The Lenten Season | Wednesday 06 Mar 2024: Psalm 84; Ezra 6:1-16; Mark 11:15-19 ~ A house of prayer for all nations.

The Lenten Season | Wednesday 06 Mar 2024

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

Opening:

Heavenly Father,
you have made us for yourself,
and our hearts are restless until they rest in you:
Look with compassion
upon the heartfelt desires of your servants,
and purify our disordered affections,
that we may behold your eternal glory
in the face of Christ Jesus;
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Then [Jesus] taught them by saying,
“Scripture says, ‘My house will be called
a house of prayer for all nations,’
but you have turned it into
a gathering place for thieves.”
(Mark 11:17)

__________

From Psalms: Psalm 84 (I’m Home) | Shane & Shane

__________

OT Reading: Ezra 6:1-16 (GW)

King Darius Finds King Cyrus’ Memorandum

6:1 Then King Darius gave the order to search the library where the archives were stored in Babylon. A scroll was found in the palace of Ecbatana, which is in the province of Media. This was written on it:

MEMORANDUM

Date: Cyrus’ first year as king

From: King Cyrus

Subject: God’s temple in Jerusalem

The temple should be rebuilt as a place to offer sacrifices. Its foundation should be laid. It should be 90 feet high and 90 feet wide with three rows of large stones and a row of wood. The king’s palace will pay for it. In addition, Cyrus took out of a temple in Babylon the gold and silver utensils that belonged to God’s temple. (Nebuchadnezzar had taken them out of God’s temple in Jerusalem and brought them into a temple in Babylon.) They should be returned to their proper place in the temple in Jerusalem. You should put each one in God’s temple.

Governor Tattenai ⌞from the province⌟ west of the Euphrates, Shethar Bozenai, and those of your group (the Persians west of the river):

You must stay away from there. Don’t interfere with the work on God’s temple. Let the governor of the Jews and the leaders of Judah rebuild God’s temple on its ⌞original⌟ foundation. I am issuing this decree about how you must help the Jewish leaders rebuild God’s temple:

The cost ⌞for this⌟ should be paid out of the king’s own money from the taxes ⌞on the province⌟ west of the Euphrates. Full payment should be made to these men so that the work is not interrupted. Also, whatever the priests in Jerusalem need for burnt offerings to the God of heaven—young bulls, rams, lambs, wheat, salt, wine, and olive oil—should be provided for them each day. Make sure that nothing is omitted. Then they can offer sacrifices that please the God of heaven and pray for the life of the king and his sons.

I am also issuing a decree that if anyone tampers with my orders, that person should be impaled on a beam torn from his own house and his house should be turned into a pile of rubble. May the God whose name is worshiped there cause the downfall of each king and nation who tries to tamper with my orders or tries to destroy the temple of the God in Jerusalem.

I, Darius, have issued a decree. It’s to be carried out exactly as ordered.

Then Governor Tattenai ⌞from the province⌟ west of the Euphrates River, Shethar Bozenai, and their group did exactly what King Darius had ordered. So the Jewish leaders continued to make progress because of the message from the prophet Haggai and Zechariah, the grandson of Iddo. They finished building as the God of Israel had ordered and as Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes (the kings of Persia) had ordered. This temple was finished on the third day of the month of Adar in the sixth year of King Darius’ reign.

The Temple Is Completed and Dedicated

6:16 Then the people of Israel, the priests, the Levites, and the others who had returned from exile celebrated at the dedication of God’s temple.

__________

Jerusalem [Official Lyric Video] Aaron Shust

__________

NT Reading: Mark 11:15-19 (GW)

Jesus Throws Out the Moneychangers

11:15 When they came to Jerusalem, Jesus went into the temple courtyard and began to throw out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the moneychangers’ tables and the chairs of those who sold pigeons. He would not let anyone carry anything across the temple courtyard.

Then he taught them by saying, “Scripture says, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations,’ but you have turned it into a gathering place for thieves.”

When the chief priests and the experts in Moses’ Teachings heard him, they looked for a way to kill him. They were afraid of him because he amazed all the crowds with his teaching.

(Every evening Jesus and his disciples would leave the city.)

__________

House of Prayer Eddie James // Jeffery Marion

__________

Prayer: ACNA | BCP2019

+ 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.

