(Eph.6:1-9;   Ps.145:10-14;   Lk.13:22-30)

“Do God’s will with your whole heart

as slaves of Christ.”

These words Paul addresses to the slaves of his time, instructing them to “obey [their] human masters with the reverence, the awe, and the sincerity [they] owe to Christ,” but they apply well to us all, who are in all things to serve the Lord.  Always we should “give [our] service willingly, doing it for the Lord rather than men.”  This is as “the narrow door” of which our Lord speaks; this is what will bring us into His heavenly kingdom.  For it is certain that “each one, whether slave or free, will be repaid by the Lord for whatever good he does.”

Brothers and sisters, the Lord’s “kingdom is a kingdom for all ages, and [His] dominion endures through all generations.”  It matters not when we live or where, or what position we have in society – none of these things pertain to the reign of God.  For those who are to be saved shall indeed come from the four corners of the universe and from every period of time, and as Paul says to masters of their slaves: “You and they have a Master in heaven who plays no favorites.”  So if you think that any honor or preference of this earth will smooth your way into the kingdom, you are surely mistaken and risk the grave disappointment of discovering that “some are first who will be last,” or finding yourself barred from His House for failing to serve the Lord with all your heart in all the things of the world.  For He has come to serve and not to be served, and He “lifts up all who are falling and raises up all who are bowed down.”

Jesus goes “through cities and towns teaching – all the while making His way toward Jerusalem.”  Even unto the cross He offers instruction to those who would follow Him.  He is as the fathers Paul instructs to “bring [their children] up with the training and instruction befitting the Lord.”  But we must heed His words; we must honor and obey the Lord as children are expected to honor and obey their parents.  For His words are wise and they carry the greatest promise: “That it may go well with you, and that you may have long life,” not so much upon this earth, but in the heavenly kingdom.

Do all things in His name, brothers and sisters.  Honor Him.  Obey Him.  Serve Him well that He might see you and “know where you come from” and thus honor you “at the feast in the kingdom of God.”

*******

O LORD, let us follow in your narrow way  

that we might be saved;  

let us honor you with all our lives. 

YHWH, all are one in your kingdom, for you do not play favorites with your children but call all the same to your presence.  And so the lowly you raise from the dust and the exalted you tear down… for all must come to you on an even path.  The narrow way that leads to your glory is not dependent on the concerns of this age.

And so slaves are no less your children than their masters; masters no less than their slaves – it matters only their devotion to you.  All are called to serve you, LORD, to follow the command you give to each one.  And so father and son may come equally unto Heaven if they do as fits their role, as fits your call. 

Let children obey their parents and parents nurture their children in the faith.  Let workers perform their tasks with zeal and those over them treat all with respect and love.  Let all discourse of your glory by their service to you, giving you thanks for the splendor of your kingdom, to which they thereby come.  Praise you, LORD, for your goodness toward all!

(Eph.5:21-33;   Ps.128:1-5;   Lk.13:18-21)

“To what shall I compare the reign of God?”

Jesus Himself compares it to a mustard seed which grows so steadily into a “large shrub,” and to yeast which makes “the whole mass of dough” rise.  And Paul tells us of the marriage union that it “refers to Christ and the Church.”  These images should lead you, brother, to understand the glorious kingdom that is beyond all image.

“The husband is head of the wife just as Christ is head of His body, the Church,” and husbands should “love [their] wives, as Christ’s loved the Church,” giving themselves “up for her” as the Lord has done for us.  A wonderfully beautiful call; a marvelous image which is to bring the Lord so really into our midst: love between husband and wife – the love of love upon this earth, which indeed brings the fruit of new life.  “A man shall leave his father and mother, and shall cling to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.”  Here is a word of truth incomparable to others in the joy it brings the ear and the heart open to its call.  For by it is promised great happiness to those “who fear the Lord, who walk in His ways.”  Yes, the obedient man will find that his “wife shall be like a fruitful vine” and his “children like olive plants around [his] table”; great is the blessing upon those who wed in love, the true love of the Lord.

But a greater promise than this does this word bring, for in it is indeed “a great foreshadowing”; in it we see not only the fruitful love of man and woman, but of God and His people.  For does not Jesus leave His Father in heaven and cling to us?  Does it not bring the great knowledge that we shall be made one with Him and with His Father in heaven?  If “he who loves his wife loves himself,” does this not emphasize the absolute oneness of husband and wife?  And if such marriage foreshadows Christ’s love for us, can we not conclude that we will be as He is?

Oh to what glory we are called!  To be as the only Son of God, to be one with Him.  Indeed “we are members of His body” even now, certainly.  Has Jesus not asked Saul why he was persecuting Him, referring to His Church (Acts 9:4); and has He not said what we do unto the least of our brothers we do unto Him?  We are one with Him even now, but yet we are growing, yet we are rising.  And the immeasurable glory to which we come is beyond even the most poignant image to depict.  It is absolute fullness, absolute union with our Lord and God.  Alleluia!  “The prosperity of [the New] Jerusalem” is ours.

*******

O LORD, teach us to love one another 

that we might be joined to your Son 

and so enter your reign.

YHWH, may husbands and wives be truly one in your sight; let there be no separation between them.  For they are one as we are one with your Son, and why would we separate ourselves from our Lord?  Salvation is ours in Him and in our love for one another.  Let us be obedient to His voice and fear you and walk in your ways, and we shall grow unto Heaven. 

O LORD, you greatly bless those who fear you, who worship you alone and always do your will.  Help us to live according to your Word, particularly as it affects marriages.  For this day there is great separation between husband and wife, between man and woman; no sense of their oneness seems known anymore.  Set against one another do they not set themselves against you?  And living thus, how shall their love grow?  Then what hope have any of being fruitful in your sight and coming into your eternal presence?  It seems their children they would let die.  O save us from such destructive pride that we might love one another as ourselves, as you love us in your Son.

(Eph.4:32-5:8;   Ps.1:1-4,6,Eph.5:1;   Lk.13:10-17)

“There was a time when you were darkness,

but now you are light in the Lord.”

Brothers and sisters, remember always that “God has forgiven you in Christ.”  Once you “walk[ed] in the way of sinners,” but now you are as he who “delights in the law of the Lord.”  And so as God has shown His mercy to you, so should you do unto others; we must “be imitators of God as His dear children.”  As when Jesus saw the woman who “was badly stooped – quite incapable of standing erect,” for eighteen years afflicted by her infirmity, He had pity for her, called her to Him and “laid His hand on her” so that “immediately she stood up straight and began thanking God”… so should our hearts go out to all those in need, all those afflicted by infirmity and sin, that all might be as well as we have become, that all might praise God as we do.

“Make no mistake about this: no fornicator, no unclean or lustful person – in effect an idolater – has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.”  Brothers and sisters, how many of us have been guilty of the deadly sins of which Paul speaks today?  (And if not these, what others?)  How many of us have deserved to be barred from the kingdom?  In truth we must say that all of us have fallen short of God’s glory and found ourselves in desperate need of the salvation only Christ brings.  And so should we hold out no hope for those who commit such sins now, who are as we have been?  Certainly “there are sins that bring God’s wrath down on the disobedient” and put them in danger of dying; but do we instruct these to “have nothing to do with them,” do we offer light to those in such darkness… or do we presume their condemnation?

The Lord left not the stooped woman in Satan’s clutches, despite the “indignant” attitude of the leaders of the synagogue – whose own inability to stand erect is so much more difficult to cure.  No, the Lord saw a soul in need and reached His hand out to her; and should we not do the same with those we see suffering affliction, if not with a healing touch of our hand at least with the healing touch of devout prayer?  The well-being of others must always be our concern.  We must ever “be kind to one another, compassionate, and mutually forgiving.”  For if our hearts stoop to jealousy and judgment as does the leader of the synagogue’s, what hope shall there be for us then of entering God’s kingdom?  We must ever be children of light, dispelling all darkness, if we are truly to be the “dear children” of our Lord. 

*******

O LORD, let us stand up straight before you,  

turning from sin and walking in your way at all times. 

YHWH, let us be as your dear children, kind and compassionate toward others, ever reflecting your glory.  Let there be no sin among us, not even the whispering desire for sin.  Let us live as your children of light – banish all darkness from us. 

Help us to walk in your way, O LORD, to be well instructed in your paths; for there are many who wander aimlessly and are easily subject to Satan’s wiles.  Let us be taught as the Jews of Jesus’ day and listen with attentive hearts to His words.  Indeed, like Him let us become, like a tree planted near the running water of the Spirit, and we shall prosper all our days, ever bearing fruit in your NAME. 

Make clear to all, O LORD, that sin is sin, that the idolatry of lust is a turning from you and the light of your truth and the love of your heart.  Keep us from certain death, from the counsel of the wicked, delighting only in your Law day and night.

(Jer.31:7-9;   Ps.126:1-6;   Heb.5:1-6;   Mk.10:46-52) 

“They departed in tears,

but I will console them and guide them.”

Through Jeremiah the Lord prophesies that His people Israel “shall return as an immense throng,” that He will “gather them from the ends of the world, with the blind and the lame in their midst.”  And in our gospel we see Jesus “leaving Jericho with His disciples and a sizable crowd,” picking up the blind Bartimaeus along the way.  How the Lord fulfills the ancient prophecies.  And now Jesus stands as our high priest in heaven, “offer[ing] gifts and sacrifices for sins,” bringing all by His cross to the kingdom of God.

