Jesus said: “If any of you would come after me, deny yourself and take up your cross and follow me.”
Mark 8:34
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.
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!
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; *
his mercy
endures for ever.
Let Israel now proclaim, *
“His mercy endures
for ever.”
Let the house of Aaron now proclaim, *
“His
mercy endures for ever.”
Let those who fear the LORD now proclaim, *
“His
mercy endures for ever.”
I called to the LORD in my distress; *
the LORD
answered by setting me free.
The LORD is at my side, therefore I will not fear;
*
what can anyone do to me?
The LORD is at my side to help me; *
I will triumph
over those who hate me.
It is better to rely on the LORD *
than to put any
trust in flesh.
It is better to rely on the LORD *
than to put any
trust in rulers.
All the ungodly encompass me; *
in the Name of the
LORD I will repel them.
They hem me in, they hem me in on every side; *
in
the name of the LORD I will repel them.
They swarm about me like bees;
they blaze like a fire
of thorns; *
in the name of the LORD I will repel them.
I was pressed so hard that I almost fell, *
but the
LORD came to my help.
The LORD is my strength and my song, *
and he has
become my salvation.
There is a sound of exultation and victory *
in the
tents of the righteous:
“The right hand of the LORD has triumphed! *
the
right hand of the LORD is exalted!
the right hand of the LORD has
triumphed!”
I shall not die, but live, *
and declare the works of
the LORD.
The LORD has punished me sorely, *
but he did not
hand me over to death.
Open for me the gates of righteousness; *
I will
enter them;
I will offer thanks to the LORD.
“This is the gate of the LORD; *
he who is
righteous may enter.”
I will give thanks to you, for you answered me *
and
have become my salvation.
The same stone which the builders rejected *
has
become the chief cornerstone.
This is the LORD’S doing, *
and it is marvelous
in our eyes.
On this day the LORD has acted; *
we will rejoice and
be glad in it.
Hosanna, LORD, hosanna! *
LORD, send us now success.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord; *
we
bless you from the house of the LORD.
God is the LORD; he has shined upon us; *
form a
procession with branches up to the horns of the altar.
“You are my God, and I will thank you; *
you
are my God, and I will exalt you.”
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; *
his mercy
endures 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 Book of Exodus.
Go and assemble the elders of Israel, and say to them, ‘The LORD, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying: I have given heed to you and to what has been done to you in Egypt. I declare that I will bring you up out of the misery of Egypt, to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey.’ They will listen to your voice; and you and the elders of Israel shall go to the king of Egypt and say to him, ‘The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us; let us now go a three days’ journey into the wilderness, so that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God.’ I know, however, that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless compelled by a mighty hand. So I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all my wonders that I will perform in it; after that he will let you go. I will bring this people into such favor with the Egyptians that, when you go, you will not go empty-handed; each woman shall ask her neighbor and any woman living in the neighbor’s house for jewelry of silver and of gold, and clothing, and you shall put them on your sons and on your daughters; and so you shall plunder the Egyptians.”
Then Moses answered, “But suppose they do not believe me or listen to me, but say, ‘The LORD did not appear to you.’” The LORD said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A staff.” And he said, “Throw it on the ground.” So he threw the staff on the ground, and it became a snake; and Moses drew back from it. Then the LORD said to Moses, “Reach out your hand, and seize it by the tail” —so he reached out his hand and grasped it, and it became a staff in his hand— “so that they may believe that the LORD, the God of their ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.” Again, the LORD said to him, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” He put his hand into his cloak; and when he took it out, his hand was leprous, as white as snow. Then God said, “Put your hand back into your cloak” —so he put his hand back into his cloak, and when he took it out, it was restored like the rest of his body— “If they will not believe you or heed the first sign, they may believe the second sign. If they will not believe even these two signs or heed you, you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground; and the water that you shall take from the Nile will become blood on the dry ground.”
But Moses said to the LORD, “O my Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor even now that you have spoken to your servant; but I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.” Then the LORD said to him, “Who gives speech to mortals? Who makes them mute or deaf, seeing or blind? Is it not I, the LORD? Now go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you are to speak.”
The Word of the
Lord.
Thanks be to God.
O Lord and Ruler of the hosts of heaven, *
God of
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,
and of all their righteous offspring:
You made the heavens and the earth, *
with all their
vast array.
All things quake with fear at your presence; *
they
tremble because of your power.
But your merciful promise is beyond all measure; *
it
surpasses all that our minds can fathom.
O Lord, you are full of compassion, *
long-suffering,
and abounding in mercy.
You hold back your hand; *
you do not punish as we
deserve.
In your great goodness, Lord,
you have promised
forgiveness to sinners, *
that they may repent of their sin and be
saved.
And now, O Lord, I bend the knee of my heart, *
and
make my appeal, sure of your gracious goodness.
I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned, *
and I know my
wickedness only too well.
Therefore I make this prayer to you: *
Forgive me,
Lord, forgive me.
Do not let me perish in my sin, *
nor condemn me to
the depths of the earth.
For you, O Lord, are the God of those who repent, *
and
in me you will show forth your goodness.
Unworthy as I am, you will save me,
in accordance
with your great mercy, *
and I will praise you without ceasing all
the days of my life.
For all the powers of heaven sing your praises, *
and
yours is the glory to ages of ages. Amen.
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 Gospel According to John.
Which of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? Whoever is from God hears the words of God. The reason you do not hear them is that you are not from God.” The Jews answered him, “Are we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan and have a demon?” Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon; but I honor my Father, and you dishonor me. Yet I do not seek my own glory; there is one who seeks it and he is the judge.
Very truly, I tell you, whoever keeps my word will never see death.” The Jews said to him, “Now we know that you have a demon. Abraham died, and so did the prophets; yet you say, ‘Whoever keeps my word will never taste death.’ Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? The prophets also died. Who do you claim to be?” Jesus answered, “If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my Father who glorifies me, he of whom you say, ‘He is our God,’ though you do not know him. But I know him; if I would say that I do not know him, I would be a liar like you. But I do know him and I keep his word. Your ancestor Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day; he saw it and was glad.” Then the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, before Abraham was, I am.” So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.
The Word of the
Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; *
he has come
to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty savior, *
born of
the house of his servant David.
Through his holy prophets he promised of old,
that he
would save us from our enemies, *
from the hands of all who hate
us.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers *
and to
remember his holy covenant.
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham, *
to
set us free from the hands of our enemies,
Free to worship him without fear, *
holy and
righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.
You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most
High, *
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
To give his people knowledge of salvation *
by the
forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God *
the dawn from
on high shall break upon us,
To shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow
of death, *
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
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.
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.
Almighty God, you alone can bring into order the unruly wills and affections of sinners: Grant your people grace to love what you command and desire what you promise; that, among the swift and varied changes of the world, our hearts may surely there be fixed where true joys are to be found; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Almighty and everlasting God, you hate nothing you have made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent: Create and make in us new and contrite hearts, that we, worthily lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness, may obtain of you, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
O God, you make us glad with the weekly remembrance of the glorious resurrection of your Son our Lord: Give us this day such blessing through our worship of you, that the week to come may be spent in your favor; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within the reach of your saving embrace: So clothe us in your Spirit that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you; for the honor of your Name. 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