+ O God, our heavenly Father, you manifested your love by sending your only-begotten Son into the world, that all might live through him: Pour out your Spirit on your Church [especially in the Holy Land], that we may fulfill his command to preach the Gospel to all people. Send forth laborers into your harvest; defend them in all dangers and temptations; and hasten the time when the fullness of the Gentiles shall be gathered in, and faithful Israel shall be saved; through your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

+ Lord of Heaven’s Armies, we pray for swift and total victory over all evil in the Holy Land. Bring home the hostages, and deliver from bondage every person captivated by the evil death cult terrorizing the Middle East. And finally, grant 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 God our Redeemer
show us compassion and love.

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

The Lenten Season | Tuesday 05 Mar 2024: Psalm 84; 2 Chronicles 29:1-11, 16-19; Hebrews 9:23-28 ~ Christ was sacrificed once for all.

The Lenten Season | Tuesday 05 Mar 2024

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

Opening:

“Christ was sacrificed once
to take away the sins of humanity….”
(Hebrews 9:28a)

__________

From Psalms: Psalm 84 // No Place Better – Caroline Cobb

__________

OT Reading: 2 Chronicles 29:1-11, 16-19 (GW)

King Hezekiah Rededicates the Temple

29:1 Hezekiah began to rule as king when he was 25 years old. He ruled for 29 years in Jerusalem. His mother was Abijah, daughter of Zechariah. He did what the Lord considered right, as his ancestor David had done.

In the first month of his first year as king, he opened the doors of the Lord’s temple and repaired them. He brought the priests and Levites together in the square on the east side ⌞of the temple⌟.

He said to them, “Listen to me, Levites. Perform the ceremonies to make the temple of the Lord God of your ancestors holy. Remove anything that has been corrupted from the holy place. Our ancestors were unfaithful and did what the Lord our God considered evil. They deserted him. They turned away from the Lord’s tent and turned their backs on him. They also shut the doors of the ⌞temple’s⌟ entrance hall, extinguished the lamps, and didn’t burn incense or sacrifice burnt offerings in the holy place to the God of Israel. So the Lord was angry with Judah and Jerusalem. He made them something that shocks and terrifies people and that people ridicule, as you can see with your own eyes. Our fathers were killed in battle, and our sons, daughters, and wives are prisoners because of this. Now I intend to make a pledge to the Lord God of Israel so that he may turn his burning anger away from us. Don’t be negligent, my sons. The Lord has chosen you to stand in front of him, serve him, be his servants, and burn sacrifices.”

29:16 The priests entered the Lord’s temple to make it clean. They carried into the courtyard every unclean thing that they found in the Lord’s temple. Then the Levites took the unclean items outside the city to the Kidron Brook. They started on the first day of the first month. On the eighth day they went into the Lord’s entrance hall, and for eight days they performed the ceremonies to make the Lord’s temple holy. They finished on the sixteenth day of the first month.

Then they went to King Hezekiah. They said ⌞to him⌟, “We have made all of the Lord’s temple clean. This includes the altar for burnt offerings, all its utensils, the table for the rows of bread and all its utensils, and all the utensils King Ahaz refused to use during his reign when he was unfaithful. We have restored them and made them holy. They are in front of the Lord’s altar.”

__________

God Full of Mercy / El Maleh Rachamim by Sarah Liberman (Official Lyric Video) Hebrew

__________

NT Reading: Hebrews 9:23-28 (GW)

9:23 The copies of the things in heaven had to be cleansed by these sacrifices. But the heavenly things themselves had to be cleansed by better sacrifices. Christ didn’t go into a holy place made by human hands. He didn’t go into a model of the real thing. Instead, he went into heaven to appear in God’s presence on our behalf. Every year the chief priest went into the holy place to make a sacrifice with blood that isn’t his own. However, Christ didn’t go into heaven to sacrifice himself again and again. Otherwise, he would have had to suffer many times since the world was created. But now, at the end of the ages, he has appeared once to remove sin by his sacrifice. People die once, and after that they are judged. Likewise, Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of humanity, and after that he will appear a second time. This time he will not deal with sin, but he will save those who eagerly wait for him.

