Thy Strong Word from KFUO Radio

Rev. Lucas Witt, pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Baltimore, Maryland, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Revelation 8. “Then the angel took the censer and filled it with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth.” As fiery and devastating as chapter 8 may be, the seventh seal with its seven trumpets are an answered prayer. God has prepared us for battle like Israel’s twelve tribes, but...

Rev. Curtis Deterding, pastor of Zion Lutheran Church in Fort Myers, Florida, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Revelation 7. “I heard the number of the sealed, 144,000.” The number symbolism continues in chapter 7, and although interpretations abound, the church’s understanding has shown great consistency. The four angels at the earth’s four corners in the opening contrast with the four riders...

Rev. Nate Ruback, pastor of Grace Lutheran Chapel in Bellefontaine Neighbors, Missouri, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Revelation 6. The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse! Depicted in art countless times over the centuries, they are well known even in popular culture. Are they code for future events? These riders rather represent the past and the present, the “kings of the earth and the great...

Rev. Daniel Olson, pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Luxemburg, Wisconsin, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Revelation 5. “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” Revelation 5 is the source for “This is the Feast,” a well-known and beloved hymn among Lutherans. This seven-fold blessing is meant for the seven-horn...

Rev. Jacob Heine, pastor of Christ the Rock Lutheran Church in Rockford, Illinois, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Revelation 4. “On each side of the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes.” In Revelation 4 John’s perspective is spirited away from Asia Minor to God’s throne room. Much is familiar—a door, the voice, white robes, the crowns. The church and our worship are windows to he...

Rev. Kevin Golden, pastor of Village Lutheran Church in Ladue, Missouri, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Revelation 3. “You are dead.” “You have kept my word.” “You are wretched, poor, blind, and naked.” The Lord Jesus sees all and knows all, and He knows “the works” of all churches, symbolized in Revelation 3 in the historic churches of Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. We look at some chu...

Rev. John Lukomski, retired LCMS pastor and co-host of Wrestling with the Basics, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Revelation 2. Stars, lampstands, angels and churches: one thing is clear, these letters in Revelation 2 are not John’s private letters to select individuals, but Christ’s own words meant for the whole church. The first letter is for the church in Ephesus. They weren’t struggling w...

Rev. David Boisclair, pastor of Faith and Bethesda Lutheran Churches in North St. Louis County, Missouri, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Revelation 1. “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore.” Christians shouldn’t be scared of Revelation; it’s the language of our “Sunday” worship and our tradition! And more importantly, it all poi...

Rev. Christopher Maronde pastor of St. John Bingen in Decatur, Indiana, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Zechariah 14. “On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two.” As the Lord Jesus ascended from the Mount of Olives, so shall He descend there to render judgment. The talk of geography and weather...

Rev. Steven Theiss, Retired pastor in Frohna, Missouri, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Zechariah 13. “Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.” After waves of disciples had left Him, our Lord quoted these words from Zechariah 13 to signal that the Twelve were about to abandon Him as well. Even in the centuries since, waves of sheep have wandered off from the church, and disaster...

Rev. Doug Nicely, pastor of Jerusalem Lutheran Church in Collinsville, Illinois, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Zechariah 12. “When they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn.” Zechariah 12 begins the final oracle of the book, and again we have a passage very prominently quoted in the New Testament. When Christ was pierced by the spear, we were made members of His body....

Rev. Nathan Meador, pastor of St. John Lutheran Church in Plymouth, Wisconsin, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Psalm 20. “May the LORD answer you in the day of trouble! May the name of the God of Jacob protect you!” Sometimes it feels like God uses Scripture to speak directly to us, in the midst of a coronavirus pandemic or whatever else. What beautiful prayers of peace we have in the Psalms!...

Rev. Scott Adle, pastor of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Collinsville, Illinois, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Zechariah 11. God’s wrath against “the shepherds” continues in Zechariah 11. This time, God has Zechariah become a literal shepherd for a month as a living parable for the people. He symbolizes the reality that God is our true shepherd, who guided His people with the staffs of “...

