The BreadCast

(3Jn.5-8;   Ps.112:1-6;   Lk.18:1-8)   “When the Son of Man comes, will He find any faith on the earth?”   So beset by weakness are we on this earth, brothers and sisters.  So doubtful, so fearful… so seemingly without help, alone.  And so our faith does falter, and so we do fall.  And we wonder, “Where is God?” But the Son asks us today where we are.  He emphasizes “the necessity of praying always and not losing heart.”  Why should we think that God does not listen to us?  If the corrupt judge can give justice to the widow who begs him constantly for her “rights against [her] opponent,” “will not God then do justice to His chosen who call out to Him day and night?”  Do we make Jesus a liar by failing to believe in the Lord’s “swift justice”?  Is this corrupt judge more reliable than He? And listen to what John writes to Gaius.  He says to him, “You demonstrate fidelity by all that you do for the brothers.”  He has “testified to [his] love before the church” by caring for its members.  And John now asks this beloved disciple to support those who pass through his neighborhood carrying the message of the Gospel to the nations, to “help them continue on their journey.”  And we can be assured that this child of God does continue to demonstrate his generosity, that “he is gracious and merciful and just” toward his brothers in their need.  And if this man “dawns through the darkness, a light for the upright,” shall the Lord Himself then leave us alone when we call out to Him in our need? Why are we of such little faith?  Why do we so easily falter in our trust of the Lord’s protection, of His grace at work upon our souls and His providential hand in our lives?  If weak human beings can give aid to those in distress, cannot God?  Are not all “wealth and riches… in His house”; does He not hold all the world and all our souls in His loving hand?  Then why should we be afraid?  Why should we think He does not answer our prayer?  It is not because He is not listening that we have not the good we desire – this lack is from our lack of faith. Brothers and sisters, be encouraged by the Lord today to never give up hope, to never give up our petitions to the Lord.  He does not need to be worn down, but is ready at every moment to help us.  Seek but to believe in Him.   ******* O LORD, your Son will come to us as the answer to our prayers – let us do all we can this day to bring Him here. YHWH, why have we not faith in your care for our souls?  Why do we so easily cease praying to you?  Do we not think that you can answer our calls?  Those who follow in your way care for those in need, and so should we not trust that you watch over us this day? O LORD, take our lack of faith from us; let us cease to doubt your loving concern.  Help us to open our mouths and cry to you, who know what we need before we ask.  For if we do not ask, you cannot answer – how can a prayer be answered that is not made?  You wait for us to turn to you… let us do so this day in faith. And let us then treat others as you treat us; let us respond in generosity to their needs.  Let us be ready to help your children on their way, that your work might be accomplished on this earth. Your light break forth upon all just souls.

(2Jn.4-9;   Ps.119:1-2,10-11,17-18;   Lk.17:26-37)   “Anyone who remains rooted in the teaching possesses both the Father and the Son.”   While “anyone who is so ‘progressive’ that he does not remain rooted in the teaching of Christ does not possess God.”  Rather, he possesses but the emptiness of this earth. And what is this teaching so necessary for our salvation, for knowing and possessing the Lord our God?  It is indicated clearly in John’s request of the Lady to whom he writes (whom we may take as the Church herself): “Let us love one another.”  Here is the commandant we “have heard from the beginning,” which we need to find rooted in our hearts – this “commandant is the way in which [we] should walk.”  For “happy are they… who walk in the law of the Lord… who observe His decrees, who seek Him with all their hearts”; for they shall find Him, and they shall possess Him forever. Love has come, brothers and sisters: Jesus Christ has “come in the flesh.”  And though the people in the days of Noah and in the days of Lot were particularly wicked and meriting condemnation from the Lord, they at that time did not have the Son of God come in their midst.  And so if their punishment was great for turning from the way and the call of God, how much greater will be our own if we set our hearts on the possessions of this land and thereby lose Him whose love knocks upon the door of our hearts?  It is now among those who deny Him as if they stand under the brightness of the noonday sun and say, “I see no light.  I feel not its heat.”  If we refuse to open our eyes to what is so obvious, what punishment will be enough for our souls? Learn the lesson of the two men sleeping and the two women “grinding grain together.”  