Thy Strong Word From Kfuo Radio

Rev. Darrin Sheek, pastor of Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Anaheim, California, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Isaiah 41. The idols of the world are silent. The nations of the earth tremble in fear. The true God has called Cyrus of Persia to conquer Babylon and to set His people free. Like Abraham, God has called someone from the east who did not know Him to serve His righteous purpose. Cyrus would not come to faith the same way Abraham did, but he would call on God’s name by supplying the exiles and asking them to pray to Yahweh on his behalf. God uses a foreign power to transform His people from worm to sledge. Later, He would use a Roman cross to transform His Son and us in the resurrection.

Rev. Thomas Eckstein, pastor of Concordia Lutheran Church in Jamestown, North Dakota, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Isaiah 40. The voice of God calls out to His people exiled in Babylon. They have suffered for their sins, but now they will be restored by God’s grace. This is Isaiah 40’s message of comfort, from the perspective of over 100 years after the previous chapter. Compared to God the Creator, Judah’s enemies are like dust and grass. The one who oversees the ways of the stars will guard the way for His people’s journey home. Centuries later, God would prepare the way for Christ the true Temple, and one day, He will lift us up on eagles’ wings to the life of the world to come.

Rev. John Shank, pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Edwardsville, Illinois, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Isaiah 39. “Behold, the days are coming, when all that is in your house, and that which your fathers have stored up till this day, shall be carried to Babylon.” This final and ominous prediction concludes the first part of Isaiah in chapter 39; the rest of the book will deal with God’s rescue from the Babylonians. Hezekiah had repented and had been healed, but he failed God’s test. He still trusted in princes, not God. Yet God still grants undeserved peace to him and his son Manasseh, peace which hints at God’s future restoration. We constantly falter like Hezekiah, but God still promises us future hope in Christ.

Rev. John Lukomski, retired pastor in Darmstadt, Illinois, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Isaiah 38. “Set your house in order, for you shall die, you shall not recover.” Thus Isaiah delivered God’s harsh judgment against Hezekiah. His administration had made an idolatrous alliance with Egypt, and his heart was full of pride. Isaiah 38 gives us not only the history but also Hezekiah’s psalm of repentance. The king laments how his life has been cut short, and yet in faith he still appeals to God, even against God’s own sentence. God gives a sign that He will heal not only Hezekiah, but all of Judah as He fights for the city against Assyria. God “adds” years to Hezekiah’s life and Similarly, when God brought His own Son back to life, He saved all of us His people from destruction.

Rev. Nabil Nour, pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Hartford, South Dakota, and Fourth Vice President of LCMS, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Isaiah 37. The Assyrian Rabshakeh shouted threats of destruction at the gates of Jerusalem. Now what was King Hezekiah to do? He humbles himself before God and His servant Isaiah, trusting in the Creator of heaven and earth. Isaiah predicts that God will turn back King Sennacherib like a tamed horse. When the Assyrians later return to Judah, God works His miracles. Like with Pharaoh of Egypt, God works on Sennacherib’s heart and mind. God makes him worried when he hears a rumor about the homefront, and Yahweh sends His angel to strike down thousands of Assyrians. The combination puts the Assyrians into panic and disarray. They return home, and Jerusalem is saved from the siege.

Rev. Scott Adle, pastor of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Collinsville, Illinois, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Isaiah 36. After 35 chapters of predictions, the Assyrians have finally come. Chapters 36 to 39 seem to quote from 2 Kings, proving that Isaiah wasn’t just speaking fanciful words of theology in poetic flourishes; theology is God’s real-life plan for human history. In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib of Assyria came and destroyed the whole country of Judah, except for the capital of Jerusalem. Walled up with no allies, not enough men, and not enough food, with their own God angry at them for their sin, the situation seemed totally hopeless. It was the Red Sea all over again—no way out. Yet, nothing is impossible for the Creator of heaven and earth. Who will you trust in?

Rev. Curtis Deterding, pastor of Zion Lutheran Church in Fort Myers, Florida, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Isaiah 35. “Waters break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert.” In chapter 35, Isaiah summarizes all his oracles of good news. In the wake of the Assyrian devastation, there will be relief and restoration for Judah. When Isaiah speaks of “wilderness” and “desert,” he does not refer to a sandy faraway place, but rather to Judah itself. The words in Hebrew should be understood to refer to “wasteland,” a place that has become uninhabited and uncultivated, as we saw in chapter 34. The power of God’s Word through baptism gives life not just for the individual, but for the places we live and work.

