“That We Might Have Hope” (Rom. 15:4) First Kings, Chapter Nineteen “Please God, let me die.” Have you ever uttered or thought the words in our title? As we travel through this vale of tears there are, no doubt, times when we wish the Lord would call us home to Him. Sometimes these words, however,… Read More »LESSONS FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT Read More

“As the head of the family should teach them in a simple way to those of his household.”  (Martin Luther)  The Ninth & Tenth COMMANDMENTS: You Shall Not Covet The Ninth Commandment You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. What does this mean? We should fear and love God that we do not sinfully desire… Read More »You Shall Not Covet Read More

The twelfth day of Christmas is January 5th, the last day of the traditional Christmas season. It serves to usher in the next church season — that of Epiphany. Historically, Epiphany was much more widely celebrated in Christian churches than was Christmas. Epiphany is not a word used in the Bible, but it does convey a … Read More »On the 12th Day of Christmas… Read More

WALTHER’S LAW AND GOSPEL One of the hallmarks of the Lutheran Church is its proper understanding and application of the Bible’s two main teachings—Law and Gospel. Dr. C.F.W. Walther’s seminal work The Proper Distinction Between Law and Gospel is the basis for this two-year series. Most Christians around the world have heard of Martin Luther,… Read More »Introducing Law and Gospel Read More

The ROAD TO REFORMATION In observation of the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we are presenting a brief survey of the life of Martin Luther. The series continues with major events in the life of the Reformer that took place after 1517. Have you ever been frustrated when listening to a customer service representative,… Read More »Found in Translation —1534— Read More

“That We Might have Hope” (Rom. 15:4) Second Samuel, Chapters Fourteen through Nineteen A Son Of David “Thus says the Lord: “‘behold, I will raise up adversity against you from your own house. . . . ‘” (2 Sam. 12:11). Sin has consequences. In today’s lessons we will see how the prophecy spoken in the… Read More »LESSONS FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT Read More

While man may sin and commit evil acts, God ultimately remains in control. Providence is not a word we use very often in our daily lives. In fact, the first thing that comes to my mind when I hear the word is Providence, Rhode Island. That city was founded by the religious dissenter Roger Williams.… Read More »Providence Read More

“How are the dead raised up? And with what body do they come?” (1 Corinthians 15:35) The above text presents us with two special questions to ponder this Easter season. Let’s examine the second first: “And with what body do they come?” If you are like me, every year brings with it evidence of bodily… Read More »Questions to Ponder Read More

The ROAD TO REFORMATION In preparation for the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we are presenting a brief survey of the life of Martin Luther. The series will culminate in the October 2017 issue with an account of his posting of the Ninety-Five Theses. I love road trips. I think it is the opportunity to… Read More »Road Trip: 1510-1511 Read More

COVER STORY – CONVENTION REPORT The thirty-third Convention of the Church of the Lutheran Confession was held at Immanuel Lutheran College, Eau Claire, Wisconsin on June 21-24, 2018. The theme of the convention was “Behold Your God!” Pastor David Pfeiffer served as chaplain to the convention, opening and closing each session with the Word of… Read More »“Behold Your God!” Read More

Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6 If we were to play a word association game using the word education, what thoughts would first come to our minds? Those who live in Wisconsin as I do, would no doubt… Read More »Word Associations Read More

During the Age of Enlightenment in the 18th century an insidious philosophy – namely, rationalism — spread throughout Europe and America. Rationalism’s proponents asserted that human reason, unaided by divine revelation, is the sole guide to all attainable religious truth. Human reason became the new god. The idea put forth was that if the human brain could… Read More »The Means of Grace Read More

“THIS WE BELIEVE” In ongoing observation of the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we are presenting a brief overview of the Book of Concord. The series will survey the three ecumenical creeds and the Lutheran confessions. Martin Luther once said of the Athanasian Creed, “I doubt whether the New Testament church has a more… Read More »The Athanasian Creed Read More

“That We Might Have Hope” (Rom. 15:4) The Book Of Job LESSONS FROM JOB A tragic car accident leaves its victim paralyzed for life. A young man finds out he has terminal cancer. An expectant mother miscarries her child. A young couple unexpectedly loses an infant. A tornado demolishes an entire city block killing many… Read More »LESSONS FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT Read More

“That We Might Have Hope ” (Rom. 15:4) The Book Of Ruth Obedient, Faithful, Loving Servants Of God In the Old Testament book of Ruth we find a wonderful account of the power of God’s Word to direct the lives of His people. Set in the backdrop of the period of the judges, where human… Read More »LESSONS FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT Read More

The ROAD TO REFORMATION In observation of the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we are presenting a brief survey of the life of Martin Luther. The series continues with major events in the life of the Reformer that took place after 1517. At the Diet of Worms in 1521, Martin Luther would be asked… Read More »Life of Luther—1520 Read More

The ROAD TO REFORMATION In preparation for the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we are presenting a brief survey of the life of Martin Luther. The series will culminate in the October 2017 issue with an account of his posting of the Ninety-Five Theses. Have you ever been caught in a severe storm? It… Read More »Caught in a Storm (1504-1505) Read More

“Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations.” — Psalm 100:4-5 I invite you to consider with me two common expressions with the word “thanks” in them,… Read More »Thanks, But No Thanks Read More

Twenty-three times in the Gospel of John we find “I AM” statements (in Greek, ego eimi). To seven of those are attached metaphors, including the passage in which our Lord states, “I AM the Good Shepherd” (John 10:11,14). Why did Jesus choose this word picture to describe Himself? The land of Israel had a mostly… Read More »“I AM the Good Shepherd” Read More

“THIS WE BELIEVE” In ongoing observation of the 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation, we are presenting a brief overview of those confessional documents that make up the Book of Concord. History Word was received that Pope Paul III had called for a general council to be held in Italy in May of 1537. In… Read More »The Power and Primacy of the Pope Read More