__________

No Greater Love (Live) | Resound Worship

__________

Prayer: ACNA | BCP2019

+ Almighty God, our heavenly Father, who in your great mercy has promised forgiveness of sins to all those who sincerely repent and with true faith turn to you, have mercy upon us, pardon and deliver us from all our sins, confirm and strengthen us in all goodness, and bring us to everlasting life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Closing: FaithandWorship.com | John Birch

May God our Redeemer
show us compassion and love.

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

The Lenten Season | Monday 04 Mar 2024: Psalm 84; 1 Kings 6:1-4, 21-22; 1 Corinthians 3:10-23 ~ You are God’s holy temple.

The Lenten Season | Monday 04 Mar 2024

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

Opening:

“Don’t you know
that you are God’s temple
and that God’s Spirit lives in you?”
(1 Corinthians 3:16)

__________

From Psalms: Psalm 84 // “How Delightful Is Your Dwelling” // Resound Worship

__________

OT Reading: 1 Kings 6:1-4, 21-22 (GW)

The Temple Built in Seven Years

6:1 Solomon began to build the Lord’s temple 480 years after Israel left Egypt. He began building in the month of Ziv (the second month) of the fourth year of his reign over Israel. The temple that King Solomon built for the Lord was 90 feet long, 30 feet wide, and 45 feet high. The entrance hall in front of the main room of the temple was the same length as the shorter side of the temple. It extended 15 feet in front of the temple. He also made latticed windows for the temple….

6:21 He covered the inside of the temple with pure gold. He put golden chains across the front of the inner room which was covered with gold. He covered the entire inside of the temple with gold. He also covered the entire altar in the inner room with gold.

__________

I Lift my eyes to Yeshua | נושא את עיניי אל ישוע // One For Israel Ministry

__________

NT Reading: 1 Corinthians 3:10-23 (GW)

3:10 As a skilled and experienced builder, I used the gift that God gave me to lay the foundation ⌞for that building⌟. However, someone else is building on it. Each person must be careful how he builds on it. After all, no one can lay any other foundation than the one that is already laid, and that foundation is Jesus Christ. People may build on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw. The day will make what each one does clearly visible because fire will reveal it. That fire will determine what kind of work each person has done. If what a person has built survives, he will receive a reward. If his work is burned up, he will suffer ⌞the loss⌟. However, he will be saved, though it will be like going through a fire.

Don’t you know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him because God’s temple is holy. You are that holy temple!

Don’t deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are wise in the ways of this world, you should give up that wisdom in order to become really wise. The wisdom of this world is nonsense in God’s sight. That’s why Scripture says, “God catches the wise in their cleverness.” Again Scripture says, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are pointless.”

So don’t brag about people. Everything belongs to you. Whether it is Paul, Apollos, Cephas, the world, life or death, present or future things, everything belongs to you. You belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God.

__________

I Belong To Jesus (Oh Hallelujah) – Selah [Official Video]

__________

Prayer: ACNA | BCP2019

+ 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. Amen.

Closing: FaithandWorship.com | John Birch

May God our Redeemer
show us compassion and love.

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

The Lenten Season | Saturday 02 Mar 2024: Psalm 19; Exodus 19:16-25; Mark 9:2-8 ~ Listen to Jesus!

The Lenten Season | Saturday 02 Mar 2024

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

Opening:

Almighty God,
you know that we have no power
in ourselves to help ourselves:
Keep us both outwardly in our bodies
and inwardly in our souls,
that we may be defended from all adversities
that may happen to the body,
and from all evil thoughts
that may assault and hurt the soul;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

“This is my Son, whom I love.
Listen to him!”
(Mark 9:2-8)

__________

From Psalms: Psalm 19 – The Corner Room

__________

OT Reading: Exodus 19:16-25 (GW)

19:16 On the morning of the second day, there was thunder and lightning with a heavy cloud over the mountain, and a very loud blast from a ram’s horn ⌞was heard⌟. All the people in the camp shook with fear. Then Moses led the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. All of Mount Sinai was covered with smoke because the Lord had come down on it in fire. Smoke rose from the mountain like the smoke from a kiln, and the whole mountain shook violently. As the sound of the horn grew louder and louder, Moses was speaking, and the voice of God answered him.

