After Pentecost | Thursday 29 Aug 2024

After Pentecost | Friday 30 Aug 2024

+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Opening:

Let your continual mercy, O Lord,
cleanse and defend your Church; and,
because it cannot continue in safety without your help,
protect and govern it always by your goodness;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

“Everyone is tempted by his own desires
as they lure him away and trap him.”
(James 1:14)

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From Psalms: Psalm 15 | “Who may dwell in your sanctuary?” | Sons of Korah | Ed Sullivan

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OT Reading: Exodus 32:15-35 (GW)

32:15 Moses turned and went down the mountain carrying the two tablets with God’s words. They were written on both sides, front and back. The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was God’s writing inscribed on the tablets.

Then Joshua heard the noise of the people shouting. He said to Moses, “It’s the sound of war in the camp!”

Moses replied,

“It’s not the sound of winners shouting.
It’s not the sound of losers crying.
It’s the sound of a wild celebration that I hear.”

When he came near the camp, he saw the calf and the dancing. In a burst of anger Moses threw down the tablets and smashed them at the foot of the mountain. Then he took the calf they had made, burned it, ground it into powder, scattered it on the water, and made the Israelites drink it.

Moses asked Aaron, “What did these people do to you that you encouraged them to commit such a serious sin?”

“Don’t be angry, sir,” Aaron answered. “You know that these people are evil. They said to me, ‘We don’t know what’s happened to this Moses who brought us out of Egypt. Make gods for us. They will lead us.’ So I told them to take off any gold they were wearing. They gave it to me. I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf!”

Aaron had let the people get out of control, and they became an object of ridicule to their enemies. When Moses saw this, he stood at the entrance to the camp and said, “If you’re on the Lord’s side, come over here to me!” Then all the Levites gathered around him.

He said to them, “This is what the Lord God of Israel says: Each of you put on your sword. Go back and forth from one end of the camp to the other, and kill your relatives, friends, and neighbors.”

The Levites did what Moses told them, and that day about 3,000 people died.

Moses said, “Today you are ordained as the Lord’s priests. God gave you a blessing today because each of you fought with your own sons and brothers.”

Moses Begs the Lord to Spare the People

32:30 The next day Moses said to the people, “You have committed a serious sin. Now I will go up the mountain to the Lord. Maybe I will be able to make a payment for your sin and make peace with the Lord for your sin.”

So Moses went back to the Lord and said, “These people have committed such a serious sin! They made gods out of gold for themselves. But will you forgive their sin? If not, please wipe me out of the book you have written.”

The Lord answered Moses, “I will wipe out of my book whoever sins against me. Now, go! Lead the people to the place I told you about. My Messenger will go ahead of you. But when I punish, I will punish them for their sin.”

So the Lord killed people because they had Aaron make the calf.

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Hebrew Worship // I Ask For Mercy // Rachamim Avakesh // רַחֲמִים אֲבַקֵּשׁ // FIRM Israel

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NT Reading: James 1:9-16 (GW)

1:9 Humble believers should be proud because being humble makes them important. Rich believers should be proud because being rich should make them humble. Rich people will wither like flowers. The sun rises with its scorching heat and dries up plants. The flowers drop off, and the beauty is gone. The same thing will happen to rich people. While they are busy, they will die.

Blessed are those who endure when they are tested. When they pass the test, they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. When someone is tempted, he shouldn’t say that God is tempting him. God can’t be tempted by evil, and God doesn’t tempt anyone. Everyone is tempted by his own desires as they lure him away and trap him. Then desire becomes pregnant and gives birth to sin. When sin grows up, it gives birth to death.

My dear brothers and sisters, don’t be fooled.

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Lord Have Mercy (Live) – Matt Boswell, Matt Papa & Sandra McCracken (Lyrics)

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Prayer: ACNA | BCP2019

+ 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.

+ 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.

+ Sovereign Lord: We pray for the peace of Jerusalem:

- Protect Israel from the fiery darts of the evil one coming from every direction, both within and without.
- Grant your heavenly wisdom to those guiding Israel militarily, politically, and diplomatically;
- Give them hearts to receive, and the courage to do, what’s right in your sight.
- Comfort those who grieve and mourn the loss of loved ones;
- Rebuke those who would use grief for evil purposes.
- Bring swift and certain justice to all those complicit in the October 7th atrocities;
- Deliver the hostages from captivity, and restore their souls.
- Destroy every stronghold of the evil death cult terrorizing the Middle East.
- Strengthen the Messianic communities – Jew and Arab alike – bind them together in love, that they may be a source of help, and healing, and hope;
- Use them in the restoration of your people to their proper place in your Kingdom.
- We pray in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

+ Heavenly Father, you have promised to hear what we ask in the Name of your Son: Accept and fulfill our petitions, we pray, not as we ask in our ignorance, nor as we deserve in our sinfulness, but as you know and love us in your Son 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.

