Easter Season | Tuesday 09 Apr 2024
+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Opening:
Almighty and everlasting God, who in the Paschal mystery
established the new covenant of reconciliation: Grant that all
who have been reborn into the fellowship of Christ’s Body
may show forth in their lives what they profess by their faith;
through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you
and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
The world and its evil desires are passing away.
But the person who does what God wants
lives forever.
(1 John 2:17)
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From Psalms: Psalm 135 – Living H2o
OT Reading: Daniel 6:1-28 (GW)
Daniel in the Lions’ Den
6:1 Darius decided it would be good to appoint 120 satraps to rule throughout the kingdom. Over these satraps were three officials. Daniel was one of these officials. The satraps were to report to these three officials so that the king wouldn’t be cheated.
This man, Daniel, distinguished himself among the other officials and satraps because there was an extraordinary spirit in him. The king thought about putting him in charge of the whole kingdom. So the other officials and satraps tried to find something to accuse Daniel of in his duties for the kingdom. But they couldn’t find anything wrong because he was trustworthy. No error or fault could be found. These men said, “We won’t find anything to accuse this man, Daniel, unless we find it in his religious practices.”
So these officials and satraps went to the king as a group. They said to him, “May King Darius live forever! All the officials, governors, satraps, advisers, and mayors agree that the king should make a statute and enforce a decree. The decree should state that for the next 30 days whoever asks for anything from any god or person except you, Your Majesty, will be thrown into a lions’ den. Your Majesty, issue this decree, and sign it. According to the law of the Medes and Persians no one could change it or repeal it.” So Darius signed the written decree.
When Daniel learned that the document had been signed, he went to his house. An upper room in his house had windows that opened in the direction of Jerusalem. Three times each day he got down on his knees and prayed to his God. He had always praised God this way.
One of those times the men came in as a group and found Daniel praying and pleading to his God. Then they went and spoke to the king about his decree. ⌞They asked,⌟ “Didn’t you sign a decree which stated that for 30 days whoever asks for anything from any god or person except you, Your Majesty, will be thrown into a lions’ den?”
The king answered, “That’s true. According to the law of the Medes and Persians the decree can’t be repealed.”
They replied, “Your Majesty, Daniel, one of the captives from Judah, refuses to obey your order or the decree that you signed. He prays three times each day.”
The king was very displeased when he heard this. He tried every way he could think of to save Daniel. Until sundown he did everything he could to rescue him.
Then Daniel’s accusers gathered in front of the king. They said to him, “Remember, Your Majesty, the Medes and Persians have a law that no decree or statute the king makes can be changed.”
So the king gave the order, and Daniel was brought to him and thrown into the lions’ den. The king told Daniel, “May your God, whom you always worship, save you!”
A stone was brought and placed over the opening of the den. The king put his seal on the stone, using his ring and the rings of his nobles, so that Daniel’s situation could not be changed.
Then the king went to his palace and spent the night without food or company. He couldn’t get to sleep. At dawn, as soon as it was light, the king got up and quickly went to the lions’ den. As he came near the den where Daniel was, the king called to Daniel with anguish in his voice, “Daniel, servant of the living God! Was God, whom you always worship, able to save you from the lions?”
Daniel said to the king, “Your Majesty, may you live forever! My God sent his angel and shut the lions’ mouths so that they couldn’t hurt me. He did this because he considered me innocent. Your Majesty, I haven’t committed any crime.”
The king was overjoyed and had Daniel taken out of the den. When Daniel was taken out of the den, people saw that he was completely unharmed because he trusted his God.
The king ordered those men who had brought charges against Daniel to be brought to him. They, their wives, and their children were thrown into the lions’ den. Before they reached the bottom of the den, the lions attacked them and crushed all their bones.
Then King Darius wrote to the people of every province, nation, and language all over the world:
I wish you peace and prosperity.
I decree that in every part of my kingdom people should tremble with terror in front of Daniel’s God, the living God who continues forever. His kingdom will never be destroyed. His power lasts to the end ⌞of time⌟. He saves, rescues, and does miraculous signs and amazing things in heaven and on earth. He saved Daniel from the lions.
This man, Daniel, prospered during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian.
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No One Like Our God – Lincoln Brewster [ Official ]
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NT Reading: 1 John 2:12-17 (GW)
Don’t Love the World
2:12 I’m writing to you, dear children, because your sins are forgiven through Christ.
I’m writing to you, fathers, because you know Christ who has existed from the beginning.
I’m writing to you, young people, because you have won the victory over the evil one.
I’ve written to you, children, because you know the Father.
I’ve written to you, fathers, because you know Christ, who has existed from the beginning.
I’ve written to you, young people, because you are strong and God’s word lives in you. You have won the victory over the evil one.
Don’t love the world and what it offers. Those who love the world don’t have the Father’s love in them. Not everything that the world offers—physical gratification, greed, and extravagant lifestyles—comes from the Father. It comes from the world, and the world and its evil desires are passing away. But the person who does what God wants lives forever.
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Be Thou My Vision • T4G Live III [Official | Sovereign Grace Music
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+ O God, by whom the meek are guided in judgment, and light rises up in darkness for the godly: Grant us, in all our doubts and uncertainties, the grace to ask what you would have us do, that the Spirit of wisdom may save us from all false choices; that in your light we may see light, and in your straight path we may not stumble; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
+ Lord of Heaven’s Armies, we pray for swift justice and total victory over all evil in the Holy Land. Deliver the hostages from captivity and restore their souls. Destroy every stronghold of the evil death cult terrorizing the Middle East. And grant your heavenly wisdom to those guiding Israel militarily, politically, diplomatically – and especially to those who will restore Israel spiritually – through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
+ Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done; on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.
Closing: FaithandWorship.com | John Birch
May the risen Christ grant us the joys of eternal life.
+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The Peanut Gallery 