I can’t watch the National Geographic Channel. It makes me mad when I hear them talking about the earth being billions of years old. They have great stuff on there, but they are like the fools in David’s Psalm who say, “There is no God.” Well, there is a God and He created heaven and earth.
I’m sure the Lord is looking down to see if there are any who believe and trust in Him and if there are any who seek after Him. While we used to be a Christian nation, many have turned aside. They don’t want to follow the absolute rule of God. They want things their way, not God’s way. “They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt.” Doesn’t that describe the world today?
But, the Lord is in control and He will win. And He will take us home to be with Him forever and there will be no more sin. That will be nice.
After taking a few days off reading and posting this blog and coming to this account of David and Abigail, I had to go back to yesterday and see what Nabal did that made David so mad. David and his men have protected Nabal’s men and flocks and when David makes a simple request, Nabal blows him off, not a nice thing to do. But his wife hears of it and does the smart thing. She is the brains of the family and soon to be the brains of David’s family. Saul had given David’s wife away, so David takes a new wife. I guess if you have riches and power, you can have as many wives as you want. Personally, one is enough to try to keep happy. In the end, the Lord makes things work out for David.
Paul was not alone in the mission work he did. One person could not do it alone. Different people appeal to different personalities. So, Paul works with Apollos and Timothy to serve the Lord in different places.
The Corinthian’s seem to have a problem with divisions in the church. Part of the problem is pride. Pride is not good. We are all sinners. We have nothing to be proud of. As Pastor Gehne said in last week’s sermon, we are at the same time, sinner and saint. But we have nothing to be proud of. That’s why we don’t do eulogies in the Lutheran church. The word, “eulogy” literally means “good words,” and because of our sin, there are no good words we can say about any of us. But in Christ, He is the Good Word, so He is the focus of all the sermons in our churches.
I like how Paul really puts in on the line, “What do you wish? Shall I come to you with a rod, or with love in a spirit of gentleness?” No, we don’t want anyone coming with a rod. Be nice and gentle with us.
PSALM 51:10-13
1 SAMUEL 26:1-25
1 CORINTHIANS 5:1-13
Every once and a while, we need to step back and pray this Psalm of David. We all have our pet little sins. Those sins that we enjoy and think aren’t too bad and aren’t hurting anyone. But they are hurting us. They are hurting our relationship with the Lord. They are driving God away. We are putting the sin first and not God. And so, these words of David ring so true, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.” “Restore to me the joy of your salvation and uphold me with a willing spirit.” Take our focus off that sin and put our focus back on God and make Him the center of our lives again. Every now and then, we just need this.
So Saul pursues David again and David again spares Saul’s life. Why? “For who can put out his hand against the Lord’s anointed and be guiltless.” David may wonder about the person, Saul, but he has the utmost respect for the office he holds. Heck, David even knew that God had anointed him to be king and that God had withdrew his favor of Saul. But being next in line for that office, David has even more respect for the office. So, David confronts Saul and they go their separate ways. For now, there is peace.
Some things are just wrong. Even if a Christian does something and believes in Jesus and knows he is forgiven. Some things are just wrong. A man had his father’s wife. Even if we assume that dad died, for a man to be with (putting the best construction on everything) his step-mother is wrong. Paul points that out and tells the church to get rid of the guy. It’s just wrong. Our world is full of terrible things these days. So much focus on sexuality. Our Lord gave us this area of our lives to be celebrated between a husband and his wife (obviously a wife who wasn’t married to his father previously). Sexuality is a gift from God when used correctly. Remember the good old days when someone would get pregnant outside marriage and have to leave town because of the disgrace. Today, people put the five generation pictures in the paper and celebrate it. There has to be a happy medium. Our Lord has given us this wonderful gift. Let’s pray that we use it the way He intended.
this sounds like a conversation I just had with Sondra & Claire. Sex, a word that is used Alot on TV, is a gift from our Creator God, for heterosexual married couples. Amen !
Exactly Dean, exactly. Keep drumming that message into their heads because the world is drumming a different message into them. So we need to be vigilant.
PSALM 99:1-5
1 SAMUEL 28:3-25
1 CORINTHIANS 6:1-20
“The Lord reigns,” you can’t argue with that. Well you can, but in the end, you will find out that you are wrong. When this world seems crazy and out of control, when things are falling apart around us, when the car won’t start and our daughter needs a ride to work and you have a funeral and don’t have time to deal with it all, just remember the Lord is in control and He reigns and everything will work out just fine.
When it’s over, praise Him and give Him the credit for getting everything done. “Exalt the Lord our God; worship at His footstool.”
