Good Evening, Lord!
Words of Comfort
Behold, I am with you always, to
the end of the age (Matt. 28:20 ESV)
Prayer of Confession
O God, as I come to the end of
another day, I thank you for your mercy and kindness. Please forgive the sins I
have committed today, and grant me your Spirit to teach me your ways and to
guide me in your truth.
I pray for myself and the
members of my household that we would live in peace and love. Send your holy
angels to watch over us, and bless our rest tonight.
Some will not be able to sleep
tonight. Comfort them and calm their hearts and minds.
Others must not sleep tonight
because of their duty to work, protect, and care for others. Give them the
strength and energy they need.
Stay with us, Lord, for it is
evening and the night is coming when none may work. In Jesus’ name we pray.
Amen.
Catechism Reflections
The First Commandment
You shall have no other gods.
What does this mean? We should fear, love, and trust in God
above all things.
As we go through the Ten Commandments we will find that Luther explains
all of them beginning with the same words, “We should fear and love God so that
…” It’s an obvious reference back to this explanation of the First Commandment.
Over the years as I’ve talked with people about this little formula of
fear and love, I find that Christians really don’t like that word, “fear.” We
dig it when we talk about loving God, and that often extends into conversation about
loving our neighbors. But bring up that word, “fear,” and folks start trying to
explain it away. We’ll say, “Fear mean respect. To fear God is to honor him.”
But I’m going to toss two scripture passages at this and see where that takes
you. First. Matthew 10:28, Jesus said, “Do not fear those who kill the body but
cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in
hell.” And Proverbs 1:7 which says, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of
wisdom.” It makes sense to fear God, and our sinful nature does and should,
even as we cling to the love that moved God to give Jesus and the promises of
forgiveness, life, and redemption.
Which brings me to that third word, “trust.” It only appears here, and
in the Conclusion to the Commandments. This little word, “trust,” is key and is
actually essential to the whole theme of the Catechism. Certainly we are to fear
and love, but the heart of our relationship with God is faith. By faith we
receive his gifts. By faith our sins are forgiven. By faith we are healed. By
faith we have new life. By faith we walk with God, become his children, and
come to know him as Father, Savior, and Comforter.
Questions for Meditation
What does this reading teach
you?
What does this reading lead you
to be thankful for?
What behavior, thought, or
attitude does this reading challenge? What sin does it lead you to confess?
How might you pray for God to
have a richer impact on your life through this reading?
Petitions of the Lord’s Prayer
“Thy will be done on earth as it
is in heaven.”
O God, Your will is done even
without our prayers, but we pray that it may be done among us also. Please
break and hinder every evil plan and purpose of the devil, the world, and our
sinful nature, which do not want us to hallow Your name or let Your kingdom
come. Strengthen and keep us firm in Your Word and faith until we die. Let Your
good and gracious will be done. Amen.
Verse of Benediction
May the God of hope fill you
with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit
you may abound in hope. (Rom. 15:13 ESV)
Comments
The concept of fear is only enabled within a context of possible change.
God is merciful, therefore, he is feared. (I think that's in a psalm somewhere)