Day 281 - (Today’s Bible readings: Amos 8; Psalm 97 Mark 4:26-41)
And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him? (Mark 4:3-41 ESV)
“Hush, little baby, don’t you cry...” So starts a lullaby intended to comfort an infant into peaceful and quiet sleep. “Peace, be still” are the words of our Savior Jesus intended in this text to quiet both the raging storm and the anxious hearts of His disciples.
“Peace! Be Still!” Do you ever find yourself in need of the Savior’s word of comfort in your life? If you are human, like the rest of us, you desperately need such assurance. Whatever storms come into your life, Jesus is able to grant you His peace. That is the message of the cross where He secured the perfect peace of sins forgiven and heaven promised!
♬ When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well with my soul.
It is well with my soul,
It is well, it is well with my soul.
My sin, oh the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to His cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!
It is well with my soul,
It is well, it is well with my soul.
(“When Peace, Like a River,” The Lutheran Service Book, CPH 2006, #762 stanzas1&3)
Lord Jesus, thank You for calming the storms in my life and granting me the peace of sins forgiven and the promise of heaven. Help me to remember Your peace-giving presence today and always. Amen.
Pastor David Paape
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105 ), is the theme for this three-year journey through the entire Old Testament once (the Psalms - twice yearly), and the New Testament twice. There will be daily readings from the O.T., Psalms and the N.T. Special days on the church calendar will be highlighted with appropriate readings. This calendar has been compiled by representatives of the Lutheran Church of Canada, the North American Lutheran Church and the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod. Please click this link for the daily reading calendar:
https://blogs.lcms.org/2017/lcms-lcc-and-nalc-compile-three-year-schedule-of-daily-bible-readings
Then scroll down to 2019 Bible Reading Calendar and download it if you so wish. The “assigned” daily readings will appear on a daily basis in this blog. May the Lord bless your meditation upon His precious life-giving Word!
Day 280 - (Today’s Bible readings: Amos 7; Psalm 96; Mark 4:1-25)
“Oh sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth. Sing to the Lord, bless his name; tell of his salvation every day.” (Ps 96:1-2 ESV)
“Proclaim the marvelous deeds of God’s salvation to all nations! In our world, too many people see faith in God as a relic of the past with little to say about life today. People turn away from the true God in idolatrous pursuits of money and success; they trust in technology or revel in pleasure. Do we give up? No! First, sing to the Lord. Join with others in worshiping the splendor and majesty of the Creator. Then, speak of His salvation in Jesus day after day, until the resurrected Savior returns to judge all nations in faithfulness.” (Lutheran Study Bible, Concordia Publishing House, 2009,page 941)
Thank the Lord and sing His praise; tell everyone what He has done.
Let all who seek the Lord rejoice and proudly bear His name.
He recalls His promises and leads His people forth in joy with shouts of thanksgiving.
Alleluia, alleluia.
Lord Jesus, I sing Your praise for saving me and granting me the gift of eternal life. Please bless my efforts to tell others of Your marvelous plan of salvation today. Amen.
Pastor David Paape
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105 ), is the theme for this three-year journey through the entire Old Testament once (the Psalms - twice yearly), and the New Testament twice. There will be daily readings from the O.T., Psalms and the N.T. Special days on the church calendar will be highlighted with appropriate readings. This calendar has been compiled by representatives of the Lutheran Church of Canada, the North American Lutheran Church and the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod. Please click this link for the daily reading calendar:
https://blogs.lcms.org/2017/lcms-lcc-and-nalc-compile-three-year-schedule-of-daily-bible-readings
Then scroll down to 2019 Bible Reading Calendar and download it if you so wish. The “assigned” daily readings will appear on a daily basis in this blog. May the Lord bless your meditation upon His precious life-giving Word!
Day 279 - (Today’s Bible readings: Amos 6; Psalm 95; Mark 3:22-35)
Oh come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise! For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In his hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also. The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land. (Psalm 95:1-5 ESV)
God’s children can truly sing to the Lord because He is the “great King above all gods.” He is the God of creation who made the sea and the land. He is the God of salvation through Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross. This makes Him “the rock of our salvation.”
Any attempts to earn forgiveness and salvation are like sinking sand, offering empty promises with no reason to sing. But we believe in the free and gracious gifts of “the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting.” Therefore, we sing!
O, Sing to the Lord, O sing God a new song,
O, sing to the Lord, O sing God a new song,
O, sing to the Lord, O sing God a new song.
O, sing to our God, O sing to our God.
For God is the Lord! And God has done wonders.
For God is the Lord! And God has done wonders.
For God is the Lord! And God has done wonders.
O sing to our God, O sing to our God.