“Those that sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.”  Brothers and sisters, we are all like the blind Bartimaeus, sitting “by the roadside begging,” calling out to the Lord for forgiveness and guidance, saying to Him as He calls us before Himself, “Master, I want to see.”  How blind we all are, how deaf and how lame.  How we need our vision renewed by the Lord of all, that indeed we might see as He sees, with a purity beyond the scope of our race, to penetrate the mysteries which shroud us like the blind man’s cloak in this life.  We must throw off the darkness, cast aside the shroud of death that weighs upon our shoulders by our sins and take upon ourselves the cross of Christ and walk with Him “on the way,” on the road to the New Jerusalem.  How shall we know the “brooks of water” which satiate our thirst, “the torrents in the southern desert” that cleanse our arid souls and bring them to life once more, except by the tears we cry, except with hearts reaching out and voices reaching up to Him who is so far above our ways?  In His way alone we will find the “level road” on which “none shall stumble.”  Only by this cry will we know the graces our high priest offers all our lives.

“Although [we] go forth weeping, carrying the seed to be sown, [we] shall come back rejoicing, carrying [our] sheaves.”  For the Lord shall not forget us; He will not pass us by and leave us in our tears alone.  But through our tears we shall see His holy light descend like a dove of peace upon our souls.  Yes, we shall see; our eyes will be opened and our path will be set.  And He shall guide us every step of our way.  And “our mouth [will be] filled with laughter, and our tongue with rejoicing” on that holy Day.  Praise our merciful God!

Written, read & chanted, and produced by James Kurt.

Music: "No Paranoia" from Cleansing Human Frailty, fourth album of Songs for Children of Light, by James Kurt.

*******

O LORD, let us follow Jesus on the way to the Cross

that we might follow Him to Heaven.

YHWH, in Jesus your Son we are returned to sonship with you; we who had been exiled because of our sins are brought back to your presence, and as a Father you embrace us and open our eyes to see your glory.

Restore our fortunes, O LORD.  In tears we come before you, to your Son we cry out for mercy, and He cannot but hear and answer our call, He cannot but call us before Himself and grant the desire of our heart.  O let us have the faith needed to believe in Him and so find the blessing only He holds.

Jesus, you are our high priest, you are Son of David and Son of God.  Let us run to you for healing of our blindness and lameness that we might see you and follow you along the way to the New Jerusalem.  In the peace of the Father let us rest, in the joy of our salvation.

With all your saints let us enter your gates, O Father in Heaven, by the grace that comes to us in your only Son.

(Eph.4:7-16;   Ps.122:1-5;   Lk.13:1-9)

“Each of us has received God’s favor

in the measure in which Christ bestows it.”

Paul reminds us today of Scripture: “When He ascended on high, He took a host of captives and gave gifts to men.”  Christ Himself “descended into the lower regions of the earth,” coming to the place where we lowly humans dwell, and then “ascended into heaven, that He might fill all men with His gifts,” that those to whom He comes here on earth might know the riches of heaven to which He draws us all.

“It is He who gave apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers in roles of service for the faithful to build up the body of Christ.”  Yes, He gave us these leaders such as Paul to guide us to all truth, but He no less has given us each a share of His heavenly glory and bestowed upon each of us the gifts that are our portion from Him.  None is without gifts, and none can fail to employ these gifts.  It is necessary that the Body of Christ has “the proper functioning of [its] members joined firmly together by each supporting ligament” if it is to grow in love as it is called to do.  All our gifts must be employed to the full; each must fulfill his role.

The Lord makes clear the call upon each of our souls to utilize the gifts He grants to each of His members.  Listen to the words of the vinedresser in His parable: “For three years now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree and found none.”  Who is that vinedresser but Jesus Himself and who is that fig tree but we who claim to be His disciples?  And finding no fruit on the fig tree, what does the vinedresser say?  “Cut it down.  Why should it clutter up the ground?”  Why indeed should we drag down the Body of Christ struggling to grow in love in this world; if we are dead members, what place have we in His kingdom?  And unless we reform in the short time we are given, what shall become of our souls?

Brothers and sisters, do we not wish to “go up to the house of the Lord,” to rejoice in the heavenly Jerusalem, to “form that perfect man who is Christ come to full stature”?  Then our tree must bear fruit in His name and serve to build up the Body in love; “if not, it shall be cut down,” and we shall be separated from the glorious presence of the Lord.  See the great graces and gifts the Lord showers upon you; pray for their fulfillment, for their growing more and more – “profess the truth in love” and the favors you have been given will bear their fruit, for your benefit and that of the whole world. 

*******

O LORD, let us not be cut down

 but built up as the Body of your Son. 

YHWH, let us make our home in you; in the Body of your Son let us find our place.  In your holy Church may we ever dwell, bearing fruit in your NAME.   To full maturity let us come, in Jesus who has come to us.

O LORD, in your House let us rejoice; let us find our peace in the New Jerusalem.  Within Her gates we are safe from every false doctrine, from every whim and fancy of man.  For divine wisdom rests in Her whom the Christ has formed by His own hands, in His own blood.  Since He has founded the Church and its servants, it is He who lives in it with you. 

But we must leave behind our sin if we are to find such perfection in Him.  We must reform our lives if we are to be made in the image of Christ your Son.  O LORD, let our lives not be empty; let us not come to a sudden end…  May we please you by our repentance and know your blessings upon us this day.  Let your Church and all its members grow and bear fruit in Jesus’ Name. 

(Eph.4:1-6;   Ps.24:1-6;   Lk.12:54-59)

“Make every effort to preserve the unity

which has the Spirit as its origin

and peace as its binding force.”

Is this not what Jesus instructs the crowds in saying, “When you are going with your opponent to appear before a magistrate, try to settle with him on the way”?  Do not both Paul and Jesus speak of the love we must have one for another, even for those who may seem our enemies?  Again, in the House of God there is unity, there is peace.  Among His children there should be understanding, there should be grace.  We must make every effort to have no enemies – to hate no one, to bear no grudge against any – in this life or the next.

Brothers and sisters, we are called to live as one, “bearing with one another lovingly,” for “there is but one body and one Spirit” in Christ; “there is one Lord, one faith, one baptism,” which we all share, and so we should live as children of the “one God and Father of all.”  On our oneness in the Lord our hearts should be set, and nothing should disturb the peace we find in Him.  We see so many other things, we understand so much of the world and its ways… why do we not understand this?  Why do we not know and practice God’s way?

“The Lord’s are the earth and its fullness; the world and those who dwell in it.”  This David tells us: all are one under the Lord God.  But only those “whose hands are sinless, whose heart is clean,” “may stand in His holy place.”  We cannot “ascend the mountain of the Lord” if we are not made perfect as He.  And so the Lord warns us of the necessity of settling all our accounts here, now, while there is time – while we yet have breath and eyes to see – lest we come to the judge at the end of time with the darkness of sin upon our soul.  Now is His mercy offered forth, and we are called in turn to offer it freely to others.  Then will be grave punishment for sin, for failures to love and maintain unity.

“A blessing from the Lord” awaits us all.  He “that seeks the face of the God of Jacob” shall receive his reward.  Even now the Spirit of the Lord grants us a foretaste of such grace.  But we must be ever diligent to maintain it.  We must be ever ready to forgive one another if we are to remain in Him.  And so I ask: forgive me, brother; forgive me, sister, any wrong I have done you… and be assured of my forgiveness. 

*******

O LORD, help us to stand in your holy place,

as reflections of your peace and your love for all. 

YHWH, you are LORD of Heaven and earth and all is under your watchful care.  We are in you and in your Son and have your one Spirit at our heart’s core.  Let us live in peace!  Let us live as your children, holy as you are.

If we maintain not humility and peace in our souls, can we be said to be your own?  O LORD, if we settle not with our opponent here on this earth, how can we come unto your heavenly presence?  There can be no anger or hatred in us; indeed, our hands must be sinless if we are to enter your eternal kingdom and make our home in you.

And so, dear LORD, help us to forgive one another, to love all as you love them – let us be the race that seeks ever your holy face and never turn aside from such desire for utter love in your presence.  Forgive all those who sin against us, and please let us be forgiven in your sight.

 (Eph.3:14-21; Ps.33:1-2,4-5,11-12,18-19; Lk.12:49-53) 

“Do you think I have come to establish peace on the earth?”

Strong contrast we find in our readings today.  Jesus speaks of the division He has come to bring by the fire of truth He lights on this earth – fire like a sword separating even the closest of family members one from another; whereas Paul speaks of “the breadth and the length and the height and the depth of Christ’s love” and the great oneness found in “the Father from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name.”  How does one reconcile this apparent contradiction?  Is the Lord of peace or division?

Brothers and sisters, there is no contradiction here.  Paul speaks of the “glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus” which exists “through all generations” and which we share “with all the holy ones” for whom “charity [is] the root and foundation of [their] life.”  As our psalmist proclaims, “Happy the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He has chosen for His own inheritance.”  In the House of God is peace.  In His Church is the oneness of perfect love, and all its members “experience this love which surpasses all knowledge” and “attain to the fullness of God Himself.”

Then whence the division the Lord emphasizes?  The division exists here on earth, as He Himself states.  When the light of truth comes up against the darkness that is this world, when the holy ones of God meet up with the children of this evil age, there is necessarily division.  Despite the best efforts of the just to bring peace to all, how often is our offering of peace rejected – how frequently is Christ nailed to the cross.  So, though we yet hold love for all as the disciples of our living Lord, it cannot but be that many will cling to darkness and so find an enemy in the light.  And thus division comes.  Though in heaven and in the Church there is nothing but peace, the world breeds only division.

Brothers and sisters, “may Christ dwell in your hearts through faith.”  “May [the Father] strengthen you inwardly through the workings of His Spirit” as you undergo the anguish of the baptism His Son has known.  May He keep you in peace and “bestow on you gifts in keeping with the riches of His glory.”  For soon division will be gone and His peace will be all that is known.

*******

O LORD, how your love separates

the evil from the good! –

may we know the fullness of your love

 at work in our lives. 

YHWH, great is your glory, far above the ways of men – how can we grasp this surpassing knowledge, how can we know your all-encompassing love?  Though you dwell beyond our reach, in your kindness you stoop down to us, to share with us the great riches of your glory.

