Sat. evening Apr. 25
Opening response
Make haste, O God, to deliver me!
Make haste to help me, O LORD!
In your resurrection, O Christ,
let heaven and earth rejoice. Alleluia.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Sovereign Lord, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to you be glory and praise forever. From the deep waters of death, you brought your people to new birth by raising your Son to life in triumph. Through him, dark death has been destroyed, and radiant life is everywhere restored. As you call us out of darkness into his marvelous light, may our lives reflect his glory and our lips repeat the endless song.
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
My Faith Looks Up to Thee
Words: Ray Palmer (1875)
Music: Lowell Mason (1831)
Our Great Redeemer’s Praise (#351)
My faith looks up to Thee,
Thou Lamb of Calvary,
Savior divine!
Now hear me while I pray,
take all my guilt away;
O let me from this day
be wholly Thine.
May Thy rich grace impart
strength to my fainting heart,
my zeal inspire;
as Thou hast died for me,
O may my love to Thee
pure, warm, and changeless be,
a living fire.
While life’s dark maze I tread,
and griefs around me spread,
be Thou my Guide;
bid darkness turn to day,
wipe sorrow’s tears away,
nor let me ever stray
from Thee aside.
When ends life's transient dream,
when death’s cold, sullen stream
shall o'er me roll,
blest Savior, then in love,
fear and distrust remove;
O bear me safe above,
a ransomed soul.
Confession of Sin
Come, Holy Spirit of God,
and search our hearts with the light of Christ.
Our Lord Jesus Christ said:
“The first of all the commandments is, ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord. You shall 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: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
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 faithfulness is like a morning cloud, and like the early dew, it goes away. 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 45
𝙍: Behold our shield, O God, and look upon the face of Your anointed.
My heart is overflowing with a goodly theme;
I recite my special song to the king;
my tongue is like the pen of a skillful scribe.
You are fairer than the sons of men;
grace is poured upon your lips;
therefore God has blessed you forever.
Gird your sword upon your thigh, O Mighty One,
with your glory and your majesty.
In your majesty ride prosperously
because of truth, meekness, and righteousness;
let your right hand teach you awesome deeds.
Your arrows are sharp in the heart of the king’s enemies;
the peoples fall under you.
𝙍: Behold our shield, O God, and look upon the face of Your anointed.
Your throne, O God, endures forever and ever.
The scepter of Your kingdom is a scepter of justice.
You love righteousness and hate wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has anointed you
with the oil of gladness more than your companions.
All your garments are fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia.
Out of the ivory palaces stringed instruments make you glad.
Kings’ daughters are among your honorable women;
at your right hand stands the queen in gold of Ophir.
𝙍: Behold our shield, O God, and look upon the face of Your anointed.
Listen, O daughter, consider and incline your ear;
forget your own people and your father’s house,
and the king will desire your beauty.
Since he is your lord, bow to him.
The daughter of Tyre will be there with a gift;
the richest of the people will seek your favor.
The royal daughter is all glorious within her chamber;
her clothing is plaited gold.
She shall be brought to the king in embroidered robes;
the virgins, her companions who follow her,
shall be brought to you.
With gladness and rejoicing they shall be brought;
they shall enter the king’s palace.
In the place of ancestors shall be your sons;
you will make them princes in all the earth.
I will cause your name to be remembered in all generations;
therefore the peoples will praise you forever and ever.
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: Behold our shield, O God, and look upon the face of Your anointed.
Psalm prayer
Lord our God, bring your bride, your holy Church, with joy to the marriage feast of heaven, and unite us with your anointed Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Ezekiel 1:4-14
As I looked, behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud with fire flashing forth continually, and a brightness was all around it, and in its midst something as glowing metal in the midst of the fire. Also out of the midst came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: They had the likeness of a man. Every one had four faces, and every one had four wings. Their legs were straight and the soles of their feet were like the sole of a calf’s hoof. And they gleamed like the color of burnished bronze. They had the hands of a man under their wings on their four sides. As for the faces and wings of the four of them, their wings were joined to one another. Their faces did not turn when they went. Each went straight forward.
As for the likeness of their faces, each had the face of a man, and all four had the face of a lion on the right side, and the face of an ox on the left side, and the face of an eagle. Thus were their faces. And their wings were stretched upward. Two wings of every one were joined to one another, and two covered their bodies. Each went straight forward. Wherever the spirit was to go, they would go and not turn as they went. As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire and like the appearance of lamps. It went up and down among the living creatures. And the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth lightning. The living creatures ran to and fro as the appearance of a flash of lightning.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
2 Timothy 4:1-11
I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: Preach the word, be ready in season and out of season, reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with all patience and teaching. For the time will come when people will not endure sound teaching, but they will gather to themselves teachers in accordance with their own desires, having itching ears, and they will turn their ears away from the truth and turn to myths. But be self-controlled in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, and prove your ministry.
For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, and I have kept the faith. From now on a crown of righteousness is laid up for me, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved His appearing.
Diligently try to come to me soon. Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world, and has departed to Thessalonica, Crescens to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me. Get Mark, and bring him with you, for he is profitable to me for the ministry.
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 people of God, that they may proclaim the risen Lord
God’s creation, that the peoples of the earth may meet their responsibility to care
Those in despair and darkness, that they may find the hope and light of Christ
Those in fear of death, that they may find faith through the resurrection
Prisoners and captives
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 God, who enlightened your holy Church through the inspired witness of your evangelist Mark: grant that we, being firmly grounded in the truth of the gospel, may be faithful to its teaching both in word and deed; 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
Rejoicing in God’s new creation, 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 risen Christ grant us the joys of eternal life.
Amen.