The Treadweary Podcast: Recent Episodes
Carleton Smee
The collective ramblings of a Lutheran pastor who desires to hear what the Scriptures have to tell us. Sometimes it is a sermon, and other times a brief devotion. Many times a lot of questions. Take 15 minutes today to rest in the Word of God and hear the voice of Christ free you from your burdens.
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Part 4, The Sin Machine: Sermon for the 6th Sunday after Pentecost - Romans 7:14-25; Matthew 11:25-30
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Part 3, The Spiritual Machine: Sermon for the 5th Sunday after Pentecost - Romans 7:1-13
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I just got a new microphone to help with the audio as it has been testy lately. Comment and let me know what you think.
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Part 2, The Religious Machine - Sermon for the 4th Sunday after Pentecost - Matthew 10:21-33
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Part 1, The Machine and Jesus: Sermon for the 3rd Sunday after Pentecost - Matthew 9:35-10:8
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I NEED A BREAK...from the Apocrypha, that is. So, join me as we do a study of the Gospel of Mark, looking into the life of this Jesus who comes to us as God in the flesh.
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I NEED A BREAK...from the Apocrypha, that is. So, join me as we do a study of the Gospel of Mark, looking into the life of this Jesus who comes to us as God in the flesh.
Send us Fan Mail
I NEED A BREAK...from the Apocrypha, that is. So, join me as we do a study of the Gospel of Mark, looking into the life of this Jesus who comes to us as God in the flesh.
Send us Fan Mail
I NEED A BREAK...from the Apocrypha, that is. So, join me as we do a study of the Gospel of Mark, looking into the life of this Jesus who comes to us as God in the flesh.
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Sermon for a Midweek Lenten Service, March 25, 2026 - Judges 13-16; Numbers 6
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Sermon for a Midweek Lenten Service - The Story of Jephthah (Judges 11-12)
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I NEED A BREAK...from the Apocrypha, that is. So, join me as we do a study of the Gospel of Mark, looking into the life of this Jesus who comes to us as God in the flesh.
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I NEED A BREAK...from the Apocrypha, that is. So, join me as we do a study of the Gospel of Mark, looking into the life of this Jesus who comes to us as God in the flesh.
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Sermon for a Midweek Sermon Series from the Book of Judges - 2 Corinthians 5:11-21; Judges 6-8
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I NEED A BREAK...from the Apocrypha, that is. So, join me as we do a study of the Gospel of Mark, looking into the life of this Jesus who comes to us as God in the flesh.
Send us Fan Mail
I NEED A BREAK...from the Apocrypha, that is. So, join me as we do a study of the Gospel of Mark, looking into the life of this Jesus who comes to us as God in the flesh.
Send us Fan Mail
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us Fan Mail
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us Fan Mail
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us Fan Mail
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us Fan Mail
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us Fan Mail
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
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Sermon for the 2nd Sunday after Christmas - January 4, 2025; Luke 2:40-52; Ephesians 1:3-14
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us Fan Mail
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us Fan Mail
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us Fan Mail
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
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Sermon for the 2nd Sunday of Advent, December 7th, 2025 - Isaiah 11:1-10; Matthew 3:1-12
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
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Sermon for the 9th Sunday after Pentecost - Hebrews 11:1; Genesis 15:6; Luke 12:22-34
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Send us a text
Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Psalm 86
Judith 15-16
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Psalm 75
Judith 14
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Psalm 72
Judith 13
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Psalm 65
Judith 12
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Psalm 62
Judith 10:20-11:23
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Psalm 52
Judith 10:1-19
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Psalm 43
Judith 9
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Sermon for the 5th Sunday after the Epiphany - Isaiah 6:1-8; Luke 5:1-11; 1 Corinthians 15:1-11
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Psalm 40:1-8
Judith 8
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Psalm 32
Judith 7
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Psalm 23
Judith 6
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Psalm 16
Judith 4-5
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Psalm 9
Judith 2:14-3:10
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Join us as we make our way through reading the Apocrypha for the first time. Each episode will be a read and react attempt to understand the Apocrypha and what sort of Jesus we might see coming out of it.
Psalm 72:1-14
Judith 1:1-2:13
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Exploring the birth stories of John and Jesus. How our suppositions about Zechariah's doubts seem to be upheld at the birth of John. That Jesus' birth is one we all know well, and yet it means so much.
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A look at the annunciation and the work that God does for the salvation of His people through the maiden Mary. How Mary is the God-bearer/Theotokos. How John the Baptist becomes the preparer even in utero.
Find us on YouTube: https://youtu.be/dS4B9TmWXEI
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Happy Advent! These next three weeks we will be taking a look at the Advent/Christmas stories in Luke, going verse by verse as we see God working, but also hearing some questions that help to relate the stories to our lives.
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How should we help our pastors serve better? What is so beautiful about the benediction he gives?
Psalm 33
Hebrews 13:17-25
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Sermon for Christ the King Sunday, November 24, 2024 - Mark 13:24-37; Isaiah 51:4-6; Revelation 1:4-8
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What does it mean to show hospitality? What does faithfulness in relationships look like? How are we to view retirement and work? What do we sacrifice to be together as the church?
Psalm 28
Hebrews 13:1-16
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What does it mean to want to go back to Sinai? What comes in Jesus instead? How does Jesus blood speak a better word...a good word?
Psalm 21
Hebrews 12:18-29
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What does it mean to keep yourself from injury? Why do we need to strnegthen our weakened knees? How was Esau perverse and godless?
Psalm 6
Hebrews 12:12-17
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What is the focus of our journey of faith? How is this journey so hard and what do we do with the difficulty of life?
Psalm 148
Hebrews 12:1-11
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What is the point of this whole Hall of Faith business when it comes to the Hebrews? How can we hold onto God in the dark of life?
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How did the patriarchs and Moses embody trust in times of suffering? Why does the preacher in Hebrews have commentary that takes a few liberties with the stories in Genesis and Exodus?
Psalm 138
Hebrews 11:17-31
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Why is faith such a big deal? How have the ancestors of the faith been people of faith?
Psalm 121
Hebrews 11:1-16
Why do we place so much trust in avoiding pain or suffering? How is the life of the Christian one in which we welcome loss?
Psalm 130
Hebrews 10:32-39
What do we do with our sin without Jesus? How is it scary to fall into the hands of the living God?
Psalm 124
Hebrews 10:26-31
What does it mean to have assurance? Why do we need this assurance in our lives? Why do we need to come together as the church on a regular basis?
Psalm 117
Hebrews 10:19-25
Why do we always want to try and keep fixing things with our own sacrifices? How does a sacrifice not help us?
Psalm 110
Hebrews 10:1-18
What is so good for our conscience that Christ has done this work once and for all? How should this work of Christ as an historical reality impact our lives?
Psalm 100
Hebrews 9:23-28
What does blood have to do with a will or testament? How do we receive the benefits of Christ through a will if He lives?
Psalm 96
Hebrews 9:15-22
What is it about the current system of sacrifices and offerings that do not bring comfort?
Psalm 90
Hebrews 9:1-14
Why does a promise matter even for Jesus? What is so special about the promise made to Jesus versus the law of the priesthood? What is the promise through Christ given to you?
Psalm 75
Hebrews 7:20-28
How can the law of the Aaronic priesthood be thrown away? Why does Melchizedek and Jesus matter when it comes to the law?
Psalm 67
Hebrews 7:11-18
What is the issue with never coming to maturity in our faith? What is making the preacher so frustrated? How is it impossible to be restored to repentance again?
Psalm 39
Hebrews 6:1-8
What has made us not able to hear the story of Christ? Why are we often infants in faith, just like the hearers of Hebrews? What could be the good and bad things that we need to discern in our lives?
Psalm 33
Hebrews 5:11-14
What is up with the priesthood? What should be the role of a priest? How does Jesus hold an even greater office than Aaron?
Psalm 26
Hebrews 5:1-10
What does the Word of God do? What is the picture used in understanding how the Word of God works on us? What kind of Jesus do we have? How should we approach God based on the this Word of God and our position before him?
Psalm 19
Hebrews 4:12-16
What is this rest that still remains? Why do so many not believe that rest exists? What does Jesus have to do with it?
Psalm 12
Hebrews 4:1-11
Why do we forget what it is God has done? Why do we think we can do better than our predecessors? What is the necessity of faith being preached here in Hebrews 3?
Psalm 149
Hebrews 3:7-18
How are we companions in Christ? How is Jesus worthy of greater honor than Moses? What does it mean for us to be God's house?
Psalm 143
Hebrews 3:1-6
Why was it fitting for Jesus to die? How is He the author of our salvation? Why was He one who put on flesh? Why are we so scared to die?
Psalm 134
Hebrews 2:10-18
Why must we pay attention to this Jesus guy? Why can we not just meh Jesus? How has he become a little lower than the angels and why?
Psalm 128
Hebrews 2:1-9
To the Hebrews...or is it? Join us this season as we dig into the book of Hebrews. How does the author lay out the case for Jesus being better than all other things? Why should this matter to you and to me?
Psalm 120
Hebrews 1:5-14
To the Hebrews...or is it? Join us this season as we dig into the book of Hebrews. Why does God now send the Son into the world? Who is Christ and why is He more awesome than you or the angels? What is an angel?
Psalm 119:81-96
Hebrews 1
To the Hebrews...or is it? Join us this season as we dig into the book of Hebrews. Who wrote it? Who was it written to? Why does it matter? How do I default to formalized religion for my own certainty or virtue?
Psalm 115
Hebrews 1:1-4
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How does God showcase His promise to redeem and bring back sinners? What is so wonderful about God's mercy and grace? How does Ezekiel end as he began?
Psalm 90
Ezekiel 48
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions: Aloscape 2
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What is this river Ezekiel speaks of and where does it come from? How do we see Jesus as the fulfillment of this living water in John 4, John 7, and Revelation 22?
Psalm 80
Ezekiel 47
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions: Aloscape 2
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How is Christ our Sabbath rest? What is the newness that should come as we experience the Gospel of Jesus? How do we see Him as the gate to the temple? What is the connection of the Prince to the promise inheritance?
Psalm 76
Ezekiel 46
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions: Aloscape 2
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Who is this prince and what is special about His privilege? What do we do with the Levites who weren't very Levitical?
Psalm 70
Ezekiel 45
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions: Aloscape 2
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Who is this prince and what is special about His privilege? What do we do with the Levites who weren't very Levitical?
Psalm 62
Ezekiel 44:15-31
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Who is this prince and what is special about His privilege? What do we do with the Levites who weren't very Levitical?
Psalm 54
Ezekiel 44:1-14
Music from Blue Dot Sessions: Naptime
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How does Ezekiel illustrate the restoration God brings to His people? What is the description of the temple to be used for?
Psalm 48
Ezekiel 43:13-27
Music from Blue Dot Sessions: Naptime
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How does Ezekiel illustrate the restoration God brings to His people? What is the description of the temple to be used for?
Psalm 40
Ezekiel 43:1-12
Music from Blue Dot Sessions: Naptime, Lamplist. Algea Trio, Parissi, Darkened Treeline
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What do we do with these offerings? How are we to be clothed as we go out into the world?
Psalm 34
Ezekiel 42
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What are we supposed to understand of this new temple that Ezekiel sees, especially since it has never been built? How is Christ our most holy place? What can church architecture do to help with worship? What can be good about a table?
Psalm 27
Ezekiel 41
The Nativity Story - John 1:1-5; Luke 1:26-38; Matthew 1:18-25; Luke 2:1-20; Matthew 2:1-12; John 1:10-17
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What are we supposed to understand of this new temple that Ezekiel sees, especially since it has never been built?
Psalm 6
Ezekiel 40
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How is God going to demonstrate His holiness before the nations? Can redemption and restoration come to us without repentance or remorse? Does God or the people act first in salvation?
Psalm 148
Ezekiel 39:21-29
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Why are we so afraid of God bringing about the Day of the Lord? Why is Ezekiel so obsessed with knowing the Lord? Could you give respect to your enemies, especially when they lose?
Psalm 142
Ezekiel 39:1-16
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What does the final battle with Gog and Magog have to do with our faith? How do we fear but also look forward to the end of the age?
Psalm 128
Ezekiel 38
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Great Great Lengths, Gruman's Thorn, Svela Tal, Pxl Eventuat, Lost Shoe, Great is the Contessa
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What is the work the God is really doing in bringing together the two kingdoms of Israel? What is the real work of God rescuing us from the dwelling places we make for ourselves? How has Christ become the culmination of all of Ezekiel 37?
Psalm 120
Ezekiel 37:15-28
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Great Great Lengths, Gruman's Thorn, Svela Tal, Pxl Eventuat, Lost Shoe, Great is the Contessa
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What is the true job of the preacher? Why is resurrection so necessary in our lives? What hope do we have in life in death?
Psalm 119:65-80
Ezekiel 37:1-14
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Great Great Lengths, Gruman's Thorn, Svela Tal, Pxl Eventuat, Lost Shoe, Great is the Contessa
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How is God acting in you for the sake of His name? What verbs has God done upon you?
Psalm 116
Ezekiel 36:16-38
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Um Pepino, The Coil Winds, Petra, Soda Baron, Mogami
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What is it that we can read of here about the age to come? What is so wonderful about the land God gives being filled with His people?
Psalm 109
Ezekiel 36:1-15
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Um Pepino, The Coil Winds, Petra, Soda Baron, Mogami
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What sort of hate or hardship do we carry with us when it comes to our families? How do we need God to intercede for us to help us forgive?
Psalm 102
Ezekiel 35
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Um Pepino, The Coil Winds, Petra, Soda Baron, Mogami
Gospel #grace #mercy #God #Jesus #Christ #life #salvation #Ezekiel #Word #call
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How do you need to be shepherded today? What is that God does in Christ to tend to you?
Psalm 95
Ezekiel 34:11-31
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Um Pepino, The Coil Winds, Petra, Soda Baron, Mogami
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What would it be like for God to call you to minister for years with no fruit? How do we lose information to entertainment, and experience to information?
Psalm 88
Ezekiel 34:1-10
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Um Pepino, The Coil Winds, Petra, Soda Baron, Mogami
Sermon for the 19th Sunday after Pentecost - Ezekiel 18; Matthew 21
Mandie's Story - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mandies-story-wi/id1601586078?i=1000628804504
Bindeshwar Pathak Obituary - https://www.economist.com/obituary/2023/08/24/bindeshwar-pathak-realised-that-indias-future-depended-on-toilets
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What would it be like for God to call you to minister for years with no fruit? How do we lose information to entertainment, and experience to information?
Psalm 81
Ezekiel 33:21-33
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Um Pepino, The Coil Winds, Petra, Soda Baron, Mogami
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Why does God need to repeat Himself to Ezekiel? Why do we get so scared of the mercy of God?
Psalm 70
Ezekiel 33:1-20
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Um Pepino, The Coil Winds, Petra, Soda Baron, Mogami
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What should be the comfort and mercy in knowing we are going to die? In denying the truth of our own death, how do we often harm ourselves and others?
Psalm 67
Ezekiel 31-32
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Um Pepino, The Coil Winds, Petra, Soda Baron, Mogami
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Who is your Egypt? What might God need to do to help remove from us our trust in other "saviors"?
Psalm 61
Ezekiel 29-30
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Um Pepino, The Coil Winds, Petra, Soda Baron, Mogami
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How could a man who was king of Tyre be just like us, and how can we be like him?
Psalm 54
Ezekiel 28
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - 10 Minutes Past, Waiting at Dawn, Idle Corridor, Kallaloe, Arlan Vale, Fissure Forming
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How often do we look at someone or a situation and wonder what we can get out of it? How do we often treat people as props, commodities, means to an end, rather than human beings just like us?
Psalm 47
Ezekiel 26 & 27
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - 10 Minutes Past, Waiting at Dawn, Idle Corridor, Kallaloe, Arlan Vale
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What do the warnings to long forgotten nations have to do with us? How are we more like the Ammonites, Moabites, Edomites and Philistines?
Psalm 40
Ezekiel 25
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - 10 Minutes Past, Waiting at Dawn, Idle Corridor, Kallaloe, Arlan Vale
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How can we love a God who would take away the "delight of our eyes"?
Psalm 32
Ezekiel 24:15-27
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - 10 Minutes Past, Waiting at Dawn, Idle Corridor, Kallaloe, Arlan Vale
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How do we sacrifice our kids and to what gods of our lives do we give ourselves away?
Psalm 26
Ezekiel 24:1-14
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - 10 Minutes Past, Waiting at Dawn, Idle Corridor, Kallaloe, Arlan Vale
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How do we sacrifice our kids and to what gods of our lives do we give ourselves away?
Psalm 19
Ezekiel 23:36-49
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - 10 Minutes Past, Waiting at Dawn, Idle Corridor, Kallaloe, Arlan Vale
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How are we no different than Oholah and Oholibah? How does our covetousness paly a role in our idolatry? What is it that we need God to do?
Psalm 12
Ezekiel 23:1-35
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - 10 Minutes Past, Waiting at Dawn, Idle Corridor, Kallaloe, Arlan Vale
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Where is the Gospel in the furnace of God's wrath? How do pastors ruin their people? What is the call that God has on you as one who can stand in the breach?
Psalm 5
Ezekiel 22:17-31
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - 10 Minutes Past, Waiting at Dawn, Idle Corridor, Kallaloe, Arlan Vale
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How do we see the mercy of God in the "Thus saith the Lord"? How is modern America much like Ezekiel's Jerusalem? What grace does God grant in judegement?
Psalm 87
Ezekiel 22:1-16
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - 10 Minutes Past, Waiting at Dawn, Idle Corridor, Kallaloe, Arlan Vale
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Why do we think that God only has good things in store for us? How and why do we need to avoid being puffed up as Christians?
Psalm 141
Ezekiel 21:18-32
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Shade Ways, Gilroy, Roundpine Textile, Kallaloe, Tolls Folly, Blacklake, Arlan Vale
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What do we do with what seems like an angry God and good people? How do we reconcile a loving God with a disciplining God?
Psalm 126
Ezekiel 21:1-17
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Shade Ways, Gilroy, Roundpine Textile, Kallaloe, Tolls Folly, Blacklake, Arlan Vale
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What is it that God says He is going to do despite our sin? What hope to do we have in Him when we find ourselves struggling in sin?
Psalm 120
Ezekiel 20:27-49
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Shade Ways, Gilroy, Roundpine Textile, Kallaloe, Tolls Folly, Blacklake, Arlan Vale
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What does it mean to have a God? Why does the sabbath matter?
Psalm 8
Ezekiel 20:1-26
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Shade Ways, Gilroy, Roundpine Textile, Kallaloe, Tolls Folly, Blacklake, Arlan Vale
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How does our past need to better inform our present? How does our pride blind us to our future?
Psalm 112
Ezekiel 19
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Shade Ways, Gilroy, Roundpine Textile, Kallaloe, Tolls Folly, Blacklake, Arlan Vale
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How do we think our good deeds match up to our bad deeds? How do we differ in the way we pass judgement on someone's past and how God sees them?
Psalm 61
Ezekiel 18
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Shade Ways, Gilroy, Roundpine Textile, Kallaloe, Tolls Folly, Blacklake, Arlan Vale
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What is it that God does with all the abominations of His people? Is there room enough in the Kingdom for the vilest of sinners? Are we as bad as the worst sinner we know?
Psalm 96
Ezekiel 17
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Shade Ways, Gilroy, Roundpine Textile, Kallaloe, Tolls Folly, Blacklake, Arlan Vale
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What is it that God does with all the abominations of His people? Is there room enough in the Kingdom for the vilest of sinners? Are we as bad as the worst sinner we know?
Psalm 23
Ezekiel 16:35-63
Music provided by Schola Sanctae Scholasticae, St. Cecilia's Abbey, UK, Pluscarden Abbey from gregorian-chant-hymns.com/
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What is the picture God uses to describe how His people have hurt Him? How do we so often go after other gods in our lives?
Psalm 57
Ezekiel 16:15-34
Music provided by Schola Sanctae Scholasticae, St. Cecilia's Abbey, UK, Pluscarden Abbey from gregorian-chant-hymns.com/
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Why did God choose Israel? Why did God come to you? How has God loved His people?
Psalm 76
Ezekiel 16:1-14
Music provided by Schola Sanctae Scholasticae, St. Cecilia's Abbey, UK, Pluscarden Abbey from gregorian-chant-hymns.com/
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Why does God speak of these vines being burned in fire? How is this God's working of grace in us? What did Jesus have to say on this?
Psalm 16
Ezekiel 15
Music provided by Schola Sanctae Scholasticae, St. Cecilia's Abbey, UK, Pluscarden Abbey from gregorian-chant-hymns.com/
As we enter into Holy Week, we take a break from our regular study of Ezekiel to focus on the story of Jesus on His way to the cross.
As we enter into Holy Week, we take a break from our regular study of Ezekiel to focus on the story of Jesus on His way to the cross.
As we enter into Holy Week, we take a break from our regular study of Ezekiel to focus on the story of Jesus on His way to the cross.
As we enter into Holy Week, we take a break from our regular study of Ezekiel to focus on the story of Jesus on His way to the cross.
As we enter into Holy Week, we take a break from our regular study of Ezekiel to focus on the story of Jesus on His way to the cross.
As we enter into Holy Week, we take a break from our regular study of Ezekiel to focus on the story of Jesus on His way to the cross.
As we enter into Holy Week, we take a break from our regular study of Ezekiel to focus on the story of Jesus on His way to the cross.
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Why can't grandma save me? What do we do about our sins and lack of righteousness?
Psalm 123
Ezekiel 14:12-23
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Ether Ridge, Kvelden Trapp, Eleven Count, Gra Hovedvei, River Lapse, Felt Lining
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What are our idols of the heart? What is the purpose of God speaking against us sometimes?
Psalm 48
Ezekiel 14:1-11
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Milkwood, Ether Ridge, Kvelden Trapp, Eleven Count, Gra Hovedvei, River Lapse, Felt Lining
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Who are these godless preachers? Am I one of them? Should we fear that we are preaching and speaking from our own hearts and souls? How do we hear and/or speak words of peace when there is no peace? What is our part in the work of death and resurrection and how do we get it wrong? How bad could things be if we do not speak to all sin, but also bring the truth of the Gospel of life in Jesus?
Psalm 42
Ezekiel 13
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Milkwood, Ranch Hand, Dearborn, Ether Ridge, Kvelden Trapp, Eleven Count, Gra Hovedvei, River Lapse, Felt Lining
Wednesday Evening Sermon for Lent - Colossians 1:15-20
On the 2nd Article of the Creed - "...conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary..."
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What can we learn from the inability of the inhabitants of Jerusalem to trust in God? How do we numb the message of Christ and His return? How does that cause us to doubt even our own death?
Psalm 121
Ezekiel 12:17-28
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Sticktop, Fantastic Chances, Olivia Wrath, Cobweb Transit, Nine Count, The Face of the Thrush, Alchemical
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Why does Ezekiel have to act out his sermon again? How can exile be a good word for people?
Psalm 32
Ezekiel 12:1-16
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Sticktop, Fantastic Chances, Olivia Wrath, Cobweb Transit, Nine Count
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Why do you think God has blessed you? What does it mean for the city to be the cauldron and the people the meat? Why does this word of destruction become good news for us?
Psalm 28
Ezekiel 11:14-25
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Sticktop, Fantastic Chances, Olivia Wrath, Cobweb Transit, Nine Count
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Why do you think God has blessed you? What does it mean for the city to be the cauldron and the people the meat? Why does this word of destruction become good news for us?
Psalm 16
Ezekiel 11:1-13
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Sticktop, Fantastic Chances, Olivia Wrath, Cobweb Transit, Nine Count, Thread of Clouds
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What is the man doing with coals? Where have we heard about this cloud and the glory of God before? Why is it good that we see God's chariot again?
Psalm 67
Ezekiel 10
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Sticktop, Fantastic Chances, Olivia Wrath, Cobweb Transit, Nine Count, Thread of Clouds
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Who is the guy with the white linen and the fanny pack? Why the mark on the foreheads? Where is the grace and mercy in exile and destruction?
Psalm 15
Ezekiel 9
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - The Face of the Thrush, Sticktop, Fantastic Chances, Olivia Wrath, Cobweb Transit, Nine Count, Thread of Clouds
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What is it that God is showing to Ezekiel that makes the case for the exile? How can we be ones who keep people from seeing Jesus? What is your secret room decorated in? How do you hide your sins with an appearance of righteousness? Is there any home for idol worshipers?
Psalm 70
Ezekiel 8
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - The Face of the Thrush, Sticktop, Fantastic Chances, Olivia Wrath, Cobweb Transit, Nine Count, Thread of Clouds, Alchemical, Golden Grass
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How can God's word of destruction be a comfort to us? Why is "owning" our sin so important? What truly is the work of God to destroy our idols? Is it a good thing when God takes away our sacred things?
Psalm 40:1-11
Ezekiel 7:14-27
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - The Face of the Thrush, Sticktop, Fantastic Chances, Olivia Wrath, Cobweb Transit, Nine Count, Thread of Clouds
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What does God mean as He says, "An end"? At what point in the life of Judah is God bringing judgement? How does God work in disciplining us? What sorts of things is God bringing to an end? Where do we need to find our life?
Psalm 29
Ezekiel 7:1-13
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - The Face of the Thrush, Sticktop, Fantastic Chances, Olivia Wrath, Cobweb Transit, Nine Count, Thread of Clouds
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What are our idols? How is God doing the work among the people of Israel to save them from their sins, and to save us from ours?
Psalm 124
Ezekiel 6
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Spinning Meter, Harper's Desk, Exceter Lask, Dona Nobis Pacem
"The Word became flesh and dwelt among us."
Sermon for Christmas Day, 2022
Text: John 1:1-14
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Where is the hope when destruction seems imminent? Why is it that God abandons His people? How does Christ fit within a story of only woe and judgement?
Psalm 38
Ezekiel 5
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Spinning Meter, Harper's Desk, Exceter Lask, Dona Nobis Pacem
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What do we do with the times that we become the bad guy? What does it look like to carry the burdens and sins of others? What do we do with all this Ezekiel Bread and fecal matter?
Psalm 111
Ezekiel 4
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Spinning Meter, Harper's Desk, Exceter Lask, Dona Nobis Pacem
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What is the importance of "valleys" in the life of a Christian? Why is humiliation essential for a preacher? How important is listening?
Psalm 21
Ezekiel 3:22-27
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - Spinning Meter, Harper's Desk, Exceter Lask, Dona Nobis Pacem
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What does it mean to be a watchman? What is the point of our proclamation? What do we do about fallen righteous people?
Psalm 122
Ezekiel 3:16-22
Sermon for the 1st Sunday in Advent - November 27, 2022
Isaiah 2:1-5
The word that Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
In days to come
the mountain of the Lord’s house
shall be established as the highest of the mountains
and shall be raised above the hills;
all the nations shall stream to it.
Many peoples shall come and say,
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the house of the God of Jacob,
that he may teach us his ways
and that we may walk in his paths.”
