Daily Devotion for 07 September 2026 (15th Monday after Pentecost)

0:00Welcome to the Daily Devotions Podcast from Confident Faith. I am Corey J. Moller, a contributor here at Confident Faith, and I will be your reader today. This 16th Monday after Pentecost, the 7th of September. In the year of our Lord, 2026, in the time of the Church, there are no feasts, festivals, or commemorations on the calendar today. Our readings for today are Psalm 131, Psalm 77, 2nd Kings starting with chapter 4, verse 38, and reading through chapter 5, verse 8, Ephesians 6, verses 1 through 24, and paragraphs 262 through 268,

1:10of Article 5 of the Apology of the Augsburg Confession. We will close, as always, with the Lord's Prayer. Today's first reading from the Psalter is the 131st Psalm. O Lord, my heart was not lifted up, nor were my eyes lifted aloft. Nor did I go in great things, nor in wondrous things above me, except I was of humbled mine, and I lifted my soul as the weaned one upon his mother, until you will give back upon my soul. Let Israel hope upon the Lord. From now and until the age, glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now and will be forevermore. Amen.

2:13Today's second reading from the Psalter is the 77th Psalm. With my voice I cried out toward the Lord, and my voice toward God, and he attended to me. In a day of my crushing I sought out God, with my hands by night over against him, and I was not deceived. My soul refused to be comforted. I remembered God and I was gladdened. I am used in my spirit grew faint of soul. My enemies occupied the watches beforehand. I was thrown into turmoil, and I did not speak. I reasoned through ancient days, and ever lasting years I remembered and I studied. By night with my heart I was musing, and my spirit hoed. With the Lord thrust away unto the ages, and will he not add still to be well pleased? Or unto an end will he cut off the mercy from generation and generation? Or will God forget to pity? Or will he shut up his compassion in his wrath?

3:14And I said, now I have begun. This is the alteration of the right hand of the Most High. I remembered the works of the Lord, that I will remember from the beginning your wonders, that I will study in all your works, and in your practices I will muse. O God in the Holy is your way. Who is a God great is our God. You are our God who does wonders. You made known among your peoples your power. You ransomed with your arm your people, the sons of Jacob and Joseph. Water saw you, O God. Water saw you and they feared, and abysses were thrown into turmoil. A multitude of the sounding of water. The clouds gave a voice, for indeed your darts passed through. A voice of your thunder is in the wheel. The earth was shaken and became trembling. In the sea is your way, and your paths in many waters, and your tracks will not be known. You led your people as sheep, by the hand of Moses and Aaron.

4:17Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forevermore. Amen. Today's Old Testament reading comes from the Book of Second Kings, and we will be reading from verse 38 of the fourth chapter, through verse 8 to the fifth chapter. And Alisha returned to Galgala, and the famine was in the land, and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him. And Alisha said to his lad, put the large cauldron on, and boil boiled stuff for the sons of the prophets. And one went out into the field to gather area, and he found a vine in the field, and gathered from it a wild gourd, his garment full, and he threw it into the cauldron of boiled stuff, for they knew it not. And he poured it in for the men to eat, and it happened while they were eating from the boiled stuff, that behold they cried out and said, O man of God, there is death in the cauldron,

5:22and they could not eat it. And he said, bring flour and throw it into the cauldron. And Alisha said to Gisi the lad, pour for the people and let them eat. And there was no longer any harmful thing there in the cauldron. And a man passed through from Bitesari Saha, and he brought to the man of God from the first products, twenty barley loaves and fruit cakes. And he said, give it to the people and let them eat. And his attendant said, why should I set this before a hundred men? And he said, give it to the people and let them eat. For this is what the Lord says, they shall eat and leave some behind. And they ate and left some behind, according to the word of the Lord. And Nimon, the commander of the force of Syria, was a great man before his master. And he was marveled at in face, because by him the Lord gave deliverance to Syria. And the man was powerful in strength, but leprous. And as for Syria, they went out lightly armed and took captive from the land of Israel a little girl. And she was in the presence of the

6:26wife of Nimon. And she said to her mistress, would that my Lord were in the presence of the prophet of God who is in Samaria? Then he will recover him from his leprousy. And she went in and told her own Lord and said, thus and so said the girl from the land of Israel. And the king of Syria said to Nimon, come here, enter, and I will send out a document to the king of Israel. And he went and took in his hand ten talents of silver and six thousand gold pieces and ten changes of robes. And he brought the document to the king of Israel saying, and now as soon as this document comes to you, behold, I sent to you Nimon my slave, and you shall recover him from his leprousy. And it happened as the king of Israel read the document that he tore his clothes and said, am I a God to put to death and to make a life? That this man sends to me to recover a man from his leprousy, for only now know and see that this man is setting me up as an excuse.

