Opening response

O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.

Prayer of thanksgiving

Blessed are you, Sovereign God, creator of all,
to you be glory and praise forever.
You founded the earth in the beginning
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
In the fullness of time you made us in your image,
and in these last days you have spoken to us
in your Son Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh.
As we rejoice in the gift of your presence among us
let the light of your love always shine in our hearts,
your Spirit ever renew our lives
and your praises ever be on our lips.
Blessed be God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Blessed be God forever.

The night has passed, and the day lies open before us;
let us pray with one heart and mind.

Silence is kept.

As we rejoice in the gift of this new day,
so may the light of your presence, O God,
set our hearts on fire with love for you;
now and forever.
Amen.

Hymn

Into a World of Ruffians Sent

Charles Wesley

Into a world of ruffians sent,
I walk on hostile ground,
Wild human bears on slaughter bent,
And ravening wolves, surround.

The lion seeks my soul to slay,
In some unguarded hour,
And waits to tear his sleeping prey,
And watches to devour.

But worse than all my foes I find
The enemy within,
The evil heart, the carnal mind,
My own insidious sin.

My nature every moment waits
To render me secure,
And all my paths with ease besets,
To make my ruin sure.

But thou hast given a loud alarm;
And thou shalt still prepare
My soul for all assaults, and arm
With never-ceasing prayer.

O do not suffer me to sleep,
Who on thy love depend;
But still thy faithful servant keep,
And save me to the end!

Confession of sin

Come, Holy Spirit of God,
and search our hearts with the light of Christ.

Our Lord Jesus Christ said:
The first commandment is this:
‘Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One.
Love the Lord your God with all your heart
and with all your soul and with all your mind
and with all your strength.’

The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
No other commandment is greater than these.
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.

Amen. Lord, have mercy.

After a period of reflection

Come, let us return to the Lord and say:

Lord our God,
in our sin, we have avoided your call.
Our love for you is like a morning mist,
like the early dew that vanishes.
Have mercy on us;
deliver us from judgment;
bind up our wounds and revive us;
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

cf Hosea 6

May almighty God,
who sent his Son into the world to save sinners,
bring us his pardon and peace, now and forever.
Amen.

Psalm 87

𝙍: God has founded His city on the holy mountains.

He has founded His city
on the holy mountains.
The LORD loves the gates of Zion
more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
Glorious things are ascribed to you,
O city of God.

“I will mention Rahab and Babylon
among those who know Me—
along with Philistia, Tyre, and Cush —
when I say, ‘This one was born in Zion.’ ”

And it will be said of Zion:
“This one and that one were born in her,
and the Most High Himself will establish her.”

The LORD will record in the register of the peoples:
“This one was born in Zion.”

Singers and pipers will proclaim,
“All my springs of joy are in You.”

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.

𝙍: God has founded His city on the holy mountains.

Psalm prayer

Lord, as you call us to your city
founded on the rock of ages,
let the springs of living water
rise within us to eternal life;
in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Psalm 89:1-18

𝙍: O LORD God of Hosts, who is like You?

I will sing of the loving devotion of the LORD forever;
with my mouth I will proclaim Your faithfulness to all generations.
For I have said, “Loving devotion is built up forever;
in the heavens You establish Your faithfulness.”

You said, “I have made a covenant with My chosen one,
I have sworn to David My servant:
‘I will establish your offspring forever
and build up your throne for all generations.’ ” 𝙍

The heavens praise Your wonders, O LORD—
Your faithfulness as well—
in the assembly of the holy ones.
For who in the skies can compare with the LORD?
Who among the heavenly beings is like the LORD?
In the council of the holy ones, God is greatly feared,
and awesome above all who surround Him.

O LORD God of Hosts, who is like You?
O mighty LORD, Your faithfulness surrounds You. 𝙍

You rule the raging sea;
when its waves mount up, You still them.
You crushed Rahab like a carcass;
You scattered Your enemies with Your mighty arm.
The heavens are Yours, and also the earth.
The earth and its fullness You founded.
North and south You created;
Tabor and Hermon shout for joy at Your name. 𝙍

Mighty is Your arm; strong is Your hand.
Your right hand is exalted.
Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne;
loving devotion and faithfulness go before You.

Blessed are those who know the joyful sound,
who walk, O LORD, in the light of Your presence.
They rejoice in Your name all day long,
and in Your righteousness they exult.
For You are the glory of their strength,
and by Your favor our horn is exalted.
Surely our shield belongs to the LORD,
and our king to the Holy One of Israel.

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.

𝙍: O LORD God of Hosts, who is like You?

Psalm prayer

As we sing of your love, O Lord,
anoint us with the Spirit’s seal,
that we may praise your faithfulness
and proclaim your truth from age to age;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Old Testament reading

Ezekiel 18:1-20

Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, “What do you people mean by quoting this proverb about the land of Israel:

‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes,
and the teeth of the children are set on edge’?

