Evangelical Lutheran Diocese of North America

Tuesday within the Octave of the Feast of the Holy Trinity

Posted on June 1, 2021 by Pastor Dulas under Devotions
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Scripture: Numbers 6:22-27 (NKJV)
 
6:22 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 23 “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, ‘This is the way you shall bless the children of Israel. Say to them:
 
24 “The Lord bless you and keep you;
 
25 The Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you;
 
26 The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.”’
 
27 “So they shall put My name on the children of Israel, and I will bless them.”
 
Devotion
 
Faithful Christians are familiar with the Aaronic benediction from liturgical worship. This three-fold blessing is one way the Christian Church confesses it is catholic and connected back to people of God in the time of the Old Testament. We worship and are blessed by the same God.
 
The fulfillment of this divine promise given to Moses is shown in Baptism. Our Lord Jesus commanded the Apostolic Ministry to baptize in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Matt. 28:19). As Christ lived and taught in fulfillment of all that Moses and the prophets testified about Him He also connected forgiveness and salvation to this blessing of water, Word, and the divine name. Those who are baptized into Christ according to His command are made children of God’s kingdom and blessed with the three-fold name that continues to give all the holy comforts promised in the benediction taught to Aaron!
 
Neither Baptism nor the liturgical benediction is a magic spell. They are the ways that faithful sons and daughters of the one true God are connected to Him. Baptism places His name upon us in connection with water, but the Sacrament also connects us to the ongoing teaching and worship of the Church. Likewise, the Aaronic benediction blesses us at the end of the Divine Service, but it is not an end; it is to keep our hearts and minds connected to His grace throughout the rest of the week!
 
Prayer: Almighty and Everlasting God, who hast given unto us, Thy servants, grace, by the confession of a true faith, to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity and in the power of the Divine Majesty to worship the Unity, we beseech Thee that Thou wouldst keep us steadfast in this faith and evermore defend us from all adversities. Amen.
 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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