Grace Evangelical-Lutheran: May 2020

Sunday, May 31, 2020

Acts 2,1-13 3620

Pfingstsonntag 043

Petronella, Virgin, disciple of the apostles

31. Mai 2020

1. O Spirit of Grace, who from a eternity proceeds from the Father and the Son; You were visibly poured out on the apostles after the triumph and ascension of Jesus; we pray that You would also enter into our souls, so that they may become a temple of the Living God, prepared by You and fit to obtain that eternal life for which we were created and purchased by our Redeemer. Amen. (Starck 100 ¶ 2)

2. »When the day of Pentecost arrived, the disciples were all together in one place. And suddenly there descended from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were seated. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and restedon each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages as the Spirit gave them utterance.«

3. Last week we heard Jesus’ promise to send us the Holy Spirit from the Father. Today we hear the fulfillment of that promise with the Holy Spirit’s arrival on Pentecost.

4. Fifty days after Passover/Easter is Pentecost (πενήντα : 50), and that’s an important covenantal number: 7 weeks of weeks; Pentecost is a harvest feast celebrated with a grain offering to Yahweh (Numbers 28,26). The harvest and grain offering in Acts 2 are the 3000 Jews who hear the gospel and believe on Jesus (Acts 2,41). The Holy Spirit is responsible for this harvest of souls, for at His sending upon the apostles He converted thousands through the preached Word.

5. The physical manifestation of the Holy Spirit’s presence is similar to what occurred when Yahweh descended upon Mount Sinai. »Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. Now Mt. Sinai was wrapped in smoke because Yahweh had descended on it in fire. And the sound of the trumpet from Mt. Sinai grew louder and louder. Yahweh descended on Mt. Sinai« (Exodus 19,17-20). At both Sinai and Pentecost, the Lord manifests His presence with a loud sound and fire. Why this coincidence? Over time, Pentecost also came to be celebrated as the anniversary of the giving of the covenant at Mt. Sinai (Exodus 12,2.6; 19,1; 2. Chronicles 15,10-15; Jubilees (a 1. century bc Jewish writing) and the Babylonian Talmud). The arrival of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost in Acts 2 shows that Yahweh has indeed instituted a new covenant through Jesus, just as Jesus had said in the Gospels.

6. The sending of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost is a reversal of a punishment inflicted upon humans. Genesis 6-9 tells us the story of the Flood and the reason for it: Yahweh saw that every intention of the thoughts of man’s heart was only evil continually (Genesis 6,5), and Yahweh decided to blot out man from the face of the earth (Genesis 6,7). This was not a decision taken lightly by Yahweh but He regretted that He had made man, and it grieved Him to His heart (Genesis 6,6). But Yahweh spared Noah and his family so that 8 human being survived the Flood, began rebuilding society and were stewards again of Yahweh’s Earth.

7. The of Babel happens 4 generations after the Flood, between 340-411 years to more precise. We know this because Genesis tells us Peleg the 4x great-grandson of Noah was alive when it happened and he lived 239 years. During Peleg’s lifetime: »Now the whole earth had one language and the same words. And as people migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. And they said to one another: „Let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly, ... and let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.“ And Yahweh descended to see the city and the tower, which the children of man had built. And He said: „Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do. And nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. Let us go down and there confuse their language, so that they may not understand one another's speech.“ So Yahweh dispersed them from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. Therefore its name was called Babel, because there Yahweh confused the language of all the earth. And from there Yahweh dispersed them over the face of all the earth.« (Genesis 11,1-9).

8. Pentecost in Acts 2 is the reversal of Genesis 11. In Jerusalem 50 days after Jesus’ resurrection, Yahweh has gathered dispersed Jews and they hear the gospel of Christ crucified; they heard the gospel in their own native languages, so that it came to pass that everyone who calls on the name of Yahweh will be saved. The Holy Spirit continues to do this saving work 2000 years after that Pentecost in Acts 2.

