Sharper Iron from KFUO Radio
Sharper Iron, hosted by Rev. Timothy Appel, looks at the text of Holy Scripture both in its broad context and its narrow detail, all for the sake of proclaiming Christ crucified and risen for sinners. Two pastors engage with God’s Word to sharpen not only their own faith and knowledge, but the faith and knowledge of all who listen. Sharper Iron is underwritten by Lutheran Church Extension Fund, where your investments help support the work of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. Visit lcef.org.
Episodes
November 7, 2025 • 55 mins
Because Christ has triumphed in the cross, no one can judge Christians based on those things that Jesus has fulfilled. The Old Testament regulations concerning food and drink and Sabbaths are a shadow of the body of Christ who has now been revealed. Although false preachers peddle practices that may look religious, any worship or piety that does not teach us to cling to Christ has no value. Only Christ, the Head of the Church, can ...
Mark as Played
November 6, 2025 • 53 mins
Because the Colossians have received Jesus, St. Paul exhorts them to walk in Him and remain rooted in the faith He has established in them. They must not be taken captive by philosophies that are only manmade traditions, for these are not from Christ. He is the One in whom the fullness of deity dwells bodily, and He has filled His Church. In Holy Baptism, He has incorporated His Church into His burial and resurrection so that we re...
Mark as Played
November 5, 2025 • 53 mins
Even as St. Paul suffers in prison, he rejoices as such suffering is his participation in the Body of Christ, the Church. Because of God’s gift, St. Paul is a minister in the Church given to proclaim the mystery now revealed even to Gentiles that Christ dwells in believers. Proclaiming Christ, Paul has been struggling for the Colossians and other Christians whom he has not yet met so that they will not be deluded by arguments that ...
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November 4, 2025 • 53 mins
St. Paul extols the person and work of Christ in a glorious hymn. Jesus does not simply have, but He is the image of God by whom all things visible and invisible were created. In Him, all things hold together. He is the Head of His Church, for the fullness of God dwells in Him. By His resurrection, Jesus reconciles all things to Himself. St. Paul proclaims the Gospel to the Colossians, that this is what Jesus has done for them, so ...
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November 3, 2025 • 56 mins
Although St. Paul may have never visited the saints in Colossae, he writes to them with joy and thanksgiving for their faith, love, and hope. They are bearing fruit in the same Gospel that is preached throughout the world, as Epaphras has reported. Paul therefore prays that the Colossians would continue to walk in this faith as they are strengthened by God, who has transferred them from the domain of darkness and brought them into ...
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October 31, 2025 • 54 mins
St. Paul concludes his letter to the Philippians by rejoicing over the support that they have given him during his time in prison. All the while, he reminds them of Christ Jesus as the source of contentment and strength, not only in times of prosperity, but especially in times of poverty. The Apostle has confidence that just as God has supplied his every need, so God will supply the Philippians’ every need. With greetings to the sa...
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October 30, 2025 • 57 mins
St. Paul commends particular members of the Christian congregation in Philippi to agree in the Lord as they continue to labor together with him and each other in the Gospel. That Gospel allows Christians to rejoice in the Lord always, because His return is near. Therefore, we live not with anxiety and worry, but with gentleness, prayer, thanksgiving, and the peace of God that surpasses all understanding. St. Paul encourages the Phi...
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October 29, 2025 • 52 mins
St. Paul has not yet reached the resurrection, but he strains forward in the life that he has from Christ right now in anticipation of the Lord’s gift on the Last Day. The Lord leads His people toward that goal, working through Scripture, prayer, and suffering. The Apostle calls the Philippians to imitate him in this way of life, rather than falling prey to those who set themselves as enemies of Christ. Instead, Christians must liv...
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October 28, 2025 • 53 mins
As St. Paul continues to encourage the Philippians to rejoice, he speaks of himself as an example to the Philippians. As opposed to those who put their confidence in fleshly works such as circumcision, St. Paul truly has every reason for confidence in his own person and works. Yet he considers his own works as dung in comparison to the infinite worth of Christ, whose righteousness is given by God through faith. This is the righteou...
