LESSON: JOHN 2:1-11

On the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there; Jesus also was invited to the marriage, with his disciples. John 2:1,2

It was a great honor for Jesus to make His gift of wine at this lowly marriage feast by means of a great miracle. Hereby Jesus became the bride’s most important donor. In any case, He may not have had any money for precious gems to give her as a gift. Such an honor Jesus never accorded to any of the Pharisees. In this way He confirms marriage as a work and ordinance of God. No matter how despised it is, or regarded as insignificant by men in general, God nevertheless recognizes His work and is pleased with it.

Because the estate of holy matrimony can rest on the comforting fact that God has established it and is pleased with it, and because Christ Himself honors it for our consolation, all men should really be pleased with it. They should regard it as an honorable estate and be very favorably inclined to it, being sure that God is well pleased with it.

They should also be ready joyfully to endure everything that is difficult in this estate, even if matters sometimes seem worse than they actually are. It is an estate which practices and cultivates faith in God and love towards one’s neighbor by means of trouble and toil, unpleasantness, the cross, and disagreeableness of all kinds. All these are not uncommon experiences where God’s Word and work are taken seriously.

SL.XI.464,3-4

AE 76, 238

PRAYER: Lord God, heavenly Father, in many ways and places you have taught us that holy matrimony is an estate well-pleasing to you and to be honored by all men. Thanks be to you, Lord Jesus, for the striking way you honored this holy estate at the wedding in Cana, giving us strong encouragement to follow your holy example in this respect. Amen.

LESSON: 2 THESSALONIANS 2:13-17

Whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that by steadfastness and by the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope. Romans 15:4

In this Gospel (Luke 2:41-52) we are given the consolation that, whenever suffering becomes our portion, we should realize that we will not be able to find any other consolation except in the Scriptures, the Word of God. God has set it down in writing that we should learn, as Paul says, “Whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that by steadfastness and by the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope.” Romans 15:4.

Here he states that the Scriptures are comforting and give patience and consolation. There is nothing else that comforts the soul more, even in the slightest temptations. For anything else whereby a man seeks consolation for himself, however great it may be, is quite uncertain. For the heart always has the nagging feeling: “Who knows whether it is right? O that I could be quite sure!” When the heart clings to God’s Word, it can say without any wavering: “This is God’s Word; it cannot lie to me or mislead me. Of that I am certain.”

The greatest struggle in which we must engage is to keep the Word and remain steadfast in it. If this Word is torn from a man’s heart, he is lost.

SL.XI.441,29

PRAYER: Grant us steadfastness of faith, O Lord, so that the precious Word of salvation which you have made known to us in Christ, our Savior, may never be torn from our hearts, and that we may continue in it until all our hopes are fully realized in Christ. Amen

LESSON: ROMANS 3:21-26

He saved us, not because of deeds done by us in righteousness, but in virtue of his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit, which he poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life. Titus 3:5-7

We should never place our confidence in the doctrine of men and the holy fathers. God has given us many examples to teach us not to build on men or to put our confidence in men.

Even the saints make mistakes. We read that, something like eighteen years after the ascension of Christ (Acts 15), the apostles and the group of those who were Christian came together in Jerusalem. The question to be decided was: Should one compel the Gentiles coming into the church to be circumcised? Some of the leaders of the party of the Pharisees who had become believers came forward and said that the Gentiles should be circumcised and ordered to keep the law of Moses. Much strife ensued and many were in danger of accepting this viewpoint.

Peter, Paul, Barnabas, and James opposed this suggestion. Peter in particular said: God has given His Holy Spirit to the Gentiles, who received the Gospel by my mouth, just as He did to us, and made no difference between them and us but cleansed their hearts by faith. If then, they received the Holy Spirit without being circumcised, why do you want to bind them in addition and impose a yoke on their necks which neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? We believe that we shall be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, just as they will. Acts 15:7-11

SL.XI.439,23

AE 76, 206

PRAYER: We thank you, Lord, for the gift of full and free justification in Jesus Christ, our Savior. Grant us at all times fully to understand and appreciate all that you have done for us in your Son. Keep us always fully reliant on your grace in Christ, for Christ’s sake. Amen.