9. The Holy Spirit desires that the preached Word lead people to repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of their sins. The gospel and Holy Baptism gift us the Holy Spirit; He creates and sustains our faith. We learned the meaning of this from Luther’s Small Catechism on the 3. part of the Creed: „I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the gospel, enlighten me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith. In the same way He calls, gathers, enlightens and sanctifies the whole Christian Church on earth, and keeps her with Jesus Christ in the one true faith. In this Christian Church He daily and richly forgives all my sins and the sins of all believers. On the last day He will raise me and all the dead, and give eternal life to me and all believers in Christ. This is most certainly true (LSB 323). We have what Yahweh has promised and we received by faith – which is a gift and preservation of the Holy Spirit.

10. Today we heard the fulfillment by Jesus to send the Holy Spirit and that it was fulfilled 2000 years ago on this Sunday. Next week we will hear those born of water and the Spirit enter the reign of God. We have this rebirth through our Baptismal faith in Jesus Christ. Amen.

11. Let us pray. O Holy Spirit, Thou sent to us by Jesus and proceeding from the Father; fill the hearts of Your faithful and ignite in them the fire of Your Divine Love, so that we are certain that our sin is forgiven through Christ alone and that we ensure that this gospel will be proclaimed. Amen.

To God alone be the Glory

Gode ealdore sy se cyneþrymm

✠

All Scriptural quotations are translations done by The Rev. Peter A. Bauernfeind using the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, 4. Edition © 1990 by the Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart, and the Novum Testamentum Graece, Nestle-Aland 28. Revised Edition © 2012 by Deutsch Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart.

Feast of Pentecost Divine Service video

Pentecost Divine Service

The Feast of Pentecost (Whitsunday)

Introit (Psalm 118,16.24.26-28; Wisdom of Solomon 1,7)
The Spirit of the Lord fills the world, Hallelujah,
and that which contains all things has knowledge of the voice, Hallelujah.
The right hand of the Lord exalts,
the right hand of the Lord does valiantly!
This is the day that the Lord has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Blessed is he who arrives in the Name of the Lord!
We bless you from the house of the Lord.
The Lord is God, and He has made His Light to shine upon us.
Bind the festal sacrifice with cords, up to the horns of the altar!
You are my God, and I will give thanks to You;
You are my God; I will extol You.
Glory be 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.
The Spirit of the Lord fills the world, Hallelujah,
and that which contains all things has knowledge of the voice, Hallelujah.

Collect of the Day
O God, on this day You once taught the hearts of Your faithful people by sending them the light of Your Holy Spirit. Grant us in our day by the same Spirit to have a right understanding in all things and evermore to rejoice in His holy consolation; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Genesis 11,1-9
Now the whole earth had one language and the same words. 2And as people migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. 3And they said to one another: „Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly.“ And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar. 4Then they said: „Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.“ 5And the Lord went down to see the city and the tower, which the children of man had built. 6And the Lord said: „Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do. And nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. 7Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, so that they may not understand one another’s speech.“ 8So the Lord dispersed them from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. 9Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth. And from there the Lord dispersed them over the face of all the earth.

Verse (Psalm 104,30; Liturgical Text)
Alleluia. You send forth Your Spirit, so they are created, and You renew the face of the ground. Alleluia. Draw near, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Your faithful and ignite in them the fire of Your Divine Love. Alleluia. (Ancient Church)

Acts 2,1-13
1When the day of Pentecost arrived, the disciples were all together in one place. 2And suddenly there descended from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were seated. 3And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. 4And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages as the Spirit gave them utterance.
5Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6And at this sound the multitude joined together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. 7And they were amazed and astonished, saying: „Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians – we hear them telling in our own languages the mighty works of God.“ 12And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another: „What does this mean?“ 13But others mocking said: „They are filled with new wine.“

John 14,23-31
23Jesus answered Judas (not Iscariot): „If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word, and My Father will love him, and We will go to him and make Our home with him. 24Whoever does not love Me does not keep My words. And the word that you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me.
25These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. 26But the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My Name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. 27Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. 28You heard Me say to you: „I am going away, and I will return to you.“ If you loved Me, then you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than Me. 29And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe. 30I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is arriving. He has no claim on Me, 31but I do as the Father has commanded Me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here.“

Hymns

582 God’s Word is our Great Heritage
497 Come, Holy Ghost, God and Lord
843 Forgive our Sins as we Forgive

Saturday, May 30, 2020

Exaudi Saturday Vespers video

Exaudi Saturday Vespers

Friday, May 29, 2020

Exaudi Friday part 2

Mermorial Day Collect

A Collect for Memorial Day

O LORD God of hosts, the Almighty Protector of the nations, You raise up men and women for the vocation of protecting our country; we give thanks to You for those men and women who gave up their very lives in the service of this country and we thank You for their sacrifice that enables us to live in peace and freedom. Amen.