Though they lie and sit or stand in close proximity to one another in this place, seeming no different one from the next, yet “one will be taken and the other left.”  While one flies up to the reaches of heaven, the other will rot like a carcass on earth.  And why?  Who can tell which one says within his heart, “I treasure your promise, that I might not sin against you,” and which has turned his heart from the Lord?  “On the day the Son of Man is revealed,” so will be the thoughts of all hearts.  And He who is Love alone will know who owns the love He alone imparts.  He will say who has walked in His teaching.  ******* O LORD, your Son calls us from our earthly lot   to your kingdom on high – let us walk His way of love that leads there this day. YHWH, let us walk in your way, in the way your Son has marked out for us, He who has come in the flesh to show us indeed how we should live, how we should walk in this world. And your way, O LORD, the way Jesus has trod, is the way of love.  This is your commandment to all souls; this is the truth He has revealed to all eyes.  And love is not turning to our own desires, putting faith in our possessions, in the empty things of this earth, but rather the laying down of our lives and all these things about us that we might come to you and serve you alone with all our lives. Let us not be blind, dear LORD, to your Son’s coming and to your command.  Let us not continue in ignorance even as He stands at the gate.  Our very flesh let us give to you that the flesh we might transcend as we walk in purity with your Son.  Take us unto Heaven on the Day of His return.

(Philm.7-20;   Ps.146:7-10;   Lk.17:20-25)   “The reign of God is already in your midst.”   Brothers and sisters, Jesus the Christ has come, He has “suffer[ed] much and be[en] rejected by the present age”… and He has risen.  This is all you need to know.  There is no need for “careful watching when the reign of God will come,” for it is not “a matter of reporting that it is ‘here’ or ‘there’” – it is among us today.  And when it shall be fulfilled, you will never know. “Through you the hearts of God’s people have been refreshed,” Paul writes to Philemon: does the kingdom of heaven not come through this man?  “Refresh this heart of mine,” the Apostle adds – does he not call for an increased manifestation of the kingdom?  A slave has stolen from his master and run away.  Paul has discovered him and now calls him, “My child whom I have begotten during my imprisonment.”  The slave has run to the prisoner and found freedom; does not the kingdom of God come to this place?  And certainly Philemon will accept his slave back as a brother in the Lord, his arms open like the father of the prodigal son… how the Lord does work among us. And our psalm presents a litany of the Lord’s work: yes, “the Lord sets captives free,” as we see in our first reading; but whenever the eyes of the blind are opened or the widow and the stranger are cared for, whenever justice is secured and the hungry are fed… the Lord is at work, His kingdom comes.  This world is in His hands, after all, and whenever love is “freely bestowed” by any of us toiling upon this earth, the Lord shows Himself indeed in the beat of our heart and our arms open wide.  It is not difficult to see. You must remember, my brothers and sisters, that all prophecy has been fulfilled; all revelation is complete in the coming of the Son of God, in His death and in His resurrection.  There is nothing left to await but the final day, a Day about which false prophets conjecture and faithless souls run anxiously about to find, only moving themselves further from its presence.  “The Son of Man in His day will be like the lightning that flashes from one end of the sky to the other” – don’t worry, you will not miss it; nor can you mistake it.  Your purpose in the meantime is to spend yourself bringing His kingdom to this earth in the love you share with your neighbor.  In such love come only from Christ, the kingdom is already here.   ******* O LORD, let us be useful to you   in these days before your Son’s return – let us bring your presence to this world. YHWH, make us useful to you and to your Church, that we might serve to bring your kingdom to this dark world of persecution, to this prison in which we dwell.  Though we be apart from you as long as we are in the flesh, let us do your work while here, and captives will be set free.  You are with us, LORD, in those who give sight to the blind, in those who instruct the ignorant and lead them to your love.  May we be brought to share in your surpassing love!  Help us to feed the hungry and care for the fatherless and widows.  May every stranger be welcomed into the arms of your Church.  Then we shall find a home in this world, a dwelling place in your arms, O LORD.  Though there be suffering every day, you will be with us through it all; your Son will bear every blow in our stead, and we will come in this way to your eternal dwelling.  Let us have no fear about His return, for He is with us in this prison.