I love this story of Saul and the witch of En-dor. Actually, she’s not a witch, she’s a necromancer, someone who calls back to the dead. But, when someone dies, they go directly to heaven or hell. Their soul does not hang out here on earth or in some purgatory. They go to heaven or hell, do not pass Go, do not collect $200. And they can’t see what’s going on here and they can’t come back here. So, this necromancer is either bringing up angels or demons. In this case, she is probably calling up an angle of the Lord who looks like Samuel. But, we have seen God raise and have people like Elijah and Abraham appear on the mount of Transfiguration, so in this specific case, it may have actually been Samuel. But I would say that that is a rare occurrence. But it is still a great story.
The other thing that caught my eye was Samuel’s comment, “tomorrow you and your sons shall be with me.” So if this is really Samuel, while Saul is being punished for not obeying God’s orders, he is still going to be in heaven. That’s good news and to be expected in light of the Gospel and God’s mercy.
I’m thinking, why do we always find pretty plaques and pictures and cross-stitch art with things like the 23rd Psalm and the Lord’s Prayer? They are beautiful and meaningful and helpful, but I think it would be much more practical for us to have a beautiful piece of art, a plaque or picture or cross-stitch with this section of 1 Corinthians, especially verse 12 to 20 on it and hang it in our daughter and son’s room. Let them read over and over again, “Flee from sexual immorality.” Let them see that day after day because the world is showing them sexually explicit things day after day on television and on the street. So we fight back with the Lord of God and know that the Holy Spirit is working in that Word.
Well, I have to get ready for my funeral. Have a blessed day.
PSALM 68:1-6
1 SAMUEL 31:1-13
1 CORINTHIANS 7:1-24
The one thing that I think the Psalm brings out is that the Lord brings about change. The unrighteous become righteous, the prisoner become prosperous and he is father to the fatherless and protector of the widows. If He can bring this change out in the world, imagine the change He can bring in our lives. Through His Word and the Sacraments, our Lord can change our hearts. We are sinners and need change. Even us pastors need change in our lives. And through the Lord, through prayer and through the Word, that change is possible.
Well, the reign of Saul comes to a bloody end as the Lord has said it would. The Lord uses the Philistines to bring about the end to Saul’s life. Saul asks his armor-bearer to take his life and the armor-bearer does the right thing and doesn’t. He has respect for the office Saul holds. But then Saul takes his own life – that is never a good choice. He wanted to avoid mistreatment. Well, his body is mistreated anyway. Our lives belong to the Lord and only the Lord can take our lives. Period.
More lessons about marriage and fidelity. Under persecution, and expecting an end to the world soon, Paul believes that it would be best for everyone to remain single. However, he doesn’t want people “burning with passion” so he says that they should marry. His preference is that Christian’s should be married to Christians, but being married to a non-Christian was not a reason for divorce. The Christian should remain married to their non-Christian spouse in the hopes that their faith would rub off.
Finally, Paul suggests that we should all be content with the life our Lord has given us. If one is a slave, be content and live as a slave, but if the Lord provides an opportunity to purchase their freedom, then by all means, do so. Circumcised, uncircumcised, slave, free, married, single, be content with the situation the Lord has given you.
Our Lord has given us another wonderful day today! Enjoy it.
Okay, in Samuel 28:19, Samuel says (if it was Samuel), “tomorrow you and your sons will be with me”. But, then when Saul’s armor-bearer refuses to kill Saul, he ends up killing himself. By committing suicide, wouldn’t he end up in hell?
We are saved by faith, not by works. Right? The opposite is also true, we are damned because of a lack of faith, not by works. It was common teaching in the LCMS and WELLS that suicides went to hell because they didn’t have an opportunity to repent. BUT, repentance is a work and we are saved by faith. I know of a young person to closed the garage and sat in his car reading his Bible till he was gone. His funeral was held in church and his pastor declared that he was in heaven because he believed and trusted in God. Obviously, suicide is not God pleasing and yes, most of the time shows the person’s lack of faith and trust in God which would result in the being in hell. I’m not saying that Saul will be in heaven, but that passage seems to indicate that he will be. Credibility to that message is added when the prediction of Saul’s death comes true. It could also be that the spirit didn’t literally mean that Saul would be in heaven, but simply that he would be dead (soul separated from the body). I need a good Lutheran commentary to help sort this out and I don’t have a commentary on Samuel.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 14, 2009
PSALM 33:13-21
2 SAMUEL 1:1-27
1 CORINTHIANS 7:25-40
We read this Psalm before. I remember writing about it. But it is very appropriate concerning the Old Testament Lesson. Saul’s army couldn’t save him. Only God could save him. You may have read the question about suicide in the posting above. If we had just read a few chapters further we would have seen that Saul started the deed, but didn’t finish it. Still, it was a good discussion.
