Repentance and examples of faith. Plus the use of the word superabounds!

Psalm 90:1-8 [9-11] 12

The entirety of Psalm 90 is cited twice in the Formula of Concord, Solid Declaration, but both as a reference to Luther’s commentary on Psalm 90. This psalm was the semicontinuous psalm for Lectionary 30 A. If you’re going week by week here, you have seen this recently!

First in Article 1: Original Sin (FC, SD 1.62), the reference is to Luther’s philosophical understanding of original sin as either an accident or quality that is not the essence of humanity but something else. Luther’s insight is that the worst place for a human to be is to not even recognize their own sinful state and thus be subject to God’s wrath without even knowing it. While not covered in Article 1, the groundwork for the difference between the general proclamation of the gospel (both God’s Law and God’s Promise) and the specific proclamation of the gospel (clear and unambiguous declaration of God’s Promise) is already here.

The second citation is in Article 2: Free Will (FC, SD 2.20) as Luther’s commentary on Psalm 90 leads him to reflect on humanity’s ingenuity, even without the Holy Spirit, in dealing with all the daily affairs of life—food, clothing, family, occupation, etc.—but our total inability without the Holy Spirit to recognize how we are under God’s wrath.

In both of these citations, Psalm 90 is a psalm of hope because God’s wrath is recognized and leading people to repent. Faith is here at work.

Matthew 25:14-30

His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’
— Matthew 25:21
His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’
— Matthew 25:23

Verses 21 and 32 are cited together in the Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Article 21: The Invocation of the Saints (AP 21.4) to support the first of three honors we are to give to the faithful dead. Melanchthon says that the first honor we are to give the saints is to give thanks for their faithful examples and praise them as the manager praises the workers in these verses. (I know that’s two honors, but it’s Melanchthon’s list, not mine.)

The other two honors in the list are to be strengthened in our faith because we see in their lives that God’s grace “superabounds” our sin (AP 21.5); and that third, that we imitate “their faith, then of their other virtues, which people should imitate according to their callings” (AP 21.6).

TheoThru

God calls and empowers us to recognize our sorry state honestly, while also giving us examples of people who have lived the faith of the forgiveness of sin given to us through Jesus. In these examples, God gives us hope not for pestering those who have died with our prayers or rigidly copying everything they did, but in seeing that in all aspects of life, the Spirit is at work calling, gathering, enlightening, sanctifying, and keeping the whole church on earth in the one, true faith. The saints show us ways to live faithfully, starting with faith. God has given you the costliest talent of all—faith! What are you doing with it?