Matt Richard

Good Friday confronts everything that the ideology of the world would rather avoid. The world wants comfort without confession, blessing without burden, and spirituality without religion. It wants Easter Sunday without Good Friday. It wants the glory of the empty tomb without the scandal of the bloody cross. But Christianity is not vague sentiment, empty spirituality, or a cost-free faith. Christianity is Christ crucified. There is a means: the Son of God sent into our misery, sin, and death. There is a price: His holy and precious blood shed for sinners. And mark this well: without the cross, there is no Gospel. Without the price paid, there is no salvation. podbean.com/ew/pb-8fe9h-1a…

The Lord's Supper is a Sacrament not by faith or work of man, but only through the institution and command of our Lord. "We have reached the following unanimous, amicable agreement among ourselves, namely, that no human words or works create the true presence of Christ's body and blood in the Supper, whether it be the merit or speaking of the minister or the eating and drinking or the faith of the communicants. Instead, all this should be ascribed solely to the almighty power of God and to the words, institution, and arrangement of our Lord Jesus Christ. . . . Faith does not make the sacrament, but only the true Word and institution of our almighty God and Savior Jesus Christ, which Word is always powerful and remains efficacious in Christendom." - Formula of Concord: VII 74, 89.

@RealTimHarris Not quite sure where I stated that using a cloth is irreverent. The contrast was not between a cloth and a tongue. The contrast was between seeing the spill as ordinary wine or something holy.

@RevMattRichard I guess I'm just wondering why being absorbed by a cloth is irreverent while being lapped up like a dog is not.

In 1542, when communion wine was accidentally spilled at St. Mary’s in Wittenberg, Martin Luther and Rev. Bugenhagen rushed forward, wept, cried out, “O God help,” and even licked up the spilled wine from the rail. To many modern Christians, that sounds extreme. But perhaps that reaction reveals something uncomfortable. Maybe the problem is not Luther. Maybe the problem is us. If this account strikes us as excessive, does it reveal that we no longer truly understand—or perhaps no longer truly believe—the real presence of Christ in the Holy Supper? pastormattrichard.com/2026/04/revere…

In 1542, when communion wine was accidentally spilled at St. Mary’s in Wittenberg, Martin Luther and Rev. Bugenhagen rushed forward, wept, cried out, “O God help,” and even licked up the spilled wine from the rail. To many modern Christians, that sounds extreme. But perhaps that reaction reveals something uncomfortable. Maybe the problem is not Luther. Maybe the problem is us. If this account strikes us as excessive, does it reveal that we no longer truly understand—or perhaps no longer truly believe—the real presence of Christ in the Holy Supper? podbean.com/ew/pb-2sqj7-1a…

Sloth is not primarily a medical condition but a spiritual one. It is the quiet voice in the heart that says that God can wait, the Word can be ignored, that the Divine Service is optional, and that the vocations God has given are simply burdens to endure rather than gifts to bless and receive. And so, sloth slowly drains the soul of joy in the Lord and replaces it with apathy. [Read more at the following link] pastormattrichard.com/2026/04/the-se…

Politics is downstream from culture, and culture is downstream from theology. What does this mean? It means that true conversations must start—and be had—at the foundational level: What do we value? What is moral? What do we worship? What is truth? How do we understand life and death? While conversations about politics are certainly worthwhile, no true understanding can be had unless we get beneath politics and culture—to the basement level. Tragically, many people are uncomfortable going to that level. Instead, they would rather implicitly and subconsciously hold to unspoken presuppositions about morality, values, truth, life and death. Keep in mind that when I say theology, I do not necessarily mean Christianity alone. Rather, I mean that every person in the world operates from a set of ultimate commitments—even atheists. Everyone fears, loves, and trusts someone or something. Those convictions are often buried deep and remain implicit, but they are there. To the point: the divisions we are seeing in America have roots deeply embedded in differing theologies and philosophies, even though they manifest themselves on the surface in cultural and political debates. Because of that, I would kindly suggest that we cannot truly lead with action, build trust, or make lasting progress unless we also address the deeper issues at America’s core. At the risk of sounding academically snobbish, I believe that many of America’s deepest problems are rooted in what may be called subjective anti-logocentrism—the displacement of objective truth and the Logos by the autonomous self. It is eating away at our Western civilization from the inside out. Until these deeper fractures are confronted and healed, much of what we do on the surface risks becoming little more than band-aids.

