Epiphany Season | Tuesday 22 February 2022
+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Opening:
O God, the strength of all who put their trust in you:
Mercifully accept our prayers, and because,
through the weakness of our mortal nature,
we can do no good thing without you,
grant us the help of your grace,
that in keeping your commandments
we may please you both in will and deed;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
You should examine yourself
before eating the bread and drinking the cup.
For if you eat the bread or drink the cup
without honoring the body of Christ,
you are eating and drinking God’s judgment
upon yourself.
(1 Corinthians 11:17-28-29)
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Psalms: Psalm 38 – ‘Lord, don’t punish me in Your anger’
Psalm Musicals – Christian Music Channel
Hymn Song by Jesse & Leah Roberts
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OT Reading: 1 Samuel 24:1-22 (NLT)
David Spares Saul’s Life
24:1 After Saul returned from fighting the Philistines, he was told that David had gone into the wilderness of En-gedi. So Saul chose 3,000 elite troops from all Israel and went to search for David and his men near the rocks of the wild goats.
At the place where the road passes some sheepfolds, Saul went into a cave to relieve himself. But as it happened, David and his men were hiding farther back in that very cave!
“Now’s your opportunity!” David’s men whispered to him. “Today the Lord is telling you, ‘I will certainly put your enemy into your power, to do with as you wish.’” So David crept forward and cut off a piece of the hem of Saul’s robe.
But then David’s conscience began bothering him because he had cut Saul’s robe. He said to his men, “The Lord forbid that I should do this to my lord the king. I shouldn’t attack the Lord’s anointed one, for the Lord himself has chosen him.” So David restrained his men and did not let them kill Saul.
After Saul had left the cave and gone on his way, David came out and shouted after him, “My lord the king!” And when Saul looked around, David bowed low before him.
Then he shouted to Saul, “Why do you listen to the people who say I am trying to harm you? This very day you can see with your own eyes it isn’t true. For the Lord placed you at my mercy back there in the cave. Some of my men told me to kill you, but I spared you. For I said, ‘I will never harm the king—he is the Lord’s anointed one.’ Look, my father, at what I have in my hand. It is a piece of the hem of your robe! I cut it off, but I didn’t kill you. This proves that I am not trying to harm you and that I have not sinned against you, even though you have been hunting for me to kill me.
“May the Lord judge between us. Perhaps the Lord will punish you for what you are trying to do to me, but I will never harm you. As that old proverb says, ‘From evil people come evil deeds.’ So you can be sure I will never harm you. Who is the king of Israel trying to catch anyway? Should he spend his time chasing one who is as worthless as a dead dog or a single flea? May the Lord therefore judge which of us is right and punish the guilty one. He is my advocate, and he will rescue me from your power!”
When David had finished speaking, Saul called back, “Is that really you, my son David?” Then he began to cry. And he said to David, “You are a better man than I am, for you have repaid me good for evil. Yes, you have been amazingly kind to me today, for when the Lord put me in a place where you could have killed me, you didn’t do it. Who else would let his enemy get away when he had him in his power? May the Lord reward you well for the kindness you have shown me today. And now I realize that you are surely going to be king, and that the kingdom of Israel will flourish under your rule. Now swear to me by the Lord that when that happens you will not kill my family and destroy my line of descendants!”
So David promised this to Saul with an oath. Then Saul went home, but David and his men went back to their stronghold.
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Save Me – Steffany Gretzinger | BLACKOUT
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NT Reading: 1 Corinthians 11:17-22, 27-33 (NLT)
Order at the Lord’s Supper
11:17 But in the following instructions, I cannot praise you. For it sounds as if more harm than good is done when you meet together. First, I hear that there are divisions among you when you meet as a church, and to some extent I believe it. But, of course, there must be divisions among you so that you who have God’s approval will be recognized!
When you meet together, you are not really interested in the Lord’s Supper. For some of you hurry to eat your own meal without sharing with others. As a result, some go hungry while others get drunk. What? Don’t you have your own homes for eating and drinking? Or do you really want to disgrace God’s church and shame the poor? What am I supposed to say? Do you want me to praise you? Well, I certainly will not praise you for this!
11:27 So anyone who eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord unworthily is guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. That is why you should examine yourself before eating the bread and drinking the cup. For if you eat the bread or drink the cup without honoring the body of Christ, you are eating and drinking God’s judgment upon yourself. That is why many of you are weak and sick and some have even died.
But if we would examine ourselves, we would not be judged by God in this way. Yet when we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned along with the world.
So, my dear brothers and sisters, when you gather for the Lord’s Supper, wait for each other.
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Still (Church Online) – Hillsong Worship
Hide me now
Under Your wings
Cover me
Within Your mighty hand
When the oceans rise
And thunders roar
I will soar with You
Above the storm
Father You are King
Over the flood
I will be still and know
You are God
Find rest my soul
In Christ alone
Know His power
In quietness and trust
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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.
faithandworship.com / John Birch
+ God of all ages,
who from generation to generation
has heard the cries of your children
humbly seeking forgiveness,
and has welcomed sinners
back into your embrace,
hear the thoughts of our hearts,
examine our motives,
and forgive us our faults.
We ask this through your Son
who died and rose that we might know
the true cost of forgiveness.
Amen.
The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance,
that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.
(1 timothy 1:15)
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O God of peace, who has taught us that in returning and rest
we shall be saved, in quietness and in confidence shall be our
strength: By the might of your Spirit lift us, we pray, into your
presence, where we may be still and know that you are God;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The Peanut Gallery 