Concord Matters From Kfuo Radio

We dive deeper into the Sacrament of Holy Baptism. Study what benefits baptism gives, why it's important to talk about forgiveness as something actually happening before God, how the language and image of adoption helps us understand the benefits of baptism, how baptizing with water does such great things, how faith is connected to Baptism, and how the imagery of birth fits with Baptism. Rev. Mark Bestul, Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, IL joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss the Sacrament of Holy Baptism.

In discussing the Chief Parts, we now discuss the Means of Grace and Sacraments in particular. Hear what we believe is a Sacrament in our Lutheran doctrine and how this is different from Roman Catholics, Protestants, and American Evangelicals. Then, start learning about Baptism specifically, including what Baptism is and what the benefits are. Rev. Mark Bestul, Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, IL joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss the Sacraments and begin discussing the Sacrament of Baptism.

We now move into the next part of the Small Catechism on Baptism, Confession & Absolution, and the Lord’s Supper. Learn how the first three chief parts (10 Commandments, Apostles’ Creed, and Lord’s Prayer) relate and transition into the final three chief parts (Baptism, Confession & Absolution, and the Lord’s Supper). Also consider what we mean when we say the word “faith,” what our Lutheran understanding of faith is, and how faith comes to us. Rev. Mark Bestul, Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, IL joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss Baptism, Confession & Absolution, and the Lord’s Supper.

We complete the Lord's Prayer in this episode. Regarding the 6th Petition, consider sources of temptation and God's promises in the face of temptation. In the 7th Petition, learn how it is a prayer against Satan and where our help against evil comes from. In the Conclusion, hear whether the conclusion to the Lord’s Prayer is original, if it is faithful and appropriate for Christians to pray this doxology, how this ending serves as a summary to the entire Lord’s Prayer, and what the word “Amen” confesses. Rev. Mark Bestul, Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, IL joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss the 6th Petition, 7th Petition, and the Conclusion of the Lord's Prayer.

We move into the 5th Petition of the Lord's Prayer and learn how Christ teaches us in this petition that our one great need is the forgiveness of sins. Consider also what distinction should be made between the prayer for the forgiveness of sins and the reception of the forgiveness of sins (as with the Sacraments). Does this petition mean that God forgives conditionally? Should we forgive everyone, always? Learn how Christians should live according to the petition. Rev. Mark Bestul, Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, IL joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss the 5th Petition of the Lord's Prayer.

We continue in our discussion of the Lord's Prayer in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Petitions. Finishing out the 2nd Petition, consider how rejoicing in God’s kingdom is simply being the beneficiary of it. In the 3rd Petition, hear about the importance of the two tones Luther takes between the Small and Large Catechisms on this petition, what “God’s Kingdom care” for His Church and His people looks like, and how the “on earth” phrase transfers our attention from the “Thy Petitions” to the “us and our” of the later petitions. In the 4th Petition, think about why asking for daily bread is so often the most dominant prayer we offer and how this petition relates to the 2nd table of the law. Rev. Mark Bestul, Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, IL joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Petitions of the Lord's Prayer.

We've gone over the overview of The Lord's Prayer, so now we begin studying the text and meaning of the prayer. In the Introduction, consider how the Lord’s prayer remind us of the First Commandment and shows us that the God of the First Commandment (and 1st Article of the Creed) is one we can not only “fear,” but also “love and trust”. In the First Petition, hear about the importance of the term “Hallowed” instead of just saying “Holy is Thy Name”, why holy living is important for Christians according to the 1st Petition, how we do harm to God’s name, and how we tie all of this into how we worship with people who believe the same thing as us about Christ. In the Second Petition, learn whether it's up to us to “build God’s kingdom” and how the Second Petition relates to the Second and Third Articles of the Creed. Rev. Mark Bestul, Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, Illinois, joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss the Introduction, First Petition, and Second Petition of the Lord's Prayer.

We begin studying the Lord's Prayer in our series on The Catechized Life. In this introduction and overview of the Lord's Prayer, we consider how the Lord’s Prayer fits in with and builds on the first two chief parts, the 10 Commandments & Creed. Also, we discuss what prayer is, why we should be careful talking about prayers as a “conversation” with God, and how we rightly understand prayer. Rev. Mark Bestul, Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, IL, joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss the Lord's Prayer and its place in the Catechism.

We've studied the Second Article of the Apostles' Creed to learn about the nature and work of Jesus Christ, and now we study the First and Third Articles. Regarding the First Article, consider the significance of the words “believe” and “in” and what they confess about our faith in the Triune God and why the First Article is the “forgotten article” of the 20th century in the Western World. Regarding the Third Article, consider how the Third Article is the “now what?” article and is present-to-future focused, what this article means for our life and worship as the Church, and  the significance of the phrases “communion of saints” and “the resurrection of the body” as we live our confession of faith before the world. Rev. Mark Bestul, Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, Illinois, joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss the First and Third Articles of the Apostles' Creed.

We begin studying the Apostles' Creed by starting with the Second Article. Why do we start studying our beliefs about our Trinitarian God in the Second Article instead of the First Article? What do Jesus' titles teach us about Him and His nature? Where do we find defense of Christ's divine nature in the Scriptures? What do we confess about the work of Christ for our salvation, and why do we have these specific words about Him in the Creed? Rev. Mark Bestul, pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, IL, joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss the Second Article of the Apostles' Creed.