And so, what should we do but praise your NAME?  What should we do but thank you in song?  For you have looked upon us in our lowliness and delivered us from death and sin, and made us one with all your holy ones in your eternal kingdom.

But what of those who reject you, LORD?  What of those who spurn your love, who desire not the peace which surpasses understanding?  What can they do but fight against your Church?  And those may be of our own family.  Then where are we?  How shall there be peace on this earth among those who despise your gifts?  Give us strength to share in the baptism of your Son, in the fire we must endure on our way to Heaven; help us to conquer all division and stand always with you.

(Eph.3:2-12;   Is.12:2-6;   Lk.12:39-48)

“When much has been given a man,

much will be required of him.”

Yes, “more will be asked of a man to whom more has been entrusted,” and today we see two of the men to whom the most has been entrusted.  First, of course, is Peter, who queries the Lord and to whom the Lord addresses His question, “Who in your opinion is that faithful, farsighted steward whom the master will set over his servants to dispense their ration of grain in season?” knowing full well it is to the blessed Rock of His Church He speaks.  And Paul tells us how “through the gift God in His goodness bestowed on [him] through the exercise of His power, [he] became a minister of the Gospel.”  Paul has been “given the grace to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ and to enlighten all men on the mysterious design which for ages was hidden in God, the Creator of all.”  The Rock of the Church and its great Apostle – how much has been entrusted to these two men!

And what has been entrusted to these is entrusted to all who follow in their wake, to all “the holy apostles and prophets” to whom “the mystery of Christ” is “revealed by the Spirit.”  And so the same responsibility is upon them as well.  The Lord has promised, “With joy you will draw water at the fountain of salvation,” and how can the faithful find such life-giving water if the Lord’s priests and preachers do not offer it forth freely as it has been given them?  If they withhold the children’s food and their tongues cleave to the roofs of their mouths, how shall the Church be fed, how shall she be instructed in the way she should walk?  If the guardians of the truth are not vigilant, but rather begin “to abuse the housemen and servant girls, to eat and drink and get drunk,” feeding only themselves, their own bellies… what shall become of the Body of Christ?  And what shall become of those who have allowed the Lord’s House to be broken into?

“Sing praise to the Lord for His glorious achievement; let this be known throughout all the earth”: that “God indeed is [our] Savior,” and all are called unto Him.  Brothers and sisters, we all share in the priesthood of Peter and the evangelical ministry of Paul, and so, “drawing near Him with confidence,” we must all “among the nations make known [the Lord’s] deeds.”  All have been given a measure of the Lord’s grace and power, and all are responsible for fulfilling the “master’s wishes” with regard to our call.  This is our gift from God, to share in His work of service, in His cross.  Let us embrace it as readily as have Peter and Paul. 

*******

O LORD, may we all be faithful stewards

of your manifold gifts 

and find our salvation in your Son.

 YHWH, you are in our midst and you call us all to your work, to service of your Church in your holy NAME.  Through your Son Jesus Christ we all may share in your manifold wisdom, in the salvation to glory wrought by His blood…  Let us give thanks to you and acclaim your NAME, serving you faithfully all our days.

LORD, it should be our joy to serve you; it should be our very food.  What greater gift could we hope for than to share in your promise and in your blessed ministry with Peter and Paul?  One are we in your Body, in the flesh of your Son, and freely may we come to you now with all our petitions and find you ready to answer our plea – what blessing is ours by your grace!

Let us draw water at the fountain of salvation, LORD; let us drink freely of the glory you offer forth.  Remaining ever faithful to your will, let us draw ever closer to you, till we sing your praises forever in your kingdom.

(Eph.2:12-22;   Ps.85:9-14;   Lk.12:35-38)

“You who were once far off

have been brought near through the blood of Christ.”

We who “were excluded from the community of Israel,” who were not of His chosen people upon whom His Spirit rested and so were “without hope and without God in the world,” now are “fellow citizens of the saints and members of the household of God” by the great grace of the cross of Christ.  Now, “in Him [we] are being built into this temple”; now all “have access in one Spirit to the Father.”

“He came and ‘announced the good news of peace to you who were far off, and to those who were near” – to us who were far off, we of the nations apart from “the covenant and the promise,” that the promise might be ours as well; but also to those who were near, those to whom the covenant had been given.  For those who were near were also far off; they too were blind to His presence in their midst and needed their eyes opened by the living Christ.  For though the word and the sacrifice were at their hands, far was He from their hearts, and so the blessed coming of the Messiah is for these, of course, as well.  He came, in fact, for them first of all.

“Near indeed is His salvation to those who fear Him.”  Gentile or Jew, it does not matter.  Now there is but one race: Christian.  Now there is but one Savior for all.  For now indeed there is “glory dwelling in our land,” and any who come to it become children of its light and are fitted into the House of the Lord.  “He proclaims peace” now unto all, that all might know “His benefits.”

And are we ready for His coming again?  Do we heed our Lord’s exhortation in our gospel today?  Do we serve Him constantly, ever keeping a place for Him in our hearts and at our tables, that when He comes the great promise He makes to His servants – “He will put on an apron, seat them at table, and proceed to wait on them” – we will know?  Will we be gathered into His heart and His home?  Brothers and sisters, “become a dwelling for God in the Spirit.”  Realize the blessing that is ours now through the cross.  If under its blessed shade we take refuge, if we heed the call to come from our former residences so distant from Him and draw near to the love of the Lord, then already we will sense “the master’s return” upon us, and holy light it will bring to our souls.

*******

O LORD, let us be built into your Temple

and become your dwelling place in the Spirit –

your light in our eyes, your peace in our souls,

your love in our hearts at all times.

YHWH, let us be prepared for the second coming of your Son; may the blood He shed make us one with you and with one another, that in peace we might wait for His return, that in your Spirit we might dwell even this day.  As your holy temple let us be, that we might know your call in our souls and do your will in all things.

You look down upon us in kindness, LORD, and so your Son you have sent.  He is Truth walking among us, leading us on the way of peace.  And so, your benefits we may know; our work may yield its increase – our lives may be made worthy of your coming kingdom.

O LORD, let our eyes be open, looking for your Son’s return; let our hearts be set on the promise He leaves us.  O let Him freely enter our homes and we be fed by His hand alone – please let us be joined to your saints in Heaven, forming one House in your NAME.

(Eph.2:1-10;   Ps.100:2-5;   Lk.12:13-21) 

“It is owing to His favor that salvation is yours through faith.

This is not your own doing, it is God’s gift.”

Brothers and sisters, salvation is no “reward for anything [we] have accomplished.”  It is nothing we make by our own hands, but comes only by God’s “kindness to us in Christ Jesus.”

“God is rich in mercy.”  Here is the great truth; this is our great hope: “Because of His great love for us He brought us to life with Christ when we were dead in sin.”  By our own hands we had but built up our condemnation and so “deserved God’s wrath.”  Like the foolish rich man, we thought we could take our refuge in the things of this earth, that in them we would “have blessings in reserve for years to come.”  But however much we “pull down [our] grain bins and build larger ones,” filling them with all the “grain” and “goods” of the world, we yet will have nothing; yet will we be empty and in need.  For our life is in His hands alone.  “He made us” and not we ourselves; “we are truly His handiwork,” and so, dependent on Him for all things.  And if not for His mercy we would yet be dead in our sin.

Brothers and sisters, we must not “live at the level of the flesh”; we cannot give our “allegiance to the present age and the prince of the air” and remain in the favor of God.  “Following every whim and fancy of our own” will but lead us down a dark road, and all the “piled-up wealth” we can amass will give us no light for the night ahead.  Truly we must realize that we are “created in Christ Jesus to lead the life of good deeds which God prepared for us in advance.”  Now that by His mercy He has saved us, has lifted us from the mire into which we’d sunk, it is ours to “serve the Lord with gladness” and “come before Him with joyful song.”

“In Christ Jesus [God] raised us up and gave us a place in the heavens, that in the ages to come He might display the great wealth of His favor.”  And should we not but accept this gift from Him “whose kindness endures forever”?  Should we not humble ourselves before our Holy Lord and “enter His gates with thanksgiving”?  All He requires of our souls is to accept the salvation He brings us, and to grow “rich in the sight of God.”

*******

O LORD, make us rich in your sight;

by the favor you have granted us

through the salvation wrought in Christ Jesus,

remake us in your image. 

YHWH, you made us and have remade us in the image of your Son who has died for us that we might be dead in sin no more.  Let us praise the great favor from you and live always according to your Word.

We have accomplished nothing, LORD, nothing but our own condemnation, nothing but distraction from you as we turn to the flesh and riches of this world.  As to the evil spirit we give our allegiance, we find your wrath upon us; we find the death we have wrought by sin.

But you are merciful, LORD, and call us through your Son to salvation from this darkness that has enveloped our souls.  You would indeed remake us in Christ; He would indeed restore us to our former glory and carry us to your kingdom.  O let us not set our hearts on the riches of this earth but seek only the grace that comes to us at your hands, in His blood.  Let us enter your courts with songs of praise this day.

(Is.53:10-11;   Ps.33:4-5,18-20,22;   Heb.4:14-16;   Mk.10:35-45) 

“We have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens,

Jesus, the Son of God.”

And this is He who is both priest and victim, for “He gives His life as an offering for sin” – He Himself is our sacrifice.  Here is one who is able “to sympathize with our weaknesses… one who has similarly been tested in every way, yet without sin.”  Here is He who has suffered the affliction of our fallen state but to raise us up with Himself from the mire, from the lowly condition we have come to know as our own.  Here is He who “give[s] His life as a ransom for many.”

