Time in the Word
Pentecost 10 –Proper 12
July 23-28 2018
Prayer in time of affliction and
distress: Almighty and most merciful God, in this earthly life we endure
sufferings and death before we enter into eternal glory. Grant us grace at all
times to subject ourselves to Your holy will and to continue steadfast in the
true faith to the end of our lives that we may know the peace and joy of the
blessed hope of the resurrection of the dead and of the glory of the world to
come; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Prayer for Home and Family:
Visit, we implore You, O Lord, the homes in which Your people dwell, and keep
far from them all harm and danger. Grant us to dwell together in peace under
the protection of Your holy angels, and may Your blessing be with us forever;
through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Prayer the Unemployed and Under-employed: Heavenly
Father, we remember before You, those who suffer want and anxiety from lack of
work. Lead us so to use the wealth and resources of this rich land that all
persons may find suitable and fulfilling employment and receive just payment
for their labor; through Your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Pray for Peace: O God, whom come
all holy desires, all good counsels, and all just works, give to us, Your
servants, that peace which the world simply cannot give, that our hearts may be
set to obey Your commandments and also that we, being defended from the fear
of our enemies, may live in peace and quietness; through Jesus Christ, Your
Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, One God, now
and forever.
Collect for this Sunday Proper 12
–Almighty and most merciful God, the protector of all who trust in You,
strengthen our faith and give us courage to believe that in Your love You will
rescue us from all adversities; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who
lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. . Amen
In the lessons for this coming
Sunday, God’s promises are given and the Lord remembers those promises while
man might not. The Lord promises Noah and his family that He will never again
destroy the earth by a flood. In the Epistle lesson Paul thanks the Lord for
the richness of grace which the Lord has established in Christ. In the Gospel
Christ comes walking to His frightened disciples on the sea. They do not
recognize Him because of fear and hardness of heart. The sermon hymn reminds us
that it is the Lord Himself that orders our days. Faith calls for us to
recognize the Lord working in our life especially when we can not see His hand
at work. God will not abandon us to the world we create for ourselves. God does not withdraw to a contamination-free
zone and leave us to get on with it, but enters into the darkness, seriousness
and consequences of human wrong-doing … in order to save us.
Monday, 23 July 2018—Psalm 145:1-3, 6-7, Antiphon, Psalm 145:5.On
the glorious splendor of Your majesty, and on your wondrous works, I will
meditate. This is a hymn summarizing the
characteristics of God. It is in acrostic form, making it easy to memorize:
each verse in Hebrew begins with a successive letter of the alphabet. Vv. 1-3 are
the psalmist’s personal expression of praise. In v. 4, he expands to speaking
of descendants, of passing on knowledge and experience of God. God is known for
his “wondrous works” (v. 5). In vv. 8-20, he expands still further, to “all
people” (v. 12). Vv. 8-9 mention his love, vv. 10-13a his kingship over all,
vv. 14-20 of his care of all in need.
Responsiveness to his call brings
protection (v. 20a) but those who oppose his ways will be destroyed. Finally,
v. 21 combines the personal commitment to God with that of “all flesh”.
Tuesday, 24 July 2018—Psalm136:1-9; key verse v26— The phrase “the
God of heaven” (v.26) is a Persian title for God found frequently in Ezra,
Nehemiah and Daniel. The Psalm is a liturgy of praise to the Lord as Creator
and as Israel’s Redeemer. Its theme and many of its verses parallel much of
Psalm 135. Most likely a Levitical song leader led the recital which the choir
or worshipers responded with the refrain. The Psalm recounts God’s mighty acts
as the psalmist devotes six verse to God’s creation acts (Vv.1-3) six to His
deliverance of Israel out of Egypt (Vv.10-15) one to the desert journey (v. 16)
and six to the conquest (Vv.17-22) The four concluding verses return to the
same basic themes in reverse order; God’s action in history ion behalf of His
people (Vv.23-24), God’s action in the creation order (v.25) and a closing call
to praise (v.26).
Wednesday, 25 July 2018— Genesis 9:8-17— We need to recognize the
reality and depth of human resistance to God.
That is seen in killing Jesus.
What we call “sin” is not just the naughty things we do that make the
tabloid headlines. Sin can be deadly and
destructive. It has consequences. And it offends. There is a deep seriousness
to human wrong-doing – sin – that means that consequences cannot simply be
bypassed.
We can either turn away from
them, or we can wrestle with them. Here we see God’s refusal to be
marginalized. The next time instead of destroying the world through a flood He
will turn His wrath on His own Son.
Thursday, 26 July 2018—Ephesians 3:14-21 — This section of the letter offers a bit of
relief from the heavy theological portions that have been read up to this
point. It presents a moment of tenderness, in which the author speaks directly
to his readers about his care for them. He speaks of his prayer for his
readers, which he does on bended knee.
Paul, like other apostles, had
been entrusted with revelation by the Spirit. Specifically, it had been
revealed to him that Gentiles, who receive the gospel in faith, are fellow
heirs of the promises of God. They too are members of the body of Christ, and
therefore they have access to God. "For this reason," the author
prays that his readers may be strengthened in spiritual power, love, and
knowledge.
Friday, 27 July 2015—Mark 6:45-56 —In Mark 1:16-20 when Jesus called
Simon, Andrew, James, and John without any apparent previous knowledge of
Jesus, they left everything immediately and followed him. What had they
recognized in Jesus? It is remarkable that none of the gospels provide a
physical description of Jesus. We will never be able to pin him down by virtue
of his appearance. Rather, we will always have to recognize Jesus for who He is
and what He does. It is more than the miracles and healings Jesus performed or
the things he taught. It may actually take the gift of faith to recognize the
one who died on the cross as the Christ, the Son of God, the Savior of the
world.
Saturday, 28 July 2015—Psalm 37:5 - Sunday’s hymn of the day Entrust Your Days and Burdens, (LSB
754). In the midst of our busy and
hurried lives it is easy to loose sight that it is the Lord who orders our days
and directs our path. Thus the hymn writer will remind us, “For He who guides the tempests along their
thunderous ways will find for you a pathway and guide you all your days.”
Place you confidence in Him. He can be trusted at His word. We can rely on Him
as we recall what He has done.
Prayers from Lutheran Service Book © 2006 and Lutheran
Worship © 1980 Concordia Publishing House and from Lutheran Worship © 1980
Concordia Publishing House.
Luther’s Seal © Ed Rioja Higher Things
No comments:
Post a Comment