25 Trinity – Thursday
This weeks devotions: Sunday – Monday – Tuesday – Wednesday
[Editor’s note: C.M Zorn only wrote devotions for twenty-four Trinity Sundays. This week’s daily devotions are specially selected devotions taken from F.E. Pasche’s Daily Bread, CPH. 1926. We will resume with C.M. Zorn’s devotions on Sunday November 29th, the First Sunday in Advent.]
Daily Devotion
Twenty-Fifth Sunday after Trinity
– Thursday –
O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good, because His mercy endureth forever.
—Psalm 118:1
Luther says in his explanation of the Fourth Petition of the Lord’s Prayer: “God gives daily bread, indeed, without our prayer, also to all the wicked; but we pray in this petition that He would lead us to know it and to receive our daily bread with thanksgiving.” Although God, of His divine providence, grants temporal gifts and blessings even to the ungodly (Matthew 5:45), yet He desires that we, His children by faith in His Son, pray for these things in order that we may acknowledge that we receive them from His bountiful hand as His gracious benefits (Psalm 103:2), see in them His fatherly goodness toward us His children (v. 13), and render Him due thanks for the same (Ps. 73:28; 116:12; 26:7; 50:14; 95:2). Indeed, His good gifts are so many, blessings are poured down upon and round about us daily in such abundance, that we often take them for granted, do not realize that they do not “just happen,” and forget that they are undeserved blessings of which we are not worthy (Genesis 32:10a). Alas, therefore, how little gratitude is rendered to the Giver of every good and perfect gift, even by us Christians! How many homes, how many hearts, as regards praise and thanks to God, are silent even on a special Day of Thanksgiving, when we, enabled by His grace, should “offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name” (Hebrews 13:15).
But by far the greatest blessings bestowed upon us by our good and merciful Lord are His spiritual blessings. Indeed, if we as Christians “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness” (Matthew 6:33), the blessings that first should come to mind are those earned by Christ Jesus, granted to us for His sake, and received by faith in His merits. By His grace, we have God’s Word in its truth and purity which testifies to His mercy toward fallen mankind in Christ Jesus; we have forgiveness of sins and imputed righteousness purchased and won by our Savior and granted objectively to all the world in Him; we have forgiveness, life and salvation as our very own by saving faith created by His Holy Spirit in our hearts by means of His glorious Gospel; and we have every good and perfect gift from above to His believing children as manifestations of the peace we have with Him. Even “the sufferings of this present time” (Romans 8:18), the “chastening” of the Lord (Hebrews 12:6-11), are tokens of God’s love toward us, which He promises to work for our good and blessing (Romans 8:28; Hebrews 12:11). “In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us” (Romans 8:37). “He that spared not His own Son but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” (v. 32). “O [therefore] give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good, because His mercy endureth forever!”
Prayer — O Thou faithful Father in heaven, teach us to receive Thy gracious gifts with thanksgiving. For our Savior’s sake Thou hast given us every good and perfect gift for both our temporal and spiritual welfare. What indeed shall we render unto Thee for all Thy benefits? Take our hearts, our lives, and all that we have and are as imperfect thank-offerings for all Thy mercies; and graciously keep us steadfast in Thy Word and faith unto our end, when in the mansions of heaven we shall render Thee proper thanks to all eternity for Thy love’s sake. Amen.
Scripture Reading:
Psalm 145 (David’s Psalm of praise.)
1 I will extol thee, my God, O king; and I will bless thy name for ever and ever.
2 Every day will I bless thee; and I will praise thy name for ever and ever.
3 Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable.
4 One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts.
5 I will speak of the glorious honour of thy majesty, and of thy wondrous works.
6 And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible acts: and I will declare thy greatness.
7 They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great goodness, and shall sing of thy righteousness.
8 The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.
9 The LORD is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.
10 All thy works shall praise thee, O LORD; and thy saints shall bless thee.
11 They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom, and talk of thy power;
12 To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts, and the glorious majesty of his kingdom.
13 Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and thy dominion endureth throughout all generations.
14 The LORD upholdeth all that fall, and raiseth up all those that be bowed down.
15 The eyes of all wait upon thee; and thou givest them their meat in due season.
16 Thou openest thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing.
17 The LORD is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works.
18 The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.
19 He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them.
20 The LORD preserveth all them that love him: but all the wicked will he destroy.
21 My mouth shall speak the praise of the LORD: and let all flesh bless his holy name for ever and ever.
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