But why?  Why is the Lord “pleased to crush Him in His infirmity”?  Why is our high priest so humbled in the sight of all?  Why is there such suffering in the world…?  Why need you ask?  Why need you question the will of God?  Do you not believe that “upright is the word of the Lord, and all His works are trustworthy”?  Do you not realize that the Lord looks with kindness upon all “those who fear Him… to deliver them from death and preserve them in spite of famine”?  Do you trust your own eyes more than the vision of God?

But if you must know, the Lord God tells you, “Through His suffering, my servant shall justify many, and their guilt He shall bear.”  If you must inquire, hear that it is for your sin there is suffering in the world and the Lord and His followers must carry the cross.  You need look no further than the blood on your hands…  But seeing this, do not fear – rejoice.  Rejoice, for now we may “confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace for timely help.”  Now the Savior does “lord it over” us by His sacrifice.  Now this “slave of all” has “authority over [us]” by the suffering He has undergone.  And now we must join Him on this cross.

“The cup that I drink, you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized” – His words to James and John are spoken to us all.  Glorious is the sacrifice to which we are called.  For He who is both priest and victim would now lift us with Himself through the veil of pain to the holy heavens, that knowing the fruit of “His affliction,” with Him all might “see the light in fullness of days.”

“Our soul waits for the Lord”; it suffers with Him.  And it is not disappointed by the sacrifice it shares.

Written, read & chanted, and produced by James Kurt.

Music: "The Sunset Bleeds Me Clean" (2nd half) from Bearing the Birth Pangs, tenth album of Songs for Children of Light, by James Kurt.

*******

O LORD, He who is slave of all,

He who has shed His blood to save our souls –  

with Him let us be one.

YHWH, your Son has given His life as a ransom for sin, that we might approach the throne of grace and find mercy, and find the blessing of your kindness upon our souls.  He has borne our guilt, and so from it we are freed.  But we must bear the Cross with Him if we are to find our way to Heaven.

This is the greatest grace, is it not, O LORD –  that we are called to share in the suffering of your Son, to drink of His cup and be baptized with His baptism?  We are called to serve as He has served, to give our lives with Him, and so to come to the place He has come, to your right hand in the kingdom.  O if we could only be as slaves of all!

By His death He has ransomed many.  Sharing in our weakness, suffering for our sakes – bearing His affliction, He shall see the light in fullness of days.  And we poor souls who trust in Him find our hope fulfilled, dear LORD, in that same light of your face.

(Eph.1:11-14;   Ps.33:1-2,4-5,12-13;   Lk.12:1-7)

“What you have whispered in locked rooms

will be proclaimed from the housetops.”

What we have whispered and what has been whispered to us, the teaching of the Lord, the truth of the Spirit, is destined to grow unto praise of God – to be proclaimed to the ends of the earth.  What begins here in a small way in Jesus the Messiah, shall proceed in His disciples to all nations.  In the dark, first it is but whispered.  It sinks deep into the locked rooms of our guarded hearts.  There the truth finds a home, takes root, and grows.  And all the world shall know…  All the world shall know all that is spoken in your heart.

Brothers and sisters, “when you heard the glad tidings of salvation, the word of truth, and believed in it, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit who had been promised.”  In Him and in His truth whispering in your heart you found “the pledge of our inheritance, the first payment against the full redemption of a people God has made His own to praise His glory.”  Though a tiny spark at first, concealed in the dark, this flame has burned intensely, and now becomes the fire of praise unto God.  “We were predestined to praise His glory”; this was the Lord’s desire from the first moment He touched us with His Word.  And now His plan must be fulfilled.

As Jesus looks about in our gospel and sees “a crowd of thousands had gathered, so dense that they were treading on one another,” He realizes how the flame has already begun to grow.  And so He warns His disciples to be true to the Word He has labored to plant in their minds and hearts and souls.  He knows that they will be tempted by “the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy,” that they may be inclined to speak what will tickle the public’s ear in order to gain their approval and support.  Thus does He say, “Do not be afraid”: do not be afraid of what the truth may bring or that you might be killed for speaking it.  Remain true to what I have whispered to you in our locked rooms, for the Word must go out to the ends of the earth.  Their mission upon them, He calls His friends to fulfill it.

And so let all our voices resound with the praise of God who has saved us, for “praise from the upright is fitting.”  “Exult, you just, in the Lord… for upright is the word of the Lord, and all His works are trustworthy.”  Now all must know that “of the kindness of the Lord the earth is full,” so fail not to “chant His praises,” to proclaim His truth to all the world.  It is here we are called to do so.

*******

O LORD, let us not fear to praise your glory

before all the world.

YHWH, we are called through your Son to declare your glory, to sing your praises in the light of this day.  May we in faith and sincerity fulfill this call and come at last into your kingdom.

You are our LORD, you are our God, and all things are known to your eyes.  Life and death are in your hands, and only in you do we find the promise of the Holy Spirit fulfilled – only in you and by your Son will we inherit eternal glory.  Let us be your true disciples that, though we die for your cause, we may ever have life in you.

Praise you, LORD, for your goodness to us, for your watching over us and providing your Son to save us and your Spirit to lead us to your glory.  Let the truth you have spoken in the depths of our hearts be proclaimed openly to the ears of all men that the devil may be overcome and all your poor sparrows find their home in you.

(Gal.5:18-25;   Ps.1:1-4,6,Jn.8:12;   Lk.11:42-46)

“Since we live by the spirit,

let us follow the spirit’s lead.”

“Happy the man who follows not the counsel of the wicked nor walks in the way of sinners, nor sits in the company of the insolent”; these indeed follow not the spirit’s lead but the dictates of the flesh.  And all their “licentiousness” and “drunkenness,” all their “hostilities” and “envy,” shall but lead to their doom.  For “those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God!”  When they die – as already they are dead – the grave alone shall be their home, with the tortures that are found there.  But “those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified their flesh with its passions and desires” and so know the “fruit of the spirit” and not the flesh.  “Love, joy, peace” and all the precious gifts are theirs in this life, and shall remain with them forever.  The Spirit leads us to such blessing.

As for the Pharisees in our gospel today, they prove themselves children of the flesh and not the spirit, for though they “pay tithes on mint and rue and all the garden plants,” though they are so careful about the details of the letter of the law, their worship is in vain for they do all “while neglecting justice and the love of God,” thus tearing out the very heart of the law of God they presume to follow.  And so their path is the one which leads but to the grave.  They clearly are even now dead, “like hidden tombs over which men walk unawares.”  Here are “the insolent” the just must avoid.  Here are those who build pretense of holiness but have nothing of the spirit inside.  And so their decaying souls shall crumble from within, and “like chaff which the wind drives away,” so shall their remains be scattered like dust by the truth of the Spirit, which exposes and destroys all lies.

“The way of the wicked vanishes,” brothers and sisters.  It cannot stand, for there is no foundation, there is no truth on which it rests.  It is but empty, illusory, passing.  But we who claim to be sons and daughters of the living God, redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ and following the lead of the Holy Spirit, must have nothing to do with the fruits of this way.  Our worship must be true, must be genuine, must be that in which the flesh is crucified and the spirit allowed to breathe, that none of us will be crushed under the burden of sin but all be set free to walk in liberty now and forever.

*******

O LORD, let us not be counted among the wicked

but have your love and your truth burning in our souls.

YHWH, let our worship be genuine, let our hearts be set on love of you.  Let us follow the Spirit’s lead; your way of truth be our own this day.  Meditating on your Law, let us live it and bear its fruit.

Apart from you let us never be, O LORD, never separated from your love.  Crucified let our passions be, that we shall share in new life with your only Son.  Your joy and peace be with us always; keep us forever from jealousy and outbursts of rage.  In the Spirit let us make our home, never turning to what comes of the flesh.

Far from the paths of the wicked please keep us, LORD, that we shall not live our lives in vain; day and night let us think of you, and we shall be ever blessed.  O that we might bear your fruit all our days, that our leaves might never fade…  Keep us always close to you by your chastising word of truth.  Then the water of your Spirit will nourish us well and our sin will be known no more.

(Gal.5:1-6;   Ps.119:41,43-45,47-48;   Lk.11:37-41)

“Any of you who seek your justification in the law

have severed yourselves from Christ

and fallen from God’s favor!”

Brothers and sisters, “it is in the Spirit that we eagerly await the justification we hope for, and only faith can yield it.”  The works prescribed under the testament of old have had their day and their time is passed.  Circumcision, the central act of the law, along with the temple and its sacrifices, has been rendered useless.  Physically there may yet be benefit to this practice, and so it is employed widely, but spiritually it is now without merit.  All that is of the old law has been subsumed by the new, and to set our hearts on what is now dead will leave us but as empty and dead ourselves.

Now there is baptism in the name of the Lord.  Now there is Jesus and His Body, the Church.  Now there is the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.  With these in our midst all else pales, for these are set upon the Rock of eternal life; these are founded in the Spirit which does not pass, nor can be destroyed – and these are known only by faith.  Truly, “in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor the lack of it counts for anything; only faith, which expresses itself in love.”  Now that love has overcome the law, now that it has fulfilled it, why should we be concerned with the cutting of flesh?  It is our hearts that must be circumcised.

What is inside is what matters.  Jesus has said this repeatedly and He declares it again today to the Pharisee who is so preoccupied with physical washing, with the need to “cleanse the outside of the cup and dish.”  This is slavery!  Indeed it is born of an attachment to the things of this earth and places our neck under its yoke.  If we do not “give what [we] have as alms,” if we do not open our hearts to love of the Lord and love of neighbor, all the scouring of our skin will be utterly useless – in this way we shall never touch our souls.  We must have love, we must have faith, and do the outside things only as necessary.

“Let your kindness come to me, O Lord, your salvation according to your promise.”  Though I am no longer under the law of old, yet I see how weak I am, how reliant on the works of faith, and how ignorant and blind to your presence I can become.  And so I pray that you “take not the word of truth from my mouth.”  I pray you enter my house and recline at my table, and that my heart will be set on love of you above all… and that all things else will but serve this love.  Let me not fall from your favor, from your love.

