In these days he went out to the mountain to pray, and all night he continued in prayer to God. —Luke 6:12 After Jesus healed a lame man on the Sabbath, the reaction of the Pharisees and scribes, writing, “they were filled with fury and discussed with one another what...

The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” —John 1:29   Instant replay in sports enables officials, commentators and fans to see the plays from every conceivable angle. In some cases, God’s Word affords us similar concepts....

And [Jesus] said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. —Luke 9:23 In the eyes of the world, the season of Lent is a downer. All of this talk about sin, repentance and even death are deemed offensive by many of...

"And when you come to the land that the Lord will give you, as he has promised, you shall keep this service. And when your children say to you, ‘What do you mean by this service?’ you shall say, ‘It is the sacrifice of the Lord's Passover, for he passed over the houses of the people of...

Now when the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various diseases brought them to him, and he laid his hands on every one of them and healed them. But he said to them, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns...

Come, O children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord.—Psalm 34:11 These are challenging times facing our Lutheran schools. The issue of funding is critical as our schools try to balance appropriate tuition, congregational support, and fair salaries for teachers. There is also the constant pressure to...

“But as for you, teach what accords with sound doctrine.” —Titus 2:1 When St. Paul writes to the young pastors Timothy and Titus, he repeatedly implores them to hold on to and teach sound doctrine. Commentators often note that the expression would be best translated “healthy doctrine.” J.N.D. Kelly writes of the...

“And [Peter] he went out and wept bitterly.” —Luke 22:62 Tears are not foreign to those who serve God and His Church. Throughout the Scriptures we find our Lord choosing for His service uncertain saints, men and women, who are known more for their failures than their feats, more for...

And after some days Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us return and visit the brothers in every city where we proclaimed the word of the Lord, and see how they are…” And he went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches. —Acts 15:36, 41 When Paul begins his second missionary journey, it is...

"Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks.  So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” —John 12:20-21 Pastors and church leaders often feel pressure to live up to some level of artificial expectations. After years...