For out of Zion shall go forth instruction
and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
He shall judge between the nations
and shall arbitrate for many peoples;
they shall beat their swords into plowshares
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation;
neither shall they learn war any more.
O house of Jacob,
come, let us walk
in the light of the Lord!
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What does God ask us to speak? How are we to speak it? Can we feel distressed or angry at times when being part of ministry?
Psalm 99
Ezekiel 3:10-15
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Pacific Time", "Our Names Engraved", "Mineral Still", "Kind of Regret", "Kestral", "Cicle", "Kalsted", "Hardwood Lullaby"
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What does it mean to be joyful in the service of God when everything seems to suck? How can lamentation and mourning be sweet as honey? Why does God send us where He sends us, or calls us to whom He calls us?
Psalm 81
Ezekiel 3:1-9
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Pacific Time", "Our Names Engraved", "Mineral Still", "Kind of Regret", "Kestral", "Cicle", "Kalsted", "Hardwood Lullaby"
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What does the Spirit do for Ezekiel? Why does God tell him not to be afraid? What is this call that Ezekiel receives?
Psalm 75
Ezekiel 2
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Pacific Time", "Our Names Engraved", "Mineral Still", "Kind of Regret", "Kestral", "Cicle", "Kalsted", "Hardwood Lullaby"
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. How do our senses come into play when reading Scripture? What do we do with wheels of eyes? Why do the wings of the creatures sound like the voice of God? Why does the voice of God sound like an army? Why is Jesus hanging out in Ezekiel?
Psalm 146
Ezekiel 1:15-28
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Pacific Time", "Our Names Engraved", "Mineral Still", "Kind of Regret", "Kestral", "Cicle", "Kalsted", "Hardwood Lullaby"
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. What does God have to do with Babylon? What do we do with these four creatures? How can God be purposeful behind destruction?
Psalm 46
Ezekiel 1:4-14
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Pacific Time", "Our Names Engraved", "Mineral Still", "Kind of Regret", "Kestral", "Cicle", "Kalsted", "Hardwood Lullaby"
Sermon for the 19th Sunday after Trinity - Matthew 9:1-8
Jesus given unfiltered as the One who forgives you.
The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we begin a lengthy study of the book of Ezekiel. Why does time matter for Ezekiel? What does location mean for Ezekiel? Why is the Word so important to what he has to say to his people, and to us?
Psalm 96
Ezekiel 1:1-3
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Pacific Time", "Our Names Engraved", "Mineral Still", "Kind of Regret", "Kestral", "Cicle", "Kalsted", "Hardwood Lullaby"
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. What does humbling ourselves have to do with following God? How does casting all our cares upon Him show us the way of discipleship? What is it that we receive from God, especially at the worst parts of our lives?
Psalm 40
1 Peter 5:6-14
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "KeoKeo", "Golden Grass", "Missing Transistor", "Alchemical"
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. What does it mean to be an elder? What kind of church do you need? How are we called to lead?
Psalm 2
1 Peter 5:1-5
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "KeoKeo", "Golden Grass", "Missing Transistor", "Alchemical", "Fissure Forming"
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. Should we be surprised when suffering comes? What is the difference between suffering and frustration? How do we suffer for the right things?
Psalm 86
1 Peter 4:12-19
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "KeoKeo", "Golden Grass", "Missing Transistor", "Alchemical"
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. Why should we see the end of things as Gospel? What does it mean to be "sober-minded"? How are we free in Christ to serve?
Psalm 119:9-16
1 Peter 4:7-11
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "KeoKeo", "Golden Grass", "Missing Transistor"
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. What do we do with the "human" Jesus? How does suffering well become evidence of new life? How do our desires keep us from the Gospel?
Psalm 32
1 Peter 4:1-6
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "KeoKeo", "Golden Grass", "Missing Transistor", "Set the Tip Jar", "Alchemical", "Turning"
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. How are we to handle undeserved suffering? How do we handle fear? How should we respond in hope and grace? Why does baptism matter?
Psalm 32
1 Peter 3:13-22
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "KeoKeo", "Golden Grass", "Missing Transistor", "Set the Tip Jar", "Alchemical", "Turning"
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. What does Peter mean when he talks about being sympathetic and humble? How does that fit into our new life in Christ? What does it mean to seek peace and pursue it?
Psalm 146
1 Peter 3:8-12
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Turning", "KeoKeo", "Alchemical"
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. What does it mean to submit? What can husbands learn from their wives? How are women and men supposed to interact in the Body of Christ? What's up with make-up?
Psalm 50:7-23
1 Peter 3:1-7
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Turning", "KeoKeo", "Alchemical", "Golden Grass"
Sermon for the tenth Sunday after Trinity. Luke 19:41-48
What is peace? Do you have it? Maybe. Maybe not.
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. What does it mean to suffer, even when we are doing our jobs? How does suffering testify to our faith? What is it that helps us get through suffering?
Psalm 92
1 Peter 2:18-25
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Set the Tip Jar", "Missing Transistor", "Golden Grass", "Fissure Forming", "Alchemical"
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. What does it mean to honor the emperor? What does this mean for activism and transformation of the culture around us? Why should we live honorably?
Psalm 51:1-12
1 Peter 2:11-17
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Set the Tip Jar", "Missing Transistor", "Golden Grass", "Fissure Forming", "Alchemical"
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. What is this cornerstone? What does it mean to stumble and be destined for it? Why all the discussion around being a chosen people? What is the purpose of being a child of God?
Psalm 26
1 Peter 2:7-10
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Set the Tip Jar", "Missing Transistor", "Golden Grass", "Fissure Forming", "Alchemical"
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. Why do we rid ourselves of malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy, slander? What does it have to do with grace and Jesus? What are we to do with one another instead?
Psalm 33
1 Peter 2:1-6
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Set the Tip Jar", "Missing Transistor", "Golden Grass", "Fissure Forming"
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. What does obedience really mean? Where does our love for one another come from? What is the basis of our love?
Psalm 19
1 Peter 1:22-25
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Set the Tip Jar", "Missing Transistor", "Golden Grass", "Fissure Forming"
Sermon for the 5th Sunday after Trinity - July 17th, 2022
What are you doing here, Elijah? That is the question God asks Elijah in 1 Kings 19. What is the question asking of you?
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. What does it mean to be judged according to our work? Why can we not buy our way to God? Why is God impartial and why is that a good thing? Where does our faith and hope meet our works in salvation?
Psalm 16
1 Peter 1:17-21
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Set the Tip Jar", "Missing Transistor", "Golden Grass", "Fissure Forming"
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. What does being sober-minded have to do with being "holy"? What does "holy" even mean? What does the grace of Jesus do for us when we aren't very "holy"?
Psalm 138
1 Peter 1:13-16
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. How do we deal with suffering and what does it have to do with a future glory? Why do the forerunners in the faith matter to us?
Psalm 98
1 Peter 1:10-12
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. What is joy for us as Christians and why do we have it? Where do we receive hope and how?
Psalm 90
1 Peter 1:3-9
To the exiles in a foreign land. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we listen to the words of 1 Peter, allowing the Word to speak to us. What does it mean to be exiles? What does it mean to be chosen or sanctified?
Psalm 44
1 Peter 1:1-2
Happy Holy Trinity Week! We are preparing for this day in the church year in which we think about the theological work of God as trinity to love us and make us His. Join us here at the Treadweary Podcast as we look at what this means for us. What does the Trinity do?
Psalm 29 (1662 BCP)
John 3:1-15
Pentecost is coming. What do we do with this coming of the Holy Spirit? What do we do about speaking in tongues? Why does this passage matter to the church and to you?
Psalm 104:25-34
Acts 2:1-13
Blessed Ascension Day to you all!! What does Jesus' ascension have to do with our salvation? Why is it important as part of our theology? How can it come as a consolation at times of tragedy and suffering?
Psalm 110:1-4
Acts 1:1-11
He is risen! He is risen indeed!! Alleluia!!! Join us as we take a look at the various post resurrection stories in the Gospels. What do they mean for us? How can we grow in faith and love through them?
Psalm 27
John 21:1-14
Prayer of the Day
O Lord, who has promised to grant what we pray in the name of Your Son, teach us to pray aright and to laud and praise You with all Your saints in the fullness of life everlasting, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
He is risen! He is risen indeed!! Alleluia!!! Join us as we take a look at the various post resurrection stories in the Gospels. What do they mean for us? How can we grow in faith and love through them?
Psalm 107:1-9
John 20:19-31
Prayer of the Day
O God, our heavenly Father, who through Your Son has promised us Your Holy Spirit, send down upon us that same Spirit, that He may teach us to show forth Your praise, not only here on earth in weakness, since we know Your power and glory only from afar, but also in power and glory on that day when, united with the choir of angels, we shall see You face-to-face, through Your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
He is risen! He is risen indeed!! Alleluia!!! Join us as we take a look at the various post resurrection stories in the Gospels. What do they mean for us? How can we grow in faith and love through them?
Psalm 66:1-9
Luke 24:33-49
Prayer of the Day
O God, our heavenly Father, who through Your Son has promised us Your Holy Spirit, send down upon us that same Spirit, that He may teach us to show forth Your praise, not only here on earth in weakness, since we know Your power and glory only from afar, but also in power and glory on that day when, united with the choir of angels, we shall see You face-to-face, through Your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
He is risen! He is risen indeed!! Alleluia!!! Join us as we take a look at the various post resurrection stories in the Gospels. What do they mean for us? How can we grow in faith and love through them?
Psalm 147:1-11
Luke 24:13-35
Prayer of the Day
Almighty God, you show the light of Your truth to those in darkness, to lead them into the way of righteousness. Give strength to all who are joined in the family of the Church, so that they will resolutely reject what erodes their faith and firmly follow what faith requires; through Your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
He is risen! He is risen indeed!! Alleluia!!! Join us as we take a look at the various post resurrection stories in the Gospels. What do they mean for us? How can we grow in faith and love through them?
Psalm 23
Mark16:9-20
Prayer of the Day
O God, by the humiliation of Your Son You lifted up this fallen world, rescuing us from hopelessness of death. Grant Your faithful people a share in the joys that are eternal; through Your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
He is risen! He is risen indeed!! Alleluia!!! Join us as we take a look at the various post resurrection stories in the Gospels. What do they mean for us? How can we grow in faith and love through them?
Psalm 33
Matthew 28:8-20
Prayer of the Day
Lord God, heavenly Father, we thank You that of Your ineffable grace, for the sake of Your Son, You have given us the holy gospel, and have instituted the holy sacraments, that through the same we may have comfort and forgiveness of sin: We beg You, grant us Your Holy Spirit, that we may heartily believe Your Word; through the holy sacraments day by day establish our faith, until we at last obtain salvation through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen
Sermon for Maundy Thursday - April 14, 2022
John 13:1-15
Grace Lutheran Church, Ridgecrest, CA
Happy Holy Week! Join us each day for readings from our One-year lectionary and a prayer.
Good Friday - April 15th
Psalm 22:25-31
Isaiah 52:13-53:12
Revelation 5
John 18-19
Almighty God, we beseech Thee graciously to behold this Thy family, for which our Lord Jesus Christ was contented to be betrayed and given up into the hands of wicked men, and to suffer death upon the Cross; through the same Thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Watercool Quiet", "A Pleasant Strike", "Dissipate", "Vulcan Street", "Frank and Poet"
Happy Holy Week! Join us each day for readings from our One-year lectionary and a prayer.
Maundy Thursday - April 14th
Psalm 22:19-24
Psalm 116:12-19
Exodus 12:1-14
1 Corinthians 11:20-32
John 13:1-15
O Lord God, who has left unto us in a wonderful Sacrament a memorial of Your Passion, grant, we beseech You, that we may so partake of this Sacrament of Your Body and Blood, that the fruits of Your redemption may continually be manifest in us; who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit ever, one God, world without end. Amen.
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Watercool Quiet", "A Pleasant Strike", "Dissipate", "Vulcan Street"
Happy Holy Week! Join us each day for readings from our One-year lectionary and a prayer.
Spy Wednesday - April 13th
Psalm 22:11-18
Isaiah 62:11-63:7
Revelation 1:5b-7
Luke 22:1-6
Grant, we beseech You, Almighty God, that we, who for our evil deeds are continually afflicted, may mercifully be relieved by the Passion of Your Only-begotten Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Watercool Quiet", "A Pleasant Strike"
Happy Holy Week! Join us each day for readings from our One-year lectionary and a prayer.
Holy Tuesday - April 12th
Psalm 22:6-10
Isaiah 49:1-6
1 Timothy 6:12-16
John 12:37-50
Almighty and everlasting God, grant us grace so to contemplate the Passion of our Lord, that we may find therein forgiveness for our sins; through Your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Watercool Quiet", "A Pleasant Strike"
Happy Holy Week! Join us each day for the traditional readings from our One-year lectionary and a prayer.
Holy Monday - April 11th
Psalm 22:1-5
Isaiah 50:5-10
1 Peter 2:21-24
John 12:1-36
Grant, we beseech You, Almighty God, that we, who amid so many adversities do fail though our own infirmities, may be restored through the Passion and intercession of Your only-begotten Son, who lives and reigns with You, and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Watercool Quiet", "A Pleasant Strike", "Frank and Poet", "Vulcan Street"
Preparing for the 6th Sunday of Lent, or Palm Sunday
Psalm 31:9-16
Zechariah 9:9-12
Philippians 2:5-11
Matthew 21:1-11
Prayer of the Day
Almighty and everlasting God, who has sent Thy Son, our Savior Jesus Christ, to take upon Him our flesh, and to suffer death upon the Cross, that all mankind should follow the example of His humility: Mercifully grant that we may both follow the example of His patience, and also be made partakers of His Resurrection; through Thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back", "Watercool Quiet", "A Pleasant Strike", "Frank and Poet", "Vulcan Street"
Sermon for the 5th Sunday in Lent, on the occasion of the baptisms of the Madsen children.
John 8:46-59
Genesis 22:1-14
Grace Lutheran Church, Ridgecrest, CA
April Gracevine Newsletter Article for Grace Lutheran Church, Ridgecrest, CA
“Isn’t He your Father and Creator? Didn’t He make you and sustain you? – Deuteronomy 32:6b
Preparing for the 5th Sunday of Lent, or Passion Sunday
Psalm 43
Genesis 22:1-14
Hebrews 9:11-15
John 8:46-59
Prayer of the Day
We beseech Thee, Almighty God, mercifully to look upon Thy people, that by Thy great goodness they may be governed and preserved evermore, both in body and soul; through Thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back", "Watercool Quiet", "A Pleasant Strike", "Frank and Poet", "Vulcan Street"
Morning Prayer for the Annunciation of our Lord, March 25th
Luke 1:46b-55
Isaiah 7:10 -15
Luke 1:26-38
Prayer of the Day
We beseech Thee, O Lord, pour Thy grace into our hearts; that as we have known the Incarnation of Thy Son Jesus Christ by the message of an angel, so by His Cross and Passion we may be brought unto the glory of His Resurrection though Thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back", "Watercool Quiet", "A Pleasant Strike", "Frank and Poet", "Vulcan Street"
Preparing for the 4th Sunday in Lent
Psalm 132:8-18
Exodus 16:2-21
Acts 2:41-47
John 6:1-15
Prayer of the Day
Grant, we beseech Thee, Almighty God, that we, who for our evil deeds do worthily deserve to be punished, by the comfort of Thy grace may mercifully be relieved; through Thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back", "Dissipate"
Preparing for the 3rd Sunday in Lent
Psalm 4
Jeremiah 26:1-15
Ephesians 5:1-9
Luke 11:14-28
Prayer of the Day
We beseech Thee, Almighty God, look upon the hearty desires of Thy humble servants, and stretch forth the right hand of Thy Majesty to be our defense against all our enemies; through Thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, world without end. Amen.
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back", "Dissipate"
Preparing for the 2nd Sunday of Lent
Psalm 121
Genesis 32:22-32
Romans 5:1-5
Matthew 15:21-28
Prayer of the Day
O God, who sees that of ourselves we have no strength: Keep us both outwardly and inwardly; that we may be defended from all adversities which may happen to the body, and from all evil thoughts which may assault and hurt the soul; through Thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back", "Dissipate"
“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.” – Colossians 1:15
A picture paints a thousand words. We have heard that phrase a million times. There is a lot of truth to that, because we are very willing to believe our eyes much more than we will our ears as we listen to another account from someone else of what they saw.
The same is true of stories. We like our stories, but if they can come with pictures…even better. For 80% of Americans, watching television is the first choice of leisure activities. When asking a similar audience, studies have shown that half of all Americans prefer watching the news rather than reading it. The readers of news also surpassed listeners by 34% to 19%. In other words, we like our pictures.
This is not new. There is this myth in history that once the Enlightenment came, the whole world became literate, or at least an overwhelming percentage of it did. This was mostly true of the clergy and the nobility, but for the common man, and even for some elites, literacy was an afterthought. Hence the amount of art that makes up the architecture of churches in Europe. With this art came beauty and innumerable practices in our ecclesiastical tradition that have added greatly to the habits of congregations around the world. Illiteracy was the reason why St. Francis created the Nativity scene so that the poor would know the story of Christmas. It is why we have statues and paintings of biblical heroes, and why hymns exist to try and teach the faith through melodies that get stuck in our heads. With 1 in 7 Americans being functionally illiterate, these pictures added to our stories would not be considered antiquated but necessary for the nurturing of the faithful in all generations.
As we enter into Lent this month, one of the Lenten devotions that is almost as old as the church itself is the walking of “The Stations of the Cross.” Originating during pilgrimages to Jerusalem where travelers desired to walk in the footsteps of Christ to Calvary along the Via Dolorosa, the “Stations” are a mainstay among our Catholic and Anglican brothers and sisters (especially on Fridays during Lent), and have seen a resurgence in Lutheran denominations since the 1960’s. Based on fifteen events in the account of Good Friday and Easter, from the agony in the garden to the resurrection, the walk is always accompanied with visuals and Scripture in order to capture all the senses so that we might find ourselves sucked into the most important time in history.
This year, our youth are going to explore three stations each week, and then make their own interpretation of each one using old magazines to construct collages. This allows them room to use their imaginations and make the events of their redemption more real for them.
Now, some Protestants get angry about pictures in church because of the idea that we are not supposed to make graven images. This is why, in the American Protestant tradition, very few churches have a crucifix or art to assist in our worship because we believe it to be blasphemy and a sin. Yet, let me ask you this, did Jesus have a body? Did He have a face and skin? Did He have blood pumping through His veins? Yes, He did. Jesus is the breaker of any expectations we may have around images of God because He is God made manifest before us. He is the image of the invisible God. He is God con carne. He is the One who speaks to Philip, “The one who has seen Me has seen the Father.” (John 14:9) God uses all sorts of physically ordinary things to convey His promise and redeem His creation. The physical Body of His Son dying on a cros
Morning Prayer for Ash Wednesday
Create in me a clean heart oh God
Let me be like you in all my ways
Give me your strength, teach me your song
Shelter me in the shadow of your wings
For we are your righteousness
If we die to ourselves and live through your death
Then we shall be born again to be blessed in your love!
Copyright © – Sparrow Records, Inc. 1980
Psalm 51
Joel 2:12-17
2 Peter 1:2-11
Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21
Prayer of the Day
Almighty and ever-living God, you hate nothing you have made and you forgive the sins of all who are penitent. Create in us new and honest hearts, so that, truly repenting of our sins, we may obtain from you, the God of all mercy, full pardon and forgiveness; through Your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back", "Vulcan Street"
Morning Prayer for the First Sunday in Lent, or "Invocabit"
Psalm 32
2 Corinthians 6:1-10
Matthew 4:1-11
Prayer of the Day
O Lord, mercifully hear our prayer, and stretch forth the right hand Thy Majesty to defend us from those that rise up against us; through Thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back", "Vulcan Street"
Morning Prayer for Quinquagesima
Psalm 146
Isaiah 35:3-10
1 Corinthians 13
Luke 18:31-43
Prayer of the Day
O Lord, we beseech Thee, mercifully hear our prayers, and, having set us free from the bonds of sin, defend us from all evil; through Thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back", "Vulcan Street"
Morning Prayer for Sexagesima
Psalm 95
Isaiah 55:10-13
Psalm 84
2 Corinthians 11:19-12:9
Luke 8:4-15
Prayer of the Day
O Lord God, who sees that we put not our trust in any thing that we do; Mercifully grant that by thy power we may be defended against all adversity; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back", "Vulcan Street"
Morning Prayer for Septuagesima
Psalm 95
Exodus 17:1-7
1 Corinthians 9:24-10:5
Matthew 20:1-16
Prayer of the Day
O LORD, we beseech Thee favorably to hear the prayers of Thy people: that we, who are justly punished for our offences, may be mercifully delivered by Thy goodness, for the glory of Thy Name; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back", "Vulcan Street"
Morning Prayer for the Presentation of Our Lord, or Candlemas
Psalm 95
Psalm 84
Malachi 3:1-5
Luke 2:22-40
Prayer of the Day
Almighty and everliving God, we humbly beseech Thy Majesty, that, as Thy only-begotten Son was this day presented in the Temple in substance of our flesh, so we may be presented unto Thee with pure and clean hearts, by the same Thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back", "Vulcan Street"
Words for the Weary
Readings for Transfiguration of Our Lord Sunday - February 6th
Prayer of the Day
O GOD, in the Transfiguration of Your Son, confirmed the mysteries of the faith by the witness of Moses and Elijah, and in the voice from the bright cloud, foreshadowed our adoption as Your children: Make us with the King heirs of Your glory, and bring us to the enjoyment of the same; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, One God, now and forever. Amen.
Exodus 34:29-35
Psalm 2
2 Peter 1:16-21
Matthew 17:1-9
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back", "Vine Crawler", "Via Verre"
Words for the Weary
Readings for the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul - January 25th
Prayer of the Day
O God, who, through the preaching of the blessed Apostle Saint Paul, has caused the light of the Gospel to shine throughout the world; Grant, we beseech thee, that we, having his wonderful conversion in remembrance, may show forth our thankfulness unto thee for the same, by following the holy doctrine which he taught; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Jeremiah 1:1-10
Psalm 67
Acts 9:1-22
Matthew 19:27-29
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back", "Vine Crawler", "Via Verre"
Words for the Weary
Readings for the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany - January 30th
Prayer of the Day
Almighty God, who knows us to be set in the midst of so many and great dangers, that by reason of the frailty of our nature we cannot always stand upright; Grant to us such strength and protection as may support us in all dangers, and carry us through all temptations; through Your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
Jonah 1:1-17
Psalm 96
Romans 13:8-10
Matthew 8:23-27
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back", "Vulcan Street", "Vine Crawler", "Via Verre", "Lanky", "Frank & Poet"
Words for the Weary
Readings for the Third Sunday after the Epiphany - January 23rd
Prayer of the Day
Almighty and everlasting God, mercifully look upon our infirmities, and in all our dangers and necessities stretch forth the right hand of Thy Majesty to help and defend us; through Thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
2 Kings 5:1-15a
Psalm 110:1-4
Romans 12:16-21
Matthew 8:1-13
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back"
https://app.sessions.blue/browse/track/481d3507-9397-4d6c-88a6-c26664076f23
Words for the Weary
Readings for The Second Sunday after the Epiphany - January 16th
The Prayer of the Day
Almighty and everlasting God, who does govern all things in heaven and earth: Mercifully hear the supplications of Thy people, and grant us Thy peace all the days of our life; through Thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
Exodus 33:12-23
Psalm 67
Ephesians 5:22-33
John 2:1-12
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back"
https://app.sessions.blue/browse/track/481d3507-9397-4d6c-88a6-c26664076f23
Words for the Weary
Readings for The Epiphany of our Lord Sunday - January 6th
Prayer of the Day - O God, who on this day by the leading of a star didst reveal Thine only-begotten Son to the Gentiles: Mercifully grant that we, who know Thee now by faith, may be brought to contemplate the beauty of Thy Majesty; through the same Thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen
Isaiah 60:1-6
Psalm 24
Ephesians 3:1-12
Matthew 2:1-12
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back"
https://app.sessions.blue/browse/track/481d3507-9397-4d6c-88a6-c26664076f23
Words for the Weary
Readings for Baptism of our Lord Sunday (The 1st Sunday after the Epiphany)
Prayer of the Day - Father in Heaven, at the baptism of Jesus in the river Jordan, you proclaimed Him Your Beloved Son and anointed Him with the Holy Spirit. Make all who are baptized into Christ faithful in there calling to be Your children and inheritors with Him of everlasting life, through Your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen
Isaiah 42:1-7
Psalm 85
1 Corinthians 1:26-31
Matthew 3:13-17
Music provided by Blue Dot Sessions - "Two in the Back"
https://app.sessions.blue/browse/track/481d3507-9397-4d6c-88a6-c26664076f23
Gospel Fridays
Matthew 2:13-23
Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there till I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” And he rose and took the child and his mother by night, and departed to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt have I called my son.”
Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, was in a furious rage, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time which he had ascertained from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah:
“A voice was heard in Ramah,
wailing and loud lamentation,
Rachel weeping for her children;
she refused to be consoled,
because they were no more.”
But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child’s life are dead.” And he rose and took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archela′us reigned over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there, and being warned in a dream he withdrew to the district of Galilee. And he went and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, “He shall be called a Nazarene.”
O God our Father, who by the birth and infancy of Thy Son did sanctify and bless childhood: we commend to Thy love all children, and beseech Thee to protect them from every hurt and harm, and lead them to the knowledge of Thyself and the obedience of Thy will; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen
Theology Thursdays
1 Peter 4:12-19
Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal which comes upon you to prove you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice in so far as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are reproached for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or a thief, or a wrongdoer, or a mischief-maker; yet if one suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but under that name let him glorify God. For the time has come for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God? And
“If the righteous man is scarcely saved,
where will the impious and sinner appear?”
Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will do right and entrust their souls to a faithful Creator.
O God our Father, who by the birth and infancy of Thy Son did sanctify and bless childhood: we commend to Thy love all children, and beseech Thee to protect them from every hurt and harm, and lead them to the knowledge of Thyself and the obedience of Thy will; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen
Psalm for the Week
Psalm 77:11-20
I will call to mind the deeds of the Lord;
yea, I will remember thy wonders of old.
I will meditate on all thy work,
and muse on thy mighty deeds.
Thy way, O God, is holy.
What god is great like our God?
Thou art the God who workest wonders,
who hast manifested thy might among the peoples.
Thou didst with thy arm redeem thy people,
the sons of Jacob and Joseph.
When the waters saw thee, O God,
when the waters saw thee, they were afraid,
yea, the deep trembled.
The clouds poured out water;
the skies gave forth thunder;
thy arrows flashed on every side.
The crash of thy thunder was in the whirlwind;
thy lightnings lighted up the world;
the earth trembled and shook.
Thy way was through the sea,
thy path through the great waters;
yet thy footprints were unseen.
Thou didst lead thy people like a flock
by the hand of Moses and Aaron.
