Day of Pentecost | Sunday 19 May 2024
+ In the name the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen
Opening prayer:
Almighty God, on this day,
through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit,
you revealed the way of eternal life to every race and nation:
Pour out this gift anew, that by the preaching of the Gospel
your salvation may reach to the ends of the earth;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
“I will ask the Father,
and he will give you [the Spirit of Truth]
who will be with you forever.”
(John 14:16)
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Holy Spirit Living Breath of God (Official Lyric Video) – Keith & Kristyn Getty
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Reading from Acts of the Apostles: Acts 2:1-11 (GW)
The Believers Are Filled with the Holy Spirit
2:1 When Pentecost, the fiftieth day after Passover, came, all the believers were together in one place. Suddenly, a sound like a violently blowing wind came from the sky and filled the whole house where they were staying. Tongues that looked like fire appeared to them. The tongues arranged themselves so that one came to rest on each believer. All the believers were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages as the Spirit gave them the ability to speak.
Devout Jewish men from every nation were living in Jerusalem. They gathered when they heard the wind. Each person was startled to recognize his own dialect when the disciples spoke.
Stunned and amazed, the people in the crowd said, “All of these men who are speaking are Galileans. Why do we hear them speaking in our native dialects? We’re Parthians, Medes, and Elamites. We’re people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, the province of Asia, Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, and the country near Cyrene in Libya. We’re Jewish people, converts to Judaism, and visitors from Rome, Crete, and Arabia. We hear these men in our own languages as they tell about the miracles that God has done.”
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From the Psalms: Psalm 104 – “Lord, Send Out Your Spirit” – Francesca LaRosa (Official Lyric Video)
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Reading from the Letters: Romans 8:22-27 (GW)
8:22 We know that all creation has been groaning with the pains of childbirth up to the present time.
However, not only creation groans. We, who have the Spirit as the first of God’s gifts, also groan inwardly. We groan as we eagerly wait for our adoption, the freeing of our bodies ⌞from sin⌟. We were saved with this hope in mind. If we hope for something we already see, it’s not really hope. Who hopes for what can be seen? But if we hope for what we don’t see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.
At the same time the Spirit also helps us in our weakness, because we don’t know how to pray for what we need. But the Spirit intercedes along with our groans that cannot be expressed in words. The one who searches our hearts knows what the Spirit has in mind. The Spirit intercedes for God’s people the way God wants him to.
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One Spirit, One Church with lyrics by Keil / Immaculate Conception Church
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Reading from the Gospels: John 14:8-17 (GW)
14:8 Philip said to Jesus, “Lord, show us the Father, and that will satisfy us.”
Jesus replied, “I have been with all of you for a long time. Don’t you know me yet, Philip? The person who has seen me has seen the Father. So how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? What I’m telling you doesn’t come from me. The Father, who lives in me, does what he wants. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and that the Father is in me. Otherwise, believe me because of the things I do.
“I can guarantee this truth: Those who believe in me will do the things that I am doing. They will do even greater things because I am going to the Father. I will do anything you ask ⌞the Father⌟ in my name so that the Father will be given glory because of the Son. If you ask me to do something, I will do it.
“If you love me, you will obey my commandments. I will ask the Father, and he will give you another helper who will be with you forever. That helper is the Spirit of Truth. The world cannot accept him, because it doesn’t see or know him. You know him, because he lives with you and will be in you.
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Spirit of God Descend Upon My Heart – The Joslin Grove Choral Society
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+ Holy Spirit, breath of God and fire of love, I cannot pray without your aid: Kindle in me the fire of your love, and illumine me with your light; that with a steadfast will and holy thoughts I may approach the Father in spirit and in truth; through Jesus Christ my Lord, who reigns with you and the Father in eternal union. Amen.
+ Almighty God, you alone gave us the breath of life, and you alone can keep alive in us the holy desires you impart. We beseech you, for your compassion’s sake, to sanctify all our thoughts and endeavors, that we may neither begin an action without a pure intention nor continue it without your blessing. And grant that, having the eyes of our mind enlightened to behold things invisible and unseen, we may in heart be inspired by your wisdom, in work be upheld by your strength, and in the end be accepted as your faithful servants; through Jesus Christ our Savior. 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.
+ 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
May the Spirit kindle in us the fire of God’s love.
+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
7:37 On the last and most important day of the festival, Jesus was standing ⌞in the temple courtyard⌟. He said loudly, “Whoever is thirsty must come to me to drink. As Scripture says, ‘Streams of living water will flow from deep within the person who believes in me.’ ” Jesus said this about the Spirit, whom his believers would receive. The Spirit was not yet evident, as it would be after Jesus had been glorified.
They will be changed so that they can live forever. This body that decays must be changed into a body that cannot decay. This mortal body must be changed into a body that will live forever. When this body that decays is changed into a body that cannot decay, and this mortal body is changed into a body that will live forever, then the teaching of Scripture will come true:
This is what Scripture says: “The first man, Adam, became a living being.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. The spiritual does not come first, but the physical and then the spiritual. The first man was made from the dust of the earth. He came from the earth. The second man came from heaven. The people on earth are like the man who was made from the dust of the earth. The people in heaven are like the man who came from heaven. As we have worn the likeness of the man who was made from the dust of the earth, we will also wear the likeness of the man who came from heaven.
“Now you’re in a painful situation. But I will see you again. Then you will be happy, and no one will take that happiness away from you. When that day comes, you won’t ask me any more questions. I can guarantee this truth: If you ask the Father for anything in my name, he will give it to you. So far you haven’t asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive so that you can be completely happy.
The Peanut Gallery 