LESSON: 1 JOHN 3:11-18

No man has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us. 1 John 4:12

I have often remarked how faith makes us free lords and love makes us slaves. Through faith we become gods and partakers of the nature and name of God as the psalmist declares, “I say, ‘You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of you.’” Psalm 82:6. Through love we become at the same time the poorest of men.

By faith we are in need of nothing and always have full supply; in love we are the servants of all men. By faith we receive good things from above, from God; in love we let them flow out below to our neighbor.

With us it is something like it was with Christ during His earthly ministry. According to His godhead He lacked nothing; but according to His humanity He was the servant of all who needed His help.

We have often said that we also through faith are born as God’s children and gods, lords and kings, just as Christ in eternity was born true God from the Father. Nevertheless, through love we are to do good to our neighbor, just as Christ was born a man to help us all. Just as Christ became man only to serve us after being God in eternity, we also do good to our neighbor and show him our love only after we have become righteous, free from sin, living and blessed children of God.

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PRAYER: By faith in Christ you have made us free lords and kinds, O God, thus conferring upon us all the spiritual blessings we need for our salvation. Grant us your grace, that in the power and strength of all this we may prove our faith in love and service to our neighbor. Amen.

LESSON: GALATIANS 2:11-16

We hold that a man is justified by faith apart from works of law. Romans 3:28

You see how the example of the leper (Matthew 8:1-4) supports faith against works. For, just as Christ helped this leper out of pure grace through faith without any works or merits on his part, so He helps all men. He also wants men to regard Him as such a helper, and to expect help from Him on this basis.

Had the leper come to Christ with all sorts of claims declaring, “See here, Lord, I have prayed and fasted so and so much. Please take note of all this, and make me clean accordingly,” Christ would never have cleansed him had he been so minded. Such a person does not rely on God’s grace, but on his own merits. In such a case, God’s grace is not praised, loved or desired, but personal works claim all the honor, and God is robbed of His due honor. As Isaiah declares, “They bow down to the work of their hands, to what their own fingers have made,” Isaiah 2:8, that is, they put their confidence in their own works, and confer on their own works the honor belonging to God’s grace alone.

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PRAYER: Lord, preserve us from that presumption which urges us to trust in our own works to the rejection of the grace, help and salvation which you are always ready and willing to bestow on us freely in and through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

LESSON: GALATIANS 1:6-9

Continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel which you heard. Colossians 1:23

The Gospel is the beginning, middle, and end of all that is good, and our one source of salvation. We have stated repeatedly that first of all one must hear the Gospel, and then faith, love, and good works follow. We must not put good works first, turning the whole matter back to front, as the teachers of work-righteousness do.

The Gospel is a good report, discourse, and proclamation of Christ, announcing that He is nothing else but pure goodness, love, and grace. Such a report could not possibly be made concerning any other human being, or any of the saints. For, although the other saints were men of quite good repute, a report on them does not constitute the Gospel as such. It is Gospel only when the goodness and grace of Christ are proclaimed. Even though mention is made of famous saints and their doings, this does not make the report the Gospel. The Gospel bases Christian faith and confidence solely on the rock, Jesus Christ.

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PRAYER: We praise and thank you, loving heavenly Father, for the clear revelation of the good news of salvation in the Gospel of you Son, and for the faith, trust, and confidence which you have given us in connection with this Gospel, in and through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

LESSON: MATTHEW 8:1-13

A leper came to him and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.” Matthew 8:2

See how the faith of the leper manifests itself. He is under no delusions at all. All that he desires and hopes to obtain is the pure goodness and grace of Christ, freely and without any merit at all on his part. We cannot claim here that the leper earned the privilege of drawing close to Christ and speaking to Him, begging His help. He comes to Christ because he is conscious of his impurity and worthiness, and he places all his reliance on Christ’s goodness.

This is true faith, living confidence in God’s goodness. If this confidence is in a man’s heart, his faith is right; if this confidence is not in a man’s heart, faith is wrong. All who do not keep the pure goodness of God in sight, and who always look first of all to their good works in the hope of meriting God’s favor and goodness for themselves, have this wrong faith. Such people never have the boldness to invoke God with real earnestness or to approach Him.

This confidence or faith, or the knowledge of the goodness of Christ, would never have developed in the leper as the fruit of his own rational understanding. In all probability he had received a good report of Christ beforehand to the effect that Christ is good, gracious, and merciful, ready to help all men and to supply comfort and consolation for all who come to Him.

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PRAYER: Thanks be to you, O Lord, for the examples you have given us in your holy Gospel encouraging us to come to you at all times, in all our needs, with the assurance of your grace and help. Amen.

LESSON: MARK 8:31-35

Jesus said to her, “O woman, what have you to do with me?” John 2:4

We should note here that Jesus adopts a harsh attitude to His mother not only to give us an example of faith, but also to remind us that in the affairs of God and in His service we do not know father or mother.

