Verse for the week:
“…the King of kings and Lord of lords. 16It is he alone
who has immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever
seen or can see; to him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen. I
Timothy 6.15-16
Prayer: “O Lord,
our most gracious Redeemer and King, dwell and reign within us, take possession
of us by your Spirit, and reign where you have a right to reign, and spread
your kingdom throughout the world, now and forever. Amen” (Father John of the Russian Church
Bible reading for the day: John 18.33-40
33So Pilate entered his headquarters again and
called Jesus and said to him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” 34 Jesus
answered, “Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you
about me?” 35 Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the
chief priests have delivered you over to me. What have you done?” 36 Jesus
answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world,
my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the
Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.” 37 Then Pilate said to
him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose
I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to
the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” 38 Pilate
said to him, “What is truth?”
After he had said this, he went back outside to the Jews
and told them, “I find no guilt in him. 39 But you have a custom
that I should release one man for you at the Passover. So do you want me to
release to you the King of the Jews?” 40 They cried out again, “Not
this man, but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a robber.
Prayer (based on
T.R.I.P. method**): Gracious and almighty Father, thank you for your
voice, the voice of truth, and for giving me faith that listens to you. Repent
me and your church of exchanging the truth for a lie and enthroning our
“esteemed” selves. You know what truth is; it is Jesus Christ on the cross:
your judgment on sin and your life-giving mercy for sinners like us. So bring it, Lord, bring it…for by your grace
alone we belong to the truth and are dying to listen. I pray this in Jesus’ name, amen.
Hymn: follow this
link to hear “The Voice of Truth”: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KwsvqVmFV6Y (you can skip the ad that precedes it)
“I believe in Jesus
Christ, his only son our Lord…”
What does this
mean?
I believe that Jesus Christ — true God, begotten of the
Father from eternity, and also true man, born of the Virgin Mary — is my Lord.
He has redeemed me, a lost and condemned creature, and has freed me from sin,
death, and the power of the devil, not with silver and gold, but with his holy
and precious blood and his innocent suffering and death. He has done all this
in order that I might be his own, live under him in his kingdom, and serve him
in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness, even as he is risen
from the dead and lives and reigns for all eternity. This is most certainly
true! (from The Small Catechism,
by Martin Luther ©Reclaim Resources, Sola Publishing, 2011)
Benediction: The
God of hope fill us with all joy and peace in believing, that we may abound in
hope, in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Amen. (Romans 15.13)
*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
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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