December 16, Mr. Sam Bohnet

Come, Thou Bright and Morning Star (LSB 872, emphasis st. 4) Come, Thou bright and Morning Star, Light of Light without beginning; Shine upon us from afar That we may be kept from sinning. Drive away by Thy clear light Our dark night.

Let Thy grace, like morning dew Falling soft on barren places, Comfort, quicken, and renew Our dry souls and dying graces; Bless Thy flock from Thy rich store Evermore.

May Thy fervent love destroy Our cold works, in us awaking Ardent zeal and holy joy At the purple morn's first breaking. Let us truly rise ere yet Life has set.

Ah! Thou Dayspring from on high, Grant that at Thy next appearing We who in the graves do lie May arise, Thy summons hearing, And rejoice in our new life, Far from strife.

Light us to those heav'nly spheres, Sun of grace, in glory shrouded; Lead us through this vale of tears To the land where days unclouded, Purest joy, and perfect peace Never cease.

In the Old Testament the Israelites waited for the coming of the Messiah, just as today we await the second coming of Jesus Christ. In ancient times Israel hoped in the promise given to the patriarchs; the Church as the new Israel places its hope in the promise given to the apostles that Christ will return on the last day.

Every new sunrise reminds the Church of the coming resurrection, as darkness gives way to light. David writes in the third Psalm, “I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the Lord sustained me.” In Martin Luther’s morning prayer, we thank God for keeping us from all harm and danger. We rely on God for our waking each morning, just as we rely on Him for the salvation of our souls and our resurrection on the last day.

This Advent, as the sun rises on a new day, waking us from sleep, so too Christ, the Bright and Morning Star, wakens us who lie in graves. In Baptism Christ brings us up from spiritual death and we look forward to our physical bodies rising again on the last day. Let us rejoice in the new life we have received in Baptism, as the strife and darkness of the world is shattered by the light of Christ.

Mr. Samuel Bohnet

Christ Academy: High School Proctor, 2021, 2022 Christ Academy: College Student, 2019-2022