…so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life. 1 Timothy 6:19
Truly Life
For decades, Peggy Lee was a fixture in American pop culture. Called “The Queen of American Pop Music,” she performed on stage, on television, and in the movies. For example, you can hear her voice and her songs all through the Disney classic, “Lady and the Tramp.”
For all the joy she brought, however, perhaps her most memorable song is one that is not joyful at all. In 1969, she recorded a song entitled “Is That All There Is?” In it, a woman reflects on past events in her life, from the loss of her childhood home to going to the circus with her father, and her first romantic love. After each event, she asks herself, “Is that all there is?” She knows that something is missing, but she doesn’t know what. And as she looks to the end of her life, she’s convinced that, in her final moments, she’ll ask the same question: “Is that all there is?”
The song earned Peggy Lee a Grammy Award. It also reached the top of the charts. Clearly, the song had struck a nerve. It still does today.
In the closing sentences of the apostle Paul’s first letter to Timothy, he reminds us not to look to the things of this world. Don’t look to the things of this world for security, for fulfillment, for meaning, for identity. Not only are the things of this world uncertain; even if they surround us until the day we die, they offer nothing that lasts. In the end, all we will have is the question, “Is that all there is?”
Enter our Creator. Enter God the Son. Enter Jesus. On our behalf, our Savior did what he had to do to rescue us from an empty, pointless existence. His perfect life and death in our place pulled us out of our darkness and back into his light. For now, in him, not only do we bask in his forgiveness; in him, we are once again what he created us to be. We are in the family of God. And because we are, we now have the life that is truly life.
Prayer:
Lord, in you alone I possess the life that is truly life. Thank you. Amen.
Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant. 1 Timothy 6:17
Arrogance
Max Roser does research. He researches the wide variety of living conditions that people experience around the world. He also offers some perspective. For instance, Roser has this to say about living conditions that many of us accept as ordinary. He writes: “What many people in wealthy countries regard as ordinary—electricity at the flip of a switch, clean water from a tap, refrigeration, antibiotics, hot showers, flush toilets, and abundant food—would have been luxuries unavailable not only to most people alive today, but to kings and queens for most of human history.”
Let that quote sink in for just a moment. The luxuries and conveniences many of us take for granted are not only inconceivable to millions of people around the world; these luxuries and conveniences were not available even to the richest kings and queens of the past.
It also means that when the apostle Paul was speaking about “those who are rich,” he was speaking about people who could not even imagine the kind of ordinary wealth many of us enjoy in the 21st Century. In other words, many of us are far, far, far richer than “the rich” of Paul’s day.
When God’s Word, therefore, says, “Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant,” you and I cannot immediately presume that this does not apply to us. In fact, in all likelihood, it does.
If I am, indeed, rich by historical standards of living, how might I slip into arrogance? I may not display arrogance like some stereotypical rich man from an old movie—smoking a big cigar while I count my money, barking out orders, looking down my nose at others. In my ordinary comforts, conveniences, and luxuries, however, I can begin to insulate myself from the desperate, constant need for Jesus in my life. Such arrogance can be lethal.
Regardless of my wealth, or lack of it, my need for Jesus is urgent and is real. I need him now and always. He came to take away the sins of the world. Even the sins of the rich. Even mine.
Prayer:
Lord, remove my arrogance. Empower me to grasp my constant need for you. Amen.
So God said to [Solomon]. . . “I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart.” 1 Kings 3:11-12
Priority
Solomon had just become the next king of Israel. He was about twenty years old. In lavish generosity, the Lord said a breathtaking thing. He said to Solomon, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.”
“Ask for whatever you want me to give you.” In your prayers right now, what is your most common request? Although we have the high privilege of talking to the Lord about anything, my sinful weakness can show up in my prayer life, too. There are periods in my life when I could fit most of my prayer requests under one big umbrella, and on that umbrella is one big word: “Easier.” I want God to make my life easier. I want him to remove difficulties. I want him to make my life more convenient. I want him to make my world more comfortable. I want him to clear my path of those things that create hardship, pain, loneliness, uncertainty, or grief. And while it’s not wrong to pray for any of these things, if the priority in my prayer life is simply for God to make my life easy, then I have forgotten why I am here. And for such forgetfulness, the Lord calls upon me to repent.
Solomon had the chance to ask for anything—anything at all. He could ask for wealth. He could ask for a long life. He could ask for an easy reign through the removal of his enemies. But he didn’t. Instead, he asked for wisdom. He asked the Lord to give him what he needed to serve in this difficult, broken world.
