The Lutheran church enjoys a long tradition of identifying one “Hymn of the Week” for every Sunday of the church year. Such a hymn should reflect the unifying theme of the service, and is intended to be sung on that Sunday every year. In this series, Pastor Nathanael Mayhew gives us a brief overview of the Hymns of the Week for the coming month.
Our journey continues through the season of Trinity, the longest season of the church year. In the coming weeks we will continue to look at the relationship between God and the Christian. God has called us to Himself by His grace, and His call has urgency. We were lost and condemned sinners, but God sought us out in our lost state, and has called us into service for Him. Such service for a loving and gracious Master is joyful and rewarding!
- July 6 – On the Third Sunday after Trinity the Scripture readings focus on the nature of sinners who were lost, and the nature of God Who sought the lost. We don’t like to think of ourselves as lost, but spiritually we were. We did not find God by our strength or knowledge. He found us. He knew we were lost, when we did not know that ourselves, and He sought us out in mercy. Our hymn for this week, “Lord, to Thee I Make Confession” (TLH 326; LSB 608) clearly reinforces this. We confess: “I have sinned and gone astray.” We plead: “Do not for my sins forsake me.” We pray: “Make me only Thine forever.”
- July 13 – The Fourth Sunday after Trinity reveals one of the many blessings God works in the lives of those He has found by grace and reconciled to Himself. Having been reconciled to God, we are consecrated, separated from the ungodly world, dedicated to His holy purposes. This, too, is God’s work. The Holy Spirit opens our eyes to see our natural condition, our sin and its consequence, and what He has called us to be as His children. In the hymn “O God, Thou Faithful God” (TLH 395; LSB 696), we pray that the God Who has accomplished our salvation through the cross would continue to strengthen us for the work He has called us to in this life.
- July 20 – The readings for the Fifth Sunday after Trinity build on the themes of the last four weeks. Our Savior calls you to follow Him. The call to follow Jesus can be frightening, just as it was for His first disciples. What about my family, my job, or my friends? What does following Jesus look like? But the Savior promises to be with those who follow Him. It won’t be easy, but you need not fear. His strength is all you need. The hymn of the day is “Come, Follow Me, the Savior Spake” (TLH 421; LSB 688). The hymn writer speaks to you in the voice of Jesus Who calls you to follow Him, to deny yourself and forsake the world. He is your Refuge!
- July 27 – Our focus changes slightly with the Sixth Sunday after Trinity. We move from the Lord’s call to the new life He gives us. The readings for this Sunday examine the new righteousness that is ours in and through Christ. This new righteousness is ours through the cleansing waters of Baptism and God’s declaration that we are not guilty. But this new righteousness is not just conceptual. It is also very practical. This righteousness is not simply declared. It is also lived. It is lived in the lives of God’s redeemed children through the strength which He imparts. The Reformation era hymn, “All Mankind Fell in Adam’s Fall” (TLH 369; LSB 562), summarizes both the sinner’s lost condition and God’s work of salvation. The final verse beautifully describes the new life that is ours through Christ.
Dear Lord, give me strength to follow You and walk as I should as Your redeemed child.
is a pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Mankato, Minnesota.