Daily Devotion for July 25, 2010
Prayers
Scripture
Lord's Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever.
Prayer for the Morning
Oh God the King eternal, who divides the day from the darkness, and has turned the shadow of death into the light of morning; I pray that this day you will incline my heart to keep your commandments, driving temptation from my mind. Guide my feet into the way of peace; that having done your will with cheerfulness while it was day, I may, when the night comes, rejoice in giving you thanks for a day lived in your presence; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Prayer for Someone Departed This Life
Into your hands, O Lord, I commend the soul of your servant [here say the name of any deceased you want to remember], and beseech you to grant him rest in the place of your rest, where all the blessed repose, and where the light of your countenance shines forever. And I pray also to grant that my present life may be godly, sober, and blameless, that, I too may be made worthy to enter into your heavenly Kingdom with those I love but see no longer: for you are the Resurrection, and the Life, and the Repose of your departed servants, O Christ our God, and unto you I ascribe all glory: to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; now and ever, and unto ages of ages.
Benediction
Eternal God, heavenly Father, you have graciously accepted me as a living member of your Son our Savior Jesus Christ, and you have fed me with the spiritual food of his Body and Blood. Send me now into the world in peace, and grant me strength and courage to love and serve you with gladness and singleness of heart; through Christ our Lord
Think of the day ahead in terms of God with you, and visualize health, strength, guidance, purity, calm confidence, and victory as the gifts of His presence.
Psalm 96:1-2
Sing to the Lord, praise his name; proclaim his salvation day after day.
1 Corinthians 1:18-25
Wisdom and Foolishness
The message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written,
Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, God decided, through the foolishness of our proclamation, to save those who believe.
For Jews demand signs and Greeks desire wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For God's foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God's weakness is stronger than human strength.
Notes on the Scripture
The Greeks were the first great philosophers; their writings on morality, good, and evil are profound even today. In fact, Plato arrived at the idea that there might be one great god by using his mind. On the other side of the spectrum were the Hebrews, another people to whom questions of morality, good, and evil were the subject of copious writing. They Hebrews, however, did not depend on their minds, but on their fear and respect for commandments given to them by supernatural means.
In today's Scripture, Paul talks about the failing of both approaches. We cannot achieve salvation through our thoughts, no matter how brilliant we are; nor can we achieve it by following the code of conduct given to us by God. The only path to salvation is by accepting a grace that came to us by the death and resurrection of a man, the Son of God, Jesus Christ.
