This Week’s Theme
The Divine Omniscience
Isaiah 40.28-31
(The Knowledge of the Holy [KOTH], Chapter 10)
Our God is perfectly aware of all realities and possibilities, with absolute knowledge, all at once! It is the attribute of infinitude applied to his knowledge and wisdom. “To say that God is omniscient is to say that He possesses perfect knowledge and therefore has no need to learn. But it is more: it is to say that God has never learned and cannot learn. The Scriptures teach that God has never learned from anyone” (KOTH, p. 55). God’s wisdom has neither boundaries nor barriers, it is truly limitless, and with this limitless knowledge he created the world, called and redeemed his people, and will one day ultimately restore all things.
In Isaiah 40, the LORD declares his divine omniscience and power. As the sovereign Creator and Maker of the universe, the God of Israel is exalted above all things, watching over his creation with wisdom and care. He sits as King enthroned over the circle of the earth, whose inhabitants appear to him as grasshoppers. The heavens are like his tent and the earth his footstool. God is seen here as the blessed controller of all things, establishing history and leading his own into their rightful inheritance.
Because the LORD the Creator is real, unlike the dead idols his people often run to, he never gets tired. God, who unlike pagan idols is eternal and the Creator, never grows faint or weary. He gives power to the faint and increases strength to the weak. Even though young people shall become faint and be weary, and young, robust men will fall exhausted, they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength. Those who trust will mount up with wings and soar like eagles, running, they will not be weary, and walking, they will not faint. This is the promise to the person who refuses to rely upon empty idols but depends on the strength of the LORD, the one true God and Creator.
Preparing Our Hearts
Invocation: Our Prayer of Acclamation
Lord, Thou knowest all things; Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising and art acquainted with all my ways. I can inform Thee of nothing and it is vain to try to hide anything from Thee. In the light of Thy perfect knowledge I would be as artless as a little child. Help me to put away all care, for Thou knowest the way that I take and when Thou hast tried me I shall come forth as gold. Amen.
~ KOTH, p. 55
Call to Worship
Blessed are you, O God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And blessed is your Kingdom, both now and forever, amen.
Praising Our God
Te Deum Laudamus
You are God: we praise you; you are the Lord; we acclaim you; you are the eternal Father: All creation worships you. To you all angels, all the powers of heaven, Cherubim and Seraphim, sing in endless praise: Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory.
The glorious company of apostles praise you. The noble fellowship of prophets praise you. The white-robed army of martyrs praise you. Throughout the world the holy Church acclaims you; Father, of majesty unbounded, your true and only Son, worthy of all worship, and the Holy Spirit, advocate and guide.
You, Christ, are the king of glory, the eternal Son of the Father. When you became man to set us free you did not shun the Virgin’s womb. You overcame the sting of death and opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers. You are seated at God’s right hand in glory. We believe that you will come and be our judge. Come then, Lord, and help your people, bought with the price of your own blood, and bring us with your saints to glory everlasting.
Praise and Thanksgiving (songs and prayers)
Gloria Patri
Glory be to the Father,
And to the Son and to the Holy Spirit:
As it was in the beginning,
Is now, and ever shall be,
World without end. Amen, amen.
Listening to His Voice
Chronological Reading for the Day
Tuesday: Zech. 6-8; Ezra 5.3-6.14a
Lectionary Readings
Psalm: Ps. 105.1-6, 16-22, 45b
OT: Gen. 37.1-4, 12-28
Gospel: Matt. 14.22-33
NT: Rom. 10.5-15
(Click here for all readings)
Reflection: Silence and/or Journaling
Responding in Faith
The Apostles’ Creed
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; he descended into hell; the third day he arose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven and sits on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic* church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
*In the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds, the term catholic refers to the Church’s universality, through all ages and times, of all languages and peoples. It refers to no particular tradition or denominational expression (e.g., as in Roman Catholic).
Prayers of Confession
Let us now confess our sins to God and receive mercy and grace to help in our time of need.
Assurance of Pardon
Having faithfully confessed and renounced your sin, Christ also has been faithful to forgive your sins and to purify you from all unrighteousness. It is certain, that there is One who has spoken to the Father in your defense, Jesus Christ, the Righteous One who is the atoning sacrifice for our sins and for the sins of the whole world. His grace and peace are with you now. Amen.
Petitions and Supplications, Ending with The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
~ Matthew 6.9-13 (KJV)
Doxology (and/or closing song)
Praise God from whom all blessings flow;
Praise Him all creatures here below;
Praise Him above ye heavenly host;
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen.
Departing to Serve
Benediction
He doth give His joy to all;
He becomes an infant small;
He becomes a man of woe;
He doth feel the sorrow too.
Think not thou canst sigh a sigh
And thy Maker is not by;
Think not thou canst weep a tear
And thy Maker is not near.
O! He gives to us His joy
That our griefs He may destroy;
Till our grief is fled and gone
He doth sit by us and moan.
~ William Blake (KOTH, p. 58)
Affirmation for the Day
“God knows instantly and effortlessly all matter and all maters, all mind and every mind, all spirit and all spirits, all being and every being . . . ” (KOTH, p. 56).
Pray without Ceasing – Flash Prayer for the Day
You, O God, are the LORD, the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. You do not faint nor grow weary, and your understanding is unsearchable.
For Your Weekly Journey
Let God Arise! Seasonal Focus
The Divine Omniscience, Isaiah 40.28-31
Book Reading
Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy