their planet, their educational institutions, their political parties, their favorite bands, their pets. But the love God calls us to in Scripture is love of Him. And he is no figment of our imagination God. There’s no room for that “God as you view it” sort of faith. This is one, very particular God. He allows for no substitutes.

What kind of love are we to have for God? It is unconditional, perfectly trusting, 24/7/365 love. That’s what God commands. How in the world are we supposed to do that? By trying really hard? That still won’t work. There have already been times in any life when we have not loved the Lord with all our being. We are all guilty.

That’s where the second great command comes in. We are to love our neighbors as ourselves. On the surface, that simply convicts us more. We haven’t loved our neighbor as ourselves. Most of the time, even the most generous and kind of us will hold back privilege for ourselves. It’s perfectly normal.

What hope is there? There’s great hope in this passage. Jesus has perfectly kept these two commands, and He has done it on our behalf. He has loved God the Father perfectly. And he has loved us, his neighbors, as himself. This means that whenever we have failed he has given us his perfect obedience. Whenever we have fallen short, he has taken our shortcomings upon himself and replaced them with his love. In all things, Jesus has loved us, his neighbors, as himself. We are presented to the Father clothed in Jesus’ perfect righteous obedience. This is the great good news of the Gospel. God has given us an unconditional, perfectly trusting, 24/7/365 love for him, through faith in Jesus the Son.

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.

Matthew 22:15-22 - Lectionary for Pentecost 20A

10/19/2017

10/19/17
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.

What’s the right role of government? That’s one of those debates we will always have. Any time there are alliances of people, some sort of organization is necessary. This is shown clearly by the fact that there are anarchist organizations. Even those who wish to shun governmental authority make some sort of government of their own.

In Matthew 22:15-22 the Pharisees wish to trap Jesus with a question about the role of government. The question at hand is whether people should pay taxes. If Jesus says taxes are appropriate, he can be portrayed as a Roman sympathizer who must not be the Messiah. After all the Messiah is going to set up his own kingdom and would have nothing to do with submission to the rulers of this world. If Jesus says it isn’t appropriate to pay taxes, he commits rebellion against Roman rule and is subject to arrest and execution. The fact is, Jesus cannot answer the question they pose without a dire and unwanted consequence.

Jesus’ answer goes farther than the question. He affirms that we give God what belongs to Him. We give our government what belongs to it. The logical outcome of this statement, though, considering that God is the creator and sustainer of all, is that God receives all the glory, honor, praise, and whatever material possessions there are. Throughout the history of Israel, some of our material goods were brought to God’s priests, who were supported by them and who also used them to care for the poor, as well as any other civic projects which were needed. Giving to God includes some material possessions and all our allegiance. However, Jesus says there is nothing wrong with giving to a government. The civil authorities do need resources to accomplish peace and safety for their subjects. We read about this a good deal in Romans chapter 13. Does the state receive all our allegiance? Not really. It isn’t like God. But it does have a claim on its subjects and there is an appropriate respect to be given to the state as well.

Learning to walk appropriately on the line - allegiance to God and submission to the state - is not easy. It takes, perhaps, more lifetime than we have on this earth. But it is perfectly honorable before 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.

Matthew 22:1-14 - Lectionary for Pentecost 19A

10/12/2017

10/12/17
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 Jesus’ parable of the wedding dinner we find a culture of disrespect. Matthew 22:1-14 depicts a king, who is a figure of God. He is having a wedding celebration. It is a big one. There have been multiple cattle prepared. This event had plenty of advance notice and preparation. The guests had certainly been notified, and the king, as courtesy, sends someone to collect the guests. Yet, disrespecting the generosity of the king, the guests refuse to come. He calls out to others, who also refuse to come. We can easily imagine in this the work of God calling his people Israel to himself in faith. He sent Moses, he sent the prophets, and the guests would not come. They ignored him, harmed the servants, and insulted the King.