Prayer for the 2nd Sunday after Christmas
O God our Father, who by the birth and infancy of Thy Son did sanctify and bless childhood: we commend to Thy love all children, and beseech Thee to protect them from every hurt and harm, and lead them to the knowledge of Thyself and the obedience of Thy will; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
Genesis 46:1-7
So Israel took his journey with all that he had, and came to Beer-sheba, and offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. And God spoke to Israel in visions of the night, and said, “Jacob, Jacob.” And he said, “Here am I.” Then he said, “I am God, the God of your father; do not be afraid to go down to Egypt; for I will there make of you a great nation. I will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also bring you up again; and Joseph’s hand shall close your eyes.” Then Jacob set out from Beer-sheba; and the sons of Israel carried Jacob their father, their little ones, and their wives, in the wagons which Pharaoh had sent to carry him. They also took their cattle and their goods, which they had gained in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, Jacob and all his offspring with him, his sons, and his sons’ sons with him, his daughters, and his sons’ daughters; all his offspring he brought with him into Egypt.
Prayer for the 2nd Sunday after Christmas
O God our Father, who by the birth and infancy of Thy Son did sanctify and bless childhood: we commend to Thy love all children, and beseech Thee to protect them from every hurt and harm, and lead them to the knowledge of Thyself and the obedience of Thy will; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen
Prayer for the 2nd Sunday after Christmas
O God our Father, who by the birth and infancy of Thy Son did sanctify and bless childhood: we commend to Thy love all children, and beseech Thee to protect them from every hurt and harm, and lead them to the knowledge of Thyself and the obedience of Thy will; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with Thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen
Theology Thursdays
Titus 3:3-7
For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by men and hating one another; but when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of deeds done by us in righteousness, but in virtue of his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit, which he poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life.
GRANT, we beseech Thee, Almighty God, that the new Birth of Thine Only-begotten Son in the flesh may set us free who are held in the old bondage under the yoke of sin; through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Psalm for the Week
Psalm 110:1-4
The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand,
until I make your enemies your footstool.”
The Lord will send the scepter of your power out of Zion,
saying, “Rule over your enemies round about you.
Princely state has been yours from the day of your birth;
in the beauty of holiness have begotten you, like dew from the womb of the morning.”
The Lord has sworn and he will not recant:
“You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.”
Prayers for Christmas
O GOD, Who hast made this most holy night to shine with the brightness of the true Light: Grant, we beseech Thee, that as we have known on earth the mysteries of that Light, we may also come to the fullness of His joys in heaven; Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
Isaiah 9:2-7
The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light;
those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness,
on them has light shined.
Thou hast multiplied the nation,
thou hast increased its joy;
they rejoice before thee
as with joy at the harvest,
as men rejoice when they divide the spoil.
For the yoke of his burden,
and the staff for his shoulder,
the rod of his oppressor,
thou hast broken as on the day of Mid′ian.
For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult
and every garment rolled in blood
will be burned as fuel for the fire.
For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given;
and the government will be upon his shoulder,
and his name will be called
“Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
Of the increase of his government and of peace
there will be no end,
upon the throne of David, and over his kingdom,
to establish it, and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
from this time forth and for evermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
Prayers for Christmas
O GOD, Who hast made this most holy night to shine with the brightness of the true Light: Grant, we beseech Thee, that as we have known on earth the mysteries of that Light, we may also come to the fullness of His joys in heaven; Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Prayers for Christmas
O GOD, Who hast made this most holy night to shine with the brightness of the true Light: Grant, we beseech Thee, that as we have known on earth the mysteries of that Light, we may also come to the fullness of His joys in heaven; Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
GRANT, we beseech Thee, Almighty God, that the new Birth of Thine Only-begotten Son in the flesh may set us free who are held in the old bondage under the yoke of sin; through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
ALMIGHTY and Everlasting God, direct our actions according to Thy good pleasure, that in the Name of Thy beloved Son, we may be made to abound in good works; through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Sermon for the 4th Sunday in Advent - December 19, 2021
John 1:19-28
And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” He confessed, he did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” And they asked him, “What then? Are you Eli′jah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the prophet?” And he answered, “No.” They said to him then, “Who are you? Let us have an answer for those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” He said, “I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.”
Now they had been sent from the Pharisees. They asked him, “Then why are you baptizing, if you are neither the Christ, nor Eli′jah, nor the prophet?” John answered them, “I baptize with water; but among you stands one whom you do not know, even he who comes after me, the thong of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.” This took place in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
Gospel Fridays
John 1:19-28
And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” He confessed, he did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” And they asked him, “What then? Are you Eli′jah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the prophet?” And he answered, “No.” They said to him then, “Who are you? Let us have an answer for those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” He said, “I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.”
Now they had been sent from the Pharisees. They asked him, “Then why are you baptizing, if you are neither the Christ, nor Eli′jah, nor the prophet?” John answered them, “I baptize with water; but among you stands one whom you do not know, even he who comes after me, the thong of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.” This took place in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
Prayer for the 4th Sunday in Advent
STIR up, O Lord, we beseech Thee, Thy power, and come, and with great might relieve us, that by the help of Thy grace whatsoever is hindered by our sin may be speedily accomplished, through Thy mercy and satisfaction; Who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Theology Thursdays
Philippians 4:4-7
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let all men know your forbearance. The Lord is at hand. Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Prayer for the 4th Sunday in Advent
STIR up, O Lord, we beseech Thee, Thy power, and come, and with great might relieve us, that by the help of Thy grace whatsoever is hindered by our sin may be speedily accomplished, through Thy mercy and satisfaction; Who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Psalm for the Week
The Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55)
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed.
The Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
He has mercy on those who fear him
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm;
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel,
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children forever.
Prayer for the 4th Sunday in Advent
STIR up, O Lord, we beseech Thee, Thy power, and come, and with great might relieve us, that by the help of Thy grace whatsoever is hindered by our sin may be speedily accomplished, through Thy mercy and satisfaction; Who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
Deuteronomy 18:15-19
“The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brethren—him you shall heed— just as you desired of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly, when you said, ‘Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God, or see this great fire any more, lest I die.’ And the Lord said to me, ‘They have rightly said all that they have spoken. I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brethren; and I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. And whoever will not give heed to my words which he shall speak in my name, I myself will require it of him.
Prayer for the 4th Sunday in Advent
STIR up, O Lord, we beseech Thee, Thy power, and come, and with great might relieve us, that by the help of Thy grace whatsoever is hindered by our sin may be speedily accomplished, through Thy mercy and satisfaction; Who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Prayer for the 4th Sunday in Advent
STIR up, O Lord, we beseech Thee, Thy power, and come, and with great might relieve us, that by the help of Thy grace whatsoever is hindered by our sin may be speedily accomplished, through Thy mercy and satisfaction; Who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Gospel Friday
Matthew 11:2-10
Now when John heard in prison what the Christ was doing, he sent a message through his disciples and asked him, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?”
Jesus replied to them, “Go and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, those with leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor are told the good news, and blessed is the one who isn’t offended by me.”
As these men were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swaying in the wind? What then did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothes? See, those who wear soft clothes are in royal palaces. What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written:
See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you;
he will prepare your way before you.
LORD, we beseech Thee, give ear to our prayers, and lighten the darkness of our hearts, by Thy gracious visitation; Who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Theology Thursday
1 Corinthians 4:1-5
A person should think of us in this way: as servants of Christ and managers of the mysteries of God. In this regard, it is required that managers be found faithful. It is of little importance to me that I should be judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I don’t even judge myself. For I am not conscious of anything against myself, but I am not justified by this. It is the Lord who judges me. So don’t judge anything prematurely, before the Lord comes, who will both bring to light what is hidden in darkness and reveal the intentions of the hearts. And then praise will come to each one from God.
LORD, we beseech Thee, give ear to our prayers, and lighten the darkness of our hearts, by Thy gracious visitation; Who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Psalm for the Week
Psalm 85 LBW
You have been gracious to your land, O Lord;
you have restored the good fortune of Jacob.
You have forgiven the iniquity of your people
and blotted out all their sins.
You have withdrawn all your fury
and turned yourself from your wrathful indignation.
Restore us then, O God our Savior;
let your anger depart from us.
Will you be displeased with us forever?
Will you prolong your anger from age to age?
Will you not give us life again,
that your people may rejoice in you?
Show us your mercy, O Lord,
and grant us your salvation.
I will listen to what the Lord God is saying,
for he is speaking peace to his faithful people and to those who turn their hearts to him.
Truly, his salvation is very near to those who fear him,
that his glory may dwell in our land.
Mercy and truth have met together;
righteousness and peace have kissed each other.
Truth shall spring up from the earth,
and righteousness shall look down from heaven.
The Lord will indeed grant prosperity,
and our land will yield its increase.
Righteousness shall go before him,
and peace shall be a pathway for his feet.
LORD, we beseech Thee, give ear to our prayers, and lighten the darkness of our hearts, by Thy gracious visitation; Who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
Isaiah 40:1-11
“Comfort, comfort my people,”
says your God.
“Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
and announce to her
that her time of hard service is over,
her iniquity has been pardoned,
and she has received from the Lord’s hand
double for all her sins.”
A voice of one crying out:
Prepare the way of the Lord in the wilderness;
make a straight highway for our God in the desert.
Every valley will be lifted up,
and every mountain and hill will be leveled;
the uneven ground will become smooth
and the rough places, a plain.
And the glory of the Lord will appear,
and all humanity together will see it,
for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
A voice was saying, “Cry out!”
Another said, “What should I cry out?”
“All humanity is grass,
and all its goodness is like the flower of the field.
The grass withers, the flowers fade
when the breath of the Lord blows on them;
indeed, the people are grass.
The grass withers, the flowers fade,
but the word of our God remains forever.”
Zion, herald of good news,
go up on a high mountain.
Jerusalem, herald of good news,
raise your voice loudly.
Raise it, do not be afraid!
Say to the cities of Judah,
“Here is your God!”
See, the Lord God comes with strength,
and his power establishes his rule.
His wages are with him,
and his reward accompanies him.
He protects his flock like a shepherd;
he gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them in the fold of his garment.
He gently leads those that are nursing.
LORD, we beseech Thee, give ear to our prayers, and lighten the darkness of our hearts, by Thy gracious visitation; Who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Prayer for the 3rd Sunday in Advent
LORD, we beseech Thee, give ear to our prayers, and lighten the darkness of our hearts, by Thy gracious visitation; Who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Gospel Fridays
Luke 21:25-36
“Then there will be signs in the sun, moon, and stars; and there will be anguish on the earth among nations bewildered by the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will faint from fear and expectation of the things that are coming on the world, because the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. But when these things begin to take place, stand up and lift your heads, because your redemption is near.”
Then he told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. As soon as they put out leaves you can see for yourselves and recognize that summer is already near. In the same way, when you see these things happening, recognize that the kingdom of God is near. Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
“Be on your guard, so that your minds are not dulled from carousing, drunkenness, and worries of life, or that day will come on you unexpectedly like a trap. For it will come on all who live on the face of the whole earth. But be alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place and to stand before the Son of Man.”
Blessed Lord, who hast caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning; Grant that we may in such wise hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that by patience and comfort of thy holy Word, we may embrace, and ever hold fast, the blessed hope of everlasting life, which thou hast given us in our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
Theology Thursdays
Romans 15:4-13
For whatever was written in the past was written for our instruction, so that we may have hope through endurance and through the encouragement from the Scriptures. Now may the God who gives endurance and encouragement grant you to live in harmony with one another, according to Christ Jesus, so that you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ with one mind and one voice.
Therefore welcome one another, just as Christ also welcomed you, to the glory of God. For I say that Christ became a servant of the circumcised on behalf of God’s truth, to confirm the promises to the fathers, and so that Gentiles may glorify God for his mercy. As it is written,
Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles,
and I will sing praise to your name.
Again it says, Rejoice, you Gentiles, with his people! And again,
Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles;
let all the peoples praise him!
And again, Isaiah says,
The root of Jesse will appear,
the one who rises to rule the Gentiles;
the Gentiles will hope in him.
Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you believe so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Blessed Lord, who hast caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning; Grant that we may in such wise hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that by patience and comfort of thy holy Word, we may embrace, and ever hold fast, the blessed hope of everlasting life, which thou hast given us in our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
Psalm for the Week
Psalm 50:1-15
The Mighty One, God, the Lord, speaks;
he summons the earth
from the rising of the sun to its setting.
From Zion, the perfection of beauty,
God appears in radiance.
Our God is coming; he will not be silent!
Devouring fire precedes him,
and a storm rages around him.
On high, he summons heaven and earth
in order to judge his people:
“Gather my faithful ones to me,
those who made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”
The heavens proclaim his righteousness,
for God is the Judge.Selah
“Listen, my people, and I will speak;
I will testify against you, Israel.
I am God, your God.
I do not rebuke you for your sacrifices
or for your burnt offerings,
which are continually before me.
I will not take a bull from your household
or male goats from your pens,
for every animal of the forest is mine,
the cattle on a thousand hills.
I know every bird of the mountains,
and the creatures of the field are mine.
If I were hungry, I would not tell you,
for the world and everything in it is mine.
Do I eat the flesh of bulls
or drink the blood of goats?
Offer a thanksgiving sacrifice to God,
and pay your vows to the Most High.
Call on me in a day of trouble;
I will rescue you, and you will honor me.”
Blessed Lord, who hast caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning; Grant that we may in such wise hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that by patience and comfort of thy holy Word, we may embrace, and ever hold fast, the blessed hope of everlasting life, which thou hast given us in our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
Malachi 4:1-6
“For look, the day is coming, burning like a furnace, when all the arrogant and everyone who commits wickedness will become stubble. The coming day will consume them,” says the Lord of Armies, “not leaving them root or branches. But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings, and you will go out and playfully jump like calves from the stall. You will trample the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day I am preparing,” says the Lord of Armies.
“Remember the instruction of Moses my servant, the statutes and ordinances I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel. Look, I am going to send you the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes. And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers. Otherwise, I will come and strike the land with a curse.”
Blessed Lord, who hast caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning; Grant that we may in such wise hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that by patience and comfort of thy holy Word, we may embrace, and ever hold fast, the blessed hope of everlasting life, which thou hast given us in our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
Prayer for the 2nd Sunday of Advent
Blessed Lord, who hast caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning; Grant that we may in such wise hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that by patience and comfort of thy holy Word, we may embrace, and ever hold fast, the blessed hope of everlasting life, which thou hast given us in our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
Theology Thursdays
Romans 13:8-14
Do not owe anyone anything, except to love one another, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. The commandments, Do not commit adultery; do not murder; do not steal; do not covet; and any other commandment, are summed up by this commandment: Love your neighbor as yourself. Love does no wrong to a neighbor. Love, therefore, is the fulfillment of the law.
Besides this, since you know the time, it is already the hour for you to wake up from sleep, because now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is nearly over, and the day is near; so let us discard the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us walk with decency, as in the daytime: not in carousing and drunkenness; not in sexual impurity and promiscuity; not in quarreling and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh to gratify its desires.
ALMIGHTY God, give us grace that we may cast away the works of darkness, and put upon us the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which thy Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the quick and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Psalm of the Week
Psalm 24
The earth and everything in it,
the world and its inhabitants,
belong to the Lord;
for he laid its foundation on the seas
and established it on the rivers.
Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord?
Who may stand in his holy place?
The one who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who has not appealed to what is false,
and who has not sworn deceitfully.
He will receive blessing from the Lord,
and righteousness from the God of his salvation.
Such is the generation of those who inquire of him,
who seek the face of the God of Jacob.
Lift up your heads, you gates!
Rise up, ancient doors!
Then the King of glory will come in.
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord, strong and mighty,
the Lord, mighty in battle.
Lift up your heads, you gates!
Rise up, ancient doors!
Then the King of glory will come in.
Who is he, this King of glory?
The Lord of Armies,
he is the King of glory.
ALMIGHTY God, give us grace that we may cast away the works of darkness, and put upon us the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which thy Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the quick and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
Jeremiah 23:5-8
“Look, the days are coming”—this is the Lord’s declaration—
“when I will raise up a Righteous Branch for David.
He will reign wisely as king
and administer justice and righteousness in the land.
In his days Judah will be saved,
and Israel will dwell securely.
This is the name he will be called:
The Lord Is Our Righteousness.
“Look, the days are coming”—the Lord’s declaration—“when it will no longer be said, ‘As the Lord lives who brought the Israelites from the land of Egypt,’ but, ‘As the Lord lives, who brought and led the descendants of the house of Israel from the land of the north and from all the other countries where I had banished them.’ They will dwell once more in their own land.”
ALMIGHTY God, give us grace that we may cast away the works of darkness, and put upon us the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which thy Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the quick and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Prayer for the 1st Sunday of Advent (1661 BCP)
ALMIGHTY God, give us grace that we may cast away the works of darkness, and put upon us the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which thy Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the quick and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Gospel Fridays
John 16:20-27
Truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn, but the world will rejoice. You will become sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn to joy. When a woman is in labor, she has pain because her time has come. But when she has given birth to a child, she no longer remembers the suffering because of the joy that a person has been born into the world. So you also have sorrow now. But I will see you again. Your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy from you.
“In that day you will not ask me anything. Truly I tell you, anything you ask the Father in my name, he will give you. Until now you have asked for nothing in my name. Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.
“I have spoken these things to you in figures of speech. A time is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures, but I will tell you plainly about the Father. On that day you will ask in my name, and I am not telling you that I will ask the Father on your behalf. For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.
Gracious God, may the Amen we speak cause us to be certain that our petitions are acceptable to and heard by you, for you yourself commanded us to pray like this and have promised to hear us. We pray these words saying – Yes, yes. May these all be so; through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Theology Thursdays
2 Corinthians 1:12-20
Indeed, this is our boast: The testimony of our conscience is that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially toward you, with godly sincerity and purity, not by human wisdom but by God’s grace. For we are writing nothing to you other than what you can read and also understand. I hope you will understand completely— just as you have partially understood us—that we are your reason for pride, just as you also are ours in the day of our Lord Jesus.
Because of this confidence, I planned to come to you first, so that you could have a second benefit, and to visit you on my way to Macedonia, and then come to you again from Macedonia and be helped by you on my journey to Judea. Now when I planned this, was I of two minds? Or what I plan, do I plan in a purely human way so that I say “Yes, yes” and “No, no” at the same time? As God is faithful, our message to you is not “Yes and no.” For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we proclaimed among you—Silvanus, Timothy, and I—did not become “Yes and no.” On the contrary, in him it is always “Yes.” For every one of God’s promises is “Yes” in him. Therefore, through him we also say “Amen” to the glory of God.
Gracious God, may the Amen we speak cause us to be certain that our petitions are acceptable to and heard by you, for you yourself commanded us to pray like this and have promised to hear us. We pray these words saying – Yes, yes. May these all be so; through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Psalm for the Week
Psalm 31
Lord, I seek refuge in you;
let me never be disgraced.
Save me by your righteousness.
Listen closely to me; rescue me quickly.
Be a rock of refuge for me,
a mountain fortress to save me.
For you are my rock and my fortress;
you lead and guide me
for your name’s sake.
You will free me from the net
that is secretly set for me,
for you are my refuge.
Into your hand I entrust my spirit;
you have redeemed me, Lord, God of truth.
I hate those who are devoted to worthless idols,
but I trust in the Lord.
I will rejoice and be glad in your faithful love
because you have seen my affliction.
You know the troubles of my soul
and have not handed me over to the enemy.
You have set my feet in a spacious place.
Be gracious to me, Lord,
because I am in distress;
my eyes are worn out from frustration—
my whole being as well.
Indeed, my life is consumed with grief
and my years with groaning;
my strength has failed
because of my iniquity,
and my bones waste away.
I am ridiculed by all my adversaries
and even by my neighbors.
I am dreaded by my acquaintances;
those who see me in the street run from me.
I am forgotten: gone from memory
like a dead person—like broken pottery.
I have heard the gossip of many;
terror is on every side.
When they conspired against me,
they plotted to take my life.
But I trust in you, Lord;
I say, “You are my God.”
The course of my life is in your power;
rescue me from the power of my enemies
and from my persecutors.
Make your face shine on your servant;
save me by your faithful love.
Lord, do not let me be disgraced when I call on you.
Let the wicked be disgraced;
let them be quiet in Sheol.
Let lying lips
that arrogantly speak against the righteous
in proud contempt be silenced.
How great is your goodness,
which you have stored up for those who fear you.
In the presence of everyone you have acted
for those who take refuge in you.
You hide them in the protection of your presence;
you conceal them in a shelter
from human schemes,
from quarrelsome tongues.
Blessed be the Lord,
for he has wondrously shown his faithful love to me
in a city under siege.
In my alarm I said,
“I am cut off from your sight.”
But you heard the sound of my pleading
when I cried to you for help.
Love the Lord, all his faithful ones.
The Lord protects the loyal,
but fully repays the arrogant.
Be strong, and let your heart be courageous,
all you who put your hope in the Lord.
Gracious God, may the Amen we speak cause us to be certain that our petitions are acceptable to and heard by you, for you yourself commanded us to pray like this and have promised to hear us. We pray these words saying – Yes, yes. May these all be so; through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
Ezra 7:27-28
Blessed be the Lord, the God of our ancestors, who has put it into the king’s mind to glorify the house of the Lord in Jerusalem, and who has shown favor to me before the king, his counselors, and all his powerful officers. So I took courage because I was strengthened by the hand of the Lord my God, and I gathered Israelite leaders to return with me.
Gracious God, may the Amen we speak cause us to be certain that our petitions are acceptable to and heard by you, for you yourself commanded us to pray like this and have promised to hear us. We pray these words saying – Yes, yes. May these all be so; through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Prayer from the Catechism
Amen!
Gracious God, may the Amen we speak cause us to be certain that our petitions are acceptable to and heard by you, for you yourself commanded us to pray like this and have promised to hear us. We pray these words saying – Yes, yes. May these all be so; through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Gospel Fridays
John 17:10-17
Everything I have is yours, and everything you have is mine, and I am glorified in them. I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by your name that you have given me, so that they may be one as we are one. While I was with them, I was protecting them by your name that you have given me. I guarded them and not one of them is lost, except the son of destruction, so that the Scripture may be fulfilled. Now I am coming to you, and I speak these things in the world so that they may have my joy completed in them. I have given them your word. The world hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I am not praying that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.
Our Father in heaven, deliver us, we pray, from all manner of evil, whether it touch our body or soul, property or good name, and at last, when the hour of death shall come, grant us a blessed end and graciously take us from this vale of sorrow to yourself in heaven, through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Theology Thursdays
Philippians 3:18-21
For I have often told you, and now say again with tears, that many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction; their god is their stomach; their glory is in their shame; and they are focused on earthly things. Our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly wait for a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will transform the body of our humble condition into the likeness of his glorious body, by the power that enables him to subject everything to himself.
Our Father in heaven, deliver us, we pray, from all manner of evil, whether it touch our body or soul, property or good name, and at last, when the hour of death shall come, grant us a blessed end and graciously take us from this vale of sorrow to yourself in heaven, through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Psalm of the Week
Psalm 121
I lift my eyes toward the mountains.
Where will my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
He will not allow your foot to slip;
your Protector will not slumber.
Indeed, the Protector of Israel
does not slumber or sleep.
The Lord protects you;
the Lord is a shelter right by your side.
The sun will not strike you by day
or the moon by night.
The Lord will protect you from all harm;
he will protect your life.
The Lord will protect your coming and going
both now and forever.
Our Father in heaven, deliver us, we pray, from all manner of evil, whether it touch our body or soul, property or good name, and at last, when the hour of death shall come, grant us a blessed end and graciously take us from this vale of sorrow to yourself in heaven, through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
2 Chronicles 33:10-13
The Lord spoke to Manasseh and his people, but they didn’t listen. So he brought against them the military commanders of the king of Assyria. They captured Manasseh with hooks, bound him with bronze shackles, and took him to Babylon. When he was in distress, he sought the favor of the Lord his God and earnestly humbled himself before the God of his ancestors. He prayed to him, and the Lord was receptive to his prayer. He granted his request and brought him back to Jerusalem, to his kingdom. So Manasseh came to know that the Lord is God.
Our Father in heaven, deliver us, we pray, from all manner of evil, whether it touch our body or soul, property or good name, and at last, when the hour of death shall come, grant us a blessed end and graciously take us from this vale of sorrow to yourself in heaven, through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Prayers from the Catechism
Deliver us from evil...
Our Father in heaven, deliver us, we pray, from all manner of evil, whether it touch our body or soul, property or good name, and at last, when the hour of death shall come, grant us a blessed end and graciously take us from this vale of sorrow to yourself in heaven, through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Gospel Fridays
Mark 14:32-38
Then they came to a place named Gethsemane, and he told his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” He took Peter, James, and John with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. He said to them, “I am deeply grieved to the point of death. Remain here and stay awake.” He went a little farther, fell to the ground, and prayed that if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. And he said, “Abba, Father! All things are possible for you. Take this cup away from me. Nevertheless, not what I will, but what you will.” Then he came and found them sleeping. He said to Peter, “Simon, are you sleeping? Couldn’t you stay awake one hour? Stay awake and pray so that you won’t enter into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
O God, who tempts no one to sin, we pray to you so to guard and keep us, that the devil, the world, and our own flesh may not deceive us, nor lead us into error, unbelief, despair, and other great and shameful sins, and that though we be thus tempted, we may finally prevail and gain victory, through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Theology Thursdays
James 1:12-16
Blessed is the one who endures trials, because when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.
No one undergoing a trial should say, “I am being tempted by God,” since God is not tempted by evil, and he himself doesn’t tempt anyone. But each person is tempted when he is drawn away and enticed by his own evil desire. Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is fully grown, it gives birth to death.
Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters.
O God, who tempts no one to sin, we pray to you so to guard and keep us, that the devil, the world, and our own flesh may not deceive us, nor lead us into error, unbelief, despair, and other great and shameful sins, and that though we be thus tempted, we may finally prevail and gain victory, through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Psalm for the week
Psalm 5
Listen to my words, Lord;
consider my sighing.
Pay attention to the sound of my cry,
my King and my God,
for I pray to you.
In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice;
in the morning I plead my case to you and watch expectantly.
For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;
evil cannot dwell with you.
The boastful cannot stand in your sight;
you hate all evildoers.
You destroy those who tell lies;
the Lord abhors violent and treacherous people.
But I enter your house
by the abundance of your faithful love;
I bow down toward your holy temple
in reverential awe of you.
Lord, lead me in your righteousness
because of my adversaries;
make your way straight before me.
For there is nothing reliable in what they say;
destruction is within them;
their throat is an open grave;
they flatter with their tongues.
Punish them, God;
let them fall by their own schemes.
Drive them out because of their many crimes,
for they rebel against you.
But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;
let them shout for joy forever.
May you shelter them,
and may those who love your name boast about you.
For you, Lord, bless the righteous one;
you surround him with favor like a shield.
