Thu. morning Jan. 1
The Naming and Circumcision of Jesus
Opening response
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
You laid the foundation of the earth
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, sovereign God, creator of heaven and earth, to you be praise and glory forever. As your living Word, eternal in heaven, assumed the frailty of our mortal flesh, may the light of your love be born in us to fill our hearts with joy as we sing:
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Blessed be God forever.
The night has passed, and the day lies open before us; let us pray with one heart and mind.
Silence is kept.
As we rejoice in the gift of this new day, so may the light of your presence, O God, set our hearts on fire with love for you; now and forever.
Amen.
Hymn
While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks
Words: Nahum Tate (1700)
Music: George F. Handel (1815)
Our Great Redeemer’s Praise (#189)
While shepherds watched their flocks by night,
all seated on the ground,
an angel of the Lord came down,
and glory shone around.
"Fear not," said he for mighty dread
had seized their troubled mind
"glad tidings of great joy I bring
to you and all mankind.
"To you, in David's town, this day
is born of David's line
a Savior, who is Christ the Lord;
and this shall be the sign:
"The heavenly babe you there shall find
to human view displayed,
all simply wrapped in swaddling clothes
and in a manger laid."
"All glory be to God on high,
and to the earth be peace;
to those on whom his favor rests
goodwill shall never cease."
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 103
𝙍: The LORD is merciful and gracious.
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and all that is within me, bless His holy name!
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all His benefits,
who forgives all your iniquities,
who heals all your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit,
who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,
who satisfies your desire with good things,
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
𝙍: The LORD is merciful and gracious.
The LORD executes righteousness
and justice for all who are oppressed.
He made known His ways to Moses,
His acts to the people of Israel.
The LORD is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in mercy.
He will not always strive with us,
nor will He keep his anger forever.
He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
nor recompensed us according to our iniquities.
𝙍: The LORD is merciful and gracious.
For as the heavens are high above the earth,
so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;
as far as the east is from the west,
so far has He removed our transgressions from us.
As a father pities his children,
so the LORD pities those who fear Him.
𝙍: The LORD is merciful and gracious.
For He knows our frame;
He remembers that we are dust.
As for man, his days are like grass;
as a flower of the field, so he flourishes.
For the wind passes over it, and it is gone,
and its place knows it no more.
But the mercy of the LORD
is from everlasting to everlasting
upon those who fear Him,
and His righteousness to children’s children,
to those who keep His covenant,
and remember to do His commandments.
𝙍: The LORD is merciful and gracious.
The LORD has established His throne in the heavens,
and His kingdom rules over all.
Bless the LORD, you His angels,
mighty in strength, who do His word,
obeying the voice of His word!
Bless the LORD, all you His hosts,
you who serve Him, who do His will.
Bless the LORD, all His works,
in all places of His dominion.
Bless the LORD, O my soul!
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 is merciful and gracious.
Psalm prayer
Merciful Lord, as we come from dust and return to dust, show us the face of our Redeemer, that in our frailty we may bless your name and praise you all our days; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Psalm 150
𝙍: Let everything that has breath praise the LORD!
Praise the LORD!
Praise God in His sanctuary;
praise Him in His mighty firmament!
Praise Him for His mighty acts;
praise Him according to His excellent greatness!
𝙍: Let everything that has breath praise the LORD!
Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet;
praise Him with the harp and lyre!
Praise Him with the timbrel and dance;
praise Him with stringed instruments and flute!
𝙍: Let everything that has breath praise the LORD!
Praise Him with loud cymbals;
praise Him with clashing cymbals!
Let everything that has breath praise the LORD!
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: Let everything that has breath praise the LORD!
Psalm prayer
God of life and love, whose Son was victorious over sin and death, make us alive with his life, that the whole world may resound with your praise; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Genesis 17:1-13
When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am Almighty God. Walk before Me and be blameless. And I will make My covenant between you and Me and will exceedingly multiply you.”
Abram fell on his face and God said to him, “Behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. No longer will your name be called Abram, but your name will be Abraham, for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you. All the land of Canaan, where you now live as strangers, I will give to you and to your descendants for an everlasting possession, and I will be their God.”
Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations. This is My covenant, which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you; every male among you shall be circumcised. You shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and you. Every male throughout every generation that is eight days old shall be circumcised, whether born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner who is not your descendant. He who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money must be circumcised. My covenant shall be in your flesh as an everlasting covenant.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Romans 2:17-29
Indeed you are called a Jew, and rest on the law, and make your boast in God. You know His will and approve the things that are more excellent, because you are instructed in the law. You are confident that you are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, an instructor of the foolish, and a teacher of babes, who have the full content of knowledge and truth in the law: You, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself? You who preach not to steal, do you steal? You who say not to commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God through breaking the law? As it is written, “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”
Circumcision indeed is of value if you keep the law, but if you are a breaker of the law, your circumcision becomes uncircumcision. Therefore, if an uncircumcised man keeps the righteousness of the law, will not his uncircumcision be counted as circumcision? Will the physically uncircumcised, if he fulfills the law, not judge you who, by the letter of the law and circumcision, violate the law?
He is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is external in the flesh. But he is a Jew who is one inwardly. And circumcision is of the heart, by the Spirit, and not by the letter. His praise is not from men, but from God.
Silence may be kept.
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)
Luke 1:68-79
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for He has visited and redeemed His people,
and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of His servant David,
as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets of long ago,
that we should be saved from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us,
to perform the mercy promised to our fathers
and to remember His holy covenant,
the oath which He swore to our father Abraham,
to grant us that we, being delivered out of the hand of our enemies,
might serve Him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our lives.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest;
for you will go before the presence of the Lord to prepare His ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to His people
by the remission of their sins,
through the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the sunrise from on high has visited us;
to give light to those who sit in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.
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.
Intercession and thanksgiving
Prayers may be offered for:
the day and its tasks
the world and its needs
the Church and her life
Prayers may include the following concerns:
The Church, especially in places of conflict
The Holy Land, for peace with justice, and reconciliation
Refugees and asylum seekers
Homeless people
Families with young children
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 God, whose blessed Son was circumcised in obedience to the law for our sake and given the name that is above every name: give us grace faithfully to bear his name, to worship him in the freedom of the Spirit, and to proclaim him as the Savior of the world; 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 the presence of God here among us, 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 God, who has called us out of darkness into his marvelous light, bless us and fill us with peace.
Amen.