Finally an assortment of people are gathered together. There’s a feast. It’s food fit for the table of a king. And we can easily imagine that some of those guests don’t look all that great. They are peasants, workers, homeless people, maybe some criminals, maybe even the odd IRS agent or sociology professor. Yet they have been invited and they have come.

God the king has prepared a feast, a feast of life, a feast of redemption. He calls people from every part of society, from every nation, from every background to come. All they have to do is show the respect due to a fancy occasion and come. In some families from my background, they would say you wear your best and make sure it is clean. It doesn’t matter if your best doesn’t look as new or fit as well as some other people’s. It is your best.

What happens to the person who disrespects the king at this point? Someone has come in without attempting to clean up. Although all the guests are certainly dressed differently, and although there are sure to be differences in what people have and can wear, there is someone present who is noticeably not in appropriate clothing. Really? You went to the king’s son’s wedding dinner and wore the t-shirt with a picture of the king’s opponent in the last war? The person is rejected out of hand.

When God calls people to receive his blessings, he calls them according to his rules. He calls them to approach him in trust, in sorrow for their wrong, in hope that he is who he says he is, expecting that he is the one who will redeem them from all their sorrows. He openly showsh imself to be the one true God. He doesn’t put up with substitutes. Do you want to come to his dinner? Come as he has invited you. He will take care of the rest.

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.

Matthew 21:33-46 - Lectionary for Pentecost 18A

10/5/2017

10/5/17
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 Matthew 21 Jesus plays on a parabolic prophetic statement made by Isaiah in chapter 5. Jesus tells of a man who built a vineyard, very much like the vineyard God planted in Isaiah 5. The vineyard is turned over to tenants who are responsible to care for it and share the profits with the owner.

In their greed, the tenants try to keep all the proceeds and even claim ownership of the vineyard. They are cruel and harmful.

What would the owner of such a vineyard do? He would certainly take action against his tenants and try to get responsible tenants. That goes almost entirely without saying.

Why would Jesus tell such a parable? In the text we see that the Jewish leaders know he is speaking about them. The implication is that they have been acting against the will of God, the one who planted the vineyard and owns the property. This, of course, angers the Jewish leaders.

Though this is a parable of judgment, there is a piece of obvious good news. After all, we can think of what is not stated. If the tenants are responsible, if they give the honor due to the owner of the vineyard, if the confess that all the proceeds belong to the owner and that he has shared it with them, recognizing their labor, all will be well. The owner may even reward them generously.

What is God’s reward to his people? As we look to him in faith, as we acknowledge him for who he is, the Lord gives forgiveness, life, and hope to all who trust him. This is no small reward. It is a reward we could never earn, no matter how long and hard we worked. This is great good news.

Are we angered by the parable? Maybe we are aligned more with the Jewish leaders than with the Master of the vineyard.

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.

Matthew 21:23-27 - Lectionary for Pentecost 17A

9/28/2017

9/28/17
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.

We all like to cover our tracks sometimes. We don’t like to be found out as the pragmatists we are. We would prefer to ignore our inconsistencies. In Matthew 21:23-27 Jesus confronts some of the chief priests and elders who would like to trap him. Where did his authority come from? Jesus’ response tells them to come clean on their attitude about John’s baptism.

On the surface, these two issues seem unrelated. However, they are both related to God’s authority. Is God the one who is bringing repentance and forgiveness through John? Is it the same God who is healing people through Jesus’ hands? Is this kingdom of God which Jesus proclaims the very presence of the true God of Israel?

The chief priests don’t want to admit that the people are right. John seems to be a genuine prophet sent from the true God with a message of repentance which is completely in line with Moses and the prophets. Yet if they admit John they will be forced to admit Jesus. They have no desire to do this. What will they do?

Sadly, the chief priests do what most of us do. Not wanting to admit that Jesus is acting in the authority of God the Father, they choose not to pursue the question at present. It’s tabled. And it will remain tabled until it fits their pragmatic purpose to bring it out again, after Jesus has been arrested and is headed for his death sentence.

