Letters On The Page

Wednesday of the 23rd Sunday after Pentecost   Collect of the Day:   O God, our refuge and strength, the author of all godliness, hear the devout prayers of Your Church, especially in times of persecution, and grant that what we ask in faith we may obtain; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.    The Epistle for this 23 rd  Wednesday after Pentecost is from Philippians, the first chapter. (Philippians 1:3-11) 3  I thank my God in all my remembrance of you,  4  always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy,  5  because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.  6  And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.  7  It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my hea...

Video of Divine Service at St. Luke, Rensselaer 23rd Sunday after  Pentecost   Malachi 4:1-6  2 Thessalonians 3:1-13  Luke 21:5-36   O Lord, your Word is lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, my rock and my redeemer. Amen.    Malachi was written in the 5 th  century BC during the same time as the books of Nehemiah and Ezra.    With only four chapters, it is a brief book. Malachi stands in contrast to other books of the prophets because all the other prophetic books contain poetry to convey God’s Word. Malachi has no poetry. Instead, Malachi uses a question-and-answer format to convey God’s message.    Six times in four chapters, a question is posed and then a brief explanation occurs.      We are familiar with the Q & A format, aren’t we?    We have a question about something, and we are either given a piece of pap...

Wednesday of Pentecost 22                                                            November 12, 2025   Collect of the Day : O Lord, keep your household, the Church, in continual godliness that through Your protection she may be free from all adversities and devoutly given to serve You in good works; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.     The Epistle reading for this 22 nd  Wednesday after Pentecost is from Ephesians, the sixth chapter . (Ephesians 6:10-17) 10  Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.  11  Put on the whole ar...

Video of Divine Service at St. Luke, Rensselaer 22nd Sunday after Pentecost   Exodus 3:1-15   2 Thessalonians 2:1-8, 13-17   Luke 20:27-40 O Lord, your Word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, my rock and my redeemer. Amen.   Jesus becomes incarnate to save us through his death on the cross. Before he enters his trial of suffering and death on the cross, He demonstrates that he comes to correct inaccurate interpretations of Scripture and confront false doctrine. As a result, when we read through the gospels we cannot help but notice that Jesus seems to be in conflict with a lot of people who should be his friends and allies. The source of the conflict is that they have unwittingly, maybe intentionally, gone astray. So, Jesus, speaking on the authority of our heavenly Father, provides the correct interpretation of God’s Word that the Holy Spirit has so generously provide...

Wednesday of Pentecost 21              November 5, 2025   Collect of the Day : O Lord, grant to Your faithful people pardon and peace that they may be cleansed from all their sins and serve You with a quiet mind; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.    The Epistle for this 21 st  Wednesday after Pentecost is from Ephesians, the 5 th  chapter.  (Ephesians 5:15-21) 15  Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,  16  making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.  17  Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.  18  And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,  19  addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, si...

Video of Divine Service at St. Luke, Rensselaer 21st Sunday after Pentecost   Isaiah 1:10-18  2 Thessalonians 1:1-12  Luke 19:1-10 O Lord, your Word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, my rock and my redeemer. Amen.  Today’s gospel reading serves as a commentary on last Sunday’s Gospel. In last Sunday’s Gospel, we heard Jesus’ parable directed to those who trusted in their own efforts for salvation. The parable paints a vivid word picture. In the temple two men are praying: a Pharisee and a tax collector. The righteous Pharisee prays a righteous prayer while the humbled tax collector prays a simple prayer. The Pharisee announces with many words and examples his piety to God and those that will hear him while the tax collector speaks only to God. The tax collector confesses his sinfulness and earnestly pleads for God’s mercy. He is humbled by his transgressions and is reduce...

Video of Divine Service  Wednesday of the 20 th  Sunday after Pentecost Collect of the Day : Almighty and merciful God, of Your bountiful goodness keep from us all things that may hurt us that we, being ready in both body and soul, may cheerfully accomplish whatever You would have us do; through Jesus Christ, Your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen . The Epistle on this 20 th  Wednesday after Pentecost is from Ephesians, the 4 th  chapter.  (Ephesians 4:22-28) 22  to   put off   your old self,   which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through   deceitful desires,   23  and   to be renewed in the spirit of your minds,   24  and to put on   the new self,   created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.  25  Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you   speak the truth w...