August 10, 2026

Today's Reading: Jeremiah 8:4-12 or Jeremiah 7:1-11

Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 25:23-44; 1 Corinthians 4:1-21

“I have paid attention and listened…” (Jeremiah 8:6a)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

When I was little, I learned to hammer nails into boards. Part of that process, unfortunately, included smashing my thumb with the hammer. The wise counsel of adults was to: “Stop hitting your thumb with the hammer, and it won’t hurt.” It was true! I hit my thumb less nowadays, but there’s more to the story. Admitting that I needed help, taking direction, following direction, and being comforted WHEN I hit my thumb was the path of greatest comfort.

It was the same in Jeremiah’s day. God asks, “When men fall, do they not rise again?” (Jeremiah 8:4). We expect people to get up when they fall. Judah didn’t. They fell into great sin. They tried to hide their sin and struggle until eventually, it was easier to pretend everything was fine. They convinced themselves that piety and positive feelings covered their sin. People around them kept saying, “Peace, peace,” when there was no peace (v. 11). They spoke lies until they believed them. Even worse, the prophets and priests — those who were supposed to speak God’s truth — twisted His Word to excuse sin rather than lead people to repentance. They followed the wisdom of the world, believing it would heal the wounds their sin had caused. It didn’t heal anything; it never does… it only kept them trapped in their deception and misery.

Yahweh sent Jeremiah to assure the people that God wasn’t angry because they were sinners: “I have paid attention and listened…”— Yahweh knew what they were up to, AND He was heartbroken because they believed their sin wasn’t that bad, that “God doesn’t really mean what He said.” Like Judah — we pretend we’re healthy when we’re actually dead. God pays attention and listens. His word, through Jeremiah, crushed them, roused them; the word was sent to wake the dead in sin from their sleep.

We’re all fallen; we cannot rise by our own strength. Jeremiah points them to the promise of Christ — Who, for our sake, willingly took our sin and death and rose again. Christ bore our shame, took our judgment, and still reaches out His nail-pierced hands to forgive and restore you. Being a Christian isn’t about keeping the stiff upper lip or exercising stoicism; Adam and Eve tried this with fig leaves, and it didn’t work. We rest assured that God knows everything about us, He pays attention and listens — and still wants you, seeks you, and loves you. He clothes you in Christ’s righteousness that covers every sin in Baptism, He gives you what you’ve neither earned nor deserved, and He’s overjoyed to do so.

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Let us pray: Almighty God, we have sinned against You in what we know and what we do not know. For the sake of Your Son, forgive us all our sin and grant us to serve You and our neighbor. Amen.

Rev. Adam DeGroot, pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.

August 9, 2026

Today's Reading: Luke 19:41-48

Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 25:1-22; 1 Corinthians 3:1-23

“Would that you… had known on this day the things that make for peace!” (Luke 19:42)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Jesus sees His beloved city and her people carrying on in great busyness and happiness in preparation for the Passover celebration… so why does Jesus weep? Why the turning over of the money changers' tables? Because the people thought that maintaining longstanding traditions since the first Passover and making money was what made for peace. Was Jesus there just to kill the vibe of Passover, or to dampen the mood of the millions gathered in Jerusalem? Not in the least… although it kinda sounds like it when he drops the hammer of foretelling them that in 70 AD, His whole city would be leveled.

Jesus is fully God, He is fully man; This God/man shows sorrow (His weeping), and He exhibits controlled wrath (casting the merchants out by His word), but it is His mercy that should not be overlooked. Martin Luther writes: “He who is true God weeps with true tears. He laments not for Himself but for those who would not have Him.” (AE 75:417) Jesus weeps for His people… His beloved… because of their unbelief, hardness of heart, and their spiritual blindness. They, and all sinners, believed that their riches, their busy lives, and their works made for peace. Jesus, in great love and mercy, enters the temple, made with hands, and kicks the ones who bought and sold out with His word, showing us that He’d come to us… how the strong man would be bound and cast out. Jesus is the ‘thing’ that makes for peace… the time for peace was then, and peace would be won in the most terrible and wonderful manner, and still He came to dwell with His people through His Word. Even as He weeps, His cross is fully in view where He will be the true temple that will be torn down and built up again after three days… and that cleansing He provides will involve more than the turning over of tables and the casting out of merchants… it will be the event that overturns the world and casts out the enemies of sin, death and the Devil forever; the ‘thing’ that makes for peace with God and our neighbor right here on earth. Jesus laments over unbelief and dies for unbelievers, making His dwelling among us in the Church, the bride, He died to save.

