Thy Strong Word from KFUO Radio

Rev. David Speers, pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Altamont, Illinois, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Mark 7.“Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites!” Once again Jesus ☧ publicly clashes with the Pharisees and the Jerusalem scribes, this time in Mark 7 over the Fourth Commandment (in Mark 3 it was over the Third). Just when His opponents think they have Him for disrespecting “the Elders,” ☧ turns it around on them for disrespecting their own mothers and fathers.☧ does not call them “hypocrites” for being inconsistent per se, but for shifting the focus of the Scriptures: they focus on how God’s Word might enhance their own external performance rather than what the Word teaches us about the heart of God. A sinful heart, ☧ says, is what really makes a person unclean. He then proceeds to heal a Gentile of faith made clean by “the Word,” and He heals a deaf and mute man to show that, without the Word in their hearts, the Pharisees and scribes are the ones who are truly deaf and mute.

Rev. Thomas Eckstein, pastor of Concordia Lutheran Church in Jamestown, North Dakota, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Mark 6.“They did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.” Mark 6 continues the narrative of Jesus ☧’s gospel proclamation, a real-life story laden with symbolism. What is the connection between Herod’s execution of John, the Feeding of the Five Thousand, and ☧ walking on the water?Herod shows himself to be no shepherd of God’s people. Whenever he’s placed in an awkward situation, he bends for his own selfish benefit. ☧ however acts selflessly even in impossible situations, to feed and teach His “sheep without a shepherd.” The mystery of the loaves and baskets points to the resurrection—not of John the Baptist—but of Jesus ☧ on the third day, the true King of the Twelve Tribes. He would not abandon His disciples, but before His ascension He came to feed and teach them even amidst fear and doubt.

Rev. John Shank, pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Edwardsville, Illinois, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Mark 5.“Do not fear, only believe.” These words of Jesus ☧ summarize the theme of Mark 5. Although these are real-life events being narrated, this perspective on the story highlights the faith-vs-fear dynamic, showing how the Word-of-growth parables of chapter 4 play out in our hearts and minds.The Word remains central: the storm was calmed at ☧’s Word, the mighty legion of demons cower powerlessly before ☧’s Word, and even those who receive the Word second hand come to faith and salvation. When ☧ says “Your faith has made you well,” He means that the Word has borne fruit. Ultimately, ☧’s Word of diagnosis is more powerful than fear and death, to one day raise the Gentiles from their tombs and to bring the Twelve Tribes back to life in the resurrection.

Rev. John Lukomski, retired LCMS pastor and co-host of Wrestling with the Basics on KFUO Radio, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Mark 4.“To the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.” In Mark 4 Jesus ☧ speaks of the paradox of faith and understanding: in order for these to be given, they must have already been received.These parables were not meant as easy-to-understand sermon illustrations. Like the injunctions of silence with the miracles, ☧ revealed Himself through these parables gradually and on His own terms—not on the terms of human initiative or wisdom. Each elaborates on the central message that, even though its growth is inexplicable and at times imperceptible, the kingdom of God is indeed being grown through the strong Word of ☧. This is finally shown when the storm calms at ☧’s Word. Amidst fear and calamity, ☧ grows His disciples’ faith slowly but surely with His teaching and rebuke.

Rev. David Boisclair, pastor of Faith and Bethesda Lutheran Churches in North St. Louis County, Missouri, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Psalm 107.“Hallelujah! Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!” With these words, Psalm 107 introduces the fifth and final collection of psalms from 107 to 150. No other section of psalms contains so many hallelujahs and exhortations to praise.North, south, east, and west: mountains, wilderness, sunrise, and seashore. With the Babylonian invasion, God’s people were scattered all over, but in Psalm 107, each and every group has experienced God’s faithfulness. Parts of this psalm appear very prominently in the New Testament, especially in the Lord’s Beatitudes and Mary’s Magnificat. Jesus ☧ is the Redeemer who ties together all God’s people, feeding the “hungry and thirsty,” proclaiming liberty for the captives “in the shadow of death,” and making “the storm be still” through the power of His Word.

