Almighty and gracious Lord, pour out Your Holy Spirit on Your faithful people. Keep us steadfast in Your grace and truth, protect and deliver us in times of temptation, defend us against all enemies, and grant Your Church Your saving peace; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
And thus we celebrate today, that despite the anxiety we feel from our enemies—from the devil and the world—who attack us, and despite the feeling of hopelessness that comes from our enemy within, we, in fact, have every reason to hope. We have every reason to be confident. We have every reason to rejoice. For Jesus Christ, who was crucified for our transgressions, is raised for our justification.
For we will all be judged. We will all stand in God’s courtroom before His throne. And our only plea can be “I a poor miserable sinner . . . . forgive me by grace for Christ’s sake.” And if that is your plea, if that is your confession, the verdict will be “Not guilty.”