Grant to us, Lord, we beseech Thee, the Spirit to think and do always such things as are right; that we, who cannot do anything that is good without Thee, may by Thee be enabled to live according to Thy will; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

--Common Service Book of the Lutheran Church

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’

--Matthew 7.15-23 (NKJV)

Our Gospel lesson today reminds us of the need to 'bear good fruit' in the Christian life. This is the life-long struggle of sanctification, the process of being formed more and more into the image of Jesus in the things we say, think, and do. It is a struggle because sin still lives in us, though it is not our master. It is not an effort that we can succeed in without God's grace, and thankfully, it is not a struggle that we should ever think we are facing alone.

Unlike our justification, which is solely God's work through the merit of Christ, our sanctification involves our cooperation with God's grace, upon which we are still dependent as we struggle. Both Scripture and the historic confessions of the faith agree on this reality. So we call upon him, as in today's collect, recognizing that we cannot make ourselves holy, imploring him to fill us with the Holy Spirit, and enabling us to lead lives pleasing to him.

Now Thank We All Our God (Martin Rinkart)

Now thank we all our God,
With heart and hands and voices,
Who wondrous things hath done,
In whom His earth rejoices;
Who from our mother’s arms
Hath blessed us on our way
With countless gifts of love,
And still is ours to-day.

O may this bounteous God
Through all our life be near us,
With ever joyful hearts
And blessed peace to cheer us;
And keep us in His grace,
And guide us when perplexed,
And free us from all ills,
In this world and the next.

All praise and thanks to God
The Father now be given,
The Son, and Him who reigns
With them in highest heaven,
The One eternal God,
Whom earth and heaven adore;
For thus it was, is now,
And shall be evermore!

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash