Psalm 85:1 (0) For the leader. A psalm of the sons of Korach:
2 (1) Adonai, you have shown favor to your land;
you have restored the fortunes of Ya‘akov,
3 (2) taken away the guilt of your people,
pardoned all their sin, (Selah); Psalm 85:8 (7) Show us your grace, Adonai;
grant us your salvation.
9 (8) I am listening. What will God, Adonai, say?
For he will speak peace to his people,
to his holy ones —
but only if they don’t relapse into folly.
10 (9) His salvation is near for those who fear him,
so that glory will be in our land.
11 (10) Grace and truth have met together;
justice and peace have kissed each other.
12 (11) Truth springs up from the earth,
and justice looks down from heaven.
13 (12) Adonai will also grant prosperity;
our land will yield its harvest.
14 (13) Justice will walk before him
and make his footsteps a path.
(Complete Jewish Bible)
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Have you ever thought to yourself: what an injustice it was that the Lord of heaven was born in such a lowly, forsaken way? Indeed, he was not born of justice. But his birth was exactly right. In that manger in that forgotten town, God's righteousness and steadfast love looked down from the sky. In that moment, God chose to turn the power of the world upside down. And what sprung up from the ground? Faithfulness. The faithfulness of the shepherds who were curious enough to check out this strange happening. The faithfulness of Joseph for his beloved young Mary as she labored. She could not have given birth without him. With Mary and Joseph, we see how righteousness and peace kiss each other in order to bring about God's future for us. Perhaps Christ's birth was the fruit of injustices. But God saw to it that it was just right.
Lord, we often find ourselves in difficult times and places. Make a path for our steps in such times. Show us you are still near. Amen.Amy E. Marga
Associate Professor of Systematic Theology at Luther Seminary, St. Paul, Minn.
Psalm 85:1 Lord, you were favorable to your land; you restored the fortunes of Jacob.
2 You forgave the iniquity of your people; you pardoned all their sin. (Selah)...
8 Let me hear what God the Lord will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, to his faithful, to those who turn to him in their hearts.
9 Surely his salvation is at hand for those who fear him, that his glory may dwell in our land.
10 Steadfast love and faithfulness will meet; righteousness and peace will kiss each other.
11 Faithfulness will spring up from the ground, and righteousness will look down from the sky.
12 The Lord will give what is good, and our land will yield its increase.13 Righteousness will go before him, and will make a path for his steps.(The Revised Standard Version)
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Monday, 4 December 2017 - Isaiah 40:1-11
Isaiah 40:1 “Comfort and keep comforting my people,” says your God.
2 “Tell Yerushalayim to take heart; proclaim to her
that she has completed her time of service,
that her guilt has been paid off,
that she has received at the hand of Adonai
double for all her sins.”
3 A voice cries out:
“Clear a road through the desert for Adonai!
Level a highway in the ‘Aravah for our God!
4 Let every valley be filled in,
every mountain and hill lowered,
the bumpy places made level
and the crags become a plain.
5 Then the glory of Adonai will be revealed;
all humankind together will see it,
for the mouth of Adonai has spoken.”
6 A voice says, “Proclaim!”
And I answer, “What should I proclaim?”
“All humanity is merely grass,
all its kindness like wildflowers:
7 the grass dries up, the flower fades,
when a wind from Adonai blows on it.
Surely the people are grass!
8 The grass dries up, the flower fades;
but the word of our God will stand forever.”
9 You who bring good news to Tziyon,
get yourself up on a high mountain;
you who bring good news to Yerushalayim,
cry out at the top of your voice!
Don’t be afraid to shout out loud!
Say to the cities of Y’hudah,
“Here is your God!
10 Here comes Adonai Elohim with power,
and his arm will rule for him.
Look! His reward is with him,
and his recompense is before him.
