In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. Ephesians 1:7-8
The Adoption Price is Paid
Adoption isn’t cheap. Apparently, the average cost of adopting a child in the United States is roughly $40,000! You can’t choose to adopt a child on a whim. If you’re going to adopt, then you need to plan, budget, and be deeply committed.
God knew the price he’d have to pay to adopt you as his own. He knew what it would take, and he paid it. He was, and still is, deeply committed to making you, his child.
God’s love for you is unquestionable, and it’s also unreasonable. On top of the steep price it took to adopt us; we were problem children. We weren’t the ones you’d have an easy time adopting. We weren’t like the cutest kittens and puppies at the shelter that got all the attention. No, we were the ones that were malnourished, feral, matted, and smelly. Our sins make us repulsive when we consider just how far we fall short of God’s standards for perfection. There’s nothing in us that should have made us attractive to him. There’s no phone filter out there that could hide who we truly are.
And yet when God puts on his Jesus-tinted glasses, when he sees us through the Jesus filter, he says, “Yes, this one is the one I want. I’ll take her. I’ll take him. No matter the price, I’ll pay it.” And he did. As the blood ran from Jesus’ hands and feet and head and side, the payment was made. When the words were spoken “It is finished,” the purchase price was paid in full. He forgave us. We were redeemed, in other words, bought back from the sins that claimed us.
Not only did God purchase us, but he also changed us. We’re no longer the problem child or the feral pet—but pure, cleansed by our Savior, made to look like one of God’s own possessions. That payment made for you at the cross, that forgiveness won for you by Jesus, is the ultimate picture of the lavish riches of God’s grace.
Prayer:
Dear heavenly Father, thank you for making me your child by giving up your only Son for me. Help me reflect your lavish grace to the world. Amen.
For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. Ephesians 1:4-6
Destined to Be His
When you were a child, maybe your parents took you to the animal shelter to pick out your very first pet. You looked at all the cute kittens and puppies until you found one that stole your heart. “I want that one,” you said. And you took it home.
God has done the same for his followers. He’s chosen them. He’s adopted them into the family. He’s given them a part in all that is his. He said about them, “I need to have this one. I’m going to make this one my own.” What amazing comfort to know that God did this “in accordance with his pleasure and will.” God wasn’t forced into making his followers his own. He wanted to.
And maybe the most mind-boggling thing is that God has chosen and predetermined that they would be his own even before they had a thought of wanting to be his. It’s tempting to think that belonging to Christ was some kind of decision they made. But today’s Bible verses pushes that idea aside. It was God who “chose us in him before the creation of the world.”
That truth may cause our brains to run in circles, but it causes our hearts to rest with comfort and confidence. That truth gives us peace to know that no part of our salvation is up to us. God carries out our deliverance from beginning to end. He has sought his people out by his Spirit, paid for them in his Son, and will take them home to live with him forever.
Prayer:
Almighty Lord, your grace has no beginning and no end. I praise you for loving me even before the world began. I thank you for sending Jesus into the world to purchase me. I go in peace knowing your Holy Spirit has adopted me into your family at my baptism. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Matthew 2:11
Extraordinarily Ordinary
If you say, “yesterday was an extraordinary day,” you mean that something incredible happened. But if you say, “yesterday was an extra ordinary day,” you mean that it was even more normal and boring than usual. Just making one word into two gives the sentence an entirely opposite meaning.
Extraordinary events surrounded the Magi’s visit to Bethlehem. But there were also a few extra ordinary things they discovered on their journey. An ancient prophecy and an extraordinary star led them to an extra ordinary little town called Bethlehem. The star stopped above what was probably an extra ordinary home. Inside, they found an extra ordinary looking Jewish couple with an ordinary-looking baby.
But the Magi saw past the child’s ordinary surroundings. They saw their Savior, who was going to give them a gift far more precious than the gold, frankincense, and myrrh they had just laid at his feet. That baby would give the gift of sins forgiven and eternal life. The wise men didn’t need to see a king in a palace surrounded by servants. They’d likely seen plenty of kings like that in their lifetimes. The Magi needed to see their Savior. That’s exactly what God led them to see.
It’s human nature to think we need more than what God has given. Maybe you’ve felt that attitude creep around in your heart. What God provides you in his Word might not seem like enough. You want him to do more for you. You want him to communicate more extraordinarily with you.
But God chooses to use some extra ordinary looking ways to bring his good news to you. In the ordinary pages of the Bible, we see the Savior who proves his eternal kingship with a resurrection from the dead. In baptism, we see ordinary water poured out on a person’s head, marking them as an adopted child of God. In Holy Communion, we see ordinary bread and wine that, when the Word is spoken, have the power to forgive even the darkest sins. The means by which God extends his love to you look like ordinary things, but they work extraordinary results.
Prayer:
Dear Father, thank you for giving me the extraordinary message of Jesus in ordinary ways every day. Amen.
