Opening response

O God, make speed to save us.
O Lord, make haste to help us.

Prayer of thanksgiving

Blessed are you, Lord God, creator of day and night:
to you be praise and glory forever.
As darkness falls you renew your promise
to reveal among us the light of your presence.
By the light of Christ, your living Word,
dispel the darkness of our hearts
that we may walk as children of light
and sing your praise throughout 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

Out of the Iron Furnace, Lord

Charles Wesley

Out of the iron furnace, Lord,
To thee for help I cry,
I listen to thy warning word,
And would from Egypt fly.

Long have I bowed to sin’s command,
But now I would be free,
Escape from the dire oppressor’s land,
And live, O God, to thee.

Hast thou not surely seen my grief?
Hast thou not heard me groan?
O hasten then to my relief,
In pitying love come down.

From Pharaoh, and the Egyptian’s power
Redeem a wretched slave;
Thou canst redeem me in this hour,
Thou wilt the sinner save.

Now, Lord, relieve my misery,
Stretch out thy mighty hand,
Drown all my sins in the Red Sea,
And bring me safe to land.

Strength in the Lord my righteousness,
And pardon I receive,
And holy joy, and quiet peace
The moment I believe.

Confession of sin

When we cry out to the LORD in our trouble,
he will bring us out of our distress.

God will bring us out of darkness
and out of the shadow of death.

Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.

May the Father forgive us
by the death of his Son
and strengthen us
to live in the power of the Spirit
all our days.
Amen.

Let us give thanks to the LORD for his loving devotion,
and his wonders to the sons of men.

Let us offer sacrifices of thanksgiving
and declare God’s works with rejoicing.

cf Psalm 107

Psalm 24

𝙍: The LORD of Hosts—He is the King of Glory.

The earth is the LORD’s, and the fullness thereof,
the world and all who dwell therein.
For He has founded it upon the seas
and established it upon the waters. 𝙍

Who may ascend the hill of the LORD?
Who may stand in His holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who does not lift up his soul to an idol
or swear deceitfully.
He will receive blessing from the LORD
and vindication from the God of his salvation.
Such is the generation of those who seek Him,
who seek Your face, O God of Jacob. 𝙍

Lift up your heads, O gates!
Be lifted up, O ancient doors,
that the King of Glory may enter!
Who is this King of Glory?
The LORD strong and mighty,
the LORD mighty in battle.
Lift up your heads, O gates!
Be lifted up, O ancient doors,
that the King of Glory may enter!
Who is He, this King of Glory?
The LORD of Hosts—
He is the King of Glory.

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: The LORD of Hosts—He is the King of Glory.

Psalm prayer

O Lord of hosts,
purify our hearts
that the King of glory may come in,
your Son, Jesus our redeemer.

Psalm 25

𝙍: Remember, O LORD, Your compassion and loving devotion.

To You, O LORD, I lift up my soul;
in You, my God, I trust.
Do not let me be put to shame;
do not let my enemies exult over me.
Surely none who wait for You will be put to shame;
but those who are faithless without cause will be disgraced.

Show me Your ways, O LORD;
teach me Your paths.
Guide me in Your truth and teach me,
for You are the God of my salvation;
all day long I wait for You.
Remember, O LORD, Your compassion and loving devotion,
for they are from age to age. 𝙍

Remember not the sins of my youth,
nor my rebellious acts;
remember me according to Your loving devotion,
because of Your goodness, O LORD.

Good and upright is the LORD;
therefore He shows sinners the way.
He guides the humble in what is right
and teaches them His way.

All the LORD’s ways are loving and faithful
to those who keep His covenant and His decrees. 𝙍

For the sake of Your name, O LORD,
forgive my iniquity, for it is great.
Who is the man who fears the LORD?
He will instruct him in the path chosen for him.
His soul will dwell in prosperity,
and his descendants will inherit the land.
The LORD confides in those who fear Him,
and reveals His covenant to them.
My eyes are always on the LORD,
for He will free my feet from the mesh. 𝙍

Turn to me and be gracious,
for I am lonely and afflicted.
The troubles of my heart increase;
free me from my distress.
Consider my affliction and trouble,
and take away all my sins.
Consider my enemies, for they are many,
and they hate me with vicious hatred.

Guard my soul and deliver me;
let me not be put to shame,
for I take refuge in You.
May integrity and uprightness preserve me,
because I wait for You.

Redeem Israel, O God,
from all its distress.

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 compassion and loving devotion.