Rev. Warren Woerth, pastor of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Arnold, Missouri, joins guest host Rev. Dr. Steve Schave, Director of Urban and Inner City Mission and Church Planting with the LCMS Office of National Mission, to study Isaiah 34. Leading into chapter 34 of Isaiah we see that God is leading His people to repentance, through the punishment of their sins, as the nations have conquered them. And yet these nations who are hostile to God and His Word, and who have been destroyers, will face judgment and pay the penalty for what they have done to the people of Zion. The people of God have waited in faith for these promises to be fulfilled as they will be restored. Isaiah 34 is difficult for many because we may not like this picture of God, we may only wish to think of God as being loving and not just, but you cannot have one without the others. And so we are called to pay attention to this very sobering picture of Judgment Day. That if we want the opposite of holiness, and righteousness, and just

Rev. Rolf Preus, pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Sidney & St. John Lutheran Church in Fairview, Montana, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Isaiah 33. In chapter 32, Isaiah predicts that Assyria would reduce Judah’s cities and fields to ruins and wilderness, but that there in the wilderness there would be justice and the fear of Yahweh. Chapter 33 offers a multifaceted reply with oracles of woe and judgment, a psalm, a proverb, and an oracle of salvation. The theme is appearances. Don’t trust in princes, heroes, envoys, or covenants; they merely appear strong for a short time before they are devoured by hungry caterpillars and locusts. Resist evil illusions and keep temptation far from your hands, ears, and eyes. Instead look on the king in His beauty, Christ who offers forgiveness and heavenly treasure.

Rev. Kevin Parviz, pastor of Congregation Chai v’Shalom in St. Louis, Missouri, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Psalm 28. Psalm 28 uses the themes of sound and work to offer supplication and praise to God. In the Old Testament, sound is connected to movement, activity, and life. Silence is connected to motionlessness, cessation, and death. We only have life, breath, and song because God first speaks His creative Word of life to create us and save us. When God works judgment and destruction, He is simply turning evil back on itself, letting it be “hoist on its own petard.” The work of faith is to tune out the loud distractions and listen to the voice of our shepherd. Our rock and fortress gives us a quiet place to sing our songs of praise in peace, with the whole body of Christ—even with those who have gone before us.

Rev. Wally Vinovskis, pastor of Concordia Lutheran Church in Macungie, Pennsylvania, and President of the SELC District of the LCMS, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Isaiah 32. “Behold, a king will reign in righteousness. […] The fool will no more be called noble.” After speaking harsh words of law for several chapters, Isaiah gives us some gospel again in chapter 32. Although God will punish Judah for its idolatrous trust in Egypt, King Hezekiah will lead a remnant back to the true God. In that day, scoundrels like Shebna who lined his own pockets while advocating for an alliance with Egypt will fall from power. The corruption under kings like Jotham and Ahaz would finally be over. Overall, Judah would be better off, but so much depends on perspective. With the right priorities, they could see that even amidst the devastation, true peace was more valuable than material wealth. Even in our own day, God will not fail to act, and one day He will finally end corruption once and for all. On that day, it wil

Rev. Dr. Alfonso O. Espinosa, pastor of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Irvine, California, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Isaiah 31. “The Egyptians are man, and not God, and their horses are flesh, and not spirit.” Isaiah 31 continues God’s condemnation of Judah for their alliance with Egypt against Assyria, offering a spiritual perspective on the matter. When we compromise our faith in the name of being practical or wise, we sell ourselves into spiritual slavery. God is wise, and He will bring disaster to save us. It seems like foolishness to us, but it is our salvation—just like the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. At the Assyrian siege of Jerusalem, God sent the Angel of Death to pass over His people a second time, and He struck the Assyrians with the spiritual sword of plague and disaster. King Hezekiah repented of his sinful mistrust and led God’s people back to the Word, as Moses had done earlier at the first Passover and as Luther would do later in the Reformation.

Rev. David Fleming, pastor of Our Savior Lutheran Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Isaiah 30. Instead of trusting in God and the word of Isaiah His messenger, Judah put their faith in the military strength of Egypt. It seemed prudent in the face of Assyrian aggression, but it revealed Judah’s shameful idolatry of the heart. For all its ferocity, Egypt would prove to be a do-nothing dragon, a tamed beast in a timeout. The sinful human heart still prefers “illusions” and “smooth things” rather than the truth and hard facts. As Luther said, even though the works of God seem unattractive and even evil at times, they are for our salvation. God pours out tempest and flood, fire and hail, to give us our exodus from slavery. He empties His fury against His own Son to save us like a signal on a hill and a serpent raised in the wilderness.

Rev. David Boisclair, pastor of Faith and Bethesda Lutheran Churches in North St. Louis County, Missouri, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Psalm 31. “Into your hand I commit my spirit.” Our Lord Jesus quoted these words from Psalm 31 while He was on the Cross, but the rest of the psalm isn’t as familiar to us. At times the psalmist seems to be begging God for mercy, and at times he seems to be thanking God that he has already received help—back and forth, again and again. What is the psalm really getting at? The answer lies with David, the first person to pray this psalm. David, on the run for his life, has taken refuge in a mountain city. Enemy forces have followed him and have put the city under siege, trying to starve out the inhabitants and drain their resources until they’re forced to surrender. Just like David, our Lord Jesus prayed this psalm when He was surrounded by enemies. Just like David, our Lord invites us to share in His confidence even when things look bleak.

