Luther for the Busy Man

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XXII - SUNDAY LESSON: MATTHEW 18:23‒35 Rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Romans 13:3 The Gospel, or the kingdom of God, is nothing else but the estate or regime in which there is nothing but the forgiveness of sins. Where there is a regime in which sins are not forgiven, there is no Gospel or kingdom of God. Therefore, the two kingdoms must be kept clearly ap...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XXI - SATURDAY LESSON: PSALM 103:13‒22 We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us. Romans 5:3‒5 Faith exercises itself in trials and temptations, and ev...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XXI - FRIDAY LESSON: COLOSSIANS 1:9‒14 The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and went his way. . . . He himself believed and all his household. John 4:50, 53 We must always keep ourselves in trim so that we do not just remain at the one fixed level but continually increase. Hence there must be a cross, temptation, and tribulation in which faith can grow and become s...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XXI - THURSDAY LESSON: LUKE 11:5‒13 “Go; your son will live.” John 4:50 In the matter of faith, one must let everything go and cling to the Word alone. When we have gripped that, let the world, death, sin, hell, and every misfortune storm and rage. But if you let go of the Word, you will be doomed. We can see this in people whose stability depends on their earthly livelihood. W...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XXI - WEDNESDAY LESSON: ROMANS 10:14‒17 Jesus said to him, “Go; your son will live.” The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and went his way. John 4:50 If Jesus had told this man previously that his son was living, he could not have believed it. But now he does believe it. The Word bursts into his heart and stirs up a different faith in him so that he becomes another...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XXI - TUESDAY LESSON: JOHN 20:26‒29 Jesus therefore said to him, “Unless you see signs and wonders, you will not believe.” John 4:48 We have mentioned the outstanding faith of this royal official and pointed out that Jesus was pleased with his faith. How does this agree with what we read here? If his faith and confidence brought this official to Jesus, why does Jesus now say to...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XXI - MONDAY LESSON: ROMANS 4:13‒25 At Capernaum there was an official whose son was ill. When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went and begged him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. John 4:46‒47 Scripture teaches that there must be increase and progress in faith. It is quite true that you have Christ by faith, even if your tr...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XXI - SUNDAY LESSON: JOHN 4:47‒54 One Lord, one faith, one baptism. Ephesians 4:5 You are all one in Christ Jesus. Galatians 3:28 This Gospel sets before us an example of faith. St. John reminds us in no less than three places that this official believed in Jesus. We can easily understand, therefore, how someone might feel inclined to ask what kind of faith this man had, seeing...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XX - SATURDAY LESSON: ACTS 5:1‒11 “Everything is ready; come to the marriage feast.” Matthew 22:4 “Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment? Matthew 22:12 In order to provide guests for the marriage feast, the king’s servants must never cease to continue with their proclamation, inviting all whom they meet to come to the marriage feast. The king wants a full ta...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XX - FRIDAY LESSON: 1 CORINTHIANS 2:6‒13 This is a great mystery, and I take it to mean Christ and the church. Ephesians 5:32 It is always our own old Adam, the corrupted nature of man, which prevents our heart from fully recognizing the joy and consolation which should be ours as members of Christ’s kingdom. It is, and in some respects remains, a mystery, a secret, hidden, dee...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XX - THURSDAY LESSON: PHILIPPIANS 4:4‒7 “Your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.” John 16:22 We must learn to accept and to believe the Word. Christ Himself proclaims this Word to us, and God has commanded us to believe it as the truth. To reject this Word is tantamount to calling Christ a liar. We must learn to believe and trust the Word despite what...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XX - WEDNESDAY LESSON: MATTHEW 19:1‒6 Husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no man ever hates his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, as Christ does the church, because we are members of His body. Ephesians 5:28‒30 The love of a man and woman in marriage is a parable or a picture of the great, hidden, but wonderful...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XX - TUESDAY LESSON: 1 TIMOTHY 4:1‒15 He who finds a wife finds a good thing, and obtains favor from the Lord. Proverbs 18:22 Wherever the estate of marriage lives up to its name and you have what may be called a proper marriage with man and wife getting on well with each other, there is, first of all, true mutual trust and confidence on both sides. Among other praise which Sol...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XX - MONDAY LESSON: ISAIAH 61:10‒11 “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a marriage feast for his son, and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the marriage feast.” Matthew 22:2‒3 The Lord Jesus Christ portrays the kingdom of heaven for us in this parable in a most loving and comforting manner. He tells us that in some respects there is resem...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XX - SUNDAY LESSON: MATTHEW 22:1‒14 The kingdom of God does not mean food and drink, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Romans 14:17 Christ forms the Christianity which He has brought into being in such a way that He calls it, and all that has reference to its sway here on earth, the kingdom of heaven. He does this to indicate that through the Gospel He has...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XIX - SATURDAY LESSON: PSALM 32:1‒5 “Why do you think evil in your hearts? For which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—He then said to the paralytic—“Rise, take up your bed and go home.” And he rose and went home. When the crowds saw it, they were afraid, and...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XIX - FRIDAY LESSON: PSALM 130 And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” John 20:22‒23 The Pharisees knew quite well that it was God’s work alone to forgive sins. They regarded Christ as a blasphemer because He whom they regarde...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XIX - THURSDAY LESSON: MARK 9:38‒41 “Whoever gives to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he shall not lose his reward.” Matthew 10:42 We must spread the Word very diligently and energetically among our fellowmen. I must eat and drink, adorn and clothe myself, not merely to preserve my life but to spread the Word. Whe...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XIX - WEDNESDAY LESSON: PSALM 103:1‒13 “I, I am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake, and I will not remember your sins.” Isaiah 43:25 The forgiveness of sins is a very short phrase, but it comprises the whole kingdom of Christ. Men always have sins, but they must be recognized and acknowledged. When I have recognized them, forgiveness and grace are readily avai...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XIX - TUESDAY LESSON: LUKE 12:32‒34 To them [His saints] God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Colossians 1:27 The kingdom of Christ is of such a kind that we waive all our glorying and boldness in our dependence on God’s grace. All other works are free. We must never make the...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XIX - MONDAY LESSON: COLOSSIANS 2:13‒19 It is the God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. 2 Corinthians 4:6 If the kingdom of Christ is to be extended, you must not bring the Law into your calculations or have any truck with works. It is quite out of character to s...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XIX - SUNDAY LESSON: MATTHEW 9:1‒8 When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Take heart, My son; your sins are forgiven.” Matthew 9:2 These words in a brief summary tell us what the kingdom of Christ really is. It is the kingdom in which our hearts are touched by a sweet voice bringing us maternal and paternal words, “Your sins are forgiven.” For a correct understa...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XVIII - SATURDAY LESSON: ROMANS 5:18‒21 Now we are discharged from the law, dead to that which held us captive, so that we serve not under the old written code but in the new life of the Spirit. Romans 7:6 Where true, genuine love of God flows from a man’s heart, there is also true resignation to God’s holy will. Such a heart should readily declare, “Lord God, I am your creatur...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XVIII - FRIDAY LESSON: ROMANS 8:1‒11 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set me free from the law of sin and death. Romans 8:1‒2 Christ wants to show us in this week’s Gospel (Matthew 22:34‒36) that the Law is preached correctly only when we learn from it that we cannot fulfill it, and t...

THE WEEK OF TRINITY XVIII - THURSDAY LESSON: ROMANS 7:7‒11 I delight in the law of God, in my inmost self, but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin which dwells in my members. Romans 7:22‒23 Be quite sure of this, that reason can never understand the Law or fulfill it, even though it may actually know what the Law requires of man. W...