We are transitioning from the 10 Commandments to the Apostles' Creed in the Small Catechism. The 10 Commandments teach us God’s good and holy will, and thereby “always accuse us” because we see our sin is ever before us and ever preventing us from being the solution to the Separation Syndrome. So, where does help come from? The protoevangelium (“the first Gospel”) from Genesis 3:15 leads us to find our answer to the separation syndrome that we demonstrated from Genesis 3 in “the Fall”. Was the Gospel silent for thousands of years until the fullness of the protoevangelium promise in Christ? The Solution to the Separation Syndrome that leads us to Christ, which is the 2nd Article of the Creed. Rev. Mark Bestul, Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, Illinois, joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss the solution to the Separation Syndrome in the Apostles' Creed.

Complete the catechism lesson on the 10 Commandments today. Regarding the 7th Commandment, consider how this commandment teaches us how God feels about personal private property and how we reconcile our understanding of the 7th Commandment and different socioeconomic theories. Regarding the 8th Commandment, think about how much does reputation matter in our lives, how this commandment instructs us in patience and love toward our neighbors, and where the popular phrase "Judge not lest you be judged" plays into all of it. Regarding the 9th and 10th Commandments, learn about why we have two commandments on coveting, the finer points of these two commandments, and how these two commandments bookend the 10 Commandments along with the 1st Commandment. Rev. Mark Bestul, Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, IL, joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss the 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10th Commandments.

We have arrived to the middle of the commandments, studying the 5th and 6th on this episode. Regarding the 5th commandment, hear what the 5th Commandment teaches us about our bodies on this earth and our nature as created beings, how the commandment still convicts us even if we haven't intentionally physically harmed our neighbor, where we see examples of the 5th Commandment being broken and upheld in Scripture, how the 4th and 5th Commandments work together in application within our vocations, and how can we rightly apply the 5th Commandment in our COVID-19 pandemic times. Regarding the 6th Commandment, learn what the 6th Commandment is actually defending, how our Biblical view of marriage and dating run in the complete opposite as what the world tells us, how marriage teaches us about God's relationship to His Church, and how marriage as the highest estates looks in daily living. Rev. Mark Bestul, Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, Illinois, joins host Rev. Sean Smith to give a catechetical lesson

The 3rd and 4th Commandments transition us from the 1st Table to the 2nd Table of the Law. What does it mean to rest in the Lord, and how is everything made holy by the Word of God? How does the 4th Commandment relate to the 3rd and transition to the 2nd Table? Where does authority come from, and what are the various estates of authority according to the 4th Commandment? Rev. Mark Bestul, Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church Elgin, Illinois, joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss the 3rd and 4th Commandments in our daily lives.

How does understanding the Separation Syndrome help one's initial response to the opening of the Ten Commandments? The First Commandment teaches us to have no other gods.  Do we generate false gods or idols for ourselves? What is the joy of the First Commandment? What does the Second Commandment teach us about our God?  Rev. Mark Bestul, Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, Illinois, joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss the first table of the Law.

If we believe that God's Word is true history and that God created everything "according to its kind" and is "good" in His eyes, how did we get the mess we live in today? How does the Fall, as recorded in Genesis 3, result in separations in multiple domains such as theological, psychological, sociological, ecological, and physiological? How are these separations addressed? How is the depth of sin thoroughly understood?  Rev. Mark Bestul, Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, Illinois, joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss separation as a result of the Fall.

As Lutherans, we confess the truths we find in our Catechism, but we also live in a world that has a hard time accepting the notion of objective truth. Why are Jesus’ claims of “Truth” an important fundamental principle for Christian defense of the Scripture — and thus our entry into the Catechism? What do we learn from the true story of creation in Genesis 1 & 2 that help us understand the Catechism more fully? Rev. Mark Bestul, Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, Illinois, joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss the place of the catechism in our daily lives as Lutherans.

As Lutherans we love our hymnody, but what makes hymns particularly Lutheran? How do hymns point us even more to Scripture, and  how can we use them devotionally? And, on the creative side, how does a Lutheran hymnwriter create a hymn that is both beautiful poetry and also doctrinally rich? Rev. Stephen Starke, Lutheran Hymn Writer of over 200 hymns (including 32 in the Lutheran Service book) and retired LCMS pastor, joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss our heritage of Lutheran hymnody and what makes it unique.

We sing hymns every Sunday, and hopefully throughout our daily lives. But, what actually is a hymn? Is it just a fancy word for song? Hear this delightful conversation about the purpose of hymnody, where we find scriptural basis for singing hymns in worship services, how we use hymns in the life of the congregation, how music and text work together in hymnody, and what makes our Lutheran hymnody so unique and wonderful. Rev. Dr. Jon Vieker, Senior Assistant to the President of the LCMS and Former Assistant Director for LCMS Commission on Worship, joins host Rev. Sean Smith to discuss why concord matters for Lutheran hymnody.

This entire show is about the Lutheran Confessions, and we encourage you to study and learn them. Today we ask, why and how? Why are these Lutheran Confessions so important to us? How can we incorporate them into our daily lives, and what are the benefits of taking these Confessions to heart? Rev. Dr. Matthew Harrison, President of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod; Rev. Mark Bestul, Pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Elgin, Illinois; and Layman Mr. Tim Matheny join host Rev. Sean Smith during this special Sharathon edition of Concord Matters to talk about using the Confessions devotionally.