Sun. evening May 24
Pentecost
Opening response
Make haste, O God, to deliver me!
Make haste to help me, O LORD!
Send your Holy Spirit upon us,
and clothe us with power from on high. Alleluia.
Prayer of thanksgiving
lessed are you, Lord God of all creation, to you be glory and praise forever. Raised to your right hand on high the ascended Christ shows the prints of love and bestows on us the gifts of grace. As your Spirit renews the face of the earth, may we bring forth the fruit of the Spirit and reveal your glory in all the world.
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
Deeper, Deeper, in the Love of Jesus
Words: Charles P. Jones (1900)
Music: Charles P. Jones (1900)
Our Great Redeemer’s Praise (#328)
Deeper, deeper in the love of Jesus
daily let me go;
higher, higher in the school of wisdom,
more of grace to know.
Refrain:
O deeper yet, I pray,
and higher ev'ry day,
and wiser, blessed Lord,
in Thy precious, holy Word.
Deeper, deeper! Blessed Holy Spirit,
take me deeper still,
till my life is wholly lost in Jesus,
and His perfect will. [Refrain]
Deeper, deeper! Though it cost hard trials,
deeper let me go!
Rooted in the holy love of Jesus,
let me fruitful grow. [Refrain]
Deeper, higher, ev'ry day in Jesus,
till all conflict past
finds me conqu’ror, and in His own image
Perfected at last. [Refrain]
Confession of Sin
Let us confess our sins to God.
A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.
My God, for love of you, I desire to hate and forsake all sins by which I have ever displeased you; and I resolve by the help of your grace to commit them no more; and to avoid all opportunities of sin. Help me to do this, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Lord enrich us with his grace, and nourish us with his blessing; the Lord defend us in trouble and keep us from all evil; the Lord accept our prayers, and absolve us from our offenses, for the sake of Jesus Christ, our Savior.
Amen.
Psalm 67
May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make His face to shine upon us,
that Your way may be known on earth,
Your salvation among all nations.
Let the peoples praise You, O God;
let all the peoples praise You.
Oh, let the nations be glad and sing for joy!
For You will judge the people righteously,
and guide the nations upon the earth.
Let the peoples praise You, O God;
let all the peoples praise You.
Then will the earth yield its produce,
and God, our God, shall bless us.
God shall bless us;
let all the ends of the earth fear Him.
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 prayer
In the face of Jesus Christ, your light and glory have blazed forth, O God of all the nations; with all your people, may we make known your grace and walk in the ways of peace; for your name’s sake.
Psalm 133
𝙍: Mercy and truth have met together; righteousness and peace have kissed.
Behold, how good and how pleasant it is
for brothers to dwell together in unity!
It is like the precious oil on the head,
running down upon the beard,
on the beard of Aaron,
running down upon the edge of his robes.
It is like the dew of Hermon,
descending upon the mountains of Zion;
for there the LORD commanded the blessing,
life 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.
𝙍: Mercy and truth have met together; righteousness and peace have kissed.
Psalm prayer
Grant to your people, good Lord, the spirit of unity, that they may dwell together in your love, and so bear to the world the ointment of your healing and the dew of your blessing; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Joel 2:21-32
Do not be afraid, land;
exult and rejoice,
for the LORD has done great things!
Do not be afraid, beasts of the field,
because the wild pastures flourish,
because the tree bears its fruit;
the fig tree and the vine yield their abundance.
And children of Zion, exult
and rejoice in the LORD your God,
because He has given to you
the early rain for vindication.
He showers down rains for you,
the early rain and the latter rain, as before.
Then the threshing floors will be filled with grain,
and the vats will overflow with new wine and oil.
And I will compensate you for the years the locusts have eaten—
the larval locust, the hopper locust,
and the fledging locust—
My great army which I sent against you.
You will eat abundantly and be satisfied,
and you will praise the name of the LORD your God,
who has worked wonders for you;
and My people will never again be shamed.
Then you will know that I am in the midst of Israel,
that I am the LORD your God,
and that there is no other.
And My people will never again be shamed.
And it will be that, afterwards,
I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh;
then your sons and your daughters will prophesy,
your old men will dream dreams,
and your young men will see visions.
Even on the menservants and maidservants
in those days I will pour out My Spirit.
Then I will work wonders in the heavens
and the earth—
blood and fire and columns of smoke.
The sun will be turned to darkness,
and the moon to blood,
before the great and awe-inspiring day of the LORD comes.
And it will be that everyone
who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved.
For on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem
there will be deliverance,
as the LORD has said,
and among the survivors
whom the LORD calls.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Acts 2:14-38
But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice and said to them, “Men of Judea and all you who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to my words. For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is the third hour of the day. But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:
‘In the last days it shall be,’ says God,
‘that I will pour out My Spirit on all people;
your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams.
Even on My menservants and maidservants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days;
and they shall prophesy.
And I will show wonders in heaven above
and signs on the earth below:
blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke.
The sun shall be turned into darkness,
and the moon into blood,
before that great and glorious day of the Lord comes.
And whoever calls
on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’
“Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth was a man attested to you by God with powerful works and wonders and signs, which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves know. You have taken Him, who was handed over to you by the ordained counsel and foreknowledge of God, and by lawless hands have crucified and killed Him, whom God raised up by loosening the pull of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it. For David says concerning Him:
‘I foresaw the Lord always before me,
for He is at my right hand,
that I may not be shaken.
Therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced;
moreover my flesh will dwell in hope.
For You will not abandon my soul to Hades,
nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.
You have made known to me the ways of life;
You will make me full of joy with Your presence.’
“Brothers, I may speak confidently to you concerning the patriarch David, that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. But being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of his seed according to the flesh, He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne, he foresaw this and spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, that His soul was not abandoned to Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. God raised up this Jesus, of which we all are witnesses. Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured out this which you now see and hear. For David has not ascended to the heavens, yet he says:
‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at My right hand,
Until I make Your enemies
Your footstool.” ’
“Therefore, let all the house of Israel assuredly know that God has made this Jesus, whom you have crucified, both Lord and Christ.”
When they heard this, they were stung in the heart and said to Peter and to the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”
Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
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:
God’s royal priesthood, for empowerment by the Spirit
Those who wait on God, that they may find renewal
All people, that they may acknowledge the kingdom of the ascended Christ
The earth, for productivity and for fruitful harvests
All who are struggling with broken relationships
Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.
Response
Father, by your Spirit
Bring in your kingdom.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
God, who as at this time taught the hearts of your faithful people by sending to them the light of your Holy Spirit: grant us by the same Spirit to have a right judgment in all things and evermore to rejoice in his holy comfort; through the merits of Christ Jesus our Savior, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
Being made one by the power of the Spirit, 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 Spirit kindle in us the fire of God’s love.
Amen.