Although there is no authority on earth greater than the authority of father and mother, it is of no avail, when it is a matter of God’s Word and work. In the affairs of God neither father, mother, bishop, nor any other man is to lead and teach us. The Word of God alone must do this.

Where father and mother order, teach, or even request you to do something against God, or to observe something in worship that God has not clearly commanded and ordered, you should say to them, “What have you to do with me? What is there for you and me to do in common?”

Christ here simply refuses to do the work of God at the wishes of His own mother.

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PRAYER: You have shown us in many clear passages of your Word, O Lord, that as your children we must always obey God rather than men [Acts 5:29]. Strengthen our faith at all times, O Lord, so that we always have the courage to do this in and through our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

LESSON: ROMANS 8:31-39

We know that in everything God works for good with those who love him. Romans 8:28

The most important lesson in this Gospel (John 2:1-11), and what we should especially note here, is that we should accord God the honor of being good and gracious, even though He seems to have shown Himself in quite a different light. Sense and feeling must be disciplined in us, and the old Adam put down, so that true faith in God’s goodness, and not feeling, remains in us.

Here you see how a pure faith remains in Christ’s mother and is held up before us as an example. She is sure that He will be gracious, even though she does not feel it. She is also sure that she feels otherwise than she believes. So she leaves the whole matter completely to His goodness.

She does not set up any time or place, any method or measure, any person or name. He must do just as He pleases. If it is not done in the middle of the meal, let it be done at the end of the meal. She keeps the rebuff to herself. She does not reproach Him for His disdainful conduct before all the guests, for His ungracious attitude which made her blush. He appears to be sour, but He is sweet. Of this Mary is quite sure. And if we act in this way under such conditions we are true Christians.

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PRAYER: Lord, you know that we sometimes experience conditions in which we see only as through a glass darkly, when we do not immediately recognize your guiding hand and goodwill toward us. Grant us your grace so that we always firmly believe that even in such situations all things must work together for our good. Amen.

LESSON: HEBREWS 12:1-4

For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision is of any avail, but faith working through love. Galatians 5:6

There is a real conflict for faith in this Gospel (John 2:1-11). We should therefore pay close attention to what Christ’s mother, Mary, does, and also to what she teaches us. How hard His words sound, and what an unfriendly attitude He seems to adopt! But she interprets everything in her heart in such a way that she does not even think of any wrath in Him, or anything that might conflict with His goodness, but remains firm in the conviction that He is good. She will not allow this opinion to be taken from her by the rebuff she has suffered, on the basis of which she might well have imputed disgraceful conduct to Him in her heart, and not regarded Him as good and gracious.

That is what those do who lack faith and fall away at the first blow and hold no more to God. They feel like horses and mules do, to whom the psalmist refers when he says, “Be not like a horse or a mule, without understanding, which must be curbed with bit and bridle, else it will not keep with you.” Psalm 32:9.

If this mother had allowed herself to be scared off by these hard words, she would have gone away quietly in annoyance. In telling the servants to do whatever He commanded, she proves that she has overcome the rebuff and that she is awaiting nothing but sheer goodness from Him.

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PRAYER: We thank you, God, for all the examples of triumphant faith which you have given us for our learning and instruction in your holy Word, like the example of Mary, Christ’s mother. As her faith in you never wavered, so may we at all times trust in your goodness and mercy in and through our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

LESSON: ROMANS 14:5-12

So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. 1 Corinthians 10:31

The reason why excess is so frequent among men is that they do not just eat and drink, but gorge themselves and guzzle, carouse and gormandize, and behave as though it were a mark of cleverness or strength to gorge and guzzle. Their objective is not to become joyful, but to become mad and to be full. These people are pigs, not human beings. Christ would not have given such people wine or accepted their invitation.

In their adornment, also, such people have no consideration for a wedding but to show themselves off, and to prance around as though the strongest are the best. They are loaded with gold, silver, and pearls, and do their best to wear as much silk and fine clothes as possible. Donkeys and blockheads could easily do the same.

How, then, is moderation to be determined? Reason should be our pride here. We should follow the example of other lands and cities where such excess is not the order of the day. Each one according to his estate! So also with food and drink and other similar matters. Is it sin to have music and dance at a wedding, seeing that it is claimed that there is much sin in connection with dancing? I do not know whether the Jews danced; but because it is customary among us, just as inviting guests, adornment, eating, and being joyful is customary, I cannot condemn dancing if it does not involve any excess or become lewd. If it involves sin, it is not the fault of the dancing itself. People can sin sitting at table or even in church! So also with eating and drinking. If dancing were sinful, it would have to be denied even to children.

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PRAYER: As your children in Christ Jesus, O Lord, you have given us all things for our happiness and enjoyment. In this connection grant us the moderation and a sense of what is fitting and proper, so that our lives may always be happy and joyful in all good conscience. Amen.