revmattil.org

Devotions to help you Think about God’s Word and Apply it to your Lives.

About revmattil

This author has not yet filled in any details.
So far revmattil has created 1240 blog entries.

Riches, Wisdom and Knowledge

Romans 11:33-36 Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! “Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?”  “Who has ever given to God, that God should repay him?” For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.

These verses at the end of Romans 11 are a doxology, declaring the glory of God. Paul just concluded a lengthy discussion of God’s plan for the salvation of all who believe, whether they be Jews or Gentiles, descendants of Abraham or outsiders. What God accomplished through Jesus was for EVERYONE. His death paid for the sins of everyone. His resurrection conquered death for all people. So it is fitting and natural for Paul to sing God’s praises here.

I’d like you to consider three of the terms used in this passage with me.

Riches: People are often impressed with the physical wealth of others. Some people have amassed great fortunes here on earth and seem to “have it all.” Good for them. We should rejoice at the good fortune of others. But even the wealth of Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos is nothing compared to the riches of the one who made everything. God has material wealth, to be sure, but He has the riches of Spiritual blessings as well, which He gives freely to those who trust in Jesus. And God has promised to use His riches for your benefit.

Philippians 4:19 “And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.”

Wisdom: God gave Solomon wisdom that no one else has ever had. But His own wisdom is vastly superior to that. His wisdom devised a plan for the salvation or mankind, even though we deserved destruction and eternal condemnation. He sent Jesus down here as one of us, then made the one who knew no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:19)

A lot of folks thing they are wise, but they don’t know God. Their wisdom is worthless in the grand scheme of things as far as eternity is concerned.

1 Corinthians 1:21 “For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.”

Knowledge: There is nothing about you God does not know. He is literally a “know it all.” And in spite of that, He still loves you. He knows your sin, your failings, your evil thoughts and deeds. He knows it all.  But He also knows that He loves you and wants you to be with Him forever. He did what was needed to make that happen. That is what Jesus coming to earth was all about.

To him be the glory forever! Amen.

 

 

 

 

Riches, Wisdom and Knowledge2025-07-04T20:34:31-05:00

How Great Thou Art

Some mornings I wake up and go outside. When the weather cooperates, I will drink a cup of coffee out on the porch. I listen to the birds chirping, look at all the things growing, and I remember to thank God for giving me such a glorious day. On one such morning recently, I remembered looking up the history behind an old hymn, so I went back and read it again. .

In 1885 a Swedish poet and lay minister by the name ofBoberg was visiting some friends in the country. He enjoyed all the plants and flowers and listening to the birds sing. One afternoon they saw a thunderstorm in the distance. As they sought shelter, loud claps of thunder and flashes of lightening were all around them. Strong winds swayed the trees and blew across the grain fields. As the storm passed, they saw clear skies and a beautiful rainbow and a gentle breeze was blowing.

Upon returning home, he wrote a poem entitled, “O Store Gud.” That poem was later set to a Swedish folk tune. In 1907, Manfred von Glehn translated it into German, and five years later a Russian pastor, Ivan Prokhanoff, made a Russian adaptation. In the early 1920s, the Rev. and Mrs. Stuart K. Hine left their home in England and went to Poland and Ukraine as missionaries. It was there they learned the Russian version of Boberg’s song, “O Store Gud.” Just before World War II Hine wrote original English lyrics and made his own arrangement of the Swedish melody. And so we now have “How Great Thou Art.”

O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder
Consider all the works Thy hand hath made,
I see the stars, I hear the mighty thunder,
Thy pow’r throughout the universe displayed;

REFRAIN:
Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to Thee,
How great Thou art!  How great Thou art!
Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to Thee,
How great Thou art!  How great Thou art!

When through the woods and forest glades I wander,
I hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees;
When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur
And hear the brook and feel the gentle breeze;

But when I think that God, His Son not sparing,
Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in,
That on the cross, my burden gladly bearing
He bled and died to take away my sin;

When Christ shall come with shout of acclamation
And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart!
Then I shall bow in humble adoration
And there proclaim, “My God, how great Thou art!”