Rev. David Boisclair, pastor of Faith and Bethesda Lutheran Churches in North St. Louis County, Missouri, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Isaiah 29. “The blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them.” With these words, the Lord Jesus quotes, summarizes, and expands chapter 29 of Isaiah. These metaphors originally described “Ariel,” the besieged city of Jerusalem that was like prey before the Assyrian army. Yet God worked “wonder upon wonder” to humble mankind on both sides of the city walls. God graciously formed humanity from the dust of the ground, like a potter shapes clay. He humbles us that He might reshape us into the form of the Son of David. He brings our loud bragging down to the ground “like the voice of a ghost” that we would shout with joy together on the day of the resurrection.

Rev. Warren Woerth, pastor of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Arnold, Missouri, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Isaiah 28. The language is harsh: God says that the current priests and prophets of Jerusalem are no better than retching and reeling drunks. And Ephraim, the city on a hill, is ripe for the picking—it will be devoured whole! For too long, the proud and powerful have mocked God’s prophets and spurned His Word. Now they will have to hear the word of the Assyrians, along with their volleys of arrows that rain like hail. Yet God uses the tools of destruction for the sake of the faithful remnant. Like a farmer with various tools for different tasks and crops, God works wisely to save His people from their “covenant with death” and their “agreement with Sheol.” He literally rescued Judah from an ensnaring alliance with Egypt; He spiritually saves us from sin, death, and the devil through Christ’s covenant-annulling death and covenant-creating resurrection.

Rev. Ken Wagener, pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Indianapolis, Indiana, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Psalm 26. They hurled false accusations against him, but David was innocent. He was well acquainted with his own sinfulness, but he was innocent of these charges being brought forward. Psalm 26 is David’s appeal to a higher court, the heavenly court of God. He asks for God to exonerate him because he knows that God sees all and knows all, even when it seems like the rest of the world is against him. “O LORD, I love the habitation of your house and the place where your glory dwells.” This isn’t mere sentimentality. David is affirming his allegiance to the ways of God, at the same time rejecting the secret dealings of hypocrisy. This is the right understanding of “hate,” as we see with our Lord Jesus. He showed compassion for the lost without the slightest hint of compromising God’s truth, and it is because of His integrity that we all may stand on the level ground of the resurrection.

Rev. Bernard Ross, pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Alma, Missouri, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Isaiah 27. “He will slay the dragon that is in the sea.” Isaiah chapter 27 begins with this act of God’s judgment, concluding the previous chapter. Angels are often described in serpentine terms in the Old Testament. Here God promises to punish a fallen angel, the coiling sea dragon named “Leviathan,” as He destroys the nations and evil forces that have oppressed Israel. And where there are serpents, there is often fruit. The next verse goes back to the vineyard metaphor of chapter 5. God calls His people to repentance, to bear good fruit by destroying their idols. King Hezekiah led the people of Judah in this temporal atonement, but he represents Jesus Christ, the good king who gives us spiritual atonement, not only through His suffering and death, but also through His resurrection and works of love.

Rev. John Lukomski, retired pastor in Northfield, Minnesota, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Isaiah 26. “Your dead shall live; their bodies shall rise. You who dwell in the dust, awake and sing for joy!” This bold resurrection language in Isaiah 26 only comes after extensive lamentation and somber reflection. It still builds on the death-of-death idea, but it’s very different from the hymn of praise in the previous chapter. On one hand, death is the ultimate enemy, but on the other, it is necessary for resurrection. God doesn’t bring death frivolously. He only does so to protect His people from being ruled by idols. He takes evil rulers like Babylon down to the shades to cut off the remembrance of idolatry and ruthlessness (Isaiah 14). Yet by His mercy, the earth will give up the shades as it gives birth to a new creation, just as Jesus Christ is the firstborn from the dead. On that day, the poor and needy will no longer be trampled and oppressed, although the faithful often suffer in this life, buried

Rev. Nathan Meador, pastor of St. John Lutheran Church in Plymouth, Wisconsin, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study Psalm 27. From the abundance of God’s diverse creation arises a diversity of perspectives and poetic metaphors. All these images are held together in the beauty of Christ: He is both a fortress and a weapon, a stronghold and a guiding light, an ornate temple and a mobile tabernacle. The language of Psalm 27 shows that God is with us wherever we go, but this is precisely because He is with us in a special way in certain places through Word and Sacrament. David’s confidence in the face of warfare didn’t come from his bravery but from God’s faithfulness. He asks for God’s help on behalf of the whole people of Israel, and He is strong on behalf of the whole people of Israel. Ultimately Jesus the Messiah represents us all in His death, resurrection, and ascension, creating our faith because of His faithfulness.