Faithful Confession and Conviction
As the Lord speaks to us in His Word, He calls the righteous to live by faith and always gives reason why His people can do so through His continual presence, power, and providence. The Readings today urge us, in various ways, to live by faith in our confession and conviction. In Isaiah, He with great conviction reminds through the prophet, “I am the LORD, and there is no other, besides Me there is no God.” In the Epistle, Paul assures the Thessalonians, “He has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction.” Finally, in today’s Gospel, Christ urges us to live by faith and as stewards of all He has provided, to “render . . . to God the things that are God’s.” Moved by His Spirit out of gratefulness for the salvation earned for us by Christ Jesus, we then give God our willing obedience, dedicated service, and the glory due His name as we in confession and conviction live by faith in and through Him.