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

“O Christ, cleanse the temple of our hearts. Let Your Word dwell richly within us. And grant that we may know, even now, the things that make for our peace — You, our Savior and our God.”

Rev. Adam DeGroot, pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.

August 8, 2026

Today's Reading: Introit for Trinity 10 - Psalm 55:1, 4-5, 16; antiphon: Psalm 55:16a, 17b, 18a, 22a

Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 24:1-22; 1 Corinthians 1:26-2:16

“Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not yourself from my plea for mercy!” (Psalm 55:1)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

The Lord desires that we call upon Him in the day of trouble. That is what we learn in the opening to the Lord’s Prayer. We pray not to some big, scary God up there in the heavens who has not revealed Himself to us. If that were the case, we would not begin our prayer, “Our Father…”

God is our Father, which means, of course, that we are His children. And as His children, He, as our heavenly Father, desires only what is good and beneficial to us. Sometimes what is good for us is chastisement and correction, which, while in the midst of it, never feels good, but in truth always is.

Other times, what is for our good is protection and release from every form of evil that would do us temporal and eternal harm. This is what we pray for in the final Petition of the Lord’s Prayer. It is pretty amazing that Jesus summarizes so succinctly what we find all over the place in the Psalms!

Pray to your dear Father all that which troubles your conscience and your mind. Cast your burdens upon the stripped and beaten shoulders of Christ your Lord, who has already taken them all to the cross and bore them unto His death— knowing that in the hollowness of the empty tomb, He has the victory over all of these things and has placed them inside His own grave to be buried forever!

The fallenness of this broken world will not cease to assail you. Your own sinful flesh will lead you down paths not helpful, but hurtful. Satan will fight tooth and nail to rob away the proclamation of the Gospel and the forgiveness of sins that Christ has already won for you. … That is why your Lord has granted to you the Gift of prayer, that you might seek refuge under the shadow of His wing, knowing that nothing can separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus.

God, your Heavenly Father, hears your pleas for mercy and redeems your soul in safety. The verdict has already been declared as Christ called out from the cross, “It is finished!” And so know for certain that in the midst of sin and strife and death and temptation, He will sustain you through the Gifts of the cross given you in His Church!

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

O God, forsake me not! Your gracious presence lend me; Lord, lead Your helpless child; Your Holy Spirit send me That I my course may run. O be my light, my lot, My staff, my rock, my shield– O God forsake me not! (LSB 731:1)

Rev. Eli Lietzau, pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.

August 7, 2026

Today's Reading: 1 Samuel 21:1-9

Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 21:1-9

“So the priest gave him the holy bread, for there was no bread there but the bread of Presence…” (1 Samuel 21:6a)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Holy things for unholy people. That’s what happens in our text for today.

If you remember, David is on the run. Saul doesn’t like the man; he never has since that whole Goliath thing when the crowds gave David the king’s welcome. He already tried to pin David to the wall with his spear, then seemed to come to his senses by giving one of his daughters in marriage to him, then went a little crazy again and tried to devise a plot for Jonathan and his servants to murder him.

David evades the assassins (with the help of Saul’s son and daughter) and heads for the hills. Which brings him eventually to Nob, where the tabernacle sits, and before the High Priest Ahimelech. There are a lot of moving pieces by now, and I’m not too sure Ahimelech was all that keen on helping David out, at least not initially. But by the end of it all, David receives five loaves of the Bread of Presence.

This bread was only meant for the priests. Twelve loaves were made weekly and laid before the Lord in the tabernacle. On the Sabbath, the holy priests (made holy only by the designation of God) would consume the old bread and present the new. …David was no priest. He was not consecrated as holy, and yet Ahimelech superseded the Levitical Law for the sake of David’s well-being.

Fast forward 1,000+ years, and Jesus uses this very example to help show that man is not made for the Sabbath, but the Sabbath is made for man. Meaning, God desires to give His good Gifts to His people despite the fact that we are unworthy to receive them. And that’s the whole thing about God: He is always the one at work, always the one making us worthy, always the one giving of Himself for our good.

Receiving the Gifts of God is not about cleaning yourself up first in order to make yourself worthy to receive His Gifts. If that were the case, they wouldn’t be Gifts, and they wouldn’t be given; they would be wages earned. But we can never earn the things of God, can never make ourselves worthy enough or holy enough. But Christ has already done that for us, for you. He, through His holy, bitter suffering and precious death, has done it all, which is what makes you worthy to receive His good Gifts of life and salvation through Word and Sacrament.

