Good Morning, Lord!
I Am Baptized
God saved us, not because of
works done by us in righteousness, but according to His own mercy, by the
washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit. (Tit. 3:5 ESV)
Make the sign of the cross as
you say, “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.”
A Morning Prayer
O God, Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit, to You be all glory and honor today and every day eternally! I rise
from sleep, and am reminded that one day I will rise from death because of Your
salvation. I make my bed, and remember that You make all things new. I get
dressed, and remind myself that I am clothed in Christ and covered in his
righteousness. I go out into the world today and pray that you will be with me
to guard and protect me from all evil, and to enliven and empower me to be your
witness today and always, living in your grace. Amen.
I Believe …
I believe that I cannot by my
own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but
the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts,
sanctified and kept me in the true faith. In the same way He calls, gathers,
enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian church on earth, and keeps it
with Jesus Christ in the one true faith. In this Christian Church He daily and
richly forgives all my sins and the sins of all believers. On the Last Day He
will raise me and all the dead, and give eternal life to me and all believers
in Christ.
This is most certainly true.
Lead
Me in Your Righteousness
To
the choirmaster: for the flutes. A Psalm of David.
5 Give ear to my words,
O Lord;
consider my groaning.
2 Give attention to the sound of my cry,
my King and my God,
for to you do I pray.
3 O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice;
in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you[a] and watch.
consider my groaning.
2 Give attention to the sound of my cry,
my King and my God,
for to you do I pray.
3 O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice;
in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you[a] and watch.
4 For you are not a God who
delights in wickedness;
evil may not dwell with you.
5 The boastful shall not stand before your eyes;
you hate all evildoers.
6 You destroy those who speak lies;
the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.
evil may not dwell with you.
5 The boastful shall not stand before your eyes;
you hate all evildoers.
6 You destroy those who speak lies;
the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.
7 But I, through the abundance of
your steadfast love,
will enter your house.
I will bow down toward your holy temple
in the fear of you.
8 Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness
because of my enemies;
make your way straight before me.
will enter your house.
I will bow down toward your holy temple
in the fear of you.
8 Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness
because of my enemies;
make your way straight before me.
9 For there is no truth in their
mouth;
their inmost self is destruction;
their throat is an open grave;
they flatter with their tongue.
10 Make them bear their guilt, O God;
let them fall by their own counsels;
because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out,
for they have rebelled against you.
their inmost self is destruction;
their throat is an open grave;
they flatter with their tongue.
10 Make them bear their guilt, O God;
let them fall by their own counsels;
because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out,
for they have rebelled against you.
11 But let all who take refuge
in you rejoice;
let them ever sing for joy,
and spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name may exult in you.
12 For you bless the righteous, O Lord;
you cover him with favor as with a shield.[1]
let them ever sing for joy,
and spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name may exult in you.
12 For you bless the righteous, O Lord;
you cover him with favor as with a shield.[1]
Sunday
is coming. There will be an opportunity to go to God’s house. We just assume
that we should be able to attend a service if we want, but I’m not sure that’s
really the case as I read Psalm 5. Now, don’t get me wrong, I don’t think that
I have the right – nor do I want the responsibility! – to decide who should or
who should not come to worship. I’m looking at v. 7 where it says, “through the
abundance of your steadfast love, [I] will enter your house.”
We
just take for granted that we can go to the Lord’s house, but David sees coming
to God’s house as an act of God’s grace. The word that is translated “steadfast
love” is the Old Testament’s equivalent of grace. And David says that it is
through an abundance of God’s grace that he can enter God’s house.
I
remember asking my parents, “Do I have to go to church?” The truth of the
matter is that it is a privilege to enter into God’s presence to receive his
gifts. So David says, “I will bow down toward your holy temple in the fear of
you.”
The
word “fear” is used in two ways in relationship with God. One is for the
wicked, in which case it means fear because of God’s demands, power, and the
threat of punishment for their sin. The other is for the righteous, when the
word fear is a synonym for faith – it is humble awe at the power and love of
God. Now, in truth, as believers we experience both meanings of fear in our
lives when we sin and when we cling to God’s grace, but here, David’s worship
is moved by his faith in the almighty God who is uniquely himself, and very
much not like us, but nevertheless loves us and is committed to doing good to
those who trust in him. (He wants to bless you and cover you with favor as a
shield!)
So
we worship by God’s grace and bow before him by faith. It is by grace that we
are saved, and that salvation is received by faith in Jesus. So having been
saved by grace through faith, our heart and desire are moved to be led in God’s
straight ways, not to earn God’s favor but because God has favored us. We take
refuge in him because he has shown us in Jesus his desire to protect us and
draw us into worship and praise.
Question for Meditation
What does this reading teach you
about Jesus, what He said and did, or what He wants His followers to believe?
What does it teach you about God’s love and forgiveness?
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 – The Fifth Petition
“And forgive us our trespasses
and we forgive those who trespass against us.”
Heavenly Father, do not look at our
sins, or deny our prayer because of them. We are neither worthy of the things
for which we pray, nor have we deserved them, but we ask that You would give
them all to us by grace, for we daily sin much and surely deserve nothing but
punishment. But you have given Your Son, our Savior, Jesus to bear our sins in
His body on the cross and given us forgiveness for His sake. For Jesus’ sake
help us to sincerely forgive and gladly do good to those who sin against us.
Amen.
Prayer
Pray
for your spouse, parents, family, and friends – and for your enemies.
Benediction
Now may our Lord Jesus Christ
himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good
hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work
and word. (2 Thess. 2:16-17 ESV)
[1] English
Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard
Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good
News Publishers.
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