Thy Strong Word from KFUO Radio

We know the names of the two towns where the king’s potters lived. Which king did they serve? The Chronicler never says. After tracing David’s royal line, he turns to the rest of Judah’s family. We meet a woman named Hazzelelponi alongside her three brothers, craftsmen whose trade gave a valley its name, and families who worked with linen. Along the way, the genealogy pauses for a prayer. Jabez, whose name reminded his mother of the pain of his birth, asks the God of Israel for a wider border and protection from harm. Why did God’s people...

What becomes of a royal family when there is no kingdom left to inherit? David's descendants include familiar kings, disastrous rulers, and a captive carried into exile. But the genealogy keeps going. Children are born, names are recorded, and the family survives after the crown is lost. Why should that matter to people living among the wreckage of their national history? First Chronicles traces David's line through judgment and beyond it, pressing a question that Israel could not settle by looking at an empty throne: what has become of God's promise of an everlasting kingdom? We'll discuss how it...

A man has no sons to carry on his family line, so he gives his daughter in marriage to his Egyptian servant. Generations later, their descendants appear in Judah’s genealogy. What is that story doing among the ancestors and settlements of God’s people? Alongside families connected with Bethlehem, the tabernacle craftsman Bezalel, and communities of scribes, First Chronicles remembers people we might never have noticed. These names widen our view beyond the royal household to the lives surrounding it. What do these complicated family histories reveal about the people through whom God preserves His promises?

Every family has stories it would rather leave out. Judah’s genealogy puts some of its darkest history right on the page: wickedness, judgment, and children born from a union with his daughter-in-law. Yet this is the family line that leads through Boaz and Jesse to David. As First Chronicles narrows its attention to Judah, the names challenge the idea that God’s chosen people earned their place through respectable ancestry. How does the Lord bring His promised King through a family whose history leaves so little room for boasting?

The Rev. Jim Neubauer of St...

Isaac and Ishmael are only the beginning. Abraham’s family tree branches into peoples and kingdoms that will shape Israel’s history, sometimes as bitter enemies. First Chronicles names sons, chiefs, and kings, including rulers who reigned in Edom before Israel ever had a king. If so many nations descend from Abraham, what makes Israel different? And if other kingdoms get a head start, has God’s promise fallen behind? These unfamiliar branches of a familiar family raise questions about election, earthly success, and the promise that comes by God’s grace rather than by the size or strength of a nat...

Unfamiliar names. Difficult pronunciations. Nobody doing anything. Is this where you start skimming until the Bible gets interesting again? First Chronicles opens with the sort of passage many readers hurry past, but these names have a story to tell. From Adam through Noah to Abraham, the family tree includes the ancestors of Israel and some of its fiercest enemies. Why begin here instead of getting straight to kings and battles? Behind these generations lies a question that reaches into our own lives: when sinners keep filling the family tree, how does God keep His promise of a Savior?

The Corinthians want proof that Christ speaks through Paul. Like Jesus, who chastised those who looked for signs, the Apostle turns the examination back on them: “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith.” What are they supposed to look for, and how can that examination lead to something other than doubt? As Paul prepares to visit, his warnings are serious, but his desire is their restoration not their defeat. Paul closes this letter by placing this troubled congregation under the grace of Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit.

The Apostle Paul could not secure relief from the thorn that tormented him. What was this thorn? We don’t really know. Three times he pleaded with the Lord to remove it. The answer was a promise of sufficient grace. Paul’s account confronts the expectation that extraordinary faith should produce an extraordinary escape from weakness. It also reveals the strength by which he continues to spend himself for a congregation that questions his love. What can we say about the love and grace of God when suffering persists even for the faithful?

The Rev. Jaco...

Forced to answer men who boast about their credentials, Paul presents a record of beatings, prison stays, shipwrecks, hunger, and sleepless nights. He even recounts escaping a city in a basket. Who would offer that as evidence of a ministry worth hearing? Beneath his sharp irony lies a pastor's daily anxiety for the churches and his grief when believers are led into sin. Paul's strange account of his qualifications challenges a congregation impressed by power and prestige. What should they have recognized in an apostle who boasts of his weakness?

The Rev. Dr. Jedidiah...

A preacher speaks about Jesus, offers spiritual experiences, and claims to bring good news. Why would Paul warn the congregation against him? The Corinthians are tolerating teachers who proclaim another Jesus and a different gospel, and Paul fears they are being deceived as Eve was. The danger is harder to recognize because it comes dressed in righteousness. How can the Church distinguish faithful preaching from an attractive counterfeit?

The Rev. Steven Theiss, serving St. John Lutheran Church of The American Association of Lutheran Churches in Pocahontas, Missouri, joins the Rev. Dr. Phil Booe to study 2...