11 He is like a shepherd feeding his flock,
gathering his lambs with his arm,
carrying them against his chest,
gently leading the mother sheep.”(Complete Jewish Bible)
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God's first words to the newly-freed nation of Israel are those of comfort. "I will take care of you in your freedom," God says. Even today, as free as we are in America, we rarely heed God's call. We try to build up so much in our search for eternity: our fortunes, our houses, our legacies. And yet God reminds us that all people are grass. All people are flowers. Our kingdoms will wither and fade. And yet God, the One who sees us, the One who saw all those who came before us and the One who will see all those who come after us, stoops down to inspect us like a gentle gardener inspecting tender plants, grasses and tiny blossoms. The gardener wants to comfort us, for we are not too tiny or ephemeral for God.
Lord, thank you for your holy comfort. Your word stands forever. Help us grow peacefully in your beautiful garden. Amen.
Amy E. Marga
Associate Professor of Systematic Theology at Luther Seminary, St. Paul, Minn.
Isaiah 40:1 Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God.
2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that she has served her term, that her penalty is paid, that she has received from the Lord's hand double for all her sins.
3 A voice cries out: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
4 Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain.
5 Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken."
6 A voice says, "Cry out!" And I said, "What shall I cry?" All people are grass, their constancy is like the flower of the field.
7 The grass withers, the flower fades, when the breath of the Lord blows upon it; surely the people are grass.
8 The grass withers, the flower fades; but the word of our God will stand forever.
9 Get you up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good tidings; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings, lift it up, do not fear; say to the cities of Judah, "Here is your God!"
10 See, the Lord God comes with might, and his arm rules for him; his reward is with him, and his recompense before him.11 He will feed his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms, and carry them in his bosom, and gently lead the mother sheep.(The Revised Standard Version)
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Sunday, 3 December 2017 - "Joy to the World," ELW 267
1. Joy to the world, the Lord is come!
Let earth receive her king;
let ev'ry heart prepare him room
and heav'n and nature sing,
and heav'n and nature sing,
and heav'n, and heav'n and nature sing.
2. Joy to the earth, the Savior reigns!
Let all their songs employ,
while fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains
repeat the sounding joy,
repeat the sounding joy,
repeat, repeat the sounding joy.
3. No more let sin and sorrow grow
nor thorns infest the ground;
he comes to make his blessings flow
far as the curse is found,
far as the curse is found,
far as, far as the curse is found.
4. He rules the world with truth and grace
and makes the nations prove
the glories of his righteousness
and wonders of his love,
and wonders of his love,
and wonders, wonders of his love.
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When I was in grade school, my brother and I couldn't wait to sing "Joy to the World." Every time we came to the refrain, we used to stomp our feet to the rhythm:
"And heaven and nature sing" (stomp, stomp), "and heaven and nature sing" (stomp, stomp). Our parents would glare, our baby sister would laugh. It was great. Stomp, stomp, a kid's foot signaling the joy of Jesus' birth. We signaled the fun and laughter of the season, the excitement it cooked up in us. We loved the presents! The lights! Our family! The candles! The cookies! Why not? God fills this earth--the heavens and the earth-- with so much pleasure and beauty that it's hard not to burst out laughing. The heavens and earth burst with laughter and with glee at the birth of our Lord. So do we.
Your birth, dear Lord Jesus Christ, is our new birth. Thank you for this special place called earth where we can be filled and celebrate your life. Amen.
Amy E. Marga
Associate Professor of Systematic Theology at Luther Seminary, St. Paul, Minn.
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Saturday, 2 December 2017 - "Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus," ELW 254
1. Come, thou long-expected Jesus,
born to set thy people free;
from our fears and sins release us;
let us find our rest in thee.
Israel's strength and consolation,
hope of all the earth thou art,
dear desire of ev'ry nation,
joy of ev'ry longing heart.
2. Born thy people to deliver,
born a child, and yet a king;
born to reign in us forever,
now thy gracious kingdom bring.
By thine own eternal Spirit
rule in all our hearts alone;
by thine all-sufficient merit
raise us to thy glorious throne.
