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TLH = The Lutheran Hymnal, 1941; WS = Worship Supplement 2000; [ ] = Biblical Events Remembered
Feb 1 TLH 14 Genesis 45:1-10 Joseph saw clearly how God had overcome the brothers’ evil so that good could result.
Feb 2 [The Presentation of Our Lord] TLH 138 Genesis 48:1-11 God sets the lonely in families. What a blessing for any of us to see our own grandchildren!
Feb 3 TLH 442 Matthew 20:17-28 Let those striving for their own gain first stop to serve others.
Feb 4 TLH 383:1-3 Exodus 1:6-2:10 When His people were in trouble, God raised up His servant Moses to help. Later He would raise up a greater Servant.
Feb 5 WS 728 Matthew 22:23-32 Surely God can raise us from the grave, for He spoke of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as living even though they had died.
Feb 6 TLH 298 Exodus 5:22-6:9 God remembered His covenant even if the people didn’t.
Feb 8 WS 781 Exodus 9:13-35 Pharaoh rejected the LORD in impenitence, but the Word of God produced fruit in others around him (v. 20).
It’s natural to seek a certain level of comfort. I’m talking about getting and being comfortable. People want to be comfortable in their clothing, in their homes, and in their lives. If we become uncomfortable, then we try to make a change of clothing, or the body position that doesn’t feel right, or the circumstances that we face.
How does this tendency square with the Lord’s outlook in Isaiah 66:2? “But on this one will I look: On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and who trembles at My word.” We can notice definite times when we should never be comfortable. We can’t afford to be comfortable with any of our sins, especially not with an attitude or habit that the Bible identifies as sinful. Each one will have to take stock of his own heart, attitudes, and actions. For example, are we comfortable in looking down on other people? Are we comfortable in letting unacceptable language tumble out of the mouth without a second thought? Are we comfortable in a routine of attending worship, only to sit there inattentive and hear little of what is said? Are we comfortable with a carefree or careless attitude toward the responsibilities that we have as family members or employees or fellow Christians?
There is a real danger in getting comfortable with sin. Regardless of what the sin may be, if we get used to it, we are making friends with a deadly enemy. If we become comfortable with our sin, we let it attach like an anchor that could sink us spiritually. If we get comfortable with our sin, the devil has an open door to chip away at our faith in the hope that it erodes down to impenitence
and unbelief.
Let’s agree on a healthy attitude of being uncomfortable with our sins. In such a state we are then the person described in Isaiah 66, the person who is “poor and of a contrite spirit.” That means that you’re not only aware of your sin, but also broken by its guilt and in desperate need of God’s forgiveness. That person then is the one on whom God looks favorably, to whom He brings His unfailing love, mercy, and comfort. Yes, God will bring His comfort to the spiritually uncomfortable.
If there is one thing to look forward to here in the Midwestern part of our country, it is spring. I can remember long and brutal winters that seemed to hang around forever. I recall waiting with longing for the daylight to lengthen and the temperatures to rise. Everyone seems eager to see that first green shoot come up, or perhaps the first hardy robin to arrive. It’s a time of anticipation and preparation for good things to come.
The Lenten season is a long road of anticipation as well. As far as can be determined, the word Lent comes to us from an Anglo-Saxon word for spring. As early Christians anticipated the coming of Easter in the springtime, they would prepare themselves during this penitential period. Many of the devout would fast during the Lenten season in order to reflect on their sins and the consequences they bring.
“Therefore, if perfection were through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need was there that another priest should rise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be called according to the order of Aaron? For the priesthood being changed, of necessity there is also a change of the law. For He of whom these things are spoken belongs to another tribe, from which no man has officiated at the altar. For it is evident that our Lord arose from Judah, of which tribe Moses spoke nothing concerning priesthood. And it is yet far more evident if, in the likeness of Melchizedek, there arises another priest who has come, not according to the law of a fleshly commandment, but according to the power of an endless life.
Sin.
The Cross.
Darkness.
Sorrow.
Anguish.
Scourging.
Blood.
Crucifixion.
Death.
Asignificant number of modern American churches do not dwell on these themes—during Lent or at any other time. Instead, they try to avoid them. Such biblical elements are considered too negative for their members to hear, too much of a “downer.”
