The Sunday of Confession (Ps) June 29th

Psalm 74:12-23

¹²    Yet God my King is from of old,

working salvation in the midst of the earth.

¹³    You divided the sea by your might;

you broke the heads of the sea monsters on the waters.

¹⁴    You crushed the heads of Leviathan;

you gave him as food for the creatures of the wilderness.

¹⁵    You split open springs and brooks;

you dried up ever-flowing streams.

¹⁶    Yours is the day, yours also the night;

you have established the heavenly lights and the sun.

¹⁷    You have fixed all the boundaries of the earth;

you have made summer and winter.

¹⁸    Remember this, O Lord, how the enemy scoffs,

and a foolish people reviles your name.

¹⁹    Do not deliver the soul of your dove to the wild beasts;

do not forget the life of your poor forever.

²⁰    Have regard for the covenant,

for the dark places of the land are full of the habitations of violence.

²¹    Let not the downtrodden turn back in shame;

let the poor and needy praise your name.

²²    Arise, O God, defend your cause;

remember how the foolish scoff at you all the day!

²³    Do not forget the clamor of your foes,

the uproar of those who rise against you, which goes up continually!

And [I believe] in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended into hell. On the third day he rose [again]; he ascended into heaven, seated at the right hand of God, the almighty Father, from where he will come to judge the living and the dead.

What is this? Answer:

I believe that Jesus Christ, true God, begotten of the Father in eternity, and also a true human being, born of the Virgin Mary, is my Lord. He has redeemed me, a lost and condemned human being. He has purchased and freed me from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil, not with gold or silver but with his holy, precious blood and with his innocent suffering and death. He has done all this in order that I may belong to him, live under him in his kingdom, and serve him in eternal righteousness, innocence,⁵⁴ and blessedness, just as he is risen from the dead and lives and rules eternally. This is most certainly true.

Lord God, the gift of Your Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Christ, was given to the Gentile Cornelius so that Christ dwelled in him and he dwelled in Christ.  May that same Spirit of Jesus, which rested on us in Holy Baptism, give us courage to confess His holy name even in the face of the fiercest persecution, so that we might receive the crown of everlasting life; through Your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.