Thursday March 17, 2022
St. Thomas Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/St.Thomas.the.Apostle.Cambridgehttps://www.facebook.com/groups/969531309814142 (this is St. Luke’s page) Thursday, March 17, 2022 CollectO God, the author of peace and lover of concord, to know you is eternal life, to serve you is perfect freedom. Defend us your servants from the assaults of our enemies, that we may trust in your defence, and not fear the power of any adversaries; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.Come, let us worship.
The Proclamation of the Word-1st Reading: Jeremiah 4:9-10, 19-28 (NRSV)On that day, says the Lord, courage shall fail the king and the officials; the priests shall be appalled and the prophets astounded. Then I said, ‘Ah, Lord God, how utterly you have deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, “It shall be well with you”, even while the sword is at the throat!’
Sorrow for a Doomed Nation
My anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain! Oh, the walls of my heart! My heart is beating wildly; I cannot keep silent; for I hear the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war. Disaster overtakes disaster, the whole land is laid waste. Suddenly my tents are destroyed, my curtains in a moment. How long must I see the standard, and hear the sound of the trumpet? ‘For my people are foolish, they do not know me; they are stupid children, they have no understanding. They are skilled in doing evil, but do not know how to do good.’I looked on the earth, and lo, it was waste and void; and to the heavens, and they had no light. I looked on the mountains, and lo, they were quaking, and all the hills moved to and fro. I looked, and lo, there was no one at all, and all the birds of the air had fled. I looked, and lo, the fruitful land was a desert, and all its cities were laid in ruins before the Lord, before his fierce anger.For thus says the Lord: The whole land shall be a desolation; yet I will not make a full end. Because of this the earth shall mourn, and the heavens above grow black; for I have spoken, I have purposed; I have not relented nor will I turn back.
Psalm 71 (Book of Alternative Services page 795):1
In you, O Lord, have I taken refuge; * let me never be ashamed.
2 In your righteousness, deliver me and set me free; * incline your ear to me and save me.
3 Be my strong rock, a castle to keep me safe; * you are my crag and my stronghold.
4 Deliver me, my God, from the hand of the wicked, * from the clutches of the evildoer and the oppressor.
5 For you are my hope, O Lord God, * my confidence since I was young.
6 I have been sustained by you ever since I was born; from my mother’s womb you have been my strength; * my praise shall be always of you.
7 I have become a portent to many; * but you are my refuge and my strength.
8 Let my mouth be full of your praise * and your glory all the day long.
9 Do not cast me off in my old age; * forsake me not when my strength fails.
10 For my enemies are talking against me, * and those who lie in wait for my life take counsel together.
11 They say, “God has forsaken him; go after him and seize him; * because there is none who will save.”
12 O God, be not far from me; * come quickly to help me, O my God.
13 Let those who set themselves against me be put to shame and be disgraced; * let those who seek to do me evil be covered with scorn and reproach.
14 But I shall always wait in patience, * and shall praise you more and more.
15 My mouth shall recount your mighty acts and saving deeds all day long; * though I cannot know the number of them.
16 I will begin with the mighty works of the Lord God; * I will recall your righteousness, yours alone. 17 O God, you have taught me since I was young, * and to this day I tell of your wonderful works.
18 And now that I am old and gray-headed, O God, do not forsake me, * till I make known your strength to this generation and your power to all who are to come.
19 Your righteousness, O God, reaches to the heavens; * you have done great things; who is like you, O God?
20 You have showed me great troubles and adversities, * but you will restore my life and bring me up again from the deep places of the earth.
21 You strengthen me more and more; * you enfold and comfort me,
22 Therefore I will praise you upon the lyre for your faithfulness, O my God; * I will sing to you with the harp, O Holy One of Israel.
23 My lips will sing with joy when I play to you, and so will my soul, which you have redeemed.
24 My tongue will proclaim your righteousness all day long, * for they are ashamed and disgraced who sought to do me harm.
Holy God, be our strength and our salvation, that we may never be ashamed to praise you for your mighty acts. We ask this through Jesus Christ. Amen. The Proclamation of the Word-2nd Reading: Romans 2:12 – 24 (NRSV)
All who have sinned apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous in God’s sight, but the doers of the law who will be justified. When Gentiles, who do not possess the law, do instinctively what the law requires, these, though not having the law, are a law to themselves. They show that what the law requires is written on their hearts, to which their own conscience also bears witness; and their conflicting thoughts will accuse or perhaps excuse them on the day when, according to my gospel, God, through Jesus Christ, will judge the secret thoughts of all.
The Jews and the Law
But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast of your relation to God and know his will and determine what is best because you are instructed in the law, and if you are sure that you are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, a corrector of the foolish, a teacher of children, having in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth, you, then, that teach others, will you not teach yourself? While you preach against stealing, do you steal? You that forbid adultery, do you commit adultery? You that abhor idols, do you rob temples? You that boast in the law, do you dishonour God by breaking the law? For, as it is written, ‘The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.’ Gospel Reading: John 5:19 – 29 (NRSV)
The Authority of the Son
Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, the Son can do nothing on his own, but only what he sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, the Son does likewise. The Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing; and he will show him greater works than these, so that you will be astonished. Indeed, just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whomsoever he wishes. The Father judges no one but has given all judgement to the Son, so that all may honour the Son just as they honour the Father. Anyone who does not honour the Son does not honour the Father who sent him. Very truly, I tell you, anyone who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life, and does not come under judgement, but has passed from death to life.‘Very truly, I tell you, the hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. For just as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself; and he has given him authority to execute judgement, because he is the Son of Man. Do not be astonished at this; for the hour is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and will come out—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation.
The Lord’s Prayer 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, the power, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.
Closing PrayerRescue us, O God, for whom we wait, from the depths of depression and despair. May we trust in your mercy, know the fullness of your redemption, and share in the glory of your kingdom; through our Saviour Jesus Christ. May the grace of God uphold you, the peace of God surround you, the love of God flow from you and the strength of God protect and bring you safely through this day. Amen. God bless and keep us through this season of our lives -