We see God’s greatness in the world around us to be sure. But the thing that is the greatest for us is that He did not spare His Son, who bled and died to pay for our sin and defeated death for us all by rising again.

I hope you remember the greatness of God in your life today.

How Great Thou Art2025-07-04T20:33:13-05:00

Before You Lord We Bow

Francis Scott Key was a lawyer, but He is best known for a poem he wrote. It was originally entitled “Defence of Fort McHenry”. It was later set to the tune of a popular British song and renamed “The Star-Spangled Banner.”  Although it was four stanza long, most people only know and sing the first. Because of that, most people don’t know the way He wove his faith in the one true God into that poem/hymn.

O say can you see by the dawn’s early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming,
Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight,
O’er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets’ red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there;
O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave,
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore dimly seen through the mists of the deep,
Where the foe’s haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o’er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning’s first beam,
In full glory reflected now shines on the stream:
‘Tis the star-spangled banner, Oh long may it wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

When our land is illumined with liberty’s smile
If a foe from within Strikes a blow at her glory
Down, down with the traitor that dares to defile
The flag of the stars and the page of her story
And the millions unchained who their birthright have gained
We will keep her bright blazon Forever unstained
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave,
While the land of the free is the home of the brave.

O thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved home and the war’s desolation!
Blest with vict’ry and peace, may the Heav’n rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: “In God is our trust.”
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Something else you may not know is that another poem he wrote is a hymn included in the Lutheran Hymnal, Lutheran Worship and our current Lutheran Service Book. Entitled “Before You Lord We Bow,” it was written for the celebration of Independence Day in 1832. The one whose Star Spangled Banner encouraged us to Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation! and penned the motto: “In God is our trust” recognized that our lives were in the hands of the Creator and Redeemer of the world. He praises God as the ruler and protector and encourages the people of this nation to remember to praise the one in control. Mr. Key, like the vast majority of patriots who established this nation and those who have stood up for and defended this nation throughout her history, was a Christian. Listen to the expression of His faith in this hymn:

Before you, Lord, we bow, Our God who reigns above
And rules the world below, Boundless in pow’r and love.
Our thanks we bring In joy and praise, Our hearts we raise To you, our king!

The nation you have blest May well your love declare,
From foes and fears at rest, Protected by your care.
For this bright day, For this fair land–Gifts of your hand — Our thanks we pay.

May ev’ry mountain height, Each vale and forest green,
Shine in your Word’s pure light, and its rich fruits be seen!
May ev’ry tongue Be tuned to praise And join to raise A grateful song.

Earth, hear your Maker’s voice; Your great Redeemer own;
Believe, obey, rejoice, And worship him alone.
Cast down your pride, Your sin deplore, And bow before The Crucified.

And when in pow’r he comes, Oh, may our native land
From all its rending tombs Send forth a glorious band,
A countless throng, With joy to sing To heav’n’s high king Salvation’s song!

May we continue to bow before the crucified and may God continue to bless our nation.

Before You Lord We Bow2025-07-03T15:53:28-05:00

Too Much Togetherness?

This week we are vacationing with two of our daughter and their families. Six Adults and four kids between the ages of 5 and 11. We love it, although at times there is a bit of conflict and exasperation.

I was reminded of a video devotion Cheryl and I recorded just over a month into the Covid-19 “lockdown” and decided to share that with you today. Hope it gives you a smile and some wisdom from God’s Word.

https://youtu.be/HbAJK6739vs

Too Much Togetherness?2025-07-03T13:52:13-05:00

How God’s People Should Live – Part 2

One more day pondering these words:

2 Chronicles 7:14 If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

Yesterday’s thoughts closed with these words: You  and I are people who already have a relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ. In His love and mercy He has reached out to us with the offer of forgiveness for Jesus sake. Through His life and death and resurrection He has done all that is necessary for us to be saved, to be God’s people called by His name.

