September 22, 2019 Pentecost 15 (Proper 20),
Lord, Have Mercy!
1 Timothy 2:1 15
Dear Friends in Christ. May God’s mercy and love be with each of you.
Our meditation this morning is based on the reading from 1 Timothy chapter two, where Paul not only reminds us of the need and power of prayer, but also on the urgency of it. After all the one who is our Creator and Redeemer is the one who commands us to pray and gives the promise that he listens.
Now you and I know that prayer really works. When we de pray according to God’s will that is. Because, like many truths in the Scripture, prayer can be abused or even denied, making it ineffective, and so we loose faith and hope.
Just look at this man praying, as portrayed in this cartoon….. or the words I heard from a dear man, at a congregation in Vancouver. In the congregation we were going through some issues, he said that we ought to act as he said we need to do. My reply was that we need to pray first. “O, you pastors, don’t know what to do, but pray. All you can say is pray, pray. Can’t you say something else?”
Or, it happens that we are so dissatisfied with someone that we can’t bring ourselves to pray for.
Yet the Paul tells us these words: “First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, 2 for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. 3 This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Saviour, 4 who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”
Now notice his words, “First of all then, I Urge.” Why would he say, “first of all, and urge.” He said so that “Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. 17 To the King of ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.” (1 Tim. 1:16-17) And as Jesus Christ is displayed, many will come to salvation.”
So we are to pray for all, including governments and people in general, so that people can be saved. I must confess, there is something that makes me nervous. Praying for those who are in authority, government. Have you paid attention to politics lately? Some think that politics and religion should mix. Maybe. But here we are asked to pray for our political leaders. But have you noticed, have you listened to our political leaders? Some, around the world, have outright rejected the Christian faith, others, use the Christian faith to gain popularity and support, but they themselves are outright immoral. How can you pray, really for those people?
And more, how can we pray for others or even pray for governmental leaders, if we, if we ourselves, really need prayers? At the end of the day, all I need is some comfort, not the excuse of a deranged patriotism or our material possessions, but really, I just need some peace and hope.
Now hear what Dr. Luther, says about this text: “The first moral work of love among Christians is toward civil office.… The first fruit of love is to be that you Christians respect every public officer in the world and that you pray for them, because you hear what it means to keep the realm in peace. When a good magistrate fails or is upset, then nothing good is left in this life. Then you will be unable to come to love, to obey parents, rear children, or support the wretched. We must forget about all fruits of love if public offices do not stand firm in peace. In time of war you must anticipate your death at every moment; the inviolacy of virgin, wife, and all property is in peril. God has His will in peace; in the opposite condition the devil has his. Therefore it is the first work of Christians that we respect all public officers.” “We ask that He preserve all things He has thus delivered and are now actually in hand. Because our God is so great and gives such great gifts, He wants us to ask for great things. His goodness is infinite, it pours out without measure. We must pray: “I am indeed unworthy to ask. But I consider not my insignificance but Your greatness, for You give invaluable gifts.” It is a shame to pray to God for a mere pittance. From the very greatness of the gifts the confidence to ask for great things grows. He gave His Son.”
That’s nice, Dr. Luther, but…. Praying for, making supplications, intercessions, giving thanksgivings for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions,” is not something we are ready to do, or at least to do often and with urgency. Or might we weak in our ability to do so. Therefore today, I would like to introduce to you a prayer. You might be familiar with it, and some of you have seen us using it here in church or privately, and in fact it will be our prayer today, this is what we call the Litany. You find it in pages 288-289 in the hymnal, it’s a prayer you can certainly use in your personal lives, as it assists you with the urgent things.
When I became Lutheran, I actually despised the prayer in the hymnals, it was too mechanical, too not from the heart, until I read them and focused on what they included, then begun to love them, like the Lord’s prayer for example. Of course this is without undermining the leading of the Holy Spirit in praying from the heart, that we must do, yet here is something that can help us in our time of need.
The litany begins with “O Lord, have mercy,” “O Christ, have mercy.” Then goes on to say words what we call of aversion. That is words of preventions, the prayer says: “Deliver us…”, then goes to ask for God’s help. Then bring before him our petitions, the supplications, specific prayers that we ask on behalf of ourselves: “In all time of our tribulation,” and so on.
In all, we pray, “Lord have mercy.”