*******

O LORD, help us to cleanse the inside of the cup

that by faith and love

we shall come to new life in the Spirit.

YHWH, you call us to love what is within, where you live, where you make your home.  But we are distracted by what is without, so shallow is our vision.  Help us to see as you see, to desire what is in your heart.  Then truly we shall be set free to walk as your sons.

O living God, your love instill within our souls; your truth alone let us speak.  Let us not be concerned with the works of the law, with the cutting of flesh and the washing of hands, but with the accomplishment of your will.  And so, to save ourselves from such empty worship, let us give all things to you.

If we had but faith, O LORD, then our vision would be clear, our hearts would be set on you alone, and all things would be ours.  Let us but seek our salvation in the keeping of your Word, and you will care for all else.  Make us clean in your sight!

(Gal.4:22-24,26-27,31-5:1;   Ps.113:1-7;   Lk.11:29-32)

“At the judgment, the citizens of Nineveh

will rise along with the present generation,

and they will condemn it.”

Paul’s words to the Galatians today sound much like a parable: “Abraham had two sons, one by the slave girl, the other by his freeborn wife.”  He himself states pointedly, “All this is clearly an allegory: the two women stand for the two covenants.”  But though Hagar may be seen as the mother of all “children [born] to slavery” and Sarah may be compared to “the Jerusalem on high,” which is free, the allegorical significance notwithstanding, both Hagar and Sarah were flesh and blood human beings who walked the face of the earth along with the father of their children, Abraham.  So, though the life of anyone may be seen in an allegorical light, it does not mean the life itself is but an allegory.

And yet the scholars of our day would turn the life of Jonah into a mere allegory – as they would, it seems, with Jesus.  They say that Jonah did not exist, that the book written of him is but a story, a parable.  And so they say that the Lord would compare Himself to a parabolic figure: “Just as Jonah was a sign for the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be a sign for the present age.”  And so they say we will be judged by fictional characters.

The Lord’s words remain ever true: “This is an evil age.”  It is given a sign, the greatest of signs, and it denies it.  It seeks further sign with a heart only to deny once more.  Why?  Because it has no faith.  And without faith one cannot reason; without faith one can see nothing.  Truth remains ever hidden from one’s eyes.  And so those with empty minds stumble blindly through their theorems, the products of a diseased imagination.  And so those without faith seek at every turn to tear down the faith, which ever eludes their clawing grasp.  But they shall be judged.  What shock will be theirs when the ones they have sought so vainly to make into fictional characters stand before them to condemn them to death.  Perhaps then they will see.  Perhaps then there will be an end to “the yoke of slavery” they would place upon the “freeborn” children of God.

Beware the faithless soul, dear children.  Remember only, “From the rising to the setting of the sun is the name of the Lord to be praised.”  Indeed, “high above the nations is the Lord; above the heavens is His glory,” and He shall lift you “lowly from the dust” to be with Him.  As He tears down those who exalt themselves and reveals their children to be so vain, then He will bring your fruits to light and you will bear many.  The works of all will be exposed on that Day.

*******

O LORD, how great you are

and how great is your gift to us,

for your Son has freed us to walk with Him –

let us repent at His word.

YHWH, we are your freeborn children for whom your Son has died; in Him we find new life.  In the blood of Jesus is found the New Covenant, a covenant which unites us with you in glory.

Praise you, LORD, for such a great gift!  Thank you for the grace that comes to us, your once wayward sons.  Though we have been barren of children, empty of any fruit as we wandered far from you outside the walls of Jerusalem, yet you have looked upon us with mercy and called us to your side.  Help us to reform our lives that the fullness of your gracious gift might be known to us on the Day your Son returns to judge all souls.

Yes, LORD, the lowly ones you raise from the dust to sit with you in heavenly places, to know your great blessings in the kingdom on high.  Free our souls to praise you for your glory.  Set free from slavery to sin we shall share in the joy of the New Jerusalem and declare your wonders forever.

(Wis.7:7-11;   Ps.90:12-17;   Heb.4:12-13;   Mk.10:17-30) 

“The word of God is living and effective,

sharper than any two-edged sword.”

“Penetrating even between soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart… everything is naked and exposed to the eyes of Him to whom we must render an account.”  Here is His Spirit of Wisdom, whose “splendor… never yields to sleep,” who has “countless riches at her hands.”  It is this penetrating Wisdom we must pray to be with us, if we are to save our immortal souls.  Without her nothing has any worth at all.

How shall we “number our days aright” and “gain wisdom of heart”?  How shall we walk the road the Lord leads us upon and find His “gracious care” to “prosper the work of our hands”?  How shall we avoid the emptiness the riches of this world inevitably bring and acquire the conviction needed to follow the Lord?  The allure of gold, of mammon, is so great, is so easy to set our hearts upon – how shall we hear what the Lord says in love to the man who falls on his knees before Him: “Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven”?  How shall we give up house and family and lands all “for [His] sake and for the sake of the Gospel” to find “a hundred times more” these things, “with persecutions, and eternal life in heaven”?  Only by the Wisdom that comes from God, never by the thoughts of our own heart.

Clearly the disciples do not yet understand this or they would not ask with such amazement, “Then who can be saved?” when told of the difficulties riches bring.  For still, though not for long, their hearts are set on the things of this earth, and still they judge with a worldly eye.  The vision that comes of the pure light of Wisdom will not be theirs until the flame of the Holy Spirit burns in their souls.  Then their own spirits will be one with the Lord and they will be able to discern that “all gold, in view of her, is a little sand.”  Then the length and breadth and depth of their mission they will comprehend.

Let the word of God be heard by all, spoken by all His prophets and priests.  Let it pierce many hearts, that some may be saved by the grace that enters where it bleeds.  Here is the only way to life.

Written, read & chanted, and produced by James Kurt.

Music: "In Your Eyes" from Loving Spirit, third album of Songs for Children of Light, by James Kurt.

*******

O LORD, do we desire life with you,

or the riches of this world?

YHWH, your Son stands in our midst looking at us with love.  To Himself He calls us that we might enter the kingdom.  And who would not follow?  What riches of this age are greater than the divine riches He offers?  What else could we need if we have eternal life?  With Him is true wisdom; let us give up all to follow in His way.

O LORD, all gold is as a little dust to the one who has been blessed to see with your eyes, to the one who has been graced with your Wisdom.  Though it be painful to stand in your light and be pierced by your sword, what glory it brings to your children!  Your truth upon our souls, we have all the food we need.

And so, what can persecutions bring us but greater joy?  What can we lose in your Name that we will not regain a hundred times over?  All things are in your hands, O LORD, and we live in your eyes.  Pierce us with your Wisdom, that we might number our days aright.

We must “seek to serve Him constantly” as does our Blessed Mother, as does our Mother, the Church, in faith.  Then truly we shall be “descendants of Abraham, His servants, sons of Jacob, His chosen ones!”  And we shall rejoice to see His Day.

*******

O LORD, may we hear your Word and keep it in faith,

like Abraham, like Mary,

that we might inherit eternal life in Jesus your Son.

YHWH, because of our faith in your Son, we become as your children, indeed, as He is before you.  You bless all who come to you through Jesus, all who do your will.  And what should we do but rejoice for such grace, for this wonder you perform in our midst.

It is Israel that bore your Son; at Mary’s breast He did suck.  But it is not for this the nation is blessed, nor she who carried Him in her womb.  It is your people’s obedience you seek, and so any may become as your Chosen by listening to your Word and keeping it in their hearts.  As Mary let us be, LORD, giving you our lives.

All of faith are descendants of Abraham.  All are blessed who are baptized in Christ.  He it is who justifies us in your sight, LORD, and makes us sons of the Most High.  Glory to you for the grace upon our souls in Jesus’ Name.

(Gal.3:7-14;   Ps.111:1-6;   Lk.11:15-26)

“All who believe are blessed along with Abraham,

the man of faith.”

But those who do not believe cannot be called “sons of Abraham,” in whom “all nations shall be blessed,” for they have not the faith of the father of many nations.  For those who do not proclaim the Lord’s “renown for His wondrous deeds,” but rather say of His “gracious and merciful” acts: “It is by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that He casts out devils,” there is only a curse.  They curse themselves and scatter their own salvation to the winds by the evil thoughts of their hearts.  “The reign of God is upon” them, and they say it has come from hell.  Have such as these faith?  Have they even eyes in their head?  Then how shall they be saved?  How shall they be called Abraham’s children?  Rather, the devils will return to them “to find [their] house swept and tidied,” prepared by the emptiness of their hypocrisy for these to take up eternal residence there.

“He has given food to those who fear Him…  He has made known to His people the power of His works.”  All those of faith see that this is the Messiah and “give thanks to the Lord with all [their] heart in the company and assembly of the just.”  All these are blessed.  They live in a house guarded by “a strong man fully armed,” and their “possessions go undisturbed.”  For the devil cannot break into the house of God, and he has no key to enter; but the Lord breaks down the doors of the evil one and all his weapons are removed from his hands.  And so we are free…  We are free because the Lord has redeemed us, and in His house we are protected from sin.

Brothers and sisters, the Savior has been “hanged on a tree… that through Christ Jesus the blessing bestowed on Abraham might descend on the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, thereby making it possible for us to receive the promised Spirit through faith.”  This faith itself is redemptive.  In this faith is the blood of Christ.  It is this blood which fills our hearts and makes room there for the Holy Spirit to come in.  There no devils can enter, for our doorposts have been anointed by Him.  And so, what can such souls dwelling in this house of faith do but sing out with our psalmist, “Great are the works of the Lord, exquisite in all their delights”?  What can we do but declare His “majesty and glory” as we see that “His justice endures forever” and His justice is founded in love?  For by our faith He has made us whole; we who once grumbled against Him are now sons of Abraham.  He has taken all our sin away, and it shall not return again.

