20. Tuesday after Third Sunday in Advent.
Lord, let thy tender mercies come unto us,
thy salvation according to thy word. Amen.
Isaiah 61, 1-3. The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek: he hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.
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In the 25th chapter of Leviticus the Lord ordains that every fiftieth year in Israel was to be a year of jubilee. Then all debts were to be cancelled, every man was to have his possessions returned to him, and all bondmen who were of the children of Israel were to become free. In the kingdom of Christ all our sins are forgiven us, so that no one in this kingdom has guilt and doom hanging over his head. No bondmen are there; all are freeborn, born of God. They are no longer in the prison of the fear of death; neither are they the slaves of Satan, compelled to do his will and walk in sin; for by baptism they have entered into the covenant of a good conscience toward God by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. This is the glorious message of the gospel which Christ has brought us, and which he announces to the world through his servants. Hear this, all ye mourners in Zion: in the church of Christ, of which you became a member by your baptism, to which you earnestly desire to belong, and to which you thus do, in fact, belong, — in the church of Christ, in which you live, the Lord has established the law, that sin is forgiven, so that nothing can condemn you. This is the covenant of God with us: I will forgive your iniquity, and I will remember your sin no more (Jer. 31, 34). Jesus has taken your sin upon himself and paid its wages. Will you not give him at least this reward, that you believe his message of pardon, and rejoice? He asks no more; do not, then, let this much be denied him. He came and established this kingdom and instituted this gospel by his blood. He appointed unto them that mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness. He will ground you in his righteousness, that you may have your root in the perfect obedience of the Son of God and be able to stand against all the storms of Satan. In yourself you are utterly lost, sold under sin and made the prisoner of death; but in Christ you have liberty and life, righteousness and salvation. This is no dream, no idle words, but truth as certain and sure as God himself. All heavens answer: Amen.
Lord Jesus, we can hardly believe thy glad tidings, but do thou help us. It is a good thing for us that thou dost not break the bruised reed and dost not quench the smoking flax. We thank thee for thy great mercy; do thou help us to believe. Give us the light of the Spirit and grace to believe in thee. Amen.*
Enter his gates with songs of joy,
With praises to his courts repair;
And make it your divine employ
To pay your thanks and honors there.
The Lord is good, the Lord is kind;
Great is his grace, his mercy sure;
And all the race of man shall find
His truth from age to age endure.
[suggested tune: Old Hundredth, TLH 14; 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.