Preparation

Opening response

Favor us, Lord, and deliver us.
Lord, come quickly and help us.

Within you, God, is the spring of life.
In your light, we see light.

cf Psalm 36:9

Praise

Christ Jesus was revealed as a human
and declared righteous by the Spirit.
He was seen by angels
and preached throughout the nations.
Believed in around the world,
he was taken up in glory.
The timing of this appearance is revealed by God alone,
who is the blessed and only master,
the King of kings and Lord of lords.
He alone has immortality
and lives in light that no one can come near.
Honor and eternal power belong to him. Amen.

1 Timothy 3:16; 6:15,16

The Word of God

Psalm 100

Refrain:
The Lord is good, his loyal love lasts forever.

Shout triumphantly to the Lord, all the earth!
    Serve the Lord with celebration!
    Come before him with shouts of joy!
Know that the Lord is God—
    he made us; we belong to him.
    We are his people,
    the sheep of his own pasture.
Enter his gates with thanks;
    enter his courtyards with praise!
    Thank him! Bless his name!
Because the Lord is good,
    his loyal love lasts forever;
    his faithfulness lasts generation after generation.

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.

Refrain:
The Lord is good, his loyal love lasts forever.

Psalm prayer

O Christ, door of the sheepfold,
may we enter your gates with praise
and go from your courts to serve you
in the poor, the lost and the wandering,
this day and all our days.

Scripture reading
Isaiah 60:1-3

Arise! Shine! Your light has come;
    the Lord’s glory has shone upon you.
Though darkness covers the earth
    and gloom the nations,
    the Lord will shine upon you;
    God’s glory will appear over you.
Nations will come to your light
    and kings to your dawning radiance.

Silence may be kept.

Response

Happy are people who are humble,
because they will inherit the earth.

Matthew 5:5

Prayers

Intercession and thanksgiving

Prayers may include these concerns

The unity of the church
The peace of the world
The healing of the sick
The revelation of Christ to those from whom his glory is hidden
All who travel

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

Prayer

O good Jesus,
Word of the Father and
brightness of his glory,
whom angels desire to behold:
teach me to do your will
that, guided by your Spirit,
I may come to that blessed city of
everlasting day,
where all are one in heart and mind,
where there is safety and eternal peace,
happiness and delight,
where you live with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
world without end.
Amen.

after Gregory the Great (604)

The Lord’s Prayer

Believing the promises of God, as our Savior taught us, so we pray

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and forever.
Amen.

Conclusion

May the light of Christ our Lord shine in all our hearts.
Amen.