Wed. evening Dec. 17
Opening response
Make haste, O God, to deliver me!
Make haste to help me, O LORD!
Reveal among us the light of your presence
that we may behold your power and glory.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Sovereign God, creator of light and darkness, to you be glory and praise forever. As evening falls, you renew your promise to reveal among us the light of your presence. May your word be a lantern to our feet and a light upon our path that we may behold your coming among us. Strengthen us in our stumbling weakness and free our tongues to sing your praise.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Blessed be God forever.
That this evening may be holy, good, and peaceful, let us pray with one heart and mind.
Silence is kept.
As our evening prayer rises before you, O God, so may your mercy come down upon us to cleanse our hearts and set us free to sing your praise now and forever.
Amen.
Hymn
Of the Father’s Love Begotten
Words: Aurelius Prudentius (4th century); trans. John Mason Neale (1851)
Music: Plainsong (13th century)
A version of this hymn appears in Our Great Redeemer’s Praise (#166).
Of the Father's love begotten,
Ere the worlds began to be,
He is Alpha and Omega,
He the source, the ending He,
Of the things that are, that have been,
And that future years shall see,
Evermore and evermore.
O that birth forever blessed,
When the virgin, full of grace,
By the Holy Ghost conceiving,
Bore the Savior of our race,
And the babe, the world’s Redeemer,
First revealed his sacred face
Evermore and evermore.
O ye heights of Heav’n adore him!
Angel hosts his praises sing!
All dominions bow before him
And exalt our God and King.
Let no tongue on Earth be silent,
Every voice in concert ring
Evermore and evermore.
Christ! to thee with God the Father,
And O Holy Ghost, to thee,
Hymn and chant and high thanksgiving
And unwearied praises be,
Honor, glory, and dominion,
And eternal victory
Evermore and evermore.
Confession of Sin
Let us admit to God the sin which always confronts us.
A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.
Almighty God, patient and of great goodness: I confess to you, I confess with my whole heart my neglect and forgetfulness of your commandments, my wrong doing, thinking, and speaking; the hurts I have done to others, and the good I have left undone. O God, forgive me, for I have sinned against you; and raise me to newness of life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
May the God of love and power forgive us and free us from our sins, heal and strengthen us by his Spirit, and raise us to new life in Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Psalm 25
𝙍: Remember, O LORD, Your mercies and Your lovingkindness.
To You, O LORD,
I lift up my soul.
O my God, I trust in You;
let me not be ashamed;
let not my enemies triumph over me.
Let no one who waits on You
be ashamed;
let them be ashamed
who transgress without cause.
Show me Your ways, O LORD;
teach me Your paths.
Lead me in Your truth and teach me,
for You are the God of my salvation;
on You I wait all day long.
Remember, O LORD, Your mercies and Your lovingkindness,
for they are from of old.
𝙍: Remember, O LORD, Your mercies and Your lovingkindness.
Do not remember the sins of my youth
or my transgressions;
according to Your lovingkindness remember me,
for Your goodness’ sake, O LORD.
Good and upright is the LORD;
therefore He teaches sinners in the way.
He leads the humble in justice,
and teaches the humble His way.
All the paths of the LORD are lovingkindness and truth,
for those who keep His covenant and His decrees.
𝙍: Remember, O LORD, Your mercies and Your lovingkindness.
For Your name’s sake, O LORD, pardon my iniquity,
for it is great.
Who is the man who fears the LORD?
He will teach him the way that he should choose.
He will dwell at ease,
and his descendants will inherit the land.
The secret counsel of the LORD is with those who fear Him,
and He will make His covenant known to them.
My eyes are ever toward the LORD,
for He will pluck my feet out of the net.
𝙍: Remember, O LORD, Your mercies and Your lovingkindness.
Turn to me, and be gracious to me,
for I am lonely and afflicted.
The troubles of my heart have increased;
bring me out of my distresses.
Look on my affliction and my pain,
and forgive all my sins.
Consider my enemies, for they are many,
and with what violent hatred they hate.
Guard my soul, and deliver me;
do not let me suffer shame,
for I take refuge in You.
Let integrity and uprightness preserve me,
for I wait for You.
Redeem Israel, O God,
out of all its troubles.
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: Remember, O LORD, Your mercies and Your lovingkindness.
