A few years ago, I received the Book of Common Prayer from a good friend of mine. Although I no longer attend a church that uses the Book of Common Prayer, I still reference my copy often. Yesterday was the First Sunday after Epiphany and the collect reads:
O LORD, we beseech thee mercifully to receive the prayers of thy people who call upon thee; and grant that they may both perceive and know what things they ought to do, and also may have grace and power faithfully to fulfil the same; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
What a great prayer. “Grant that (I) may both perceive and know what things (I) ought to do.” Before reading this prayer, I read Psalm 119 and was struck once again by the delight the psalmist takes in the Law of God. Doug Wilson in the documentary Collison: Is Christianity Good for the World? mentions at one point that the Law of God is an expression of who God is. We often hear or think of God’s Law as a heavy condemning judgmental “rule,” but when we consider the Law as an expression of who God is, what joy it becomes for the child of God to know the Law, to delight in it, to love it, and to meditate on it. By knowing, delighting, loving and meditating on it, I learn to know, delight, love and meditate upon who God is, and that Law that once hung over my head condemning my sin, now becomes like sweet honey not because it justifies me, but because it shows me who my Father is. As the psalmist says in Psalm 119:102-103, “I do not turn aside from your rules, for you have taught me. How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” What better way is there to “perceive and know things (we) ought to do” than to know the Law of God? I love that the prayer does not end in just perceiving or knowing, but it asks God to grant that I also “have grace and power faithfully to fulfil the same; through Jesus Christ our Lord.” What a glorious thing that not only does my justification come through Jesus Christ, but He also grants me grace and power for sanctification. Left to my own abilities I fail, but through the grace and power of Christ, I am sanctified. However, even though it is completely of His grace, He does not put me in a position of passivity. He gives His Word, prayer, and the sacraments as means of grace. As I know and commune with Him through these means of grace, I become more like Him, and His reflection permeates my life. What glorious grace!
As the psalmist, may we also delight in God's Law!
"For I find my delight in your commandments, which I love." Psalm 119:47
"At midnight I rise to praise you, because of your righteous rules." Psalm 119:62
"The law of your mouth is better to me than thousands of gold and silver pieces." Psalm 119:72
"Let your mercy come to me, that I may live; for your law is my delight." Psalm 119:77
"If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction." Psal 119:92
"Oh how I love your law! It is my mediation all the day." Psalm 119:97
"Therefore I love your commandments above gold, above fine gold." Psalm 119:127
"Trouble and anguish have found me out, but your commandments are my delight." Psalm 119:143
"Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble." Psalm 119:166
"I long for your salvation, O LORD, and your law is my delight." Psalm 119:174
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