O God, who tempts no one to sin, we pray to you so to guard and keep us, that the devil, the world, and our own flesh may not deceive us, nor lead us into error, unbelief, despair, and other great and shameful sins, and that though we be thus tempted, we may finally prevail and gain victory, through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
Daniel 5:17-24
Then Daniel answered the king, “You may keep your gifts and give your rewards to someone else; however, I will read the inscription for the king and make the interpretation known to him. Your Majesty, the Most High God gave sovereignty, greatness, glory, and majesty to your predecessor Nebuchadnezzar. Because of the greatness he gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages were terrified and fearful of him. He killed anyone he wanted and kept alive anyone he wanted; he exalted anyone he wanted and humbled anyone he wanted. But when his heart was exalted and his spirit became arrogant, he was deposed from his royal throne and his glory was taken from him. He was driven away from people, his mind was like an animal’s, he lived with the wild donkeys, he was fed grass like cattle, and his body was drenched with dew from the sky until he acknowledged that the Most High God is ruler over human kingdoms and sets anyone he wants over them.
“But you his successor, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, even though you knew all this. Instead, you have exalted yourself against the Lord of the heavens. The vessels from his house were brought to you, and as you and your nobles, wives, and concubines drank wine from them, you praised the gods made of silver and gold, bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see or hear or understand. But you have not glorified the God who holds your life-breath in his hand and who controls the whole course of your life. Therefore, he sent the hand, and this writing was inscribed.
O God, who tempts no one to sin, we pray to you so to guard and keep us, that the devil, the world, and our own flesh may not deceive us, nor lead us into error, unbelief, despair, and other great and shameful sins, and that though we be thus tempted, we may finally prevail and gain victory, through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Prayers from the Catechism
Lead us not into temptation...O God, who tempts no one to sin, we pray to you so to guard and keep us, that the devil, the world, and our own flesh may not deceive us, nor lead us into error, unbelief, despair, and other great and shameful sins, and that though we be thus tempted, we may finally prevail and gain victory, through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Sermon for Reformation & Confirmation Sunday - October 31, 2021
Psalm 32 & John 8:31-36
Gospel Fridays
John 8:31-36
Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you continue in my word, you really are my disciples. You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
“We are descendants of Abraham,” they answered him, “and we have never been enslaved to anyone. How can you say, ‘You will become free’?”
Jesus responded, “Truly I tell you, everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin. A slave does not remain in the household forever, but a son does remain forever. So if the Son sets you free, you really will be free.
We pray to you, our Father in heaven, that you would not regard our sins, nor deny our requests on account of them; for we are not worthy of anything that we ask, and have not earned it. Grant us all through grace, though we daily commit many sins and deserve chastisement alone. Help us also on our part to forgive and readily to do good to those who sin against us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Theology Thursdays
Romans 3:21-28
But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been revealed, attested by the Law and the Prophets. The righteousness of God is through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe, since there is no distinction. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. God presented him as the mercy seat by his blood, through faith, to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his restraint God passed over the sins previously committed. God presented him to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so that he would be just and justify the one who has faith in Jesus.
Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By one of works? No, on the contrary, by a law of faith. For we conclude that a person is justified by faith apart from the works of the law.
We pray to you, our Father in heaven, that you would not regard our sins, nor deny our requests on account of them; for we are not worthy of anything that we ask, and have not earned it. Grant us all through grace, though we daily commit many sins and deserve chastisement alone. Help us also on our part to forgive and readily to do good to those who sin against us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Psalm for the Week
Psalm 32
How joyful is the one
whose transgression is forgiven,
whose sin is covered!
How joyful is a person whom
the Lord does not charge with iniquity
and in whose spirit is no deceit!
When I kept silent, my bones became brittle
from my groaning all day long.
For day and night your hand was heavy on me;
my strength was drained
as in the summer’s heat.
Then I acknowledged my sin to you
and did not conceal my iniquity.
I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,”
and you forgave the guilt of my sin.
Therefore let everyone who is faithful pray to you immediately.
When great floodwaters come,
they will not reach him.
You are my hiding place;
you protect me from trouble.
You surround me with joyful shouts of deliverance.
I will instruct you and show you the way to go;
with my eye on you, I will give counsel.
Do not be like a horse or mule,
without understanding,
that must be controlled with bit and bridle
or else it will not come near you.
Many pains come to the wicked,
but the one who trusts in the Lord
will have faithful love surrounding him.
Be glad in the Lord and rejoice,
you righteous ones;
shout for joy,
all you upright in heart.
We pray to you, our Father in heaven, that you would not regard our sins, nor deny our requests on account of them; for we are not worthy of anything that we ask, and have not earned it. Grant us all through grace, though we daily commit many sins and deserve chastisement alone. Help us also on our part to forgive and readily to do good to those who sin against us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
2 Chronicles 6:36-39
When they sin against you—
for there is no one who does not sin—
and you are angry with them
and hand them over to the enemy,
and their captors deport them
to a distant or nearby country,
and when they come to their senses
in the land where they were deported
and repent and petition you in their captors’ land,
saying, “We have sinned and done wrong;
we have been wicked,”
and when they return to you with all their mind and all their heart
in the land of their captivity where they were taken captive,
and when they pray in the direction of their land
that you gave their ancestors,
and the city you have chosen,
and toward the temple I have built for your name,
may you hear their prayer and petitions in heaven,
your dwelling place,
and uphold their cause.
May you forgive your people
who sinned against you.
We pray to you, our Father in heaven, that you would not regard our sins, nor deny our requests on account of them; for we are not worthy of anything that we ask, and have not earned it. Grant us all through grace, though we daily commit many sins and deserve chastisement alone. Help us also on our part to forgive and readily to do good to those who sin against us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Prayer from the Catechism
Fifth Petition - Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us...
We pray to you, our Father in heaven, that you would not regard our sins, nor deny our requests on account of them; for we are not worthy of anything that we ask, and have not earned it. Grant us all through grace, though we daily commit many sins and deserve chastisement alone. Help us also on our part to forgive and readily to do good to those who sin against us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Gospel Fridays
Matthew 6:25-34
“Therefore I tell you: Don’t worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing? Consider the birds of the sky: They don’t sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they? Can any of you add one moment to his life span by worrying? And why do you worry about clothes? Observe how the wildflowers of the field grow: They don’t labor or spin thread. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these. If that’s how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won’t he do much more for you—you of little faith? So don’t worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you. Therefore don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
O God, who gives daily bread without our prayer, even to all the wicked, we pray that you would give us to acknowledge your benefits, and enable us to receive our daily bread with thanksgiving, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Theology Thursdays
Titus 3:1-7
Remind them to submit to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work, to slander no one, to avoid fighting, and to be kind, always showing gentleness to all people. For we too were once foolish, disobedient, deceived, enslaved by various passions and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, detesting one another.
But when the kindness of God our Savior and his love for mankind appeared, he saved us—not by works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy—through the washing of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit. He poured out his Spirit on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior so that, having been justified by his grace, we may become heirs with the hope of eternal life.
O God, who gives daily bread without our prayer, even to all the wicked, we pray that you would give us to acknowledge your benefits, and enable us to receive our daily bread with thanksgiving, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Psalm for the week
Psalm 34:1-11
I will bless the Lord at all times;
his praise will always be on my lips.
I will boast in the Lord;
the humble will hear and be glad.
Proclaim the Lord’s greatness with me;
let us exalt his name together.
I sought the Lord, and he answered me
and rescued me from all my fears.
Those who look to him are radiant with joy;
their faces will never be ashamed.
This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him
and saved him from all his troubles.
The angel of the Lord encamps
around those who fear him, and rescues them.
Taste and see that the Lord is good.
How happy is the person who takes refuge in him!
You who are his holy ones, fear the Lord,
for those who fear him lack nothing.
Young lions lack food and go hungry,
but those who seek the Lord
will not lack any good thing.
Come, children, listen to me;
I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
O God, who gives daily bread without our prayer, even to all the wicked, we pray that you would give us to acknowledge your benefits, and enable us to receive our daily bread with thanksgiving, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
1 Chronicles 29:14-18
But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? For everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your own hand. For we are aliens and temporary residents in your presence as were all our ancestors. Our days on earth are like a shadow, without hope. Lord our God, all this wealth that we’ve provided for building you a house for your holy name comes from your hand; everything belongs to you. I know, my God, that you test the heart and that you are pleased with what is right. I have willingly given all these things with an upright heart, and now I have seen your people who are present here giving joyfully and willingly to you. Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, our ancestors, keep this desire forever in the thoughts of the hearts of your people, and confirm their hearts toward you.
Prayers on the Catechism - "The Fourth Petition - Our Daily Bread"
O God, who gives daily bread without our prayer, even to all the wicked, we pray that you would give us to acknowledge your benefits, and enable us to receive our daily bread with thanksgiving, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Prayers on the Catechism - "The Fourth Petition - Our Daily Bread"
O God, who gives daily bread without our prayer, even to all the wicked, we pray that you would give us to acknowledge your benefits, and enable us to receive our daily bread with thanksgiving, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Gospel Fridays - John 6:35-40
“I am the bread of life,” Jesus told them. “No one who comes to me will ever be hungry, and no one who believes in me will ever be thirsty again. But as I told you, you’ve seen me, and yet you do not believe. Everyone the Father gives me will come to me, and the one who comes to me I will never cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me. This is the will of him who sent me: that I should lose none of those he has given me but should raise them up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father: that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him will have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”
O God, whose will is done without our prayer, we pray that it may be done also by us. To this end frustrate and bring to nothing every evil counsel and purpose – such as the will of the devil, the world, and our own flesh – which would hinder the hallowing of your name and prevent the coming of your kingdom. Strengthen and keep us steadfast in your Word and in faith even unto the end. Let this your good and gracious will be done. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Theology Thursdays
1 John 5:13-17
I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.
This is the confidence we have before him: If we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears whatever we ask, we know that we have what we have asked of him.
If anyone sees a fellow believer committing a sin that doesn’t lead to death, he should ask, and God will give life to him—to those who commit sin that doesn’t lead to death. There is sin that leads to death. I am not saying he should pray about that. All unrighteousness is sin, and there is sin that doesn’t lead to death.
O God, whose will is done without our prayer, we pray that it may be done also by us. To this end frustrate and bring to nothing every evil counsel and purpose – such as the will of the devil, the world, and our own flesh – which would hinder the hallowing of your name and prevent the coming of your kingdom. Strengthen and keep us steadfast in your Word and in faith even unto the end. Let this your good and gracious will be done. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Psalm for the Week
Psalm 135:13-14
Lord, your name endures forever,
your reputation, Lord,
through all generations.
For the Lord will vindicate his people
and have compassion on his servants.
O God, whose will is done without our prayer, we pray that it may be done also by us. To this end frustrate and bring to nothing every evil counsel and purpose – such as the will of the devil, the world, and our own flesh – which would hinder the hallowing of your name and prevent the coming of your kingdom. Strengthen and keep us steadfast in your Word and in faith even unto the end. Let this your good and gracious will be done. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Tuesdays in the Old Tetstament
1 Chronicles 17:10b-14
“‘Furthermore, I declare to you that the Lord himself will build a house for you. When your time comes to be with your ancestors, I will raise up after you your descendant, who is one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. I will be his father, and he will be my son. I will not remove my faithful love from him as I removed it from the one who was before you. I will appoint him over my house and my kingdom forever, and his throne will be established forever.’”
"Thy Kingdom will be done..."
O God, whose will is done without our prayer, we pray that it may be done also by us. To this end frustrate and bring to nothing every evil counsel and purpose – such as the will of the devil, the world, and our own flesh – which would hinder the hallowing of your name and prevent the coming of your kingdom. Strengthen and keep us steadfast in your Word and in faith even unto the end. Let this your good and gracious will be done. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Prayer from the Catechism
"Thy Kingdom will be done..."
O God, whose will is done without our prayer, we pray that it may be done also by us. To this end frustrate and bring to nothing every evil counsel and purpose – such as the will of the devil, the world, and our own flesh – which would hinder the hallowing of your name and prevent the coming of your kingdom. Strengthen and keep us steadfast in your Word and in faith even unto the end. Let this your good and gracious will be done. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Gospel Fridays
Mark 8:34-9:1
Calling the crowd along with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me and the gospel will save it. For what does it benefit someone to gain the whole world and yet lose his life? What can anyone give in exchange for his life? For whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”
Then he said to them, “Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God come in power.”
"Thy Kingdom Come"
O God, everlasting Father, whose kingdom comes of itself, we pray that it may come also unto us. To this end give us your Holy Spirit, so that by his grace we may believe your holy Word, and live godly lives here on earth and in heaven forever. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Theology Thursdays
Romans 14:13-17
Therefore, let us no longer judge one another. Instead decide never to put a stumbling block or pitfall in the way of your brother or sister. I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself. Still, to someone who considers a thing to be unclean, to that one it is unclean. For if your brother or sister is hurt by what you eat, you are no longer walking according to love. Do not destroy, by what you eat, someone for whom Christ died. Therefore, do not let your good be slandered, for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.
"Thy Kingdom Come"
O God, everlasting Father, whose kingdom comes of itself, we pray that it may come also unto us. To this end give us your Holy Spirit, so that by his grace we may believe your holy Word, and live godly lives here on earth and in heaven forever. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Psalm for the Week
Psalm 127
Unless the Lord builds a house,
its builders labor over it in vain;
unless the Lord watches over a city,
the watchman stays alert in vain.
In vain you get up early and stay up late,
working hard to have enough food—
yes, he gives sleep to the one he loves.
Sons are indeed a heritage from the Lord,
offspring, a reward.
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
are the sons born in one’s youth.
Happy is the man who has filled his quiver with them.
They will never be put to shame
when they speak with their enemies at the city gate.
"Thy Kingdom Come"
O God, everlasting Father, whose kingdom comes of itself, we pray that it may come also unto us. To this end give us your Holy Spirit, so that by his grace we may believe your holy Word, and live godly lives here on earth and in heaven forever. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
2 Kings 17:6-13
In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria. He deported the Israelites to Assyria and settled them in Halah, along the Habor (Gozan’s river), and in the cities of the Medes.
This disaster happened because the people of Israel sinned against the Lord their God who had brought them out of the land of Egypt from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt and because they worshiped other gods. They lived according to the customs of the nations that the Lord had dispossessed before the Israelites and according to what the kings of Israel did. The Israelites secretly did things against the Lord their God that were not right. They built high places in all their towns from watchtower to fortified city. They set up for themselves sacred pillars and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree. They burned incense there on all the high places just like the nations that the Lord had driven out before them had done. They did evil things, angering the Lord. They served idols, although the Lord had told them, “You must not do this.” Still, the Lord warned Israel and Judah through every prophet and every seer, saying, “Turn from your evil ways and keep my commands and statutes according to the whole law I commanded your ancestors and sent to you through my servants the prophets.”
"Thy Kingdom Come"
O God, everlasting Father, whose kingdom comes of itself, we pray that it may come also unto us. To this end give us your Holy Spirit, so that by his grace we may believe your holy Word, and live godly lives here on earth and in heaven forever. Amen.
Sermon for the 18th Sunday after Trinity
Ezekiel 20:1-12; John 20:26-31
A look at the 1st petition of the Lord's Prayer - "Hallowed be Thy Name". How does it connect us to the 2nd/3rd Commandment? How is that we cling to our names more than God? How is God's name made holy in and of itself?
Words for the Weary
Prayer from the Catechism
"Thy Kingdom Come"
O God, everlasting Father, whose kingdom comes of itself, we pray that it may come also unto us. To this end give us your Holy Spirit, so that by his grace we may believe your holy Word, and live godly lives here on earth and in heaven forever. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Gospel Fridays
John 20:26-31
A week later his disciples were indoors again, and Thomas was with them. Even though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.”
Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and look at my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Don’t be faithless, but believe.”
Thomas responded to him, “My Lord and my God!”
Jesus said, “Because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe.”
Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples that are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
O God, whose name is holy of itself, we pray that it may be hallowed also by us. To this end help us, O blessed Father in heaven, that your Word may be taught in truth and purity, and that we, as your children, may lead holy lives in accordance with it; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Theology Thursdays
Acts 4:8-12
Then Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit and said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders: If we are being examined today about a good deed done to a disabled man, by what means he was healed, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified and whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing here before you healthy. This Jesus is
the stone rejected by you builders,
which has become the cornerstone.
There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to people by which we must be saved.”
O God, whose name is holy of itself, we pray that it may be hallowed also by us. To this end help us, O blessed Father in heaven, that your Word may be taught in truth and purity, and that we, as your children, may lead holy lives in accordance with it; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Psalm of the Week
Psalm 124
If the Lord had not been on our side—
let Israel say—
if the Lord had not been on our side
when people attacked us,
then they would have swallowed us alive
in their burning anger against us.
Then the water would have engulfed us;
the torrent would have swept over us;
the raging water would have swept over us.
Blessed be the Lord,
who has not let us be ripped apart by their teeth.
We have escaped like a bird from the hunter’s net;
the net is torn, and we have escaped.
Our help is in the name of the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
O God, whose name is holy of itself, we pray that it may be hallowed also by us. To this end help us, O blessed Father in heaven, that your Word may be taught in truth and purity, and that we, as your children, may lead holy lives in accordance with it; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
Ezekiel 20:1-12
In the seventh year, in the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month, certain elders of Israel came to consult the Lord, and sat down before me. And the word of the Lord came to me: Mortal, speak to the elders of Israel, and say to them: Thus says the Lord God: Why are you coming? To consult me? As I live, says the Lord God, I will not be consulted by you. Will you judge them, mortal, will you judge them? Then let them know the abominations of their ancestors, and say to them: Thus says the Lord God: On the day when I chose Israel, I swore to the offspring of the house of Jacob—making myself known to them in the land of Egypt—I swore to them, saying, I am the Lord your God. On that day I swore to them that I would bring them out of the land of Egypt into a land that I had searched out for them, a land flowing with milk and honey, the most glorious of all lands. And I said to them, Cast away the detestable things your eyes feast on, every one of you, and do not defile yourselves with the idols of Egypt; I am the Lord your God. But they rebelled against me and would not listen to me; not one of them cast away the detestable things their eyes feasted on, nor did they forsake the idols of Egypt.
Then I thought I would pour out my wrath upon them and spend my anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt. But I acted for the sake of my name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations among whom they lived, in whose sight I made myself known to them in bringing them out of the land of Egypt. So I led them out of the land of Egypt and brought them into the wilderness. I gave them my statutes and showed them my ordinances, by whose observance everyone shall live. Moreover I gave them my sabbaths, as a sign between me and them, so that they might know that I the Lord sanctify them.
O God, whose name is holy of itself, we pray that it may be hallowed also by us. To this end help us, O blessed Father in heaven, that your Word may be taught in truth and purity, and that we, as your children, may lead holy lives in accordance with it; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Prayer for the 18th Sunday after Trinity
O God, whose name is holy of itself, we pray that it may be hallowed also by us. To this end help us, O blessed Father in heaven, that your Word may be taught in truth and purity, and that we, as your children, may lead holy lives in accordance with it; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Gospel Fridays
Luke 15:17-24
But when he came to himself he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger! I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.”’ So he set off and went to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. Then the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ But the father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly, bring out a robe—the best one—and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. And get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!’ And they began to celebrate.
Our Father in heaven, with these words we ask that you would entice us so that we come to believe that you are truly our Father and we are truly your children, in order that we may ask you boldly and with complete confidence, just as loving children ask their loving father, knowing that you hear us; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Theology Thursdays
Romans 8:12-17
So then, brothers and sisters, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh— for if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, “Abba! Father!” it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ—if, in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.
Our Father in heaven, with these words we ask that you would entice us so that we come to believe that you are truly our Father and we are truly your children, in order that we may ask you boldly and with complete confidence, just as loving children ask their loving father, knowing that you hear us; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary (September 21st)
Psalm for the Week
Psalm 2
Why do the nations rage
and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth take their stand,
and the rulers conspire together
against the Lord and his Anointed One:
“Let’s tear off their chains
and throw their ropes off of us.”
The one enthroned in heaven laughs;
the Lord ridicules them.
Then he speaks to them in his anger
and terrifies them in his wrath:
“I have installed my king
on Zion, my holy mountain.”
I will declare the Lord’s decree.
He said to me, “You are my Son;
today I have become your Father.
Ask of me,
and I will make the nations your inheritance
and the ends of the earth your possession.
You will break them with an iron scepter;
you will shatter them like pottery.”
So now, kings, be wise;
receive instruction, you judges of the earth.
Serve the Lord with reverential awe
and rejoice with trembling.
Pay homage to the Son or he will be angry
and you will perish in your rebellion,
for his anger may ignite at any moment.
All who take refuge in him are happy.
Our Father in heaven, with these words we ask that you would entice us so that we come to believe that you are truly our Father and we are truly your children, in order that we may ask you boldly and with complete confidence, just as loving children ask their loving father, knowing that you hear us; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary (September 21st)
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
2 Kings 12:4-16
Then Joash said to the priests, “All the dedicated silver brought to the Lord’s temple, census silver, silver from vows, and all silver voluntarily given for the Lord’s temple— each priest is to take it from his assessor and repair whatever damage is found in the temple.”
But by the twenty-third year of the reign of King Joash, the priests had not repaired the damage to the temple. So King Joash called the priest Jehoiada and the other priests and asked, “Why haven’t you repaired the temple’s damage? Since you haven’t, don’t take any silver from your assessors; instead, hand it over for the repair of the temple.” So the priests agreed that they would receive no silver from the people and would not be the ones to repair the temple’s damage.
Then the priest Jehoiada took a chest, bored a hole in its lid, and set it beside the altar on the right side as one enters the Lord’s temple; the priests who guarded the threshold put into the chest all the silver that was brought to the Lord’s temple. Whenever they saw there was a large amount of silver in the chest, the king’s secretary and the high priest would go bag up and tally the silver found in the Lord’s temple. Then they would give the weighed silver to those doing the work—those who oversaw the Lord’s temple. They in turn would pay it out to those working on the Lord’s temple—the carpenters, the builders, the masons, and the stonecutters—and would use it to buy timber and quarried stone to repair the damage to the Lord’s temple and for all expenses for temple repairs.
However, no silver bowls, wick trimmers, sprinkling basins, trumpets, or any articles of gold or silver were made for the Lord’s temple from the contributions brought to the Lord’s temple. Instead, it was given to those doing the work, and they repaired the Lord’s temple with it. No accounting was required from the men who received the silver to pay those doing the work, since they worked with integrity. The silver from the guilt offering and the sin offering was not brought to the Lord’s temple since it belonged to the priests.
Our Father in heaven, with these words we ask that you would entice us so that we come to believe that you are truly our Father and we are truly your children, in order that we may ask you boldly and with complete confidence, just as loving children ask their loving father, knowing that you hear us; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary (September 20th)
Prayer from the Catechism
Our Father in Heaven...
Our Father in heaven, with these words we ask that you would entice us so that we come to believe that you are truly our Father and we are truly your children, in order that we may ask you boldly and with complete confidence, just as loving children ask their loving father, knowing that you hear us; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Fridays in the Gospels
John 4:7-15
A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” (His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?” (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” The woman said to him, “Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well, and with his sons and his flocks drank from it?” Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.” The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I may never be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.”
The Prayer for the 16th Sunday after Trinity
O Lord, we beseech thee, let thy continual pity cleanse and defend thy Church; and, because it cannot continue in safety without thy succour, preserve it evermore by thy help and goodness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Theology Thursdays
Revelation 22:1-5
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city. On either side of the river is the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. Nothing accursed will be found there any more. But the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him; they will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And there will be no more night; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.
The Prayer for the 16th Sunday after Trinity
O Lord, we beseech thee, let thy continual pity cleanse and defend thy Church; and, because it cannot continue in safety without thy succour, preserve it evermore by thy help and goodness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Psalm for the Week
Psalm 76
God is known in Judah;
his name is great in Israel.
His tent is in Salem,
his dwelling place in Zion.
There he shatters the bow’s flaming arrows,
the shield, the sword, and the weapons of war.
You are resplendent and majestic
coming down from the mountains of prey.
The brave-hearted have been plundered;
they have slipped into their final sleep.
None of the warriors was able to lift a hand.
At your rebuke, God of Jacob,
both chariot and horse lay still.
And you—you are to be feared.
When you are angry,
who can stand before you?
From heaven you pronounced judgment.
The earth feared and grew quiet
when God rose up to judge
and to save all the lowly of the earth.
Even human wrath will praise you;
you will clothe yourself
with the wrath that remains.
Make and keep your vows
to the Lord your God;
let all who are around him bring tribute
to the awe-inspiring one.
He humbles the spirit of leaders;
he is feared by the kings of the earth.
The Prayer for the 16th Sunday after Trinity
O Lord, we beseech thee, let thy continual pity cleanse and defend thy Church; and, because it cannot continue in safety without thy succour, preserve it evermore by thy help and goodness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
2 Kings 2:9-14
When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me what I may do for you, before I am taken from you.” Elisha said, “Please let me inherit a double share of your spirit.” He responded, “You have asked a hard thing; yet, if you see me as I am being taken from you, it will be granted you; if not, it will not.” As they continued walking and talking, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them, and Elijah ascended in a whirlwind into heaven. Elisha kept watching and crying out, “Father, father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” But when he could no longer see him, he grasped his own clothes and tore them in two pieces.
He picked up the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him, and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan. He took the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him, and struck the water, saying, “Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah?” When he had struck the water, the water was parted to the one side and to the other, and Elisha went over.
The Prayer for the 16th Sunday after Trinity
O Lord, we beseech thee, let thy continual pity cleanse and defend thy Church; and, because it cannot continue in safety without thy succour, preserve it evermore by thy help and goodness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Cranmer's Prayers of the Day
Prayer for the 16th Sunday after Trinity
O LORD, we beseech thee, let thy continual pity cleanse and defend thy Church; and, because it cannot continue in safety without thy succour, preserve it evermore by thy help and goodness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Sermon for the 16th Sunday After Pentecost
Revelation 17:1-6, 19:11-16
Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great whore who is seated on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and with the wine of whose fornication the inhabitants of the earth have become drunk.” So he carried me away in the spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. The woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her fornication; and on her forehead was written a name, a mystery: “Babylon the great, mother of whores and of earth’s abominations.” And I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of the saints and the blood of the witnesses to Jesus.
When I saw her, I was greatly amazed.
John 12:44-50
Then Jesus cried aloud: “Whoever believes in me believes not in me but in him who sent me. And whoever sees me sees him who sent me. I have come as light into the world, so that everyone who believes in me should not remain in the darkness. I do not judge anyone who hears my words and does not keep them, for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. The one who rejects me and does not receive my word has a judge; on the last day the word that I have spoken will serve as judge, for I have not spoken on my own, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment about what to say and what to speak. And I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I speak, therefore, I speak just as the Father has told me.”
Words for the Weary
Fridays in the Gospels
John 12:44-50
And Jesus cried out and said, “He who believes in me, believes not in me but in him who sent me. And he who sees me sees him who sent me. I have come as light into the world, that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness. If any one hears my sayings and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. He who rejects me and does not receive my sayings has a judge; the word that I have spoken will be his judge on the last day. For I have not spoken on my own authority; the Father who sent me has himself given me commandment what to say and what to speak. And I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has bidden me.”