Exaudi Monday The Litany video

Exaudi Monday The Litany

Exaudi Evening Prayer video

Exaudi Evening Prayer

Sunday, May 24, 2020

Jeremiah 31,31-34. Exaudi

Jeremiah 31,31-34 (38,31-34 lxx) 3520

Exaudi 042

Esther, Queen. Johanna, Lk 8,3; 24,10. Menaen, Prophet. Acts 13,1.

Vincent of Lerins, France ✠ 450

24. Mai 2020

1. O Jesus, the Comforter sent from the Father and the Son; in our grief console us and in our tribulation comfort us, so that we rely upon You to refresh our anguished souls. Amen. (Starck 188 ¶ 2-3)

2. »Behold the days are approaching, says Yahweh, and a new covenant will be appointed to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah, not according to the covenant I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them from the land of Egypt, they did not persevere in My covenant, and I neglected them; for this covenant was appointed with the house of Israel after those days, now I will give My laws in their minds and write them upon their hearts; and I will be their God and they will be My people; and never ever will the neighbor teach the citizen and each his brother saying: „Know Yahweh,“ for everyone will know Me from their smallest unto their greatest, and I will be kind to their iniquities and I will never ever remember their sins anymore.«

3. Christ is risen! He has risen indeed. Hallelujah! Last week we heard Jesus teach us the Lord’s Prayer. On this past Thursday we heard of His ascension to heaven. And today we hear Jesus promise to send to us the Holy Spirit from the Father. Jesus calls the Holy Spirit both the Comforter and the Spirit of Truth (John 15,26).

4. Centuries before Jesus promised the Holy Spirit, he told the Prophet Jeremiah called: »Behold, the days are approaching and a new covenant will be appointed to the house of Israel.« In Jeremiah’s day, as it was in Jesus’ day, the covenant that was appointed was the Sinai covenant with its laws and commandments regulating the life of the individual person, the nation and their worship. We recall particularly the core principle of this covenant in the 10 Commandments which we learned studying Luther’s Small Catechism. This covenant also provided for redeeming the people from their sin, so a sizable portion of the covenant deals with the types of sacrifices that were to be officiated at the temple. But Jeremiah tells Israel: this covenant will pass away and yield to a new covenant. Jeremiah speaks this in 587 bc and shortly thereafter, almost as if it were an exclamation point to his words, the temple is destroyed by the Babylonians and the sacrifices cease for 70 years.

5. 413 years later, the temple had been rebuilt 3 centuries earlier and the covenant is still in force, but the words of Jeremiah were about to be fulfilled. A new covenant was on the horizon and Jesus was bringing it. Recall Jesus’ words to the Jews in the temple courtyard: »I will destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up« (John 2,18). The crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus is the new covenant Jeremiah had prophesied. The new fulfilled the old and thereby replaced it. Recall the Epistle to the Hebrews which begins: »Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the Prophets, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed the heir of all things, through whom also He created the world. He is the radiance of the Glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature, and He upholds the universe by the word of His power. After making purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the Name He has inherited is more excellent than theirs« (Hebrews 1,1-4).

6. Yet still 2000 years later Christians are tempted to return to the first, old covenant. Paul was dealing with this dilemma circa ad 50 and is the reason he wrote his Epistle to the Galatians. The issue among the Galatian Christians was that some Jewish Christians from the Jerusalem church had shown up and told them Paul had neglected to tell them to keep the Sinai law – particularly getting circumcised and following the dietary laws renown in Judaism – the Galatian Christians were confused by this and began to follow their advice lest their Christian faith be in doubt or jeopardized. These men, whom Paul derisively calls „these Judaizers“, were saying that faith in Christ is a good, necessary beginning, but that such faith requires completion with further instruction in keeping the requirements of the law (Galatians 3,3-5). Essentially, these Judaizers wanted to merge the old and new covenants together.