The question this passage raises for us is whether we are willing to have our attitudes changed by the truth claims of Scripture. Is Jesus really who he seems to be? Then we need to allow God to be God. Our role becomes that of a repentant sinner who looks to the Lord for mercy and grace in our time of need. We will surely find him faithful as the Lord who restores us to the right relationship with the Father.

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.

Matthew 20:1-16 - Lectionary for Pentecost 16A

9/21/2017

9/21/17
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 from Matthew 20:1-16. It’s the well known parable of the laborers. In this parable, the master hires day laborers first thing in the morning. He goes out later and hires more people who weren’t there at first. He does this again several times. Eventually, the last people he hires are brought to work near the end of the work day.

Every laborer receives the same pay. There is no distinction in the reward, though there are differences in the work. Those hired first are upset because they think their work is worth more than the work of the people who came on near the end of the day. But the master persists. He is generous, paying what was agreed upon to those who he first hired, and treating the others kindly.

It would be easy to take away an attitude that says we don’t need to enter into the Christian life with any urgency. After all, the master comes back again and again. However, we notice that the people hired in each instance were those who were not present before. it appears they each received only one chance.

It would be easy to suggest that the kingdom of God is a place where it doesn’t matter how hard you work. However, the master expected and received honest work from all of his employees. They simply labored for different amounts of time.

What is a reasonable interpretation? Whenever God’s call comes to us, we accept it. He has plans for us and will reward us. We do what he has given us to do. We have a living expectation that he will in fact care for us and use us for the good of his kingdom. God calls each one of us to work in his field. Whether our job is great or small, our time long or short, it is valuable in his sight.

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Matthew 18:21-35 - Lectionary for Pentecost 15A

9/14/2017

9/14/17
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.

Forgiveness is really the central issue in the Bible. Matthew 18:21-35 describes the need for forgiveness. In this parable, Jesus describes someone who owes a master so much money he could never pay it back. The amount described is enough to supply a fleet of 100 warships for about ten years. The master forgave the servant his debt. That servant, in turn, went to someone who owed him about three months’ wages and threatened him. It’s still a significant amount of money, but at least in this instance it is an amount which is possible to pay back. When the master heard about the conflict, he put the original servant in prison. The one who owed too much to pay back was now to be held liable for every cent, and to be imprisoned until he could pay off the debt. There would be no release for this man.

The debt of sin owed by every sinful person is enormous. We could never pay the holy God back for our wrongdoing. In Jesus, our debt of sin is forgiven. We are not held liable for it. We are set free.

How, then, do we treat those who owe us something? Are we forgiving, or do we rush out and attack those who have done wrong to us? All too often we are ready to attack others because of their sin, even though we ourselves wish to be allowed to get out of prison free. This should not be. It shows that we don’t understand the size of God’s forgiveness.

By forgiving wrong we do not excuse it. We show that Jesus has dealt with it. Sin is still sin. But forgiveness is real. May the Lord pour out his forgiveness.

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Matthew 18:1-20 - Lectionary for Pentecost 14A

9/7/2017

9/7/17
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 from Matthew 18:1-20 seems to have two big ideas in it. Yet they are closely related to one another. First, Jesus talks about “little ones” and how he doesn’t want any of them to perish. Jesus cares for children as a shepherd cares for sheep. He wants them to be safe. He protects them from wandering. He chases them when they try to run into danger. This is great news! God cares about little children who can’t care for themselves. He surely cares about you and me as well.

How does this relate to the later portion of the passage? Here, if someone sins against you, you confront the person about the sin. You do it directly, talking with that person, not with someone else. If the other person is not sorry, you go with some others. If that still doesn’t work, you bring it before the church. If all else fails, the person is treated as an unbeliever.

