Thoughts that drive me to the cross.

3 (The LORD gave this message to Ezekiel son of Buzi, a priest, beside the Kebar River in the land of the Babylonians,* and he felt the hand of the LORD take hold of him.)  Ezekiel 1:3 NLT

Come, Holy Spirit, heavenly dove, with all Thy quickening powers;
Kindle a flame of sacred love in these cold hearts of ours.

See how we grovel here below, fond of these earthly toys,;
Our souls how heavily they go to reach eternal joys.

In vain we tone our formal songs, in vain we strive to rise; 
Hosannas languish on our toungues and our devotion dies.

Dear Lord, and shall we ever live, at this poor dying rate__
our love so cold so faint to Thee, and Thine to us so great!

Come Holy Spirit, heavenly Dove, with all Thy quickening powers!
Come shed abroad a Savior’s and that shall kindle ours!
#255 Issac Watts – Evangelical Lutheran Hymn Book (1927)

This knowledge of and confidence in God’s grace makes people glad and bold and happy in dealing with God and with all creatures. And this is the work which the Holy Spirit performs in faith. Because of it, without compulsion, a person is ready and glad to do good to everyone, to serve everyone, to suffer everything, out of love and praise to God, who has shown this grace.

500 years ago, the church recognized its need for the Holy Spirit to work in us.

300 Year ago, when Issac Watts wrote the hymn (the words in green above) the church recognized its need and prayed for the Holy Spirit to come and revive the church.

It was a need 100 years ago, when some eccentric and somewhat isolated Lutherans included Mr. Watts’ hymn in their hymnbook published by the LCMS.

We still have our toys, we still need the boldness, we still need to do what God desires, not because we are forced too, but simply out of a reaction of love and need.

I think the problem today is that the church has forgotten that it has always struggled to let the Holy Spirit embrace it. We want to restrict our faith to what we know, as if then we can control it. We don’t want to be purpose driven, and reject the simple, powerful guidance of the Holy Spirit.

We need to see God at work in our lives, and that means we have to be attuned to the Spirit. We need to be like Ezekiel, who eflt God take his hand. Our gifts are different, for not all are prophets, yet all need the healing, comforting, empowering touch of the Holy Spiirt.

This is not new, nor is the state of the church at “the worst its ever been” as some claim.

It is time for God to be God, and us to live resonating with Him, letting Him revive us, and then our communities, our regions, and the world.

Robert Kolb, Timothy J. Wengert, and Charles P. Arand, The Book of Concord: The Confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2000), 576.