Festival of Saints Simon and Jude, Apostles and Martyrs
Posted on October 28, 2021 by under
Scripture: 2 Chronicles 29:1-11 (NKJV)
29:1 Hezekiah became king when he was twenty-five years old, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Abijah the daughter of Zechariah. 2 And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father David had done.
3 In the first year of his reign, in the first month, he opened the doors of the house of the Lord and repaired them. 4 Then he brought in the priests and the Levites, and gathered them in the East Square, 5 and said to them: “Hear me, Levites! Now sanctify yourselves, sanctify the house of the Lord God of your fathers, and carry out the rubbish from the holy place. 6 For our fathers have trespassed and done evil in the eyes of the Lord our God; they have forsaken Him, have turned their faces away from the dwelling place of the Lord, and turned their backs on Him. 7 They have also shut up the doors of the vestibule, put out the lamps, and have not burned incense or offered burnt offerings in the holy place to the God of Israel. 8 Therefore the wrath of the Lord fell upon Judah and Jerusalem, and He has given them up to trouble, to desolation, and to jeering, as you see with your eyes. 9 For indeed, because of this our fathers have fallen by the sword; and our sons, our daughters, and our wives are in captivity.
10 “Now it is in my heart to make a covenant with the Lord God of Israel, that His fierce wrath may turn away from us. 11 My sons, do not be negligent now, for the Lord has chosen you to stand before Him, to serve Him, and that you should minister to Him and burn incense.”
Devotion
The Church is called the Communion of Saints not because its members are holy in and of themselves, but because every Christian is holy before God through the forgiveness of his sins and sanctification of the Holy Spirit. In and of ourselves we are still sinful, and at times we fall into sin, shame, and vice. Not even the Ministers of the Word are wholly sanctified. If our worthiness to stand before God and to come into His house of worship were based on our holiness, no one would be able to approach Him. We all must confess that we deserve God’s wrath and displeasure.
“Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD? Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation.” (Ps. 24:3-5) Thanks be to God that our worship is sanctified by our High Priest, Christ Jesus, who has ascended into heaven itself, there to intercede on our behalf! Knowing that we have access into God’s grace—not by our works but through faith in Jesus—we should not neglect the opportunity to come into His holy house and worship Him with a clear conscience, having been forgiven of our sins.
Prayer: O Almighty God, Who hast built Thy Church upon the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the Head Cornerstone: Grant us so to be joined together in unity of spirit by their doctrine, that we may be made a holy temple acceptable unto Thee; through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
