Rev. Jeremiah Johnson, pastor at Glory of Christ Lutheran Church in Plymouth, MN, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 9:17-26. The destruction coming upon Jerusalem is so great that professional mourners will be needed. The people of Judah will be cast from the Promised Land as the LORD’s judgment against them. Death will strike every household as the LORD once struck against the firstborn of Egypt. Yet the LORD calls His people back to true wisdom, might, and wealth. These are not f...
May 31, 2021•57 min
Rev. Dr. Adam Koontz, assistant professor of exegetical theology at Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne, IN, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 8:18-9:16. Jeremiah laments the destruction that he knows is coming upon his fellow Israelites; he longs for healing from the LORD who seems absent from His people. Yet Jeremiah also laments the people’s idolatry and accompanying wickedness that is bringing the LORD’s wrath upon them. The falsehood that the people are believing and p...
May 28, 2021•54 min
Rev. Dr. Adam Filipek, pastor at Holy Cross and Immanuel Lutheran Churches in Lidgerwood, ND, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 8:4-17. Jeremiah accuses the people of Judah and Jerusalem for their stubborn stiff-neckedness. Though anyone who falls gets back up again, Judah refuses to return to the LORD. Like a war horse that plunges into battle and death, so Judah plunges into idolatry and death. They have less sense than migratory birds. Their false prophets peddle lies that becau...
May 27, 2021•54 min
Rev. Dr. David Adams, associate professor of exegetical theology at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, MO, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 7:21-8:3. The LORD tells Judah that their atoning sacrifices are useless because they are being offered without faith. When the LORD brought His people out of Egypt, He established His relationship with them by His Word before He ever gave the sacrificial system. As their fathers refused to listen to the LORD and walked in their own ways, so the...
May 26, 2021•55 min
Rev. Jason M. Kaspar, pastor at Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church in La Grange, TX, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 7:1-20. The LORD sends Jeremiah to the temple to preach against deceptive words of false comfort. False prophets are repeating their mantra that everything will be fine for Judah and Jerusalem because the temple of the LORD is there. Jeremiah calls the people out of this false hope apart from the LORD and His Word. The building of the temple itself is not salvific; rather...
May 25, 2021•55 min
Rev. Jeff Hemmer, pastor at Bethany Lutheran Church in Fairview Heights, IL, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 6:1-30. The LORD’s people think that Jerusalem must be the place of safety, but Jeremiah assures them that it is actually the world’s most dangerous place. Because they are only full of violence and destruction, the LORD of Hosts has brought foreign armies against His people. As Jeremiah grows weary from preaching God’s wrath, false prophets do not grow weary of proclaimin...
May 24, 2021•54 min
Rev. James Preus, pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church in Ottumwa, IA, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 5:14-31. Because the false prophets have spoken their lies, the LORD puts His true Word in Jeremiah’s mouth as a fire that consumes all things other than Christ in which sinners might put their hope. That fire comes against the people of Judah and Jerusalem in the destructive Babylonian army, yet the LORD still reminds His people that He will not make a full end; He will keep His p...
May 21, 2021•55 min
Rev. David Appold, pastor at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Paducah, KY, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 5:1-13. As the LORD once looked in vain for ten righteous people in Sodom and Gomorrah, so He now looks in vain for one who does justice and seeks truth in Jerusalem. The idolatry stretches from the top to the bottom of Judah’s society, and Babylonian destruction awaits as a punishment for their apostasy. The people’s regular use of lying oaths is a litmus test of how far they ha...
May 20, 2021•53 min
Rev. Dr. Ryan Tietz, assistant professor of exegetical theology at Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne, IN, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 4:5-31. Judah’s continued refusal of repentance will lead to terrible destruction. The cry goes out through the land that warfare is coming, and no one will escape. The invaders are instruments of the LORD, who still calls His people to cleanse themselves from their wicked idolatry. Jeremiah does not preach as a disinterested observer...
May 19, 2021•55 min
Rev. Clint Poppe, pastor at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Lincoln, NE, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 3:19-4:4. Although His people have been faithless, the LORD remains faithful. He desires to call them back to Himself in true repentance and faith. The dialogue between the LORD and Israel indicates how the LORD works this by His Word. Israel returns to the scene of their idolatry in recognition of its lies. Their idolatry has only brought them shame from which they are power...
