Lent - Day 31 - Dead to Sin

Lent Devotions from Concordia University 2025

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Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying, “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’” The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” 

And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.” And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers.” And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he healed them. But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying out in the temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” they were indignant, and they said to him, “Do you hear what these are saying?” And Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read, 'Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise’?” And leaving them, he went out of the city to Bethany and lodged there.

Matthew 21:1-17

Due to their lives of sin and deceit, thieves would flee to caves between raids for safety from the people they had robbed thus giving birth to the phrase “den of robbers.” When Jesus used this phrase He quoted the Old Testament from the prophet Jeremiah. God spoke through Jeremiah saying, Has this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? (Jeremiah 7:11) These words were spoken to people who would not change their lives of sin. The people wrongly believed that the temple protected them from the consequences of their evil and from punishment for their idolatrous actions against God. Refusing to repent or change they would emerge from the temple ready to engage in more defiance of God’s will. Unfortunately, this was still the case in Jesus’ day. Life in Christ calls for a very different confidence. We stand fully confident in the grace that Christ pours out for us freely. However, we should be careful not to turn this into “cheap grace,” assuming permission to sin all the more as a way to “give” God the “opportunity” to forgive us even more. Life in Christ means living each day fully repentant of our sinful lives. We are not to remain confident in our sins but rather grieve them. We are not to seek ways to continue in our sin, but rather desire that God would help us overcome temptation and sin. Reconciled to God through Christ we are confident because our sinful flesh is put to death and we daily rise as a new creation to live before God in righteousness and purity.

Prayer:

Lord, 

        Please forgive our sins. Change our lives. Amen.

Lent - Day 30 - The Glory of Service

Lent Devotions from Concordia University 2025
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For the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. After agreeing with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the marketplace, and to them he said, ‘You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they went. Going out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour, he did the same. And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing. And he said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’ They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’ 

And when evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last, up to the first.’ And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each of them received a denarius. Now when those hired first came, they thought they would receive more, but each of them also received a denarius. And on receiving it they grumbled at the master of the house, saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’ But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?’ So the last will be first, and the first last.” 

And as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside, and on the way he said to them, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day.” 

Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came up to him with her sons, and kneeling before him she asked him for something. And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Say that these two sons of mine are to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.” Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.” He said to them, “You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.” And when the ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers. But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” 

And as they went out of Jericho, a great crowd followed him. And behold, there were two blind men sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that Jesus was passing by, they cried out, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” The crowd rebuked them, telling them to be silent, but they cried out all the more, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” And stopping, Jesus called them and said, “What do you want me to do for you?” They said to him, “Lord, let our eyes be opened.” And Jesus in pity touched their eyes, and immediately they recovered their sight and followed him.

Matthew 20:1-34

“The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve.” Do we realize the significance of these words? Jesus is on His way to Jerusalem, about to be praised with “hosannas” and palm branches as King and Messiah, and here He says that He has come to serve. What a paradox. What an absolutely absurd thing to say. It is just as absurd as saying that the very Son of God was going to give His life for others. 

We have heard the story of Christ so often that I don’t think we fully grasp how these words and ideas rip and tear at the very fabric of what makes sense in this universe. Yet that is exactly what Jesus came to do. We should not be surprised that Jesus would turn another norm in this world upside-down: “Do not be like the world, trying to push others below you or lift yourselves up at others’ expense. Instead be a servant.” You see, what reason do we have to push others below or lift ourselves up? Christ has already elevated us to a place beyond our hopes. He has already elevated us in the only thing that matters. We were once strangers, aliens, even enemies of God but through the Cross, Jesus has made us members of God’s household. (Ephesians 2:11-22) With that new reality, we are now free to live as servants of all.

Prayer:

Jesus, 

         You served us. How difficult it can be to come to grips with that reality. Help us to live in response to that, as a servant to those around us. Amen.

Lent - Day 29 - Children Show the Way

Lent Devotions from Concordia University 2025

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Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.” And he laid his hands on them and went away. 

