THE CALL | Mark 11:7-10
And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it. And many spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields. And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!”
CONFESSION
O God, what house could contain you, that you should dwell there? All of creation is not vast enough. And yet you desire for your Spirit to make its home in our hearts. Forgive us that we so often shutter our hearts to you. For the sake of your Son, the greater Son of David, do not turn your face away. Clothe us in your righteousness and clothe our adversary in shame; let him not hinder your coming. Open our hearts to welcome you in as our King! Cause us to shout for joy for your salvation, yours alone, we pray.
ASSURANCE | Hebrews 9:11-12
But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.
SING: Gloria Patri
Glory be to the Father
And to the Son and to the Holy Ghost
As it was in the beginning
Is now and ever shall be world without end
Amen Amen
WORD
First reading: Psalm 119:33-48
Second reading: Psalm 119:49-80
In yesterday’s meditation, we considered how the writer of Psalm 119 delights in God’s Word. We as Christians can apply this to the whole Bible, but for the writer of this psalm, the Bible was mostly likely just the Torah, which is the set of the first five books of the Bible, often also given the name “The Law of Moses.” Because these five books have many laws and rules, they are sometimes just called “the Law,” and the psalmist here rejoices specifically in laws, not just general concepts, or stories. Many of the terms in this psalm refer to laws: “rules,” “commandments,” “statutes,” etc.
Do you rejoice not just in the Bible, but specifically in the laws of Moses? This brings up the issue of how Christians relate to the Law of Moses. On one hand, we are not “under the law” of Moses (Galatians 3:23-25, 5:18, Hebrews 8:13), since we have a new covenant in Jesus. One translation of Galatians 3:23 is that the law was a “harsh schoolmaster” in charge for a time. God used the Law of Moses to mold a new society different in every way from the pagan cultures around them, but now connected to God through Christ, not the laws of Moses.
On the other hand, the New Testament says in many places that the Law of Moses was good (e.g. Romans 7:12, 1 Timothy 1:8). The author Christopher Wright has called it a “paradigm” of what a just society would look like in 2000 BC. Our Reformed creeds tell us that throughout the laws of Moses are the eternal moral law of God which never changes. For example, while we may not enforce the penalties of the laws of Moses, we learn what God’s priorities are, what he wants us to care about, by seeing what had more severe penalties. While we do not live “under law,” knowing what is right and wrong can lead us to “a wide place” (119:45) and turn us away from “worthless things” (119:37). We know that we never live a life righteous enough to merit God’s salvation, and that we need the blood of Jesus to cleanse us from sin. But the psalmist here rejoices that God has not left us in ignorance about what is good to do. (Dave Snoke)
ABIDING
SING
- Psalm 132 | [melody sheet]
FRIDAY-MEMORIZE | Psalm 132
– Spend time memorizing the words of the Psalm as best you can –
SENDING
Revelation 21:3 [ESV]
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.”
(If you are in a group, you can end with the following call and response:)
The Spirit and the Bride say,
Come.
And let the one who hears say,
Come.
And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.
He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.”
Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!
The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all.
Amen.
(based on Revelation 22:17,20-21)