May 18, 2021•54 min
Rev. Sean Daenzer, director of worship for the Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod and chaplain for the International Center, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 3:1-18. The LORD seals His case against His people Judah. Their chasing after other gods is adultery of the highest degree. They have become completely calloused to the LORD’s repeated calls to repentance, choosing unfaithfulness over and over again. They had seen their big sister to the north, unfaithful Israel, destroyed by As...
May 17, 2021•53 min
Rev. Zelwyn Heide, pastor at St. Peter Lutheran Church in Hannover, ND and Zion Lutheran Church in New Salem, ND, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 2:20-37. The LORD continues His case against His people, leaving them without excuse for their idolatry. Though He had freed them from slavery in Egypt, they chose further slavery for themselves by their blatant idolatry. They did not simply stumble into their idolatry; they sought it out with the eagerness of a young female animal in h...
May 14, 2021•54 min
Rev. Shawn Linnell, pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church in Blair, NE, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 2:1-19. As Jeremiah’s preaching begins, the LORD recalls the honeymoon period with His people as the exodus from Egypt. Though they certainly rebelled in their wilderness wanderings, they came back to the LORD in repentance. All of that has changed by Jeremiah’s time; these words are a long time coming. Though the LORD has committed no wrong against His people, they have forsaken H...
May 13, 2021•56 min
Rev. Dr. Timothy Saleska, professor of exegetical theology and dean of ministerial formation at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, MO, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 1:4-19. The LORD called Jeremiah to be a prophet during the reign of King Josiah; even during the faithful king’s religious reforms, the LORD’s Word was needed to bring repentance from the rampant idolatry in Judah and Jerusalem. Therefore, the LORD set Jeremiah apart as a prophet in the line of Moses. Even before Jer...
May 12, 2021•56 min
Rev. Dr. Reed Lessing, professor of theology and ministry at Concordia University in St. Paul, MN and author of the forthcoming book, Overcoming Life’s Sorrows: The Book of Jeremiah , from Concordia Publishing House , joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 1:1-3. Jeremiah preaches to the people of Judah and Jerusalem during their waning years leading up to the horrific Babylonian conquest in 587 BC. During his forty-year ministry spanning five kings, Jeremiah’s preaching exposes the fai...
May 11, 2021•56 min
“A Time to Destroy and a Time to Build” is a mini-series on Sharper Iron that goes through the book of Jeremiah. The prophet calls the people of Judah and Jerusalem to repent of their faithless idolatry and warns them of the destruction that is coming in the Babylonian exile. Yet Jeremiah does not leave us without hope in the midst of such dark days. Jeremiah and all who believe the Word of God he preached survive because of hope that is found in the righteous Branch from the line of David, Jesu...
May 11, 2021•3 min
Rev. Luke Zimmerman, pastor at Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church in Mechanicsburg, PA, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jude 17-25. Having warned against false teachers, Jude returns to strengthen God’s beloved people. The false teachers and their ungodliness were foretold by the apostles; therefore, Christians need not fear. Instead, they are given strength to be built up in the Christian faith through prayer in the Holy Spirit, the love of God, and waiting for Jesus’ mercy. As the wait...
May 10, 2021•54 min
Rev. Andy Wright, pastor at St. John Lutheran Church in Keystone, IA, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jude 1-16. St. Jude, a servant of Jesus and brother of James, writes to Christians in Palestine in the mid to late 60s AD in order to strengthen them to contend for the Christian faith in the midst of false teachers. These false teachers have attempted to infiltrate the Church without notice, but the Lord does know them and will bring them to condemnation. St. Jude reminds his readers how...
May 07, 2021•55 min
Rev. John Bussman, pastor at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Cullman, AL, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study 2 Peter 3:11-18. The truth that this world is coming to an end compels Christians to holiness and godliness as we wait with eagerness for the return of Christ. At His coming, He will usher in His new creation, free from sin, evil, and death in a way that is beyond our current experience. As we wait, we diligently seek to be found by Him, put at peace with God through His cross. His pati...
May 06, 2021•54 min
Rev. Bryan Wolfmueller, pastor at St. Paul and Jesus Deaf Lutheran Churches in Austin, TX, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study 2 Peter 3:1-10. The Christian Church is a waiting Church. Jesus has made His promise to return, and so His people wait with expectant faith for Him to fulfill His Word. That Word, recorded by the prophets and apostles, sustains us as we wait. Scoffers continue to scoff at the truth, claiming that the Lord has delayed and has not intervened in this world. St. Peter poi...
