Serve the Lord with gladness, for the kingship of our God and Savior has nothing of the harsh tyranny of the devil; rather, his lordship is mild and loving.

But what is my God? I put my question to the earth. It answered, I am not God, and all things on earth declared the same. I asked the sea and the chasms of the deep and the living things that creep in them, but they answered, We are not your God. Seek what is above us. I spoke to the winds that blow, and the whole air and all that lives in it replied, Anaximenes^[1] is wrong. I am not God. I asked the sky, the sun, the moon and the stars, but they told me, Neither are we the God whom you seek. I spoke to all the things that are above me, all that can be admitted by the door of the senses, and I asked, Since you are not my God, tell me about him. Tell me something of my God. Clear and loud they answered, God is he who made us.^[2] I asked these questions simply by gazing at these things, and their beauty was all the answer they gave.

CASSIODORUS: Serve the Lord in gladness; enter his sight with rejoicing.^[1] But that joy is love, at any rate, which (as the apostle says) is not puffed up, does no harm, is not ambitious^[2] and all the other things which describe this excellent virtue in Paul’s marvelous explanation. Therefore, they are those who serve the Lord in gladness, who love him above all things and regard one another with brotherly love. Oh, what free bondage! Ah, a servitude more exceptional than all other forms of domination, to which such joy is ascribed as is not contained in the glory of kingdoms! But see what sort of reward follows that joy which is commanded in this world, for he says, Enter his sight with rejoicing. It is much more difficult and much more excellent to rejoice before the sight of such a judge, when one is being warned to approach with the knowledge so as to take the joys of humility while he is shown to be fearsome to all the haughty.

We are taught by their^[1] testimonies that it is God himself and not we ourselves who made us—not only to be human beings but also to be holy and blessed human beings. If by the gift of his grace we pursue him eagerly, always with a pure and untiring heart, he will be propitious toward all our iniquities, according to the promises made to our ancestors. He will satisfy our desire with good things, he will crown us unto eternal life not as a reward for the works of justice that we have done of ourselves but in the compassion and mercy^[2] that he has given us, for he lives and reigns in the unity of the Holy Spirit, throughout all ages. Amen.