7. Paul will have none of this old-new covenant hybrid. He does not mince words when he writes to the Galatian Christians: »I am astonished that you are so quickly turning from the one who called y’all in grace and turning to a different gospel, not that there is another gospel, but there are some who are confusing you and wishing to pervert the gospel of Christ« (Galatians 1,6-7). So Paul reminds them of five key points of the gospel that he had proclaimed to them:

1. We are justified before God through faith in Jesus Christ and not by works commanded in Torah (Galatians 2,16).

2. We receive the Holy Spirit through faith-full hearing of the gospel and not by works commanded in Torah (Galatians 3,2).

3. We are Abraham’s descendants because we belong to Christ, the promised heir of the Divine blessing, and not because we do the works commanded by Torah (Galatians 3,16-18.29).

4. We are sons and daughters (family) of God through Baptismal faith, not through observing religious calendars prescribed by Torah (Galatians 4,10-11).

5. We behave in God-pleasing fashion when we cultivate the fruit of the Spirit of Christ, not when we indulge in the works of the flesh, which are indeed forbidden by Torah, but which Torah is powerless to transform (Galatians 5,16).

Paul reminds us that the gospel is radically law-free. Faith in Christ and the freedom of the Holy Spirit require no supplement or complement from any mandatory Torah-provision. With faith in Christ, therefore, it counts for nothing whether one is a circumcised Jew or an uncircumcised Gentile, whether one is a slave or a free man, whether one is a male or a female (Galatians 3,28; 5,6). The only thing that counts is faith in Christ, faith that gives His spirit, faith that is energetic in loving the neighbor (Galatians 5,6). That faith frees us from all obligations of obedience to Torah and from all other kinds of religious enslavements (Galatians 4,3.9). (Keller Galatians 1990)

8. The old covenant with all its Sinai laws is complete and fulfilled; it is no longer in force and must not be enforced, for the new covenant in Christ is the active and applicable covenant now. The old covenant was merely meant to prepare us for the new covenant in Christ; the old covenant has done that and done it well but its task is complete. Christ, faith in Christ, is the goal of the covenants. Thus we interpret the Scriptures, the two covenants, through the prism of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection (Keller Galatians). The gospel of God (1. Thessalonians 2,2.8-9) is good news. God calls us into His own kingdom and glory (1. Thessalonians 2,12). He has destined us not for wrath; He has destined us to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ who died for us, so that we might live with Him (1. Thessalonians 5,9-10). (Keller 1. Thessalonians 1990)

9. God tested the apostles through affliction and approved them (1. Thessalonians 2,4a); at times, God still tests His people through affliction to approve them. This time of pandemic is used by God to test His Church and her Christians. It is a test meant to strengthen our faith in Christ and to be a time of purification whereby the Holy Spirit works in us to better exhibit a life of faith, love and hope (1. Thessalonians 1,3). This requires abstention from every form of evil (1. Thessalonians 5,22), and also leads toward mutual love within the Church (1. Thessalonians 4,9-12;5,14-21) along with Christian love toward those outside the Church (1. Thessalonians 3,11;4,12). (Keller 1. Thessalonians 1990)

10. »Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the people of old received their commendation« (Hebrews 11,1-2). »Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the Founder and Perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Jesus is the Mediator of a new covenant. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe« (Hebrews 12,1-2.24.28).

11. Today we hear Jesus promise to send to us the Holy Spirit from the Father. Jesus calls the Holy Spirit both the Comforter and the Spirit of Truth (John 15,26). Next week we will hear Jesus promise that the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in His Name, He will teach us all things and bring to us remembrance all that Jesus has said to us. Amen.

12. Let us pray. O Lord Jesus Christ, the Risen One who reigns over the nations and is seated on Your holy throne; daily send forth the Holy Spirit, so that we receive the gifts and blessings of Your heavenly reign. Amen.

To God alone be the Glory

Soli Deo Gloria

✠

Exaudi Divine Service video

Exaudi Divine Service

Exaudi Propers

Exaudi 24. May 2020

Introit (Psalm 27,1.7.9b.13; 27,7a.9a)

Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud;

Hide not Your face from me.

The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?

The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?

Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud;

be gracious to me and answer me!

Cast me not off;

forsake me not, O God of my salvation!

I believethat I will look upon the goodness of the Lord

in the land of the living!

Glory be 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.

Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud;

Hide not Your face from me.

Collect of the Day

O King of Glory, Lord of hosts, uplifted in triumph far above all heavens, leave us not without consolation but send us the Spirit of Truth whom You promised from the Father; for You live and reign with Him and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Jeremiah 31,31-34

³¹„Behold, the days are approaching, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, ³²not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord. ³³But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put My Torah within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they will be My people. ³⁴And no longer will each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying: ‘Know the Lord,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”

P This is the Word of the Lord.

C Thanks be to God.

1. Peter 4,7-11

The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers. ⁸Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. ⁹Show hospitality to one another without grumbling. ¹⁰As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: ¹¹whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To Him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

P This is the Word of the Lord.

C Thanks be to God.

John 15,26-16,4

^15,26 Jesus said to His disciples: “But when the Comforter arrives, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, He will bear witness about Me. ²⁷And you also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning.

^16,1“I have said all these things to you to keep you from falling away. ²They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, the hour is approaching when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God. ³And they will do these things because they have not known the Father, nor Me. ⁴But I have said these things to you, so that when their hour arrives you may remember that I told them to you. I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you.”

Rogate Saturday Vespers video

Rogate Saturday Vespers

Friday, May 22, 2020

Rogate Friday Compline video

Rogate Friday Compline

Ascension Noon video

Ascension Noon

Rotate Wednesday Nones video

Rogate Wednesday Nones

Galatians 3 Bible study videio

Galatians 3 Bible study

Wednesday, May 20, 2020

Rogate Tuesday Sext video

Rogate Tuesday Sext

Sunday, May 17, 2020

Rotate Evening Prayer video

Rogate Evening Prayer

Matthew 6,5-15. Rotate

Matthew 6,5-15 3320

Rogate 040

Possidius, Bishop of Calama in Numidia, Tunisia ✠ 430

17. Mai 2020

1. O Christ, our Redeemer, when Satan wars against us bringing up our many sins, remind us You have vanquished this, our ancient foe, so that we are consoled that our sins are forgiven, Death cannot harm us and Hades does not terrify us for You, O Jesus, have rescued us from Satan, Sin, Death and Hades. Amen. (Starck 89 ¶ 2)

2. »And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. Pray then like this: Our Father 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 debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For if you forgive others their trespasses, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.«

3. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed. Alleluia! Last week we heard Jesus’ promise to send the Holy Spirit to His apostles. Today we hear Jesus teach on prayer and that the Father will give us what we ask.

4. Not only does Jesus teach us that the Father hears and gives us what we ask, He also teaches us how to pray and what to ask for from the Father in the Lord’s Prayer. In doing so, Jesus convicts us of 2 sins: 1. We delight in making a public showing of our prayers; we love to draw attention from others so they see how pious and religious we are. 2. We revel in being long-winded with our prayers; we think the more we say to God will increase the importance of our prayers. Jesus tells us that His Father prefers humility and brevity. The Lord’s Prayer is both humble and brief.

5. It takes about 25-30 seconds to pray the Lord’s Prayer, but in that half minute we ask the Father for several important petitions. If you pay close attention to the Collect of the Day, then you will discover that it usually follows a simple outline comprised of 5 parts:

1. Invocation,

2. Divine attribute,

3. Petition,

4. so that and

5. Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer follows a similar outline:

Invocation: Our Father who art in heaven

Petition: Thy kingdom come

Thy will be done

Give us this day our daily bread

Forgive us our trespasses

Lead us not into temptation and

Deliver us from evil

so that: lacking, although deliver us from evil would be considered such.

Amen. Lacking, but implied as it is the affirmation: This is true; I agree.