*******

O LORD, your power is only for good;

let your Spirit be with us this day through faith,

that we might be saved.

YHWH, if we have not faith, we have nothing but emptiness, and thus make a place for the devils to dwell.  But if we have faith in you, your Spirit fills us, and into your house we do come.  Make us temples of your Holy Spirit!

Your Son has died, O LORD, that we might have life, that we might be set free from the course sin has wrought upon our souls and enter into your kingdom as your blessed children.  Why should we not believe in your love for us?  Why do we doubt the salvation you provide through your Son?

Let us rather rejoice in your glory, LORD, in your goodness to us.  Let us sing your praise with all the strength of our souls, thanking you with all our hearts in the assembly of your holy ones, among your saints in Heaven.  To such glory you do call us, away from the darkness of this place…  Let us but have faith in you and we shall be as your sons.

(Gal.3:1-5;   Lk.1:69-75;   Lk.11:5-13)

“I can’t get up to look after your needs.”

Does Jesus ever speak these words to us?  Does He ever deny our petitions, failing to bring them to His heavenly Father?  Do we ever find ourselves empty-handed when we come to Him “in the middle of the night”?  Does He ever tire of serving us, of saving us from our sins?  Then neither should we turn our back on our brother’s needs; neither should we fail to hear his cry and give him food.

Brothers and sisters, is it not “you before whose eyes Jesus Christ was displayed upon the cross?”  Have you not seen for yourselves the miracle in which we have found “salvation from our enemies and from the hands of all our foes”?  And so should you not “serve Him devoutly and through all [your] days be holy in His sight”?  If we do this, if we wake in the night to answer the needs of those who call, if we make ourselves available always as does the Lord, then even as we rise from rest Jesus will be with us – in this very action we will know His salvation present in our hearts.  For as we lay down our lives, as we die with Him in service of others, the light of His resurrection already becomes present to our eyes.

Though the burden is made light by the Lord, this way is not easy – but we should not tire of imitating Him.  Does Paul tire of teaching and preaching the faith, of correcting his wayward children who seem so foolishly to stray?  Just as the heavenly Father would never give His son “a snake if he asks for a fish, or hand him a scorpion if he asks for an egg,” so the Apostle, too, knows the needs of his flock and works constantly to feed them with the Word of God.  Though it weary him no end, yet he ever pours himself out as a libation for their sakes.  He is ready for heaven, ready to die and unite with God, yet he gets up in the night, yet he remains present to his children, to provide the food that is due them.  And we must be the same as this Apostle.

A great assurance the Lord gives us: “Whoever asks, receives; whoever seeks, finds; whoever knocks, is admitted.”  If we “have faith in what [we] heard,” we shall indeed find “that God lavishes the Spirit on [us] and works wonders in [our] midst.”  For He is faithful and forgets not His promise to us.  Yes, “He has raised a horn of saving strength for us in the house of David His servant,” and our Savior is ever present to answer all our needs.  But who shall carry out His Word?  Who shall know the cross of Christ and its redeeming grace in their own flesh?  Who shall serve Him and be thus as His children?  Those who rise to look after others’ needs, they shall be bone of His bone.

*******

O LORD, you give your Spirit

to those who have faith in you,

 to those who call upon your NAME – 

hear our prayer this day.

YHWH, give us this day the Holy Spirit to be with us and guide us to the salvation wrought by your Son, Jesus Christ.  Leave us not alone on this plane, hungry and apart from you.  Help us to pray, to knock upon your door with faith, knowing it is your good pleasure to answer our needs.  Then we shall serve you devoutly all our days and be holy in your sight forever.

If your Spirit is with us, LORD, there is nothing else we need, for then you, too, are with us with your only Son.  And we will be founded firmly in your Church, safe from all our enemies and nourished by your Bread.

We are not able to give good things or do good works on our own, dear LORD.  We need your help and guidance; we need the Spirit that comes from you to bless us with your abundance.  We shall wither quickly and die without your assistance – come to us this day with your Spirit that we might be your children.

(Gal.2:1-2,7-14;   Ps.117:1-2,Mk.16:15;   Lk.11:1-4)

“He who worked through Peter as His apostle among the Jews

had been at work in me for the Gentiles.”

And that same Spirit, that same God, that same Lord and Creator is at work in all His holy apostles, and is the Father of all who call upon His Name.

“Father, hallowed be your name.”  You are great and you are glorious, and you bless all your children, your children of light.  From every nation you call us by the power of your Word.  You send out apostles as you sent out Paul, to the ends of the earth.  You gather all your children together at your one table to feast upon your Body and your Blood, and you speak to the heart of all creation.  We your people you call to pray; your disciples you teach to call upon your Name.  To the depths of our souls you breathe your Spirit, and so you make us your own.  Like you we would be, O Lord!  Like you, dear Jesus, in your devotion to our Father.

Help us, O Lord; teach us to forgive, teach us to love.  Teach us not to draw away from others, but to join with all who heed your call.  Let us always be “straightforward about the truth of the Gospel,” always breathe it and speak it with all our lives – with all our strength let us love and welcome all, especially the poor.  And let us present ourselves to your “recognized pillars,” to the leaders of your Church.  Let us not go off on our own, with our own thoughts, pursuing our own goals, but let us be ever obedient unto those in whose hands you have placed your teaching ministry… let us lay down our lives “for their scrutiny” as has even the Apostle Paul.  For none can work without your approval, without the blessing that comes in “the handclasp of fellowship” your Church extends.  And so, in your Church, under its guidance, and in absolute love of all, what shall we then lack?

“Praise the Lord, all you nations, glorify Him, all you peoples!”  For the Lord comes to you now – He teaches you His sacred way to the Father of all.  Heed but His Word; speak and do but His work.  Love always Him and all His people and you shall know how wonderfully “the fidelity of the Lord endures forever”; His children you shall indeed become, and He shall work through you as He has Peter, as He has Paul… as He has His only Son.  Say amen to His Spirit.  Amen.

*******

O LORD, you are our one Father

 and we are your one children in Jesus your Son –

let your kingdom come.

YHWH, make us your faithful and holy children, honoring always your blessed NAME and doing always your will.  Let your kingdom come through us; let your Word go forth to the ends of the earth.

Obedient to the authority of your Church let us ever be.  Let us never turn from you, LORD, by veering from the path of the apostles.  In union may your whole people stand, in the truth your Spirit speaks.

Yes, let us be one in the true faith, LORD, in your will and in your way.  Forgive us all our sins and give us the grace to forgive all who sin against us, that we might partake of your food together at the table you set for us.

This world is a place of trial, we know, LORD, but you save us from all trial by your presence in our midst.  Let us never be separated from you or one another but ever set our hearts on serving you by bringing your Word to all our brothers.

(Gal.1:13-24;   Ps.139:1-3,13-15,24;   Lk.10:38-42)

“The time came when He who set me apart before I was born

and called me by His favor

chose to reveal His Son to me.”

Paul speaks of his conversion to the faith today.  But before he changed and became the Lord’s great Apostle, he tells us, “I made progress in Jewish observance far beyond most of my contemporaries, in my excess of zeal to live out all the traditions of my ancestors,” and that he “went to extremes in persecuting the church of God and tried to destroy it.”  Now, isn’t Martha as Paul was?  Is it not her own zeal for observance of Jewish tradition which makes her so anxious and blinded to truth?  We hear that she “was busy with all the details of hospitality,” a venerable Jewish custom and requirement of the law; but does not her own “excess of zeal” for this observance lead her even to persecute the Church of God, as it has with Paul?  For is her sister not as the Lord’s Church, as His holy Bride seated at His feet?  And what does Martha intend to inflict upon her when she asks in her presumption, “Lord, are you not concerned that my sister has left me all alone to do the household tasks?  Tell her to help me,” but by such public humiliation to draw her from the blessings of Christ into her own anxiety?  But as Paul has heard the call of the Lord, so now Mary does as well, and nothing shall remove such favor from her.  And instead of the drawing of Mary from the Lord, it is the Lord who calls Martha from her chores to listen to the voice of God.

Martha shall heed the Lord’s call, we know, for it is she who shows such great faith at the tomb of her brother Lazarus, she who hears the Lord’s most wonderful revelation: “I am the resurrection and the life.”  And so she, like Paul, like her sister, finds herself chosen by the Lord.  And so must we all, brothers and sisters!  So must we all.  We all must know the call of Him who “formed [our] inmost being,” by whom our “soul” and our “frame” were “made in secret, when [we were] fashioned in the depths of the earth,” in our “mother’s womb.”  We must all come to that place where He will speak to these very depths of our being – where only He probes – and know the “wonderful” call of the Lord, that as it was said of Paul, “He who was formerly persecuting us is now preaching the faith he tried to destroy,” so it will be said of us that all doubt and fear we have left behind and the Lord’s will is our only occupation.  We must hear His voice and we must speak His NAME, or all we do will be in vain.

“My journeys and my rest you scrutinize, with all my ways you are familiar,” O Lord.  And so I pray that all my rest will be taken in you and all my work you will bless.  Bring us all to the quiet place within our souls, where you speak in silence, where your will is revealed to waiting hearts… let us be seated always before you. 

*******

O LORD, it is you who have formed us,

and you formed us to love you;

let us listen to your voice and do your holy will.

YHWH, how shall we find ourselves at your feet, dearest LORD?  How shall we become as Mary, our hearts set on you alone, knowing your presence deep in our soil as we listen to your holy words, as we marvel at your flesh before us?  In your Son let us make our home, that your Word might be instilled in our soul.

In silence let us sit, O LORD.  And in peace let us rise and do your will.  As we travel even to the ends of the earth, bringing your Word forth, let us remain ever seated at your feet.  Oh never leave us! though much work we do for you.

