In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Isaiah 40:3
O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
For the Ministry (Ember Days)
I. For those to be ordained
Almighty God, the giver of all good gifts, in your divine providence you have appointed various orders in your Church: Give your grace, we humbly pray, to all who are
called to any office and ministry for your people; and so fill them with the truth of your doctrine and clothe them with holiness of life, that they may faithfully serve before you, to the glory of your great Name and for the benefit of your holy Church; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
II. For the choice of fit persons for the ministry
O God, you led your holy apostles to ordain ministers in every place: Grant that your Church, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, may choose suitable persons for the ministry of Word and Sacrament, and may uphold them in their work for the extension of your kingdom; through him who is the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
III. For all Christians in their vocation
Almighty and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole body of your faithful people is governed and sanctified: Receive our supplications and prayers, which we offer before you for all members of your holy Church, that in their vocation and ministry they may truly and devoutly serve you; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Texts: Psalm 71, 72 (M); Psalm 73, 74 (E); Isaiah 44:24-45:13, Mark 8:11-9:1 (M); Isaiah 45:14-25, Revelation 20 (E)
Millennial views are like bad days. Everybody has one. No one particular view, however, is truly adequate to explain the multi-dimensional nature of the coming eschatological kingdom of God. Jesus declared to his disciples, “Truly I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power” (Mark 9:1). This statement becomes very problematic for those who are wound up in arguments over millennial views. If “the kingdom of God” is synonymous with “the Son of Man” coming “in the glory of his Father with the holy angels” (Mark 8:38), why have believers been waiting some 2,000 years to see something Jesus promised would be seen by his earliest followers?
If all that is meant by “the kingdom of God” is the return of Christ in glory at the end of history, then we might have a problem here, but “the kingdom of God” is a much larger project than just its final consummation. It is connected not only with Jesus’ glory, but also with his suffering. Likewise, it is seen not only in the final triumph of righteousness, but also in the ordeal of righteous suffering at the hands of the fallen world. Jesus connects his glory with his suffering and commands “anyone” who “would come after” him to “deny himself and take up his cross and follow” him (Mark 8:34). The glory of the Son of Man is inextricably connected with the suffering of the Son of Man. The kingdom of God is inextricably linked with the cross of Jesus Christ.
Jesus’ first disciples would “see the kingdom of God” in their lifetime by seeing Jesus “suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again” (Mark 8:31). Jesus’ resurrection was the inaugural event of the kingdom of God. Jesus, after his ordeal of suffering and death, was raised up in glory, vindicated as the true Christ of God, the victorious Son of Man “in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”
The resurrection, however, was only the beginning. Jesus called his disciples to deny themselves, take up the cross, and follow him. They were to continue the work he began. They were to proclaim the Gospel of the kingdom of God to all the nations, never being ashamed even to give their lives for their Lord. In Jesus, crucified and risen, they could “see the kingdom of God.” Their mission was then, and our mission is now, to make others see that kingdom in lives that become an authentic imitation of the crucified and risen Savior.
(JAG)
What Child is This
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