God, Thou art a God of judgment. Whatever a man sows that shall he also reap. Let us not confuse the delay of judgment with God's failure to judge. As sure as the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, as sure we shall pay for our sins. Men will stand mindless. Women will cry in the streets. The sun shall fall and the moon shall be turned into blood. Lord, we know Thee. We know Thy word. We know that You are a God of justice.

Lord, we pray that we might be prepared. We pray that we might have been building a strong faith in ourselves. It takes time and great effort to build up a faith that will stand in the Day of Judgment. Lord we have been busy seeking Thy face. May our hearts not fail us on that Great Day. May we not be full of fear, because we have attended to Thy Word. We have been faithful to be a part of Thy house of worship. We will be ready. We have stored up treasures in heaven where moth and rust do not corrupt and thieves do not break in and steal. We have taught our children the things of God. We have claimed Thy covenant promises for them. We have brought them up in the fear and admonition of the Lord. We have pointed out the false gods to them and we have disciplined them with the rod. We have loved them and shown them the reality of mercy. Lord, our children face an uncertain future. Only the Church and the Family can give them the tools and weapons to be victorious in the battles they must fight.

Lord, often before blessing can come, trial must come first. We know that the Kingdom of God will come in power, but first the proud must be humbled. The arrogant must be cast down. Men who build their own kingdoms on earth must first be cast down into dust. Then, men shall return to Thee and to Thy Law. Men shall see Jesus Christ not merely as a symbol, not merely as a religious figure, not merely as some weak, helpless enabler, but truly as the Potentate, the King of Kings, and the Sovereign Lord who controls the end from the beginning. Jesus shall be worshiped either by standing before Him in praise or kneeling before Him in fear and trembling.

Our Father, we thank Thee for Thy grace. Although we must work out our own salvation with fear and trembling, we also know that it is God who works in us to bring forth his grace in us. Even our working itself is a result of Thy grace. At some time in our lives, You put inside us respect and fear of the God of the Bible. At some time in our lives, we understood the gospel and we put our hope and trust in the work and redemption of the Lord Jesus Christ. Whether we gained it from our parents, whether we gained it from the preaching of the word, whether we gained it through reading books, ultimately, we gained it from You. It is by grace that we are saved and not by our own wills. God You have chosen to have mercy upon some and to leave others in their sin to pay the penalty they deserve for their sin. Why You have chosen us to be here? Why do others pursue the pleasures and joys of the world, and we come into Thy presence? Why do some face eternal pain and suffering and we the joy and presence of the Lord? O God, it is all of grace. It is nothing we have done. It is all what You have done. We praise Thy grace that gives us a heart that leans and reposes in Thee.

Lord, bless us as we worship today. Bless the preaching of the word. Bless the sacrament of baptism. We have done what You have commanded. As we seek to be faithful, we plead Your faithfulness and the fulfillment of Your promises.