Do we see that many of the ways people sin against us are essentially childish? They are thoughtless, sometimes done in actual ignorance. Why was that person rude to me? Didn’t he know I was having a difficult day? Well, in fact, he probably didn’t until after you popped your cork. Why are all those people driving so slowly? Don’t they care that I need to go somewhere? In fact, they are all going somewhere themselves.

Most of the time, when someone offends us, we simply need to ignore it and get over it. It may have been unintentional, it may have been thoughtless, it may have been on purpose but not worth an encounter. Let the fool be a fool.

What about the offenses that are serious? We aren’t able to overlook them? We think they may be binding the other person in his or her relationship with God? We need to confront sin. As we saw in Ezekiel earlier this week, that sin of our neighbor is going to hurt our neighbor. As Jesus cares for the children who could hurt themselves, we also care for our neighbors who are endangering themselves. So we go to them. What’s our desire? We want them to lay down their sin, to ask Jesus for forgiveness, and, hopefully, to stop sinning in that way. Would we like them to ask our forgiveness also? Yes, no doubt. But our concern is for our neighbor.

The process continues, with more people involved. Actually, we hope it doesn’t continue. We hope it will be taken care of immediately and go no farther. But sometimes that doesn’t happen. The eventual outcome is that a person could be treated as an unbeliever. What does this imply? It means that we relieve the person of responsibility to lead others. Instead, we pray for the person, we love the person, we invite the person to hear and believe God’s Word. We consider this a person for whom Jesus died, whose soul is in danger due to sin. We ask the Lord to have mercy.

Jesus loves people in this world. Little people, big people, tenderhearted people, even stubborn people. He calls them all to his side to live in his forgiveness and grace. He calls them all to believe his words of redemption.

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.

Matthew 16:21-28 - Lectionary for Pentecost 13A

8/31/2017

8/31/17

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 from this week is from Matthew 16:21-28. Here Jesus speaks plainly about his coming suffering, death, and resurrection. Peter’s rebuke seems fitting to most of us. After all, do we really want to see Jesus, or anyone else, for that matter, arrested, suffering, and being killed? All right. I do recognize that there are some times when we do think we’d like to see someone in trouble and even dead. But we need to ask ourselves what Jesus’ plan is in all this.

Jesus’ rebuke of Peter makes perfect sense. Jesus has a plan. It includes rising from the dead. It includes laying down his life for the profit of the whole world. Jesus’ plan will specifically rescue Peter from eternal death. This is the plan of God. Peter’s plan, on the other hand, is to rescue Jesus from God’s plan.

Jesus says very clearly in verse 25 that our attempts to save ourselves will come to nothing. It is laying down our life to follow Jesus which will make us also participate in his resurrection. When the Father returns to repay us on the last day, he will give those who have followed Jesus the life of resurrection. He will give those who have followed their temporal concerns all the reward of those temporal concerns. I’d rather be concerned with eternity. I hope everyone reading this will also.

What about this world then? Are we being so spiritually minded that we are of no earthly good? Not at all. Jesus’ commands here clearly include following Jesus and his word. That includes going about our daily lives as messengers of God’s love and care. It includes feeding the hungry, clothing the poor, and encouraging those who are losing hope. Simply because the Christian life is not limited to temporal affairs doesn’t at all imply that it is not concerned with those matters. But we look beyond this earthly life to Jesus’ resurrection. That is where our hope lies.

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Matthew 16:13-20 - Lectionary for Pentecost 12A

8/24/2017

8/24/17
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 from Matthew 16:13-20 confronts us with a Christian understanding of Jesus. Who is he? He is not, as many of us have heard in public media intended to mock him, a mostly fictitious person who was severely mentally disturbed, gathered a band of followers to feed into his power play, and then took off with one of them to live in a secret marriage incognito. No, what is Jesus like? Peter, speaking for the others also, recognizes Jesus as the Messiah. He is the one who comes to rescue Israel from sin and captivity. He is the Son of God.