David continues to have great respect for the office of being the Lord’s anointed. He has the person who killed Saul slain because he did not have the same respect. Even if death looks imminent, we are not to help it along. We must respect life. All life.
Listen to Paul in our New Testament lesson. He feels that the end of the world is very near. Obviously, he was wrong. However, his advice is still sound. As Christians, we must live as if our personal lives were close to an end. They may be. We don’t know when this life of ours will end. I could be hit by a car or have a massive heart attack. We must be ready at all times.
Marriage is good and right. It is a gift from God. I could not do what I do without my wife. She is a great blessing to me. She completes me. Paul was of a different sort. He was filled with passion for the Lord (not that I’m not). His mission and ministry took him far away from home, mine does not. Each person is his/her own person. Some are better off single. Some are better off married. Either way, we live for the Lord.
SATURDAY, AUGUST 15, 2009
PSALM 132:11-18
2 SAMUEL 5:1-25
1 CORINTHIANS 8:1-13
So, even in the Psalms we have a record that God promised David that one of his children shall be on the throne of Israel forever. Obviously, that points to Jesus as the ultimate ruler of Israel. The Lord will bless Israel as they follow Him. He will make them powerful (there I will make a horn) and use that power to protect them. As we know from their history, they follow the Lord for a while, then fall way. But the Lord keeps His promise and our Lord is born as a son of David.
David is made King over Israel. He was thirty when he was made king and ruled for 40 years. Notice, when he is confronted with an enemy, he consults the Lord to see what he should do and he listens to the Lord’s guidance. He serves the Lord well.
Finally, a lighter topic. We don’t have to worry about eating food offered to idols these days. But that doesn’t mean this passage is worthless. Basically, it’s about concern for our weaker brother. It is perfectly within my rights to go into a bar and have a drink. But if my weaker brother doesn’t understand this and is turned off by this, then it’s best that I don’t do that. It is perfectly okay to go and buy a lottery ticket now and then. But if my weaker brother doesn’t understand this, it’s best that I don’t.
MONDAY, AUGUST 10, 2009
PSALM 14
1 SAMUEL 25:23-44
1 CORINTHIANS 4:1-21
I can’t watch the National Geographic Channel. It makes me mad when I hear them talking about the earth being billions of years old. They have great stuff on there, but they are like the fools in David’s Psalm who say, “There is no God.” Well, there is a God and He created heaven and earth.
I’m sure the Lord is looking down to see if there are any who believe and trust in Him and if there are any who seek after Him. While we used to be a Christian nation, many have turned aside. They don’t want to follow the absolute rule of God. They want things their way, not God’s way. “They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt.” Doesn’t that describe the world today?
But, the Lord is in control and He will win. And He will take us home to be with Him forever and there will be no more sin. That will be nice.
After taking a few days off reading and posting this blog and coming to this account of David and Abigail, I had to go back to yesterday and see what Nabal did that made David so mad. David and his men have protected Nabal’s men and flocks and when David makes a simple request, Nabal blows him off, not a nice thing to do. But his wife hears of it and does the smart thing. She is the brains of the family and soon to be the brains of David’s family. Saul had given David’s wife away, so David takes a new wife. I guess if you have riches and power, you can have as many wives as you want. Personally, one is enough to try to keep happy. In the end, the Lord makes things work out for David.
Paul was not alone in the mission work he did. One person could not do it alone. Different people appeal to different personalities. So, Paul works with Apollos and Timothy to serve the Lord in different places.
The Corinthian’s seem to have a problem with divisions in the church. Part of the problem is pride. Pride is not good. We are all sinners. We have nothing to be proud of. As Pastor Gehne said in last week’s sermon, we are at the same time, sinner and saint. But we have nothing to be proud of. That’s why we don’t do eulogies in the Lutheran church. The word, “eulogy” literally means “good words,” and because of our sin, there are no good words we can say about any of us. But in Christ, He is the Good Word, so He is the focus of all the sermons in our churches.
I like how Paul really puts in on the line, “What do you wish? Shall I come to you with a rod, or with love in a spirit of gentleness?” No, we don’t want anyone coming with a rod. Be nice and gentle with us.
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2009
PSALM 51:10-13
1 SAMUEL 26:1-25
1 CORINTHIANS 5:1-13
Every once and a while, we need to step back and pray this Psalm of David. We all have our pet little sins. Those sins that we enjoy and think aren’t too bad and aren’t hurting anyone. But they are hurting us. They are hurting our relationship with the Lord. They are driving God away. We are putting the sin first and not God. And so, these words of David ring so true, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.” “Restore to me the joy of your salvation and uphold me with a willing spirit.” Take our focus off that sin and put our focus back on God and make Him the center of our lives again. Every now and then, we just need this.