Rev. Thomas Eckstein, pastor of Concordia Lutheran Church in Jamestown, North Dakota, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Zechariah 10. “The people wander like sheep; they are afflicted for lack of a shepherd.” The previous chapter flows seamlessly into Zechariah 10, but the emphasis on the rulers and “shepherds” of Israel becomes even more prominent. These words seem to anticipate the Maccabean...

Rev. John Lukomski, Retired LCMS pastor in Southern Illinois, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Zechariah 9. “Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey.” Quoted in both Matthew’s and John’s gospel accounts, Zechariah 9 is best known for the Lord’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. Yet for all the humility, this chapter...

Rev. Warren Woerth, pastor of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Arnold, Missouri, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Zechariah 8. “The LORD of hosts” is repeated 10 times as Zechariah 8 powerfully extends and concludes the previous chapter. Although He is the God of all the nations of the world, He is jealous, jealous, jealous for the nation of Israel in particular. The word in Hebrew means “excl...

Rev. Brian Davies, pastor of Lord of Glory Lutheran Church in Grayslake, Illinois, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Zechariah 7. Almost two years after the visions, Zechariah addresses a reasonable and serious question in chapter 7: is it time to stop mourning the Exile and to start celebrating the Temple? As its reconstruction neared completion, God’s people were at a turning point. God answe...

Rev. Curtis Deterding, pastor of Zion Lutheran Church in Fort Myers, Florida, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Zechariah 6. More horses of different colors! Like the first chapter, Zechariah 6 describes heavenly patrolmen who serve the God of Israel, reporting to God on the happenings of Earth to its four corners, represented by the four colors. This time however the horses ride out in chariot...

Rev. Dustin Beck, pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Warda, Texas, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Zechariah 5. A giant flying scroll and a woman in a basket! Zechariah 5 continues the symbolic visions of people and things associated with the Temple. The larger-than-life scroll (30 feet by 15 feet) had the same measurements as the Temple porch where sermons were given. Amist Israel’s rec...

Rev. Kevin Parviz, pastor of Congregation Chai v’Shalom in St. Louis, Missouri, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Psalm 21. No mere military anthem, Psalm 21 emphasizes God from the outset: “O LORD, in your strength the king rejoices.” Although David praises God for answering his particular prayers, the focus is not on individuals but the whole Davidic line and the whole people of God. David ha...

Rev. William Foy, pastor of Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Valparaiso, Indiana, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Zechariah 4. Zechariah’s angel guide tells him to snap out of his daze—these visions are not meant for his personal enjoyment, but for preaching to the people! In chapter 4, Zechariah sees two golden lampstands. Each has an olive tree feeding a giant oil bowl on top. Each bowl i...

Rev. Daniel Olson, pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Luxemburg, Wisconsin, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Zechariah 3. Why is the high priest wearing filthy robes, and why is Satan standing next to him? More important for chapter 3 however is the third figure: the Angel of the LORD, the Lord Christ before His birth. He commands Satan to back down, cleanses Joshua the priest of sin, and d...

Rev. John Lukomski, co-host of “Wrestling with the Basics” on KFUO Radio and retired pastor in Southern Illinois, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Zechariah 2. In Zechariah’s next vision, he overhears the conversations of angels working together on Jerusalem’s reconstruction. Although a “measuring line” was promised back in chapter 1, here in chapter 2 its purpose is made clear. It was meant f...

Rev. David Boisclair, pastor of Faith and Bethesda Lutheran Churches in North St. Louis County, Missouri, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Zechariah 1. As the twin prophet of Haggai, Zechariah provided a heavenly perspective on God’s command to rebuild the Temple. Although this young man bore the stamp of one born and raised in Babylon, He confirms that God has not changed despite shifting cir...

Rev. George Murdaugh, pastor of Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Douglasville, Georgia, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Haggai 2. Although the date 07/21/02 might not catch our eyes, Haggai speaks God’s Word on a very important festival day—very appropriate for the name Haggai. Although his words would come true when Ezra arrived with the next wave of returning exiles, “the glory of this ho...