Lutheran pastor and martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906–45) spent about the last two years of his life in various German prisons, where he was incarcerated and eventually executed for his resistance to the Nazi regime. In November 1943, he wrote one of several “prison epistles” to his parents, in which he shared his recollections of hearing the Mass in B Minor of J. S. Bach in Berlin, some twenty years earlier. Bonhoeffer recalls arriving at the great concert hall just as the orchestra and choir were beginning the prayer that we are focusing on today, the Kyrie: “Lord, have mercy; Christ, have mercy; Lord, have mercy.” The effect of hearing this music in person was indescribable for young Bonhoeffer. Behold, the power of sacred music! Nearly two decades later, in a tiny prison cell, Bonhoeffer wrote that he was still hearing every note, if only in his mind, and finding great comfort in this sung prayer.
Could there be a more fitting prayer in prison, at the sick bed, or in the face of death? The Kyrie is comprehensive, that is, it prays for all of God gifts, as they are enumerated in The Litany (LSB, pp 288–89). It is trinitarian (“Lord [Father], have mercy; Christ [Son], have mercy; Lord [Spirit], have mercy”), for the gifts of the Gospel come only from the triune God. And perhaps above all, the Kyrie is comforting in every situation, for here we issue our cry for divine clemency to the One who is strong to save: “Lord, have mercy!” 2
Here is a threefold prayer to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, where we see that it is only through Christ, our mediator at the heavenly throne, that we poor sinners can pray, “Lord Have Mercy!”
I. Kyrie, God Father (vv 1–4)
See the need to pray for kings and for all in high positions! After all God is our Creator Father. And we pray to the Father through his Son. If we are going to pray for folks in high positions—politicians and presidents, kings and monarchs—to whom shall we pray?
We pray to the One who is in the highest position of them all, God the Father, who is the Maker and Keeper of all things: “Kyrie, God, Father in heaven!” In other Words, “Lord have mercy!” See the boundless mercy and grace of God, our heavenly Father! He welcomes your supplications, as you ask him for all his gifts for your body and soul. Your heavenly Father welcomes your intercessions for your neighbor and for all who are in need. He desires your thanksgivings for all he gives to you. This is pleasing in his sight, for he wants everyone to receive his gifts of grace.
It is with confidence, the that we pray: (PP:) God the Father in Heaven, (CC:) have mercy!
II. Kyrie, O Christ, our King (vv 5–7)
And yet, how are we poor sinners, by nature alienated from God and unable to stand in his presence, able to pray to him? Two closely related words paint a rich portrait of Christ, who alone is our way to the Father: ransom and mediator. A ransom is the price to set slaves free—you and I born into spiritual slavery and bondage to sin and death. To this bondage, we have added by our fault, by our own fault, by our own most grievous fault. But Christ became the slave to set all slaves free by his own death. He willingly left his Father’s throne, abdicated to the lowest possible status, yes, even to death on the cross. He gladly did it all to set you free and to make you God’s own heir, one who gets an inheritance of forgiveness, life, and salvation.
And because Christ has done it all for us, we are free to pray to the Father, confident that our Mediator, risen from the dead and ascended to his heavenly throne, faithfully intercedes for us. St. Paul says, “There is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (v 5). Recall that Jesus prayed to his Father in every hour of need, whether for himself or for his people. On the eve of his Passion, he prayed for himself, for his disciples, and for all the world (John 17). And now, richest and purest gospel—the risen and living Christ still prays for us! Christ is our go-between, the One who stands between the Church and the Father to pray—with uplifted, nail-pierced hands—for us in every need.
Because of Christ’s victory over sin, death and the devil we can say: (PP:) O Christ, (CC:) have mercy!
III. Kyrie, O God the Holy Spirit (vv 8–15)
And so we pray to the Father through the Son. But there is one more person who is hard at work for us and for our salvation. See our need for the work of the Holy Spirit in our prayer life!
St. Paul then describes our life in the Spirit, including guidelines on what to wear and what not to wear to church, right down to gold and pearls and costly attire from Gucci and Lululemon. Now what do we, who are justified by grace through faith (not by our clothing!), make of these instructions? Perhaps Martin Luther put it best: “There is one way of dressing for a dance; another way for church” (AE 28:274). Wouldn’t you agree? In short, everything in the house of God shows forth the presence of Christ among those who are justified by grace through faith. We conduct ourselves with the understanding that this is the place where Christ is present in the Means of Grace. And in all these things, the Holy Spirit is hard at work to keep us in the Christian faith, even to the end of days.
So today we can pray (PP:)“God the Holy Spirit” (CC:) “have mercy”
We began with St. Paul’s admonition to pray “for kings and all who are in high positions” (1 Tim 2:2), which we do every Sunday. “ This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Saviour, 4 who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all…”
This is most certainly true! In terms that we have explored today, it is only through Christ, our Mediator at the heavenly throne, that we pray, “Lord, have mercy!” Amen.