Because we have faith in Jesus, because God has chosen us to be His people, these words from 2 Chronicles apply to us. Let’s go through the outline again, making it more personal:

IF my people – you and I who are His children through faith in Jesus.

  • Humble – When things are going well, we forget about God and assume that is just the way things should be if you work hard, rather than recognizing our good fortunes as blessings from God. We need to humbly acknowledge that God’s providence has blessed us tremendously, giving us homes and family, work and leisure, freedom and liberty. Be humble before God.
  • Pray – This is an admonition bears repeating. If you want God to answer you, you have to speak to Him. Let Him know that you know He is there and in control by talking to Him.
  • Seek – We need to seek His face always. We want to be on His good side, which is what this phrase implies. We don’t want God to turn His back on us, but desire to be where His face shines on us. We want to live always in His presence.
  • Turn – We do that by admitting our sins and turning from them. That does not mean a thoughtless recitation of “I, a poor miserable sinner…” but a heartfelt admission that it was my sin, my guilt, that caused Jesus to die. That kind of admission will bring about a turning.

If you and I will humble and pray and seek and turn THEN God will:

  • Hear – we know that God hears, since He promised that He would for Jesus’ sake.
  • Forgive – That is what Jesus had come for. That is what He did. He gave Himself up for us, died and rose again so that we might be forgiven. Faith in Him makes that forgiveness your possession. God forgives you for Jesus’ sake.
  • Heal – Easing of the suffering and problems all around us. Let’s face it, our lives and our nation need healing. People are not civil to one another in the public square. This nation of ours is one of the finest on earth, but it is still in need of a lot of healing. As those who are part of the family of faith, part of that nation whose God is the Lord, we have a responsibility to live up to. If you want the United States of America to be a nation under God, you must be a people under God. Take your stands for God, make your voices heard, Lift High the Cross. Share the Good News so that more people will be God’s people. And show God’s love in your words and your actions. If you and I are living the way God tells us to in this passage, that will go a long way toward healing this land.

We must take God at His Word.

If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

We have been promised that when we humble ourselves, pray, seek, and turn from our wickedness, GOD will hear, forgive, heal –for Jesus Sake!

How God’s People Should Live – Part 22025-07-03T15:47:54-05:00

Hark the Voice – Stanza 1

Hark! the voice of Jesus calling, “Who will go and work today?
Fields are white and harvests waiting, Who will bear the sheaves away?”
Loud and long the Master calls you, Rich reward He offers free;
Who will answer, gladly, saying, “Here am I, send me, send me?”

Luke 10:2 He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.

John 4:35 Do you not say, `Four months more and then the harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.

Isaiah 6:8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”

That call goes out to each of us. Mission work is not just something for “those people over there.” It is the responsibility of everyone who has heard the Good News of Jesus as Savior. You have taken to heart the message of what the shed blood of Jesus has done for you. You are reminded of the forgiveness and life and salvation that He has given each time you receive the Sacrament of the Altar. Your life of response is to share this message.

“Who will go and work today?” Granted, each of us do it in different capacities and with differing gifts, but it is the work to which each of us has been called.

Will you do that work today?

 

Hark the Voice – Stanza 12025-07-15T20:12:54-05:00

How God’s People Should Live – Part 1

In my last two devotions I have mentioned this passage.

 

2 Chronicles 7:14 If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

 

Today and tomorrow I want to dig a little deeper into this with you. This passage presents a logical progression, a condition and response, an “If … Then” statement. One of the first things I learned in programming computers was about “If … Then” statements. These occur everywhere. Their purpose is to determine the outcome.

 

  • IF a condition is true, the part of the program after the word THEN takes place.
  • IF the condition is false, the part after the word THEN is ignored.

 

That is what God is setting up here in response to Solomon’s prayer.