The Prayer for the 15th Sunday after Trinity
Keep, we beseech thee, O Lord, thy Church with thy perpetual mercy: and, because the frailty of man without thee cannot but fall, keep us ever by thy help from all things hurtful, and lead us to all things profitable to our salvation; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Theology Thursdays
Revelation 17:1-6
Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great whore who is seated on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and with the wine of whose fornication the inhabitants of the earth have become drunk.” So he carried me away in the spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. The woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her fornication; and on her forehead was written a name, a mystery: “Babylon the great, mother of whores and of earth’s abominations.” And I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of the saints and the blood of the witnesses to Jesus.
The Prayer for the 15th Sunday after Trinity
Keep, we beseech thee, O Lord, thy Church with thy perpetual mercy: and, because the frailty of man without thee cannot but fall, keep us ever by thy help from all things hurtful, and lead us to all things profitable to our salvation; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Psalm for the Week
Psalm 38
PUT me not to rebuke, O Lord, in thine anger : neither chasten me in thy heavy displeasure.
2. For thine arrows stick fast in me : and thy hand presseth me sore.
3. There is no health in my flesh, because of thy displeasure : neither is there any rest in my bones, by reason of my sin.
4. For my wickednesses are gone over my head : and are like a sore burden, too heavy for me to bear.
5. My wounds stink, and are corrupt : through my foolishness.
6. I am brought into so great trouble and misery : that I go mourning all the day long.
7. For my loins are filled with a sore disease : and there is no whole part in my body.
8. I am feeble, and sore smitten : I have roared for the very disquietness of my heart.
9. Lord, thou knowest all my desire : and my groaning is not hid from thee.
10. My heart panteth, my strength hath failed me : and the sight of mine eyes is gone from me.
11. My lovers and my neighbours did stand looking upon my trouble : and my kinsmen stood afar off.
12. They also that sought after my life laid snares for me : and they that went about to do me evil talked of wickedness, and imagined deceit all the day long.
13. As for me, I was like a deaf man, and heard not : and as one that is dumb, who doth not open his mouth.
14. I became even as a man that heareth not : and in whose mouth are no reproofs.
15. For in thee, O Lord, have I put my trust : thou shalt answer for me, O Lord my God.
16. I have required that they, even mine enemies, should not triumph over me : for when my foot slipped, they rejoiced greatly against me.
17. And I, truly, am set in the plague : and my heaviness is ever in my sight.
18. For I will confess my wickedness : and be sorry for my sin.
19. But mine enemies live, and are mighty : and they that hate me wrongfully are many in number.
20. They also that reward evil for good are against me : because I follow the thing that good is.
21. Forsake me not, O Lord my God : be not thou far from me.
22. Haste thee to help me : O Lord God of my salvation.
The Prayer for the 15th Sunday after Trinity
Keep, we beseech thee, O Lord, thy Church with thy perpetual mercy: and, because the frailty of man without thee cannot but fall, keep us ever by thy help from all things hurtful, and lead us to all things profitable to our salvation; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
1 Kings 19:9b-18
Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” He answered, “I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are seeking my life, to take it away.”
He said, “Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.” Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Then there came a voice to him that said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” He answered, “I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are seeking my life, to take it away.” Then the Lord said to him, “Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus; when you arrive, you shall anoint Hazael as king over Aram. Also you shall anoint Jehu son of Nimshi as king over Israel; and you shall anoint Elisha son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah as prophet in your place. Whoever escapes from the sword of Hazael, Jehu shall kill; and whoever escapes from the sword of Jehu, Elisha shall kill. Yet I will leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.”
The Prayer for the 15th Sunday after Trinity
Keep, we beseech thee, O Lord, thy Church with thy perpetual mercy: and, because the frailty of man without thee cannot but fall, keep us ever by thy help from all things hurtful, and lead us to all things profitable to our salvation; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
The Prayer for the 15th Sunday after Trinity
Keep, we beseech thee, O Lord, thy Church with thy perpetual mercy: and, because the frailty of man without thee cannot but fall, keep us ever by thy help from all things hurtful, and lead us to all things profitable to our salvation; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Fridays in the Gospels
Matthew 24:15-28
“So when you see the desolating sacrilege standing in the holy place, as was spoken of by the prophet Daniel (let the reader understand), then those in Judea must flee to the mountains; the one on the housetop must not go down to take what is in the house; the one in the field must not turn back to get a coat. Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing infants in those days! Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a sabbath. For at that time there will be great suffering, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no one would be saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look! Here is the Messiah!’ or ‘There he is!’—do not believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and produce great signs and omens, to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. Take note, I have told you beforehand. So, if they say to you, ‘Look! He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look! He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.
The Prayer for the 14th Sunday after Trinity
Almighty and everlasting God, give unto us the increase of faith, hope, and charity; and, that we may obtain that which thou dost promise, make us to love that which thou dost command; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Theology Thursdays
Revelation 13:5-10
The beast was given a mouth to utter boasts and blasphemies. It was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. It began to speak blasphemies against God: to blaspheme his name and his dwelling—those who dwell in heaven. And it was permitted to wage war against the saints and to conquer them. It was also given authority over every tribe, people, language, and nation. All those who live on the earth will worship it, everyone whose name was not written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slaughtered.
If anyone has ears to hear, let him listen.
If anyone is to be taken captive,
into captivity he goes.
If anyone is to be killed with a sword,
with a sword he will be killed.
This calls for endurance and faithfulness from the saints.
The Prayer for the 14th Sunday after Trinity
Almighty and everlasting God, give unto us the increase of faith, hope, and charity; and, that we may obtain that which thou dost promise, make us to love that which thou dost command; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Psalm for the week
Psalm 8
O LORD our Governor, how excellent is thy Name in all the world : thou that hast set thy glory above the heavens!
Out of the mouth of very babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength, because of thine enemies : that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger.
For I will consider thy heavens, even the works of thy fingers : the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained.
What is man, that thou art mindful of him : and the son of man, that thou visitest him?
Thou madest him lower than the angels : to crown him with glory and worship.
Thou makest him to have dominion of the works of thy hands : and thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet;
All sheep and oxen : yea, and the beasts of the field;
The fowls of the air, and the fishes of the sea : and whatsoever walketh through the paths of the seas.
O Lord our Governor : how excellent is thy Name in all the world!
The Prayer for the 14th Sunday after Trinity
Almighty and everlasting God, give unto us the increase of faith, hope, and charity; and, that we may obtain that which thou dost promise, make us to love that which thou dost command; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
1 Kings 11:1-10
King Solomon loved many foreign women in addition to Pharaoh’s daughter: Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women from the nations about which the Lord had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry with them, and they must not intermarry with you, because they will turn your heart away to follow their gods.” To these women Solomon was deeply attached in love. He had seven hundred wives who were princesses and three hundred who were concubines, and they turned his heart away.
When Solomon was old, his wives turned his heart away to follow other gods. He was not wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord his God, as his father David had been. Solomon followed Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, and Milcom, the abhorrent idol of the Ammonites. Solomon did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, and unlike his father David, he did not remain loyal to the Lord.
At that time, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh, the abhorrent idol of Moab, and for Milcom, the abhorrent idol of the Ammonites, on the hill across from Jerusalem. He did the same for all his foreign wives, who were burning incense and offering sacrifices to their gods.
The Lord was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice. He had commanded him about this, so that he would not follow other gods, but Solomon did not do what the Lord had commanded.
The Prayer for the 14th Sunday after Trinity
Almighty and everlasting God, give unto us the increase of faith, hope, and charity; and, that we may obtain that which thou dost promise, make us to love that which thou dost command; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Prayer for the 14th Sunday after Trinity
Almighty and everlasting God, give unto us the increase of faith, hope, and charity; and, that we may obtain that which thou dost promise, make us to love that which thou dost command; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Fridays in the Gospels
Matthew 24:1-14
As Jesus left and was going out of the temple, his disciples came up and called his attention to its buildings. He replied to them, “Do you see all these things? Truly I tell you, not one stone will be left here on another that will not be thrown down.”
While he was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples approached him privately and said, “Tell us, when will these things happen? And what is the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”
Jesus replied to them, “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and they will deceive many. You are going to hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, because these things must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these events are the beginning of labor pains.
“Then they will hand you over to be persecuted, and they will kill you. You will be hated by all nations because of my name. Then many will fall away, betray one another, and hate one another. Many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. Because lawlessness will multiply, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. This good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed in all the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
Prayer for the 13th Sunday after Trinity
Almighty and merciful God, of whose only gift it cometh that thy faithful people do unto thee true and laudable service; Grant, we beseech thee, that we may so faithfully serve thee in this life, that we fail not finally to attain thy heavenly promises; through the merits of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Theology Thursdays
Revelation 6:1-8 & 7:9-17
Then I saw the Lamb open one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures say with a voice like thunder, “Come!” I looked, and there was a white horse. Its rider held a bow; a crown was given to him, and he went out as a conqueror in order to conquer.
When he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!” Then another horse went out, a fiery red one, and its rider was allowed to take peace from the earth, so that people would slaughter one another. And a large sword was given to him.
When he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” And I looked, and there was a black horse. Its rider held a set of scales in his hand. Then I heard something like a voice among the four living creatures say, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius, but do not harm the oil and the wine.”
When he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come!” And I looked, and there was a pale green horse. Its rider was named Death, and Hades was following after him. They were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill by the sword, by famine, by plague, and by the wild animals of the earth.
After this I looked, and there was a vast multitude from every nation, tribe, people, and language, which no one could number, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were clothed in white robes with palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice:
Salvation belongs to our God,
who is seated on the throne,
and to the Lamb!
All the angels stood around the throne, and along with the elders and the four living creatures they fell facedown before the throne and worshiped God, saying,
Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom
and thanksgiving and honor
and power and strength
be to our God forever and ever. Amen.
Then one of the elders asked me, “Who are these people in white robes, and where did they come from?”
I said to him, “Sir, you know.”
Then he told me: These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
For this reason they are before the throne of God,
and they serve him day and night in his temple.
The one seated on the throne will shelter them:
They will no longer hunger;
they will no longer thirst;
the sun will no longer strike them,
nor will any scorching heat.
For the Lamb who is at the center of the throne
will shepherd them;
he will guide them to springs of the waters of life,
and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.
Prayer for the 13th Sunday after Trinity
Almighty and merciful God, of whose only gift it cometh that thy faithful people do unto thee true and laudable service; Grant, we beseech thee, that we may so faithfully serve thee in this life, that we fail not finally to attain thy heavenly promises; through the merits of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Psalm of the Week
Psalm 116
I am well pleased : that the Lord hath heard the voice of my prayer;
That he hath inclined his ear unto me : therefore will I call upon him as long as I live.
The snares of death compassed me round about : and the pains of hell gat hold upon me.
I shall find trouble and heaviness, and I will call upon the Name of the Lord : O Lord, I beseech thee, deliver my soul.
Gracious is the Lord, and righteous : yea, our God is merciful.
The Lord preserveth the simple : I was in misery, and he helped me.
Turn again then unto thy rest, O my soul : for the Lord hath rewarded thee.
And why? thou hast delivered my soul from death : mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling.
I will walk before the Lord : in the land of the living.
I believed, and therefore will I speak; but I was sore troubled : I said in my haste, All men are liars.
What reward shall I give unto the Lord : for all the benefits that he hath done unto me?
I will receive the cup of salvation : and call upon the Name of the Lord.
I will pay my vows now in the presence of all his people : right dear in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.
Behold, O Lord, how that I am thy servant : I am thy servant, and the son of thine handmaid; thou hast broken my bonds in sunder.
I will offer to thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving : and will call upon the Name of the Lord.
I will pay my vows unto the Lord, in the sight of all his people : in the courts of the Lord's house, even in the midst of thee, O Jerusalem. Praise the Lord.
Prayer for the 13th Sunday after Trinity
Almighty and merciful God, of whose only gift it cometh that thy faithful people do unto thee true and laudable service; Grant, we beseech thee, that we may so faithfully serve thee in this life, that we fail not finally to attain thy heavenly promises; through the merits of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
1 Kings 2:10-12
Then David rested with his ancestors and was buried in the city of David. The length of time David reigned over Israel was forty years: he reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. Solomon sat on the throne of his father David, and his kingship was firmly established.
Prayer for the 13th Sunday after Trinity
Almighty and merciful God, of whose only gift it cometh that thy faithful people do unto thee true and laudable service; Grant, we beseech thee, that we may so faithfully serve thee in this life, that we fail not finally to attain thy heavenly promises; through the merits of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Prayer for the 13th Sunday after Trinity
Almighty and merciful God, of whose only gift it cometh that thy faithful people do unto thee true and laudable service; Grant, we beseech thee, that we may so faithfully serve thee in this life, that we fail not finally to attain thy heavenly promises; through the merits of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Gospel Fridays
John 1:19-29
This was John’s testimony when the Jews from Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him, “Who are you?”
He didn’t deny it but confessed, “I am not the Messiah.”
“What then?” they asked him. “Are you Elijah?”
“I am not,” he said.
“Are you the Prophet?”
“No,” he answered.
“Who are you, then?” they asked. “We need to give an answer to those who sent us. What can you tell us about yourself?”
He said, “I am a voice of one crying out in the wilderness: Make straight the way of the Lord—just as Isaiah the prophet said.”
Now they had been sent from the Pharisees. So they asked him, “Why then do you baptize if you aren’t the Messiah, or Elijah, or the Prophet?”
“I baptize with water,” John answered them. “Someone stands among you, but you don’t know him. He is the one coming after me, whose sandal strap I’m not worthy to untie.” All this happened in Bethany across the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!
Prayer for the 12th Sunday after Trinity
Almighty and everlasting God, who art always more ready to hear than we are to pray, and art wont to give more than either we desire, or deserve; Pour down upon us the abundance of thy mercy; forgiving us those things whereof our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things which we are not worthy to ask, but through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ, thy Son, our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Theology Thursdays
Revelation 5
Then I saw in the right hand of the one seated on the throne a scroll with writing on both sides, sealed with seven seals. I also saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or even to look in it. I wept and wept because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or even to look in it. Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep. Look, the Lion from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered so that he is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”
Then I saw one like a slaughtered lamb standing in the midst of the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent into all the earth. He went and took the scroll out of the right hand of the one seated on the throne.
When he took the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and golden bowls filled with incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a new song:
You are worthy to take the scroll
and to open its seals,
because you were slaughtered,
and you purchased people
for God by your blood
from every tribe and language
and people and nation.
You made them a kingdom
and priests to our God,
and they will reign on the earth.
Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels around the throne, and also of the living creatures and of the elders. Their number was countless thousands, plus thousands of thousands. They said with a loud voice,
Worthy is the Lamb who was slaughtered
to receive power and riches
and wisdom and strength
and honor and glory and blessing!
I heard every creature in heaven, on earth, under the earth, on the sea, and everything in them say,
Blessing and honor and glory and power
be to the one seated on the throne,
and to the Lamb, forever and ever!
The four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders fell down and worshiped.
Prayer for the 12th Sunday after Trinity
Almighty and everlasting God, who art always more ready to hear than we are to pray, and art wont to give more than either we desire, or deserve; Pour down upon us the abundance of thy mercy; forgiving us those things whereof our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things which we are not worthy to ask, but through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ, thy Son, our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Psalm for the Week
Psalm 90:1-6, 13-17
Lord, you have been our refuge
in every generation.
Before the mountains were born,
before you gave birth to the earth and the world,
from eternity to eternity, you are God.
You return mankind to the dust,
saying, “Return, descendants of Adam.”
For in your sight a thousand years
are like yesterday that passes by,
like a few hours of the night.
You end their lives; they sleep.
They are like grass that grows in the morning—
in the morning it sprouts and grows;
by evening it withers and dries up...
...Lord—how long?
Turn and have compassion on your servants.
Satisfy us in the morning with your faithful love
so that we may shout with joy and be glad all our days.
Make us rejoice for as many days as you have humbled us,
for as many years as we have seen adversity.
Let your work be seen by your servants,
and your splendor by their children.
Let the favor of the Lord our God be on us;
establish for us the work of our hands—
establish the work of our hands!
Prayer for the 12th Sunday after Trinity
Almighty and everlasting God, who art always more ready to hear than we are to pray, and art wont to give more than either we desire, or deserve; Pour down upon us the abundance of thy mercy; forgiving us those things whereof our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things which we are not worthy to ask, but through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ, thy Son, our Lord. Amen.
...just as He made the One who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.
Words for the Weary
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
2 Samuel 24:18-24
On that day Gad went to David and said to him, “Go up and build an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.” So David went up, as the Lord had commanded through Gad. When Araunah looked and saw the king and his officials coming toward him, he went out and bowed down before the king with his face to the ground.
Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?”
“To buy your threshing floor,” David answered, “so I can build an altar to the Lord, that the plague on the people may be stopped.”
Araunah said to David, “Let my lord the king take whatever he wishes and offer it up. Here are oxen for the burnt offering, and here are threshing sledges and ox yokes for the wood. Your Majesty, Araunah gives all this to the king.” Araunah also said to him, “May the Lord your God accept you.”
But the king replied to Araunah, “No, I insist on paying you for it. I will not sacrifice to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing.”
Prayer for the 12th Sunday after Trinity
Almighty and everlasting God, who art always more ready to hear than we are to pray, and art wont to give more than either we desire, or deserve; Pour down upon us the abundance of thy mercy; forgiving us those things whereof our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things which we are not worthy to ask, but through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ, thy Son, our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Cranmer's Prayer the for the 12th Sunday after Trinity
Almighty and everlasting God, who art always more ready to hear than we are to pray, and art wont to give more than either we desire, or deserve; Pour down upon us the abundance of thy mercy; forgiving us those things whereof our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things which we are not worthy to ask, but through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ, thy Son, our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Fridays in the Gospels
John 1:1-5
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. All things were created through him, and apart from him not one thing was created that has been created. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. That light shines in the darkness, and yet the darkness did not overcome it.
Prayer for the 11th Sunday after Trinity - 1662 BCP
O God, who declarest thy almighty power most chiefly in shewing mercy and pity; Mercifully grant unto us such a measure of thy grace, that we, running the way of thy commandments, may obtain thy gracious promises, and be made partakers of thy heavenly treasure; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
Words for the Weary
Theology Thursday
Revelation 4:1-11
After this I looked, and there in heaven was an open door. The first voice that I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.”
Immediately I was in the Spirit, and there was a throne in heaven and someone was seated on it. The one seated there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian stone. A rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald surrounded the throne.
Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and on the thrones sat twenty-four elders dressed in white clothes, with golden crowns on their heads.
Flashes of lightning and rumblings and peals of thunder came from the throne. Seven fiery torches were burning before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God. Something like a sea of glass, similar to crystal, was also before the throne.
Four living creatures covered with eyes in front and in back were around the throne on each side. The first living creature was like a lion; the second living creature was like an ox; the third living creature had a face like a man; and the fourth living creature was like a flying eagle. Each of the four living creatures had six wings; they were covered with eyes around and inside. Day and night they never stop, saying,
Holy, holy, holy,
Lord God, the Almighty,
who was, who is, and who is to come.
Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor, and thanks to the one seated on the throne, the one who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before the one seated on the throne and worship the one who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne and say,
Our Lord and God,
you are worthy to receive
glory and honor and power,
because you have created all things,
and by your will
they exist and were created.
Prayer for the 11th Sunday after Trinity - 1662 BCP
O God, who declarest thy almighty power most chiefly in shewing mercy and pity; Mercifully grant unto us such a measure of thy grace, that we, running the way of thy commandments, may obtain thy gracious promises, and be made partakers of thy heavenly treasure; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
Words for the Weary
Psalm for the Week
Psalm 57 . Miserere mei, Deus
1. BE MERCIFUL unto me, O God, be merciful unto me, for my soul trusteth in thee : and under the shadow of thy wings shall be my refuge, until this tyranny be over-past.
2. I will call unto the most high God : even unto the God that shall perform the cause which I have in hand.
3. He shall send from heaven : and save me from the reproof of him that would eat me up.
4. God shall send forth his mercy and truth : my soul is among lions.
5. And I lie even among the children of men, that are set on fire : whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword
6. Set up thyself, O God, above the heavens : and thy glory above all the earth.
7. They have laid a net for my feet, and pressed down my soul : they have digged a pit before me, and are fallen into the midst of it themselves.
8. My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed : I will sing, and give praise.
9. Awake up, my glory; awake, lute and harp : I myself will awake right early.
10. I will give thanks unto thee, O Lord, among the people : and I will sing unto thee among the nations.
11. For the greatness of thy mercy reacheth unto the heavens : and thy truth unto the clouds.
12. Set up thyself, O God, above the heavens : and thy glory above all the earth.
Prayer for the 11th Sunday after Trinity - 1662 BCP
O God, who declarest thy almighty power most chiefly in shewing mercy and pity; Mercifully grant unto us such a measure of thy grace, that we, running the way of thy commandments, may obtain thy gracious promises, and be made partakers of thy heavenly treasure; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
Words for the Weary
Tuesdays in the Old Testament
2 Samuel 14:13-14
The woman said, “Why then have you devised a thing like this against the people of God? When the king says this, does he not convict himself, for the king has not brought back his banished son? Like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be recovered, so we must die. But that is not what God desires; rather, he devises ways so that a banished person does not remain banished from him.
Prayer for the 11th Sunday after Trinity - 1662 BCP
O God, who declarest thy almighty power most chiefly in shewing mercy and pity; Mercifully grant unto us such a measure of thy grace, that we, running the way of thy commandments, may obtain thy gracious promises, and be made partakers of thy heavenly treasure; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
Words for the Weary
Prayer for the 11th Sunday after Trinity - 1662 BCP
O God, who declarest thy almighty power most chiefly in shewing mercy and pity; Mercifully grant unto us such a measure of thy grace, that we, running the way of thy commandments, may obtain thy gracious promises, and be made partakers of thy heavenly treasure; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary
Fridays in the Gospels
Matthew 5:13-16
“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
Let thy merciful ears, O Lord, be open to the prayers of thy humble servants; and that they may obtain their petitions make them to ask such things as shall please thee; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Words for the Weary (August 5th)
Theology Thursday
Revelation 1:9-2:7
I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, which said: “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.”
I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and among the lampstands was someone like a son of man, dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. The hair on his head was white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, and coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance.
Let thy merciful ears, O Lord, be open to the prayers of thy humble servants; and that they may obtain their petitions make them to ask such things as shall please thee; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.
“Write, therefore, what you have seen, what is now and what will take place later. The mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand and of the seven golden lampstands is this: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.
“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write:
These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands. I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked people, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.
Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.
Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.
Psalm 20
May the Lord answer you when you are in distress;
may the name of the God of Jacob protect you.
May he send you help from the sanctuary
and grant you support from Zion.
May he remember all your sacrifices
and accept your burnt offerings.
May he give you the desire of your heart
and make all your plans succeed.
May we shout for joy over your victory
and lift up our banners in the name of our God.
May the Lord grant all your requests.
Now this I know:
The Lord gives victory to his anointed.
He answers him from his heavenly sanctuary
with the victorious power of his right hand.
Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.
They are brought to their knees and fall,
but we rise up and stand firm.
Lord, give victory to the king!
Answer us when we call!
Let thy merciful ears, O Lord, be open to the prayers of thy humble servants; and that they may obtain their petitions make them to ask such things as shall please thee; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
2 Samuel 4:9-11
David answered Rekab and his brother Baanah, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, “As surely as the Lord lives, who has delivered me out of every trouble, when someone told me, ‘Saul is dead,’ and thought he was bringing good news, I seized him and put him to death in Ziklag. That was the reward I gave him for his news! How much more—when wicked men have killed an innocent man in his own house and on his own bed—should I not now demand his blood from your hand and rid the earth of you!”
Let thy merciful ears, O Lord, be open to the prayers of thy humble servants; and that they may obtain their petitions make them to ask such things as shall please thee; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Let thy merciful ears, O Lord, be open to the prayers of thy humble servants; and that they may obtain their petitions make them to ask such things as shall please thee; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
John 4:46-54
Once more he visited Cana in Galilee, where he had turned the water into wine. And there was a certain royal official whose son lay sick at Capernaum. When this man heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and begged him to come and heal his son, who was close to death.
“Unless you people see signs and wonders,” Jesus told him, “you will never believe.”
The royal official said, “Sir, come down before my child dies.”
“Go,” Jesus replied, “your son will live.”
The man took Jesus at his word and departed. While he was still on the way, his servants met him with the news that his boy was living. When he inquired as to the time when his son got better, they said to him, “Yesterday, at one in the afternoon, the fever left him.”
Then the father realized that this was the exact time at which Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live.” So he and his whole household believed.
This was the second sign Jesus performed after coming from Judea to Galilee.
Grant, we beseech thee, merciful Lord, to thy faithful people pardon and peace, that they may be cleansed from all their sins, and serve thee with a quiet mind; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Ephesians 6:10-20
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.
Grant, we beseech thee, merciful Lord, to thy faithful people pardon and peace, that they may be cleansed from all their sins, and serve thee with a quiet mind; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Psalm 138 (Coverdale Psalter)
I will give thanks unto thee, O Lord, with my whole heart : even before the gods will I sing praise unto thee.
I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy Name, because of thy loving-kindness and truth : for thou hast magnified thy Name and thy word above all things.
When I called upon thee, thou heardest me : and enduedst my soul with much strength.
All the kings of the earth shall praise thee, O Lord : for they have heard the words of thy mouth.
Yea, they shall sing in the ways of the Lord : that great is the glory of the Lord.
For though the Lord be high, yet hath he respect unto the lowly : as for the proud, he beholdeth them afar off.
Though I walk in the midst of trouble, yet shalt thou refresh me : thou shalt stretch forth thy hand upon the furiousness of mine enemies, and thy right hand shall save me.
The lord shall make good his loving-kindness toward me : yea, thy mercy, O Lord, endureth for ever; despise not then the works of thine own hands.
Grant, we beseech thee, merciful Lord, to thy faithful people pardon and peace, that they may be cleansed from all their sins, and serve thee with a quiet mind; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
1 Samuel 24:16-21
When David finished saying this, Saul asked, “Is that your voice, David my son?” And he wept aloud. “You are more righteous than I,” he said. “You have treated me well, but I have treated you badly. You have just now told me about the good you did to me; the Lord delivered me into your hands, but you did not kill me. When a man finds his enemy, does he let him get away unharmed? May the Lord reward you well for the way you treated me today. I know that you will surely be king and that the kingdom of Israel will be established in your hands. Now swear to me by the Lord that you will not kill off my descendants or wipe out my name from my father’s family.”
Grant, we beseech thee, merciful Lord, to thy faithful people pardon and peace, that they may be cleansed from all their sins, and serve thee with a quiet mind; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Grant, we beseech thee, merciful Lord, to thy faithful people pardon and peace, that they may be cleansed from all their sins, and serve thee with a quiet mind; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Luke 14:1-11
One Sabbath, when Jesus went to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee, he was being carefully watched. There in front of him was a man suffering from abnormal swelling of his body. Jesus asked the Pharisees and experts in the law, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?” But they remained silent. So taking hold of the man, he healed him and sent him on his way.