Lord, Have Mercy!
1 Timothy 2:1 15
Dear Friends in Christ. May God’s mercy and love be with each of you.
Our meditation this morning is based on the reading from 1 Timothy chapter two, where Paul not only reminds us of the need and power of prayer, but also on the urgency of it. After all the one who is our Creator and Redeemer is the one who commands us to pray and gives the promise that he listens.
Now you and I know that prayer really works. When we de pray according to God’s will that is. Because, like many truths in the Scripture, prayer can be abused or even denied, making it ineffective, and so we loose faith and hope.
Just look at this man praying, as portrayed in this cartoon….. or the words I heard from a dear man, at a congregation in Vancouver. In the congregation we were going through some issues, he said that we ought to act as he said we need to do. My reply was that we need to pray first. “O, you pastors, don’t know what to do, but pray. All you can say is pray, pray. Can’t you say something else?”
Or, it happens that we are so dissatisfied with someone that we can’t bring ourselves to pray for.
Yet the Paul tells us these words: “First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, 2 for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. 3 This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Saviour, 4 who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”
Now notice his words, “First of all then, I Urge.” Why would he say, “first of all, and urge.” He said so that “Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. 17 To the King of ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.” (1 Tim. 1:16-17) And as Jesus Christ is displayed, many will come to salvation.”
So we are to pray for all, including governments and people in general, so that people can be saved. I must confess, there is something that makes me nervous. Praying for those who are in authority, government. Have you paid attention to politics lately? Some think that politics and religion should mix. Maybe. But here we are asked to pray for our political leaders. But have you noticed, have you listened to our political leaders? Some, around the world, have outright rejected the Christian faith, others, use the Christian faith to gain popularity and support, but they themselves are outright immoral. How can you pray, really for those people?
And more, how can we pray for others or even pray for governmental leaders, if we, if we ourselves, really need prayers? At the end of the day, all I need is some comfort, not the excuse of a deranged patriotism or our material possessions, but really, I just need some peace and hope.
Now hear what Dr. Luther, says about this text: “The first moral work of love among Christians is toward civil office.… The first fruit of love is to be that you Christians respect every public officer in the world and that you pray for them, because you hear what it means to keep the realm in peace. When a good magistrate fails or is upset, then nothing good is left in this life. Then you will be unable to come to love, to obey parents, rear children, or support the wretched. We must forget about all fruits of love if public offices do not stand firm in peace. In time of war you must anticipate your death at every moment; the inviolacy of virgin, wife, and all property is in peril. God has His will in peace; in the opposite condition the devil has his. Therefore it is the first work of Christians that we respect all public officers.” “We ask that He preserve all things He has thus delivered and are now actually in hand. Because our God is so great and gives such great gifts, He wants us to ask for great things. His goodness is infinite, it pours out without measure. We must pray: “I am indeed unworthy to ask. But I consider not my insignificance but Your greatness, for You give invaluable gifts.” It is a shame to pray to God for a mere pittance. From the very greatness of the gifts the confidence to ask for great things grows. He gave His Son.”
That’s nice, Dr. Luther, but…. Praying for, making supplications, intercessions, giving thanksgivings for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions,” is not something we are ready to do, or at least to do often and with urgency. Or might we weak in our ability to do so. Therefore today, I would like to introduce to you a prayer. You might be familiar with it, and some of you have seen us using it here in church or privately, and in fact it will be our prayer today, this is what we call the Litany. You find it in pages 288-289 in the hymnal, it’s a prayer you can certainly use in your personal lives, as it assists you with the urgent things.
When I became Lutheran, I actually despised the prayer in the hymnals, it was too mechanical, too not from the heart, until I read them and focused on what they included, then begun to love them, like the Lord’s prayer for example. Of course this is without undermining the leading of the Holy Spirit in praying from the heart, that we must do, yet here is something that can help us in our time of need.
The litany begins with “O Lord, have mercy,” “O Christ, have mercy.” Then goes on to say words what we call of aversion. That is words of preventions, the prayer says: “Deliver us…”, then goes to ask for God’s help. Then bring before him our petitions, the supplications, specific prayers that we ask on behalf of ourselves: “In all time of our tribulation,” and so on.
In all, we pray, “Lord have mercy.”