(Ti.3:1-7; Ps.23:1-6; Lk.17:11-19)   “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”   Such is the cry of the ten lepers standing at a distance from the Lord.  And such is the cry that wells up in all our hearts when we realize we must keep ourselves far from His company for the sin that festers like a disease in our souls.  Desiring no longer to be outcasts from His love, we call out… and He answers. Do you think you are something different than these lepers?  Do you think your status with God is somehow raised above these poor souls?  Beware.  Heed the words of Paul: “We ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, and far from the faith; we were the slaves of our passions and of pleasures of various kinds.”  Was our soul not then in a diseased state?  And was it any work of our own that brought us healing, that brought us to “baptism of new birth and renewal by the Holy Spirit”?  No.  Rather, “when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, He saved us, not because of any righteous deeds we had done, but because of His mercy.”  So, by rights we should yet be in the mire of our sin; we should yet be as lepers outside the gates of salvation.  But His “Spirit He lavished on us through Jesus Christ our Savior, that we might be justified by His grace and become heirs, in hope, of eternal life.”  And do we appreciate what He has done for us? Indeed the Lord indicates today that most of us are ungrateful wretches when He asks, “Were not all ten made whole?  Where are the other nine?” at the sight of the single leper returning to give praise to God.  “Where are the other nine?”  Only one of ten falls “on his face at the feet of Jesus”; and to how many of us does this lack of thanksgiving speak?  And so, how many of us remain with more than a trace of our leprosy? “He refreshes my soul,” David sings in humble appreciation of the blessings of the Lord he finds before himself in all things.  It is He who gives “repose”; it is He who “anoints [our] head with oil”… it is He who cleanses our soul.  And if we fail to realize this grace at work within us, then a measure of pollution remains, and still we need to cry out to our God, and fall on our knees in praise for His answer.  Ever is He our Master; ever are we His slaves – ever do we need His mercy to live in righteousness each day.   ******* O LORD, save us from enslavement to our passions –   let us have faith in you and in your grace upon our souls. YHWH, our faith has saved us, has it not?  Our faith in you and in your Son has brought the Spirit upon us to cleanse us from our sin.  Now we have new birth and look forward in hope of eternal life.  You are ever at our side as we travel through this dark world. But do we give you due praise, O LORD?  Do we see what you have done for us and bow before you in adoration, in recognition of your greatness?  Without your grace we would yet be lost – help us remember it is only through you our cup overflows.  And so, let us remain with you forever.   What sin has been ours in the past, O LORD!  What disease has troubled our souls!  Though we have been rebellious before, let us now be obedient to your command and serve you and others as you call.  The passions and pleasures that once enslaved us cast away, and let us be humble in your sight.

(Ti.2:1-8,11-14;   Ps.37:3-4,18,23,27,29,39;   Lk.17:7-10)  “Live temperately, justly, and devoutly in this age.” Brothers and sisters, be “eager to do what is right” as servants of the Most High God.  “Trust in the Lord and do good, that you may dwell in the land and enjoy security.”  For “the Lord watches over the lives of the wholehearted; their inheritance lasts forever.” Paul gives instruction to all on how to live a godly life here on this earth.  He “tell[s] the older men that they must be temperate, serious-minded, and self-controlled”; the older women that they must give “good example” to the younger women, teaching them thus “to love their husbands and children, to be sensible, chaste, loving at home, kindly, submissive to their husbands”; “the young men to keep themselves completely under control”; and those who teach to “have the integrity of serious, sound words to which no one can take exception.”  Then “no opponent will have anything bad to say about us”; then we will have given right witness to Christ in this age. And “when [we] have done all [we] have been commanded to do” by the Lord and His apostles, when we have fully served Him and one another in our life on this earth – when we have finished “prepar[ing] [His] supper” and “put[ting] on our apron and wait[ing]” on our brothers – what should we do but say in all humility and in all truth: “We are useless servants.  We have done no more than our duty”?  For this is what will assure us that we will “abide forever”; this will prove that we are as our Lord, “who sacrificed Himself for us,” and so, with “the just [we] shall possess the land, and dwell in it forever.” Our God has come “to redeem us from all unrighteousness and to cleanse us for Himself as a people of His own.”  Let us show we are that people by ever being “sound in the faith, loving, and steadfast,” doing all for the Lord and our neighbor.  