 

IF my people…again, these are His chosen people that He is speaking to, those with whom He already has a relationship. He sets up four conditions

 

  • Humble themselves – This was important. Under David, Israel had become a world power. Under Solomon’s reign Israel grew even more. It would be easy for them to forget about God and think they had done it all by their own power. They needed to acknowledge what God had done for them in humility.

 

  • Pray – God’s people are reminded to speak to Him. This was not for God’s benefit, but for theirs. By speaking to God they would remind themselves where their help came from.

 

  • Seek His face – The people with whom God already has a relationship are encouraged to seek His face, to try to get close to Him, to stay in His presence. This means they would understand who He is and what He would have them do.

 

  • Turn from their wicked ways – This is what it means to repent: to do a 180, an about face, to turn away from sin and towards God.

God tells His people if they will humble, pray, seek and turn, THEN He will

 

  • Hear – He will listen and be aware of our situation

 

  • Forgive – Because of faith in His promises, people can be forgiven by God.

 

  • Heal this land, which was a reference to easing the suffering and problems.

 

God’s actions were promised in response to His people believing in Him. The IF part of the formula describes faith in action. The THEN part of the formula is God’s promise to His faithful people. God is doing the promising, the acting, the giving. The people were merely invited to take God up on His offer.

 

You  and I are people who already have a relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ. In His love and mercy He has reached out to us with the offer of forgiveness for Jesus sake. Through His life and death and resurrection He has done all that is necessary for us to be saved, to be God’s people called by His name.

 

I’ll wrap up my thoughts on this tomorrow.

 

How God’s People Should Live – Part 12025-07-03T15:38:23-05:00

Nation Under God?

This weekend we celebrate the birthday of our country. We are fortunate to live in a country that has been truly blessed by God. But is it really, as we say in the pledge, a “nation under God”? When you watch the behavior of those who are supposed to be running this country, those making the news with vicious attacks going both directions,  do you really believe that the United States is a nation under God? Are we behaving like godly people?

Abraham Lincoln, our 16th president, said: “We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven; we have been preserved these many years in peace and prosperity; we have grown in numbers, wealth, and power as no other nation has ever grown. But we have forgotten God…”

Woodrow Wilson, our 28th President: “America was born a Christian nation. America was born to exemplify that devotion to the elements of righteousness which are derived from the revelations of Holy Scripture.”

In the Psalms we read “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.”

This country has had many of our brave young men and women serve in many wars. Countless prayers were offered for those who served to protect our freedoms and rid the world of evil aggressors. But does that make us a “Nation under God?”

The United States of America may not be a nation under God, but you and I are part of a nation that does look to the Lord. We are part of God’s chosen people, the people known as ISRAEL. I’m not talking about that state in the Middle East that is the location of constant terrorism and turmoil, but the true ISRAEL described in Scripture. Through faith in Christ, we are part of those God calls “My People.”

2 Chronicles 7:14 If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

Those words were spoken at the dedication of the Temple. Solomon had built this Temple for God, and in Chapter 6 prayed that God would be pleased and listen to the worship and requests offered there. It was in response to Solomon’s prayer that God spoke these words. Something that should not be overlooked is that God spoke these words to those who were already HIS people. He was the one who preserved them, brought them to this Promised Land, raised up judges and prophets and now kings to rule them. They were His people. These words applied to those who already had a relationship with Him: my people, who are called by my name.

While I am happy to be a citizen of the USA, that is not the most important thing to me. Nor is it being a Texan, which is even better. Those things have to do only with life here on earth, and they pale in comparison to knowing that I am part of God’s people, called by His name. That has to do with eternity.

 Philippians 3:20–21 But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.

 And my being part of His people, His nation, was all His doing.  He paid the price to buy me back from sin and death at His first coming. And He is coming again to take me to be with Him.

God did this for me. He did it for you. In fact, He did it for everyone. He wants all men and women to be part of His people. We need to share this message of freedom with the world.