After Pentecost | Thursday 29 Aug 2024

+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Opening:

“If any of you needs wisdom
to know what you should do,
you should ask God, and he will give it to you.”
(James 1:5)

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From Psalms: Psalm 15 | Psalm 15 (Who May Abide With You) – The Psalms Project feat. Emily Heilman

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OT Reading: Exodus 32:1-14 (GW)

The Gold Calf

32:1 When the people saw that Moses delayed coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron. They said to him, “We don’t know what has happened to this Moses, who led us out of Egypt. Make gods who will lead us.”

Aaron said to them, “Have your wives, sons, and daughters take off the gold earrings they are wearing, and bring them to me.”

So all the people took off their gold earrings and handed them to Aaron. After he had worked on the gold with a tool, he made it into a statue of a calf.

Then they said, “Israel, here are your gods who brought you out of Egypt.”

When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of it and announced, “Tomorrow there will be a festival in the Lord’s honor.”

Early the next day the people sacrificed burnt offerings and brought fellowship offerings. Afterward, they sat down to a feast, which turned into an orgy.

The Lord said to Moses, “Go back down there. Your people whom you brought out of Egypt have ruined ⌞everything⌟. They’ve already turned from the way I commanded them to live. They’ve made a statue of a calf for themselves. They’ve bowed down to it and offered sacrifices to it. They’ve said, ‘Israel, here are your gods who brought you out of Egypt.’ ”

The Lord added, “I’ve seen these people, and they are impossible to deal with. Now leave me alone. I’m so angry with them I am going to destroy them. Then I’ll make you into a great nation.”

But Moses pleaded with the Lord his God. “Lord,” he said, “why are you so angry with your people whom you brought out of Egypt using your great power and mighty hand? Don’t let the Egyptians say, ‘He was planning all along to kill them in the mountains and wipe them off the face of the earth. That’s why he brought them out ⌞of our land⌟.’ Don’t be so angry. Reconsider your decision to bring this disaster on your people. Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Israel. You took an oath, swearing on yourself. You told them, ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky. I will give to your descendants all the land I spoke of. It will be their permanent possession.’ ”

So the Lord reconsidered his threat to destroy his people.

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Father of all Mercies – One Voice Concert | Pe Echad | פה אחד | HEBREW WORSHIP from Israel

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NT Reading: James 1:1-8 (GW)

Greeting

1:1 From James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.

To God’s faithful people who have been scattered.

Greetings.

When You Are Tested, Turn to God

1:2 My brothers and sisters, be very happy when you are tested in different ways. You know that such testing of your faith produces endurance. Endure until your testing is over. Then you will be mature and complete, and you won’t need anything.

If any of you needs wisdom to know what you should do, you should ask God, and he will give it to you. God is generous to everyone and doesn’t find fault with them. When you ask for something, don’t have any doubts. A person who has doubts is like a wave that is blown by the wind and tossed by the sea. A person who has doubts shouldn’t expect to receive anything from the Lord. A person who has doubts is thinking about two different things at the same time and can’t make up his mind about anything.

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God I Look to You – Bethel Music (feat. Jenn Johnson) Worship Song with Lyrics

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Prayer: ACNA | BCP2019

+ Sovereign Lord: We pray for the peace of Jerusalem:

- Protect Israel from the fiery darts of the evil one coming from every direction, both within and without.
- Grant your heavenly wisdom to those guiding Israel militarily, politically, and diplomatically;
- Give them hearts to receive, and the courage to do, what’s right in your sight.
- Comfort those who grieve and mourn the loss of loved ones;
- Rebuke those who would use grief for evil purposes.
- Bring swift and certain justice to all those complicit in the October 7th atrocities;
- Deliver the hostages from captivity, and restore their souls.
- Destroy every stronghold of the evil death cult terrorizing the Middle East.
- Strengthen the Messianic communities – Jew and Arab alike – bind them together in love, that they may be a source of help, and healing, and hope;
- Use them in the restoration of your people to their proper place in your Kingdom.
- We pray in Jesus’ Name. Amen.