6. Luther’s Small Catechism unpacks each part of the Lord’s Prayer. To invoke God as Our Father means that with these words God tenderly invites us to believe that He is our True Father and that we are His true children, so that with all boldness and confidence we may ask Him as dear children ask their dear father. God’s Name is certainly holy in itself, for as such it is one of His Divine attributes, but we pray in this petition that His Name may be kept holy among us also. God’s Name is kept holy when the Word of God is taught in its truth and purity, and we, as the children of God, also live holy lives according to it. Help us to do this, Dear Father in heaven! But anyone who teaches or lives contrary to God’s Word profanes the Name of God among us. Protect us from this, Heavenly Father! Again, the kingdom of God certainly comes by itself without our prayer, but we pray in this petition that it may come to us also. God’s kingdom comes when our Heavenly Father gives us His Holy Spirit, so that by His grace we believe His Holy Word and lead godly lives here in time and there in eternity. The good and gracious will of God is done even without our prayer, but we pray in this petition that it may be done among us also. God’s will is done when He breaks and hinders every evil plan and purpose of the Devil, the world and our sinful nature, which do not want us to follow God’s Name or let His kingdom come; when He strengthens and keeps us firm in His Word and faith until we die. This is His good and gracious will.

7. God certainly gives daily bread to everyone without our prayers, even to all evil people, but we pray in this petition that God will lead us to realize this and to receive our daily bread with Thanksgiving. Daily bread includes everything that has to do with the support and needs of the body, such as food, drink, clothing, shoes, house, home, land, animals, money, goods, a devout husband or wife, devout children, devout workers, devout and faith for rulers, good government, good weather, peace, health, self-control, good reputation, good friends, faithful neighbors and the like. We pray in the petition, forgive our trespasses, that our Father in heaven would not look at our sins, or deny our prayer because of them. We are neither worthy of the things for which we pray, nor have we deserved them, but we ask that He would give them all to us by grace, for a daily sin much and surely deserve nothing but punishment. So we too will sincerely forgive and gladly do good to those who sin against us.

8. God attempts no one. We pray in this petition, lead us not into temptation, that God would guard and keep us so that the Devil, the world and our sinful nature may not deceive us or mislead us into false belief, despair and other great shame and vice. Although we are attacked by these things, we pray that we may finally overcome them and win the victory. We finally pray in this petition, deliver us from evil, that our Father in heaven would rescue us from every evil of body and soul, possessions and reputation, and finally, when our last hour arrives, give us a blessed end and graciously take us from this valley of sorrow to Himself in heaven.

9. The Lord’s Prayer as we commonly know it, with the ascription, for Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen, is found in a 5. century Greek New Testament and several 9. century Greek New Testaments, W and K L Δ Θ Π, respectively. This suggests that the ascription was composed by the Early Church for a responsive liturgical use of the Lord’s Prayer where the pastor prayed the Lord’s Prayer and the congregation responded with the ascription. This is found in the Divine Service of Holy Communion in The Lutheran Hymnal page 27 and in Divine Service III in Lutheran Service Book page 196. The ascription is taken from Holy Scripture, particularly, 1. Chronicles 29,11-13: »Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is Yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and You are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come from You, and You rule over all. In Your hand are power and might, and in Your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. And now we thank You, our God, and praise Your Glorious Name.«

10. Thus the Church concludes the Lord’s Prayer with the Amen; this means that we should be certain that these petitions are pleasing to our Father in heaven, and are heard by Him; for He Himself has commanded us to pray in this way and has promise to hear us. Amen, Amen means „yes, yes, it shall be so.“ The Psalmist speaks what Yahweh has spoken to him: »Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor Me« (Psalm 50, 15). And so the Church prays this prayer every Sunday, and we often pray it in our home devotions, for we know God hears and answers our prayers.

11. Today we have heard that Jesus taught us that the Father will give us what we ask. Next week we will hear that 40 days after His resurrection, Jesus led the apostles to Bethany, blessed them and ascended into heaven (Mark 16,19; Luke 24,50-51). Amen.

12. Let us pray. O Blessed God, who covers us with Your steadfast love; lead us to remember that Jesus has risen indeed and has appeared to Simon, so that we are comforted by the gospel proclaimed by the apostles that the Holy Spirit uses to create faith in the risen Christ. Amen.