Then he asked them, “If one of you has a child or an ox that falls into a well on the Sabbath day, will you not immediately pull it out?” And they had nothing to say.
When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them this parable: “When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
O God, whose never-failing providence ordereth all things both in heaven and earth; We humbly beseech thee to put away from us all hurtful things, and to give us those things which be profitable for us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Ephesians 4:1-6
As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
O God, whose never-failing providence ordereth all things both in heaven and earth; We humbly beseech thee to put away from us all hurtful things, and to give us those things which be profitable for us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Psalm 105
O give thanks unto the Lord, and call upon his Name : tell the people what things he hath done.
O let your songs be of him, and praise him : and let your talking be of all his wondrous works.
Rejoice in his holy Name : let the heart of them rejoice that seek the Lord.
Seek the Lord and his strength : seek his face evermore.
Remember the marvelous works that he hath done : his wonders, and the judgements of his mouth.
O God, whose never-failing providence ordereth all things both in heaven and earth; We humbly beseech thee to put away from us all hurtful things, and to give us those things which be profitable for us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
1 Samuel 13:10-14
Just as he finished offering the burnt offering, Samuel arrived. So Saul went out to greet him, and Samuel asked, “What have you done?”
Saul answered, “When I saw that the troops were deserting me and you didn’t come within the appointed days and the Philistines were gathering at Michmash, I thought, ‘The Philistines will now descend on me at Gilgal, and I haven’t sought the Lord’s favor.’ So I forced myself to offer the burnt offering.”
Samuel said to Saul, “You have been foolish. You have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you. It was at this time that the Lord would have permanently established your reign over Israel, but now your reign will not endure. The Lord has found a man after his own heart, and the Lord has appointed him as ruler over his people, because you have not done what the Lord commanded.”
O God, whose never-failing providence ordereth all things both in heaven and earth; We humbly beseech thee to put away from us all hurtful things, and to give us those things which be profitable for us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
O God, whose never-failing providence ordereth all things both in heaven and earth; We humbly beseech thee to put away from us all hurtful things, and to give us those things which be profitable for us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Ephesians 2:11-22
So, then, remember that at one time you were Gentiles in the flesh—called “the uncircumcised” by those called “the circumcised,” which is done in the flesh by human hands. At that time you were without Christ, excluded from the citizenship of Israel, and foreigners to the covenants of promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus, you who were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who made both groups one and tore down the dividing wall of hostility. In his flesh, he made of no effect the law consisting of commands and expressed in regulations, so that he might create in himself one new man from the two, resulting in peace. He did this so that he might reconcile both to God in one body through the cross by which he put the hostility to death. He came and proclaimed the good news of peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So, then, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with the saints, and members of God’s household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole building, being put together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you are also being built together for God’s dwelling in the Spirit.
Lord of all power and might, who art the author and giver of all good things; Graft in our hearts the love of thy Name, increase in us true religion, nourish us with all goodness, and of thy great mercy keep us in the same; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Psalm 71:1-8
Lord, I seek refuge in you;
let me never be disgraced.
In your justice, rescue and deliver me;
listen closely to me and save me.
Be a rock of refuge for me,
where I can always go.
Give the command to save me,
for you are my rock and fortress.
Deliver me, my God, from the power of the wicked,
from the grasp of the unjust and oppressive.
For you are my hope, Lord God,
my confidence from my youth.
I have leaned on you from birth;
you took me from my mother’s womb.
My praise is always about you.
I am like a miraculous sign to many,
and you are my strong refuge.
My mouth is full of praise
and honor to you all day long.
Lord of all power and might, who art the author and giver of all good things; Graft in our hearts the love of thy Name, increase in us true religion, nourish us with all goodness, and of thy great mercy keep us in the same; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
1 Samuel 10:17-19
Samuel summoned the people to the Lord at Mizpah and said to the Israelites, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I brought Israel out of Egypt, and I rescued you from the power of the Egyptians and all the kingdoms that were oppressing you.’ But today you have rejected your God, who saves you from all your troubles and afflictions. You said to him, ‘You must set a king over us.’"
Lord of all power and might, who art the author and giver of all good things; Graft in our hearts the love of thy Name, increase in us true religion, nourish us with all goodness, and of thy great mercy keep us in the same; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Lord of all power and might, who art the author and giver of all good things; Graft in our hearts the love of thy Name, increase in us true religion, nourish us with all goodness, and of thy great mercy keep us in the same; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Sermon for the 5th Sunday after Pentecost (Mark 5:21-43)
Last sermon at Faith Lutheran Church, Staples, MN
Mark 5:21-43
When Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great crowd gathered around him; and he was by the sea. Then one of the leaders of the synagogue named Jairus came and, when he saw him, fell at his feet and begged him repeatedly, “My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well, and live.” So he went with him.
And a large crowd followed him and pressed in on him. Now there was a woman who had been suffering from hemorrhages for twelve years. She had endured much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had; and she was no better, but rather grew worse. She had heard about Jesus, and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, for she said, “If I but touch his clothes, I will be made well.” Immediately her hemorrhage stopped; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. Immediately aware that power had gone forth from him, Jesus turned about in the crowd and said, “Who touched my clothes?” And his disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing in on you; how can you say, ‘Who touched me?’” He looked all around to see who had done it. But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling, fell down before him, and told him the whole truth. He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”
While he was still speaking, some people came from the leader’s house to say, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any further?” But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the leader of the synagogue, “Do not fear, only believe.” He allowed no one to follow him except Peter, James, and John, the brother of James. When they came to the house of the leader of the synagogue, he saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. When he had entered, he said to them, “Why do you make a commotion and weep? The child is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him. Then he put them all outside, and took the child’s father and mother and those who were with him, and went in where the child was. He took her by the hand and said to her, “Talitha cum,” which means, “Little girl, get up!” And immediately the girl got up and began to walk about (she was twelve years of age). At this they were overcome with amazement. He strictly ordered them that no one should know this, and told them to give her something to eat.
Let us pray. Almighty and merciful God, we implore you to hear the prayers of your people. Be our strong defense against all harm and danger, that we may live and grow in faith and hope, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
2 Corinthians 8:7-15
Now as you excel in everything—in faith, speech, knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love for us—excel also in this act of grace. I am not saying this as a command. Rather, by means of the diligence of others, I am testing the genuineness of your love. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ: Though he was rich, for your sake he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich. And in this matter I am giving advice because it is profitable for you, who began last year not only to do something but also to want to do it. Now also finish the task, so that just as there was an eager desire, there may also be a completion, according to what you have. For if the eagerness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have. It is not that there should be relief for others and hardship for you, but it is a question of equality. At the present time your surplus is available for their need, so that their abundance may in turn meet your need, in order that there may be equality. As it is written: The person who had much did not have too much, and the person who had little did not have too little.
Almighty and merciful God, we implore you to hear the prayers of your people. Be our strong defense against all harm and danger, that we may live and grow in faith and hope, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.
Amen.
Psalm 30 (ELW)
1I will exalt you, O Lord, because you have lifted me up
and have not let my enemies triumph over me.
2O Lord my God, I cried out to you,
and you restored me to health.
3You brought me up, O Lord, from the dead;
you restored my life as I was going down to the grave.
4Sing praise to the Lord, all you faithful;
give thanks in holy remembrance.
5God’s wrath is short; God’s favor lasts a lifetime.
Weeping spends the night, but joy comes in the morning.
6While I felt secure, I said,
“I shall never be disturbed.
7You, Lord, with your favor, made me as strong as the mountains.”
Then you hid your face, and I was filled with fear.
8I cried to you, O Lord;
I pleaded with my Lord, saying,
9“What profit is there in my blood, if I go down to the pit?
Will the dust praise you or declare your faithfulness?
10Hear, O Lord, and have mercy upon me;
O Lord, be my helper.”
11You have turned my wailing into dancing;
you have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy.
12Therefore my heart sings to you without ceasing;
O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever.
Almighty and merciful God, we implore you to hear the prayers of your people. Be our strong defense against all harm and danger, that we may live and grow in faith and hope, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.
Amen.
Lamentations 3:22-33
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,
his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
great is thy faithfulness.
“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
“therefore I will hope in him.”
The Lord is good to those who wait for him,
to the soul that seeks him.
It is good that one should wait quietly
for the salvation of the Lord.
It is good for a man that he bear
the yoke in his youth.
Let him sit alone in silence
when he has laid it on him;
let him put his mouth in the dust—
there may yet be hope;
let him give his cheek to the smiter,
and be filled with insults.
For the Lord will not
cast off for ever,
but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion
according to the abundance of his steadfast love;
for he does not willingly afflict
or grieve the sons of men.
Almighty and merciful God, we implore you to hear the prayers of your people. Be our strong defense against all harm and danger, that we may live and grow in faith and hope, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.
Amen.
Sermon for the 4th Sunday after Pentecost (Mark 4:38)
My last sermon at Bethany Lutheran Church, Cushing, MN - June 20, 2021
Almighty and merciful God, we implore you to hear the prayers of your people. Be our strong defense against all harm and danger, that we may live and grow in faith and hope, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
Mark 4:35-41
On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” And leaving the crowd behind, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. Other boats were with him. A great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him up and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” Then the wind ceased, and there was a dead calm. He said to them, “Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?” And they were filled with great awe and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”
O God of creation, eternal majesty, you preside over land and sea, sunshine and storm. By your strength pilot us, by your power preserve us, by your wisdom instruct us, and by your hand protect us, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
2 Corinthians 6:1-13
As we work together with him, we urge you also not to accept the grace of God in vain. For he says,
“At an acceptable time I have listened to you,
and on a day of salvation I have helped you.”
See, now is the acceptable time; see, now is the day of salvation! We are putting no obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, but as servants of God we have commended ourselves in every way: through great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, holiness of spirit, genuine love, truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left; in honor and dishonor, in ill repute and good repute. We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; as unknown, and yet are well known; as dying, and see—we are alive; as punished, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing everything.
We have spoken frankly to you Corinthians; our heart is wide open to you. There is no restriction in our affections, but only in yours. In return—I speak as to children—open wide your hearts also.
O God of creation, eternal majesty, you preside over land and sea, sunshine and storm. By your strength pilot us, by your power preserve us, by your wisdom instruct us, and by your hand protect us, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
Psalm 107:1-3, 23-32
1Give thanks to the LORD, for the LORD is good, for God’s mercy endures forever.
2Let the redeemed of the LORD proclaim that God redeemed them from the hand of the foe,
3gathering them in from the lands; from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south.
23Some went down to the sea in ships, plying their trade in deep waters.
24They beheld the works of the LORD, God’s wonderful works in the deep.
25Then God spoke, and a stormy wind arose, which tossed high the waves of the sea.
26They mounted up to the heavens and descended to the depths; their souls melted away in their peril.
27They staggered and reeled like drunkards, and all their skill was of no avail.
28Then in their trouble they cried to the LORD, and you delivered them from their distress.
29You stilled the storm to a whisper and silenced the waves of the sea.
30Then were they glad when it grew calm, when you guided them to the harbor they desired.
31Let them give thanks to you, LORD, for your steadfast love and your wonderful works for all people.
32Let them exalt you in the assembly of the people; in the council of the elders, let them sing hallelujah!
O God of creation, eternal majesty, you preside over land and sea, sunshine and storm. By your strength pilot us, by your power preserve us, by your wisdom instruct us, and by your hand protect us, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
Job 38:1-11
Then the Lord answered Job from the whirlwind. He said:
Who is this who obscures my counsel
with ignorant words?
Get ready to answer me like a man;
when I question you, you will inform me.
Where were you when I established the earth?
Tell me, if you have understanding.
Who fixed its dimensions? Certainly you know!
Who stretched a measuring line across it?
What supports its foundations?
Or who laid its cornerstone
while the morning stars sang together
and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
Who enclosed the sea behind doors
when it burst from the womb,
when I made the clouds its garment
and total darkness its blanket,
when I determined its boundaries
and put its bars and doors in place,
when I declared, “You may come this far, but no farther;
your proud waves stop here”?
O God of creation, eternal majesty, you preside over land and sea, sunshine and storm. By your strength pilot us, by your power preserve us, by your wisdom instruct us, and by your hand protect us, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
O God of creation, eternal majesty, you preside over land and sea, sunshine and storm. By your strength pilot us, by your power preserve us, by your wisdom instruct us, and by your hand protect us, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
“The kingdom of God is like this,” he said. “A man scatters seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day; the seed sprouts and grows, although he doesn’t know how. The soil produces a crop by itself—first the blade, then the head, and then the full grain on the head. As soon as the crop is ready, he sends for the sickle, because the harvest has come.”
And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable can we use to describe it? It’s like a mustard seed that, when sown upon the soil, is the smallest of all the seeds on the ground. And when sown, it comes up and grows taller than all the garden plants, and produces large branches, so that the birds of the sky can nest in its shade.”
He was speaking the word to them with many parables like these, as they were able to understand. He did not speak to them without a parable. Privately, however, he explained everything to his own disciples.
O God, you are the tree of life, offering shelter to all the world. Graft us into yourself and nurture our growth, that we may bear your truth and love to those in need, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
So we are always confident and know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight. In fact, we are confident, and we would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. Therefore, whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to be pleasing to him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each may be repaid for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.
Therefore, since we know the fear of the Lord, we try to persuade people. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your consciences. We are not commending ourselves to you again, but giving you an opportunity to be proud of us, so that you may have a reply for those who take pride in outward appearance rather than in the heart. For if we are out of our mind, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. For the love of Christ compels us, since we have reached this conclusion, that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all so that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for the one who died for them and was raised.
From now on, then, we do not know anyone from a worldly perspective. Even if we have known Christ from a worldly perspective, yet now we no longer know him in this way. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come!
O God, you are the tree of life, offering shelter to all the world. Graft us into yourself and nurture our growth, that we may bear your truth and love to those in need, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
1It is a good thing to give thanks to the Lord,
to sing praise to your name, O Most High;
2to herald your love in the morning
and your faithfulness at night;
3on the psaltery, and on the lyre,
and to the melody of the harp.
4For you have made me glad by your acts, O Lord;
and I shout for joy because of the works of your hands.
5Lord, how great are your works!
Your thoughts are very deep.
6The dullard does not know,
nor does the fool understand,
7that though the wicked grow like weeds, and all the workers of iniquity flourish,
they flourish only to be destroyed forever;
8but you, O Lord,
are exalted forevermore.
9For lo, your enemies, O Lord, lo, your enemies shall perish,
and all the workers of iniquity shall be scattered.
10But you have raised up my horns like those of a wild ox;
I am anointed with fresh oil.
11My eyes spy out those who watch me;
my ears hear when enemies rise up against me.
12The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree,
and shall spread abroad like a cedar of Lebanon.
13Those who are planted in the house of the Lord
shall flourish in the courts of our God;
14they shall still bear fruit in old age;
they shall be green and succulent;
15that they may show how upright the Lord is,
my rock, in whom there is no injustice.
From sundaysandseasons.com.
Copyright © 2021 Augsburg Fortress. All rights reserved.
O God, you are the tree of life, offering shelter to all the world. Graft us into yourself and nurture our growth, that we may bear your truth and love to those in need, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
This is what the Lord God says:
I will take a sprig
from the lofty top of the cedar and plant it.
I will pluck a tender sprig
from its topmost shoots,
and I will plant it
on a high towering mountain.
I will plant it on Israel’s high mountain
so that it may bear branches, produce fruit,
and become a majestic cedar.
Birds of every kind will nest under it,
taking shelter in the shade of its branches.
Then all the trees of the field will know
that I am the Lord.
I bring down the tall tree,
and make the low tree tall.
I cause the green tree to wither
and make the withered tree thrive.
I, the Lord, have spoken
and I will do it.
O God, you are the tree of life, offering shelter to all the world. Graft us into yourself and nurture our growth, that we may bear your truth and love to those in need, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
O God, you are the tree of life, offering shelter to all the world. Graft us into yourself and nurture our growth, that we may bear your truth and love to those in need, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.
Amen.
O God, the strength of all them that put their trust in thee, mercifully accept our prayers; and because through the weakness of our mortal nature we can do no good thing without thee, grant us the help of thy grace, that in keeping of thy commandments we may please thee, both in will and deed; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. He came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.” Jesus answered him, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be astonished that I said to you, ‘You must be born from above.’ The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” Jesus answered him, “Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things?
“Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony. If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.
“Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
Almighty and everlasting God, who hast given unto us thy servants grace, by the confession of a true faith to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity, and in the power of thy Divine Majesty to worship the Unity; We beseech thee, that thou wouldst keep us steadfast in this faith, and evermore defend us from all adversities, who livest and reignest, one God, world without end. Amen.
So then, brothers and sisters, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh— for if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, “Abba! Father!” it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ—if, in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.
Almighty and everlasting God, who hast given unto us thy servants grace, by the confession of a true faith to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity, and in the power of thy Divine Majesty to worship the Unity; We beseech thee, that thou wouldst keep us steadfast in this faith, and evermore defend us from all adversities, who livest and reignest, one God, world without end. Amen.
Ascribe to the Lord, O heavenly beings,
ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
Ascribe to the Lord the glory of his name;
worship the Lord in holy splendor.
The voice of the Lord is over the waters;
the God of glory thunders,
the Lord, over mighty waters.
The voice of the Lord is powerful;
the voice of the Lord is full of majesty.
The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars;
the Lord breaks the cedars of Lebanon.
He makes Lebanon skip like a calf,
and Sirion like a young wild ox.
The voice of the Lord flashes forth flames of fire.
The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness;
the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.
The voice of the Lord causes the oaks to whirl,
and strips the forest bare;
and in his temple all say, “Glory!”
The Lord sits enthroned over the flood;
the Lord sits enthroned as king forever.
May the Lord give strength to his people!
May the Lord bless his people with peace!
Almighty and everlasting God, who hast given unto us thy servants grace, by the confession of a true faith to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity, and in the power of thy Divine Majesty to worship the Unity; We beseech thee, that thou wouldst keep us steadfast in this faith, and evermore defend us from all adversities, who livest and reignest, one God, world without end. Amen.
In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lofty; and the hem of his robe filled the temple. Seraphs were in attendance above him; each had six wings: with two they covered their faces, and with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. And one called to another and said:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory.”
The pivots on the thresholds shook at the voices of those who called, and the house filled with smoke. And I said: “Woe is me! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”
Then one of the seraphs flew to me, holding a live coal that had been taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. The seraph touched my mouth with it and said: “Now that this has touched your lips, your guilt has departed and your sin is blotted out.” Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I; send me!”
Almighty and everlasting God, who hast given unto us thy servants grace, by the confession of a true faith to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity, and in the power of thy Divine Majesty to worship the Unity; We beseech thee, that thou wouldst keep us steadfast in this faith, and evermore defend us from all adversities, who livest and reignest, one God, world without end. Amen.
ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, who hast given unto us thy servants grace, by the confession of a true faith to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity, and in the power of thy Divine Majesty to worship the Unity; We beseech thee, that thou wouldst keep us steadfast in this faith, and evermore defend us from all adversities, who livest and reignest, one God, world without end. Amen.
John 15:9-17
“As the Father has loved me, I have also loved you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commands you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love.
“I have told you these things so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.
“This is my command: Love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this: to lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I do not call you servants anymore, because a servant doesn’t know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything I have heard from my Father. You did not choose me, but I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce fruit and that your fruit should remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he will give you.
“This is what I command you: Love one another."
1 John 5:1-6 CSB
Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father also loves the one born of him. This is how we know that we love God’s children: when we love God and obey his commands. For this is what love for God is: to keep his commands. And his commands are not a burden, because everyone who has been born of God conquers the world. This is the victory that has conquered the world: our faith.
Who is the one who conquers the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? Jesus Christ—he is the one who came by water and blood, not by water only, but by water and by blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.
Psalm 98
1Sing a new song to the Lord, who has done marvelous things,
whose right hand and holy arm have won the victory.
2O Lord, you have made known your victory,
you have revealed your righteousness in the sight of the nations.
3You remember your steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel;
all the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.
4Shout with joy to the Lord, all you lands;
lift up your voice, rejoice, and sing.
5Sing to the Lord with the harp,
with the harp and the voice of song.
6With trumpets and the sound of the horn
shout with joy before the king, the Lord.
7Let the sea roar, and all that fills it,
the world and those who dwell therein.
8Let the rivers clap their hands,
and let the hills ring out with joy before the Lord, who comes to judge the earth.
9The Lord will judge the world with righteousness
and the peoples with equity.
Acts 10:44-48
While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came down on all those who heard the message. The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were amazed because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles. For they heard them speaking in tongues and declaring the greatness of God.
Then Peter responded, “Can anyone withhold water and prevent these people from being baptized, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?” He commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay for a few days.
O God, you have prepared for those who love you joys beyond understanding. Pour into our hearts such love for you that, loving you above all things, we may obtain your promises, which exceed all we can desire; through Jesus Christ, your Son and our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
O God, you have prepared for those who love you joys beyond understanding. Pour into our hearts such love for you that, loving you above all things, we may obtain your promises, which exceed all we can desire; through Jesus Christ, your Son and our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
What does it mean to be a branch vs. the Vine? How can we get bad trees to bear good fruit?
John 15:1-8
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. Every branch in me that does not produce fruit he removes, and he prunes every branch that produces fruit so that it will produce more fruit. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, and I in you. Just as a branch is unable to produce fruit by itself unless it remains on the vine, neither can you unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without me. If anyone does not remain in me, he is thrown aside like a branch and he withers. They gather them, throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you want and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this: that you produce much fruit and prove to be my disciples.
O God, you give us your Son as the vine apart from whom we cannot live. Nourish our life in his resurrection, that we may bear the fruit of love and know the fullness of your joy, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
We love love, but do we really know what love is? What is love in light of Christ?
1 John 4:7-21
Dear friends, let us love one another, because love is from God, and everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, because God is love. God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his one and only Son into the world so that we might live through him. Love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, if God loved us in this way, we also must love one another. No one has ever seen God. If we love one another, God remains in us and his love is made complete in us. This is how we know that we remain in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and we testify that the Father has sent his Son as the world’s Savior. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God—God remains in him and he in God. And we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us.
God is love, and the one who remains in love remains in God, and God remains in him. In this, love is made complete with us so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment, because as he is, so also are we in this world. There is no fear in love; instead, perfect love drives out fear, because fear involves punishment. So the one who fears is not complete in love. We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, “I love God,” and yet hates his brother or sister, he is a liar. For the person who does not love his brother or sister whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. And we have this command from him: The one who loves God must also love his brother and sister.
O God, you give us your Son as the vine apart from whom we cannot live. Nourish our life in his resurrection, that we may bear the fruit of love and know the fullness of your joy, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
This is the happy part of a very somber psalm. It appears to be the reaction to all the prophecies at the beginning of this prayer.
Psalm 22:25-31
25From you comes my praise in the great assembly;
I will perform my vows in the sight of those who fear the Lord.
26The poor shall eat and be satisfied,
Let those who seek the Lord give praise! May your hearts live forever!
27All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord;
all the families of nations shall bow before God.
28For dominion belongs to the Lord,
who rules over the nations.
29Indeed, all who sleep in the earth shall bow down in worship;
all who go down to the dust, though they be dead, shall kneel before the Lord.
30Their descendants shall serve the Lord,
whom they shall proclaim to generations to come.
31They shall proclaim God’s deliverance to a people yet unborn,
saying to them, “The Lord has acted!”
O God, you give us your Son as the vine apart from whom we cannot live. Nourish our life in his resurrection, that we may bear the fruit of love and know the fullness of your joy, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
Here we have Phillip being sent to a man who is 4x an outsider. So often we think ourselves to be Phillip, needing to be sent out to find this type of man. But I wonder, how often are we the man in the chariot with the open Bible, needing help?
Acts 8:26-40
An angel of the Lord spoke to Philip: “Get up and go south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” (This is the desert road.) So he got up and went. There was an Ethiopian man, a eunuch and high official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of her entire treasury. He had come to worship in Jerusalem and was sitting in his chariot on his way home, reading the prophet Isaiah aloud.
The Spirit told Philip, “Go and join that chariot.”
When Philip ran up to it, he heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, “Do you understand what you’re reading?”
“How can I,” he said, “unless someone guides me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. Now the Scripture passage he was reading was this:
He was led like a sheep to the slaughter,
and as a lamb is silent before its shearer,
so he does not open his mouth.
In his humiliation justice was denied him.
Who will describe his generation?
For his life is taken from the earth.
The eunuch said to Philip, “I ask you, who is the prophet saying this about—himself or someone else?” Philip proceeded to tell him the good news about Jesus, beginning with that Scripture.
As they were traveling down the road, they came to some water. The eunuch said, “Look, there’s water. What would keep me from being baptized?” So he ordered the chariot to stop, and both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him. When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him any longer but went on his way rejoicing. Philip appeared in Azotus, and he was traveling and preaching the gospel in all the towns until he came to Caesarea.
O God, you give us your Son as the vine apart from whom we cannot live. Nourish our life in his resurrection, that we may bear the fruit of love and know the fullness of your joy, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
O God, you give us your Son as the vine apart from whom we cannot live. Nourish our life in his resurrection, that we may bear the fruit of love and know the fullness of your joy, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
This Shepherd is really, REALLY good...
John 10:11-18
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away—and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again. I have received this command from my Father.”
O Lord Christ, good shepherd of the sheep, you seek the lost and guide us into your fold. Feed us, and we shall be satisfied; heal us, and we shall be whole. Make us one with you, for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Sacrificial love in the time of Covid-19. Hmmm... I wonder. Do you see it around you? In what way?
1 John 3:16-24
We know love by this, that he laid down his life for us—and we ought to lay down our lives for one another. How does God’s love abide in anyone who has the world’s goods and sees a brother or sister in need and yet refuses help?
Little children, let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action. And by this we will know that we are from the truth and will reassure our hearts before him whenever our hearts condemn us; for God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have boldness before God; and we receive from him whatever we ask, because we obey his commandments and do what pleases him.
And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. All who obey his commandments abide in him, and he abides in them. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit that he has given us.
O Lord Christ, good shepherd of the sheep, you seek the lost and guide us into your fold. Feed us, and we shall be satisfied; heal us, and we shall be whole. Make us one with you, for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
We all know it, but do we really?
Psalm 23
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
he leads me beside still waters;
he restores my soul.
He leads me in right paths
for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley,
I fear no evil;
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff—
they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
my whole life long.
O Lord Christ, good shepherd of the sheep, you seek the lost and guide us into your fold. Feed us, and we shall be satisfied; heal us, and we shall be whole. Make us one with you, for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
How has the work of the Spirit emboldened you in Christ to share the salvation that comes in his name?
Acts 4:5-13
The next day, their rulers, elders, and scribes assembled in Jerusalem with Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and all the members of the high-priestly family. After they had Peter and John stand before them, they began to question them: “By what power or in what name have you done this?”
Then Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit and said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders: If we are being examined today about a good deed done to a disabled man, by what means he was healed, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified and whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing here before you healthy. This Jesus is
the stone rejected by you builders,
which has become the cornerstone.