In this way we indicate that even upon the dust of this earth “we await our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of the great God and of our Savior Jesus Christ.”  In this way we attain to the age to come, where we shall be seated at His table. ******* O LORD, help us to turn from all sinful ways and complete the work you command us to do. YHWH, we are useless servants; help us to fulfill the tasks you set before us, to be eager to do what is right.  For this is what will gain us entrance to your kingdom, to a place at your table – if we live temperately, devoutly and justly in this world, as even your Son has done. Should we fall into disrepute?  Should we not be self-controlled?  It is serious work to which you call us, O LORD, and so let our words be sound and our behavior above reproach, and to you we shall be as witness and bring our souls with the souls of others into the security of your blessed land, where we shall dwell forever. We are blessed to do your work, LORD, to serve you in this world.  For in such work you are with us; your will is accomplished even in this flesh and bone.  And so, let us give ourselves entirely to you and to your ways, submissive in all things, and we shall be redeemed from all unrighteousness and cleansed for your kingdom.

(Ti.1:1-9;   Ps.24:1-6;   Lk.17:1-6)   “Who can ascend the mountain of the Lord? Or who may stand in His holy place?”   “He whose hands are sinless, whose heart is clean, who desires not what is vain.” Of priests and holy men our readings speak, yes, but most especially of bishops, who are most entrusted with the Word of God, with the preaching of the Gospel of eternal life… and how silence in this regard leads but to condemnation. Paul sets the standard for the “servant of God.”  He presents himself “as an apostle of Jesus Christ for the sake of the faith of those whom God has chosen and to promote their knowledge of the truth as our religion embodies it.”  Here is the bishop in sum.  Here is the priest in sum.  Here is the sum of any sent to teach in His name: increase the faith and knowledge of the flock.  And in this service certainly a priest must be “irreproachable,” and “the bishop as God’s steward must be blameless.”  He must be “steady, just, holy, and self-controlled.  [And] in his teaching he must hold fast to the authentic message, so that he will be able both to encourage men to follow sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict it.” But how many of our leaders hold to Paul’s words?  How many encourage the keeping of sound doctrine, and, perhaps more to the point, how many refute error?  Worse yet, how many travel merrily along with the error of the day?  “If your brother does wrong, correct him,” Jesus says.  But how many tell their flock, “You should not fornicate or commit adultery” or “You should not abort a child or contracept him” or “You should not be ‘self-willed or arrogant, a drunkard, a violent or greedy man’”?  And how many freely engage in sins such as these themselves?  Yes, Jesus says, “If he repents, forgive him” (even “seven times a day”) of the brother in your care; but how can he repent if he knows nothing of the wrong he does, and how can you instruct him if you are committing the same sins as he?  And so where is true forgiveness? “Scandals will inevitably arise, but woe to him through whom they come.”  It is a terrible warning the Lord gives today, particularly to those entrusted with much, for how great will be their punishment for the abuse of their call.  And of course, the source of such travails in the wayward soul is simply a lack of faith.  Not “the size of a mustard seed” or a speck of dust is the faith of too many.  If even it could be detected with a microscope it would show itself in good works.  But it is not there.  And so, who indeed shall climb the mountain of the Lord?  How many vainly grovel at its base?  And if our leaders do not climb, how shall any follow?  So, who shall come to holiness? Let us awaken to the call of our God!  Let the Church serve as His presence in this world.  Let us be “the race that seeks for Him,” putting holiness before all else.  And let the ordained among us lead us in this way.   ******* O LORD, let us be men of faith   who carry your Word forth blamelessly,   that all may come to see your face.  YHWH, how shall we serve you if we have not sinless hands or clean hearts?  And so, how shall we find our reward in your kingdom?  Will we not rather be cast into the sea for our unfaithfulness, for our failing to hold to your true teaching and leading others astray?  Help us who are far from you.  Forgive us our sins. Do we not travel blindly in this day, dear LORD, lacking the guidance of holy shepherds?  Does your people not suffer for lack of knowledge of you and your ways?  Is the truth not hidden from our eyes by the silence of your teachers?  And are many not led away from you by their example?  Who is there that stands in your stead; who climbs your holy mountain, making a way for others to follow?  There are a few, no doubt; but are there not more who are afraid to speak in your NAME?  Help us, LORD, for your Church shall be lost without the guidance of good shepherds.  Encourage all souls to seek your face, and so find the blessings of Heaven.