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The opening words of the first reading for the First Sunday of Advent are a prayer asking God to "tear open the heavens and come down." So it is fitting that we complete this week's study and preparation with this prayer, "Come, thou long-expected Jesus." It is a prayer of faith, asking that Christ would come with everything needed for life: freedom and release from fears and sins, rest, strength, consolation, hope and joy. We have attempted to find these things on our own, in our wealth, our relationships and our professional success. But they come only from outside of us, from God's love shown to us in Christ.
Pastor and theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, arrested by the Nazis in 1943 and hanged at the Buchenwald concentration camp in April of 1945 wrote, "A prison cell, in which one waits, hopes and is completely dependent on the fact that the door of freedom has to be opened from the outside, is not a bad picture of Advent." In Christ, God opens that door and we are saved.
Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly. Come into our hearts and lives, forming us into signs of your love for this hurting, precious world. Amen.
Rachel Mithelman, '83
St Johns Lutheran Church, Des Moines, Iowa
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Friday, 1 December 2017 - Mark 13:24-37
Mark 13:24 In those days, after that trouble,
Mark 13:25 Isaiah 13:10; 34:4; Ezekiel 32:7; Joel 2:10; 3:4 (2:31); 4:15(3:15); Haggai 2:6, 21
the sun will grow dark,
the moon will stop shining,
25 the stars will fall from the sky,
and the powers in heaven will be shaken.[Mark 13:25 Isaiah 13:10; 34:4; Ezekiel 32:7; Joel 2:10; 3:4 (2:31); 4:15(3:15); Haggai 2:6, 21]
26 Then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with tremendous power and glory.[Mark 13:26 Daniel 7:13–14] 27 He will send out his angels and gather together his chosen people from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.
28 “Now let the fig tree teach you its lesson: when its branches begin to sprout and leaves appear, you know that summer is approaching. 29 In the same way, when you see all these things happening, you are to know that the time is near, right at the door. 30 Yes! I tell you that this people will certainly not pass away before all these things happen. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will certainly not pass away. 32 However, when that day and hour will come, no one knows — not the angels in heaven, not the Son, just the Father. 33 Stay alert! Be on your guard! For you do not know when the time will come.
34 “It’s like a man who travels away from home, puts his servants in charge, each with his own task, and tells the doorkeeper to stay alert. 35 So stay alert! for you don’t know when the owner of the house will come, 36 whether it will be evening, midnight, cockcrow or morning — you don’t want him to come suddenly and find you sleeping! 37 And what I say to you, I say to everyone: stay alert!”(Complete Jewish Bible)
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Thirty-two years ago I was a walking visual aid for the season of Advent as I entered the 9th month of pregnancy with our first child. The situation brought home the focus of the traditional gospel readings for the First Sunday of Advent--that is, our inability to predict Christ's return at the end of time and our need to be ready. In Mark, Jesus says, "Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come." Along with the congregation I was serving, my husband and I did not know when the time would come for the birth of our child, but we were ready. The nursery had been wallpapered, the crib set up, a dresser filled with everything a baby would need.
Because we do not know when Christ will come, it is best to live prepared and ready: fearlessly, with kindness, forgiveness, compassion and generosity. Such lives will rejoice to receive our Lord as he comes to us now, as well as at the end of time.
As we rest in you, O God, keep us ready and prepared to meet you each day--as well as at the end. Our times are in your hands. Amen.
Rachel Mithelman, '83
St Johns Lutheran Church, Des Moines, Iowa
Mark 13:24 "But in those days, after that suffering, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light,
25 and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.
26 Then they will see "the Son of Man coming in clouds' with great power and glory.
27 Then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.
28 "From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near.
29 So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates.
30 Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place.
31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
32 "But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
33 Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come.
34 It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch.
35 Therefore, keep awake--for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn,
36 or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly.
37 And what I say to you I say to all: Keep awake."(The Revised Standard Version)
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The Luther Seminary
2481 Como Avenue
Saint Paul, Minnesota 55108 United States
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