The first thing I did when I started thinking about this blog post was text a group of my twenty-something-year-old friends a question. I asked, “If you were deciding the next Bible study for a group at your church, would you choose one on a specific topic, one on the Gospels, or one on a different book of the Bible? Why?” I was not shocked with the answers I received. Most of them said they’d choose a book of the Bible they hadn’t studied much or a topic they wanted to delve deeper into. None of them said they’d choose the Gospels.

In a few short days, we will be celebrating the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. This is a monumental event, and C. F. W. Walther agrees. As a devotion for this significant celebration, we read Walther’s Christmas Day sermon below from Gospel Sermons Volume 1.

As we begin the season of Advent, we wait for the celebration of the birth of the Messiah. We wait and reflect on what it means that Jesus fulfilled the prophecies of the Old Testament, especially the prophecies that foretold His birth. We look at three specific prophecies about Christ's birth found in Isaiah and Micah.

When I saw Him, I fell at His feet as though dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying. “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades. Write therefore the things that you have seen, those that are and those that are to take place after this.” (Revelation 1:17–19)

Who is Jesus? This is a question that divides and unifies. It’s a question in which the answer can explain the difference between a Christian and a non-Christian. Volume 2 of the Concordia Commentary on Mark opens with the first public confession of the identity of Jesus by His followers, a confession that seems to show greater insight than exhibited by those followers heretofore.

The posting of the 95 Theses set into motion the events that would lead to a reformation and purification of the public teaching and practice in the Western Church, especially in Germany. At this time, therefore, it is good and right to consider what those writings were which moved the Reformation forward and set forth the Gospel in its purity.

In April 2018, I sat down at my computer with an open Bible and thought I’d write a Bible study on creation, working through Genesis chapters one through three. God, on the other hand, laughed at my simple-minded ideas and decided instead to deal with my angst.

The following is an excerpt from Luther's Small Catechism: A Manual for Discipleship, written by John T. Pless.

Commissioned ministers serve in a variety of roles with their own particular emphases. Understanding what each of these commissioned ministers is trained to do will lay a foundation for understanding what commissioned ministry is in the LCMS today.

The Sixth Petition of the Lord’s Prayer is, in the minds of many people, the most challenging of the seven petitions to understand.