Congregation at Prayer

Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 119: Mem and Nun—Meditations on the Word of God—In the Mem section of Psalm 119, the psalmist boasts of wisdom and understanding, but it is not a wisdom and understanding of his own doing, it is a gift of God’s Word: “Your commandments make me wiser than my enemies…I have more understanding than all my teachers, for Your testimonies are my meditation. I understand more than the ancients because I keep Your precepts.” The Word of God, received in faith and meditated upon throughout one’s life, creates the miracle of godly wisdom and understanding that transcends the most erudite scholar on earth. To God be the glory! This section also speaks of the Word of God as food that is sweeter than honey. In this section, law, commandments, testimonies, precepts, and word are references to God’s Word. The Nun section of Psalm 119 begins with one of the most frequently quoted verses from the entire psalm: “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” This verse, linked with Jesus’ promise, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” teach us that the pathway of salvation is found only in Christ who comes to us by His Word. It is Christ who revives us when we are afflicted. It is Christ who opens our hearts to give freewill offerings and to confess His name. Though many dangers overtake us and the wicked lay snares to entrap us, the testimonies of the Lord deliver us every day of our lives. In this section, word, judgments, law, precepts, testimonies, and statutes are references to the Word of God.

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 119: Kaph and Lamed—Meditations on the Word of God—In the Kaph section of Psalm 119, we learn that our life, both spiritually and temporally, is dependent upon the Word of God. Our soul faints, our eyes fail, and we become like dried wineskins in smoke apart from the Word of God. It is the Word of God that revives life and gives hope. It is also by the Word of God that we are protected and rescued from the enemies that would destroy the soul. In this section, word, statutes, law, commandments, precepts, and the testimony of Your mouth are all references to God’s Word. In the Lamed section of Psalm 119, the theme of life and salvation through the Word continues. The Word of God stands firm as that by which all of creation is sustained and by which life and salvation comes to us. Apart from the Word of God and holding fast to the Word we perish. In this section, word, ordinances, law, precepts, testimonies, and commandment are the references to the Word of God.

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 119: Teth and Yod— Meditations on the Word of God—The Lord always deals with the Christian rightly. His ways are always good, no matter what He permits to come into our lives. His discipline is good. His chastening is good. His merciful and forgiving Word is good. His patience and longsuffering kindness is good. In the Teth section of Psalm 119, the psalmist declares how the Lord did good to him, even when he went astray. The Lord sent affliction that the Christian might learn the humility of faith, be delivered from arrogance and pride, learn the statutes of the Lord, and love the Word of the Lord more than all other treasures. Affliction is sent to drive us into the Word of God. In this section, word, good judgment and knowledge, commandments, statutes, precepts, and law are the references to God’s Word.
In the Yod section of Psalm 119, the psalmist confesses that the Lord has created and fashioned him and prays for understanding to learn the Lord’s commandments. Fellow believers rejoice when they see the believer who has hope in God’s Word. The Christian acquiesces to affliction laid upon him, because he knows that the Lord is faithful to him, and the Lord’s mercy and kindness will be for his comfort. In this section, commandments, word, judgments, law, and precepts are the references to Gods’ Word.

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 119: Zayin and Heth—Meditations upon God’s Word—The Zayin section of psalm 119 calls upon the Lord to remember his servant based on the Word upon which God has caused the believer to trust. The comfort of every Christian is the absolute trustworthiness of the Lord. He keeps His promises. In this section, word, law, judgments, statutes, and precepts are references to God’s Word. He remembers us in our affliction according to the promises of His Word. God’s judgments of old comfort the Christian as we see the Lord’s faithfulness clearly demonstrated countless times throughout salvation history. Though gripped at times by fear, yet His statutes give us a song to sing on our earthly pilgrimage. Every day the psalmist closes his eyes in prayer, remembering the name of the Lord and trusting in His precepts. The Heth section of psalm 119 teaches us that the Lord comes to us through His Word. He is the content of the Word. To trust in the Word of God is to trust in Jesus and to cling to Him for all of life and salvation. This section extols the baptismal life of daily contrition and repentance in which we die to sin and flee to the Lord for forgiveness and renewal. This is what it means to “keep His words…commandments…and precepts.” It is not that we have no sin, but in the spiritual warfare we are constantly returning to the Lord in repentance. By His mercy and forgiveness, we are raised up and refreshed. The earth is full of the Lord’s mercy in the preaching of the Gospel. To be “taught His statutes” is to be tutored by the Word to learn to believe in His mercy as the fountain and strength for our lives. In this section, words, word, testimonies, commandments, law, righteous judgments, precepts, and statutes are the references to God’s Word.

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 119: He and Waw — Meditations upon God’s Word—The He section of psalm 119 teaches us that God’s Word “teaches faith” and out of faith comes obedience to walk in the way of the Lord as His disciples. Out of the teaching of God’s Word comes delight in the ways of the Lord. What our eyes “look at” follows either the way of faith or the way of rebellion. So the psalmist prays, “Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things, and revive me in Your way.” In this section, statutes, law, commandments, testimonies, word, judgments, and precepts are the references to God’s Word. Ultimately, we long for His precepts because they revive us in the righteousness of Christ.