(Phil.2:1-4;   Ps.131:1-3;   Lk.14:12-14)  “Let all parties think humbly of others as superior to themselves, each of you looking to others’ interests rather than his own.” The key to Christianity is to see others, even the blind and the lame and the crippled beggar, as superior to ourselves, and place ourselves at their service in love.  As Christians we can never look down upon another individual; if our heart is proud and our “eyes haughty,” we are certainly set up for a fall, for the Lord who sees all and humbles Himself before all will certainly humble our proud souls.  Rather, we must maintain the “fellowship in spirit, compassion, and pity” of which Paul speaks, “possessing the one love, united in spirit and ideals” and thus always giving one another the “encouragement” we owe in Christ. Jesus would teach this humility and unity of spirit to the chief of the Pharisees today.  He would have him adopt a truly Christian attitude, expecting nothing in return for his feeding of the sheep, concerned only for the welfare of the poorest in his midst.  Thus He would convert him to the faith by wiping the mocking smile from his face in a spirit of genuine compassion.  He tells him, “Whenever you give a lunch or dinner, do not invite your friends or brothers or relatives or wealthy neighbors.”  He should not be concerned simply with those of his blood and the people of means, for certainly these would “invite [him] in return and thus repay” him.  No, quite a novel idea has the Son of God for the head of the Jewish Church: expect your recompense at “the resurrection of the just,” not on earth.  Set your heart on things that are above, not below.  And go beyond your blood to invite all into the hall of the Lord, especially those most in need, those most outcast.  Such a call must have been shocking to the sensibilities of this Pharisee, as indeed it remains shocking to most even today.  But He only calls us to do as He has done – empty ourselves completely for the good of others. “Make my joy complete by your unanimity,” Paul begs the Philippians; and unanimity in the Lord encompasses all.  In it there can be no “rivalry or conceit” because in it there are no factions: all are one in the Lord.  To this unity, found only in humility, the only Son does call us all, for He knows it is there we shall find our peace; in such humble service we find our eternal rest upon the lap of our Father. ******* O LORD, let us not seek our reward in the things of this world or follow in its ways; rather, in all humility let us find our peace in your arms. YHWH, help us to look to others’ needs and not our own, to seek to serve you in all things, not looking for reward.  How shall we be humble as your Son, placing ourselves entirely in your hands?  How shall we become as your children if you do not bless us?  For we are selfish and self-seeking and need your grace upon our souls to save us from such vain pride. To sacrifice your Son calls us, LORD, to unity with all our brothers and sisters.  He would have us empty ourselves as He has done in coming among us and dying on the Cross.  This great blessing He would make our own, if our desire were for Heaven. Give us, O LORD, true wisdom and peace of soul to see and know the glory to which Jesus calls us by His holy sacrifice, to share the love that exists between you and Him alone.  O let us be your children! free of all snares of the flesh and the world and the devil, desiring only to sup with you.

(Eph.6:1-9;   Ps.145:10-14;   Lk.13:22-30)   “Do God’s will with your whole heart as slaves of Christ.”   These words Paul addresses to the slaves of his time, instructing them to “obey [their] human masters with the reverence, the awe, and the sincerity [they] owe to Christ,” but they apply well to us all, who are in all things to serve the Lord.  Always we should “give [our] service willingly, doing it for the Lord rather than men.”  This is as “the narrow door” of which our Lord speaks; this is what will bring us into His heavenly kingdom.  For it is certain that “each one, whether slave or free, will be repaid by the Lord for whatever good he does.” Brothers and sisters, the Lord’s “kingdom is a kingdom for all ages, and [His] dominion endures through all generations.”  It matters not when we live or where, or what position we have in society – none of these things pertain to the reign of God.  For those who are to be saved shall indeed come from the four corners of the universe and from every period of time, and as Paul says to masters of their slaves: “You and they have a Master in heaven who plays no favorites.”  So if you think that any honor or preference of this earth will smooth your way into the kingdom, you are surely mistaken and risk the grave disappointment of discovering that “some are first who will be last,” or finding yourself barred from His House for failing to serve the Lord with all your heart in all the things of the world.  For He has come to serve and not to be served, and He “lifts up all who are falling and raises up all who are bowed down.” Jesus goes “through cities and towns teaching – all the while making His way toward Jerusalem.”  Even unto the cross He offers instruction to those who would follow Him.  He is as the fathers Paul instructs to “bring [their children] up with the training and instruction befitting the Lord.”  But we must heed His words; we must honor and obey the Lord as children are expected to honor and obey their parents.  For His words are wise and they carry the greatest promise: “That it may go well with you, and that you may have long life,” not so much upon this earth, but in the heavenly kingdom. Do all things in His name, brothers and sisters.  Honor Him.  Obey Him.  Serve Him well that He might see you and “know where you come from” and thus honor you “at the feast in the kingdom of God.”   ******* O LORD, let us follow in your narrow way   that we might be saved;   let us honor you with all our lives.  YHWH, all are one in your kingdom, for you do not play favorites with your children but call all the same to your presence.  And so the lowly you raise from the dust and the exalted you tear down… for all must come to you on an even path.  The narrow way that leads to your glory is not dependent on the concerns of this age. And so slaves are no less your children than their masters; masters no less than their slaves – it matters only their devotion to you.  All are called to serve you, LORD, to follow the command you give to each one.  And so father and son may come equally unto Heaven if they do as fits their role, as fits your call.  Let children obey their parents and parents nurture their children in the faith.  Let workers perform their tasks with zeal and those over them treat all with respect and love.  Let all discourse of your glory by their service to you, giving you thanks for the splendor of your kingdom, to which they thereby come.  Praise you, LORD, for your goodness toward all!

(Job 3:1-3,11-17,20-23;   Ps.88:2-8;   Lk.9:51-56)   “My soul is surfeited with troubles and my life draws near to the netherworld.”   After sitting in silence seven days, scraping the boils from his skin, finally, “Job opened his mouth and cursed his day.”  Finally he cries out against all his troubles, asking, “Why did I not perish at birth, come forth from the womb and expire?”  Only so much can mortal man bear, and so Job seeks now only the tranquility of death, wherein “the weary are at rest.” How well our psalm today describes Job’s state, he who is among those “whose path is hidden from them, and whom God hemmed in.”  For he truly finds himself now “numbered with those who go down into the pit… a man without strength” from whom all blessing has been taken.  His “couch is among the dead, like the slain who lie in the grave, whom [God] remember[s] no longer and who are cut off from [His] care.”  And so he prays for an end to his misery; so he seeks the forgetfulness of death to remove its pangs from his body and his heart. And is it not these same pangs James and John would inflict upon the Samaritans who refuse to welcome Jesus: “Lord, would you not have us call down fire from heaven to destroy them?”  Would they not plunge them “into the bottom of the pit, into the dark abyss” where Job sits in his innocence?  Is it not right that God’s “wrath lies heavy” upon such as these?  Let God’s “billows” “overwhelm” them, they declare. But Jesus has another answer.  He would not see even the guilty suffer the fate of the righteous Job.  For He is now “firmly resolved to proceed toward Jerusalem,” where His crucifixion awaits.  