I am reminded of a story right here in conservative and traditional North Dakota. A faithful pastor dared to take the sword out of the sheath. He dared to preach the Word of God clearly. And the parishioners… they did not like it. They did not like being pierced. They did not like it when the Word named their sins and ascribed salvation to Christ alone, not to their own pious works. So, what happened? Well, a group of parishioners got together. They slandered the pastor. They stirred up the mob. And they sent the pastor packing—nearly destroying his family and marriage in the process. Then the congregation held meetings. They called a new pastor. But this time, they did their homework. They called a pastor who would keep the Word of God in the sheath. Yes, they actually hired a pastor to protect them from the Word of God. The pastor agreed to keep the sword covered and to tickle their ears. Lord have mercy! pastormattrichard.com/2026/03/when-b…

When The Bible Is Sheathed: The Church’s Greatest Danger podbean.com/ew/pb-esc2z-1a…

“I know the power that the Department of Justice and the FBI has. When they wanted to eliminate organized crime in this country they came after us with vengeance—believe me! They are very capable; they have the resources; they have the money; they have the strength behind them. And [the Department of Justice and the FBI] have turned a blind eye to human trafficking.” — Michael Franzese (Ex-Mobster speaking on the Epstein sex-trafficking and pedophilia operations) What was once labeled a conspiracy theory is now in plain sight: pedophilia and sex-trafficking at the highest levels of power. The bigger problem with Epstein is not necessarily who is on the lists, but why those entrusted with justice appear slow, hesitant, or unwilling to act against evil of this magnitude. Mark this: our United States government deserves the harshest public scrutiny and moral condemnation. Human trafficking is not a minor offense buried in legal technicalities; it is a grievous evil against the weak and defenseless. Authorities exist to restrain such wickedness. When those in authority fail in that task, the failure must be named plainly: there is no excuse for the monstrous sins of Epstein to continue for 25 years. The U.S. Government need to grow a backbone, find a moral compass, and clean the filth out of its own eyes so that it can see clearly.

In the late 20th century, under the influence of the Church Growth Movement and consumerism, many churches chose dynamic, forward-moving names: The Journey Church, The Pursuit Church, The Path, The Summit, and so forth. These names were meant to communicate that Christianity is a personal search, a life journey, and an adventure of faith—something relational, aspirational, and open-ended. Biblical language, however, often emphasizes the opposite: remaining, abiding, standing firm, and holding fast—not perpetual wandering. Paul says in Colossians 1:23 that Christians are to be stable and steadfast, not shifting. Dynamic, forward-motion names may sound attractive in a Christianized culture—where churches try to show they are not stagnant among similar churches. But such language will not age well in an emerging pagan culture where everything shifts, moves, and changes on a dime. As America becomes increasingly paganized, churches will likely return to biblical language that emphasizes security, steadfastness, and stability—the kind of language Paul used with the Colossians in the first-century pagan world. Quite frankly, the Christian does not need to travel to the light, find the kingdom, or pursue Jesus. Jesus is not lost. The pre-converted Christian was the one who was lost. He was the one who was in darkness. But Christ is the One who snatched the Christian from darkness and placed him in the light. Christ is the One who reconciled the world to the Father, making us children of the kingdom. Christ is the One who transports the Christian from darkness to light, from death to life, and from hostility to friendship with God. To suggest that the Christian must make this journey on his own is to deny the One who journeyed—to earth, to the cross, and to the right hand of the Father—on behalf of the Christian. Paul’s language reinforces this again and again. The Christian has been founded in the faith—grounded, laid down, and made stable. The Christian has been established in the faith—seated, immovable, not wavering under pressure. The Christian is called to remain, to abide, to continue, to stay. And the Christian is warned not to move away, not to shift, not to swerve to another place. The point is simple: the church's goal is to remain steadfast and abide in the gifts given. The goal is to keep, not obtain; to remain, not wander; to rest, not pursue. (Excerpt from St. Paul's Bible Study for March 8th)