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.

Old Testament reading

Micah 6

Hear now what the LORD says:

“Arise, plead your case before the mountains,
and let the hills hear your voice.
Hear, O mountains, the LORD’s indictment,
you enduring foundations of the earth.
For the LORD has a case against His people,
and He will argue it against Israel:

‘My people, what have I done to you?
Testify against Me how I have wearied you!
For I brought you up from the land of Egypt
and redeemed you from the house of slavery.
I sent Moses before you,
as well as Aaron and Miriam.
My people, remember what Balak king of Moab counseled
and what Balaam son of Beor answered.
Remember your journey from Shittim to Gilgal,
so that you may acknowledge the righteousness of the LORD.’ ”

With what shall I come before the LORD
when I bow before the God on high?
Should I come to Him with burnt offerings,
with year-old calves?
Would the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams,
with ten thousand rivers of oil?
Shall I present my firstborn for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?

He has shown you, O man, what is good.
And what does the LORD require of you
but to act justly, to love mercy,
and to walk humbly with your God?

The voice of the LORD calls out to the city
(and it is sound wisdom to fear Your name):
“Heed the rod
and the One who ordained it.
Can I forget any longer,
O house of the wicked,
the treasures of wickedness
and the short ephah, which is accursed?
Can I excuse dishonest scales
or bags of false weights?
For the wealthy of the city
are full of violence,
and its residents speak lies;
their tongues are deceitful in their mouths.

Therefore I am striking you severely,
to ruin you because of your sins.
You will eat but not be satisfied,
and your hunger will remain with you.
What you acquire, you will not preserve;
and what you save, I will give to the sword.
You will sow but not reap;
you will press olives but not anoint yourselves with oil;
you will tread grapes but not drink the wine.
You have kept the statutes of Omri
and all the practices of Ahab’s house;
you have followed their counsel.
Therefore I will make you a desolation,
and your inhabitants an object of contempt;
you will bear the scorn of the nations.”

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading

John 18:28-40

Then they led Jesus away from Caiaphas into the Praetorium. By now it was early morning, and the Jews did not enter the Praetorium, to avoid being defiled and unable to eat the Passover.

So Pilate went out to them and asked, “What accusation are you bringing against this man?”

“If He were not a criminal,” they replied, “we would not have handed Him over to you.”

“You take Him and judge Him by your own law,” Pilate told them.

“We are not permitted to execute anyone,” the Jews replied. This was to fulfill the word that Jesus had spoken to indicate the kind of death He was going to die.

Pilate went back into the Praetorium, summoned Jesus, and asked Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?”

“Are you saying this on your own,” Jesus asked, “or did others tell you about Me?”

“Am I a Jew?” Pilate replied. “Your own people and chief priests handed You over to me. What have You done?”

Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world; if it were, My servants would fight to prevent My arrest by the Jews. But now My kingdom is not of this realm.”

“Then You are a king!” Pilate said.

“You say that I am a king,” Jesus answered. “For this reason I was born and have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to My voice.”

“What is truth?” Pilate asked.

And having said this, he went out again to the Jews and told them, “I find no basis for a charge against Him. But it is your custom that I release to you one prisoner at the Passover. So then, do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews?”

“Not this man,” they shouted, “but Barabbas!” (Now Barabbas was an insurrectionist.)

Silence may be kept.

The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)

Luke 1:46-55

𝙍: My spirit rejoices in you, O God, my soul proclaims your greatness.

My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!
For He has looked with favor on the humble state of His servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed.
For the Mighty One has done great things for me.
Holy is His name.
His mercy extends to those who fear Him,
from generation to generation.
He has performed mighty deeds with His arm;
He has scattered those who are proud
in the thoughts of their hearts.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones,
but has exalted the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
but has sent the rich away empty.
He has helped His servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful,
as He promised to our fathers,
to Abraham and 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.

𝙍: My spirit rejoices in you, O God, my soul proclaims your greatness.

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:

Our homes, families, friends and all whom we love
Those whose time is spent caring for others
Those who are close to death
Those who have lost hope
The worship of the church

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

Response

In faith we pray
We pray to you, our God.

Silence may be kept.

Collect of the day

Blessed Lord,
who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:
help us so to hear them,
to read, mark, learn and inwardly digest them
that, through patience, and the comfort of your holy word,
we may embrace and forever hold fast
the hope of everlasting life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ,
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, 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

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit,
be with us all evermore.
Amen.