On our behalf, God the Son came here. In our place, he lived a life of perfect faithfulness. As our substitute, he suffered and died for our every sin. Then he arose. In him we stand forgiven, cleansed, at peace. As you and I now live to shine his light in this dark place, our privilege and priority is to ask the Lord to provide us with what we need to serve him.
Prayer:
Lord, thank you for the privilege of asking you for anything. Give me wisdom. Make my priorities your priorities. Amen.
Tornado damages WELS church and school Around noon on Monday, July 27, a tornado ripped through northeastern Wisconsin, causing severe damage to Bethel, Menasha, a bilingual WELS church with about 500 members. The tornado also damaged […]
»
Youth rally emphasizes serving as Christ’s ambassadors WELS youth groups—both large and small—from across the US and Canada traveled to Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, Ohio, for the 2026 WELS Youth Rally July 14–17. More than […]
»
Martin Luther College faces licensure challenge Throughout June 2026, Martin Luther College (MLC) shared information regarding the status of the licensure eligibility for all of its education programs as a result of review by the Minnesota […]
»
Endowment gifts open doors for gospel outreach This July, the Lutheran Women’s Missionary Society (LWMS) Legacy Endowment Fund and Rakow Endowment Fund provided approximately $20,000 to support the First Public Service Assistance project. Managed by WELS Foundation, […]
»
WELS welcomes new director of communications Mr. Dan Nommensen, who had been serving as the synod’s director of communications, recently accepted a call to serve as a Christian giving counselor for WELS Ministry of Christian Giving. […]
1 People of Israel, listen to this word that the Lord has spoken concerning you, concerning the entire family of clans that I brought up from the land of Egypt:
2 You alone have I chosen [1] from all the clans of the earth. Therefore I will inflict punishment on you for all your guilt. 3 Can two people walk together without agreeing to do so? 4 Does a lion roar in the forest if it does not have prey? Does a young lion growl from its den if it has not caught anything? 5 Does a bird fall into a trap on the ground if there is no bait? Does a trap spring up from the ground when nothing has tripped it? 6 If a ram’s horn is sounded in a city, the people become alarmed, don’t they? If a disaster takes place in a city, is it not the Lord who has done it? 7 Certainly the Lord God does not do anything without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets. 8 A lion has roared! Who can avoid being terrified? The Lord God has spoken! Who can hold back from prophesying?
Judgment Against Samaria
9 Make this known to the citadels in Ashdod and to the citadels in the land of Egypt. Tell them, “Gather yourselves together on the mountains of Samaria. See the great confusion [2] there and the oppression in her midst.” 10 They do not know how to do what is right, declares the Lord. They are storing up violence and destruction in their citadels. 11 Therefore, this is what the Lord God says: An enemy is all over the land. He will strip your strength from you, and your citadels will be plundered. 12 This is what the Lord says: Just as a shepherd rescues two legs or a tip of an ear from the mouth of a lion, so the Israelites who live in Samaria will be rescued with only a corner of a bed or a piece of cloth [3] from a couch.
13 Listen and testify against the house of Jacob, declares the Lord God, the God of Armies. 14 Indeed, on the day when I punish the rebellious deeds of Israel, I will punish the altars of Bethel. The horns of the altar will be cut off, and they will fall to the ground. 15 I will strike the winter house along with the summer house. The houses decorated with ivory will be destroyed, and the great houses will come to an end, declares the Lord.
Amos 4
1 Listen to this, you cows of Bashan, who are on the mountain of Samaria, you women who are oppressing the poor, who are crushing the needy, who say to your husbands, “Bring us more drinks!” 2 The Lord God swears by his holiness: The days are surely coming against you, when they will drag you away with hooks, every last one of you with fishhooks. 3 You will go out through the broken-down walls. Each woman will go straight ahead, and you will be thrown out [4] toward Harmon, [5] declares the Lord.
4 Go to Bethel and rebel. Rebel even more at Gilgal. Bring your sacrifices every morning, your tithes every third day. 5 Burn some leavened bread as a thank offering, and proclaim voluntary offerings—announce them! For you love to do this, you people of Israel, says the Lord God.
Warnings Produce No Repentance
6 I am the one who gave to you clean teeth [6] in all of your cities, and lack of food in all your places, but you did not return to me, declares the Lord.
7 I am the one who withheld the rain from you while there were still three months before the harvest. I would send rain on one city, but on another city I would not send rain. One plot of ground would receive rain, but another plot, on which it did not rain, would dry up. 8 Whenever people from two or three cities staggered to another city to get water to drink, they would not have enough, but you did not return to me, declares the Lord.
9 I struck you with blight and mildew. Your many gardens, your vineyards, your fig trees, and your olive trees were devoured by locusts, but you did not return to me, declares the Lord.
10 I sent plagues against you like the plagues in Egypt. I killed your best soldiers with the sword, together with your captured horses. I made the stench of your camp rise up into your nostrils, but you did not return to me, declares the Lord.
11 I overthrew some of you, just as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and you became like a burning stick snatched from the fire, but you did not return to me, declares the Lord.
12 Therefore, this is what I will do to you, Israel. Yes, this is what I will do to you: Prepare to meet your God, O Israel! 13 Indeed, he who forms mountains and who creates wind, who declares his thoughts to mankind, who turns dawn into darkness, and who treads down the high places of the earth, the Lord, the God of Armies, is his name.
Footnotes
Amos 3:2 Literally known
Amos 3:9 Or turmoil
Amos 3:12 The meaning of this word is uncertain.
Amos 4:3 In the Hebrew text the verb is active, you will throw. The translation follows the Greek text.
Amos 4:3 The meaning of the word Harmon is uncertain. It may be a place name or mean something like garbage dump.
Amos 4:6 A striking description of people who have no food to chew
1 The words of Amos, who was among the sheep breeders [1] from Tekoa. He saw a vision concerning Israel during the days of Uzziah king of Judah and during the days of Jeroboam son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake.
2 He said: The Lord roars from Zion. From Jerusalem he sends out his voice. The pastures of the shepherds dry up, [2] and the top of Mount Carmel withers.
Judgment Against Aram
3 This is what the Lord says: Because of three sins [3] of Damascus, because of four, I will not hold back judgment, because they cut up Gilead with iron threshing boards. [4] 4 So I will send fire against the house of Hazael, and it will consume the fortresses of Ben Hadad. 5 I will break the bars of the gates of Damascus, and I will cut off the one seated in the Valley of Aven, and the one who holds a scepter in Beth Eden. [5] So the people of Aram will go into exile toward Kir. [6] The Lord has spoken.
Judgment Against Philistia
6 This is what the Lord says: Because of three sins of Gaza, because of four, I will not hold back judgment, because they sold an entire population into exile, handing them over to Edom. 7 So I will send fire against the city wall of Gaza, and it will consume her citadels. 8 I will cut off the one seated in Ashdod, and the one who holds a scepter in Ashkelon. I will also turn my hand against Ekron, and what is left of the Philistines will perish. The Lord God has spoken.
Judgment Against Canaan
9 This is what the Lord says: Because of three sins of Tyre, because of four, I will not hold back judgment, because they delivered over an entire population and exiled them to Edom, and they did not remember a treaty of brotherhood. 10 So I will send fire against the city wall of Tyre, and it will consume her citadels.
Judgment Against Edom
11 This is what the Lord says: Because of three sins of Edom, because of four, I will not hold back judgment, because he [7] pursued his brother with a sword, and he had no compassion. [8] His anger kept tearing Israel apart, and his fury raged without stopping. 12 So I will send fire against Teman, and it will consume the citadels of Bozrah.
Judgment Against Ammon
13 This is what the Lord says: Because of three sins of the Ammonites, because of four, I will not hold back judgment, because they ripped open the pregnant women of Gilead in order to enlarge their own territory. 14 So I will ignite a fire against the city wall of Rabbah, and it will consume her citadels with a battle cry on the day of war, with a strong wind on the day of the storm. 15 Then their king will go into exile, he and his officials together. The Lord has spoken.
Judgment Against Moab
Amos 2
1 This is what the Lord says: Because of three sins of Moab, because of four, I will not hold back judgment, because they burned the bones of the king of Edom to make lime. 2 So I will send fire against Moab, and it will consume the citadels of Kerioth. Moab will die in an uproar, with a battle cry, with a blast of a ram’s horn. 3 I will cut off the judge [9] from her midst, and I will kill all her officials with him. The Lord has spoken.
Judgment Against Judah
4 This is what the Lord says: Because of three sins of Judah, because of four, I will not hold back judgment, because they rejected the law of the Lord, and they did not keep his statutes. Their lying idols led them astray, the idols that their fathers followed. 5 So I will send fire against Judah, and it will consume the citadels of Jerusalem.
Judgment Against Israel
6 This is what the Lord says: Because of three sins of Israel, because of four, I will not hold back judgment, because they sell the righteous for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals. 7 They trample the heads of the poor into the dust of the earth, and they turn aside the claims of the oppressed. A man and his father go to the same young woman. In this way they profane my holy name. 8 They stretch themselves out beside every altar on pieces of clothing they seized as collateral. In the temple of their gods they drink wine obtained through fines.
