The First Sunday in Lent, March 9, 2025

The First Sunday in Lent, March 9, 2025

Before Paul makes this bold declaration, he quotes Isaiah 49:8—“In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you.” Paul delivers the immediacy of the situation to the Corinthians. The favorable time… the day of salvation… these are not some future events Paul’s hearers are to wait for. The favorable time is now! The day of salvation is now! There is no more time. Usually, Christians deal with two attitudes toward time: complacency and urgency. Complacency is the dreaded attitude. Complacency means there’s no hurry and no worry. There will be time enough. Preachers exhort people to move them from complacency to urgency. Urgency is the desired attitude. Urgency means there’s just enough time… enough time to get your affairs in order… enough for right thinking, right feeling, and right doing. Urgency means you’d better hurry and start worrying. Paul goes well past those two attitudes toward time. Paul insists there’s a third: immediacy! Immediacy means there’s no more time. Time’s up! The favorable time is here already. You can’t hurry. There’s no use to worry. You’re out of time. The day of salvation has arrived. This immediacy is delivered to you every time your preacher preaches Jesus Christ, him crucified, and him alone handed over to be the life of dead sinners. That’s you! The immediacy of Jesus Christ’s presence exposes you in your sin, delivers your salvation to you, and provides your life while you endure the days of your baptism awaiting the day of your mortality.

Prayers from the complacent goaded into urgency…

Heavenly Father, you are the lord of time, confront us in the preaching of Jesus Christ so that we know the immediacy of your presence.  Lord, save us!

Heavenly Father, you are the lord of time, as you confront us in the preaching of Jesus Christ with your immediate presence, expose us in our sinful mortality that we would know our helplessness. Lord, save us!

Heavenly Father, you are the lord of time, as we are exposed in our sinful mortality and dead in our sin, give us the life of Jesus Christ your Son our Lord so that we would have faith during these days while the flesh still adheres. Lord, save us!

Heavenly Father, you are the lord of time, as we are filled with the life and faith of your Son, Jesus Christ, open our eyes to see our neighbors and their needs so that our time of mortality would be useful to them. Lord, save us!

Heavenly Father, you are the lord time, in our time of usefulness, let us not grow weary and if we do tire, grant us to rest in the Word of our Lord Jesus. Lord, save us!

Heavenly Father, you are the lord of time, grant to the Institute of Lutheran Theology its time of growth so that it, too, would prove useful to its neighbors. Lord, save us!

Heavenly Father, you are the lord of time, grant that the days of my baptism would be a time of hearing your Word and living by its promises. Lord, save us!