God is Spirit, and those who worship must worship in spirit and in truth.
John 4:24
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.
Be joyful in the Lord, all you lands; *
serve the
Lord with gladness
and come before his presence with a song.
Know this: The Lord himself is God; *
he himself has
made us, and we are his;
we are his people and the sheep of his
pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving;
go into his courts
with praise; *
give thanks to him and call upon his Name.
For the Lord is good;
his mercy is everlasting; *
and
his faithfulness endures from age to age.
Give thanks to the LORD and call upon his Name; *
make
known his deeds among the peoples.
Sing to him, sing praises to him, *
and speak of all
his marvelous works.
Glory in his holy Name; *
let the hearts of those who
seek the LORD rejoice.
Search for the LORD and his strength; *
continually
seek his face.
Remember the marvels he has done, *
his wonders and
the judgments of his mouth,
O offspring of Abraham his servant, *
O children of
Jacob his chosen.
He is the LORD our God; *
his judgments prevail in
all the world.
He has always been mindful of his covenant, *
the
promise he made for a thousand generations:
The covenant he made with Abraham, *
the oath that he
swore to Isaac,
Which he established as a statute for Jacob, *
an
everlasting covenant for Israel,
Saying, “To you will I give the land of Canaan
*
to be your allotted inheritance.”
When they were few in number, *
of little account,
and sojourners in the land,
Wandering from nation to nation *
and from one
kingdom to another,
He let no one oppress them *
and rebuked kings for
their sake,
Saying, “Do not touch my anointed *
and do my
prophets no harm.”
Then he called for a famine in the land *
and
destroyed the supply of bread.
He sent a man before them, *
Joseph, who was sold as
a slave.
They bruised his feet in fetters; *
his neck they put
in an iron collar.
Until his prediction came to pass, *
the word of the
LORD tested him.
The king sent and released him; *
the ruler of the
peoples set him free.
He set him as a master over his household, *
as a
ruler over all his possessions,
To instruct his princes according to his will *
and
to teach his elders wisdom.
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 Malachi.
And now, O priests, this command is for you. If you will not listen, if you will not lay it to heart to give glory to my name, says the LORD of hosts, then I will send the curse on you and I will curse your blessings; indeed I have already cursed them, because you do not lay it to heart. I will rebuke your offspring, and spread dung on your faces, the dung of your offerings, and I will put you out of my presence. Know, then, that I have sent this command to you, that my covenant with Levi may hold, says the LORD of hosts. My covenant with him was a covenant of life and well-being, which I gave him; this called for reverence, and he revered me and stood in awe of my name. True instruction was in his mouth, and no wrong was found on his lips. He walked with me in integrity and uprightness, and he turned many from iniquity. For the lips of a priest should guard knowledge, and people should seek instruction from his mouth, for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts. But you have turned aside from the way; you have caused many to stumble by your instruction; you have corrupted the covenant of Levi, says the LORD of hosts, and so I make you despised and abased before all the people, inasmuch as you have not kept my ways but have shown partiality in your instruction.
Have we not all one father? Has not one God created us? Why then are we faithless to one another, profaning the covenant of our ancestors? Judah has been faithless, and abomination has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem; for Judah has profaned the sanctuary of the LORD, which he loves, and has married the daughter of a foreign god. May the LORD cut off from the tents of Jacob anyone who does this—any to witness or answer, or to bring an offering to the LORD of hosts. And this you do as well: You cover the Lord’s altar with tears, with weeping and groaning because he no longer regards the offering or accepts it with favor at your hand. You ask, “Why does he not?” Because the LORD was a witness between you and the wife of your youth, to whom you have been faithless, though she is your companion and your wife by covenant. Did not one God make her? Both flesh and spirit are his. And what does the one God desire? Godly offspring. So look to yourselves, and do not let anyone be faithless to the wife of his youth. For I hate divorce, says the LORD, the God of Israel, and covering one’s garment with violence, says the LORD of hosts. So take heed to yourselves and do not be faithless.
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 Gospel According to Luke.
Once Jesus was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was coming, and he answered, “The kingdom of God is not coming with things that can be observed; nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There it is!’ For, in fact, the kingdom of God is among you.” Then he said to the disciples, “The days are coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. They will say to you, ‘Look there!’ or ‘Look here!’ Do not go, do not set off in pursuit. For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day. But first he must endure much suffering and be rejected by this generation. Just as it was in the days of Noah, so too it will be in the days of the Son of Man. They were eating and drinking, and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed all of them. Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot: they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, but on the day that Lot left Sodom, it rained fire and sulfur from heaven and destroyed all of them —it will be like that on the day that the Son of Man is revealed. On that day, anyone on the housetop who has belongings in the house must not come down to take them away; and likewise anyone in the field must not turn back. Remember Lot’s wife. Those who try to make their life secure will lose it, but those who lose their life will keep it. I tell you, on that night there will be two in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. There will be two women grinding meal together; one will be taken and the other left.” Then they asked him, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.”
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.
Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning: Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ; 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.
May the God of hope fill us with all joy and peace in believing through the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Romans 15:13