October 4, 2025

Today's Reading: Introit for Pentecost 17 - Psalm 119:162, 164-165, 167; antiphon: Psalm 119:166

Daily Lectionary: Deuteronomy 4:21-40; Matthew 8:1-17

“I hope for your salvation, O Lord, and I do your commandments. I rejoice at your word like one who finds great spoil. Seven times a day I praise you for your just and righteous decrees. Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble. My soul keeps your testimonies; I love them exceedingly. I hope for your salvation, O Lord, and I do your commandments.” (Psalm 119:162, 164–165, 167; antiphon: v. 166)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Tomorrow’s introit is from nearly the end of the great psalm with its 176 verses. Here, the psalmist hopes for the salvation of the Lord.

An antiphon opens and closes the recitation of a Psalm or introit. It gives us a lens of sorts to view the text. Verse 166 gives us a thumbnail of the Christian life. Live in your salvation, do the Commandments, fail, remember your Baptism, wash, rinse, repeat. We long for His salvation day after day.

Rejoicing in God’s Word is also our life in Christianity. It’s interesting that Jesus speaks to us the same way we pray the Psalms about Him. We rejoice at the great treasure in His work. He’ll sell all that He has, giving up His life for you, the treasure in a field. No price is too great for Him. He even gives us the spoils of His victory. He clothes us in a robe of His righteousness.

Martin Luther and others taught that verse 164 was the basis of the medieval church's “hours” prayer. The hours: Matins, Prime, Terce, Sext, Nones, Vespers, and Compline were prayed in monasteries throughout Europe. They took a literal approach to praying. And there’s no harm in that. Muslims pray five times a day. Couldn’t we do the same or more? Shouldn’t we?

Yes, we ought. But our prayer accomplishes something. The dead Muslim god can do nothing. But our Jesus hears our prayer. He has the power to save us. Moreover, He does exactly that, forgiving and refreshing us day by day.

We end as we began. Live in your salvation, do the Commandments, fail, remember your Baptism, wash, rinse, repeat until the day that salvation dawns.

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

O Lord, grant to your faithful people pardon and peace that they may be cleansed from all their sins and serve you with a quiet mind; Through Jesus Christ, your son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God now and forever. Amen.

Rev. Jason Kaspar, pastor of Mount Calvary Lutheran Church, La Grange, Texas.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Jonathan Lackey is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church, Vine Grove, KY.

Join author R. Reed Lessing helps with this chapter-by-chapter exploration of the Book of Numbers in Hope in the Wilderness. With helpful maps, diagrams, and connections to the rest of the Bible, you’ll be able to understand the beauty of Numbers.