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

My Lord, You here have led me To this most holy place And with Yourself have fed me The treasures of Your grace; For You have freely given What earth could never buy, The bread of life from heaven, That now I shall not die. (LSB 642:2)

Rev. Eli Lietzau, pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.

August 6, 2026

Today's Reading: Catechism: The Sacrament of Holy Baptism - 4

Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 20:1-23; Acts 28:16-31

“We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” (Romans 6:4)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Baptism isn’t a one-time thing. I mean, it is…. After all, we do confess in the Creed that we believe in one Baptism for the remission of sins. But what I mean is that Baptism, your Baptism, isn’t just the physical event that happened however long ago. Grammatically speaking, then, we should speak about it in the Perfect tense instead of the Past tense. Past tense means that the event is done and over with no continual ramifications into the present or future. Perfect tense, instead, is an accomplished act in the past with continuous consequences into the future. … That is why it is also best to say, “I am baptized,” instead of, “I was baptized.”

And, of course, we get all of this from Scripture. Paul, in Romans, is one of the prominent places. We continually, daily, go back to our Baptism. We do this for reassurance against the crafts and assaults of the devil. But we also do this so that Old Man Adam can be drowned again and again and again. For although Old Adam was drowned on the day that you were baptized and is still drowned each and every new day of your life, he is a terribly strong swimmer. He is going to pop his head above the waves constantly, and as the New Adam baptized into Christ, it is our duty to yank him down into the depths again, holding him there until he stops struggling for the service.

But this “Perfect” tense is also why we can so confidently, in the face of struggles, strife, sin, Satan, and the cemetery, know for certain that our identity is not found in our sin or in the fact that we will die because of it one day. Our identity isn’t in anything that Satan wishes us to identify with; it isn’t found in the fallen world or the fallen flesh. No, our identity is found in Christ!

Why? Because we were buried with Him through Baptism into His death. We have been made one with the One who has already paid the price for all of our sin and has prepared his final resting place to be the final resting place of our Old Adam. And then, so too, are we raised from the dead through the glory of the Father. New Adam, today and every day. New Adam for eternity.

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

I bind this day to me forever, By pow’r of faith, Christ’s incarnation, His Baptism in the Jordan River, His cross of death for my salvation, His bursting from the spiced tomb, His riding up the heav’nly way, His coming at the day of doom, I bind unto myself today. (LSB 604:2)

Rev. Eli Lietzau, pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.

August 5, 2026

Today's Reading: Acts 28:1-15

Daily Lectionary: Acts 28:1-15

“After we were brought safely through…” (Acts 28:1a)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

It had been three long years since Paul had been arrested by a Jewish mob in Jerusalem and thrown before the High Priest Ananias. The Jews had made a plot to kill him, but that plot had been foiled, and he was skirted away to Caesarea to be put under the authority of Felix, the governor. During the next 36 months, Paul would appeal to be heard by Caesar, speak in front of rulers and authorities, sail for Rome, be caught at sea by a storm, and be shipwrecked on the island of Malta.

Luke begins our Reading for today with the words, “After we were brought safely through…” It was the providential will of God that Paul would not find his end at the hands of a Jewish mob in Jerusalem, but instead that he would go on proclaiming the Gospel all the way to the steps of Rome. Christ crucified would be made known throughout the world despite his imprisonment. (Dare I say even because of it?)

Is it any wonder that Paul would be able to pen in Romans that, “God works all things for good for those who are called according to his purpose,” and, in 2 Corinthians, “For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

The Christian gives thanks to the Lord above for the faithful witness of His apostles. It's no mere accident that these men suffered imprisonment, torture, persecution, and martyrdom; for as Christ said, “A servant is not above his master.” But these things took place so that you and I might know what Christ is and who He is for us 2000 years after the Apostle Paul met his blessed end.

God had seen Paul through all of these hardships with you in mind, so that you might “have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge.” (Ephesians 3:18-19a)

The doctrine handed down by the Apostles is the very doctrine that is preached and proclaimed in your congregations. It is the foolishness of the cross, the stumbling block of a crucified Savior risen from the dead for the forgiveness of your sins. We confess these truths in the Creeds, and we receive these truths in the Divine Service. We profess these promises to the lost and fallen world around us. And we live in the grace and mercy of the Gospel until Christ comes again in glory.

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

I trust, O Lord, Your holy name; O let me not be put to shame Nor let me be confounded. My faith, O Lord, Be in Your Word Forever firmly grounded. (LSB 734:1)

Rev. Eli Lietzau, pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.

August 4, 2026

Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 10:6-13

Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 18:10-30; Acts 27:27-44

“No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” (1 Corinthians 10:13)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Paul is presenting a typology. Fancy word, I know, but it just means that one thing is a type of another, or one thing is an example. The Church at Corinth has fallen into the same trap as the Israelites of old who wandered in the desert. Each thought that because they were God’s chosen people, they could go about and live however they desired, free from judgment or temporal punishment. That is why the five examples that Paul gives in our Reading for today are each specific sins that the Corinthians are struggling with.

This is a very specific warning about viewing the Gospel as a license to sin as opposed to the grace to fight against temptation. Christ and His cross has accomplished everything of the Law, and He has done it for you, but that doesn’t give you permission to indulge in the sinful things of the flesh like idolatry, sexual immorality, and covetousness. … In the most simple of ways: the cross grants you forgiveness, not permission.

And so against any sort of haughtiness that is prevalent in our sinful flesh, Paul urges us not to be so pompous as to think we cannot sin (v. 11). Instead, he confronts us with the reality that the sinner within the Christian is just as susceptible to temptation if he relies on his own reason or strength as the unbeliever. What is worse, the Christian has been given the Law so that he knows what loving God and loving his neighbor actually looks like. The good works of the Law are necessary for the Christian; they are just not necessary for salvation.

Luther tells us, when commenting on verse 13, “‘But God is faithful, and He will not let you be tempted beyond your strength’ … however different it appears to human reason and however much every temptation seems to be beyond measure and intolerable.” Call out to the Lord in the day of trouble, and He will answer you. Pray fervently to your Heavenly Father that He will stand firm in His promise to you and trust Him fully that He will do what He says.

But most importantly, when you succumb to those temptations, do not despair as if you have no hope. Be forgiven for the sake of Christ and be raised to new life in your baptismal identity in Him.

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

With prayer the Father we implore: O Father, glorious evermore, We plead with Thee for grace and pow’r To conquer in temptation’s hour, Alleluia! On Christ, the true bread, let us feed; Let Him to us be drink indeed; And let us taste with joyfulness The Holy Spirit’s plenteousness. Alleluia! ( LSB 874: 3, 5)

Rev. Eli Lietzau, pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.

August 3, 2026

Today's Reading: 2 Samuel 22:26-34

Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 17:48-18:9; Acts 27:9-26

“For you are my lamp, O Lord, and my God lightens my darkness. For by you I can run against a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall. This God–his way is perfect; the word of the Lord proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.” (2 Samuel 22:29-31)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

David isn’t a very good man… We think quite fondly of him, and perhaps we should, but tell me, after reading through 2 Samuel, can you really come to the conclusion that David was the type of guy you would want your son to emulate? Sure, the first part of his life is pretty commendable. Humble shepherd boy who trusts in God even when all of Israel doesn’t. Grappling with Goliath and with Saul alike, just in different ways. Never striving for the throne, even though it had been promised to him. Just trusting in God to protect, provide, and fulfill all that He had promised…

And then that whole Bathsheba and Uriah thing happened when David was in his 40s, and the rest of his life was but double, double toil and trouble. It’s amazing the dominoes that can tumble in the aftermath of adultery (and that is putting the best construction on 2 Samuel 11:1-5) and murder. David’s sons go mad: they abuse their sister, kill each other, and try to commit regicide.

For two long decades, David’s life had been in turmoil, and yet the Lord had seen him through it for His sake alone. All that David did along the way was believe the promises of God (and even that he had trouble doing at times)... The Law would crush him, and the Gospel would revive him, and all along David would know that his salvation had nothing to do with him and everything to do with Yahweh.

And so near the end of his life, only five more trips around the sun to go, David pens this song of deliverance. We find it in 2 Samuel, but it is also in Psalm 18. It is a song and a Psalm about the work of God, who He is, and who he is for David. It can and should be your song, too. For you and I are no different than that Israelite king of old: Simul Justus et Peccator, the whole lot of us. Christ is the lamp that lightens our dark world of sin, death, and the devil; our Rock and our fortress; our strong refuge, making us blameless for His sake alone!

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

O Word of God incarnate, O Wisdom from on high; O truth unchanged, unchanging, O Light of our dark sky: We praise You for the radiance That from the hallowed page, A lantern to our footsteps, Shines on from age to age. (LSB 523:1)

Rev. Eli Lietzau, pastor of Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wheat Ridge, CO.