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“‘Blessed Is the Man’: Really, Lord?” (Psalm 1; Luke 14:25-35) Please turn with me once again to Psalm 1, in the front of your hymnal. We sang this psalm earlier in the service, but now I’d like us to speak together the first three verses. Psalm 1, verses 1 through 3: Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like...

The Darkness and Light are both Alike to Thee By Philip Cottraux Psalm 139:1: O Lord, thou hast searched me, and known me. You can’t hide anything from God. This can be both terrifying and comforting. For the last blog, I examined the 34th Psalm, which David wrote while on the run for his life from Saul. He and his men lived as fugitives in the wilderness every day for ten years. Think of how many nights he cried out to God for it to end, to no response. Yet he still had the faith to say they that seek...

Many are the Afflictions of the Righteous By Philip Cottraux After being anointed king, David would spend the next ten years on the run from Saul. He and his band of loyal soldiers lived in the wilderness like fugitives, sleeping in caves, never knowing where their next meal was coming from, and on constant watch for Saul’s pursuing army. In a previous blog I wrote about David arriving at the tabernacle hungry and asking the high priest, Ahimelech, for food. A table with bread was located in front of the veil that concealed the holiest of holies. But this show...

PSALM 56 For the director of music. To the tune of “A Dove on Distant Oaks.” Of David. A miktam. When the Philistines had seized him in Gath. 1 Be merciful to me, my God, for my enemies are in hot pursuit; all day long they press their attack. 2 My adversaries pursue me all day long; in their pride many are attacking me. 3 When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. 4 In God, whose word I praise— in God I trust and am not afraid. What can mere mortals do to me? 5 All day...

“Blessed Is the Man Whose Delight Is in the Law of the Lord” (Psalm 1)This morning I want us to look at the psalm appointed for this day, Psalm 1. And we’ll do so under the theme: “Blessed Is the Man Whose Delight Is in the Law of the Lord.” If you have an ESV Bible or a Lutheran Service Book, turn now to Psalm 1 and follow along as I read: Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but...

The book of Psalms is the largest collection of poetry in the Bible. In this video we’ll explore the design shape and main themes of this marvelous book, which was crafted to be read from beginning to end. The Psalms are an invitation to a literary temple where you can meet with God and hear the entire biblical storyline retold in poetic form.

EXPOSITION Verse 4. Let us now turn our eyes from the wicked counsel chamber and raging tumult of man, to the secret place of the majesty of the Most High. What doth God say? What will the King do unto the men who reject his only begotten Son, the Heir of all things? Mark the quiet dignity of the Omnipotent One, and the contempt which he pours upon the princes and their raging people. He has not taken the trouble to rise up and do battle with them -- he despises them, he knows how absurd, how irrational, how futile...

1 Vindicate me, my God, and plead my cause against an unfaithful nation. Rescue me from those who are deceitful and wicked. 2 You are God my stronghold. Why have you rejected me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy? 3 Send me your light and your faithful care, let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell. 4 Then I will go to the altar of God, to God, my joy and my delight. I will praise you with the lyre, O God, my God. 5 Why,...

The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool. The Lord shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies. Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth. The Lord hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek. The Lord at thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day...

Arise, O Lord; O God, lift up thine hand: forget not the humble. Wherefore doth the wicked contemn God? he hath said in his heart, Thou wilt not require it. Thou hast seen it; for thou beholdest mischief and spite, to requite it with thy hand: the poor committeth himself unto thee; thou art the helper of the fatherless. Break thou the arm of the wicked and the evil man: seek out his wickedness till thou find none. The Lord is King for ever and ever: the heathen are perished out of his land. Lord, thou hast heard the desire...

Read the following text from Psalm 69. 22 Let their table before them become a snare; And when they are in peace, let it become a trap. 23 Let their eyes be darkened, so that they cannot see; And make their loins continually to shake. 24 Pour out thine indignation upon them, And let the fierceness of thine anger overtake them. 25 Let their habitation be desolate; Let none dwell in their tents. 26 For they persecute him whom thou hast smitten; And they tell of the sorrow of those whom thou hast wounded. 27 Add iniquity unto their iniquity;...

Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying,Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the LORD shall have them in derision.(Psalm 2:1-4)According to the Divine Psalmist, the Kings of the Earth and the rulers have embarked on an all-encompassing liberation movement, seeking to use their influence to break society free from the “bands” and “cords” of the religion of the LORD and his...

Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying,Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.(Psalm 2:1-3)The first two Psalms go together. Perhaps it isn’t immediately apparent, because in some ways they are completely different, but I believe the Holy Spirit led those who placed them side by side as the opening of the Psalter. Psalm one examines a lone individual, a God worshipping , scripture meditating disciple who has made...

“Let Us Go to the House of the LORD!” (Psalm 122:1) You may notice that we still have the white paraments up from last week, when we observed All Saints’ Day. That’s because today we’re doing a kind of “All Saints’ Day, Part Two.” Last week we remembered those from our midst who entered the Church Triumphant over the past twelve months: Homer and Dorothy Rouggly, Bob and Dottie Worsham. This week, today, we’re remembering other departed saints from our midst, whom we commemorated at the start of the service with a plaque at the entrance to our church. The...

I'm trying to find an old source for the music of hymns and psalms from about 1775 to 1815. Since I want to transcribe from it, I'd be looking for something written down before 1923. Would anyone be able to point me to something of that kind?

“Confessing the Faith with the Augsburg Confessors” (Psalm 119:46) Today Lutheran churches around the world are celebrating the 487th anniversary of the Presentation of the Augsburg Confession. On June 25, 1530, in the city of Augsburg, Germany, a group of Lutheran princes presented a confession of their faith, composed by the theologian Philip Melanchthon, Luther’s right-hand man--they presented their confession to Emperor Charles V. That document, called the Augsburg Confession, summarizes what our Lutheran churches believe, teach, and confess, on the basis of Holy Scripture. Today then we want to consider what it means for us to be “Confessing the...

Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying,Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the LORD shall have them in derision. (Psalm 2:1-4)Psalm one and Psalm Two go together. Psalm one looks at an individual over against the world he lives in. The Individual is separated inwardly, he thinks differently because he has a different source, the Law of God. He meditates on...

Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.(Psalm 1:1-3)In the first Psalm, God reveals the marks of the truly blessed man. His blessedness comes not from outward...

Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the...

“Like a Tree Planted by Streams of Water” (Psalm 1) One of the delights of late summer is all the delicious fruit that we get to enjoy, fruit that the fruit trees have produced: peaches, apples, cherries. Juicy, ripe, sweet--the fruit is so delicious. I think the peaches are my favorite. But those fruit trees could not have yielded all that good fruit unless they had a plentiful supply of water. They need the water to produce the fruit. In a way, that is a picture of our lives as Christians. We need the “water” of God’s word in order...