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The Seventh Seal: Seven Angels With Seven Trumpets
1 When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. 2 And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them.
3 Another angel, holding a gold censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given a large amount of incense to offer together with the prayers of all the saints on the gold altar that was in front of the throne. 4 And the smoke of the incense went up from the hand of the angel before God, together with the prayers of the saints.
5 The angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and threw it on the earth. Then there came crashes of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.
The First Four Trumpets
6 The seven angels, who had the seven trumpets, prepared to sound them. 7 The first sounded his trumpet, and hail and fire mixed with blood were thrown on the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, and [1] a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.
8 Then the second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a great mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea became blood, 9 a third of the creatures that live in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.
10 Then the third angel sounded his trumpet, and a huge star, blazing like a lamp, fell from the sky. It fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water. 11 The name of the star was Wormwood, and a third of the waters became wormwood. [2] Many of the people died from these waters because they had been made bitter.
12 Then the fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, as well as a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them became dark. And there was no light for a third of the day and likewise for the night.
13 Then I looked and I heard a single eagle [3] flying in the middle of the sky, saying with a loud voice, “Woe, woe, woe to those whose home is on the earth because of the remaining trumpet blasts of the three angels who are about to sound their trumpets.”
Footnotes
Revelation 8:7 A few witnesses to the text omit A third of the earth was burned up, and.
Revelation 8:11 Wormwood refers to a bitter herb that was used as medicine to kill intestinal worms.
Revelation 8:13 A few witnesses to the text read angel.
1 After this I saw four angels, who stood at the four corners of the earth. They were holding back the four winds of the earth so that the wind could not blow on the earth, the sea, or any tree.
2 And I saw another angel coming up from the east, who had the seal of the living God. He called out with a loud voice to the four angels who were given power to harm the earth and the sea. He said, 3 “Do not harm the earth, the sea, or the trees until we have placed a seal on the foreheads of God’s servants.”
4 And I heard the number of those sealed:
144,000 sealed from all the tribes of the people of Israel:
5 from the tribe of Judah,
12,000, who were sealed,
from the tribe of Reuben,
12,000,
from the tribe of Gad,
12,000,
6 from the tribe of Asher,
12,000,
from the tribe of Naphtali,
12,000,
from the tribe of Manasseh,
12,000,
7 from the tribe of Simeon,
12,000,
from the tribe of Levi,
12,000,
from the tribe of Issachar,
12,000,
8 from the tribe of Zebulun,
12,000,
from the tribe of Joseph,
12,000,
from the tribe of Benjamin,
12,000, who were sealed.
The Church in Heaven
9 After these things I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people, and language, standing in front of the throne and of the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and with palm branches in their hands. 10 They called out with a loud voice and said:
Salvation comes from our God, who sits on the throne, and from the Lamb.
11 All the angels stood around the throne, the elders, and the four living creatures. They fell on their faces before the throne and worshipped God, 12 saying:
Amen. Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and might belong to our God forever and ever. Amen.
13 One of the elders spoke to me and said, “These people dressed in white robes, who are they and where did they come from?”
And I answered him, “Sir, you know.”
14 And he said to me:
These are the ones who are coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15 Because of this they are in front of the throne of God, and they serve him day and night in his temple. He who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them. 16 They will never be hungry or thirsty ever again. The sun will never beat upon them, nor will any scorching heat, 17 for the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd. He will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.
The Vision of the Seven Seals: The First Four Seals
1 And I watched when the Lamb opened the first of the seven seals. And I heard one of the four living creatures say with a voice like thunder, “Come.” [1]
2 And I looked, and there was a white horse, and its rider held a bow. A crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer.
3 When the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come.” [2]4 And another horse, a fiery red one, went out. Its rider was given power to take peace away from the earth so that people would slaughter one another. And a great sword was given to him.
5 When the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come.” [3] And I looked, and there was a black horse. Its rider had a scale in his hand. 6 And I heard something like a voice from among the four living creatures say, “A quart [4] of wheat for a denarius, [5] and three quarts [6] of barley for a denarius. And do not dilute [7] the oil and the wine.”
7 When he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come.” [8]8 And I looked, and there was a pale green horse. And its rider was named Death, and the Grave [9] followed closely behind him. They were given power over a quarter of the earth, to kill people with the sword, with famine, with death, and by the wild animals of the earth.
The Fifth Seal: The Souls Under the Altar
9 When the Lamb opened the fifth seal, under the incense altar I saw the souls of those who had been slaughtered because of the word of God and because of the testimony they had maintained. 10 And they called out with a loud voice, saying, “O Lord, holy and true, how long until you judge and exact justice for our blood from those who live on the earth?” 11 A white robe was given to each one of them. And they were told to rest a little longer until their number would be complete, when their fellow servants and their brothers [10] would be put to death as they were.