Paul’s critics have a verdict: his letters sound strong, but in person he is unimpressive. Can someone so easily dismissed really speak with Christ’s authority? Paul answers with the meekness of Christ and the language of warfare, describing weapons powerful enough to demolish arguments raised against the knowledge of God. How do gentleness and such authority belong together? As his opponents measure themselves against one another, Paul challenges the standards by which the Church recognizes a faithful minister and asks whose commendation finally matters.

The Rev. Derek Waffel, pastor of Ascension Lutheran Church in H...

The Corinthians’ eagerness to help had inspired other believers, but their promised gift still needed to be prepared. How can Paul urge them to follow through while insisting that they give willingly, without reluctance or compulsion? His appeal turns to the God who supplies seed for sowing and bread for food. God provides for His people so that they can abound in good works, and the harvest includes relief for needy saints, thanksgiving to God, and believers praying for one another. What does it mean to reap generously, and what frees a Christian to give cheerfully? Paul’s answer lead...

The Macedonian Christians were suffering and deeply poor, yet they begged to take part in an offering for other believers. What could make giving feel like a privilege under those circumstances? As Paul urges the Corinthians to finish their own collection, he points to the grace of Jesus Christ, who became poor for our sake. His appeal raises questions that still touch every congregation: What moves Christians to give? What does generosity ask of those with limited means? And how should the Church handle the gifts entrusted to it?

The Rev. Dr. Peter Bender, pastor...

Sorrow over sin can lead in very different directions. Paul distinguishes godly grief, which produces repentance leading to salvation, from worldly grief, which produces death. What makes the difference? Paul takes no pleasure in the pain his letter caused the Corinthians. Yet Titus brings welcome news: their sorrow led to repentance, renewed affection, and an earnest response to correction. Through this report, God comforts His troubled apostle and fills him with joy. Beginning with God’s promises and the call to holiness, this chapter explores the difference between sorrow and repentance, the fruits of godly grief, and the comfort Go...

“Now is the day of salvation.” Paul pleads with the Corinthians not to turn away from the grace God gives them in Christ. His ministry has brought suffering, poverty, and sorrow, yet through it God has given others forgiveness, life, and lasting riches. Why are their hearts narrowing toward the apostle whose heart remains open to them? And what does Paul mean when he warns against being unequally yoked with unbelievers? Paul, relying on the promises of God, reminds them: God's people are His temple, and He receives them as His sons and daughters.

The Rev...

How can a sinner look forward to meeting his Judge? Paul longs to be at home with the Lord, even as he warns that we must all appear before Christ’s judgment seat. From the promise of bodily resurrection to the astonishing exchange in which the sinless Christ bears our sin, this chapter gives troubled consciences a reason for confidence. God has reconciled the world to Himself in Christ and entrusted His ambassadors with that message. Why, then, does Paul plead, “Be reconciled to God”? What does it mean to receive this reconciliation, become a new creation, and live for th...

Afflicted, perplexed, persecuted, and struck down, Paul carries the treasure of the Gospel in a fragile clay jar. His weakness makes clear that the power belongs to God. Yet how can a man who has suffered so much call his affliction “light” and “momentary”? Paul weighs present suffering against the eternal weight of glory promised in Christ. His confidence rests in the God who raised Jesus and will also raise His people. As our outward bodies waste away, God renews us through His promises, giving us hope that reaches beyond everything we can see.

The Rev. Dr...

God’s commandments came with glory, yet Paul calls their ministry a ministry of death. How can God’s holy Word condemn the very people who receive it? The Law exposes our sin and leaves us unable to claim righteousness through our obedience. The Gospel gives what the Law demands: righteousness before God through Jesus Christ. Paul traces this contrast through stone tablets, living hearts, Moses’ shining face, and the veil that only Christ removes. Through the Gospel, the Holy Spirit gives life and freedom, transforming believers to reflect Christ’s glory in their daily lives.

The Re...

A congregation has confronted a serious offense. Now Paul warns that its response could leave a repentant sinner overwhelmed by sorrow and give Satan an advantage. What happens when a church knows how to discipline but hesitates to forgive? Writing as a pastor who has shed tears over these Christians, Paul urges them to reaffirm their love. The stakes reach beyond one troubled relationship: this congregation receives the Gospel whose proclamation Paul describes as the aroma of Christ. What should that mean for someone who needs to hear that his sins are forgiven?

The Rev...

Paul admits that he was so burdened beyond his strength that he despaired of life itself. What does an apostle cling to when he cannot see a way forward? As we begin Second Corinthians, St. Paul points this troubled congregation to the Father of mercies, whose comfort reaches His people in their affliction and passes through them to others. But the Corinthians also have questions about Paul himself. If he keeps changing his plans, can they trust his preaching? His answer leads from a disputed itinerary to the certainty of God’s promises: each one finds its Yes in Je...