7:28And it happened as a lisha heard that the king of Israel had torn his own clothes, that he sent to the king of Israel saying, why did you tear your clothes? Do let Nimon come to me and let him know that there is a prophet in Israel. This is the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. Today's New Testament reading comes from the book of Ephesians, and we will be reading the sixth chapter verses 1 through 24. Children obey your parents and the Lord for this is right. Honor your father and mother. This is the first commandment with a promise that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land. Fathers do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. Slaves obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart as you would Christ, not by the way of I service as people pleasers, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, rendering service

8:33with a good will as to the Lord and not to man, knowing that whatever good anyone does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether he is a slave or is free. Masters do the same to them and stop your threatening, knowing that he who is both their master and yours is in heaven, and that there is no partiality with him. Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil, for we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all to stand firm, stand therefore having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and as shoot for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances,

9:38take up the shield of truth, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one, and take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains that I may declare it boldly as I ought to speak. So that you also may know how I am and what I am doing, Taikicus, the beloved brother, and faithful minister in the Lord will tell you everything. I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are, and that he may encourage your hearts. Peace be to you, brothers, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ, with love incorruptible. This is the word the Lord.

10:42Thanks be to God. Today's reading from the Book of Concord comes from the apology of the Augsburg confession, and we will be reading Article 5, paragraphs 262 through 268. They corrupt very many other passages in the schools because they do not teach the righteousness and because they understand faith as merely a knowledge of the history or of dogmas. They do not understand faith to be a virtue, which takes hold the promise of grace and of righteousness, and which in live in hearts in the terrors of sin and of death. When Paul says, with the heart one believes in his justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved, Romans 1010, we think that the adversaries admit that confession justifies or saves, not by the outward act, but only because of the faith of the heart. Paul says that confession saves in order to show what sort of faith receives eternal life,

11:47namely, that which is firm and active. That faith, however, that does not present itself in confession is not firm. So other good works please because of faith. Just as the prayers of the church ask that all things may be accepted for Christ's sake, they likewise ask all things for Christ's sake. For it is clear that this clause is always added at the close of prayers through Christ our Lord. So we conclude that we are justified before God, our reconciled to God and reborn through faith. In repentance this faith lays hold to the promise of grace and truly in live ends the terrified mind. It is convinced that for Christ's sake God is reconciled and favorable toward us. Through this faith, 1 Peter 1 5 says, we are being guarded for a salvation ready to be revealed. The knowledge of this faith is necessary to Christians, brings the most abundant comfort in all troubles and shows us Christ's office. Those who deny that people are justified through faith

12:48and that Christ is mediator and the atoning sacrifice deny the promise of grace and the gospel. When it comes to justification, they teach only the doctrine either of reason or of the law. We have shown how this came to be so far as can be done here. We have also explained the objections of the adversaries. Good people will easily judge these things if they will think in this way whenever a passage about love or works is quoted. It is certain that the law cannot be kept without Christ and that we cannot be justified from the law, but from the gospel that is from the grace promised in Christ. We hope that this discussion, although brief, will be helpful to good people for strengthening faith and teaching and comforting the conscience. For we know that what we have said is in harmony with the prophetic and apostolic scriptures, with the Holy Father's, Ambrose, Augustine and very many others, and with Christ's whole church, which certainly confesses that Christ is the atoning sacrifice and justifier. This concludes our reading from the book of Concord.

13:59I now invite all of you to join me in reciting the Lord's Prayer, one of the most ancient prayers of the church. I do encourage you to say it aloud if you are somewhere would be reasonable to do so, but praying it silently is, of course, also fine. The Lord knows what is in your heart. Lord, remember us in your kingdom and teach us to pray. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. It lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever and ever. Amen. Go in peace and grace to serve our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, in whatever calling has been

15:01given you, or tasks set before you, until tomorrow. God be with you.