May 05, 2021•55 min
Rev. Steve Andrews, pastor at St. Matthew Lutheran Church in Lee’s Summit, MO, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study 2 Peter 2:10b-22. St. Peter continues to expose the utter sinfulness of the false teachers. In contrast to the angels who do not step outside of their God-given office, the false teachers are bold and willful in their blasphemy against God’s glory. They show themselves to be no different than animals acting on instinct. Their evil sensuality and greed knows no shame or limit as t...
May 04, 2021•55 min
Rev. Matt Ulmer, pastor at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Bishop, TX, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study 2 Peter 2:1-10a. As false prophets once lied to the people of Israel, so false teachers still seek to bring eternal harm to Christians. St. Peter writes against false teachers who cast aside God’s commandments in favor of their own sensuality and greed. The Apostle exposes this lie for what it truly is: a denial of Jesus as Lord. In order to bring comfort and strength to Christians in the mi...
May 03, 2021•54 min
Rev. Jason Schockman, pastor at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in West Salem, WI, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study 2 Peter 2:12-21. St. Peter tells his readers the purpose of his second epistle. He intends to remind them of the truth of the Gospel that has been preached to them. To have the Word of God dwelling in our memories and ready on our lips is of the utmost importance for us as Christians in the midst of a multitude of false teachers. The Apostle knows that he will die soon and de...
Apr 30, 2021•56 min
Rev. Dr. Curtis Giese, professor of religion at Concordia University, Texas, New Testament editor of the Concordia Commentary series, and author of the Concordia Commentary on 2 Peter and Jude, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study 2 Peter 1:1-11. St. Peter writes again to the congregations in Asia Minor in order to strengthen them in their knowledge of God from the false teachers who question Christ’s divinity and second coming. Likely writing from Rome in the mid-60s, he identifies himself as...
Apr 29, 2021•54 min
Rev. Tim Eden, pastor at Bethel Lutheran Church in Bryan, TX, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study 1 Peter 5:6-14. As Christians live in humility with each other, so they live in humility before God their Creator. His mighty hand will exalt His people at the proper time because He cares for them. In their suffering, Christians cast their cares on Him alone. St. Peter again calls Christians to sober-mindedness and wakefulness in order to stand against their enemy, the devil. He prowls like a ro...
Apr 28, 2021•55 min
Rev. Brian Flamme, pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Roswell, NM, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study 1 Peter 5:1-5. St. Peter earlier addressed the estates of government and family in his table of duties; now he addresses the estate of the church. As Jesus once charged Peter to feed His sheep, so the Apostle now charges his fellow pastors to shepherd the flock of God. Pastors shepherd God’s flock with the Word of God. The oversight pastors exercise is not tyranny, but as those who look o...
Apr 27, 2021•54 min
Rev. Mark Barz, pastor at Crown of Life Lutheran Church in San Antonio, TX, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study 1 Peter 4:12-19. St. Peter reminds Christians that they are beloved by God. Therefore, when they receive sufferings, they should not find it strange, but rejoice that they are given to share in Christ’s own sufferings. Christian joy in suffering is found in the reminder that Jesus is the One who suffered for our salvation. St. Peter recalls Jesus’ beatitude to those who suffer as th...
Apr 26, 2021•56 min
Rev. Philip Hoppe, pastor at Peace Lutheran Church in Finlayson, MN and St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Bruno, MN, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel for Sharathon 2021 to study how God gives life to dead stones. Stones serve as a source of stability and strength, but you can also trip over them. God’s Word makes use of the image of stones in both ways, to proclaim both judgment and salvation. The prophet Isaiah proclaims God’s judgment against Israel’s unfaithfulness while also promising that the LORD...
Apr 23, 2021•57 min
Rev. Dustin Beck, pastor at Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Warda, TX, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel for Sharathon 2021 to study how God makes use of water to deliver His people. Water is present in the Scriptures all the way from Genesis 1 to Revelation 22. Throughout the Old Testament, water is often God’s chosen means both for bringing His judgment upon sin and for saving His people by grace through faith. Noah and his family in the ark, the people of Israel at the Red Sea, and Naaman in the Jo...
Apr 22, 2021•57 min
Rev. AJ Espinosa, pastor at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Irvine, CA, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study 1 Peter 4:7-11. Christ’s imminent return makes a difference for the lives of Christians right now. Being self-controlled and sober-minded keeps us ready for our prayers, by which we fulfill God’s calling to be His royal priesthood. As such, we are bound to love, seeking to cover each other in the forgiveness that Christ has given us. We welcome each other in the name of Christ. Knowing th...
Apr 21, 2021•53 min