Psalm prayer
Free us, God of mercy, from all that keeps us from you; relieve the misery of the anxious and the ashamed and fill us with the hope of peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Psalm 82
𝙍: Arise, O God, judge the earth.
God has taken His place in the divine council;
He renders judgment among the gods.
“How long will you judge unjustly
and show partiality to the wicked?
Defend the poor and the fatherless;
do justice to the afflicted and the needy.
Rescue the poor and the needy;
deliver them from the hand of the wicked.
𝙍: Arise, O God, judge the earth.
“They have neither knowledge nor understanding;
they walk around in darkness;
all the foundations of the earth are shaken.”
I said, “You are gods,
sons of the Most High, all of you;
but you shall die like men,
and fall like one of the princes.”
Arise, O God, judge the earth;
for You shall inherit all the nations.
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: Arise, O God, judge the earth.
Psalm prayer
God our deliverer, when the foundations are shaken and justice has departed, defend the poor and needy and give your people strength to fight all wrong in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Isaiah 51:1-8
Listen to Me, you who pursue righteousness,
you who seek the LORD:
Look to the rock from which you were hewn
and to the quarry from which you were dug.
Look to Abraham your father
and to Sarah who bore you;
for I called him alone,
and blessed him, and multiplied him.
For the LORD shall comfort Zion,
He will comfort all her waste places;
He will make her wilderness like Eden,
and her desert like the garden of the LORD;
joy and gladness shall be found in it,
thanksgiving, and the voice of melody.
Listen to Me, O My people;
and give ear to Me, O My nation:
for a law shall proceed from Me,
and I will set My justice as a light of the peoples.
My righteousness is near,
My salvation has gone forth,
and My arms shall judge the peoples;
the coastlands shall wait for Me,
and for My arm they shall expectantly wait.
Lift up your eyes to the heavens,
and look on the earth beneath.
For the heavens shall vanish away like smoke,
and the earth shall grow old like a garment,
and those who dwell in it shall die in like manner;
but My salvation shall be forever,
and My righteousness shall not be abolished.
Listen to Me, you who know righteousness,
the people in whose heart is My law;
do not fear the reproach of men
nor be afraid of their revilings.
For the moth shall eat them up like a garment,
and the worm shall eat them like wool;
but My righteousness shall be forever
and My salvation from generation to generation.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
2 Thessalonians 1
Paul, and Silas, and Timothy,
To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
We are bound to thank God always for you, brothers, as it is fitting, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you abounds toward each other. So we boast about you in the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you are enduring.
This is evidence that God’s judgment, being righteous, will count you worthy of the kingdom of God for which you are suffering. It is a righteous matter with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you, and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. They shall be punished with eternal destruction, isolated from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, when He comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints and to be marveled at by all those who believe, because our testimony among you was believed.
Therefore we always pray for you that our God would count you worthy of this calling and with power fulfill all your good desires and works done by faith, so that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Silence may be kept.
The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)
Luke 1:46-55
My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.
For He has regarded
the low estate of His servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed.
For He who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is His name.
His mercy is on those who fear Him
from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with His arm;
He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He has pulled down the mighty from their thrones
and exalted those of low degree.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich He has sent away empty.
He has helped His servant Israel,
in remembrance of His mercy,
as He spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his descendants forever.
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.
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.
He was conceived by the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He 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,
and is seated at the
right hand of the Father.
He 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.
Thanksgiving and intercession
Thanksgiving may be made for the day.
Intercessions are offered
for peace
for individuals and their needs
Prayers may include the following concerns:
The Church, that she may be ready for the coming of Christ
The leaders of the Church
The nations, that they may be subject to the rule of God
Those who are working for justice in the world
The broken, that they may find God’s healing
Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.
Response
God of grace,
hear our prayer.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
O Lord Jesus Christ, who at your first coming sent your messenger to prepare your way before you: grant that the ministers and stewards of your mysteries may likewise so prepare and make ready your way by turning the hearts of the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, that at your second coming to judge the world we may be found an acceptable people in your sight; for you are alive and reign with the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
Awaiting his coming in glory, as our Savior taught us, so we pray
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. Amen.
Conclusion
May the Lord, when he comes, find us watching and waiting.
Amen.