Devotion 6.30.26

Psalm 145:1 - 14

1 I will extol you, my God and King,

  and bless your name forever and ever.

2 Every day I will bless you

  and praise your name forever and ever.

3 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised,

  and his greatness is unsearchable.

4 One generation shall commend your works to another,

  and shall declare your mighty acts.

5 On the glorious splendor of your majesty,

  and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.

6 They shall speak of the might of your awesome deeds,

  and I will declare your greatness.

7 They shall pour forth the fame of your abundant goodness

  and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.

8 The Lord is gracious and merciful,

  slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

9 The Lord is good to all,

  and his mercy is over all that he has made.

10 All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord,

  and all your saints shall bless you!

11 They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom

  and tell of your power,

12 to make known to the children of man your mighty deeds,

  and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.

Each generation will share God's Word with the next. God's Word tells of his plan of salvation and includes all that God has done for us, his people, since creation.

This week is the week that includes July 4, and as such, we pause to hold in awe this country of ours, now observing 250 years of independence. Independence from what? 

Not government. Government has been around for a very long time. In Israel, we read in 1 Samuel 8 of Israel's longing to be led by a king. God was too distant, and they desired a king like many of the other empires they knew about. Samuel, then an old man, shook his head and cried to God about his failure. Verses 6 - 18 are particularly instructive for us as believers and citizens of this world, even and especially today's world. 

We cry about our failures today too as a society. "We are one generation away from squandering our fortune as a republic," we say as the old adage reminds us. What is David telling us in today's psalm? 

Hold God in the highest esteem daily. Teach, read, be engaged in God's Word and prepare the next generation (read, mark, learn and inwardly digest). Luther bemoans the lack of knowledge in his time on what he considered the basics and the failures of preparation to teach the basics, so he wrote the small catechism to prepare parents and clergy to teach the fundamentals of faith. From his preface:

"The deplorable, miserable conditions which I discovered during a recent visitation of the parishes has forced and pressed me to prepare this catechism, or statement of Christian doctrine, in very brief and simple terms. God help us! What miseries I beheld! The ordinary people, especially in the villages, know nothing at all of Christian doctrine, and, alas, many pastors are altogether inept and incompetent to teach." The onus of this teaching is right there with us, as fathers (and part of the parenting team).

Our bemoaning of the world we live in is a state of being. It has been, is now, and ever will be that way. Our desire for a better world is a reflection of the fact that we, like Israel, have separated from God through our own sinful nature. God desires us all to turn to him for our sustenance, our daily bread, and to his Word. Governments were put in place, or allowed to be put in place, to keep order (Paul writes of such). In our case, our form of government was put in place in order to keep order but keep certain "God-given rights" (unalienable rights).

It's a delicate balance we've been keeping over the past 250 years. Every generation fears the loss of what was designed by our forefathers. 

Pray we keep our faith in Christ Jesus and him alone. Pray we maintain our balance here on earth by passing the torch to the next generation, having taught them well - of God's plan for our salvation from our sinful nature, his Word, and how that works in our lives today. Pray for our leaders in government, that God give them a measure of wisdom to discern truth and justice. Pray that we, as participants in the ultimate decision of who governs, are given a measure of the same.

Hope Men's Ministry is a ministry in service to Hope Lutheran Church and School. Our purpose is to grow, unite, and share God's Word to all men through meaningful activities. These activities center on fellowship, service, conversation, prayer, study and devotion as we seek to become men of God as He created us to be.