The Waw section of psalm 119 begins with the assertion that the Lord’s mercies and salvation not only revive the life of a Christian but also gives us the way to defend ourselves against those who attack and persecute us for our faith. God’s Word gives us an answer for those who attack us and the words by which we confess the truth. We love the Lord and His Word because it gives us true freedom. In this section, word, word of truth, ordinances, law, precepts, testimonies, commandments, and statutes are the references to God’s Word. Meditation, love, and delight in God’s Word is the cause of true joy for the believer.

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 119:17-32—Meditations upon God’s Word—The Gimel section of Psalm 119 teaches us that God deals bountifully with us through His Word. Throughout the entire psalm there are many words that refer to God’s Word. In this section, word, law, commandments, judgments, testimonies, and statutes are all references to God’s Word as the fountain and source of all blessings from the Lord. Each of these words describes the nuances associated with the blessings that God’s Word gives. The believer longs to hear God’s Word and delights in it. God’s Word gives us understanding and turns us away from covetous desires. God’s Word is our counselor. Though persecuted by the proud and political on account of God’s Word, the believer holds fast to the Word.

The Daleth section of psalm 119 teaches us that God’s Word is that which revives our soul. When we are separated from God’s Word our soul clings to the dust and melts from heaviness. God’s Word strengthens us in the way of truth, the certainty of God’s Word and protects us from the lying way. In this section, word, statutes, precepts, way of truth, judgments, testimonies, and commandments are the references to God’s Word. God’s Word fortifies our hearts against attacks upon our faith. The psalmist petitions the Lord not to be put to shame for holding fast to His Word, a petition He most surely hears and answers.

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CP210530Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 119: Aleph and Beth — A Meditation Upon God’s Word —“The 119th psalm is a long psalm, containing prayers, comforts, instructions, and thanks in great number. It is chiefly written to make us excited about God’s Word. It praises God’s Word throughout and warns us against both the false teachers and against boredom and contempt for the Word. Therefore, it is primarily to be counted among the psalms of comfort. Its primary concern is that we have God’s Word in its purity and hear it gladly. From this concern, then, come powerful prayers, instructions, thanks, prophecies, worship of God, suffering, and all that pleases God and grieves the devil. But where one despises the Word and is satiated by it, there all these cease. For where the Word is not purely taught, there is truly an abundance of prayers, instructions, comforts, worship, suffering, and prophecies—but totally false and condemned! For it is then only service to the devil, who is thus impure with all his heretics.”—Martin Luther, Praying the Psalms.

Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 118:15-29 — A Prayer of Confidence in the Lord’s Salvation – Rejoicing is characteristic of the Christian faith. Our boast is in the Lord Jesus and the certainty of salvation that He won for us. Jesus, the Son of God our Savior, is the Father’s “right-hand man” and He has secured salvation for us. He is also the Lord, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity. He is our righteousness. He is the Stone which the High Priest and Sanhedrin had rejected. He is the Cornerstone of the Church. He is our righteousness, and His righteousness is the gate through which we, the justified, enter into eternal fellowship with God. He is salvation. He is the Lord, and He is our God. His mercy endures forever. Because of what Christ has done we shall live, and death cannot destroy us. The day of His death and resurrection is the Lord’s doing. We will rejoice and be glad in it! Psalm 118, so central to the Passover Celebration in the Old Testament, was rightly applied to Jesus on Palm Sunday: “Save now (Hosanna)…Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” He is the true Passover Lamb, the Sacrifice that was bound to the altar of the cross, and the High Priest whose blood establishes an eternal righteousness that covers all our sin!  No wonder every day is a day of rejoicing, even in the midst of grief and sorrow. Christ is our salvation; therefore we have nothing to fear!

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 118:1-14 — A Prayer of Rejoicing in the Confidence of Faith—Psalm 118 was prayed regularly as part of the Passover celebration. It contains the call to rejoice and give thanks for the Lord’s salvation of His people. It has both a corporate and individual dimension to it. The basis for the congregation’s celebration and that of every individual Christian is mercy. “Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! Because His mercy endures forever.” The enduring mercy and faithfulness of the Lord is the only reason that Israel was redeemed from countless occasions of rebellion, and it is only the enduring mercy and grace of God that sustains and comforts us as individual Christians. So Psalm 118 begins with the call to the entire congregation of Israel to confess the mercy of God and then leads into a personal confession for every believer: “I called on the Lord in distress; The Lord answered me…The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me?… It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.” The first half of the psalm concludes with comforting assertion: “The Lord is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation.” CP210516

Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 117 — A Fervent Missionary Psalm – Psalm 117 is a brief and fervent prayer for the conversion of the nations to faith in Christ. The call, “Oh, praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, Laud Him, all you peoples!” is really a call to faith. The highest praise of the Lord is to confess Him to be our Savior and to flee to Him in repentant faith. The baptized faithful, together with the whole Church on earth, yearn for others to join them in praise of the Lord, “For His merciful kindness is great toward us, and the truth of the Lord endures forever.” How lovely it is to contemplate that the conversion of sinners results in the praise of God for His merciful kindness in Christ for all people.CP210509