The Sixth Seal: The Last Judgment
12 And I watched when the Lamb opened the sixth seal. There was a great earthquake. The sun became as black as sackcloth made of hair. The entire moon became like blood. 13 The stars of the sky fell to the earth as a fig tree drops its unripe figs when it is shaken by a strong wind. 14 The sky was removed like a scroll being rolled up. Every mountain and island was moved from its place.
15 The kings of the earth, the nobles, the military leaders, the rich, the powerful, and everyone—slave or free—hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. 16 And they kept saying to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb, 17 for the great day of their [11] wrath has come. Who is able to stand?”
Footnotes
Revelation 6:1 Some witnesses to the text add and see.
Revelation 6:3 Some witnesses to the text add and see.
Revelation 6:5 Some witnesses to the text add and see.
Revelation 6:6 Or liter
Revelation 6:6 A denarius was about one day’s wage.
Revelation 6:6 Or liters
Revelation 6:6 Or adulterate
Revelation 6:7 Some witnesses to the text add and see.
Revelation 6:8 Or Hell, Greek Hades
Revelation 6:11 When context indicates it, the Greek word for brothers may refer to all fellow believers, male and female.
Revelation 6:17 Some witnesses to the text read his.
1 And I saw a scroll in the right hand of him who sat on the throne, with writing on the front [1] and on the back, sealed with seven seals.
2 And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll by breaking its seals?” 3 No one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it. 4 And I began to weep bitterly because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. 5 Then one of the elders said to me, “Stop weeping. Look! The Lion from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed and is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”
Worthy Is the Lamb
6 And I saw a Lamb standing in the center, near the throne, surrounded by the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders. The Lamb seemed to have been slain, and he had seven horns and seven eyes (these are the seven spirits of God that have been sent into all the world). 7 The Lamb came and took the scroll out of the right hand of him who sat on the throne. 8 And when the Lamb took the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders bowed down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and gold bowls full of incense (these are the prayers of the saints). 9 And they sang a new song, saying:
You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and you bought us [2] for God with your blood out of every tribe and language and people and nation. 10 You made them [3] to be a kingdom and priests for our God, and they will reign on the earth.
11 And I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels who were around the throne and around the living creatures and the elders. Their number was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands upon thousands. 12 With a loud voice they were saying:
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing.
13 I also heard every creature that is in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, saying:
To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever.
14 The four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders bowed down and worshipped.
Footnotes
Revelation 5:1 Some witnesses to the text read inside.
Revelation 5:9 Most of the witnesses to the text read us in verse 9 and them in verse 10.
Revelation 5:10 A few witnesses to the text read us.
1 After these things I looked, and there was a door opened in heaven! And the first voice that I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must happen after these things.” 2 Immediately I was in spirit. And look! A throne was standing in heaven, and someone was sitting on the throne. 3 The one who was sitting there looked like a jasper stone and a ruby. [1] Around the throne there was a rainbow that looked like an emerald.
4 Also around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and sitting on those thrones were twenty-four elders dressed in white garments, with gold crowns on their heads. 5 Out of the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings, and crashes of thunder. In front of the throne seven flaming lamps were burning, which are the seven spirits of God. 6 Also in front of the throne was something resembling a glassy sea, which was like crystal.
In the middle, near the throne and around the throne, there were four living creatures, full of eyes in front and in back. 7 The first living creature was like a lion, the second living creature was like an ox, the third living creature had a face like a man, and the fourth living creature was like a flying eagle. 8 Each one of the four living creatures had six wings, and the wings were full of eyes all around and underneath. [2] Day and night, without pause, they keep saying:
Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, who was and who is and who is coming.
9 Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor, and thanks to him who sits on the throne, the one who lives forever and ever, 10 the twenty-four elders bow down before him who sits on the throne. They worship the one who lives forever and ever and lay down their crowns in front of his throne as they say:
11 Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive the glory and the honor and the power, for you have created all things, and because of your will they existed and were created.
Footnotes
Revelation 4:3 Or carnelian
Revelation 4:8 Literally inside. The English idiom for the inside of a wing is underneath, that is, the hidden side.
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Tornadoes, hurricanes, heavy rainfall, forest fires—it’s been a busy fall for WELS Christian Aid and Relief, which responds on behalf of WELS members to reflect Christ’s love to people facing […]
Julie K. Wietzke Different histories, one future When we talk about reaching out to other cultures in the United States, we can’t ignore the amazing opportunities God is providing for […]
The synod’s new long-range plan, entitled “Christ through us,” has four main priorities. One of those four involves bringing Christ to the nations through our world mission efforts. Rev. Larry […]
Leaders from The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS), the Evangelical Lutheran Synod (ELS), and the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS) gathered last week near Jacksonville, Fla., for two days of theological […]
During 2025, WELS has commemorated the 175th anniversary of its founding, 175 years of God’s work among us and through us. Resources have been produced and presentations given. This year […]
The Synodical Council met Nov. 7–8 for its fall meeting at the Center for Mission and Ministry, Waukesha, Wis. The Synodical Council (SC) is the group of lay leaders and […]