Advent
The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together. Isaiah 40:5
Confession of Sin Most merciful God,
I confess that I have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what I have done, and by what I have left undone. I have not loved you with my whole heart; I have not loved my neighbors as myself. I am truly sorry and I humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on me and forgive me; that I may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen.
Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life. Amen
The Lessons
The Lessons
Psalm 16
(1) Preserve me, O God, for in You I put my trust. (2) O my soul, you have said to the LORD, 'You are my Lord, My goodness is nothing apart from You.' (3) As for the saints who are on the earth, 'They are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight.' (4) Their sorrows shall be multiplied who hasten after another god; Their drink offerings of blood I will not offer, Nor take up their names on my lips.
(5) O LORD,You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You maintain my lot. (6) The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; Yes, I have a good inheritance. (7) I will bless the LORD who has given me counsel; My heart also instructs me in the night seasons. (8) I have set the LORD always before me; Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.
(9) Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; My flesh also will rest in hope. (10) For You will not leave my soul in Sheol, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption. (11) You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
(5) O LORD,You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You maintain my lot. (6) The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; Yes, I have a good inheritance. (7) I will bless the LORD who has given me counsel; My heart also instructs me in the night seasons. (8) I have set the LORD always before me; Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.
(9) Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; My flesh also will rest in hope. (10) For You will not leave my soul in Sheol, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption. (11) You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
Psalm 17
(1) Hear a just cause, O LORD, Attend to my cry; Give ear to my prayer which is not from deceitful lips. (2) Let my vindication come from Your presence; Let Your eyes look on the things that are upright. (3) You have tested my heart; You have visited me in the night; You have tried me and have found nothing; I have purposed that my mouth shall not transgress. (4) Concerning the works of men, By the word of Your lips, I have kept away from the paths of the destroyer.
(5) Uphold my steps in Your paths, That my footsteps may not slip. (6) I have called upon You, for You will hear me, O God; Incline Your ear to me, and hear my speech. (7) Show Your marvelous lovingkindness by Your right hand, O You who save those who trust in You From those who rise up against them. (8) Keep me as the apple of Your eye; Hide me under the shadow of Your wings,
(9) From the wicked who oppress me, From my deadly enemies who surround me. (10) They have closed up their fat hearts; With their mouths they speak proudly. (11) They have now surrounded us in our steps; They have set their eyes, crouching down to the earth, (12) As a lion is eager to tear his prey, And like a young lion lurking in secret places.
(13) Arise, O LORD, Confront him, cast him down; Deliver my life from the wicked with Your sword, (14) With Your hand from men, O LORD, From men of the world who have their portion in this life, And whose belly You fill with Your hidden treasure. They are satisfied with children, And leave the rest of their possession for their babes. (15) As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
(5) Uphold my steps in Your paths, That my footsteps may not slip. (6) I have called upon You, for You will hear me, O God; Incline Your ear to me, and hear my speech. (7) Show Your marvelous lovingkindness by Your right hand, O You who save those who trust in You From those who rise up against them. (8) Keep me as the apple of Your eye; Hide me under the shadow of Your wings,
(9) From the wicked who oppress me, From my deadly enemies who surround me. (10) They have closed up their fat hearts; With their mouths they speak proudly. (11) They have now surrounded us in our steps; They have set their eyes, crouching down to the earth, (12) As a lion is eager to tear his prey, And like a young lion lurking in secret places.
(13) Arise, O LORD, Confront him, cast him down; Deliver my life from the wicked with Your sword, (14) With Your hand from men, O LORD, From men of the world who have their portion in this life, And whose belly You fill with Your hidden treasure. They are satisfied with children, And leave the rest of their possession for their babes. (15) As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
Amos 5
(1) Hear this word which I take up against you, a lamentation, O house of Israel: (2) The virgin of Israel has fallen; She will rise no more. She lies forsaken on her land; There is no one to raise her up. (3) For thus says the Lord GOD: 'The city that goes out by a thousand Shall have a hundred left, And that which goes out by a hundred Shall have ten left to the house of Israel.' (4) For thus says the LORD to the house of Israel: 'Seek Me and live;
(5) But do not seek Bethel, Nor enter Gilgal, Nor pass over to Beersheba; For Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, And Bethel shall come to nothing. (6) Seek the LORD and live, Lest He break out like fire in the house of Joseph, And devour it, With no one to quench it in Bethel -- (7) You who turn justice to wormwood, And lay righteousness to rest in the earth!' (8) He made the Pleiades and Orion; He turns the shadow of death into morning And makes the day dark as night; He calls for the waters of the sea And pours them out on the face of the earth; The LORD is His name.
(9) He rains ruin upon the strong, So that fury comes upon the fortress. (10) They hate the one who rebukes in the gate, And they abhor the one who speaks uprightly. (11) Therefore, because you tread down the poor And take grain taxes from him, Though you have built houses of hewn stone, Yet you shall not dwell in them; You have planted pleasant vineyards, But you shall not drink wine from them. (12) For I know your manifold transgressions And your mighty sins: Afflicting the just and taking bribes; Diverting the poor from justice at the gate.
(13) Therefore the prudent keep silent at that time, For it is an evil time. (14) Seek good and not evil, That you may live; So the LORD God of hosts will be with you, As you have spoken. (15) Hate evil, love good; Establish justice in the gate. It may be that the LORD God of hosts Will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph. (16) Therefore the LORD God of hosts, the Lord, says this: 'There shall be wailing in all streets, And they shall say in all the highways, 'Alas! Alas!' They shall call the farmer to mourning, And skillful lamenters to wailing.