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October 27, 2025 • 53 mins
St. Paul updates the Philippians on two of his coworkers and expresses his desire to send them to the Philippians soon. First, he commends Timothy, whom the Philippians know personally. Timothy is an example of the humility of Christ, as Timothy concerns himself with the Philippians' welfare and the interests of Jesus. Second, Paul commends Epaphroditus, who had brought the Philippians’ gift to Paul. The Lord had been merciful in s...
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October 24, 2025 • 53 mins
From Jesus’ humility, St. Paul draws implications for the Christian life. Christians put the salvation they have received into practice with fear and trembling, knowing that God works according to His good pleasure in Christ. Rather than grumbling as the ancient Israelites, Christians are to live as God’s children and reflect the light of Christ into the darkness of the world. St. Paul’s joy over the Philippians holding fast to the...
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October 23, 2025 • 54 mins
St. Paul found his call to live in humility in the example of Christ’s humility, by which He has won salvation for sinners. Although Jesus truly is God, He did not seek His own interests in claiming those rights for His own. Instead, He made Himself nothing as a servant for our sakes, going to the most shameful death of crucifixion. For that reason, God exalted Christ to the highest place in His resurrection and ascension. Now His ...
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October 22, 2025 • 54 mins
St. Paul encourages the Philippians to live in light of the Gospel of Christ. That Gospel unites Christians together in one spirit and one mind so that there is no need to fear those who oppose them. For that reason, Christians are free to place the needs of others ahead of their own, living in what Christ has done for them.
Rev. Peter Ill, pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church in Millstadt, IL, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to stu...
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October 21, 2025 • 51 mins
St. Paul informs the Philippians that the Lord has used Paul’s imprisonment to advance the Gospel. Not only are elite Roman soldiers hearing of Christ, but other Christians are encouraged to speak of Christ even more boldly. Even when some proclaim the Gospel in an effort to harm Paul, the Apostle still rejoices that the Gospel is proclaimed. As he considers his imprisonment, his joy continues, for he knows that whether he lives or...
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October 20, 2025 • 54 mins
Even though St. Paul writes from prison, his letter to the church in Philippi is full of joy. Philippi had been his first place of work in Macedonia on his second missionary journey, and although he had been thrown in prison there for a short time, his connection with the Philippians was strong in Christ. As he begins his letter to them, he tells them of his constant thanksgiving to God for them due to their partnership in the Gosp...
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October 20, 2025 • 2 mins
“Letters from Prison” is a mini-series on Sharper Iron that studies Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon. Even when Paul was imprisoned for the sake of Christ, the Word of God remained unbound. The apostle’s letters from prison still fill us with the same joy that his chains could never silence.
Sharper Iron, hosted by Rev. Timothy Appel, looks at the text of Holy Scripture both in its broad context and its narrow detail, all f...
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October 17, 2025 • 57 mins
The Rite of Holy Matrimony in Lutheran Service Book begins with a pastoral address that lays out the goodness and purposes of God’s gift of marriage. Scripture readings and music center the service as worship in the name of the Triune God, whose blessing the husband and wife seek. As the man and the woman make promises to each other, God is the One who joins them together. The congregation offers prayers for the particular couple a...
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October 16, 2025 • 54 mins
St. Paul lays out the way husbands and wives ought to live together in holy matrimony. A wife is to submit to her husband as the Church submits to Christ, and a husband is to love his wife as Christ loves the Church. Although the world today reacts negatively toward this text, Christians are right to cherish it as God’s good gift. It is certainly good that the Church submits to Christ as He gives Himself for her; therefore, it is c...
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October 15, 2025 • 53 mins
As the Song concludes, Solomon brings us to the theological point. His love for his bride sets her as a seal, meaning that she is his. As Solomon notes how powerful love is, he uses the divine name for the only time in the Song, allowing us to see that God’s love for us pursues us even to death and brings us out of the grave. As the others wonder and ask concerning this love, the Church is given a concern for the gift of chastity a...
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October 14, 2025 • 52 mins
The bride seeks her husband in the garden, and there he praises her beauty. His delight in his wife’s beauty is a blessed gift of God within the context of holy matrimony, a delight that God still gives to husbands and wives today. The garden imagery throughout this section recalls the Garden of Eden in the beginning and the heavenly garden of the book of Revelation, pointing us to the love that Christ has for the Church and the Ch...
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