As surely as I live, declares the Lord GOD, you will no longer quote this proverb in Israel. Behold, every soul belongs to Me; both father and son are Mine. The soul who sins is the one who will die.

Now suppose a man is righteous and does what is just and right:

He does not eat at the mountain
or look to the idols of the house of Israel.
He does not defile his neighbor’s wife
or approach a woman during her period.
He does not oppress another,
but restores the pledge to the debtor.
He does not commit robbery,
but gives his bread to the hungry
and covers the naked with clothing.
He does not engage in usury
or take excess interest,
but he withholds his hand from iniquity
and executes true justice between men.
He follows My statutes
and faithfully keeps My ordinances.
That man is righteous;
surely he will live,
declares the Lord GOD.

Now suppose that man has a violent son, who sheds blood or does any of these things, though the father has done none of them:

Indeed, the son eats at the mountain
and defiles his neighbor’s wife.
He oppresses the poor and needy;
he commits robbery
and does not restore a pledge.
He lifts his eyes to idols;
he commits abominations.
He engages in usury
and takes excess interest.

Will this son live? He will not! Since he has committed all these abominations, he will surely die; his blood will be on his own head.

Now suppose this son has a son who sees all the sins his father has committed, considers them, and does not do likewise:

He does not eat at the mountain
or look to the idols of the house of Israel.
He does not defile his neighbor’s wife.
He does not oppress another,
or retain a pledge, or commit robbery.
He gives his bread to the hungry
and covers the naked with clothing.
He withholds his hand from harming the poor
and takes no interest or usury.
He keeps My ordinances
and follows My statutes.

Such a man will not die for his father’s iniquity. He will surely live.

As for his father, he will die for his own iniquity, because he practiced extortion, robbed his brother, and did what was wrong among his people.

Yet you may ask, ‘Why shouldn’t the son bear the iniquity of his father?’

Since the son has done what is just and right, carefully observing all My statutes, he will surely live.

The soul who sins is the one who will die. A son will not bear the iniquity of his father, and a father will not bear the iniquity of his son. The righteousness of the righteous man will fall upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked man will fall upon him.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading

Mark 15:16-32

Then the soldiers led Jesus away into the palace (that is, the Praetorium) and called the whole company together. They dressed Him in a purple robe, twisted together a crown of thorns, and set it on His head. And they began to salute Him: “Hail, King of the Jews!”

They kept striking His head with a staff and spitting on Him. And they knelt down and bowed before Him. After they had mocked Him, they removed the purple robe and put His own clothes back on Him. Then they led Him out to crucify Him.

Now Simon of Cyrene, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and the soldiers forced him to carry the cross of Jesus.

They brought Jesus to a place called Golgotha, which means The Place of the Skull. There they offered Him wine mixed with myrrh, but He did not take it.

And they crucified Him.

They also divided His garments by casting lots to decide what each of them would take.

It was the third hour when they crucified Him. And the charge inscribed against Him read:

THE KING OF THE JEWS.

Along with Jesus, they crucified two robbers, one on His right and one on His left.

And those who passed by heaped abuse on Him, shaking their heads and saying, “Aha! You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, come down from the cross and save Yourself!”

In the same way, the chief priests and scribes mocked Him among themselves, saying, “He saved others, but He cannot save Himself! Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross, so that we may see and believe!” And even those who were crucified with Him berated Him.

Silence may be kept.

The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)

Luke 1:68-79

𝙍: Christ gave them as a light to the nations that his salvation might reach to the ends of the earth.

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
because He has visited and redeemed His people.
He has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of His servant David,
as He spoke through His holy prophets,
those of ages past,
salvation from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us,
to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember His holy covenant,
the oath He swore to our father Abraham,
to grant us deliverance from hostile hands,
that we may serve Him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before Him
all the days of our lives.

And you, child, will be called
a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord
to prepare the way for Him,
to give to His people the knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins,
because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the Dawn will visit us from on high,
to shine on those who live in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet
into the path of peace.”

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.

𝙍: Christ gave them as a light to the nations that his salvation might reach to the ends of the earth.

Brief silence.

The Apostle’s Creed

Let us unite in this historic confession of the Christian faith:

I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and will come again to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.

Intercession and thanksgiving

Prayers may be offered for:

the day and its tasks
the world and its needs
the church and her life

Prayers may include the following concerns:

All who are sick in body, mind or spirit
Those in the midst of famine or disaster
Victims of abuse and violence, intolerance and prejudice
Those who are bereaved
All who work in the medical and healing professions

Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.

Response

Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer.

Silence may be kept.

Collect of the day

Almighty and everlasting God,
increase in us your gift of faith
that, forsaking what lies behind
and reaching out to that which is before,
we may run the way of your commandments
and win the crown of everlasting joy;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever.
Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer

As our Savior taught us, so we pray

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and forever.
Amen.

Conclusion

The Lord bless us, preserve us from all evil, and keep us in eternal life.
Amen.