O God, who declarest thy almighty power most chiefly in showing
mercy and pity: Mercifully grant unto us such a measure of thy grace, that
we, running the way of thy commandments, may obtain thy gracious promises,
and be made partakers of thy heavenly treasure; through Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
O God, who declarest thy almighty power most chiefly in showing
mercy and pity
God’s mercy moves him to pardon sinners; his pity moves him to help
them. The conversion and salvation of a sinner is a work of God’s mercy
which shows his greatest power, namely the power to forgive sins. The mercy
required to make us right with himself (our “justification”) was nothing
less awful than the blood-shedding and obedience unto death of his Son,
Jesus Christ. The pity of God which is required to allow us to grow in
his love throughout our lives and become holy (our “sanctification”) is
nothing less than the operation of God’s Holy Spirit in our lives. Our
Epistle shows the almighty power of God in reclaiming, subduing, pardoning,
and inspiring Saul who was a blaspheming persecutor of the Church. As St.
Paul says in today’s Epistle, “by the grace of God I am what I am.” Our
Gospel story of the Pharisee and Publican teaches us that God is ready
to show the almighty power of his mercy whenever he is approached with
true penitence and humility.
Mercifully grant unto us such a measure of thy grace
Incredible as it seems at times, God’s grace is more than sufficient
for all our failings and needs. We pray for grace which is adequate to
our individual needs. The Lord said to Paul: “My grace is sufficient for
thee, for my strength is made perfect in weakness”, which led Paul to realize
that, as a Christian, “when I am weak, then am I strong” (II Cor. 12. 9,
10). We must not prevent God’s power from working in us by pridefully refusing
to rely on his strength and grace.
that we, running the way of thy commandments
As we commented on last week’s Collect, it is God’s grace which enables
us to obey his will and keep his commandments. By striving to obey the
commandments we show our willingness to cooperate with the Holy Spirit
working within us.
may obtain thy gracious promises, and be made partakers of thy
heavenly treasure
St. Paul tells us that “we are the children of God; and if children,
then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ” (Rom. 8. 16, 17),
and “Eye bath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart
of man the things which God bath prepared for them that love him” (I Cor.
2. 9).
