The Thursday after the Seventeenth Sunday after Trinity Sunday
Posted on October 1, 2026 by under
Scripture: Ezra 9:6-9 (NKJV)
9:6 And I said: “O my God, I am too ashamed and humiliated to lift up my face to You, my God; for our iniquities have risen higher than our heads, and our guilt has grown up to the heavens. 7 Since the days of our fathers to this day we have been very guilty, and for our iniquities we, our kings, and our priests have been delivered into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, to plunder, and to humiliation, as it is this day. 8 And now for a little while grace has been shown from the Lord our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and to give us a peg in His holy place, that our God may enlighten our eyes and give us a measure of revival in our bondage. 9 For we were slaves. Yet our God did not forsake us in our bondage; but He extended mercy to us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to revive us, to repair the house of our God, to rebuild its ruins, and to give us a wall in Judah and Jerusalem.”
Devotion
We are free in Christ, but in this present life we are also servants. We are not our own; our freedom in Christ makes us His servants. If we think we are free to serve our own wills, then we go back to the slavery of the devil and unfaithfulness. This is a constant battle in our earthly life, but the grace of God is what helps us and saves us!
Our in-born pride pulls us away from proper fear, love, and trust in the Lord. The history of Israel teaches us that man drifts back into sin, idolatry, and unfaithfulness, even after God shows us grace and mercy. The proper response to sin is the repentance that Ezra exemplifies: “O my God, I am too ashamed and humiliated to lift up my face to You, my God…” The words of the prophet reflect on the sins of God’s people, but also on the love and help that He pours out for them.
These lessons from the Old Testament Scriptures point us forward to the fulfillment of God’s grace in Jesus Christ. True faith makes us understand the whole picture of our life and freedom in Christ: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us” (1 John 1:9-10).
Collect: Lord, we beseech Thee, grant Thy people grace to withstand the temptations of the devil, and with pure hearts and minds to follow Thee, the only God; 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.
