Musings and Contemplations

O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness; let the whole earth stand in awe of him.[1]

Blameless and Strong

1 Corinthians 1:1-9 NRSV
Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes, to the church of God that is in Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, together with all those who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus, for in every way you have been enriched in him, in speech and knowledge of every kind—just as the testimony of Christ has been strengthened among you—so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful; by him you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Not by Works
You were saved by grace, not by works. And who gave you this grace? It was not Paul, or another apostle, but Jesus Christ himself.[2]

Sustained Forever
Who sustains us? Christ Jesus, the Word and Wisdom of God. Moreover, he sustains us not merely for a day or two, but forever.[3]

Matthew Henry
To be kept by the power of Christ from the power of our own corruption and Satan’s temptation, that we may appear without blame in the great day! O glorious expectation, especially when the faithfulness of God comes in to support our hopes! He who hath called us into the fellowship of his Son is faithful, and will do it (1 Thessalonians 5:24). He who hath brought us into near and dear relation to Christ, into sweet and intimate communion with Christ, is faithful; he may be trusted with our dearest concerns. Those that come at his call shall never be disappointed in their hopes in him. If we approve ourselves faithful to God, we shall never find him unfaithful to us. He will not suffer his faithfulness to fail (Psalm 89:33).^[4]

A Kingdom Catechism Question #133
How do the redeemed of the Lord find all their sufficiency in and from the Lord?
The redeemed of the Lord find all their sufficiency from the Lord by seeking Him early and earnestly, walking in all His ways, and looking to Him only to meet their every need.[5]

Heidelberg Catechism Question #60
How are you righteous before God?
Only by a true faith in Jesus Christ; that is, though my conscience accuse me that I have grievously sinned against all the commandments of God and kept none of them, and am still inclined to all evil, yet God, without any merit of mine, of mere grace, grants and imputes to me the perfect satisfaction, righteousness, and holiness of Christ, as if I had never had nor committed any sin, and myself had accomplished all the obedience which Christ has rendered for me; if only I accept such benefit with a believing heart.

O God, the light of the hearts that see you, the life of the souls that love you, the strength of the minds that seek you; from whom to turn it to fall, to whom to turn is to rise and in whom to abide is to stand fast forever: grant us your blessing as we offer up our confessions and supplications, and though we are unworthy to approach you or to ask anything of you at all, hear and forgive us, for the sake of our great High Priest and only Mediator, Jesus Christ your Son. Amen.[6]

Christ, our Hope in Life and Death

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be world without end. Amen.[7]

[1] Psalm 96:9 Coverdale Psalter
[2] Chrysostom, Ancient Christian Devotional Year A, p. 48.
[3] Origen, Ancient Christian Devotional Year A, p. 49.
^[4] Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1994), 2245.
[5] T. M. Moore, A Kingdom Catechism, 2002, p. 100.
[6] A Prayer of Augustine, Ancient Christian Devotional Year A, p. 47.
[7] Gloria Patri