Verse of the week: “he shall divide the spoil with
the strong; because he poured out himself to death, and… he bore the sin of
many,” Is 53.12
Prayer of the week:
O God, holy and eternal, you call us into the fellowship of that holy
suffering by which your dear Son, our Savior, conquered sin, death and the
power of the devil. Bring your kingdom
to us. Give us your Holy Spirit that by your grace we may believe your holy
Word, that the stone which the builders rejected may indeed be for us the
cornerstone: Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Bible reading for the day: Mark 12.15-40 (picking up right where
yesterday’s reading left off; these conversations likely took place on the day prior to Jesus’ arrest.)
15 But, knowing their
hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why put me to the test? Bring me a
denarius and let me look at it.” 16 And they
brought one. And he said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is
this?” They said to him, “Caesar's.” 17 Jesus
said to them, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God
the things that are God's.” And they marveled at him.
18 And Sadducees came
to him, who say that there is no resurrection. And they asked him a
question, saying, 19 “Teacher, Moses wrote for us
that if a man's brother dies and leaves a wife, but leaves no child, the
man must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother.20 There
were seven brothers; the first took a wife, and when he died left no
offspring. 21 And the second took her, and died,
leaving no offspring. And the third likewise. 22 And
the seven left no offspring. Last of all the woman also died. 23 In
the resurrection, when they rise again, whose wife will she be? For the seven
had her as wife.”
24 Jesus said to
them, “Is this not the reason you are wrong, because you know neither
the Scriptures nor the power of God? 25 For
when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in
marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 26 And as
for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses,
in the passage about the bush, how God spoke to him, saying, ‘I am
the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? 27 He
is not God of the dead, but of the living. You are quite wrong.”
28 And one of the scribes
came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered
them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” 29 Jesus
answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our
God, the Lord is one.30 And you shall love the Lord
your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and
with all your strength.’ 31 The second is
this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other
commandment greater than these.” 32 And the
scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he
is one, and there is no other besides him. 33 And
to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all
the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, is much more than
all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”34 And
when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far
from the kingdom of God.” And after that no one dared to ask him any more
questions.
35 And as Jesus taught
in the temple, he said, “How can the scribes say that the Christ is
the son of David? 36 David himself, in the
Holy Spirit, declared,
“‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at my right hand,
until I put your enemies under your feet.”’
“Sit at my right hand,
until I put your enemies under your feet.”’
37 David himself calls him
Lord. So how is he his son?” And the great throng heard him
gladly.
38 And in his teaching he
said, “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes and
like greetings in the marketplaces 39 and have the
best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts,40 who
devour widows' houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will
receive the greater condemnation.”
Prayer (based on TRIP** method): Gracious and almighty Father, thank you
for your Living Word, Jesus… he is for us wisdom, truth and mercy in the flesh.
Thank you. Repent me and my congregation of our preoccupation with the wrong
questions… our proud questions… for they only bring upon us the greater
condemnation. Open your Word to us and open our ears, that we may hear you
gladly… that your kingdom may come to us. In Jesus’ name I ask this, amen.
Hymn: follow this
link to a beloved classic hymn which gives further voice to today’s
conversation with the Lord: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pR2OAUqAijM
“Thy kingdom come…”
What does this
mean?
The kingdom of God
comes indeed by itself, without our prayer, but we pray in this petition that
it may also come to us.
How is this done?
God's kingdom comes
when our heavenly Father gives us his Holy Spirit, so that by his grace we
believe his holy Word and live a godly life now and in eternity. (from The Small Catechism, by Martin
Luther ©Reclaim Resources, Sola Publishing, 2011)
Benediction: The
peace of God which surpasses all understanding keep your hearts and your minds
in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen. Phil 4.7
*There are many patterns
for devotions. This pattern has been
followed by God’s people for centuries.
**The T.R.I.P. approach to
prayer is based on the way Martin Luther prayed and taught others to pray. It was later developed by Walter and Ingrid
Trobisch and then adapted by Mount Carmel Ministries (Alexandria, MN www.dailytext.com). The method is founded on scripture and easy
to remember: T: thanksgiving
R: regret
(repentance)
I:
intercession (asking God to take a specific action)
P:
plan or purpose
Reading a biblical text and
then applying this method gives one a sound, simple way to form one’s
prayers...not to mention that it helps one learn how to faithfully reflect on
God’s Word and talk to God.
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