After Pentecost | Tuesday – 15 Nov 2022
+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Opening:
Stir up, O Lord, the wills of your faithful people,
that bringing forth in abundance
the fruit of good works,
they may be abundantly rewarded
when our Savior Jesus Christ comes to restore all things;
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
“I, too, try to please everyone in everything I do.
I don’t just do what is best for me;
I do what is best for others
so that many may be saved.”
(1 Corinthians 10:33)
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Psalms:Psalm 76 (NLT) – Poor Bishop Hooper
in judah god is known his name is great
his tent in salem his dwelling place
there he broke the shield, the sword, the weapons of war
the shield the sword the arrows
glorious are you lord there coming down
from the mountains the brave laid out
none could lift a hand at your rebuke
both the chariot and horse laid still
but you you you are to be feared
you you you are to be feared
who can stand before you once your anger’s roused
from the heavens utter judgment coming down
you you you are to be feared
you you you are to be feared
the earth it trembled and stood still in its place
when god arose and chose the humble he would save
you you you are to be feared
you you you are to be feared
even the wrath of man will come lift up its praise
the very remnant of will be the belt you’ve made
you you you are to be feared
you you you are to be feared
come make your vows to god and keep your promises
let all around him bring their tribute and their gifts
you you you are to be feared
you you you are to be feared
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OT Reading: Isaiah 66:1-13:17-22 (NLT)
66:1 This is what the Lord says:
“Heaven is my throne,
and the earth is my footstool.
Could you build me a temple as good as that?
Could you build me such a resting place?
My hands have made both heaven and earth;
they and everything in them are mine.
I, the Lord, have spoken!
“I will bless those who have humble and contrite hearts,
who tremble at my word.
But those who choose their own ways—
delighting in their detestable sins—
will not have their offerings accepted.
When such people sacrifice a bull,
it is no more acceptable than a human sacrifice.
When they sacrifice a lamb,
it’s as though they had sacrificed a dog!
When they bring an offering of grain,
they might as well offer the blood of a pig.
When they burn frankincense,
it’s as if they had blessed an idol.
I will send them great trouble—
all the things they feared.
For when I called, they did not answer.
When I spoke, they did not listen.
They deliberately sinned before my very eyes
and chose to do what they know I despise.”
Hear this message from the Lord,
all you who tremble at his words:
“Your own people hate you
and throw you out for being loyal to my name.
‘Let the Lord be honored!’ they scoff.
‘Be joyful in him!’
But they will be put to shame.
What is all the commotion in the city?
What is that terrible noise from the Temple?
It is the voice of the Lord
taking vengeance against his enemies.
“Before the birth pains even begin,
Jerusalem gives birth to a son.
Who has ever seen anything as strange as this?
Who ever heard of such a thing?
Has a nation ever been born in a single day?
Has a country ever come forth in a mere moment?
But by the time Jerusalem’s birth pains begin,
her children will be born.
Would I ever bring this nation to the point of birth
and then not deliver it?” asks the Lord.
“No! I would never keep this nation from being born,”
says your God.
“Rejoice with Jerusalem!
Be glad with her, all you who love her
and all you who mourn for her.
Drink deeply of her glory
even as an infant drinks at its mother’s comforting breasts.”
This is what the Lord says:
“I will give Jerusalem a river of peace and prosperity.
The wealth of the nations will flow to her.
Her children will be nursed at her breasts,
carried in her arms, and held on her lap.
I will comfort you there in Jerusalem
as a mother comforts her child.”
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Rejoice with Jerusalem (2017) – Bridges for Peace
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NT Reading: 1 Corinthians 10:23-11:1 (NLT)
10:23 You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is good for you. You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is beneficial. Don’t be concerned for your own good but for the good of others.
So you may eat any meat that is sold in the marketplace without raising questions of conscience. For “the earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it.”
If someone who isn’t a believer asks you home for dinner, accept the invitation if you want to. Eat whatever is offered to you without raising questions of conscience. (But suppose someone tells you, “This meat was offered to an idol.” Don’t eat it, out of consideration for the conscience of the one who told you. It might not be a matter of conscience for you, but it is for the other person.) For why should my freedom be limited by what someone else thinks? If I can thank God for the food and enjoy it, why should I be condemned for eating it?
So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Don’t give offense to Jews or Gentiles or the church of God. I, too, try to please everyone in everything I do. I don’t just do what is best for me; I do what is best for others so that many may be saved. 11 :1 And you should imitate me, just as I imitate Christ.
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More Like Jesus | Passion | Sounds of Hope
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+ Almighty God, to you all hearts are open, all desires known, and from you no secrets are hid: Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you, and worthily magnify your holy Name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
+ Hear what our Lord Jesus Christ says:
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and great
commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets. (Matthew 22:37-40)
+ Almighty God, you have not dealt with us according to our sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities; grant that we, who for our evil deeds deserve to be punished, by the might of your grace may mercifully be relieved; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
+ Almighty God, our heavenly Father, in your great mercy you have promised forgiveness of sins to all those who sincerely repent and with true faith turn to you, have mercy upon us, pardon and deliver us from all our sins, confirm and strengthen us in all goodness, and bring us to everlasting life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Closing: FaithandWorship.com | John Birch
May we look at others
as if through your eyes,
less judging, more loving,
and seeing them, like us,
as not perfect or finished
but as a work in progress
that will be completed
in due time by your hands.
+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The Peanut Gallery 