STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT “Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit’; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for… “God Willing . . .” Read More

STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask.… Live at Peace and Not at War Read More

STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT “See how great a forest a little fire kindles! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell. For… A Fiery Member in our Bodies Read More

“What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,’ but you do not give them the things… Christian Faith is Never Alone Read More

STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT “My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality. For if there should come into your assembly a man with gold rings, in fine apparel, and there should also come in a poor man in filthy clothes, and you pay attention… Christ-Like Love Is Impartial Read More

STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of… Our Response to God’s Gifts Read More

STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by… Wisdom from Above Read More

STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT Pray for us; for we are confident that we have a good conscience, in all things desiring to live honorably. But I especially urge you to do this, that I may be restored to you the sooner. (Hebrews 13:18-19) When was the last time we prayed for our pastors, missionaries… “Pray for us.” Read More

“For the bodies of those animals, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned outside the camp. Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered outside the gate. Therefore let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing His reproach.” (Hebrews… Being Inside or Outside of the “In-Crowds” Read More

“Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the Word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith.”   (Hebrews 13:7 ESV) The Hebrew Christians who were initially addressed in the book of Hebrews were experiencing persecutions from the Jews for their Christian faith. So severe was this opposition… Persevere Read More

STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT “Remember the prisoners as if chained with them—those who are mistreated—since you yourselves are in the body also.”  (Hebrews 13:3) Jesus forewarned us that it wouldn’t be easy being Christians (Luke 9:23). Since unbelievers persecuted Jesus, they will also persecute us on account ofour Christian beliefs (John 15:20). While this is… Don’t Forget Fellow Sufferers Read More

STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT “It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Furthermore, we had earthly fathers… God’s Loving Discipline Read More

STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT Women received their dead raised to life again. And others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the… Triumphant Faith in the Face of Persecution Read More

A SLICE OF LIFE IN THE CLC SNAPSHOTS OF CONGREGATIONS FROM AROUND THE CHURCH OF THE LUTHERAN CONFESSION Zion Lutheran Church is numbered among the oldest congregations in the Church of the Lutheran Confession. Its early beginnings reach back to 1917, when a handful of families gathered for worship in Union Township, southeast of Ipswich.… Zion Lutheran Church Ipswich, South Dakota Read More

STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible.  By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, lest he who destroyed the firstborn should touch them.  By faith they passed through the Red Sea as… Faith in an Almighty Deliverance Read More

STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT “By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, ‘In Isaac your seed shall be called,’ concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which… The Height of Faith and Love Read More

By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks. By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, “and was not found, because God had taken… Initial Inductees into the Hall of Faith Read More

STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT “But recall the former days in which, after you were illuminated, you endured a great struggle with sufferings:  partly while you were made a spectacle both by reproaches and tribulations, and partly while you became companions of those who were so treated;  for you had compassion on me in my… Christian Crosses are for Your Good Read More

Please first read Hebrews 10:11-18. 11 And every priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12 But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, 13 from that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool. 14 For by one offering He… God’s Word is Very Clear: Only One Atoning Sacrifice is Necessary Read More

(Numbers 13:25-14:10; Joshua 1:1-11) Should it be surprising to us that as Christians we are in the minority in this world (see Matthew 20:16b)? Is it startling that many are vehemently opposed to us when we bear witness to the truths of God out in the world (see John 15:18,19)? Is it a futile cause… Joshua A Minority Voice Who Served as a Leader for a Major Power Read More