(“O Sing to the Lord”, The Lutheran Service Book, CPH 2006, #808 stanzas 1&2)
Heavenly Father, because of Your overwhelming love in sending Jesus to save sinners like me, I will sing Your praises for the rest of my and beyond. In Jesus’ saving name. Amen.
“See” you at the Communion rail this morning!
Pastor David Paape
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105 ), is the theme for this three-year journey through the entire Old Testament once (the Psalms - twice yearly), and the New Testament twice. There will be daily readings from the O.T., Psalms and the N.T. Special days on the church calendar will be highlighted with appropriate readings. This calendar has been compiled by representatives of the Lutheran Church of Canada, the North American Lutheran Church and the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod. Please click this link for the daily reading calendar:
https://blogs.lcms.org/2017/lcms-lcc-and-nalc-compile-three-year-schedule-of-daily-bible-readings
Then scroll down to 2019 Bible Reading Calendar and download it if you so wish. The “assigned” daily readings will appear on a daily basis in this blog. May the Lord bless your meditation upon His precious life-giving Word!
Day 278 - (Today’s Bible readings: Amos 5:16-27; Psalm 94; Mark 3:1-21)
Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. And he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come here.” And he said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent. And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. The Pharisees went out and immediately held counsel with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him. (Mark 3:1-6 ESV)
The artist captured well the drama in these short six verses.
● A man in need.
● A judgmental crowd.
● A question put forth.
● Silence.
● Righteous anger and hardened hearts.
● A hand restored.
● Hatred eagerly unleashed.
Why did Jesus go ahead and miraculously restore the man’s hand on the Sabbath? He knew what the Pharisees were up to. Why didn’t He just wait until the next day?
Have you ever seen a police officer directing cars to go through a red light? He has the authority to override the traffic laws if the situation demands it. Jesus is the Lord of the Sabbath (Matthew 12:8). He is God, the One who gave the Sabbath laws in the first place. He had the right to help the man in need. Healing on the Sabbath was the right thing for Jesus to do!
There may be times when it is not popular, and sometimes not legal, to obey the will of God. At times like that, Peter’s words echo in our ears: “We must obey God rather than men.” (Acts 5:29 ESV)
Yea, Lord, ’twas Thy rich bounty gave
My body, soul, and all I have
In this poor life of labor.
Lord, grant that I in ev’ry place
May glorify Thy lavish grace
And help and serve my neighbor.
Let no false doctrine me beguile;
Let Satan not my soul defile.Give strength and patience unto me
To bear my cross and follow Thee.
Lord Jesus Christ, my God and Lord, my God and Lord,
In death Thy comfort still afford.
Amen.
(“Lord, Thee I Love with All My Heart,” Lutheran Service Book, CPH, 2006, #708 v 2)
“See” you in church tomorrow!
Pastor David Paape
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105 ), is the theme for this three-year journey through the entire Old Testament once (the Psalms - twice yearly), and the New Testament twice. There will be daily readings from the O.T., Psalms and the N.T. Special days on the church calendar will be highlighted with appropriate readings. This calendar has been compiled by representatives of the Lutheran Church of Canada, the North American Lutheran Church and the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod. Please click this link for the daily reading calendar:
https://blogs.lcms.org/2017/lcms-lcc-and-nalc-compile-three-year-schedule-of-daily-bible-readings
Then scroll down to 2019 Bible Reading Calendar and download it if you so wish. The “assigned” daily readings will appear on a daily basis in this blog. May the Lord bless your meditation upon His precious life-giving Word!
Day 277 - (Today’s Bible readings: Amos 5:1-15; Psalm 93; Mark 2:13-28)
Now John's disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. And people came and said to him, “Why do John's disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them, “Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in that day. No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the patch tears away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins—and the wine is destroyed, and so are the skins. But new wine is for fresh wineskins.” (Mark 2:18-22 ESV)
“Jesus stresses that the time of fulfillment has arrived, and thus totally new ways of thinking and acting are in order. In our own lives, the same dynamic is at work. It will not do simply to patch some little bit of the Gospel on our existing lifestyle and expect it all to hold together. Thankfully, the Lord offers such surpassingly great promises that the old is made obsolete. That is what Paul meant when he said in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.” (Lutheran Study Bible, CPH, 2009, page 1659)
How can such life changes and such newness come about?
● Prayer - for God’s guidance and insight into His will.
● Study of the Word of God - where we are shown the will of God.
● Weekly worship - where God comes to us in His Word and Sacraments.
● Regular reception of the Lord’s Supper (weekly?) - given and shed for you.
● Consolation of the brethren - sharing life’s challenges and joys with fellow Christians.
Children of God,
Dying and rising,
Sing to the Lord a new song!
