READING: 1 Cor. 1:26-31
… to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace …Eph. 1:6-7
The first part of the hymn culminates in verse 6 with the highest goal of God’s plan for us: praise to Him as the destiny of humanity and all creation with it. Man was created in the image of God to honor, praise, and glorify Him, first as Creator, and, after the fall into sin, also as Recreator and Redeemer.
It is Christ, God’s Beloved Son, who has shown us God’s grace by shedding His blood. Therefore, man will now especially praise his God for His grace in Christ, through whom everything is restored and being restored.
The greatness and glory of God shine all the more in His Son, our Lord Christ. In Him, God has proven His love and grace. In Him, God’s glory also comes to us: His boundless goodness, infinite kindness, loving mercy, unchangeable faithfulness, incorruptible righteousness, and shining holiness.
In Christ, all this comes to us, “to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He made us accepted in the Beloved.”
This means that the glory of God is for us as His redeemed, primarily the glory of His grace, which shone in the suffering and death of our Savior. In this, God’s beloved Son endured the most bitter and shameful death on the cross. This was necessary to achieve the forgiveness of our transgressions, allowing us to share in all the treasures and gifts He has earned for us. Eternal life in glory can be our portion.
Therefore, let us join our voices in the hymn of Rev. 5:13: “And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: ‘Blessing and honor and glory and power be to Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, forever and ever!’”
Do we sing at the table at home?
Singing: Ps. 145:5