297. Saturday after Sixth Sunday after Trinity.
Lord, incline my heart unto thy testimonies,
and not to covetousness. Amen.
Isaiah 58, 9-11. Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity: And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday: And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.
❦
God is rich; he always has sufficient to give. And he is ready to do it; he takes delight in blessing us, and making us happy, and satisfying our heart with good things. If a man will but bow to the will of God, renounce his unbelief, live of God’s mercy, and practice it toward others, he shall have the Lord’s blessing abundantly, draw water out of the wells of salvation, pour out more and more freely for the benefit of friend and enemy, and his own soul shall have sweet solace and refreshment. In that case, if you pray, you shall receive; for then the Lord’s will is your will, and you pray for that which is good for yourself and others. As it is the Lord’s delight to satisfy and refresh, so it is also your delight and joy to feed the hungry and comfort the afflicted. The church is the home of love and mercy. There are all manner of sick and needy persons under the porches of Bethesda, in order that we may exercise mercy; but there also is divine healing in the pool of Bethesda, since the Son of God came, and sacrificed himself on the altar from whose foot the water gushes forth; and therefore we never need stand helpless in the presence of one another’s distress.
Our text has precious promises for the people of love. Your obscurity and darkness shall be as the noon day; that is to say, all that is most evil shall be turned into good. The Lord shall guide you continually, every hour, today and hereafter, every moment and unceasingly, through your whole life, and beyond the gates of death. The thought fills my soul with exultation. “He shall satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones.” When your heart is tired, and your bones ache; when your strength is dried up, and you wither and bear no fruit; God, who has a heaven full of everything that you need, shall satisfy your soul, and give strength to your bones, and make you to be a blessing. You shall be like a watered garden, and like a spring whose waters do not fail. The mouth of the Lord has said it; believe it, and you shall not be deceived! — Bear in mind: You are not to be rich in charity first, in order that you may believe and accept God’s blessing. No; in the midst of your sinful need, do you believe God’s love as being pure grace, and exercise this love. This is the way of life from the first hour to the last.
Give us, O God. thy Holy Spirit, that we may know thee, believe in thee, and live in thee. “Send us thy Spirit from above to fill our hearts with burning love.” Do this for Jesus’ sake. Amen.*
Lord, be mine this prize to win;
Guide me through a world of sin,
Keep me by thy saving grace,
Give me at thy side a place.
Sun and shield alike thou art;
Guide and guard my erring heart;
Grace and glory flow from thee;
Shower, O shower them, Lord, on me!
[suggested tune: St. George, TLH 574; listen here]
* Here the head of the family says a short morning or evening prayer in his own words, and closes with the Lord’s Prayer and the Benediction. This is to be done every day. If the stanzas are not sung, they may be read in their proper place before the impromptu petition and the Lord’s Prayer.