I will give you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.
Isaiah 49:6b
Officiant Lord,
open our lips.
People And
our mouth shall proclaim your praise.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
Alleluia.
Come, let us sing to the Lord; *
let us shout for joy
to the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving *
and
raise a loud shout to him with psalms.
For the Lord is a great God, *
and a great King above
all gods.
In his hand are the caverns of the earth, *
and the
heights of the hills are his also.
The sea is his, for he made it, *
and his hands have
molded the dry land.
Come, let us bow down, and bend the knee, *
and kneel
before the Lord our Maker.
For he is our God,
and we are the people of his
pasture and the sheep of his hand. *
Oh, that today you would
hearken to his voice!
The LORD, the God of gods, has spoken; *
he has
called the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting.
Out of Zion, perfect in its beauty, *
God reveals
himself in glory.
Our God will come and will not keep silence; *
before
him there is a consuming flame,
and round about him a raging
storm.
He calls the heavens and the earth from above *
to
witness the judgment of his people.
“Gather before me my loyal followers, *
those
who have made a covenant with me
and sealed it with sacrifice.”
Let the heavens declare the rightness of his cause;
*
for God himself is judge.
Hear, O my people, and I will speak:
“O Israel,
I will bear witness against you; *
for I am God, your God.
I do not accuse you because of your sacrifices; *
your
offerings are always before me.
I will take no bull-calf from your stalls, *
nor
he-goats out of your pens;
For all the beasts of the forest are mine, *
the
herds in their thousands upon the hills.
I know every bird in the sky, *
and the creatures of
the fields are in my sight.
If I were hungry, I would not tell you, *
for the
whole world is mine and all that is in it.
Do you think I eat the flesh of bulls, *
or drink the
blood of goats?
Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving *
and make
good your vows to the Most High.
Call upon me in the day of trouble; *
I will deliver
you, and you shall honor me.”
But to the wicked God says: *
“Why do you
recite my statutes,
and take my covenant upon your lips;
Since you refuse discipline, *
and toss my words
behind your back?
When you see a thief, you make him your friend, *
and
you cast in your lot with adulterers.
You have loosed your lips for evil, *
and harnessed
your tongue to a lie.
You are always speaking evil of your brother *
and
slandering your own mother’s son.
These things you have done, and I kept still, *
and
you thought that I am like you.”
“I have made my accusation; *
I have put my
case in order before your eyes.
Consider this well, you who forget God, *
lest I rend
you and there be none to deliver you.
Whoever offers me the sacrifice of thanksgiving honors
me; *
but to those who keep in my way will I show the salvation of
God.”
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
A Reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah.
Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth; break forth, O mountains, into singing! For the LORD has comforted his people, and will have compassion on his suffering ones. But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me, my Lord has forgotten me.” Can a woman forget her nursing child, or show no compassion for the child of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you. See, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands; your walls are continually before me. Your builders outdo your destroyers, and those who laid you waste go away from you.
Lift up your eyes all around and see; they all gather, they come to you. As I live, says the LORD, you shall put all of them on like an ornament, and like a bride you shall bind them on. Surely your waste and your desolate places and your devastated land— surely now you will be too crowded for your inhabitants, and those who swallowed you up will be far away. The children born in the time of your bereavement will yet say in your hearing: “The place is too crowded for me; make room for me to settle.” Then you will say in your heart, “Who has borne me these? I was bereaved and barren, exiled and put away— so who has reared these? I was left all alone— where then have these come from?” Thus says the Lord GOD: I will soon lift up my hand to the nations, and raise my signal to the peoples; and they shall bring your sons in their bosom, and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders. Kings shall be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers. With their faces to the ground they shall bow down to you, and lick the dust of your feet. Then you will know that I am the LORD; those who wait for me shall not be put to shame.
The Word of the
Lord.
Thanks be to God.
I will sing to the Lord, for he is lofty and uplifted;
*
the horse and its rider has he hurled into the sea.
The Lord is my strength and my refuge; *
the Lord has
become my Savior.
This is my God and I will praise him, *
the God of my
people and I will exalt him.