9 I was the one who destroyed the Amorites in front of them, the Amorites, who were as tall as cedars, who were as strong as oaks. I destroyed their fruit above and their roots below. 10 I myself brought you up from the land of Egypt, and I led you in the wilderness for forty years, so that you would take possession of the land of the Amorites. 11 I raised up some of your sons to be prophets, and some of your best young men to be Nazirites. Is this not so, you people of Israel? declares the Lord. 12 But you made the Nazirites drink wine, and you commanded the prophets, “You must not prophesy!”
13 Look, I am weighed down under you, just as a cart is weighed down when it is loaded with sheaves of grain. [10] 14 There will be no escape for the swift runner. The powerful man will not be able to exert his strength, and the strong warrior will not be able to save his own life. 15 The archer will not stand his ground. The swift runner will not save himself, and the horseman will not save his own life. 16 The most courageous among the warriors will flee naked on that day, declares the Lord.
Footnotes
Amos 1:1 Or ranchers
Amos 1:2 Or mourn
Amos 1:3 Or crimes
Amos 1:3 A threshing board or threshing sledge is similar to a toboggan, but it has iron teeth protruding from the bottom. It is dragged over piles of grain to cut up the straw and release the kernels of grain.
Amos 1:5 Valley of Aven and Beth Eden mean Valley of Wickedness and House of Pleasure. They may be figurative names for the region around Damascus.
Amos 1:5 The location of Kir is unknown. It probably lies far to the north or east.
Amos 1:11 Edom is referred to by the singular he because it is also a name of Jacob’s brother Esau.
Amos 1:11 Or he destroyed pregnant women
Amos 2:3 Or ruler
Amos 2:13 The meaning of the verse is uncertain. It may mean I will weigh you down as a cart is weighed down.
17 Three days later, Paul called together the leaders of the Jews. When they had assembled, he said to them, “Gentlemen, brothers, although I had done nothing against the people or the customs of our fathers, yet I was handed over as a prisoner from Jerusalem to the Romans. 18 After they interrogated me, they wanted to release me, because there were no grounds for the death penalty in my case. 19 But when the Jews objected, I was compelled to appeal to Caesar—not that I had any charge to bring against my own people. 20 That is why I asked to see you and speak to you, since it is because of the hope of Israel that I am bound with this chain.”
21 They said to him, “We have not received any letters about you from Judea, and none of the brothers who came here has reported or said anything evil about you. 22 But we would like to hear from you what you think, because we know that people everywhere are speaking against this sect.”
23 They set a day to meet with Paul, and even more of them came to the place where he was staying. From morning till evening he explained and testified about the kingdom of God. He also tried to convince them about Jesus, both from the Law of Moses and the Prophets. 24 Some were convinced by what he said, but others continued in their unbelief.
25 They were arguing with one another and began to leave after Paul made this one statement: “The Holy Spirit spoke the truth to your [1] fathers through Isaiah the prophet:
26 Go to this people and say, You will keep hearing and yet never understand; you will keep seeing and yet never perceive. 27 For the heart of this people has grown dull, their ears are hard of hearing, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them. [2]
28 “Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation from God has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will listen!” [3]
30 For two whole years Paul stayed in his own rented house and welcomed all who came to visit him. 31 He was preaching the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without anyone stopping him.
Footnotes
Acts 28:25 Some of the witnesses to the text read our.
Acts 28:27 Isaiah 6:9-10
Acts 28:28 A few witnesses to the text add 29 After he spoke these words, the Jews departed, while having a long debate among themselves.
1 Once we were safely on shore, we learned that the island was called Malta. 2 The natives showed us extraordinary kindness. They built a fire and welcomed us all, because it had started to rain and was cold.
3 As Paul gathered a bundle of sticks and laid it on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat and fastened itself on his hand. 4 When the natives saw the snake hanging from his hand, they said to one another, “No doubt this man is a murderer. Though he escaped from the sea, Justice [1] has not allowed him to live.”
5 However, Paul shook the snake off into the fire and was not harmed. 6 The people expected him to swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But after they had waited for a long time and saw nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said he was a god.
7 In the nearby vicinity was an estate that belonged to a man named Publius, the chief official of the island. He welcomed us and entertained us hospitably as his guests for three days. 8 The father of Publius happened to be sick in bed, suffering from a fever and dysentery. Paul went to him, prayed, laid his hands on him, and healed him.
9 After that happened, others on the island who were sick also came and were healed. 10 They honored us in many ways, and when we were going to sail, they put on board whatever we needed.
