The Lenten Season | Tuesday 27 Feb 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.
Faith assures us of things we expect
and convinces us of the existence
of things we cannot see.
(Hebrews 11:1)
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From Psalms: Psalm 105 – “Give Thanks” – Sean Dayton
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OT Reading: Genesis 22:1-19 (GW)
God Tests Abraham
22:1 Later God tested Abraham and called to him, “Abraham!”
“Yes, here I am!” he answered.
God said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains that I will show you.”
Early the next morning Abraham saddled his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut the wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place that God had told him about. Two days later Abraham saw the place in the distance. Then Abraham said to his servants, “You stay here with the donkey while the boy and I go over there. We’ll worship. After that we’ll come back to you.”
Then Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and gave it to his son Isaac. Abraham carried the burning coals and the knife. The two of them went on together.
Isaac spoke up and said, “Father?”
“Yes, Son?” Abraham answered.
Isaac asked, “We have the burning coals and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”
Abraham answered, “God will provide a lamb for the burnt offering, Son.”
The two of them went on together. When they came to the place that God had told him about, Abraham built the altar and arranged the wood on it. Then he tied up his son Isaac and laid him on top of the wood on the altar. Next, Abraham picked up the knife and took it in his hand to sacrifice his son. But the Messenger of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham! Abraham!”
“Yes?” he answered.
“Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you did not refuse to give me your son, your only son.”
When Abraham looked around, he saw a ram behind him caught by its horns in a bush. So Abraham took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering in place of his son. Abraham named that place The Lord Will Provide. It is still said today, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.”
The Lord’s Seventh Promise to Abraham
22:15 Then the Messenger of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, “I am taking an oath on my own name, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not refused to give me your son, your only son, I will certainly bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and the grains of sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of their enemies’ cities. Through your descendant all the nations of the earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.”
Then Abraham returned to his servants, and together they left for Beersheba. Abraham remained in Beersheba.
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2024 – The Blessing ♥ World Edition ♥ Over 12000 from 154 nations sing in 257 languages ♥
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NT Reading: Hebrews 11:1-3, 13-19 (GW)
Faith Directed People’s Lives
11:1 Faith assures us of things we expect and convinces us of the existence of things we cannot see. God accepted our ancestors because of their faith.
Faith convinces us that God created the world through his word. This means what can be seen was made by something that could not be seen….
11:13 All these people died having faith. They didn’t receive the things that God had promised them, but they saw these things coming in the distant future and rejoiced. They acknowledged that they were living as strangers with no permanent home on earth. Those who say such things make it clear that they are looking for their own country. If they had been thinking about the country that they had left, they could have found a way to go back. Instead, these men were longing for a better country—a heavenly country. That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God. He has prepared a city for them.
When God tested Abraham, faith led him to offer his son Isaac. Abraham, the one who received the promises from God, was willing to offer his only son as a sacrifice. God had said to him, “Through Isaac your descendants will carry on your name.” Abraham believed that God could bring Isaac back from the dead. Abraham did receive Isaac back from the dead in a figurative sense.
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You Are Faithful | אתה נאמן | Ata Ne’eman LIVE Worship in Hebrew | subtitles (official video)
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+ 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
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 