This runs counter to our world’s expectations. While a secular culture would want to accept Jesus as, at best, some sort of a good teacher, maybe someone who could do some miracles, and certainly someone who taught peace and kindness, the Gospels recognize him as God the Son, the one who is the only hope for life in this age and in eternity.

Our Gospel passage also brings up some claims. We do well to consider their relative merits. If, in fact, Jesus is what our world would expect him to be, he is radically self-contradictory. We can’t count on the accounts which have come to us in Scripture being accurate, because we need to pick and choose among the claims. We have to treat the New Testament differently from any other document dating from its period. We have to assume that the portions which appear to be literal and historical narrative are to be interpreted as allegory. We have to assume that some of the allegorical passages are to be taken literally. We cannot be guided by our normal sense of reality, as we are in reading any other piece of literature. That is, if we want to accept Jesus as what our world expects him to be.

On the other hand, if we read the New Testament as a normal human would read it, we are given a very different Jesus. This is a Jesus who, though quite human, also is divine. He is the son of God and the son of Man. He lives as a man and dies as a man. He does miracles by the power of God. People are genuinely surprised at his miracles, because they know miracles don’t normally happen. He is put to death and rises from the dead, is seen by many people, and ascends to heaven. It was not in the best human interests of his followers to proclaim this. It brought their exile from any good society. It brought execution for many of them. Yet Jesus says here that the confession of Jesus as the Son of God, the Messiah, is the rock on which He will build his Church. This, also, is what we can see happening in history. It has been the message of Jesus and his redemption which has anchored and guided Western Civilization through generations. It is the Gospel which has motivated people to care for the poor and needy, to provide hospitals, to investigate our highly complex world, to form schools, to explore new lands and try to bring comfort to strangers.

Jesus, the Son of God, the Messiah, is the one who will build his Church. It’s a good thing he will do it. We’d just mess it up somehow. Let’s watch what He does.

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.

Matthew 15:21-28 - Lectionary for Pentecost 11A

8/17/2017

8/17/17
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 from Matthew 15:21-28. In this passage, a Canaanite woman whose daughter is suffering comes to Jesus and asks him to heal her. Jesus at first puts a roadblock in the way of the woman. He says that he was sent “to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (v. 24b, CSB). What do we make of this?

There is a great deal of context lost here. We don’t know the tone of Jesus’ words. We don’t know his expression, or that of the woman. We know virtually nothing of the setting. However, the Canaanite woman’s response suggests that she understood Jesus to be friendly. She asks for some leftover crumbs of healing. That is precisely what Jesus gives. He heals the daughter immediately.

By faith the Canaanite woman knew that Jesus not only could heal her daughter, but that he cared enough to do so. On the other hand, we have a tendency to approach God as if we will have to wrestle with him and then twist his arm until he does what we want. We view prayer almost as an adversarial relationship. The Canaanite woman simply comes to Jesus and asks him for what she needs. She knows that he can do it. She trusts that he cares enough. May it ever be so with 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.

Matthew 14:22-33 - Lectionary for Pentecost 10A

8/10/2017

8/10/17
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.

Matthew 14:22-33 is the well known narrative including both Jesus and Peter walking on water. What we tend to forget about this passage comes a bit earlier in Matthew 14. In this chapter, Herod has had John the Baptist, Jesus’ cousin, executed. Jesus attempted to go away privately, but was called back by the needs of a crowd. After healing many and feeding the crowd, Jesus sent them away and again retreated by himself to pray. It seems he finally has the opportunity to deal with the death of John the Baptist. He now walks out, across the water, to meet his disciples.

The disciples were struggling with adverse weather. It doesn’t seem they were in any particular danger, but it was a difficult crossing. Yet they appear to be more surprised and frightened by Jesus’ apperance walking on water, where he shouldn’t be, than by anything else.

Here is one of the relatively rare occasions in the New Testament when we find Jesus clearly defying the way nature generally works, and doing so for his own benefit. Normally his miraculous acts are clearly directed to others. But here, he has suspended the normal physics of the water to reach his disciples.