The Lord came down on top of Mount Sinai and called Moses to the top of the mountain. So Moses went up. The Lord said to him, “Go down and warn the people not to force their way through ⌞the boundary⌟ to see the Lord, or many of them will die. Even the priests who are allowed to come near the Lord must set themselves apart as holy, or the Lord will violently kill them.”

Moses said to the Lord, “The people can’t come up Mount Sinai, because you warned us yourself to mark off a boundary around the mountain and consider it holy.”

The Lord said to him, “Go down, and bring Aaron back with you. But the priests and the people must not force their way through the boundary to come up to the Lord, or he will violently kill them.”

So Moses went down to the people and told them.

__________

Song Of Love | One Voice | Pe Echad | פה אחד – Hebrew Worship from Israel

__________

NT Reading: Mark 9:2-8 (GW)

Moses and Elijah Appear with Jesus

9:2 After six days Jesus took only Peter, James, and John and led them up a high mountain where they could be alone.

Jesus’ appearance changed in front of them. His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone on earth could bleach them. Then Elijah and Moses appeared to them and were talking with Jesus.

Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it’s good that we’re here. Let’s put up three tents—one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” (Peter didn’t know how to respond. He and the others were terrified.)

Then a cloud overshadowed them. A voice came out of the cloud and said, “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!”

Suddenly, as they looked around, they saw no one with them but Jesus.

__________

I’m Listening – Chris McClarney / Ft. Hollyn // Music Meets Heaven

__________

Prayer: ACNA | BCP2019

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 Lenten Season | Friday 01 Mar 2024: Psalm 19; Exodus 19:9b-15; Acts 7:30-40~ Jesus also gave us life-giving messages.

The Lenten Season | Friday 01 Mar 2024

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

Opening:

“Moses received life-giving messages
to give to us,
but our ancestors
were not willing to obey him.”
(Acts 7:38-39)

__________

From Psalms: Psalm 19 // Sounds Like Reign

__________

OT Reading: Exodus 19:9b-15 (GW)

19:9 Moses told the Lord what the people had said.

So the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people, and tell them they have two days to get ready. They must set themselves apart as holy. Have them wash their clothes and be ready by the day after tomorrow. On that day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai as all the people watch. Mark off a boundary around the mountain for the people, and tell them not to go up the mountain or even touch it. Those who touch the mountain must be put to death. No one should touch them. They must be stoned or shot with arrows. No matter whether it’s an animal or a person, it must not live. The people may go up the mountain ⌞only⌟ when the ram’s horn sounds a long blast.”

After Moses went down the mountain to the people, he had them get ready, and they washed their clothes. Then Moses said to the people, “Be ready two days from now. Don’t disqualify yourselves by having sexual intercourse.”

__________

Ve’afilu B’hastarah – Yosef Karduner | LEVI LIFE MUSIC

https://youtu.be/DSR9SbTwcZI?si=SLkmoiJtVdDlwaga?rel=0
__________

NT Reading: Acts 7:30-40 (GW)

7:30 “Forty years later, a Messenger appeared to him in the flames of a burning bush in the desert of Mount Sinai. Moses was surprised when he saw this. As he went closer to look at the bush, the voice of the Lord said to him, ‘I am the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.’ Moses began to tremble and didn’t dare to look at the bush. The Lord told him, ‘Take off your sandals. The place where you’re standing is holy ground. I’ve seen how my people are mistreated in Egypt. I’ve heard their groaning and have come to rescue them. So now I’m sending you to Egypt.’

“This is the Moses whom the Israelites rejected by saying, ‘Who made you our ruler and judge?’ This is the one God sent to free them and to rule them with the help of the Messenger who appeared to him in the bush. This is the man who led our ancestors out of Egypt. He is the person who did amazing things and worked miracles in Egypt, at the Red Sea, and in the desert for 40 years. This is the same Moses who told the Israelites, ‘God will send you a prophet, an Israelite like me.’ This is the Moses who was in the assembly in the desert. Our ancestors and the Messenger who spoke to him on Mount Sinai were there with him. Moses received life-giving messages to give to us, but our ancestors were not willing to obey him. Instead, they pushed him aside, and in their hearts they turned back to Egypt. They told Aaron, ‘We don’t know what has happened to this Moses, who led us out of Egypt. So make gods who will lead us.’