Rev. Scott Adle, pastor of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Collinsville, Illinois, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Mark 3.“Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” In Mark 3, Jesus ☧ heals a man’s atrophied hand in the middle of the synagogue on the Sabbath, putting the Pharisees’ hypocritical non-answer on public display.He remains tight-lipped, though His twelve-man inner circle has kingly overtones. Only the unclean spirits have begun to utter the full truth: He is “the Son of God,” the ☧ and King that Israel has been waiting for. Focused on preaching, He forces the question: what do the Commandments really mean? If the corrupt Jerusalem elite condemn the Holy Spirit’s work in Him, then they have aligned themselves against the only source of forgiveness. Like them, we naturally justify our own hypocrisy in the name of the greater good, but true virtue is obtained only in ☧ through His forgiveness and faith.

Rev. Curtis Deterding, pastor of Zion Lutheran Church in Fort Myers, Florida, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Mark 2.“The Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.” In Mark 2, Jesus ☧ uses the term “Son of Man” for the first time, confusing His opponents more than answering their questions—and they have a lot of them: Why does He presume to forgive sins? Why does He associate with sinners? Why doesn’t He make His disciples fast? Why does He do work on the Sabbath?As illustrated in the last episode of chapter 1 with the leper, Jesus ☧ is controlling the pace of His gospel mission, revealing Himself slowly and bit by bit. Jesus ☧ continues to show unique aspects of His authority. He wasn’t the first one to connect sin and sickness, but He was the first one who acted like He could cure both at the same time. He didn’t reject scholarship or learning, but He showed that these are all in vain if not applied in love, as He did for us in His preaching ministry and ultimately in His passion.

Rev. Daniel Olson, pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Luxemburg, Wisconsin, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Mark 1.“Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.” Mark chapter 1 might strike us as a strange starting place, beginning with John baptizing the Lord in the Jordan and skipping over the little town of Bethlehem. But Mark leaves out these details deliberately so he can focus on Jesus ☧ as a preacher.When we think of “the gospel,” our minds tend to go to the Cross or to the empty tomb, or possibly to the Ascension or to Christ’s perfect life of obedience. But in Christ’s own words, He was sent to preach—and with authority. The authority of Jesus ties all these things together; He cannot save us if He is not our ultimate authority. He has authority to cast out demons and to control the narrative of His actions. And in His time in the wilderness, He humbly prepares Himself to speak on the authority of the Father. Do we so esteem preaching, absolution, the sacraments, and the saving authority of ☧ administered in our churches by our pastors today?

Rev. Rolf Preus, pastor of Trinity-Sidney & St. John-Fairview, Montana, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Revelation 22.“On either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month.” As the final chapter of the Bible, Revelation 22 takes us back to the beginning. By the tree of the Cross, Eden’s tree of life is restored in the heavenly Jerusalem.Yet the “river of the water of life” from Ezekiel’s vision also runs through the city streets. The 1400 mile–wide Jerusalem is not just a city, but one giant temple. More than that, the entire city is the Holy of Holies itself: in ☧ the High Priest, the whole twelvefold people of God are constantly in the immediate presence of God, an eternal Day of Atonement for all sins. Longing for this future, we cry “Come, Lord Jesus!” Yet we can go to this heaven every Sunday: every time we gather in ☧ for the Divine Service, heaven comes to us, as it did for John.Thy Strong Word is a daily in-depth study of the books of the Bible with host Rev. AJ Espinosa and guest pastors from across the country. Thy Strong Word is graciously underwritten by the Lutheran Heritage Foundation and produced by the LCMS Office of National Mission.

Rev. Kevin Parviz, pastor of Congregation Chai v’Shalom in St. Louis, Missouri, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Revelation 21.“I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.” Revelation 21 gives us the most vivid picture of “heaven” in the entire Bible. But what does it mean that the old heaven and earth will pass away?Like the Lord Jesus Christ, the city of Jerusalem will one day be resurrected. Not just the people, but the city too, even with its gates and walls! Many of these things won’t be necessary, but they will be beautiful and gracious reminders to us that, in some sense, it will still be the same body, the same world, and the same city, just as it was the same Jesus ☧ on Easter. Not only will creation no longer be corrupted, but it will be better than ever, without any hint of chaos.