Schumacher and Raj in latest Lutheran Mission Matters
Articles by Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, faculty appear in latest issue of missiology journal
Proper 20 • Luke 16:1–15 • September 18, 2016
By Victor Raj Justice God’s Way I began to study this text rather carefully on tax day, April 15. Especially in that context, the theme of accounting surfaced in my mind almost instantaneously as I read along. Thoughts about managing wealth, budgeting, income and spending, and claiming deductions on tax returns could not be disregarded. ..
Easter 4 • 1 John 3:16–24 • April 26, 2015
By Victor Raj Preliminary Considerations Placed midway between Easter and Pentecost, the appointed lessons for the fourth Sunday of Easter cumulatively call for a resurrection living for the Christian faithful in this world. Together, they are an exhortation for the baptized toward the demonstration of God’s righteousness in their daily living as they engage the world ..
Proper 7 • Jeremiah 20:7–13 • June 22, 2014
By Victor Raj Conflicting Messages On this day the church in worship ponders God’s “unfailing love” (gradual) and “never-failing providence” (collect). The church prays to God to put away from her all hurtful things and provide for her all things profitable. As in the prophetic words of Jeremiah, in Matthew 10 our Lord’s words ring true that the ..
Easter 3 • Revelation 5:1–14 • April 14, 2013
By Victor Raj Preliminary Considerations For a serious study of our text there is no better place to turn than Professor Louis Brighton’s commentary Revelation.[1] Readers are encouraged to consult it. This text and the other appointed lessons (Acts 9:1–22; Psalm 30) for this day focus on the theme, “The Big Picture.” Notes on the ..
Lent 1 • Genesis 22:1–18 • February 26, 2012
by Victor Raj A Test Case Preliminary Considerations Historically, the theme for the first Sunday in Lent is the “Temptation of the Lord.” The appointed Gospel lesson for the day, Mark 1:9–15, unlike the other Synoptic parallels, encapsulates Jesus’s temptation in one participial clause, “being tempted by Satan,” in the desert among wild animals and ..
Proper 6 • 2 Samuel 11:26–12:10, 13–14 • June 13, 2010
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 ..
Proper 22 · Mark 10:2-12 · October 4, 2009
By Victor Raj “Bending the Rules” The question of divorce is what first meets the eye as one reads this text. To be sure, the OT reading for this day, Genesis 2:18-25, attests to it. The epistle lesson, Hebrews 2:13, however, adds a new perspective to our text. There it clearly states that disobedience of ..