Congregation at Prayer

Catechesis Notes for the Week —Psalm 115—A Meditation on the Folly of Idolatry and the Lord’s Faithfulness—Psalm 115 begins by ascribing all glory, honor, and truth to the Lord God who alone is God. The reason for the exclusive claim to glory that belongs to the Lord is His mercy and truth. He alone is God. He has no master. He does what He pleases. But He always acts in ways that are true to His nature and faithful to His Word. All other deities are false gods made in the image and likeness of mankind’s cravings and appetites. None of these so-called gods can truly satisfy, nor do they have any real power. Psalm 115 enjoins us to trust in the Lord, to believe that He is our help and our shield from every misfortune and from the ravages of sin and death. He acts according to His promises of salvation and He will never abandon His people. Though He is the Creator and Sustainer of the universe, yet in love He cares for us and provides for our lives and our salvation. For these reasons, the faithful believer need not fear. The Lord will bless those who fear Him, both small and great.

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Catechesis Notes for the Week —Psalm 114—A Meditation on the Exodus out of Egypt—The Exodus of the children of Israel out of Egypt and the Lord’s faithfulness to them in providing for them in the wilderness is a paradigm for how He has given salvation to His Church and continues to provide for us today. Unbelievers have a “strange language” that conflicts with the language of faith and trust in the Lord. We need to immerse ourselves in God’s Word through which He makes His sanctuary and dwelling place among us. As His Word caused the Red Sea to part, turned back the waters of the Jordan River, and faithfully led them throughout their pilgrimage, so the Lord is present and leading us wherever the Gospel is faithfully taught, and the Sacraments of Christ are faithfully administered. Psalm 114 extols the presence of the Lord with His people. Though the unbelieving nations don’t recognize His presence among us, His presence nevertheless terrifies them and causes them to tremble. Jesus is the rock of our salvation! He is present with His Church for our protection and deliverance. He gives us to drink of the water of life, so that we never thirst again. Blessed be the name of the Lord.

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Catechesis Notes for the Week —Psalm 113—A Prayer of Continual Praise of the Lord—The Lord alone is God, and He is the eternal Savior of all who trust in Him. For this reason, the Church, together with all her ministers and members, gives endless praise to Him “from this time forth and forevermore!” Singing songs of praise to the Lord is healthy spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically. The Lord’s song of praise lifts our spirits to eternal truths, restores our relationship of confidence in the Lord, and gives us the optimism of Christ’s free gift of salvation. The assertions of Psalm 113 are comforting and uplifting to the soul of every Christian: “The Lord is high above all nations, and His glory above the heavens. Who is like the Lord our God, who dwells on high, who humbles Himself to behold the things that are in the heavens and the earth? He raises the poor out of the dust and lifts the needy out of the ash heap… He grants the barren woman a home, like a joyful mother of children. Praise the Lord!”

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Catechesis Notes for the Week —Psalm 112—A Prayer Confessing the Blessed State of the Righteous—Being a disciple of Jesus does not necessarily mean that the Christian will not experience economic hardship or physical sickness. A Christian may suffer all forms of distress. But Psalm 112 promises us that the faithful Christian is blessed by God no matter what he or she might be called upon to endure, and that through such suffering God promises to bless and prosper the Christian. These great truths are contained in the key verse of the psalm: “Unto the upright there arises light in the darkness.” The Christian stands righteous before God through faith in Christ. This faith is the victory that overcomes the world and by which we are afraid of no evil, “His heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord.” “Blessed is the man who f ears the Lord.”CP210404