Lutheran pastor and martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906–45) spent about the last two years of his life in various German prisons, where he was incarcerated and eventually executed for his resistance to the Nazi regime. In November 1943, he wrote one of several “prison epistles” to his parents, in which he shared his recollections of hearing the Mass in B Minor of J. S. Bach in Berlin, some twenty years earlier. Bonhoeffer recalls arriving at the great concert hall just as the orchestra and choir were beginning the prayer that we are focusing on today, the Kyrie: “Lord, have mercy; Christ, have mercy; Lord, have mercy.” The effect of hearing this music in person was indescribable for young Bonhoeffer. Behold, the power of sacred music! Nearly two decades later, in a tiny prison cell, Bonhoeffer wrote that he was still hearing every note, if only in his mind, and finding great comfort in this sung prayer.
Could there be a more fitting prayer in prison, at the sick bed, or in the face of death? The Kyrie is comprehensive, that is, it prays for all of God gifts, as they are enumerated in The Litany (LSB, pp 288–89). It is trinitarian (“Lord [Father], have mercy; Christ [Son], have mercy; Lord [Spirit], have mercy”), for the gifts of the Gospel come only from the triune God. And perhaps above all, the Kyrie is comforting in every situation, for here we issue our cry for divine clemency to the One who is strong to save: “Lord, have mercy!” 2
Here is a threefold prayer to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, where we see that it is only through Christ, our mediator at the heavenly throne, that we poor sinners can pray, “Lord Have Mercy!”
I. Kyrie, God Father (vv 1–4)
See the need to pray for kings and for all in high positions! After all God is our Creator Father. And we pray to the Father through his Son. If we are going to pray for folks in high positions—politicians and presidents, kings and monarchs—to whom shall we pray?
We pray to the One who is in the highest position of them all, God the Father, who is the Maker and Keeper of all things: “Kyrie, God, Father in heaven!” In other Words, “Lord have mercy!” See the boundless mercy and grace of God, our heavenly Father! He welcomes your supplications, as you ask him for all his gifts for your body and soul. Your heavenly Father welcomes your intercessions for your neighbor and for all who are in need. He desires your thanksgivings for all he gives to you. This is pleasing in his sight, for he wants everyone to receive his gifts of grace.
It is with confidence, the that we pray: (PP:) God the Father in Heaven, (CC:) have mercy!
II. Kyrie, O Christ, our King (vv 5–7)
And yet, how are we poor sinners, by nature alienated from God and unable to stand in his presence, able to pray to him? Two closely related words paint a rich portrait of Christ, who alone is our way to the Father: ransom and mediator. A ransom is the price to set slaves free—you and I born into spiritual slavery and bondage to sin and death. To this bondage, we have added by our fault, by our own fault, by our own most grievous fault. But Christ became the slave to set all slaves free by his own death. He willingly left his Father’s throne, abdicated to the lowest possible status, yes, even to death on the cross. He gladly did it all to set you free and to make you God’s own heir, one who gets an inheritance of forgiveness, life, and salvation.
And because Christ has done it all for us, we are free to pray to the Father, confident that our Mediator, risen from the dead and ascended to his heavenly throne, faithfully intercedes for us. St. Paul says, “There is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (v 5). Recall that Jesus prayed to his Father in every hour of need, whether for himself or for his people. On the eve of his Passion, he prayed for himself, for his disciples, and for all the world (John 17). And now, richest and purest gospel—the risen and living Christ still prays for us! Christ is our go-between, the One who stands between the Church and the Father to pray—with uplifted, nail-pierced hands—for us in every need.
Because of Christ’s victory over sin, death and the devil we can say: (PP:) O Christ, (CC:) have mercy!
III. Kyrie, O God the Holy Spirit (vv 8–15)
And so we pray to the Father through the Son. But there is one more person who is hard at work for us and for our salvation. See our need for the work of the Holy Spirit in our prayer life!
St. Paul then describes our life in the Spirit, including guidelines on what to wear and what not to wear to church, right down to gold and pearls and costly attire from Gucci and Lululemon. Now what do we, who are justified by grace through faith (not by our clothing!), make of these instructions? Perhaps Martin Luther put it best: “There is one way of dressing for a dance; another way for church” (AE 28:274). Wouldn’t you agree? In short, everything in the house of God shows forth the presence of Christ among those who are justified by grace through faith. We conduct ourselves with the understanding that this is the place where Christ is present in the Means of Grace. And in all these things, the Holy Spirit is hard at work to keep us in the Christian faith, even to the end of days.
So today we can pray (PP:)“God the Holy Spirit” (CC:) “have mercy”
We began with St. Paul’s admonition to pray “for kings and all who are in high positions” (1 Tim 2:2), which we do every Sunday. “ This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Saviour, 4 who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all…”
This is most certainly true! In terms that we have explored today, it is only through Christ, our Mediator at the heavenly throne, that we pray, “Lord, have mercy!” Amen.