So Saul pursues David again and David again spares Saul’s life. Why? “For who can put out his hand against the Lord’s anointed and be guiltless.” David may wonder about the person, Saul, but he has the utmost respect for the office he holds. Heck, David even knew that God had anointed him to be king and that God had withdrew his favor of Saul. But being next in line for that office, David has even more respect for the office. So, David confronts Saul and they go their separate ways. For now, there is peace.
Some things are just wrong. Even if a Christian does something and believes in Jesus and knows he is forgiven. Some things are just wrong. A man had his father’s wife. Even if we assume that dad died, for a man to be with (putting the best construction on everything) his step-mother is wrong. Paul points that out and tells the church to get rid of the guy. It’s just wrong. Our world is full of terrible things these days. So much focus on sexuality. Our Lord gave us this area of our lives to be celebrated between a husband and his wife (obviously a wife who wasn’t married to his father previously). Sexuality is a gift from God when used correctly. Remember the good old days when someone would get pregnant outside marriage and have to leave town because of the disgrace. Today, people put the five generation pictures in the paper and celebrate it. There has to be a happy medium. Our Lord has given us this wonderful gift. Let’s pray that we use it the way He intended.
this sounds like a conversation I just had with Sondra & Claire. Sex, a word that is used Alot on TV, is a gift from our Creator God, for heterosexual married couples. Amen !
Exactly Dean, exactly. Keep drumming that message into their heads because the world is drumming a different message into them. So we need to be vigilant.
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 12, 2009
PSALM 99:1-5
1 SAMUEL 28:3-25
1 CORINTHIANS 6:1-20
“The Lord reigns,” you can’t argue with that. Well you can, but in the end, you will find out that you are wrong. When this world seems crazy and out of control, when things are falling apart around us, when the car won’t start and our daughter needs a ride to work and you have a funeral and don’t have time to deal with it all, just remember the Lord is in control and He reigns and everything will work out just fine.
When it’s over, praise Him and give Him the credit for getting everything done. “Exalt the Lord our God; worship at His footstool.”
I love this story of Saul and the witch of En-dor. Actually, she’s not a witch, she’s a necromancer, someone who calls back to the dead. But, when someone dies, they go directly to heaven or hell. Their soul does not hang out here on earth or in some purgatory. They go to heaven or hell, do not pass Go, do not collect $200. And they can’t see what’s going on here and they can’t come back here. So, this necromancer is either bringing up angels or demons. In this case, she is probably calling up an angle of the Lord who looks like Samuel. But, we have seen God raise and have people like Elijah and Abraham appear on the mount of Transfiguration, so in this specific case, it may have actually been Samuel. But I would say that that is a rare occurrence. But it is still a great story.
The other thing that caught my eye was Samuel’s comment, “tomorrow you and your sons shall be with me.” So if this is really Samuel, while Saul is being punished for not obeying God’s orders, he is still going to be in heaven. That’s good news and to be expected in light of the Gospel and God’s mercy.
I’m thinking, why do we always find pretty plaques and pictures and cross-stitch art with things like the 23rd Psalm and the Lord’s Prayer? They are beautiful and meaningful and helpful, but I think it would be much more practical for us to have a beautiful piece of art, a plaque or picture or cross-stitch with this section of 1 Corinthians, especially verse 12 to 20 on it and hang it in our daughter and son’s room. Let them read over and over again, “Flee from sexual immorality.” Let them see that day after day because the world is showing them sexually explicit things day after day on television and on the street. So we fight back with the Lord of God and know that the Holy Spirit is working in that Word.
Well, I have to get ready for my funeral. Have a blessed day.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 13, 2009
PSALM 68:1-6
1 SAMUEL 31:1-13
1 CORINTHIANS 7:1-24
The one thing that I think the Psalm brings out is that the Lord brings about change. The unrighteous become righteous, the prisoner become prosperous and he is father to the fatherless and protector of the widows. If He can bring this change out in the world, imagine the change He can bring in our lives. Through His Word and the Sacraments, our Lord can change our hearts. We are sinners and need change. Even us pastors need change in our lives. And through the Lord, through prayer and through the Word, that change is possible.