To God alone be the Glory

Gode ealdore sy se cyneþrymm

✠

Rogate Divine Service video

Rogate Divine Service

Rogate Propers

Rogate 17. May 2020

Introit (Psalm 95,1-3.6-7; John 16,24b)

Ask, and you will receive, Hallelujah,

so that your joy may be full, Hallelujah.

O let us sing to the Lord;

let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!

Let us enter into His presence with thanksgiving;

let us make a joyful noise to Him with songs of praise!

For the Lord is a great God,

and a great King above all gods.

O let us worship and bow down;

let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!

For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture,

and the sheep of His hand.

Ask, and you will receive, Hallelujah,

so that your joy may be full, Hallelujah.

Collect of the Day

O God, the Giver of all that is good, by Your holy inspiration grant that we may think those things that are right and by Your merciful guiding accomplish them; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Exodus 32,7-14

⁷And the Lord said to Moses: „Go down, for Your people, whom You brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. ⁸They have turned aside quickly out of the way that I commanded them. They have made for themselves a golden calf and have worshiped it and sacrificed to it and said: ‘These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!’“ ⁹And the Lord said to Moses: “I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stiff-necked people. ¹⁰Now therefore let Me alone, so that My wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them, in order that I may make a great nation of you.“ ¹¹But Moses implored the Lord his God and said: „O Lord, why does Your wrath burn hot against Your people, whom You have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? ¹²Why should the Egyptians say: ‘With evil intent did he bring them out, to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from Your burning anger and relent from this disaster against Your people. ¹³Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Your servants, to whom You swore by Your own self, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your offspring, and they shall inherit it forever.’“ ¹⁴And the Lord relented from the disaster that He had spoken of bringing on His people.

P This is the Word of the Lord.

C Thanks be to God.

Verse (Psalm 66,20; Luke 24,6.34)

Alleluia. Blessed be God, because He has not rejected my prayer or removed His steadfast love from me! Alleluia. Remember how He told you, while He was still in Galilee, saying: „The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!“ Alleluia.

James 1,22-27

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. ²³For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. ²⁴For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. ²⁵But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.

²⁶If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless. ²⁷Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

P This is the Word of the Lord.

C Thanks be to God.

John 16,23-30

²³Jesus said to His disciples: „In that day you will ask nothing of Me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in My Name, He will give it to you. ²⁴Until now you have asked nothing in My Name. Ask, and you will receive, so that your joy may be full.

²⁵„I have said these things to you in figures of speech. The hour is arriving when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech but will tell you plainly about the Father. ²⁶In that day you will ask in My Name, and I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; ²⁷for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me and have believed that I arrived from God.²⁸I arrived from the Father and have gone into the world, and now I am leaving the world and going to the Father.“ ²⁹His disciples said: „Ah, now You are speaking plainly and not using figurative speech! ³⁰Now we know that You know all things and do not need anyone to question You; this is why we believe that You arrived from God.“

Grace Evangelical-Lutheran

Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church

Sunday, May 31, 2020

Pentecost Evening Prayer video

Acts 2,1-13. Pentecost

Feast of Pentecost Divine Service video

The Feast of Pentecost (Whitsunday)

Saturday, May 30, 2020

Exaudi Saturday Vespers video

Friday, May 29, 2020

Exaudi Friday part 2

Exaudi Friday Responsive Prayer for Evening video

Exaudi Thursday Noon video

Exaudi Wednesday Nones video

Galatians 3 Bible study

Exaudi Tuesday Sext video

Mermorial Day Collect

Exaudi Monday The Litany video

Exaudi Evening Prayer video

Sunday, May 24, 2020

Jeremiah 31,31-34. Exaudi

Exaudi Divine Service video

Exaudi Propers

Rogate Saturday Vespers video

Friday, May 22, 2020

Rogate Friday Compline video

Ascension Noon video

Rotate Wednesday Nones video

Galatians 3 Bible study videio

Wednesday, May 20, 2020

Rogate Tuesday Sext video

Sunday, May 17, 2020

Rotate Evening Prayer video

Matthew 6,5-15. Rotate

Rogate Divine Service video

Rogate Propers