On to Rome
11 After three months, we set sail in an Alexandrian ship that had wintered at the island. Its figurehead was the Twin Brothers. [2]12 We put in at Syracuse and stayed there three days. 13 From there we sailed up the coast and arrived at Rhegium. After one day a south wind sprang up, and on the second day we came to Puteoli. 14 There we found some brothers [3] and were invited to stay with them for seven days. And so we came to Rome. 15 The brothers there heard the news about us and came as far as the Forum of Appius and Three Taverns to meet us. When Paul saw them, he thanked God and was encouraged.
God’s Witness Reaches Rome
16 When we entered Rome, [4] Paul was allowed to live by himself with a soldier who guarded him.
Footnotes
Acts 28:4 Or justice. They likely meant a Greek goddess called Justice.
Acts 28:11 The Twin Brothers figurehead referred to Castor and Pollux, two sons of Zeus.
Acts 28:14 When context indicates it, the Greek word for brothers may refer to all fellow believers, male and female.
Acts 28:16 Some witnesses to the text add the centurion delivered the prisoners to the captain of the guard, but.
21 After they had gone a long time without food, Paul stood up among them and said, “Men, you should have followed my advice and not set sail from Crete and avoided this damage and loss. 22 But now I urge you to keep up your courage, because there will be no loss of life among you. Only the ship will be lost. 23 In fact, last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me 24 and said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand before Caesar. And surely God has graciously given you all those who are sailing with you.’ 25 So keep up your courage, men, because I believe God that it will be exactly the way I have been told. 26 However, we must run aground on some island.”
The Shipwreck
27 When the fourteenth night came, while we were being driven back and forth in the Adriatic Sea, [1] about midnight the sailors suspected that they were approaching some land. 28 They took soundings and found it to be one hundred twenty feet deep. [2] After sailing a little farther, they took soundings again and found it was ninety feet deep. [3]29 Fearing that we would run aground on the rocks, they dropped four anchors from the stern and prayed for daybreak.
30 The sailors tried to escape from the ship and had let down the skiff into the sea, pretending they were going to put out anchors from the bow. 31 Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “If these men do not stay in the ship, you cannot be saved.” 32 Then the soldiers cut the ropes holding the skiff and let it fall away.
33 Just before daybreak, Paul urged them all to eat some food. He said, “This is the fourteenth day you have waited in suspense and have gone without food. You have eaten nothing. 34 Therefore I urge you to take some food because this is important for your rescue. In fact, not a hair from any of your heads will be lost.” 35 After he said these things and had taken some bread, he gave thanks to God in front of them all. Then he broke it and began to eat. 36 They were all encouraged and took some food themselves. 37 In all there were 276 of us on the ship. 38 When they had eaten all they wanted, they lightened the ship by throwing the grain overboard into the sea.
39 At daybreak, they did not recognize the land, but they noticed a bay with a beach, where they planned to run the ship aground if they could. 40 They cut off the anchors, leaving them in the sea, and at the same time untied the ropes that held the rudders. Then, after hoisting the foresail to the wind, they headed for the beach. 41 But they struck a sandbar and ran the ship aground. The bow stuck fast and would not move, while the stern began to break up from the pounding of the waves.
42 The soldiers’ plan was to kill the prisoners so that no one would swim away and escape. 43 But the centurion wanted to save Paul and kept them from carrying out their plan. He ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and make their way to land. 44 The rest were to follow, some on planks, and some on other pieces from the ship. In this way, all of them were brought safely onto land.
Footnotes
Acts 27:27 At that time, the Adriatic Sea included the present-day Adriatic plus a large section of the Mediterranean Sea south of it.
Acts 27:28 Or twenty fathoms (a fathom is about six feet deep)
.JPG)
937-849-9374
peaceofoursavior@gmail.com
Around noon on Monday, July 27, a tornado ripped through northeastern Wisconsin, causing severe damage to Bethel, Menasha, a bilingual WELS church with about 500 members. The tornado also damaged […]
WELS youth groups—both large and small—from across the US and Canada traveled to Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, Ohio, for the 2026 WELS Youth Rally July 14–17. More than […]
Throughout June 2026, Martin Luther College (MLC) shared information regarding the status of the licensure eligibility for all of its education programs as a result of review by the Minnesota […]
This July, the Lutheran Women’s Missionary Society (LWMS) Legacy Endowment Fund and Rakow Endowment Fund provided approximately $20,000 to support the First Public Service Assistance project. Managed by WELS Foundation, […]
Mr. Dan Nommensen, who had been serving as the synod’s director of communications, recently accepted a call to serve as a Christian giving counselor for WELS Ministry of Christian Giving. […]