There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to people by which we must be saved.”
When they observed the boldness of Peter and John and realized that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed and recognized that they had been with Jesus.
O Lord Christ, good shepherd of the sheep, you seek the lost and guide us into your fold. Feed us, and we shall be satisfied; heal us, and we shall be whole. Make us one with you, for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
O Lord Christ, good shepherd of the sheep, you seek the lost and guide us into your fold. Feed us, and we shall be satisfied; heal us, and we shall be whole. Make us one with you, for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Here we have another appearance of the risen Christ. What do we do with this never-dying, ever-living, Jesus?
Luke 24:36b-48
Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” They were startled and terrified, and thought that they were seeing a ghost. He said to them, “Why are you frightened, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? Look at my hands and my feet; see that it is I myself. Touch me and see; for a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. While in their joy they were disbelieving and still wondering, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate in their presence.
Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you—that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.
What do we do with all of this discussion about sin? Abiding in Christ? Seems weird.
1 John 3:1-7
See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is this: when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is. And all who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.
Everyone who commits sin is guilty of lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. You know that he was revealed to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. No one who abides in him sins; no one who sins has either seen him or known him. Little children, let no one deceive you. Everyone who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous.
This Psalm is a bedtime Psalm. How might we use it when darkness seems to have fallen upon us?
Psalm 4
To the leader: with stringed instruments. A Psalm of David.
Answer me when I call, O God of my right!
You gave me room when I was in distress.
Be gracious to me, and hear my prayer.
How long, you people, shall my honor suffer shame?
How long will you love vain words, and seek after lies? Selah
But know that the Lord has set apart the faithful for himself;
the Lord hears when I call to him.
When you are disturbed, do not sin;
ponder it on your beds, and be silent. Selah
Offer right sacrifices,
and put your trust in the Lord.
There are many who say, “O that we might see some good!
Let the light of your face shine on us, O Lord!”
You have put gladness in my heart
more than when their grain and wine abound.
I will both lie down and sleep in peace;
for you alone, O Lord, make me lie down in safety.
Here we have Peter preaching after the healing of a beggar outside the temple. Calling people to repentance based around the life, death, and resurrection of Christ.
Acts 3:12-19
When Peter saw it, he addressed the people, “You Israelites, why do you wonder at this, or why do you stare at us, as though by our own power or piety we had made him walk? The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our ancestors has glorified his servant Jesus, whom you handed over and rejected in the presence of Pilate, though he had decided to release him. But you rejected the Holy and Righteous One and asked to have a murderer given to you, and you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are witnesses. And by faith in his name, his name itself has made this man strong, whom you see and know; and the faith that is through Jesus has given him this perfect health in the presence of all of you.
“And now, friends, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers. In this way God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, that his Messiah would suffer. Repent therefore, and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out,
Holy and righteous God, you are the author of life, and you adopt us to be your children. Fill us with your words of life, that we may live as witnesses to the resurrection of your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Yes...it is Doubting Thomas...again. Every Sunday after Easter is Doubting Thomas. Maybe because after Easter, with all the pomp and ham we need a Jesus that kicks down the doors of our doubt to be our Lord and God.
John 20:19-31
When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”
But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.”
A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”
Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.
Almighty God, with joy we celebrate the day of our Lord’s resurrection. By the grace of Christ among us, enable us to show the power of the resurrection in all that we say and do, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
What does it mean to have fellowship with Christ? What is saying when we are told to "walk in the light"?
1 John 1:1-2:2
We declare to you what was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— this life was revealed, and we have seen it and testify to it, and declare to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us— we declare to you what we have seen and heard so that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. We are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.
This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true; but if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.
Almighty God, with joy we celebrate the day of our Lord’s resurrection.
By the grace of Christ among us, enable us to show the power of the resurrection in all that we say and do, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Thank God it's Friday! On this day we remember the work of God in Christ to finish the "war" between men and God. Today we look at the traditional Epistle text from Hebrews that outlines what God was doing in Jesus on the cross.
Hebrews 10:1-25
Since the law has only a shadow of the good things to come, and not the reality itself of those things, it can never perfect the worshipers by the same sacrifices they continually offer year after year. Otherwise, wouldn’t they have stopped being offered, since the worshipers, purified once and for all, would no longer have any consciousness of sins? But in the sacrifices there is a reminder of sins year after year. For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.
Therefore, as he was coming into the world, he said:
You did not desire sacrifice and offering,
but you prepared a body for me.
You did not delight
in whole burnt offerings and sin offerings.
Then I said, “See—
it is written about me
in the scroll—
I have come to do your will, God.”
After he says above, You did not desire or delight in sacrifices and offerings, whole burnt offerings and sin offerings (which are offered according to the law), he then says, See, I have come to do your will. He takes away the first to establish the second. By this will, we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all time.
Every priest stands day after day ministering and offering the same sacrifices time after time, which can never take away sins. But this man, after offering one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God. He is now waiting until his enemies are made his footstool. For by one offering he has perfected forever those who are sanctified. The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. For after he says:
This is the covenant I will make with them
after those days,
the Lord says,
I will put my laws on their hearts
and write them on their minds,
and I will never again remember
their sins and their lawless acts.
Now where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer an offering for sin.
Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have boldness to enter the sanctuary through the blood of Jesus— he has inaugurated for us a new and living way through the curtain (that is, through his flesh)— and since we have a great high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed in pure water. Let us hold on to the confession of our hope without wavering, since he who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to provoke love and good works, not neglecting to gather together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day approaching.
What shall I render to the Lord for all his benefits to me? That is the question as we come to this psalm to look at the theme of Maundy Thursday.
Psalm 116:12-19
12How shall I repay the Lord
for all the good things God has done for me?
13I will lift the cup of salvation
and call on the name of the Lord.
14I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all God’s people.
15Precious in your sight, O Lord,
is the death of your servants.
16O Lord, truly I am your servant;
I am your servant, the child of your handmaid; you have freed me from my bonds.
17I will offer you the sacrifice of thanksgiving
and call upon the name of the Lord.
18I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all God’s people,
19in the courts of the Lord‘s house,
in the midst of you, O Jerusalem.
Holy God, source of all love, on the night of his betrayal, Jesus gave us a new commandment, to love one another as he loves us. Write this commandment in our hearts, and give us the will to serve others as he was the servant of all, your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
On this day we remember the work of the betrayer. Not so that we might demean him but realize that we are him.
John 13:21-32
After saying this Jesus was troubled in spirit, and declared, “Very truly, I tell you, one of you will betray me.” The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he was speaking. One of his disciples—the one whom Jesus loved—was reclining next to him; Simon Peter therefore motioned to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking. So while reclining next to Jesus, he asked him, “Lord, who is it?” Jesus answered, “It is the one to whom I give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.” So when he had dipped the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas son of Simon Iscariot. After he received the piece of bread, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, “Do quickly what you are going to do.” Now no one at the table knew why he said this to him. Some thought that, because Judas had the common purse, Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the festival”; or, that he should give something to the poor. So, after receiving the piece of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night.
When he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man has been glorified, and God has been glorified in him. If God has been glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself and will glorify him at once.
Almighty God, your Son our Savior suffered at human hands and endured the shame of the cross. Grant that we may walk in the way of his cross and find it the way of life and peace, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
Here we look at the another text from Isaiah as we make our way through Holy Week. Who is the "servant?" What does he do?
Isaiah 49:1-7
Listen to me, O coastlands,
pay attention, you peoples from far away!
The Lord called me before I was born,
while I was in my mother’s womb he named me.
He made my mouth like a sharp sword,
in the shadow of his hand he hid me;
he made me a polished arrow,
in his quiver he hid me away.
And he said to me, “You are my servant,
Israel, in whom I will be glorified.”
But I said, “I have labored in vain,
I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity;
yet surely my cause is with the Lord,
and my reward with my God.”
And now the Lord says,
who formed me in the womb to be his servant,
to bring Jacob back to him,
and that Israel might be gathered to him,
for I am honored in the sight of the Lord,
and my God has become my strength—
he says,
“It is too light a thing that you should be my servant
to raise up the tribes of Jacob
and to restore the survivors of Israel;
I will give you as a light to the nations,
that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”
Thus says the Lord,
the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,
to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nations,
the slave of rulers,
“Kings shall see and stand up,
princes, and they shall prostrate themselves,
because of the Lord, who is faithful,
the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”
Join Pastor Carleton as we look some of the texts given to us during Holy Week. This one is the 1st reading for Holy Monday in which we hear about the description of who Christ is, and what God is doing through him.
Isaiah 42:1-9
Here is my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen, in whom my soul delights;
I have put my spirit upon him;
he will bring forth justice to the nations.
He will not cry or lift up his voice,
or make it heard in the street;
a bruised reed he will not break,
and a dimly burning wick he will not quench;
he will faithfully bring forth justice.
He will not grow faint or be crushed
until he has established justice in the earth;
and the coastlands wait for his teaching.
Thus says God, the Lord,
who created the heavens and stretched them out,
who spread out the earth and what comes from it,
who gives breath to the people upon it
and spirit to those who walk in it:
I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness,
I have taken you by the hand and kept you;
I have given you as a covenant to the people,
a light to the nations,
to open the eyes that are blind,
to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon,
from the prison those who sit in darkness.
I am the Lord, that is my name;
my glory I give to no other,
nor my praise to idols.
See, the former things have come to pass,
and new things I now declare;
before they spring forth,
I tell you of them.
Philippians 2:5-11
Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus,
who, existing in the form of God,
did not consider equality with God
as something to be exploited.
Instead he emptied himself
by assuming the form of a servant,
taking on the likeness of humanity.
And when he had come as a man,
he humbled himself by becoming obedient
to the point of death—
even to death on a cross.
For this reason God highly exalted him
and gave him the name
that is above every name,
so that at the name of Jesus
every knee will bow—
in heaven and on earth
and under the earth—
and every tongue will confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
Versicle
Psalm 95
Psalm 40:5-10
Isaiah 7:10-14
Luke 1:26-38
Benedictus
Prayer of the Day
Pour your grace into our hearts, O God, that we who have known the incarnation of your Son, Jesus Christ, announced by an angel, may by his cross and passion be brought to the glory of his resurrection; for he lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
Prayers
Lord's Prayer
Blessing
Psalm 31:9-16
Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am in distress;
my eye wastes away from grief,
my soul and body also.
For my life is spent with sorrow,
and my years with sighing;
my strength fails because of my misery,
and my bones waste away.
I am the scorn of all my adversaries,
a horror to my neighbors,
an object of dread to my acquaintances;
those who see me in the street flee from me.
I have passed out of mind like one who is dead;
I have become like a broken vessel.
For I hear the whispering of many—
terror all around!—
as they scheme together against me,
as they plot to take my life.
But I trust in you, O Lord;
I say, “You are my God.”
My times are in your hand;
deliver me from the hand of my enemies and persecutors.
Let your face shine upon your servant;
save me in your steadfast love.
In this episode we will be looking at the traditional texts that have been used for Palm Sunday, especially prior to the 3-year lectionary. The Gospel reading here is the text most often read prior to processing into the sanctuary with palms. It is good to understand Zechariah as it explains the symbolism of the Triumphal Entry of Christ into Jerusalem.
Zechariah 9:9-12
Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion!
Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem!
Lo, your king comes to you;
triumphant and victorious is he,
humble and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
He will cut off the chariot from Ephraim
and the war-horse from Jerusalem;
and the battle bow shall be cut off,
and he shall command peace to the nations;
his dominion shall be from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you,
I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit.
Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope;
today I declare that I will restore to you double.
Matthew 21:1-9
When they had come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, just say this, ‘The Lord needs them.’ And he will send them immediately.” This took place to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet, saying,
“Tell the daughter of Zion,
Look, your king is coming to you,
humble, and mounted on a donkey,
and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”
The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them; they brought the donkey and the colt, and put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were shouting,
“Hosanna to the Son of David!
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
Everlasting God, in your endless love for the human race you sent our Lord Jesus Christ to take on our nature and to suffer death on the cross. In your mercy enable us to share in his obedience to your will and in the glorious victory of his resurrection, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
John 12:20-33
Now among those who went up to worship at the festival were some Greeks. They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and said to him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” Philip went and told Andrew; then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honor.
“Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say—‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” The crowd standing there heard it and said that it was thunder. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not for mine. Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” He said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Hebrews 5:5-10
So also Christ did not glorify himself in becoming a high priest, but was appointed by the one who said to him,
“You are my Son,
today I have begotten you”;
as he says also in another place,
“You are a priest forever,
according to the order of Melchizedek.”
In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered; and having been made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him, having been designated by God a high priest according to the order of Melchizedek.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Psalm 51:1-12
Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love;
in your great compassion blot out my offenses.
Wash me through and through from my wickedness,
and cleanse me | from my sin.
For I know my offenses,
and my sin is ever before me.
Against you only have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight;
so you are justified when you speak and right in your judgment.
Indeed, I was born steeped in wickedness,
a sinner from my mother’s womb.
Indeed, you delight in truth deep within me,
and would have me know wisdom deep within.
Remove my sins with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
wash me, and I shall be purer than snow.
Let me hear joy and gladness;
that the body you have broken may rejoice.
Hide your face from my sins,
and blot out all my wickedness.
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence,
and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation
and sustain me with your bountiful Spirit.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Jeremiah 31:31-34
The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, “Know the Lord,” for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
O God, with steadfast love you draw us to yourself, and in mercy you receive our prayers. Strengthen us to bring forth the fruits of the Spirit, that through life and death we may live in your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
John 3:14-21
“Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Anyone who believes in him is not condemned, but anyone who does not believe is already condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God. This is the judgment: The light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the light and avoids it, so that his deeds may not be exposed. But anyone who lives by the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be shown to be accomplished by God.”
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Ephesians 2:1-10
And you were dead in your trespasses and sins in which you previously walked according to the ways of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit now working in the disobedient. We too all previously lived among them in our fleshly desires, carrying out the inclinations of our flesh and thoughts, and we were by nature children under wrath as the others were also. But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us, made us alive with Christ even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace! He also raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might display the immeasurable riches of his grace through his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift— not from works, so that no one can boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Psalm 107:1-3, 17-22
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his faithful love endures forever.
Let the redeemed of the Lord proclaim
that he has redeemed them from the power of the foe
and has gathered them from the lands—
from the east and the west,
from the north and the south.
Fools suffered affliction
because of their rebellious ways and their iniquities.
They loathed all food
and came near the gates of death.
Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble;
he saved them from their distress.
He sent his word and healed them;
he rescued them from their traps.
Let them give thanks to the Lord
for his faithful love
and his wondrous works for all humanity.
Let them offer thanksgiving sacrifices
and announce his works with shouts of joy.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Numbers 21:4-9
Then they set out from Mount Hor by way of the Red Sea to bypass the land of Edom, but the people became impatient because of the journey. The people spoke against God and Moses: “Why have you led us up from Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread or water, and we detest this wretched food!” Then the Lord sent poisonous snakes among the people, and they bit them so that many Israelites died.
The people then came to Moses and said, “We have sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you. Intercede with the Lord so that he will take the snakes away from us.” And Moses interceded for the people.
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Make a snake image and mount it on a pole. When anyone who is bitten looks at it, he will recover.” So Moses made a bronze snake and mounted it on a pole. Whenever someone was bitten, and he looked at the bronze snake, he recovered.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
O God, rich in mercy, by the humiliation of your Son you lifted up this fallen world and rescued us from the hopelessness of death. Lead us into your light, that all our deeds may reflect your love, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
The Gospel Reading for the 3rd Sunday of Lent (John 2:13-22)
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
John 2:13-22
The Passover of the Jews was near, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple he found people selling cattle, sheep, and doves, and the money changers seated at their tables. Making a whip of cords, he drove all of them out of the temple, both the sheep and the cattle. He also poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. He told those who were selling the doves, “Take these things out of here! Stop making my Father’s house a marketplace!” His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for your house will consume me.” The Jews then said to him, “What sign can you show us for doing this?” Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” The Jews then said, “This temple has been under construction for forty-six years, and will you raise it up in three days?” But he was speaking of the temple of his body. After he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this; and they believed the scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.
Music by Blue Dot Sessions
The 2nd Reading for the 3rd Sunday of Lent (1 Corinthians 1:18-25)
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
1 Corinthians 1:18-25
For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written,
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”
Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, God decided, through the foolishness of our proclamation, to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks desire wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.
Music by Blue Dot Sessions
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Psalm 19
The heavens are telling the glory of God;
and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.
Day to day pours forth speech,
and night to night declares knowledge.
There is no speech, nor are there words;
their voice is not heard;
yet their voice goes out through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world.
In the heavens he has set a tent for the sun,
which comes out like a bridegroom from his wedding canopy,
and like a strong man runs its course with joy.
Its rising is from the end of the heavens,
and its circuit to the end of them;
and nothing is hid from its heat.
The law of the Lord is perfect,
reviving the soul;
the decrees of the Lord are sure,
making wise the simple;
the precepts of the Lord are right,
rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is clear,
enlightening the eyes;
the fear of the Lord is pure,
enduring forever;
the ordinances of the Lord are true
and righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than gold,
even much fine gold;
sweeter also than honey,
and drippings of the honeycomb.
Moreover by them is your servant warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
But who can detect their errors?
Clear me from hidden faults.
Keep back your servant also from the insolent;
do not let them have dominion over me.
Then I shall be blameless,
and innocent of great transgression.
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be acceptable to you,
O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
Music by Blue Dot Sessions
The 1st Reading for the 3rd Sunday of Lent (Exodus 20:1-17)
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Exodus 20:1-17
Then God spoke all these words:
I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; you shall have no other gods before me.
You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents, to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me, but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments.
You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name.
Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work. But the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work—you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day and consecrated it.
Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
You shall not murder.
You shall not commit adultery.
You shall not steal.
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
Music by Blue Dot Sessions
The Collect for the 3rd Sunday of Lent
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Holy God, through your Son you have called us to live faithfully and act courageously. Keep us steadfast in your covenant of grace, and teach us the wisdom that comes only through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Music by Blue Dot Sessions
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Mark 8:31-38
He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. He spoke plainly about this, and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.
But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter. “Get behind me, Satan!” he said. “You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”
Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Romans 4:13-25
It was not through the law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith. For if those who depend on the law are heirs, faith means nothing and the promise is worthless, because the law brings wrath. And where there is no law there is no transgression.
Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. As it is written: “I have made you a father of many nations.” He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.
Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. This is why “it was credited to him as righteousness.” The words “it was credited to him” were written not for him alone, but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.
The Psalm of the Day for the 2nd Sunday of Lent
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
You who fear the Lord, praise him!
All you descendants of Jacob, honor him!
Revere him, all you descendants of Israel!
For he has not despised or scorned
the suffering of the afflicted one;
he has not hidden his face from him
but has listened to his cry for help.
From you comes the theme of my praise in the great assembly;
before those who fear you I will fulfill my vows.
The poor will eat and be satisfied;
those who seek the Lord will praise him—
may your hearts live forever!
All the ends of the earth
will remember and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
will bow down before him,
for dominion belongs to the Lord
and he rules over the nations.
All the rich of the earth will feast and worship;
all who go down to the dust will kneel before him—
those who cannot keep themselves alive.
Posterity will serve him;
future generations will be told about the Lord.
They will proclaim his righteousness,
declaring to a people yet unborn:
He has done it!
The 1st Reading for the 2nd Sunday of Lent
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16
When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.”
Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.
God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.”
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
O God, by the passion of your blessed Son you made an instrument of shameful death to be for us the means of life. Grant us so to glory in the cross of Christ that we may gladly suffer shame and loss for the sake of your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Mark 1:9-15
In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”
And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. He was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him.
Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.”
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
1 Peter 3:18-22
For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, in order to bring you to God. He was put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit, in which also he went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison, who in former times did not obey, when God waited patiently in the days of Noah, during the building of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were saved through water. And baptism, which this prefigured, now saves you—not as a removal of dirt from the body, but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers made subject to him.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Psalm 25:1-10
To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
O my God, in you I trust;
do not let me be put to shame;
do not let my enemies exult over me.
Do not let those who wait for you be put to shame;
let them be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous.
Make me to know your ways, O Lord;
teach me your paths.
Lead me in your truth, and teach me,
for you are the God of my salvation;
for you I wait all day long.
Be mindful of your mercy, O Lord, and of your steadfast love,
for they have been from of old.
Do not remember the sins of my youth or my transgressions;
according to your steadfast love remember me,
for your goodness’ sake, O Lord!
Good and upright is the Lord;
therefore he instructs sinners in the way.
He leads the humble in what is right,
and teaches the humble his way.
All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness,
for those who keep his covenant and his decrees.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Genesis 9:8-17
Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, “As for me, I am establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you, and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the domestic animals, and every animal of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark. I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.” God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth.”
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Holy God, heavenly Father, in the waters of the flood you saved the chosen, and in the wilderness of temptation you protected your Son from sin. Renew us in the gift of baptism. May your holy angels be with us, that the wicked foe may have no power over us, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Mark 9:2-9
Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them. And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus. Then Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” He did not know what to say, for they were terrified. Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, “This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!” Suddenly when they looked around, they saw no one with them any more, but only Jesus.
As they were coming down the mountain, he ordered them to tell no one about what they had seen, until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
2 Corinthians 4:3-6
And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For we do not proclaim ourselves; we proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord and ourselves as your slaves for Jesus’ sake. For it is the God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Psalm 50:1-6
The mighty one, God the Lord,
speaks and summons the earth
from the rising of the sun to its setting.
Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,
God shines forth.
Our God comes and does not keep silence,
before him is a devouring fire,
and a mighty tempest all around him.
He calls to the heavens above
and to the earth, that he may judge his people:
“Gather to me my faithful ones,
who made a covenant with me by sacrifice!”
The heavens declare his righteousness,
for God himself is judge.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
2 Kings 2:1-12
Now when the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven by a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here; for the Lord has sent me as far as Bethel.” But Elisha said, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel. The company of prophets who were in Bethel came out to Elisha, and said to him, “Do you know that today the Lord will take your master away from you?” And he said, “Yes, I know; keep silent.”
Elijah said to him, “Elisha, stay here; for the Lord has sent me to Jericho.” But he said, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they came to Jericho. The company of prophets who were at Jericho drew near to Elisha, and said to him, “Do you know that today the Lord will take your master away from you?” And he answered, “Yes, I know; be silent.”
Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here; for the Lord has sent me to the Jordan.” But he said, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So the two of them went on. Fifty men of the company of prophets also went, and stood at some distance from them, as they both were standing by the Jordan. Then Elijah took his mantle and rolled it up, and struck the water; the water was parted to the one side and to the other, until the two of them crossed on dry ground.
When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me what I may do for you, before I am taken from you.” Elisha said, “Please let me inherit a double share of your spirit.” He responded, “You have asked a hard thing; yet, if you see me as I am being taken from you, it will be granted you; if not, it will not.” As they continued walking and talking, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them, and Elijah ascended in a whirlwind into heaven. Elisha kept watching and crying out, “Father, father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” But when he could no longer see him, he grasped his own clothes and tore them in two pieces.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Almighty God, the resplendent light of your truth shines from the mountaintop into our hearts. Transfigure us by your beloved Son, and illumine the world with your image, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Mark 1:29-39
As soon as they left the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told him about her at once. He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up. Then the fever left her, and she began to serve them.
That evening, at sunset, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons. And the whole city was gathered around the door. And he cured many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.
In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. And Simon and his companions hunted for him. When they found him, they said to him, “Everyone is searching for you.” He answered, “Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do.” And he went throughout Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
1 Corinthians 9:16-23
If I proclaim the gospel, this gives me no ground for boasting, for an obligation is laid on me, and woe to me if I do not proclaim the gospel! For if I do this of my own will, I have a reward; but if not of my own will, I am entrusted with a commission. What then is my reward? Just this: that in my proclamation I may make the gospel free of charge, so as not to make full use of my rights in the gospel.
For though I am free with respect to all, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I might win more of them. To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though I myself am not under the law) so that I might win those under the law. To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law) so that I might win those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, so that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that I might by all means save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel, so that I may share in its blessings.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Psalm 147:1-11
Praise the Lord!
How good it is to sing praises to our God;
for he is gracious, and a song of praise is fitting.
The Lord builds up Jerusalem;
he gathers the outcasts of Israel.
He heals the brokenhearted,
and binds up their wounds.
He determines the number of the stars;
he gives to all of them their names.
Great is our Lord, and abundant in power;
his understanding is beyond measure.
The Lord lifts up the downtrodden;
he casts the wicked to the ground.
Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;
make melody to our God on the lyre.
He covers the heavens with clouds,
prepares rain for the earth,
makes grass grow on the hills.
He gives to the animals their food,
and to the young ravens when they cry.
His delight is not in the strength of the horse,
nor his pleasure in the speed of a runner;
but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him,
in those who hope in his steadfast love.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Isaiah 40:21-31
Have you not known? Have you not heard?
Has it not been told you from the beginning?
Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?
It is he who sits above the circle of the earth,
and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers;
who stretches out the heavens like a curtain,
and spreads them like a tent to live in;
who brings princes to naught,
and makes the rulers of the earth as nothing.
Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown,
scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth,
when he blows upon them, and they wither,
and the tempest carries them off like stubble.
To whom then will you compare me,
or who is my equal? says the Holy One.
Lift up your eyes on high and see:
Who created these?
He who brings out their host and numbers them,
calling them all by name;
because he is great in strength,
mighty in power,
not one is missing.
Why do you say, O Jacob,
and speak, O Israel,
“My way is hidden from the Lord,
and my right is disregarded by my God”?
Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
his understanding is unsearchable.
He gives power to the faint,
and strengthens the powerless.
Even youths will faint and be weary,
and the young will fall exhausted;
but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength,
they shall mount up with wings like eagles,
they shall run and not be weary,
they shall walk and not faint.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Everlasting God, you give strength to the weak and power to the faint. Make us agents of your healing and wholeness, that your good news may be made known to the ends of your creation, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
The Gospel Reading for the 4th Sunday after the Epiphany (Mark 1:21-28)
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Mark 1:21-28
They went to Capernaum; and when the sabbath came, he entered the synagogue and taught. They were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. Just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, and he cried out, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.” But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!” And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him. They were all amazed, and they kept on asking one another, “What is this? A new teaching—with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.” At once his fame began to spread throughout the surrounding region of Galilee.
The 2nd Reading for the 4th Sunday after the Epiphany (1 Corinthians 8:1-13)
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
1 Corinthians 8
Now concerning food sacrificed to idols: we know that “all of us possess knowledge.” Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. Anyone who claims to know something does not yet have the necessary knowledge; but anyone who loves God is known by him.
Hence, as to the eating of food offered to idols, we know that “no idol in the world really exists,” and that “there is no God but one.” Indeed, even though there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as in fact there are many gods and many lords— yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.