1 John 2:2 [Jesus] is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.

Nation Under God?2025-07-03T15:23:36-05:00

His Name

My name will be great among the nations, from the rising to the setting of the sun. In every place incense and pure offerings will be brought to my name, because my name will be great among the nations,” says the LORD Almighty. (Malachi 1:11)

God’s name is great. It always will be because of who He is. But that does not mean everyone recognizes God for who He is. In fact, more and more people in this country have rejected God and choose to live as though He does not exist. They do not consider Him or His name to be great.

Luther gave us an important reminder in his explanation of the First Petition of the Lord’s Prayer.

Hallowed be Thy name.

What does this mean? God’s name is certainly holy in itself, but we pray in this petition that it may be kept holy among us also.

How is God’s name kept holy? God’s name is kept holy when the Word of God is taught in its truth and purity, and we, as the children of God, also lead holy lives according to it. Help us to do this, dear Father in heaven! But anyone who teaches or lives contrary to God’s Word profanes the name of God among us. Protect us from this, heavenly Father!

Luther wants us to remember that it is our responsibility to keep God’s name holy by the way we live our lives, what we do and what we do not do.

A passage that has been very popular in this nation over the last couple of decades is 2 Chronicles 7:14.  You see it on yard signs and bumper stickers and lots of other places. It is a great verse because it encourages God’s people to humbly pray and seek God with the promise that God will forgive and bless them. But pay attention to how the passage starts.

2 Chronicles 7:14 …if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

We are the people called by God’s name. The world recognizes us as such. His name was placed on us when we were baptized. That sacrament joins us to everything Jesus did for us. His death for sin is our death for sin. His victory over death is our victory over death. We have the certainty of forgiveness and life eternal because we have been called to faith in Jesus and we have His name on us. It is our job, our calling, our duty to represent Him in a way that will let His greatness be evident.

This is more important now than ever, especially in light of the deep divisions in this natio. Let your words and your actions be a reflection of our great God, His love, and His compassion.

Remember our goal, summarized at the end of the hymn “Sent forth by God’s Blessing:”

“Then may all the living, with praise and thanksgiving, give honor to Christ and His name that we bear.”

His Name2025-07-03T14:26:38-05:00

Cobalt-60

In December of 2013, two opportunistic thieves saw what was too good to be true. Around 1:30 a.m., they found a cargo truck parked near a gas station in Tepojaco, a town just north of Mexico City. The driver was asleep. The armed thieves woke him, tied up him and his assistant, then drove off with the truck.

This wasn’t just another carjacking. It set off a frantic search for the vehicle and its contents. The truck was on its way to a disposal facility with Cobalt-60. The radioactive material had been used for treating cancer patients in a medical facility, but it was now being discontinued. The Cobalt-60 they stole could have been used to create a “dirty bomb.”

Evidently the thieves were totally unaware of what they had. The truck was found less than thirty miles from where it was taken. They broke open the box containing the radioactive cobalt sources and unknowingly exposed themselves to lethal radiation. Although the thieves were never found, they most certainly died within days of being exposed. Their desire to have something that was not rightfully theirs brought them death.

And that is the story of mankind.

  • Adam and Eve knew they should not eat the fruit of that one tree, but did so anyway, wanting to be like God.
  • David thought a little peek at Bathsheba wouldn’t do any harm, but it led to adultery and murder.
  • Ananias and Sapphira said they gave all the proceeds from their home sale to the church, but held some back for themselves.

The list in the Bible goes on, as do the sinful activities in our own lives. It doesn’t matter if it is a “big sin” or a “little sin.” Every sin separates us from God and deserves condemnation and death.

Thankfully, you and I are better off than those thieves who stole that truck filled with radioactive death. There was no cure for them, but in Christ you and I have the thing we need to correct our fallen condition.

1 Corinthians 15:56-57  The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the Law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Through His life, His suffering, His death, and His glorious resurrection from the dead, Jesus provides the healing that can cleanse sinners of all unrighteousness. He transforms us from death to life.

Cobalt-602025-07-01T20:31:24-05:00

revmattil.org

Go to Top