Well, the reign of Saul comes to a bloody end as the Lord has said it would. The Lord uses the Philistines to bring about the end to Saul’s life. Saul asks his armor-bearer to take his life and the armor-bearer does the right thing and doesn’t. He has respect for the office Saul holds. But then Saul takes his own life – that is never a good choice. He wanted to avoid mistreatment. Well, his body is mistreated anyway. Our lives belong to the Lord and only the Lord can take our lives. Period.
More lessons about marriage and fidelity. Under persecution, and expecting an end to the world soon, Paul believes that it would be best for everyone to remain single. However, he doesn’t want people “burning with passion” so he says that they should marry. His preference is that Christian’s should be married to Christians, but being married to a non-Christian was not a reason for divorce. The Christian should remain married to their non-Christian spouse in the hopes that their faith would rub off.
Finally, Paul suggests that we should all be content with the life our Lord has given us. If one is a slave, be content and live as a slave, but if the Lord provides an opportunity to purchase their freedom, then by all means, do so. Circumcised, uncircumcised, slave, free, married, single, be content with the situation the Lord has given you.
Our Lord has given us another wonderful day today! Enjoy it.
Okay, in Samuel 28:19, Samuel says (if it was Samuel), “tomorrow you and your sons will be with me”. But, then when Saul’s armor-bearer refuses to kill Saul, he ends up killing himself. By committing suicide, wouldn’t he end up in hell?
We are saved by faith, not by works. Right? The opposite is also true, we are damned because of a lack of faith, not by works. It was common teaching in the LCMS and WELLS that suicides went to hell because they didn’t have an opportunity to repent. BUT, repentance is a work and we are saved by faith. I know of a young person to closed the garage and sat in his car reading his Bible till he was gone. His funeral was held in church and his pastor declared that he was in heaven because he believed and trusted in God. Obviously, suicide is not God pleasing and yes, most of the time shows the person’s lack of faith and trust in God which would result in the being in hell. I’m not saying that Saul will be in heaven, but that passage seems to indicate that he will be. Credibility to that message is added when the prediction of Saul’s death comes true. It could also be that the spirit didn’t literally mean that Saul would be in heaven, but simply that he would be dead (soul separated from the body). I need a good Lutheran commentary to help sort this out and I don’t have a commentary on Samuel.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 14, 2009
PSALM 33:13-21
2 SAMUEL 1:1-27
1 CORINTHIANS 7:25-40
We read this Psalm before. I remember writing about it. But it is very appropriate concerning the Old Testament Lesson. Saul’s army couldn’t save him. Only God could save him. You may have read the question about suicide in the posting above. If we had just read a few chapters further we would have seen that Saul started the deed, but didn’t finish it. Still, it was a good discussion.
David continues to have great respect for the office of being the Lord’s anointed. He has the person who killed Saul slain because he did not have the same respect. Even if death looks imminent, we are not to help it along. We must respect life. All life.
Listen to Paul in our New Testament lesson. He feels that the end of the world is very near. Obviously, he was wrong. However, his advice is still sound. As Christians, we must live as if our personal lives were close to an end. They may be. We don’t know when this life of ours will end. I could be hit by a car or have a massive heart attack. We must be ready at all times.
Marriage is good and right. It is a gift from God. I could not do what I do without my wife. She is a great blessing to me. She completes me. Paul was of a different sort. He was filled with passion for the Lord (not that I’m not). His mission and ministry took him far away from home, mine does not. Each person is his/her own person. Some are better off single. Some are better off married. Either way, we live for the Lord.
Have a blessed day.
SATURDAY, AUGUST 15, 2009
PSALM 132:11-18
2 SAMUEL 5:1-25
1 CORINTHIANS 8:1-13
So, even in the Psalms we have a record that God promised David that one of his children shall be on the throne of Israel forever. Obviously, that points to Jesus as the ultimate ruler of Israel. The Lord will bless Israel as they follow Him. He will make them powerful (there I will make a horn) and use that power to protect them. As we know from their history, they follow the Lord for a while, then fall way. But the Lord keeps His promise and our Lord is born as a son of David.
David is made King over Israel. He was thirty when he was made king and ruled for 40 years. Notice, when he is confronted with an enemy, he consults the Lord to see what he should do and he listens to the Lord’s guidance. He serves the Lord well.
Finally, a lighter topic. We don’t have to worry about eating food offered to idols these days. But that doesn’t mean this passage is worthless. Basically, it’s about concern for our weaker brother. It is perfectly within my rights to go into a bar and have a drink. But if my weaker brother doesn’t understand this and is turned off by this, then it’s best that I don’t do that. It is perfectly okay to go and buy a lottery ticket now and then. But if my weaker brother doesn’t understand this, it’s best that I don’t.
Anyway, got some work to do. Have a blessed day.