We often make much of Peter’s failure. When Peter looks away from Jesus and is more conscious of the weather conditions, he begins to sink. Jesus rescues him. What we seldom make much of is the fact that Peter got out of the boat. Everyone else was still in the boat.

What do we take away from this? Jesus is able to care for his people. He watches over them whether on land or at sea. There’s no cause to fear. We want to keep our eyes on Jesus and trust that he knows exactly what we are going through. He has been there himself, whether in sorrow or in joy, whether in good weather or bad.

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.

Matthew 14:13-21 - Lectionary for Pentecost 9A

8/3/2017

8/3/17
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 lesson for this week is from Matthew 14:13-21. It is the familiar incident of Jesus feeding 5,000, plus women and children, using just five loaves and two fish. We easily become distracted by this passage. We emphasize the idea that Jesus can take care of hunger. Many of us have heard sermons about how when we bring the little that we have (lunch for two) and give it to Jesus it becomes enough to feed a huge group of people. We speak about the twelve baskets of leftovers, more than Jesus used in the first place. We try to make it an object lesson that says if we listen to Jesus’ teaching we will always have enough for our physical needs.

I was about to say, “This is all well and good.” However, it is not well and good at all. It misses the entire point of the passage. Let’s find the point.

The crowds in Galilee evoke Jesus’ compassion. Although he is seeking some time of quiet reflection, time to himself, the need of the people around draw him out. He cannot let them go without his care. Seeing the need of others normally draws us out of ourselves.

What is the need of these people? It is not food. Granted, later, Jesus meets a need for food. But that is not the primary need. Furthermore, the disciples understood that the crowds could be sent away and would be able to get what they needed. The incident isn’t about food at all. It is about something much more precious.

The food that Jesus fed them was disposable. After eating even a hearty meal, people are ready to eat again in a few hours. By morning, every last one of those people would want to eat something. Bread and fish does some good. But it is not what the people needed.

What pulled Jesus out of the boat, out of the private time, into his work of helping the crowds, was their need to be taught about the Kingdom of God. This is the work which would nourish them to eternal life. The miracle with the loaves and fish was more likely to show the disciples Jesus’ ability to meet every need. But the heart and center of the miracle here is that the crowds came looking for Jesus and he taught them.

It is very easy for us to miss the essence of God’s kingdom by trying to focus it on social programs, on caring for the poor, on working for peace and justice. While those are good things, they will come naturally out of a community which has been well taught about God’s reconciling work in Christ. If you want social justice, build a society of people who confess they sinful by nature, who repent of that sin, and who seek to do good rather than evil. Social justice will emerge rather quickly.

Jesus taught the people. That’s what the church does. Let’s keep ourselves on-message.

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.

Matthew 13:44-52 - Lectionary for Pentecost 8A

7/27/2017

7/27/17
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 passage for this week is from Matthew 13:44-52. Here Jesus speaks parables about someone who searches out and obtains a priceless treasure. He will sell all he has to gain t his treasure.

There are two ways we can look at these parables. In the common historic view, Jesus is the actor in the parables. He has seen a field in which he knows there is treasure. The field is the world. Jesus gives all he has to purchase the field. Through his death and burial he has bought the world, atoning for all its sin. In his resurrection, he claims his treasure. The kingdom of heaven is like this man who gives all he has to get something which he recognizes as treasure, though the previous owner apparently doesn’t.

What is this treasure which Jesus will give all to purchase? It is you and me. Even though we don’t appear to awfully precious on the surface, Jesus will not rest until he has redeemed us. This is the kingdom of heaven.

The other way of viewing these parables, more common perhaps in the last hundred fifty years or so, is to call Christians to their pursuit of the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God should look so precious to us that we would sell all we have to pursue godliness. It should cause us to give up even our lives because it is a precious pearl.

The problem with this point of view is that the old owner should have recognized the value of the kingdom of heaven and refused to let it go. The strength is that it recognizes humans not as priceless but as those who should pursue a priceless treasure.