He is now upon the fulfillment of His mission here on earth, and it has nothing to do with punishing the sins even of His persecutors – it has only to do with His death.  It is He upon whom God’s wrath shall be heavy, He who will be plunged into the pit… He who will suffer all punishment for sin.  Even for these Samaritans (even for you and me), the Lord shall suffer and die, taking upon Himself the punishment James and John see rightly due them, rightly due to all.  His cross completes the pangs inflicted upon Job.  And through this cross the troubles shall be overcome. Brothers and sisters, let us no longer cry for relief from our suffering, for that relief is at hand now in the cross of Christ; He has suffered all these things already, and we must but give them to Him to be drawn from the netherworld and set in His glory. ******* O LORD, let us be taken with your Son   from this world of darkness and death.  YHWH, save us from the dark abyss, from the nether world to which by our sin we come.  Let us know that the price has been paid by your only Son, who has suffered all torments for us.  In His sacrifice let us trust, and give to Him our cross.  Truly, LORD, this earth is a dark place, and it draws us to a darker place, an eternal abyss, where is no light.  From the grave how shall we be saved, we who are mortal and decaying, we who are surfeited with troubles, with the bitterness of this disobedient age?  Does it not seem to us there is no escape.  O let us not be forgetful of you, LORD, or of your love!  Let us not forget that you have sent your only Son, to die not only for the righteous but also those who would cast Him out – His death means new life to all who offer Him their cross.  How quickly He would take all darkness from us, how eagerly He awaits our turning to Him…  O Jesus, lift all souls from the bottom of the pit; save us from the wrath we rightly deserve.

(Prv.3:27-34;   Ps.15:1-5;   Lk.8:16-18)   “The curse of the Lord is on the house of the wicked, but the dwelling of the just He blesses.”   Light fills the house of him “who walks blamelessly and does justice; who thinks the truth in his heart and slanders not with his tongue,” for he who does these things is as light itself, having no part with darkness.  He knows that “to the Lord the perverse man is an abomination,” and so he “env[ies] not the lawless man and choose[s] none of his ways” but chooses always the way of God and so finds the “friendship” of the Lord which is with “the upright,” which is as light shining upon him and through him. As for the wicked, “he who has not will lose even the little he thinks he has,” for the Lord is not with him; and all he has gained by “usury” and by “bribe[s] against the innocent” shall be revealed in all its emptiness on the day the Lord shines His encompassing light – he will indeed be left with nothing, for nothing he truly has.  He who has “plot[ted]… evil against his neighbor” and “quarrel[led]… with a man without cause” will never be able to stand in the light of the Lord, for he has made his home in darkness, and in darkness he shall remain.  Certainly this “reprobate is despised” by the Lord, for his rebellion puts him in opposition to the kingdom of God. And so we must “take heed, therefore, how [we] hear” the Lord’s instruction, for His instruction is as light itself and brings the light of salvation to the receptive soul.  This light we must make our own and place it “on a lampstand so that whoever comes in” – whoever approaches the house in which we dwell – “can see it” and can share in it freely.  All shade of sin must be removed from our souls so that without hindrance and without hesitation our light will shine forth and all will know the abiding love of the Lord.  “He who does these things shall never be disturbed.”  He who does these things, who reflects the Lord’s justice and love all his days, cannot but be blessed by the Lord, for he himself becomes His own. “When He is dealing with the arrogant, He is stern, but to the humble He shows kindness.”  And so, having his deeds “brought to light” is as a curse for the wicked, but to the just it means eternal blessing.   ******* O LORD, all is known in your holy light:   help us to do good and avoid evil.  YHWH, let us walk blamelessly before you; in innocence let us dwell.  Let us not turn to the paths of the wicked but remain ever in your light, walking always in your way.  Then we shall be blessed with your presence.  LORD, all shall be exposed in your holy light; from you none can hide.  And so, let us not be afraid to do your will with confidence, with faith in your protection and guidance.  Let us not shy away from shining your light with our very lives, for in this way we shall be kept from straying.  Those who stray, O LORD, you condemn.  Those whose hearts are hardened against you walk the path to perdition, and so as long as they continue to travel in sin, their destruction is assured.  For darkness has no place in your kingdom of light, and those who proudly persist in their sin cannot but be cast from your presence.  But let us do no harm; let us honor you by thinking and speaking only truth and remaining ever humble before you.