The Bible

Have you ever been through a season where life didn’t go as planned? Maybe a vacation you planned was canceled or a cruise was postponed. Or maybe you didn’t get into your top school...

This blog post is an excerpt from the Lutheran Bible Companion, Volume 1: Introduction and Old Testament. 

Mark’s Gospel is one of immediacy. Without the account of John the Baptist’s birth or that of Jesus Christ, Mark moves immediately to Jesus calling the disciples, healing, casting out...

This blog post is adapted from Lutheran Bible Companion, Volume 1: Introduction and Old Testament.  One of the first matters to require attention is the real import of Ruth’s...

This blog post is excerpted from Engaging the Psalms: A Guide for Reflection and Prayer.  The Psalter was ancient Israel’s hymnal, and it was the hymnal for Jesus and His...

Relief had finally come. God created Adam and Eve perfectly. But their wicked transgressions brought sin into the world, taking the Lord’s unblemished creation into destruction. Adam...

This blog post is an excerpt from the Lutheran Bible Companion, Volume 1: Introduction and Old Testament.  By breaking the seemingly innocuous command to “make no covenant with the...

Our reasons for praising God are innumerable, yet I often fail to find words that accurately express my praise. Thankfully, the Lord Himself provides words of praise in the Book of...

One of the most overlooked books in the Bible is that of the prophet Haggai. Still, this brief book holds a relatable experience to our current context this summer in the United...

In Mark 4, Jesus and the disciples are on a boat in the Sea of Galilee when a violent storm arises. Crippled with fear, the disciples wake their sleeping Savior. Jesus takes this...

After God had graciously formed Jacob’s descendants into His covenant people and named them as His own, He provided them a choice for the future: “If you will … then I will … ”...

A defining characteristic of mature disciples of Christ is that they abide in God’s Word in a variety of ways throughout life. This simple statement was the key focus of my last blog...

From Ascension to Trinity Sunday, the three-year lectionary treats us to four straight readings from the first two chapters of Acts. Before Jesus ascends into the heavens, He directs...

Incarnation and spiritual life bring unity to Ezekiel 37, Psalm 139, Acts 2, John 15, and John 16. In his description of the Valley of Dry Bones, Ezekiel writes, “And I will lay sinews...

This blog post is excerpted from Concordia Commentary: Zechariah.  Zechariah 9:12 begins with a command for the exiles to “return” to the stronghold of Zion (cf. 2:10–11 [ET...

As Acts 4, Psalm 23, and 1 John interrelate, two predominant themes present themselves. Firstly, there is certain salvation in Jesus Christ, and in fact, only in Jesus Christ. Acts...

The Book of Numbers gets its name from the censuses in chapters 1 and 26. It recounts the travels and experiences of the people of Israel from Sinai to the borders of Canaan. Laws and...

Externally, Israel’s sacrifices have much in common with sacrifices all over the world, but Israel’s sacrifices are sacraments. From God’s side they belong to the realm of...