And behold, a man came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.” He said to him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” The young man said to him, “All these I have kept. What do I still lack?” Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. And Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished, saying, “Who then can be saved?” But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Then Peter said in reply, “See, we have left everything and followed you. What then will we have?” Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name's sake, will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first.

Matthew 19:13-30

It is a stunning contrast of two encounters. First, people bring infants to be blessed by Jesus. He declares that God’s reign is theirs, rebutting the disciples who did not want Jesus to be bothered by them. On the other hand, there is a young man who having “obeyed the laws,” is seen by the disciples as the example of one who has been saved by God. Jesus uses him as an object lesson to show all of humanity’s inability to garner access to the Kingdom. 

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For my ways are higher than your ways.” (Isaiah 55:8-9) We have our own thoughts as to what should grant a person access to the Father, to life, to eternity. We have our own ideas about how these determinations should be made and confidences should be instilled. Those thoughts become the lenses with which we view the world, ourselves, others, and God. But Jesus makes it very clear that these infants in their helplessness are the picture of God’s reigning work. 

For with man, salvation is impossible, but with God all things are possible. When Jesus declares a child has been saved, when Jesus declares his disciples are saved, when Jesus declares you to be saved, when Jesus declares that I am saved, then it is absolutely so! Why? Because He and only He can accomplish such things. He does so through His divine wisdom and according to the good and gracious will of the Father. He accomplished it on the cross and declares it in our baptism.

Prayer:

Holy Spirit, 

                  Continually work in us a child-like faith where our “grown-up” understandings do not impede our trust in the all-sufficient grace of Christ. Continue to establish Your saving faith in all people including all the little children. Amen.

Lent - Day 28 - Healing in Marriage

Lent Devotions from Concordia University 2025
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Now when Jesus had finished these sayings, he went away from Galilee and entered the region of Judea beyond the Jordan. And large crowds followed him, and he healed them there. And Pharisees came up to him and tested him by asking, “Is it lawful to divorce one's wife for any cause?” He answered, “Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate. They said to him, “Why then did Moses command one to give a certificate of divorce and to send her away?” He said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. And I say to you: whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery.” The disciples said to him, “If such is the case of a man with his wife, it is better not to marry.” But he said to them, “Not everyone can receive this saying, but only those to whom it is given. For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let the one who is able to receive this receive it.
Matthew 19:1-12

We cannot get around Jesus’ very pointed comments on the subject of divorce. God hates divorce. It goes against what He established since creation. These are difficult words to hear, especially coming authoritatively from the lips of Christ Himself. Our world often colors divorce as a neat and clean break, trying to separate it from the brokenness in the marriage that led up to it in the first place. However, if you have been divorced, helped others through a divorce, are a “child of divorce,” or have in any other way been impacted by divorce, then you have seen the effects. It fills lives with grief, hurt, anxiety, anger, fear, pain and distress.

When God established marriage He had something much different in mind for us. He desired that a man and woman would have a unique bond when joined together as husband and wife. They would benefit from mutual companionship and be blessed by what comes in this unique relationship where each is singularly committed to the wellbeing of the other. Our world tries to persuade us with different understandings and expectations for marriage; painting it as a mutually beneficial situation that is only worth it as long as we are getting what we want out of it. In marriage God unites husband and wife as one flesh, making divorce the tearing apart of that flesh.

But God brings healing. He can bring healing to any marriage in hardship, even when divorce seems imminent. He can bring healing to individuals who have gone through divorce. He can bring healing to anger, hurt, betrayal, and shame. God has a powerful forgiveness that we can give to those who have wronged us. He has a powerful forgiveness for us if we have wronged others. He can, He has, He does bring healing; for our God is the God of reconciliation.
May we recognize the hurt that is a reality of our marriages not worked at with God’s purpose in mind and in the divorces that dissolve them. May we comfort those who have experienced this. May we be at work for our own marriages (now or if in the future) to guard and protect them as sacred gifts. May we help to guard and encourage the marriages of others. May we give guidance and good counsel to any who might be considering marriage, that they would be joined together according to God’s intentions.


Prayer:

God,
Protect marriages everywhere, and provide healing to those who may still be dealing with hurt from divorce. Amen.