After Pentecost | Thursday 31 Oct 2024
+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Opening:
Almighty and everlasting God,
you govern all things both in heaven and on earth:
Mercifully hear the supplications of your people,
and in our time grant us your peace;
through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God,
for ever and ever. Amen.
[Christ] went into the most holy place
and offered this sacrifice once and for all
to free us forever.
(Hebrews 9:12)
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From Psalms: Psalm 146 | What Joy (Psalm 146) – Sarah Emerson / crossingctr
OT Reading: Ruth 1:18-22 (GW)
1:18 When Naomi saw that Ruth was determined to go with her, she ended the conversation.
Naomi Arrives in Bethlehem
1:19 So both of them went on until they came to Bethlehem. When they entered Bethlehem, the whole town was excited about them. “This can’t be Naomi, can it?” the women asked.
She answered them, “Don’t call me Naomi [Sweet]. Call me Mara [Bitter] because the Almighty has made my life very bitter. I went away full, but the Lord has brought me back empty. Why do you call me Naomi when the Lord has tormented me and the Almighty has done evil to me?”
When Naomi came back from the country of Moab, Ruth, her Moabite daughter-in-law, came along with her. They happened to enter Bethlehem just when the barley harvest began.
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Song of Ruth (Wherever You Go) sung by Bethany Paige
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NT Reading: Hebrews 9:1-12 (GW)
Christ Offered a Superior Sacrifice
9:1 The first promise had rules for the priests’ service. It also had a holy place on earth. A tent was set up. The first part of this tent was called the holy place. The lamp stand, the table, and the bread of the presence were in this part of the tent. Behind the second curtain was the part of the tent called the most holy place. It contained the gold incense burner and the ark of the Lord’s promise. The ark was completely covered with gold. In the ark were the gold jar filled with manna, Aaron’s staff that had blossomed, and the tablets on which the promise was written. Above the ark were the angels of glory ⌞with their wings⌟ overshadowing the throne of mercy. (Discussing these things in detail isn’t possible now.)
That is how these two parts of the tent were set up. The priests always went into the first part of the tent to perform their duties. But only the chief priest went into the second part of the tent. Once a year he entered and brought blood that he offered for himself and for the things that the people did wrong unintentionally. The Holy Spirit used this to show that the way into the most holy place was not open while the tent was still in use.
The first part of the tent is an example for the present time. The gifts and sacrifices that were brought there could not give the worshiper a clear conscience. These gifts and sacrifices were meant to be food, drink, and items used in various purification ceremonies. These ceremonies were required for the body until God would establish a new way of doing things.
But Christ came as a chief priest of the good things that are now here. Christ went through a better, more perfect tent that was not made by human hands and that is not part of this created world. He used his own blood, not the blood of goats and bulls, for the sacrifice. He went into the most holy place and offered this sacrifice once and for all to free us forever.
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Jesus Paid It All – Hymnology (Hymns of Grace)
1. I hear the Savior say,
“Thy strength indeed is small,
Child of weak-ness, watch and pray;
Find in Me thine all in all.”
Refrain:
Jesus paid it all;
All to Him I owe.
Sin had left a crimson stain;
He washed it white as snow.
2. Lord, now indeed I find
Thy power, and Thine alone
Can change the leper’s spots
And melt the heart of stone.
3. For nothing good have I
Whereby Thy grace to claim;
I’ll wash my garments white
In the blood of Calv’ry’s Lamb.
4. And when, before the throne,
I stand in Him complete,
“Jesus died my soul to save,”
My lips shall still repeat.
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O God, you made us in your own image, and you have redeemed us through your Son Jesus Christ: Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Sovereign Lord: We pray for the peace of Jerusalem:
+ Do what only you can do to make your faithful people the blessing promised to every family on earth.
+ Protect them from the assaults of the evil one, coming from every direction and in every form.
+ Grant your heavenly wisdom to Israel’s leadership; give them the courage to do what’s right in your sight.
+ Comfort all those who mourn the loss of loved ones; deliver the hostages from captivity and restore their souls.
+ Destroy every stronghold and every expression of the evil death cult terrorizing the Middle East.
+ Protect the Israel Defense Forces and every soldier engaged in their mission to root out this evil.
+ Strengthen the Messianic communities; use them to restore your faithful people to their proper place in your kingdom.
+ Unify your faithful people around your promise to Abraham – to bless every family on earth through them.
+ Intervene in the Middle East in ways that only you can; protect the innocent and punish the guilty, that all may live in peace.
We ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Almighty God our Savior, you desire that none should perish, and you have taught us through your Son that there is great joy in heaven over every sinner who repents: Grant that our hearts may ache for a lost and broken world. May your Holy Spirit work through our words, deeds, and prayers, that the lost may be found and the dead made alive, and that all your redeemed may rejoice around your throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Closing: FaithandWorship.com | John Birch
The Lord bless us, and preserve us from all evil,
and keep us in eternal life.
+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The Peanut Gallery 