The Lord is a mighty warrior; *
Yahweh is his Name.
The chariots of Pharaoh and his army has he hurled into
the sea; *
the finest of those who bear armor have been drowned in
the Red Sea.
The fathomless deep has overwhelmed them; *
they sank
into the depths like a stone.
Your right hand, O Lord, is glorious in might; *
your
right hand, O Lord, has overthrown the enemy.
Who can be compared with you, O Lord, among the gods?
*
who is like you, glorious in holiness,
awesome in renown, and
worker of wonders?
You stretched forth your right hand; *
the earth
swallowed them up.
With your constant love you led the people you redeemed;
*
with your might you brought them in safety to your holy
dwelling.
You will bring them in and plant them *
on the mount
of your possession,
The resting-place you have made for yourself, O Lord,
*
the sanctuary, O Lord, that your hand has established.
The Lord shall reign *
for ever and for ever.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
A Reading from the Letter to the Galatians.
You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly exhibited as crucified! The only thing I want to learn from you is this: Did you receive the Spirit by doing the works of the law or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? Having started with the Spirit, are you now ending with the flesh? Did you experience so much for nothing? —if it really was for nothing. Well then, does God supply you with the Spirit and work miracles among you by your doing the works of the law, or by your believing what you heard?
Just as Abraham “believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,” so, you see, those who believe are the descendants of Abraham. And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, declared the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “All the Gentiles shall be blessed in you.” For this reason, those who believe are blessed with Abraham who believed. For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all the things written in the book of the law.” Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law; for “The one who is righteous will live by faith.” But the law does not rest on faith; on the contrary, “Whoever does the works of the law will live by them.” Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”— in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
The Word of the
Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people
on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King,
almighty God and Father,
we
worship you, we give you thanks,
we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,
Lord God,
Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on
us;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father:
receive
our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the
Lord,
you alone are the Most High,
Jesus Christ,
with the
Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
I believe in God, the Father
almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus
Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of
the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered
under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He
descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again.
He
ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of the
Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I
believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the
communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the
resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
Officiant The
Lord be with you.
People And
also with you.
Officiant Let
us pray.
Our Father, who art in
heaven,
hallowed be thy Name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will
be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our
daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive
those
who trespass against us.
And lead us not into
temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the
kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
V. Save
your people, Lord, and bless your inheritance;
R. Govern
and uphold them, now and always.
V. Day
by day we bless you;
R. We
praise your name for ever.
V. Lord,
keep us from all sin today;
R. Have
mercy on us, Lord, have mercy.
V. Lord,
show us your love and mercy;
R. For
we put our trust in you.
V. In
you, Lord, is our hope;
R. And
we shall never hope in vain.
Give us grace, O Lord, to answer readily the call of our Savior Jesus Christ and proclaim to all people the Good News of his salvation, that we and the whole world may perceive the glory of his marvelous works; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Heavenly Father, in you we live and move and have our being: We humbly pray you so to guide and govern us by your Holy Spirit, that in all the cares and occupations of our life we may not forget you, but may remember that we are ever walking in your sight; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Almighty and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole body of your faithful people is governed and sanctified: Receive our supplications and prayers which we offer before you for all members of your holy Church, that in their vocation and ministry they may truly and devoutly serve you; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Let
us pray now for our own needs and those of others.
Almighty God, Father of
all mercies,
we your unworthy servants give you humble thanks
for
all your goodness and loving-kindness
to us and to all whom you
have made.
We bless you for our creation, preservation,
and all
the blessings of this life;
but above all for your immeasurable
love
in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ;
for
the means of grace, and for the hope of glory.
And, we pray, give us such
an awareness of your mercies,
that with truly thankful hearts we
may show forth your praise,
not only with our lips, but in our
lives,
by giving up our selves to your service,
and by walking
before you
in holiness and righteousness all our days;
through
Jesus Christ our Lord,
to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit,
be
honor and glory throughout all ages. Amen.
Let us bless the
Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine: Glory to God from generation to generation in the Church, and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen.
Ephesians 3:20,21