There are many ‘choices’ in this world and they are not all equal.  There were some who promoted ‘magic bands’ for financial gain in Israel.  They got rid of those who opposed them…except for GOD, who foretold their judgment. There are some who build their lives on their goodness or on other things.  Jesus is the only lasting foundation. The power brokers of Jesus’ day were all about making ka-ching for themselves using their religion.  Jesus was all about glorifying God.

Join us this Sunday afternoon at 4pm for our Joint Reformation Service including our sister congregations in Fond du Lac, Middleton, Markesan, Batavia and Hales Corners.

Our Scripture Lessons reveal that the true SOURCE of Wisdom is God. The Love of God leads us not to allow personal opinions to divide us. Jesus, the Vine, is the SOURCE of our spiritual strength.

We have an abundance of truth in our Scripture Lessons to clear up the falsehood being peddled today. In the Old Testament Lesson we discover the truth about gender and humankind. In the Epistle Lesson we find the truth about prayer. In the Gospel Lesson we find that Jesus can heal both kinds of blindness.

The Old Testament believer Job lost everything in a day, but still trusted in God to deliver him. The Epistle Lesson reminds us that because of Jesus’ blood we are delivered from sin and have become part of the city of God. Jesus Himself invites us to come to Him and promises to remove our burden of sin and give us hope and eternal life.

In our OT Lesson we find seven tidbits of Godly wisdom building up a strong spiritual tower. In our EP Lesson we see what God made of Paul through the Word of Christ. In our GOSPEL Lesson Jesus needed only seven words to heal the invalid. He can heal and save us through His Word.

Zechariah called upon the people to search their hearts to determine whether they were acting in faith or going through the motions. Peter calls upon us to set aside sinful attitudes and hear the Word which alone can work Godly attitudes in us. Jesus reminds us that Godly giving is giving in faith, trusting the Lord to provide.

When Judah and Jerusalem rejected God’s Word…they brought judgment on themselves; yet God promised mercy in the Holy One. The Macedonians were sinners too…in need of the good news of salvation…so God in mercy sent Paul to proclaim to them the truth.  Terrible would be the consequence if the Good News were not proclaimed! Even today, those who reject the Word of Christ reject the only means to be freed from sin.

It’s not a recent problem. The people of Israel were warned about taking pride in their place of worship but not listening to the Word of God. Guess what happened? Paul urged the Ephesian Elders to watch out for themselves and their people because false teachers were coming. Jerusalem’s sordid history all came about in large part because they didn’t listen to or continue in God’s Word. What can we learn from this?

Because: God’s Word is always effective. God will judge the world by His Savior. God’s Word is our priceless treasure.