Heaven and earth,
Hosts everlasting,
Sing to the Lord a new song!
He has done marvelous things.
I too will praise Him with a new song!
Amen.
(“Earth and All Stars,” Lutheran Service Book, CPH, 2006, #817 stanza 7)
Pastor David Paape
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105 ), is the theme for this three-year journey through the entire Old Testament once (the Psalms - twice yearly), and the New Testament twice. There will be daily readings from the O.T., Psalms and the N.T. Special days on the church calendar will be highlighted with appropriate readings. This calendar has been compiled by representatives of the Lutheran Church of Canada, the North American Lutheran Church and the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod. Please click this link for the daily reading calendar:
https://blogs.lcms.org/2017/lcms-lcc-and-nalc-compile-three-year-schedule-of-daily-bible-readings
Then scroll down to 2019 Bible Reading Calendar and download it if you so wish. The “assigned” daily readings will appear on a daily basis in this blog. May the Lord bless your meditation upon His precious life-giving Word!
(Today’s Bible readings: Amos 4:6-13; Psalm 92; Mark 1:35-2:12)
“-yet you did not return to me...
-yet you did not return to me...
-yet you did not return to me...
-yet you did not return to me...
-yet you did not return to me...
-prepare to meet you God, O Israel!
(Amos 4:6-12 ESV)
Five times the Lord attempted to bring His people to their senses so that they would return to Him. He withheld food and water. He sent blight, mildew and pestilence. He killed their young men and made their camp stink. He overthrew them as He did Sodom and Gomorrah. And they still refused to return to God! So they heard the stern warning that they would meet the judgement of God.
This shows us how serious God is about our rebellion and our sin. And yet, in chapter five He provides a way out for rebellious Israel, and for us as well:
“Seek me and live... Seek good, and not evil, that you may live, and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you.” (Amos 5:4&14 ESV)
Almighty God, thank You for the reminder that You are absolutely serious about sin. Please grant more wisdom that the Israelites had in this lesson. May the Holy Spirit move me to continually seek You and Your mercy. “Let Your holy angel be with me that the evil foe may have not power over me.” Amen.
Pastor David Paape
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105 ), is the theme for this three-year journey through the entire Old Testament once (the Psalms - twice yearly), and the New Testament twice. There will be daily readings from the O.T., Psalms and the N.T. Special days on the church calendar will be highlighted with appropriate readings. This calendar has been compiled by representatives of the Lutheran Church of Canada, the North American Lutheran Church and the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod. Please click this link for the daily reading calendar:
https://blogs.lcms.org/2017/lcms-lcc-and-nalc-compile-three-year-schedule-of-daily-bible-readings
Then scroll down to 2019 Bible Reading Calendar and download it if you so wish. The “assigned” daily readings will appear on a daily basis in this blog. May the Lord bless your meditation upon His precious life-giving Word!
Day 275 - (Today’s Bible readings: Amos 3:12-4:12; Psalm 91; Mark 1:16-34)
And a leper came to him, imploring him, and kneeling said to him, “If you will, you can make me clean.” Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. (Mark 1:40-42 ESV)
In today’s Bible reading from Mark, Jesus teaches us several important lessons.
1) How to properly pray for earthly blessings:
“If you will, you can make me clean.”
2) Jesus cares about sinners in need. He has compassion on them:
Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him...
Compassion, Greek splagchnizomai. Literally “his gut moved.” Jesus experienced the same gut reaction as we sometimes do in sad situations. (Concordia Study Bible, CPS, 2009, page 722)
This is good news for us sinners living in an imperfect world. Jesus truly cares about us and our human condition. The ultimate assurance that this is true is found on the cross. Jesus cared so much about us and our lostness that He died as payment for our sins.
3) Jesus is God:
... and said to him, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean.
Lord Jesus, thank You for having gut wrenching pity on me and my condition. Thank You also for acting on that pity and love by obediently going to the cross and redeeming me from sin, death and the devil. Please use me to share Your great love with other lost sinners. Amen.
Pastor David Paape
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105 ), is the theme for this three-year journey through the entire Old Testament once (the Psalms - twice yearly), and the New Testament twice. There will be daily readings from the O.T., Psalms and the N.T. Special days on the church calendar will be highlighted with appropriate readings. This calendar has been compiled by representatives of the Lutheran Church of Canada, the North American Lutheran Church and the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod. Please click this link for the daily reading calendar:
https://blogs.lcms.org/2017/lcms-lcc-and-nalc-compile-three-year-schedule-of-daily-bible-readings
Then scroll down to 2019 Bible Reading Calendar and download it if you so wish. The “assigned” daily readings will appear on a daily basis in this blog. May the Lord bless your meditation upon His precious life-giving Word!