I would affirm the first, historic understanding of these parables. However, regardless of your view, we find that the kingdom of God is priceless and that Jesus has in fact given himself to save all who believe. In the final analysis, the Lord has given a precious gift to all who believe. All praise goes to Jesus.
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.

Matthew 13:24–30, 36–43 - Lectionary for Pentecost 7A

7/20/2017

7/20/17
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 the parable which Jesus describes possibly in more detail than any of the other parables. God plants his people in the world. They are good seed and they grow and mature to produce more good seed. What, then, is the problem?

Satan has planted weeds in this world. To the casual eye, they may look just like the good plants. The workers in God’s kingdom are inclined to make sharp distinctions, to separate the weeds from the good grain, to get rid of all those who don’t seem to conform.

God has a different plan. He knows that we will not identify Satan’s plants adequately. We would cause harm to some of God’s people. We would fail to pull all the weeds. In the end, then, the merciful and gracious thing God does is to wait for the end. In the last day, he will do the sorting himself. No harm will come to his people. Those who are Satan’s, who do not believe Jesus, will be culled out and will go to their destruction. Only God can tell the difference. We may make some educated guesses. But it is God who can actually identify our hearts correctly.

What hope do we have, then? We cannot always identify God’s grace in others. However, we can ask ourselves. Do we trust Jesus? Do we know that he is the only one who forgives our sin? Do we know that his forgiveness is for us? Then we are his people. Individually we can have great hope and confidence. We trust in the Lord and we can know that he is our redeemer.

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.

Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23 - Lectionary for Pentecost 6A

7/13/2017

7/13/17
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 from Matthew 13 is sometimes called the parable of the seed, sometimes the parable of the sower, sometimes the parable of the soils. Matthew gives us no such title. It’s just a parable.

What’s especially important here? There is a farmer sowing seed. The seed does what seed naturally does. It germinates whenever possible. And this seed, as Jesus identifies in verse 19, is “the word of the kingdom” (ESV). God’s word is sown and regularly grows.

We see there is no place in the parable where the seed is not sown. As far as we can tell, it is scattered all over the world. There are some places where it will not grow and bear fruit. But, as with a farmer’s field, most of the space is good for growing.

The metaphors in the parable become a little messy. Jesus identifies the seed, but then he seems to identify four different conditions without distinguishing the “soil” from the “seed.” However, the context will help us see that it is one and the same seed which is planted everywhere.

The soils seem to be different conditions of people who hear God’s word. Some lose it right away. Some receive it but only for a while. Some receive it but it is choked out by various trials. Some receive it and continue to hold to it.

While there’s an underlying current of thought here saying we should seek to be receptive and faithful, there is another, saying people will respond in the way they do and that we cannot govern them. But the overarching idea is this. God is able to bring forth fruit from his word. This is for the good of all, and is a gift of his mercy. All that we need, and all that we have comes from God’s merciful hand.

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.

Matthew 11:25–30 - Lectionary for Pentecost 5A

7/6/2017

7/6/17
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.

There’s a very common attitude among Christians, as well as followers of other religious traditions. This attitude says that we need to pursue true, special understanding of God. Often we are left to find that understanding within ourselves. Normally it is a deep and inner understanding which cannot be explained in rational or logical terms, but which is too deep for expression.

What does Jesus say here, in Matthew 11:25-30? He thanks God for making the sublime supernatural life available even to children. There isn’t anything secret. There is nothing which requires emotional or intellectual maturity. The deep things of God are sublime simply because they are understood by children yet not by those who would seek after them in a highly sophisticated way.

Does this mean the Christian faith is simplistic? Not at all. It means the Christian life is accessible.

The accessibility of Christianity is one of many reasons that throughout history Christians have included children in receiving the means of grace, through participation in liturgy, through baptism, and, at a relatively early age, through reception of communion. God’s kingdom does not depend on our maturity. It depends on God’s 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.