Pearls From Peace

We see Jesus calling the first disciples to come and follow Him. But before He does this, He gets into Peter’s boat, as these disciples were fishermen who had caught nothing all night. Jesus brings them such a large number of fish their nets begin to break. Rather than cash in on this haul, these men give up the fish to go and catch people. Not with nets and hooks, but with the Word of God, and th...

On February 2, we remember the purification of Mary and the presentation of Jesus as the temple. According to the law of Moses, after birth, the woman would go through a time of purification and then bring sacrifices for atonement. Also, according to the law, the firstborn was given, dedicated, to God. As we see Mary and Joseph following God's law, they become the example for our lives, that even...

There are people that say things to us, and we might respond by saying, or thinking, "who do you think you are?" As Jesus goes to the synagogue in Nazareth on the Sabbath, He reads from the scroll of Isaiah and tells the people that what He has just read has been fulfilled in their midst, that the one that Isaiah speaks of is Him. The people marveled at His words, but then He went on to say things...

The first miracle of Jesus takes place at a wedding in Cana, where He shows that the glory of God is manifested in Him. This first miracle of Jesus, turning water into wine, was not requested, but almost demanded of, by Jesus' own mother. Do we ever treat God like that? That we just expect Him to do miracles in our own life? And what if He doesn't? Does that mean that God has failed us, or that He...

Born and raised in the Gambella province of Ethiopia, Pastor Oboya Ochalla emigrated to Canada in the early 2000s following political unrest within that region of Africa. Pastor Oboya trained for pastoral ministry here in Canada through the pastors-with-alternate-training program of Lutheran Church-Canada. He was ordained and called to serve as assistant pastor at Saint James Lutheran Church in Wi...

Text: Matthew 2:1-12

Text: Revelation 21:1-4, 9, 10b-14; 22:1-5, 17

We saw on Christmas Eve that Jesus came to be "with us" (Immanuel) and that He came "for us" to save us ("Jesus"). On Christmas Day we go back to the manger scene, where we see that the "Word of God became flesh and dwelt among us." But where was the manger? A stable? A cave? An inn? A guest room? Where exactly was Christ born? And this manger that He was laid in after He was wrapped in swaddling...

Jesus Christ is Immanuel, which means, God with us. In that, we see that He came to be "with us." And the reason He came is to save us, which is what the name Jesus means, the Lord is my salvation, which means that Jesus came "for us." This Christmas as we gather as God's people, around the manger, and see the tiny child that the world is blessed with, you can look at Him and know that He came to...

There are many things that we have in this life that we might call "sentimental," like a box full of old letters. Some of us hold on to those types of things more closely than others. Some of us dwell on them much more often than we ought. However, all of these earthly objects, memories can do nothing to save us. Jesus Christ is the one who saves us. And He does not have a box full of stuff, with...

In Revelation, an angel tells John to eat a scroll, and as he eats it, it will be sweet in his mouth, and will make his stomach bitter. We like things that are sweet, we don't like things that are bitter, especially when it comes to what goes in our mouth. However, when it comes to things that touch our ears, we also probably would prefer to hear things that are sweet compared to things that are b...

At the birth of Christ was Mary, baby Jesus, and a... dragon? Well, that is how John describes the story of Jesus' birth in the book of Revelation. The dragon waiting to devour the child. The child who would become king. The King of kings and Lord of lords. The dragon doesn't devour the child at His birth, but certainly continues to try and destroy Him and all the rest of His people. Unfortunately...

"... Filled with glory and grace, I want to see my Savior's face, cause heaven is a wonderful place." This was a song I grew up with as a kid. I don't know how often you think about heaven, what it will look like, what we will do when we're there, who will be there, and all the other questions we've always wanted to ask God. Revelation gives us an image of what heaven looks like, and it is full of...

As we celebrate the Last Sunday of the Church year, we begin going through the last book of the Bible, Revelation, as we near the end of our two-year journey reading through the Word of God. Next week starts the season of Advent and we'll think and prepare for Christ's first coming at Christmas. As we celebrate this Last Sunday of the Church year, also know as Christ the King Sunday, we think abou...

The Bible covers many topics. And if you were to say what the main point of the Bible is, the most important thing it contains, what would that be? Would you talk about love? That love for God, love for other people is the most important? And that if you're not loving you're actually hating? And if you hate than are you truly a believer? 1 John 4 digs into the topics of love and hate, and ultimate...

As we read through the Word of God we see many things about Jesus. That He is light and in Him there is no darkness. That He is the light of the world who calls us to be lights in this world, shining in the darkness the light of Christ. That He is the Word, and that in the beginning was the Word. Therefore, in the beginning was Jesus. So, what does it mean for us and our faith that Jesus is the li...

Salvation comes by grace alone, through faith alone, because of Christ alone, and we know this through the Word alone. However, as Peter writes, there are those who will come into our world, our lives in order to lead us away from eternal life. They are the scoffers who come scoffing, tempting us to believe things about God that are contrary to His Word. On this All Saints' celebration let us be c...

When we think about celebrating the Reformation, we think of the time when Martin Luther sought to bring the Church back to the truth of the Word of God. He pointed to Christ's redeeming work, and not our own good works. He pointed to how we are saved by grace through faith and not anything we can do to earn our eternal life. He pointed to how we are made right with God, justified, which comes fro...

Peter writes, quoting Proverbs, "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble." We see a practical version of this in the story of the Pharisee and the tax collector. One is proud, one is humble. One leaves justified, one does not. As we look at our own lives, do we live lives boasting in ourselves and in our works, or do we humbly boast in Christ and His work?

The Bible talks plenty about love, not as much about hospitality. We hear in 1 Peter that love covers a multitude of sins, and to show hospitality to one another. Hospitality literally means "love of a stranger." As we also remember Thanksgiving this time of the year, we give thanks for the many things that God has given us including His love. We love because He first loved us. We show hospitality...

Peter writes, "in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect." We have a living hope because we believe in a living God, and in the world we live in people may ask us questions about our faith, and we're called to always be ready, prepared, to give an answe...

If you are a little older, you might be able to easily sing the lyrics of the song. Or you may think about some comedian that talked about how he got "no respect." Who is respect for? Is it earned? Is it freely given? If we use another word synonymous with respect, we might use the word honor. In a world that often lacks respect or honor, what does God's Word say about it, and how is God Himself,...

As we hear the stories of a number of team members who were a part of this trip, we keep in mind the words of Peter who tells us that we "are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light." Each of us have been called and chosen by God to be proclaimers of the...

God has done many great things for us. None of them more important than the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. He did it for the forgiveness of our sins, and for our salvation. Yet, while we are here on this earth we go through many trials and temptations. And even though these earthly problems may never go away, God has secured our place in heaven, free from all sin and death and struggle. A...

If you like to read, you might know that there are different categories of books: mystery, romance, fiction, science fiction, and even self-help. If you've ever read a self-help book it's about improving yourself regarding whatever area the book is about (certain habits, characteristics, quirks, etc.). Sometimes as Christians, we want to know how we can improve ourselves, or even what we can do fo...