Lord, Keep Us Steadfast in Your Word (Evangelical Lutheran Worship 517)
1 Lord, keep us steadfast in your Word;
Curb those who by deceit or sword
Would wrest the kingdom from your Son
And bring to naught all he has done.
2 Lord Jesus Christ, your pow’r make know,
For you are Lord of lords alone;
Defend your holy Church, that we
May sing your praise triumphantly.
3 O Comforter of priceless worth,
Send peace and unity on earth;
Support us in our final strife
And lead us out of death to life.
Text: Martin Luther; Music: J. Klug; Public Domain
Devotion
Our daughter argues with us that she could stay home by herself while my wife and I run errands. She’s ten years old. We’ve argued she isn’t yet old enough. In frequent exasperation at this response, replete with a well-practiced eyeroll and stomp of her two feet, she shoots back, “When will I be old enough?” We put conditions on her that someday she will easily meet. But not yet.
“Lord Jesus Christ, your pow’r make known,” we sing. Yet, how will this power be made known in Jesus Christ among us? Forgiveness? Yes. Healing? Yes. Justice? Yes. Reconciliation? Yes. Still, how will these things come to pass? We would mistake his power for weakness. Jesus pours himself out on a cross and in a tomb. Then, days later, he is raised. All this he does “so that I may be his own,” writes Martin Luther in the Small Catechism.
Prayer
Thank you, Lord Jesus, that your power is made known in ways the world sees as foolish. Strengthen us against calls for a power that further oppresses the world and holds back your love. Amen.