by Travis J. Scholl The prophet’s cry in the first chapter echoes with the laments of the Psalms and Jeremiah. “O Lord, how long shall I cry for help?” (1:2). Oil in the Gulf … O Lord, how long? Handguns on the streets of Chicago … O Lord, how long? The millions unborn … O ..
by William Carr Where Are You Resting? For exegetical details, see Lessing, Amos, Concordia Commentary (CPH, 2009), 388–409. His treatment of language-oriented matters, especially morphology and syn- tax—sorely lacking in most other commentaries—is important. Another decent choice is Andersen and Freedman, Amos, Anchor Bible 24A (Doubleday, 1989), 544–569. This commentary focuses on a possible poetic ..
by Tim Dost Introduction Preachers who take up this text take up a daunting task, especially if they wish to proclaim the gospel and not simply generate a diatribe based on the law. The paral- lels to our society are striking, but I suspect that in every time and place there are those who lie, ..
by Jonathan F. Grothe Editor’s Note: The following homiletical help is adapted from Concordia Journal, March 1984. Please note that the homiletical help covers only verses 11–16 in detail. Introductory remarks Chapters 33–48 of Ezekiel are dominated by the themes of restoration and renewal. But the corruption of the recent past is always in the picture, ..
By Dr. Francis C. Rossow Comments on the text 1. Whether intended or not, there are remarkable similarities in the emphases of the readings appointed for this Sunday. The “All is vanity” message of the Old Testament reading, our text, is dramatized by the Parable of the Rich Fool in the Gospel, Luke 12: 13–21. ..
By Dr. Jeffrey A. Gibbs Introduction The text presents two particular problems for interpreters. The first is the question of how “AD Christians” read the “BC Old Testament.” The second pertains to the whole issue of prayer in general, and intercessory prayer in particular. I will comment on the latter problem first. It is dangerously ..
By John Loum General approach to preparing your sermon A. Start the process by praying about the subject or topic area B. Select and clearly state to the audience the subject area that you plan to address. C. At the point of your sermon delivery, start with an arousing statement or illustration in order to ..
By Dr. Thomas Manteuful A Bible Study What statement is made repeatedly here to help God’s people remember and take to heart what is said? It is “I am the Lord your God,” sometimes abbreviated: “I am the Lord.” It tells the people of God that they are his special possession, redeemed and governed by ..
By David I. Lewis Introduction Several challenges face the preacher of this text: one challenge is how best to understand this text in its literary and historical context where it speaks to the restoration of Israel from captivity and how—if at all—this message then relates to our hearers today. Other challenges stem from this text ..
By Dr. Joel P. Okamoto Notes on the pericope This pericope presents Elijah’s encounter with Yahweh on Mount Horeb and his call of Elisha. Recently Elijah had been on another mountain, Carmel, where he challenged the prophets of Baal and demonstrated the truth about Yahweh (1 Kg 18). This infuriates Jezebel, so he runs for ..
By Travis J. Scholl Let’s be honest. Given the wondrous epistle reading from Galatians 3 (“But now that faith has come … There is no longer Jew or Greek … But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son … So you are no longer a slave but a child … ”) ..
By Dr. Victor Raj The Setting During the season of Pentecost, the texts appointed for the third week underscore God the Holy Spirit’s specific activity of convicting us of our sin, calling us to repentance and faith, and pronouncing absolution. By means of a story, prophet Nathan convicts king David of his ‘affair’ with his ..
By Dr. Timothy Saleska A question I want to ask you: Does it matter to you if this story is true or not? I don’t mean the question as a test of your orthodoxy. It is not a, Do you believe the Bible is true or a bunch of fables? type question. I don’t mean ..
By Dr. Charles Arand This Sunday provides an opportunity to highlight one of the most significant events within the history of the church. By the fourth century, the church had found itself with a conflict between its monotheistic principle (the oneness of God) and its Christocentric principle (the deity of the Son). Many argued that ..
With One Accord Rev. Paul Philp As the Eleven returned from the Ascension of Jesus, Luke tells us that they were of “one accord” (v. 14). The union was found within the context of praying together with others who were followers of Jesus. In this interim period between the Ascension and Pentecost, Peter addresses the ..
Homiletical Helps on LSB Series C—Old Testament
by Robert Hoehner