(17) In all vineyards there shall be wailing, For I will pass through you,' Says the LORD.
The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
(5) But do not seek Bethel, Nor enter Gilgal, Nor pass over to Beersheba; For Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, And Bethel shall come to nothing. (6) Seek the LORD and live, Lest He break out like fire in the house of Joseph, And devour it, With no one to quench it in Bethel -- (7) You who turn justice to wormwood, And lay righteousness to rest in the earth!' (8) He made the Pleiades and Orion; He turns the shadow of death into morning And makes the day dark as night; He calls for the waters of the sea And pours them out on the face of the earth; The LORD is His name.
(9) He rains ruin upon the strong, So that fury comes upon the fortress. (10) They hate the one who rebukes in the gate, And they abhor the one who speaks uprightly. (11) Therefore, because you tread down the poor And take grain taxes from him, Though you have built houses of hewn stone, Yet you shall not dwell in them; You have planted pleasant vineyards, But you shall not drink wine from them. (12) For I know your manifold transgressions And your mighty sins: Afflicting the just and taking bribes; Diverting the poor from justice at the gate.
(13) Therefore the prudent keep silent at that time, For it is an evil time. (14) Seek good and not evil, That you may live; So the LORD God of hosts will be with you, As you have spoken. (15) Hate evil, love good; Establish justice in the gate. It may be that the LORD God of hosts Will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph. (16) Therefore the LORD God of hosts, the Lord, says this: 'There shall be wailing in all streets, And they shall say in all the highways, 'Alas! Alas!' They shall call the farmer to mourning, And skillful lamenters to wailing.
(17) In all vineyards there shall be wailing, For I will pass through you,' Says the LORD.
The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
Jude 1
(1) Jude, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, To those who are called, sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ: (2) Mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you. (3) Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. (4) For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.
(5) But I want to remind you, though you once knew this, that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. (6) And the angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day; (7) as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire. (8) Likewise also these dreamers defile the flesh, reject authority, and speak evil of dignitaries.
(9) Yet Michael the archangel, in contending with the devil, when he disputed about the body of Moses, dared not bring against him a reviling accusation, but said, 'The Lord rebuke you!' (10) But these speak evil of whatever they do not know; and whatever they know naturally, like brute beasts, in these things they corrupt themselves. (11) Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit, and perished in the rebellion of Korah. (12) These are spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried about by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots;
(13) raging waves of the sea, foaming up their own shame; wandering stars for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever. (14) Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, 'Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, (15) to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.' (16) These are grumblers, complainers, walking according to their own lusts; and they mouth great swelling words, flattering people to gain advantage.
The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
(5) But I want to remind you, though you once knew this, that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. (6) And the angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day; (7) as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire. (8) Likewise also these dreamers defile the flesh, reject authority, and speak evil of dignitaries.
(9) Yet Michael the archangel, in contending with the devil, when he disputed about the body of Moses, dared not bring against him a reviling accusation, but said, 'The Lord rebuke you!' (10) But these speak evil of whatever they do not know; and whatever they know naturally, like brute beasts, in these things they corrupt themselves. (11) Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit, and perished in the rebellion of Korah. (12) These are spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried about by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots;
(13) raging waves of the sea, foaming up their own shame; wandering stars for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever. (14) Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, 'Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, (15) to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.' (16) These are grumblers, complainers, walking according to their own lusts; and they mouth great swelling words, flattering people to gain advantage.
The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
Matthew 22
(1) And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said: (2) The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, (3) and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. (4) Again, he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, 'See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding.' '
(5) But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. (6) And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. (7) But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. (8) Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy.
(9) Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.' (10) So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests. (11) But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. (12) So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless.
(13) Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' (14) For many are called, but few are chosen.'
(5) But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. (6) And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. (7) But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. (8) Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy.
(9) Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.' (10) So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests. (11) But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. (12) So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless.
(13) Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' (14) For many are called, but few are chosen.'
The Lord's Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy Name,
thy kingdom come, thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.
Seasonal Collect: First Sunday of Advent
Almighty God, give us grace to cast away the works of
darkness, and put on the armor of light, now in the time of
this mortal life in which your Son Jesus Christ came to visit
us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come
again in his glorious majesty to judge both the living and the
dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who lives
and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and
forever. Amen.Personal Prayers and Reflection
Closing Prayers
Thanksgiving
Almighty God, Father of all mercies, we your unworthy servants give you humble thanks for all your goodness and loving-kindness to us and to all whom you have made. We bless you for our creation, preservation, and all the blessings of this life; but above all for your immeasurable love in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ; for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory, and, we pray, give us such an awareness of your mercies, that with truly thankful hearts we may show forth your praise, not only with our lips, but in our lives, by giving up ourselves to your service, and by walking before you in holiness and righteousness all our days; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory throughout all ages. Amen.
Conclude with following
O God, you have made of one blood all the peoples of the earth, and sent your blessed Son to preach peace to those who are far off and to those who are near: Grant that people everywhere may seek after you and find you; bring the nations into your fold; pour out your Spirit upon all flesh; and hasten the coming of your kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.This concludes the Daily Prayer
Go in Peace to Love and Serve the Lord