Proper 16: Gospel, Matthew 16:13-20 Matthew 16:13-20 Jesus doesn’t waste anything. Place, time of year, or his immediate company. Everything he says comes with import because all these elements and more are orchestrated to bring power to his Word and to sustain it in the ears and hearts...
Proper 16: Epistle, Romans 11:33-12:8 Romans 11:33-12:8 As we closed the epistle lesson last week there was a moment that was a bit anticlimactic. You see as we closed just before where we begin today, we found ourselves at a point where St. Paul is just about ready to burst with praise, with...
Proper 16: Old Testament, Isaiah 51:1-6 Isaiah 51:1-6 The neighborhood where I grew up was a great one. Lots of families. It was a city residential area with lots of alleys. Everyone had a garage that was a separate building from the house. Most of the homes had front porches and there were...
Proper 15: Gospel, Matthew 15:21-28 Matthew 15:21-28 It is a strong mark of Lutheran teaching that no one can respond to the Word of the Lord without the work of the Holy Spirit on mind and heart. It comes from our Lord in the gospel of John reminding his followers that “No one can come...
Proper 15: Epistle, Romans 11:1-2a, 13-15, 28-32 There’s a lovely gospel song from years back that has the most wonderful reminder as its title. It’s called, “Oh, How He Loves You and Me.” It was the theme song for many decades of a radio broadcast from a Los Angeles...
Proper 15: Old Testament, Isaiah 56:1, 6-8 Isaiah 56:1, 6-8 This Sunday’s reading from the Old Testament takes us back to the prophet Isaiah. And it is straightforward and clear. The message comes on the heels of the previous chapter’s Divine Invite to come and take the food and...
Proper 14: Gospel, Matthew 14:22-33 Matthew 14:22-23 I’m always intrigued at opinions about the miraculous. We all, as people who believe the Scriptures, have to grapple with the occurrences of things we cannot explain. The fact we cannot does not mean they are miraculous, but clearly...
Proper 14: Epistle, Romans 10:5-17 Romans 10:5-17 Paul is dealing in this larger section with the plight, and it is a plight, of the Israelites and the gospel of Jesus. It is a plight because they are living under a darkness or spiritual blindness brought upon them by God Himself due to their...
Proper 14: Old Testament, Job 38:4-18 Job 38:4-18 God is so very good and very patient with us. And even when we don’t quite see it, it’s true. Just take a moment and think of all the times that God in His glorious holiness and might could have simply brushed us away as a race and...
Proper 13: Gospel, Matthew 14:13-21 Matthew 14:13-21 All four gospel writers point to the miracle reported by Matthew in the fourteenth chapter of his gospel. Miracles get a lot of attention whenever they are reported and found genuine. The Bible is replete with them, but not in the manner...
