Evangelical Lutheran Diocese of North America

Thursday after Ad te levavi, The First Sunday in Advent

Posted on December 2, 2021 by Pastor Dulas under Devotions
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Scripture: St. Matthew 11:25-30 (NKJV)
 
11:25 At that time Jesus answered and said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes. 26 Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. 27 All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. 28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
 
Devotion
 
It is the return of the seventy which prompts Jesus to give thanks to the heavenly Father. The disciples had experienced a mixed response from those they visited. On the one hand, the disciples rejoiced that “even the demons are subject to us in Your name” (Luke 10:17). On the other hand, some cities did not receive them, so that they shook the dust off their sandals against them. Jesus upbraids those cities with pronouncements of woe (Matt. 11:20-24).
 
Jesus and His heavenly Father are in complete agreement. Salvation is to come through faith in His only Son, Jesus Christ. The preached Word has revealed salvation through the Word to the babes, and they came to faith and were saved. The same preached Word spoke of salvation through faith in Jesus, but the self-righteously “wise and prudent” rejected it, because they proudly considered themselves sufficient without Jesus. In this way, the one and the same Gospel has both hidden and revealed salvation.
 
The Father wants all to be saved through Jesus. Jesus continues to invite all saying, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Each one must learn from Jesus to confess his sins and take up Jesus’ easy yoke. The yoke of keeping the Law in order to be saved is so heavy it will break you. Jesus’ yoke is the exact opposite; His yoke rests the souls of its hearers by giving salvation freely.
 
Prayer: Stir up, we beseech Thee, Thy power, O Lord, and come, that by Thy protection we may be rescued from the threatening perils of our sins, and saved by Thy mighty deliverance; who livest and reignest with the Father 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.

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