Be our blessed guide, LORD, at all times.  Hold us in your arms as you knit us in our mother’s womb, and we shall never be apart from you, and anxiety shall never distract us from your eternal presence.  You who have made us, you who know all our thoughts and ways, please see that it is with you we remain, ever speaking your holy NAME.

(Gal.1:6-12;   Ps.111:1-2,5,7-10;   Lk.10:25-37)

“Teacher, what must I do to inherit everlasting life?”

Do you really want to know?  Do really seek to hear of the Gospel of Christ?  Do you really desire the Word of God, which is “reliable forever and ever, wrought in truth and equity” and which “came by revelation from Jesus Christ?”  If so, listen to what He speaks to you today; do not go on “so soon deserting Him who called you in accord with His design in Christ” – be not as the priest and the Levite who, coming upon the man “stripped” and “beat[en],” “saw him but continued on.”  For He shows Himself to you this day.  He lies before you like “the man who fell in with the robbers,” and He calls you to love.

You know what to do, brothers and sisters, just as the lawyer knew so well the Shema, the great command to love God and neighbor.  The answer to the question of “who treated the man with compassion” is obvious.  We see the love of God, we know the love of God, and we know that we are called to practice the love of God.  “Then go and do the same,” Jesus says.  “Go and do the same.”  Here is the Gospel in short, in this short phrase: love others as I have loved you.  Lay down your life; die to yourself and live for God and others if you wish to inherit eternal life.  Such inheritance comes only after such death, and love is all that will bring you there.

“If anyone preaches a Gospel other than the one you received, let a curse be upon Him!”  This exclamation by Paul is also one of love.  For to love does not mean “to win man’s approval,” “to please” or “ingratiate” oneself to others that all might speak well of us who have spoken well of them – to love means to speak the truth, for only by such truth is love preserved.  There is no Gospel but the Gospel of love spoken by the mouth of the Lord, one which calls us not to an easy compliance with the world, a nod of the head and a sidestep around the wounded bodies before us… it is that which calls us to lay down our lives along this road of ours.  This is what is from God, shown most clearly by the death of His Son.

Brothers and sisters, “holy and awesome is His name” and His call.  “His praise endures forever” in our mouths for “He has ratified His covenant forever”; and the love of Jesus is all we need to know.  Can you do all the Samaritan has done for the stranger?  Then everlasting life is indeed close to your heart.  Follow in His way. 

*******

O LORD, your Word, your Gospel,

is that we should love,

that we should love you and others –

let us hold to your Word and so live in your truth.

YHWH, praise you, our LORD and our God!  Help us to follow your Word and your way.  For you are great and worthy of praise, and we must be as you.

Your love is unbounded, O LORD; it reaches to the ends of the earth and to every soul.  All you would care for in your love, and you call us to do the same.

Let us be your hands and your voice, LORD, in this dangerous place.  Let us have hearts for healing and spirits for speaking your truth, that all souls might indeed be saved by your holy Gospel.

If in silence we stand as souls go astray, or if we avoid the needy man in our way, what, O LORD, shall be our fate – shall not a curse be upon us?  And so, let your love and your truth be fulfilled in us that we might preach without fear and serve without hesitation, that we might accomplish your will.  Let us love you first of all, and all souls as you love them.

(Gn.2:18-24;   Ps.128:1-6;   Heb.2:9-11;   Mk.10:2-16)

“This one, at last, is bone of my bones

and flesh of my flesh.”

The beauty and blessing of marriage, the marvel it is, and how it reaches unto heaven.

“It is not good for the man to be alone.  I will make a suitable partner for him.”  This is the loving thought of our Lord God while looking upon the man He has created.  And so from the body of the man God creates woman.  How indelibly one are these two, in origin, in destiny, and in the eyes of their Creator.  Inseparable should they be: “one flesh.”

And if it were so, if these lived as He intended, the blessings sung of by our psalmist today would be upon all: “Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the recesses of your home; your children like olive plants around your table.”  Then would we reflect the glory of God and His love for His Church and its children.  Then would we “see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of [our] life.”

The love of man and woman, of husband and wife, is truly as the love of God for His bride, the Church.  Hear what St. Paul says of the Christ, who has come to bring “many children to glory”: “He who consecrates and those who are being consecrated all have one origin.”  Does he not say Jesus has become as our brother, made perfect through suffering – “flesh of [our] flesh”?  Does the Lord not thus wed Himself to us by the incarnation and death of His only Son?  And look at Jesus in our gospel, surrounded by children waist deep.  He has just spoken of the sanctity of marriage and now He clearly conveys its blessed fruits, both for husband and wife on earth, and for Him and His Church.  He declares of the children He has called to Himself, “The kingdom of God belongs to such as these,” and then “He embrace[s] them and bless[es] them,” wedding them unto His heart.

As woman is born out of the side of man, as she is flesh of his flesh, so the Church is born out of the pierced side of the Lord, from the blood and water that flow there, becoming one with His blessed Body.  And let all men and women know, every husband and wife understand, that their marriage is blessed alone by God and finds its life in Him.  It is He to whom they are truly wed, and their offenses against one another offend only Him.  If you seek to separate from one another, you work to separate yourself from God; for as He is love, so He is every marriage, and to Him you are beholden to bear fruit in His name.  Great will be the blessing upon your home if you cherish your oneness in Him – great as the blessings upon His Church, which in His love He does now form.  Make all your love one with Him.

Written, read & chanted, and produced by James Kurt.

Music: "Marriage" from The Innocent Heart, first album of Songs for Children of Light, by James Kurt.

*******

O LORD, bring life forth in our midst

through the children you bless.

YHWH, let us be joined to you in the sacrificial flesh of your Son.  Bone of His bone let us be, one with Him forever.  As you join together man and wife on this earth, so join us to you in Heaven.

O let us never be divorced from love of one another or from you, dearest LORD!  Then we shall be blessed; then we shall remain in your presence and know your arms around us.  O let us have the faith of a child and come humbly before you to hear your Word of truth spoken of by your Son, and so let us share in His salvation.  Let us never harden our hearts against your good will for our lives and we shall prosper in your peace.

We are taken from you, O LORD, and must be united with you again.  But if we do not love one another and bear fruit in your Name, if man and wife do not stand as the paragon of your love, what shall become of the human race?

“The revelation of your words sheds light,” O Lord, “giving understanding to the simple.”  Let us hear what you wish to teach us this day.  That which “prophets and kings wished to see… and hear” you reveal to us at this time – that the power of your Word casts out sin and Satan, and that your own glory you share with your little ones on earth.  Bless us here with your gifts, O Lord.  Remove from our hearts all fear.  Let us know with certainty that you have destroyed the evil one, and draw us now inextricably to your kingdom.

******

O LORD, let our eyes see you, 

that we might not sin against you but do your holy will. 

YHWH, you are great beyond compare, the LORD of Heaven and earth; yet you share your greatness with your children, delivering power into their hands. 

How can we bear to see you, LORD?  How can such wonder be known to our eyes?  Make us repentant of our sin and innocent before you, then we shall be able to receive your great gifts. 

LORD, even Satan and his minions are subject to us, for they are subject to you and we are yours alone.  Help us ever to trust in you, and that our names are written in Heaven.  For if it is upon Heaven our sights are set, then we shall find no trouble upon this earth; we shall be subject to none of the wiles of the evil one. 

We have been afflicted by you, O LORD, afflicted as Job by the scourges of Satan.  It has seemed to us that you left us abandoned, but this was to teach us of your loving presence and just how close you are to our souls.  Open our eyes to see you this day, and all your many blessings.

(Job 38:1,12-21,40:3-5;   Ps.139:1-3,7-10,13-14,24;   Lk.10:13-16)

“I put my hand over my mouth.”

When the Lord speaks, what can we be but silent?  When He chastises us for our pride and sin, we can only be ashamed.  No defense have we before Him who holds us and all the world in His mighty hand and who comes to us with His redeeming love.  We can but bow before Him.

The Lord has “commanded the morning and shown the dawn its place”; He has “entered into the sources of the sea [and] walked about in the depths of the abyss” – He has “comprehended the breadth of the earth” and the highest heavens.  And so, if we “take the wings of the dawn, if [we] settle at the farthest limits of the sea,” He is there.  If we “go up to the heavens” or “sink to the netherworld,” He is present.  He is present everywhere, and everywhere we are, we are subject to His hand.  For He has “formed [our] inmost being”; He has “knit” us all “in [our] mother’s womb.”  And He alone knows “the dwelling place of light” and “the abode of darkness,” and to which place our souls shall come.  There is nothing we can say before the Creator and Judge of all the earth except, “I am fearfully, wonderfully made; wonderful are your works,” as we humbly give thanks to Him who scrutinizes all our ways.

And when He comes to us with His love, when He has wrought forgiveness in “the miracles worked in [our] midst” by the grace of the only Son… when redemption for all our sin He offers by a merciful hand, what must we do but accept it?  For how shall it be for us on “the day of judgment” if we reject the Word of God walking among us and speaking to our hearts?  It cannot but “go ill” with us if we fail to reform our broken lives when the Almighty Creator of heaven and earth stands before us with love in His arms, blood pouring from them as He hangs upon a cross.

Should not our hands be over our mouths at such a sight, brothers and sisters, at such a witness of undying love?  Should it not convict us of our sin and make our hearts burn with a spirit of repentance and cry silently to God as our prideful tongues cleave like stone to our palate?  What hope have you if you yet dare to speak before Him?  Rather, bow your heads and fall to your knees and beg the forgiveness of Him who has made you and who loves you to the heights and depths, with all the breadth of His Spirit.

Lord, like Job, I have “no more” to say; I am yours.

(Blessed silence before the Lord may we all come to know.)

