Festival of St. Martin of Tours, Bishop and Confessor
Posted on November 11, 2022 by under
Scripture: St. Matthew 24:36-42 (NKJV)
24:36 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. 37 But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38 For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39 and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 40 Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. 42 Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming.
Devotion
Of that day and hour, of the Last Day, no one knows. We know neither the day of our death, nor the Day of our Lord’s second coming…but this is for our benefit! For, in not knowing the day and hour of our death or the Lord’s return, we live each day clinging in faith to our Lord God. We are blessed to be vigilant and watchful, looking forward with eager expectation for our Lord to take us to our eternal home in Heaven. It prevents the temptation to live most of our lives in debauchery and sin and then try to change our behavior at the last moment.
Many people live their lives in unbelief, denying that Day. Thus, they live in unrepentant, manifest sins. People who live only for this day, to please only themselves, not only find it too difficult to stop pleasing only themselves, but even refuse the Son Who was pleasing to the Father for them. Therefore, those living in unbelief will not be taken to Heaven when our Lord comes, but will be left to face the torments of Hell for all eternity, even though He had already suffered these for them.
Today we celebrate the Festival of St. Martin of Tours, for whom Luther was named, and whose life of faith serves as an example to us on how to live each day in vigilance and watchfulness for our Lord’s return.
Prayer: O God, who didst call Martin to preach the Gospel, grant to Thy servants steadfastness in the confession of the true faith that they would preach that unchanging Gospel in the midst of the darkness of this age, through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee, and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Collect for the Twenty-Fifth Sunday after Trinity Sunday
Almighty God, we beseech Thee, show Thy mercy unto Thy humble servants, that we who put no trust in our own merits may not be dealt with after the severity of Thy judgment, but according to Thy mercy; through 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.