It is not everyone, however, who has this knowledge. Since some have become so accustomed to idols until now, they still think of the food they eat as food offered to an idol; and their conscience, being weak, is defiled. “Food will not bring us close to God.” We are no worse off if we do not eat, and no better off if we do. But take care that this liberty of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak. For if others see you, who possess knowledge, eating in the temple of an idol, might they not, since their conscience is weak, be encouraged to the point of eating food sacrificed to idols? So by your knowledge those weak believers for whom Christ died are destroyed. But when you thus sin against members of your family, and wound their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if food is a cause of their falling, I will never eat meat, so that I may not cause one of them to fall.
The Psalm of the Day for the 4th Sunday after the Epiphany (Psalm 111)
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Psalm 111
Praise the Lord!
I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart,
in the company of the upright, in the congregation.
Great are the works of the Lord,
studied by all who delight in them.
Full of honor and majesty is his work,
and his righteousness endures forever.
He has gained renown by his wonderful deeds;
the Lord is gracious and merciful.
He provides food for those who fear him;
he is ever mindful of his covenant.
He has shown his people the power of his works,
in giving them the heritage of the nations.
The works of his hands are faithful and just;
all his precepts are trustworthy.
They are established forever and ever,
to be performed with faithfulness and uprightness.
He sent redemption to his people;
he has commanded his covenant forever.
Holy and awesome is his name.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
all those who practice it have a good understanding.
His praise endures forever.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Deuteronomy 18:15-20
The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you shall heed such a prophet. This is what you requested of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said: “If I hear the voice of the Lord my God any more, or ever again see this great fire, I will die.” Then the Lord replied to me: “They are right in what they have said. I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their own people; I will put my words in the mouth of the prophet, who shall speak to them everything that I command. Anyone who does not heed the words that the prophet shall speak in my name, I myself will hold accountable. But any prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, or who presumes to speak in my name a word that I have not commanded the prophet to speak—that prophet shall die.”
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Compassionate God, you gather the whole universe into your radiant presence and continually reveal your Son as our Savior. Bring wholeness to all that is broken and speak truth to us in our confusion, that all creation will see and know your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen
Daily Meditation with Pr. Smee
The Gospel Reading for the 3rd Sunday after the Epiphany (Mark 1:14-20)
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Mark 1:14-20
Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.”
As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, “Follow me and I will make you fish for people.” And immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.
Go to www.treadweary.com for other articles, resources, videos, etc.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
1 Corinthians 7:29-31
I mean, brothers and sisters, the appointed time has grown short; from now on, let even those who have wives be as though they had none, and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy as though they had no possessions, and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away.
Go to www.treadweary.com for other articles, resources, videos, etc.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Psalm 62:5-12
For God alone my soul waits in silence,
for my hope is from him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
On God rests my deliverance and my honor;
my mighty rock, my refuge is in God.
Trust in him at all times, O people;
pour out your heart before him;
God is a refuge for us.
Those of low estate are but a breath,
those of high estate are a delusion;
in the balances they go up;
they are together lighter than a breath.
Put no confidence in extortion,
and set no vain hopes on robbery;
if riches increase, do not set your heart on them.
Once God has spoken;
twice have I heard this:
that power belongs to God,
and steadfast love belongs to you, O Lord.
For you repay to all
according to their work.
Go to www.treadweary.com for other articles, resources, videos, etc.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Jonah 3:1-5, 10
The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying, “Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you.” So Jonah set out and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days’ walk across. Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s walk. And he cried out, “Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth....When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it.
Go to www.treadweary.com for other articles, resources, videos, etc.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Almighty God, by grace alone you call us and accept us in your service. Strengthen us by your Spirit, and make us worthy of your call, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
Go to www.treadweary.com for other articles, resources, videos, etc.
Sermon for the 2nd Sunday after Epiphany - January 17, 2021
John 1:43-51
The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth.” Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” When Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him, he said of him, “Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!” Nathanael asked him, “Where did you get to know me?” Jesus answered, “I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.” Nathanael replied, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered, “Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these.” And he said to him, “Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
John 1:43-51
The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth.” Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” When Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him, he said of him, “Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!” Nathanael asked him, “Where did you get to know me?” Jesus answered, “I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.” Nathanael replied, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered, “Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these.” And he said to him, “Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
1 Corinthians 6:12-20
“All things are lawful for me,” but not all things are beneficial. “All things are lawful for me,” but I will not be dominated by anything. “Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food,” and God will destroy both one and the other. The body is meant not for fornication but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. And God raised the Lord and will also raise us by his power. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Should I therefore take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Never! Do you not know that whoever is united to a prostitute becomes one body with her? For it is said, “The two shall be one flesh.” But anyone united to the Lord becomes one spirit with him. Shun fornication! Every sin that a person commits is outside the body; but the fornicator sins against the body itself. Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you were bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Psalm 139:1-18
O Lord, you have searched me and known me.
You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from far away.
You search out my path and my lying down,
and are acquainted with all my ways.
Even before a word is on my tongue,
O Lord, you know it completely.
You hem me in, behind and before,
and lay your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is so high that I cannot attain it.
Where can I go from your spirit?
Or where can I flee from your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, you are there;
if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.
If I take the wings of the morning
and settle at the farthest limits of the sea,
even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me fast.
If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,
and the light around me become night,”
even the darkness is not dark to you;
the night is as bright as the day,
for darkness is as light to you.
For it was you who formed my inward parts;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
that I know very well.
My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes beheld my unformed substance.
In your book were written
all the days that were formed for me,
when none of them as yet existed.
How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
I try to count them—they are more than the sand;
I come to the end—I am still with you.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
1 Samuel 3:1-11
Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord under Eli. The word of the Lord was rare in those days; visions were not widespread.
At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his room; the lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was. Then the Lord called, “Samuel! Samuel!” and he said, “Here I am!” and ran to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call; lie down again.” So he went and lay down. The Lord called again, “Samuel!” Samuel got up and went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call, my son; lie down again.” Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. The Lord called Samuel again, a third time. And he got up and went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the boy. Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down; and if he calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
Now the Lord came and stood there, calling as before, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” Then the Lord said to Samuel, “See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make both ears of anyone who hears of it tingle.
Each weekday we will meditate on a prayer or a reading for the upcoming Sunday as assigned in the ELCA's hymnal.
Thanks be to you, Lord Jesus Christ, most merciful redeemer, for the countless blessings and benefits you give. May we know you more clearly, love you more dearly, and follow you more nearly, day by day praising you, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Jesus asked Simon if he loves him more than once. But I wonder, do we? Do we love him more than these? Do we have any affection for him? Do we just like him? Join us as we conclude our study of John's Gospel with a look at that interaction on the beach between Simon Peter and his Savior.
Christ integral work is one of interruption and surprise as we think we go about our normal daily work. But what of the moments in which we are called to gather in worship or when Christ reveals himself in Word and Sacrament? As we begin John 21, may we see in these resurrection encounters the call of God upon sinners to excitement at thought of seeing Jesus.
In the midst of our fear and anxiety, our worries about today and tomorrow, the Jesus we need is the Jesus of the cross. The Jesus who comes to deniers, abandoners, and doubters is the Jesus we need to have. He is the one that speaks peace to us when we feel we are at war.
The Jesus of the empty tomb was a purposeful Jesus who is not only missing from the tomb, but one who made his bed before he left. All of this so you know that the tomb is empty on purpose. This is the Jesus that is to be proclaimed, to be seen in the surprising, to be begged for and one who calls us by name. The same one who sends us out to proclaim him and seek him.
Sermon for the 23rd Sunday after Pentecost - Matthew 25:1-13; Jeremiah 31:31-33; Ezekiel 11:17-20; 1 Kings 19:1-8 ; Romans 5:3-8
Christ goes forth outside the camp to bear our sin and die for us. How might this kind of Jesus, who walks willingly to death, branded as the King of the Jews while he chokes on his own saliva, give us new birth to revive us in the midst of a dying world?
We hear the people (Us) crying out "Crucify him!...We have no King but Caesar!", and in those cries we hear our confession. A confession that we need this kind a King. This kind of Lord. We need a crucified and dead Jesus more than we need a Caesar, or even ourselves. And so in the words that we so hate to hear come from the mouths of Christ's opponents (US!!!), we hear our own words screaming for the Savior to get to it so that the judgement of Death and Hades may come about.
The lengths that Christ goes to redeem you are not small. The steps that seem to get in the way. The sinners and sin that seem to try and hold off, and propel, this plan. Yet, Christ is stalwart for you and sees his word fulfilled. Join us as we finish up John 18 with Christ before Pilate.
Often the worst of our sins need to be sinned for us to truly know Christ. Explore with us this Peter that we think we know here in John 18. How his denial is what defines him, and is what should define a disciple in many ways. Because in being a denier, often then the Jesus I deny is the Jesus I need.
When Christ goes to the garden, he goes to meet us in all our attempts to silence him, bind him, and kill him. The way John details the arrest and trial of Jesus gifts to us so much symbolism of his work for us. Join us as we begin our journey to Calvary in John 18. Seeing how the cross becomes central to our worship when it defies our attempts to replace it.
Sermon for the 18th Sunday after Pentecost - Philippians 3:4b-14; Isaiah 5:1-11; Matthew 21:33-46
Christ's prayer for the disciples, for the church, and for you, is a model for us on what worship and prayer can and should look like. A call for unity in his name. A name that is a crucified name. A name that is connected to a life that reminds us that the life we think we have in ourselves is nonexistent. Join us as we look at John 17, Christ's prayer that he makes before the crucifixion. Let it wash over you as his gift to you, and may we use it to help us glorify the Son and the Father through what has been done for us.
Gods love for us is evidenced by the love we have for Christ and the trust we have in him.
The weird speech of God in John 16 is a forecast of the need to for us to be reassured by Christ that his apparent absence is a kind of a good thing. The liturgical calendar is a wonderful resource and rhythm to follow as it brings our creeds into the way we live so that we may better understand how worship impacts our lives from day to day. Join us as we complete John 16 and hear from Christ the promise of life, his presence in his absence, and the gift of his grace to help us trust that what he tells us is true
The work of the Spirit is the opening of our ears to hear Christ in the midst of all the noise of the world.
Join us as we begin to explore John 16 where Jesus first tells us of the troubles which are to come, but the the voice of one who will speak to bring us relief.
Persecution and sufferings are not things the Christian avoids, but are things that come to the Christian because our Jesus suffered both for our sake.
Join us as we complete John 15 and learn about the truth of persecution in the midst of the Christian life. How the Christian is one who will suffer because our life in Christ is based on a suffering Jesus.
Christ is the vine, God is the gardener, and we are the branches who just happen to pbear fruit that is grown on us by the vine.
How often it is that we hear the word to bear fruit and think it is this command to go out and do things. No! It is this word that reminds us of who we are. Join us as we go through John 15 looking at Christ's statement to us that we are branches that only exist because of the vine, and often get pruned by the Gardener.
As the Spirit comes and does his work, he becomes the spokesperson for God to remind us of God's work for us in Jesus.
Join us as we conclude John 14. Christ tells us that he is leavig to complete his work and sit at the right hand of the Father. He tells us of the gifting of the Spirit. What the work of the Spirit looks like and how we must depend on him to help us love Christ and guard his teachings.
The Treadweary Podcast is the audio arm of treadweary.com. There you will find the sermons and bible studies led by Pastor Carleton Smee, plus other insights, daily prayer and resources to deepen your faith in God as being for you.
"If it is you, command me to come to you upon the waters." - Matthew 14:28
Sermon for the 11th Sunday after Pentecost - Matthew 14:22-33
The way of Christ is his and not ours.
Join us as we continue our study of John, finishing up John 13 and entering into John 14. We will look at this question of what it means to obey Christ and love one another. What does it mean for Jesus to say that where I am going you cannot come, right now anyways? What does it mean for Jesus to tell us that he is the way, the truth, and the life?
The Treadweary Podcast is the audio arm of treadweary.com. There you will find the sermons and bible studies led by Pastor Carleton Smee, plus other insights, daily prayer and resources to deepen your faith in God as being for you.
As Jesus bares himself in stooping down to wash the feet of his disciples, he lays bare the truth of his work on our behalf for his people.
Join us as we dig into John 13, the Maundy Thursday text of footwashing, and the "commissioning" of Judas to go out and perform his work quickly, in order that Jesus may be shown to be the Jesus we need.
Sermon for the 8th Sunday after Pentecost - July 26, 2020
Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43; Genesis 29:15-28
As with all things, Christ was setup for reaching to the cross as the ultimate sign of who he is and why he came.
We are finishing up John 12 as we look at some tough verses around blind eyes and closed hearts, loving the praise of men, and condemnation. Where does the cross fit? When Christ says that if we want to see the Father we then look at him, what does God look like to us?
In Christ we hear a "No" for the life we have, and a "Yes" for the life we need.
Join us as we continue in John 12 and hear about death and life. We hear Jesus give a peculiar answer to some Greeks, and then hear the Father proclaim a sermon to the people gathered there, listening to Jesus, that seems awfully weird for what was to take place in only a few days time.
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
When Christ enters into Jerusalem on that donkey, it is not just a moment to have a parade at church but the fulfillment of centuries of worship sung in the Temple in prepartion for this One who was to come.
Join us as we continue in John 12 and read about the Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem. Christ comes, not as a conquering hero, but One who has already won, riding a donkey as a particular symbol. We will also dig into a particular praise song that is almost 2500 years old.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Jesus came into the world to save sinners, not to shame them.
Join us as we continue our study of the Gospel of John as we pick up where we left off with John 12. We will hear about Lazarus, Martha, and Mary again, but a few things we didn't know before. Lazarus is known as "the dead guy", Martha the "waitress", and Mary...well. you will have to listen. Needless to say, the shame we have for sin and sinners is the very reason why we need Jesus.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
It is possible to make no mistakes and still lose. That is not weakness. That is life. - Jean-Luc Picard
Join us as we conclude our study of John 11. Here we have the good work of Christ, in which he raised a man from the dead, being the final nail in the coffin of sinners fighting against the Savior. Seeing in a Christ a threat to their power, the religious leadership leads the way to make sure he is arrested and killed. Because if we can silence God, then we can become a god, right? Wrong!
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
The work of Christ is to raise the dead, and unbind the bound.
Open your Bibles and join us as we continue to look at John 11 and the raising of Lazarus. We finally get Lazarus out of the tomb, but what does this interaction say about us, about Jesus, and about our worship? What does speaking have to do with our relationship with God?
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Even Jesus, in all his love and righteousness, gets angry at unbelief.
Join us as we continue through John 11, where we first saw the disciples and their ignorance, then we heard Martha speak her unbelief and still receive a sermon from Christ on life out of death and express faith from her own lips. Now we meet Mary, but she fits the same mold. Martha and the Jewish leaders failed her, and Jesus isn't happy about it. Plus, Jesus doesn't weep over the death of Lazarus. He doesn't cry over how much he loved him. He weeps for you.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Christ comes and we run to him knowing that even in our anger that comes through the pain of this life, we know that he is the resurrection and the life.
Martha is a very honest person. She comes to Christ out of anger and yet knows he is different than any other person who has come to her in the midst of tragedy. Her brother is dead. Really dead. What can Jesus do? Well, join us in John 11 to hear of Christ being someone different for us than what we often think or need.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Jesus, speaking of Lazarus and his death, says, I rejoice on account of you, in order that you might believe.
As Jesus goes to raise Lazarus, he makes known to the disciples his purpose of his work. He speaks to them of falling asleep. He tells them that Lazarus' illness does not exist for the sake of death, but for the sake of the glory of God. As we read this account of this amazing work of Christ, how might we better understand our own outlook on death and mortality? How might illness and our own weakness drive us to God?
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Sermon for the 3rd Sunday of Easter - April 26, 2020
The Disciples on the road to Emmaus - Luke 24; plus Deuteronomy 6, Habakkuk 3
Christ comes speaking as the Son of God to us, calling to us as sheep to follow, but we often refuse him because we don't want him.
Join us as we complete our study of John 10. Jesus is making clear who he is to the religious leadership and they don't want him as he is. That doesn't stop Jesus from telling them and begging for faith to come.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
The work of the Good Shepherd is an electing work, a calling work, that begins and ends with a laying down and a taking up.
In John 10, Jesus continues his discourse of the blind seeing, and the seeing becoming blind, but he does it in a very weird way. He calls his sheep, they hear his voice and he does it all through this laying down of himself for the sake of taking it up again and gifting himself to us. A Christ who has gone through the deepest darkest portions of death so that he might gather his sheep.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Christ speaks in his Word to open our ears to see him and follow.
Have you ever wondered why we are so obsessed with removing preaching from the landscape of the church? It often gets relegated to an interruption of some great music, or gets painted as a angry sweaty guy in a three-piece suit yelling that you are going to hell. When, in fact, it is God's work of making worshipers. Of calling his sheep by name and bringing them into life. Join us as we begin John 10 and look at Jesus as the gate of the sheep.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Blind that we may see, seeing that we may become blind. The working of Christ to open our eyes to him and close them to ourselves.
Join us as we venture into John 9, all of John 9, to explore the healing of a man born blind. How is this healing on the Sabbath again connected to our worship? What are these works of God by Christ doing for us even to this day? There seems a necessity for the blind to see and the sighted to be impaired all for the good of the Gospel Word.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
As worshipers we are in need of regular resurrection, that Christ might gift himself to us regularly in order that we might know him more.
As those who gather weekly around the Word and the Sacrament, as worshipers, how often is our worship about what we get out of it. What our desires are for a better life or emotional fervor, but in Christ we are handed the life we need coming from the Resurrected One. Join us in John 8, as we conclude this chapter looking at the One who is the I am so we do not have to be.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
The word of God comes to us as Jesus to remove from us our expectations and assumptions.
When Jesus comes into the world as the Light it needs, his words speak to us in ways often confusing and jolting. Caught in the dark, we have the light shine in our ears. Our call as Christians is to listen. To hear. What do we hear at our times of worship and life to have Christ speak to us?
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
How often it is that we try to catch our Jesus in a trick so he might not be the Jesus we need.
Enter into John 8 with us as we discuss the woman caught in adultery. How she is brought in all her shame to Christ, only to have him bring the rescue she needs without any condemnation.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
The confusion that Jesus can bring to us is often the power of the Spirit we need to confound our personal wisdom to find in our Jesus the power and wisdom we need.
Join us as we conclude John 7 to hear of all the confusion around our Jesus. So many heard and saw but did not understand. Might his word be for us the life we need to grant us the truth of his appearing for our salvation.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
The work of a teacher is to teach that which he has learned from his Teacher.
Join us as we dig into John 7 looking at everything from theological education, to the Law, to the "glow-ray" of being a "teacher" versus what Christ brings as THE Teacher. How God works so contrary to our thinking as to not seek glory like one seeking popularity, but as one who is glorious in and of Himself.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
The word of God comes to us in Christ speaking to us words of life and salvation wrapped in a flesh and blood broken and shed for you.
Join us as we conclude John 6 by looking at the conclusion of the incredible church shrinkage sermon that Jesus makes here. Is there a time in which the Word has offended us? Should we see that as a good thing? Yes and Yes.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Sermon for the 5th Sunday after Epiphany (Septuagesima) - Matthew 5:13-20; Isaiah 58; 1 Corinthians 2
Jesus body and blood are the very gifts of the Lord given for food for our souls, forgiveness of our sin, and assurance of his mercy.
Join us as we are finishing up John 6 looking at the words Jesus speaks about his body and blood as true food and true drink. He calls to us to chew on him, to eat of his flesh and drink his blood for life everlasting.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
The source of life is in, and comes from Jesus Christ. This includes your faith and trust in him.
As we continue our journey through John 6, we begin to look at the controversy of Christ saying that it is God who draws. God who gives you as a gift to Jesus to hold onto, so join us as we continue our hearing of the word.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Sermon for the 3rd Sunday after Epiphany - Matthew 4:12-23; 1 Corinthians 1:10-18; Isaiah 9:1-4
How often we look for Jesus in places we expect him to be because we thought we experienced him there last time.
Enter into the deep theology of John 6 as we start to hear Jesus preach his incredible church-shrinkage sermon about something as innocent as bread. Calling out the people for looking for him because of the gift not because of the Giver.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
The unexpectant Jesus comes to say, "Do not be afraid!", as he walks upon the water.
Asa brief interlude between the bread episodes of John 6, Jesus walks upon water after fleeing the crowds that wanted to take him by force to make him king. How might the true King be coming to us in a weird way? How might Jesus be this One who appears in our lives in the most unexpected ways (like water, Word, Bread, and Wine)?
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Sermon for the Baptism of Our Lord Sunday - Matthew 3:13-17
"Allow it for now, for this is the way for us to fulfill all righteousness." - v.15
What does the feeding of the 5000, Exodus, and worship have to do with one another?
Join us as we begin John 6 by looking at the feeding of the 5000. It is the only miracle, apart form the resurrection to appear in all four Gospel accounts. Why do you think it is so important?
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Reading through the Bible in a year always seems daunting, or boring. How can we read it systematically, but with variety?
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Many of us have tried to read through the Bible in a year and given up because of the great wall of Leviticus. In this episode, Pastor Carleton talks about his time-tested way of reading through the Scriptures once in a year without getting bored by following these guidelines:
1 Psalm a day
35 verses from Genesis-Esther
21 verses from Job-Malachi
13 verses from Matthew-Acts
9 verses from Romans-Revelation
Also, hear his sermons from Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
The Word of God is the words of Christ to redeem and save, love of nurture the souls of sinners.
As we complete John 5, we hear Jesus preach to our sinful hearts to speak of the need for freedom and life in him. How do we shut him out? How do we seek glory in so many other ways but only in Jesus? How do we set aside the work of Christ for our own glory and prestige?
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
God gifts to us the Sabbath in order that he might break it on our account.
Join us in John chapter 5 as we continue to look at Jesus and his work for us. How the Sabbath is a gift given for our enjoyment of him. How our worship is tied to the working of God on our behalf.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Sermon for the 3rd Sunday of Advent - Matthew 11:2-11
No one is above the need for a preacher to come and dispel the darkness of doubt in our hearts.
Faith is a trust that what God has said is true. Even for John the Baptist, life was hard enough to have caused him to wonder about this Jesus. He needed a preacher so he asked Jesus to preach and he did. Happy Advent you brood of vipers.
Jesus Christ is the focus of our worship because he gives himself to us in that way.
As we are reborn in Christ, the work of the Gospel and the Spirit is this removal of us from the bonds of our rules and religion to freedom in his name. The Christian life is not about changing one collection of deeds to another collection of deeds that are similar but sanctified. It is Christ's work to grant to us the freedom we need in his Kingdom in order that we might be transformed by grace. Join us as we delve into the first part of John 5 and the third sign.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
The life of the Christian is one of a hidden harvest for which we may never see the fruit.
The life of faith is one to trust God and his promises. Part of this trust comes in hearing the promise. Part of it comes from living life as one trusting that what has been said to us is true. Join us as we finish up John 4. You will have a chance to hear a sermon (sorry about the bad audio) dealing with the life of faith as we look to a promised future.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Jesus said, You worship what you do not know. What charge against someone. Ignorance.
Join us as we dig into John 4 and look at this making of true worshipers and God's purpose in seeking out those he desires to create life in, granting living water to a barren soul.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Foolishness of faith can seem insignificant until Christ is shown to be trustworthy.
Sermon for Christ the King Sunday - Matthew 25:1-13
He must increase and I must decrease. The call of the worshiper to exalt Christ and be humbled.
How might our worship be tied to this encounter that John the Baptist has with his own disciples as they wonder about this Jesus who is baptizing more? How does envy creep into the lives of believers, of churches, of pastors? Join us at the end of John 3 wondering about where Jesus and John stand with one another at the Marriage Feast of the Lamb.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Sermon for the 22nd Sunday after Holy Trinity - Matthew 18:21-36
No sin is insignificant, but all sins are forgiven in Jesus.
How can these things be? That is the question Nicodemus brings to Jesus after he hears: You must be born again.
Join Pastor Carleton as we continue through John 3. Looking at this question of knowing, of authority, of testimony and power. What does Jesus have to do with a snake, and how can we say that Jesus condemns no one yet some are condemned? Plus...what does it mean that we have works that are actually accomplished by God?
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Being born again - where birth and worship meet.
Dwelling in the first 9 verses of John chapter 3, we take a look at who Nicodemus might be, what it means to be born again, how that impacts we as worshipers, and what the Spirit has to do with it above and beyond ecstatic behavior. If we recapture the phrase from what many evangelists do with it when asking you, "Excuse me sir/ma'am, but have you been born again?" - How does this work of God upon us become our new birth? What is the concern for us as worshipers?
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Christ's clearing of the temple is a perfect image of the work of Christ upon us in the clearing out of all the idols that invade our worship.
Going though the last half of John 2, we will be looking at the account of Christ clearing the Temple in Jerusalem at Passover. What do we make of the buying and selling? What do we do with the quote from Psalm 69 and its relationship to Jesus and his body?
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
The Jesus-ing of Jesus is the making of new out of old things.
We dig into the wedding at Cana in John 2. Looking at the significance of "the third day," the feast, the hour, the jars, the water, the wine, and Jesus. How is your life impacted by Christ as one who has fulfilled all things for you?
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
How does the calling of Christ, and the finding of you by him, transform your worship of him?
We take a turn at finishing John 1 as we look at two other disciples, Philip and Nathanael, and how their encounters with Christ transformed them, but also ho we are much like them. Christ seeing us before we know him. Our thinking that we found him when he found us.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Our worship is connected to our thoughts and understandings of this Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
How is John the Baptist an example for us as worshipers in our daily lives? What might a preacher have to do with our worship and how we worship? Does our worship proclaim Jesus for who he is? Let us dig deep into the call of God upon us in John 1:19-42 as we explore vocation, preaching, evangelism and worship all together in one gigantic pot.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Is worship that which encounters and proclaims the incarnate Christ?
Beginning our study of John this week, we look at John 1:1-18 and how the proclamation of the Gospel writer brings us many questions around our worship. Does our worship bring us into encounter with Christ? Does it proclaim Jesus to others? How do we formulate our worship in such a way as to bring the Gospel to ourselves and others to recreate men as children of God and to grant to us the life we need? All of it being found in Jesus.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
The Spirit of God is integral to our formation as worshipers.
We will be looking at two unique encounters in which worship was the outcome. One comes from 1 Samuel 19 where Saul was expecting one thing, and God did something else. The second encounter is a time in which Jesus meets a certain man in Mark 5 and worship happens in a weird way.
Do you ever imagine the Spirit of God being the one driving your worship? Should she be?
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
The making of true worshipers becoming something tied to God's intervention and our failure.
We will be spending our time in Exodus, looking at the intervention of God in the world for the sake of the Israelites was an act that began with worship, the redemption out of slavery was for the purpose of worship, and how the 10 commandments are actually worship principles that show us how bad of worshipers we actually are.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End
Creation as the beginning of worship.
Creation we always relegate to either a fundamentalist reading of 6 days that must be believed as 24 hour days or we are damned. But Genesis 1 is the very beginning of where we go to understand worship, why we worship, whom we worship, etc. Without creation, our worship is missing something.
Host
Pastor Carleton Smee
Production
Carleton Smee (Producer and Editor)
Music provided by Gargoyle's Numb End