*******

O LORD, it is you who made us and you who save us;

let us not be hurled down to the realm of death

but raised up to dwell with you. 

YHWH, what should we do but repent in sackcloth and ashes before your majesty?  What can we be but silent before you?  For you are all-powerful and all-knowing, and we are but your creatures.

What place has pride before your glory, LORD?  How can we be so foolish as to assert our will and our way before you whose ways are not known to man, whose will is so far above and beyond our own?  It is you who have made the world and all it holds; it is you who have formed us in our mother’s womb.  And would we presume to instruct you?  And would we be obstinate in following your commands?

O LORD, though we are nothing, but dust of the earth, yet you love your humble creatures as you love all you have made.  For you have made us good.  Have pity on us poor sinners and help us to heed your Word which comes to us through your Son and His apostles.  May we find ourselves at home in your sight, in your heavenly kingdom.

(Job 19:21-27;   Ps.27:7-9,13-14;   Lk.10:1-12)

“I know that my Vindicator lives,

and that He will at last stand forth upon the dust.”

“The hand of God has struck me!” Job exclaims as he begs pity from his friends who “hound [him] as though [they] were divine,” reminding him unendingly of the Lord’s justice and ever accusing him of having sinned against his Maker.  Job defends himself and wishes “that with an iron chisel and with lead” his “words were written down.”  And truly his prayer is answered, for here are his words “inscribed in a record… cut in the rock [of Scripture] forever.”

And what has this poor soul to say?  Reflecting David’s own call for pity from the Lord and his own desire to know his God – “Of you my heart speaks; you my glance seeks” – Job declares, “My inmost being is consumed with longing”; his heart, too, is set upon God.  And as David proclaims in great hope, “I believe I shall see the bounty of the Lord in the land of the living,” so Job makes known, too, his faith and hope in the Lord: “My own eyes, not another’s, shall behold Him.”  What testimony from a man in such travails!

And in our gospel we see that his (and David’s) hope is not in vain, for here now stands the Lord forth upon the earth, Himself having taken the form of our dust and multiplying His presence among us as He “send[s] workers into His harvest.”  And He comes to bring peace; His disciples declare, “The reign of God is at hand.”  And every “peaceable man” receives now this gift of grace from the Lord Most High, this realization of His presence before us.  No longer does He hide His face.

And now we wait again, for the Lord to return once more to our towns; now we long for the Day when with our “flesh [we] shall see God,” when we shall gaze upon Him forever and know His everlasting peace.  Now He comes to heal us; now He sends forth His Word and His workers to prepare His way… and so now we should make straight His way, for His reign is upon us. 

May He never have cause to “shake the dust” of our town from His feet – may He never regret having come among us.  But let us, brothers and sisters, “wait for the Lord with courage” and perseverance, with a blessed hope born in faith.  Let us with Job know that our Vindicator lives and He shall not be long in coming… indeed, He is already here.  “Be stouthearted, and wait for the Lord.”  Welcome His Spirit into your home. 

*******

O LORD, stand forth upon the dust;

send out your workers into the harvest,

that we might know your peace,

that we might enter your reign.

YHWH, let your peace rest upon this house; let our eyes be blessed with seeing you this day.  Help us to have courage as we wait for your Son’s return – believing hearts form in us that we shall never be removed from your presence.

Your reign, O LORD, is indeed at hand.  It has walked amongst us in the form of your Son.  And it continues to go forth in the apostles you send to bring your peace to every land.  O let us be welcoming of your Word, and help us to bring that Word to every waiting soul.

If we have but faith, O LORD, we have all we need.  Though in darkness we sit, yet such hope gives us light, and we know that we shall see you again.  Though we go forth with nothing, empty of the things of the earth, in you we have everything – the great abundance of the Spirit is ours.

To you alone let us hold, LORD, knowing you will not cast us off, knowing your pity deep in our souls…  Let your rich harvest be gathered into your rooms.

(Job 9:1-12,14-16;   Ps.88:3,10-15;   Lk.9:57-62) 

“Why, O Lord, do you reject me;

why hide from me your face?”

The cry of our psalmist certainly reflects that of Job, who in his travails asks, “How can a man be justified before God?” who realizes that the Lord “does great things past finding out” and that “should He come near [us], [we] see Him not.”  But it also reflects Jesus’ treatment of those who might follow Him, and could easily be their cry as well.

“If I appealed to Him and He answered my call, I could not believe that He would hearken to my words.”  Such a seemingly hopeless attitude may be understandable in one suffering such a plight as Job.  For he is as “the mountains [removed] before they know it”; he is shaken as “the earth out of its place.”  He is as one suddenly confounded by God, who is “wise in heart and mighty in strength.”  Before such power how can he speak, or expect to be heard?  And so, rightly in silence he must remain.  Certainly he could cry out to the Lord, “Will you work wonders for the dead?…  Do they declare your kindness in the grave, your faithfulness among those who have perished?” and in justice be saved from “the land of oblivion.”  But the test Job undergoes passes beyond justice to the suffering of the innocent before the mighty power of God.

And what of those who would be Christ’s disciples spoken of in our gospel today?  To them why does the Lord speak so severely?  Why does it seem they, too, are unable to come before His face – why does He seem to reject them?  Is He not of love, this Son of Man, unlike the judgmental God?  Does He not welcome all with open arms?  Then why such sharp words to those who approach and those He calls to “come away and proclaim the kingdom of God”?  The Lord does not reject them, but puts them to the test as He has with Job to see if their hearts are truly set upon Him alone, as indeed they must be.  It is, of course, for the great glory to which He calls them that all His disciples are chastised so vehemently.

Think not that He rejects you, brothers and sisters, when He hides His face from you.  Know that you are never hidden from Him, and that should He remove Himself from your presence, it is only to grant you clearer vision of His face.  None is more blessed than Job for none has known so fully the awesome power of God and given himself over to it so completely.  None but Christ and His followers, who give up all things, who suffer all persecutions innocently, silently, in order to know the surpassing might and tender mercy of God.  Indeed His “wonders [are] made known in darkness,” for then they most clearly shine.

*******

O LORD, let us follow your Son, even unto death. 

YHWH, we must give up all things to follow you; it must be your will alone we have in this world.  Even if you should put us in darkness, yet we should defer to your judgment, to your power over all things for good. 

Your Son is severe with those who would follow you, LORD, who would be as you are, as His disciples.  For what a call this is!  And how ready must we be to enter its demands.  Your reign far surpasses anything we know, anything we come to rely on in this world, and so the passing of this world – and even our own lives – we shall not mourn but learn to entrust all our cares to you. 

If the sun and the mountains are moved by you, LORD, how much more should we put ourselves in your hands.  Our trust should be so complete that we accept even your seeming rejection.  Hear our prayer and come to save us! that we might walk with your Son in your way. 

(Job 3:1-3,11-17,20-23;   Ps.88:2-8;   Lk.9:51-56)

“My soul is surfeited with troubles

and my life draws near to the netherworld.”

After sitting in silence seven days, scraping the boils from his skin, finally, “Job opened his mouth and cursed his day.”  Finally he cries out against all his troubles, asking, “Why did I not perish at birth, come forth from the womb and expire?”  Only so much can mortal man bear, and so Job seeks now only the tranquility of death, wherein “the weary are at rest.”

How well our psalm today describes Job’s state, he who is among those “whose path is hidden from them, and whom God hemmed in.”  For he truly finds himself now “numbered with those who go down into the pit… a man without strength” from whom all blessing has been taken.  His “couch is among the dead, like the slain who lie in the grave, whom [God] remember[s] no longer and who are cut off from [His] care.”  And so he prays for an end to his misery; so he seeks the forgetfulness of death to remove its pangs from his body and his heart.

And is it not these same pangs James and John would inflict upon the Samaritans who refuse to welcome Jesus: “Lord, would you not have us call down fire from heaven to destroy them?”  Would they not plunge them “into the bottom of the pit, into the dark abyss” where Job sits in his innocence?  Is it not right that God’s “wrath lies heavy” upon such as these?  Let God’s “billows” “overwhelm” them, they declare.

But Jesus has another answer.  He would not see even the guilty suffer the fate of the righteous Job.  For He is now “firmly resolved to proceed toward Jerusalem,” where His crucifixion awaits.  He is now upon the fulfillment of His mission here on earth, and it has nothing to do with punishing the sins even of His persecutors – it has only to do with His death.  It is He upon whom God’s wrath shall be heavy, He who will be plunged into the pit… He who will suffer all punishment for sin.  Even for these Samaritans (even for you and me), the Lord shall suffer and die, taking upon Himself the punishment James and John see rightly due them, rightly due to all.  His cross completes the pangs inflicted upon Job.  And through this cross the troubles shall be overcome.

Brothers and sisters, let us no longer cry for relief from our suffering, for that relief is at hand now in the cross of Christ; He has suffered all these things already, and we must but give them to Him to be drawn from the netherworld and set in His glory.

*******

O LORD, let us be taken with your Son  

from this world of darkness and death. 

YHWH, save us from the dark abyss, from the nether world to which by our sin we come.  Let us know that the price has been paid by your only Son, who has suffered all torments for us.  In His sacrifice let us trust, and give to Him our cross. 

Truly, LORD, this earth is a dark place, and it draws us to a darker place, an eternal abyss, where is no light.  From the grave how shall we be saved, we who are mortal and decaying, we who are surfeited with troubles, with the bitterness of this disobedient age?  Does it not seem to us there is no escape. 

O let us not be forgetful of you, LORD, or of your love!  Let us not forget that you have sent your only Son, to die not only for the righteous but also those who would cast Him out – His death means new life to all who offer Him their cross.  How quickly He would take all darkness from us, how eagerly He awaits our turning to Him…  O Jesus, lift all souls from the bottom of the pit; save us from the wrath we rightly deserve.