Benediction

September 30, 2023

When I was a teenager attending Westside Baptist Church, pastor Ellis always concluded worship services with a benediction, much as pastors have done for generations. These days, I hear all sorts of benedictions, most of them made up by whomever is leading the service. Somehow, these extemporaneous and manufactured final exhortations seem to me to fall a bit flat and somewhat short of the blessings God intends his people to have. 

The best of these blessings come straight from Scripture, and the most common of them comes from Numbers 6:24-26:

“The Lord bless you and keep you; 

the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;

the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.”

Pastor Ellis used this blessing upon occasion, but it’s not what I remember most. He had two blessings that he pronounced over us time and time again. The first is the blessing I pray over my grandchildren nearly every time we meet, even if over the phone. It comes from Hebrews 13:20-21

“May the God of peace, who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.”

This truly is my prayer for my grandchildren—that they be complete in doing God’s will, empowered by the covenant strength of God himself, sealed by the very blood of Christ.

And then there is this second of Pastor Ellis’ blessings upon us, found in the Scripture I read this morning from the tiny letter of Jude 24 and 25:

“Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.”

Neither of Pastor Ellis’ blessings focused on what we might do for Christ, but rather on what God in Christ has done and continues to do for us. Being told what we should do may or may not bless us. Our ability and will to follow Christ easily wavers, but the love, power, and faithfulness of our God never fades, and being reminded of this at the conclusion of worship is truly the blessing I need for the week ahead. Pastor Ellis is with the Lord for many years now, but his blessings still resonate in my heart and life.