After proclaiming the resurrection of the dead, Paul turns to a collection, travel plans, and the people the Corinthians need to welcome. These ordinary concerns show what the Gospel means for a congregation learning to live together. Hungry Christians need help, faithful workers need support, and an open door for preaching comes with determined opposition. How will this divided church respond? Paul closes with words that hold firmness and tenderness together: stand firm in the faith, let everything be done in love, and await the Lord who is coming.

The Rev. Ryan Kleimola, pastor of...

If Christ has conquered death, why are we still burying Christians? Our bodies bear Adam’s likeness, marked by weakness, decay, and death. Yet Paul promises that we will also bear the likeness of the risen Christ. What will that transformation mean, and what happens to those still living when the last trumpet sounds? As Paul brings his great resurrection chapter to its conclusion, he traces death’s sting to sin and announces the victory God gives through Jesus Christ. That promise reaches from the graveside into our daily callings: because Christ is risen, our labor in the Lord is n...

A body lowered into the grave looks like the end of everything. Paul compares it to a seed being sown, because Christ’s resurrection has begun a harvest that death cannot prevent. But what kind of body will rise, and how can something marked by decay and weakness become imperishable and glorious? Paul answers the Corinthians’ objections by pointing to the Creator’s power and Christ’s reign. The last enemy still confronts us at every funeral, but its destruction is certain: Christ has been raised, and those who belong to Him will follow.

The Rev. Pet...

Could Christianity still offer something worthwhile if the dead never rise? Paul refuses to let the Corinthians treat resurrection as an optional belief. If the dead cannot rise, Christ has not been raised, their sins remain unforgiven, and the Christians they have buried are lost. Everything rests on an event Paul received and proclaimed: Jesus died for our sins, was buried, rose, and appeared to witnesses. Why does the Christian’s hope depend so completely on what happened to Jesus’ body?

The Rev. Greg Jans of Holy Trinity in Somerset, New Jersey, joins the Rev. Dr...

“Judge not.” “I can do all things.” “God won’t give you more than you can handle.” These are familiar words of Scripture that even many unbelievers know. Does Jesus forbid us to call anything sinful? Does God promise success at whatever we attempt? What happens when we must confront wickedness? What happens when we simply cannot handle any more suffering? On this Free Text First Friday, we put familiar Biblical quotations back in context and uncover the comfort we miss when a Bible passage becomes a slogan.

The Rev. Jon Franson of St. Paul’s Lutheran Churc...

Everyone seems to have something to say in Corinth, but who is being helped by what is heard? Paul would rather speak five understandable words than ten thousand in a tongue. He calls for speech that teaches, encourages, and consoles, then tells some speakers to wait, others to remain silent, and the Church to weigh what is said. His instructions also address women’s speaking in the assembly and confront those who claim spiritual authority while rejecting the Lord’s command. How does the Church distinguish a speaker’s desire to be heard from speech that builds up Christ’s people...

Imagine knowing every mystery, speaking with extraordinary eloquence, and giving away everything you own. Paul says that without love, even these impressive things amount to nothing. His familiar words about patience and kindness confront a congregation whose spiritual gifts have become occasions for envy and pride. What does love expose about the way we measure Christian maturity? And why will the gifts the Corinthians prize eventually pass away, while love endures when we finally see face to face?

The Rev. Bryan Stecker joins the Rev. Dr. Phil Booe to study 1 Corinthians 12:27–13:13.

Wh...

Some Christians wonder whether they have anything to offer. Others act as though the Church could get along without everyone else. Paul answers both by pointing to the church as an image of a body that needs its eyes, hands, and feet, including the members that seem weakest. The Spirit who brings us to confess Jesus as Lord gives different gifts and joins us together in Baptism. What happens when we turn those gifts into a measure of someone’s importance? And how does belonging to one body change whose suffering we notice and whose joy we share?

...

Some leave hungry while others have had too much to drink, and the Corinthians still call their gathering the Lord’s Supper. Paul brings them back to the night Jesus was betrayed and the words that make this meal His gift: “This is my body, which is for you.” The Apostle also warns that receiving unworthily brings judgment. How can the Sacrament given for forgiveness be received to a person’s harm? What does it mean to examine ourselves and discern Christ’s body without imagining we must become sinless before coming?

The Rev. Steven Theiss, se...

A covered head, an uncovered head, the length of someone’s hair: why does Paul give these things so much attention? In Corinth, outward appearance could communicate honor or shame within the congregation and between husbands and wives. Paul takes the discussion back to creation, then insists that neither woman nor man is independent of the other in the Lord. How do we distinguish the customs of ancient Corinth from the enduring truths Paul teaches through them, and what does our conduct communicate when the Church gathers?

