Sat. evening May 1
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
More Love to Thee, O Christ
Words: Elizabeth P. Prentiss (1869)
Music: William H. Doane (1870)
Our Great Redeemer’s Praise (#588)
More love to Thee, O Christ,
More love to Thee!
Hear Thou the prayer I make
On bended knee;
This is my earnest plea:
More love, O Christ, to Thee,
More love to Thee,
More love to Thee!
Once earthly joy I craved,
Sought peace and rest;
Now Thee alone I seek,
Give what is best;
This all my prayer shall be:
More love, O Christ, to Thee,
More love to Thee,
More love to Thee!
Then shall my latest breath
Whisper Thy praise;
This be the parting cry
My heart shall raise;
This still its prayer shall be:
More love, O Christ, to Thee,
More love to Thee,
More love to Thee!
Confession of Sin
Seek the LORD while He may be found,
call upon Him while He is near.
Let the wicked forsake his way,
and the unrighteous man his thoughts;
and let him return to the LORD, and He will have mercy upon him,
and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.
cf Isaiah 55
A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.
Lord God, I have sinned against you; I have done what is evil in your sight. I am sorry and repent. Have mercy on me according to your lovingkindness. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. Renew a right spirit within me, and restore unto me the joy of your salvation, through Jesus Christ my Lord. Amen.
cf Psalm 51
May the Father of all mercies cleanse us from our sins, and restore us in his image to the praise and glory of his name, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Blessed be the LORD,
because He has heard the voice of my supplications.
Therefore my heart rejoices,
and with my song I will thank Him.
cf Psalm 28:7,9
Psalm 149
𝙍: Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth!
Praise the LORD!
Sing to the LORD a new song,
and His praise in the congregation of the saints.
Let Israel rejoice in his maker;
let the sons of Zion be joyful in their King.
Let them praise His name in the dance;
let them sing praises to Him with the timbrel and harp.
For the LORD takes pleasure in His people;
He will beautify the meek with salvation.
𝙍: Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth!
Let the saints be joyful in glory;
let them sing for joy on their beds.
Let the high praises of God be in their mouth,
and a two-edged sword in their hand,
to execute vengeance on the nations,
and punishment on the peoples;
to bind their kings with chains,
and their nobles with fetters of iron;
to execute on them the judgment written!
This honor have all His saints.
Praise the LORD!
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: Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth!
Psalm prayer
Glorious and redeeming God, give us hearts to praise you all our days and wills to reject the world’s deceits, that we may bind the evils of our age and proclaim the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Job 23:1-12
Then Job answered:
“Today also my complaint is bitter;
my hand is heavy because of my groaning.
Oh, that I knew where I might find Him,
that I might come even to His seat!
I would present my case before Him
and fill my mouth with arguments.
I would know the words that He would answer me
and understand what He would say to me.
Will He plead against me with His great power?
No! But He would take note of me.
There the righteous might dispute with Him;
so would I be delivered forever from my Judge.
“Behold, I go forward, but He is not there,
and backward, but I cannot perceive Him;
when He works on the left hand, I cannot behold Him;
He turns to the right hand, I cannot see Him.
But He knows the way that I take;
when He has tested me, I will come forth as gold.
My foot has held fast to His steps;
I have kept His way and have not turned aside.
I have not departed from the commandment of His lips;
I have esteemed the words of His mouth more than my necessary food.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
John 1:43-51
The next day Jesus wanted to go to Galilee, and He found Philip, and said to him, “Follow Me.”
Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, as well as the prophets, wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”
Nathanael said to him, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?”
Philip said to him, “Come and see.”
Jesus saw Nathanael coming to Him and said concerning him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!”
Nathanael said to Him, “How do You know me?”
Jesus answered, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.”
Nathanael answered Him, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!”
Jesus answered, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” And He said to him, “Truly, truly I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”
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
Father, hear our prayer,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Almighty Father, whom truly to know is eternal life: teach us to know your Son Jesus Christ as the way, the truth, and the life; that we may follow the steps of your holy apostles Philip and James, and walk steadfastly in the way that leads to your glory; 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.