The Seven Deadly Sins: Pride podbean.com/ew/pb-nfbzs-1a…

EP 25 - The Divine Call: The Role & Responsibilities of the Pastor podbean.com/ew/pb-2dd9d-1a…

Christianity: Not Cleverly Devised Myths podbean.com/ew/pb-jn2vr-1a…

When we begin to see all of these gifts as equally necessary, equally valuable, equally from the hand of Christ, then something beautiful happens. There is no longer competition. There is no longer jealousy. There are no emergencies in the church. If you are gifted in one area and another person is gifted in another, you can rejoice in each other's service. If two people are gifted in the same area and there's more help than needed, one can step back without feeling threatened, because the goal is not personal achievement. The goal is blessing your neighbor. The goal is love.pastormattrichard.com/2026/02/the-ch…

We need a gut check on piety. Way too often, we have come to understand Christian piety as felt devotion and visible sincerity. That is to say, we have equated holiness with an aesthetic of soft whispery speech, a gentle and timid demeanor, sentimental-poetic language, and emotional vulnerability. If it looks tender and sounds sincere, we assume it must be holy. To be clear, none of these things are inherently wrong. They can be good. They can be fitting. They can be faithful. But we cannot reduce piety and holiness to them. Tragically, under the influence of Pietism and Revivalism, this sentimental-emotional expression has become the dominant expectation of piety in the American Church. It has become the unspoken and exclusive standard. And this has been especially problematic for many men. As a result, some men have rightly reacted against this narrow version of emotional piety—but tragically have left the Church altogether. Other men have reacted in the opposite direction. They have rejected emotional sentimentality only to embrace harshness, calling it strength. But piety and holiness are not only measured by tone of voice, facial expressions, or emotional softness. Biblically speaking, piety is reverence toward God—fear, love, and trust in Him. It is a heart that bows before God’s Word, receives His promises in faith, confesses sin without excuse, and clings to Christ alone for righteousness. It listens when God speaks. It believes what He declares. It confesses what He says. It submits where He commands. Mark this: true piety—true reverence—gives a wide range of holy expressions: Jesus weeps over Jerusalem in Luke 19, while He also overturns tables in John 2. Elijah’s pious zeal burns in sarcastic mockery of the false prophets in 1 Kings 18, while Jeremiah’s zeal breaks his heart in tears for Jerusalem. The point? Piety and holiness must be measured by reverence toward God—not exclusively by predefined and codified emotional responses.

If baptism is just a past event, then we can end up putting baptism on the shelf, never to be looked at again. If it is just a past event, well… we can then treat baptism like an old photograph — something sentimental but no longer relevant. Alas! May God spare us from turning baptism into an old spiritual relic or a powerless tradition. We must be careful not to view Baptism as a heritage token. Let me say it again: Baptism is not a heritage token. Baptism is not a superstition. It’s not a lucky charm. It’s not a cultural tradition. It’s not something we do just because that is what grandma expects. Baptism is not about heritage—it’s about Jesus. It’s about being united with Christ in His death and resurrection. Baptism is not a past-tense event. It is a present-tense reality. You don’t just look back on your baptism as something that happened. You live in your baptism every single day. That is to say, you wake up each day in your baptism. You face temptation in your baptism. You fight the devil in your baptism. You stand before the accusations of the world in your baptism. So, when someone asks, "Are you baptized?" the answer is not, "I was baptized." The answer is, "I am baptized." pastormattrichard.com/2026/02/baptis…