Focus
Let yourself become open to God and the knowledge that comes from the Word. Ask God for a peace at this time.
Read
Isaiah 6:1-4 (ESV)
1 In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. 3 And one called to another and said:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory!”
4 And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke.
Reflect
The Great Thanksgiving
At Homewood CPC, when we celebrate the Lord’s Supper, we are reminded of the holiness of the moment by giving thanks—a Great Thanksgiving—a Eucharist. In the middle of this Great Thanksgiving is a moment of congregational response when we all together with one voice cry out, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty! Heaven and earth are full of his glory! Hosanna in the highest! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the Highest!”
I always think about the angels cry of worship in Isaiah 6 every time I take of the Lord’s Supper. We are joining our voices together with their voices and the voices of all the communion of saints that echoes from the past and reverberates into the future. I also think of the cries on Palm Sunday when the crowds was celebrating and welcoming Jesus into Jerusalem, singing out that their salvation has arrived.
These two cries—one in the heavens and the other from the earth—unite us together as the people of God. They proclaim the splendor of God’s holiness as well as the arrival of the Incarnate God and our being brought together as God’s people.
It is a beautiful reminder for us today because just as Isaiah witnessed the holiness and splendor of God and was left pondering the glory of God, we too have witnessed the holiness, splendor, and glory of God in Jesus Christ. The mighty acts of Holy Week and the Resurrection on Easter morning show us just how mighty God is and we see how our brothers and sisters from all times and places have responded in thanksgiving. Their response has been both verbal and active. It has led us here to this time and this place. How will we respond? There is a great debate in our CP community today about how we can be united and how we can witness to the glory of the Lord. Perhaps the answer isn’t found in platitudes or statements or platforms—perhaps we find the answer in humble thanksgiving, knowing that we are all a people dependent upon the Holy God even though, like Isaiah and the finicky crowd on Palm Sunday, we are a people of unclean lips and unclean thoughts and unclean actions. And even though we are those things, our God has cleansed us and called us to humble and thankful.
How will you humble yourself today in thanksgiving?
Pray
Lord, the more we reflect on Your goodness, the more we understand we do not deserve Your blessings, the more it leads to praise and thanksgiving. Thank you, God, for all we have. Amen
Go with God!
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