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December 2017

“BREAD OF LIFE” READINGS Decmeber 2017

TLH = The Lutheran Hymnal, 1941;
WS = Worship Supplement 2000;
LSB = Lutheran Service Book, 2006

Date Verse Reading Comments

Dec 1 TLH 415 Matthew 24:1-14 Before the end comes, things will get worse, but salvation is in store for the believers in Christ.

Dec 2 TLH 526/LSB 659; Matthew 24:15-34 The destruction of Jerusalem would be a tremendous tragedy, but not all would be lost. God would still care for His children.

Dec 4 TLH 611 Matthew 24:35-51 Heaven and earth will pass away suddenly, but believers will be safe in the arms of their Savior, Jesus.

Dec 5TLH 609Matthew 25:1-13May God give us heavenly wisdom so that we are eager and prepared for the Last Day.Read More »“BREAD OF LIFE” READINGS Decmeber 2017

God and Sinners Reconciled!

Are there any more amazing words than that? We sing these words of Hark, the Herald Angels Sing (TLH 94) every year. Those words might roll off our tongues with hardly a thought. In fact, many secular choirs sing this famous hymn of Charles Wesley at this time of year without even pausing to wonder what “God and sinners reconciled!” actually means.

Could there be two more polar opposites than the holy God and wretched sinners? Could there be any more irreconcilable differences? It would be an astonishing thing that would grab the attention of the whole world if North and South Korea could be reconciled and find peace with each other. It would make your jaw drop in amazement if a serial killer would become best friends with the families of his victims.

Could irreverent rebellious creatures, who mock and blaspheme the God Who created them and revel in everything God forbids, be reconciled to the God Whom they despise? Should God, Who cannot tolerate sin and Who must punish every sin—yes, the God Who destroyed the entire world in a flood because of the wickedness of mankind—be reconciled to the sinners who hated Him and even crucified His own Son? That would the news of all the ages.Read More »God and Sinners Reconciled!

On Watch

DEVOTION – ADVENT

 “And what I say to you, I say to all: Watch!”  (Mark 13:37)

“Place your order today to receive it by December 24.” Modern shipping services are pretty remarkable. Most orders we place online arrive on our doorstep three days later. If we’re in a real pinch, we can pay extra and receive that package by the very next day. Using our smart phone or computers, we can even track those Christmas gifts we ordered and learn the day of their arrival. The more important the package, the more we want to be aware of when it will arrive.

Each Sunday, the church keeps tracking another, more important arrival—an arrival that will change everything forever! “He shall come again to judge the quick [the living] and the dead” we confess to one another in the Apostles’ Creed.Read More »On Watch