The Rev. Dan Torkelson, pastor of Mount Olive Lu...

Meat from the market may be eaten with thanksgiving, but a meal at an idol’s altar is another matter. Why does the setting change what Christians may do? Paul answers by pointing to the Lord’s Supper, where the bread and cup give us participation in Christ’s body and blood. Fellowship at an altar means something, even when a person claims otherwise. As Paul distinguishes freedom from idolatry, he brings the question home to ordinary meals: how do we receive God’s gifts with gratitude while seeking our neighbor’s good?

The Rev. David Bois...

They passed through the sea, ate bread from heaven, and drank from the rock. Yet the wilderness became a graveyard for people God had delivered from Egypt. The Apostle Paul recounts that history to the Corinthian Christians who think they know enough to stand safely near temptation. What makes their confidence so dangerous, and why does Israel’s failure belong in a letter to the Church? Alongside the warning comes a promise for those who know their weakness: God is faithful, and temptation does not leave His people without His help.

The Rev. Jacob Hercamp, pa...

Paul makes a convincing case that the Corinthians should support his ministry, then explains why he has refused their support. Why defend a right he will not exercise? The answer reaches beyond a pastor’s paycheck to the things Christians willingly surrender so that others may hear the Gospel. Paul’s freedom makes him a servant, and his calling demands the discipline of an athlete running to win. What might our insistence on getting what we deserve put in the way of someone hearing Christ?

The Rev. Keith Aschenbeck of Grace Lutheran Church in Victoria, Texa...

An idol is nothing, and food cannot bring us closer to God. Some Corinthians know both truths and see no problem eating meat offered to idols. But across the table sits a fellow Christian who once worshiped those gods. What happens when he follows their example while believing he is returning to idolatry? Paul confronts a confidence so focused on being free and knowledgeable that it overlooks a brother for whom Christ died. How does love shape the use of Christian freedom when another person’s faith is at stake?

The Rev. Matthew Kusch, pastor of...

Marriage is God’s good gift, yet Paul advises the unmarried to consider remaining as they are. His reason brings an urgency to wedding plans and household concerns: “The present form of this world is passing away.” With trouble pressing upon the Corinthians, he wants to spare them added burdens and encourage undivided devotion to the Lord. How should Christians receive that counsel without turning it into a command against marriage? And what does it mean to love a spouse, build a home, and plan a future in a world that will not last?

The Rev. R...

Paul wishes others could remain unmarried as he is, yet he tells husbands and wives not to deprive one another of sexual intimacy. How do those fit together? For Christians in Corinth sorting through questions of desire, devotion, and marital faithfulness, neither marriage nor celibacy offers an escape from loving their neighbor. And when one spouse believes in Christ and the other does not, the questions become even more personal. Paul’s answers challenge easy assumptions about which life is holier and what belonging to Christ means for the promises we have made.

The Rev. Gr...

What if winning a lawsuit could mean losing something far more important? As Christians in Corinth take one another to court, Paul asks something most people would never be willing to consider, “Why not rather suffer wrong?” Their insistence on getting their own way reaches into their sexual lives, too, where freedom has become an excuse for sin. What changes when the person you wrong is your brother in Christ, and the body you claim as your own has been bought with His blood? Paul brings them back to what God has done: washed, sanctified, and justified them in Jesu...

A member of the Corinthian church is involved with his father’s wife, yet the congregation remains puffed up with pride, unmoved by a sin that should bring them to tears. Paul tells them to remove him from their fellowship, not as punishment, but so that he may be saved. How can putting someone outside the Church serve his salvation? This difficult passage confronts the danger of leaving sin unchallenged and asks what love requires when a fellow Christian refuses to repent. At its heart stands Christ, our Passover Lamb, sacrificed to free us from the sin that destroys us...

The Christians in Corinth are acting haughty, supposing themselves to be like kings, while the apostles who brought them the Gospel are hungry, dishonored, and treated like garbage. Despite this, Paul tells them, “Be imitators of me.” Why would anyone want to follow him? Beneath Paul’s sharp words is a spiritual father’s concern for children who have become disconnected from the cross. This episode explores what they have misunderstood about life in Christ, and how God’s power can be at work even in ministry that appears weak according to worldly reason.

The Rev. Rober...

The Corinthians were taking sides over their favorite preachers, but Paul reminds them who makes the Church grow. Pastors plant and water; God gives the growth. Jesus Christ is the only foundation, and what is built upon Him will be tested as through fire. As Paul calls the congregation God’s holy temple, he exposes the foolishness of boasting in human leaders and delivers a greater promise: “You are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.”

The Rev. Ryan Kleimola, pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Toledo, Ohio, joins the Rev. Dr. Phil Booe to study 1 Co...