I Will Not Let You Go

                         

Monday musical meditations on God's good news






















An opening prayer:

    Upward I lift my eyes,
    From God is all my aid;
    The God who built the skies,
    And earth and all things made:
    God is the tow’r
    To which I fly;
    His grace is nigh
    In ev’ry hour.

    My feet shall never slide
    In dangerous frontiers,
    Since God, my guard and guide,
    Defends me from my fears:
    Those wakeful eyes
    That never sleep
    Shall Isr’el keep,
    When dangers rise.

    No burning sun by day
    Nor even beams of moon,
    Shall take my health away;
    I’m safe at night and noon:
    You are my sun,
    And you my shade,
    To guard my head
    Till day is done.

    Have you not giv’n your word
    To save my soul from death?
    I trust my risen Lord
    To keep my mortal breath,
    For you guard me!
    No harm I fear
    And you are near
    Eternally. Amen.

Luke 18:1–8

  • Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2 He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. 3 And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’

  • 4 “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’ ”

  • 6 And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”

Good news questions

  • Jesus knows not only that he is going to the cross, but that he will rise again, reign on high, and reappear on the last day to judge the world.
  • What does his unspeakable confidence mean to you?
  • When the Son of Man comes, will he even find faith in him on the earth?
  • When will the Son of Man come?
  • Justice seems so long in coming now, but when he comes, will he seem to have delayed?

For others pray

  • That God spreads the good news of the kingdom of the Son he loves in Guinea

J.S. Bach's beautiful music for today

  • BWV 157 (YouTube, "I am not letting you go, unless you bless me first")
  • The cantata starts with Jacob's words to his unknown divine assailant in Genesis 32:26.
  • "I will not let you go unless you bless me."
  • Because Jesus held on perfectly to God in our place, even on the cross, we hold on tightly to Jesus, now and at our last hour.

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