Piety Hill Musings

The ramblings of the Rector of St. John's Episcopal Church of Detroit. Piety Hill refers to the old name for our neighborhood. The neighborhood has changed a great deal in the over 160 years we have been on this corner (but not our traditional biblical theology) and it is now known for the neighboring theatres, the professional baseball and football stadiums and new hockey/basketball arena.

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Location: Detroit, Michigan, United States

Monday, December 06, 2021

...and inwardly digest... - Rector's Rambling for December 5, 2021

 Today we have one of my favorite Sunday Collects, one which I pray nearly daily.   And it is one that I encourage you to memorize and use regularly as well. 

 

BLESSED Lord, who hast caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning; Grant that we may in such wise hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that by patience and comfort of thy holy Word, we may embrace, and ever hold fast, the blessed hope of  everlasting life, which thou hast given us in our Saviour Jesus Christ.  Amen.

 

This Collect hits all the important points about our relationship to the Bible.  First, that it is a gift from God who in the person of the Holy Spirit inspired its writing and compilation by the people of the original covenant (the Old Testament) and the New (the Church).  The reason for the bible is so that we can come to know the Lord: His love for us, His plan for our salvation, how this has been accomplished in His Son Jesus Christ, and how it is we are to live as members who have been redeemed by His most precious blood!

The Collect then goes on to encourages us to hear them being read (in public worship) as well as read them ourselves.  But we are not only to read them but also study them in such a way that we internalize them (inwardly digest) so that they become a part of our very being.  Who we are and how we live should be formed by the Word of God. 

It is in the Scriptures that we read about God’s promise of the free gift of eternal life by grace through faith in Jesus.  This is our hope as the Collect reminds us!

I pray this collect daily as I begin my time in the Scriptures.  Whether you are reading them as a part of the Daily Office or when you are reading them as a part of a deeper study, asking God’s blessing upon that time in the Bible is a helpful way to frame that time.  Asking the One who inspired their writing and compilation will also guide us in the reading and understanding of the Scriptures, that we may live as He would have us live. 

 

posted by StJohnsPriest | 3:18 PM