Advent IV - Three Little Words: GOD WITH US

 Advent 4
December 18, 2022
Fr. Phil Eberhart

 

THREE LITTLE WORDS

 

Good morning.  Welcome to our 4^th Sunday of Advent!  The spell check when I was typing began to spell out ADVENTURE!  I truly believe that that is the actual meaning of Advent!  God is inviting us into an advent-ure!! As we are waiting on His coming, both commemorating Jesus’ birth and His second coming, we are caught in the in-between time – what is called The Church Age!  But you know that we have a secret sauce! A secret ingredient.  We aren’t left as orphans… we’re not alone.

 

Jesus gives us a great clue when he says to the disciples, “Apart from … ME … you can do nothing!”  Jesus is our secret sauce!!  He is the One who lives His life both IN and THROUGH us!  COOL??  So this morning, I will be just talking about THREE LITTLE WORDS.

 

GOD … WITH … US

 

Malcolm Muggeridge is quoted as saying, “the biggest challenge we have in praying, is apprehending WHO it is that we’re praying to!”

GOD.  Who is God?  That is the question of the ages, isn’t it?  Many are not even sure that there is a God! 

God is WHOLLY OTHER.  Nothing like us, but in Whose Image we are created. 

God is the UNCAUSED CAUSE.  The One who said “Let there be Light, and there was light.”  He spoke and BANG, “the universe was.”  We are still discovering the extent of the universe more and more these days through our space telescopes and other means;  and the Bible simply says, “He also created the stars.”  

C.S. Lewis once said, “I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.”

Paul tells us that the stars and creation speak, in total silence, yet louder than we can hear!  Rom 1:¹⁹    For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. ²⁰ For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made.

God communicates Himself to us in many, many ways.  But always in ways that will require us to have FAITH…  and Believe.  These are active qualities for us, not simply assent to precepts, but knowledge of a person – God, our Father.   Relationship.

 

“OUR FATHER.”

Who taught us that phrase?  Jesus did.  As He was teaching His disciples to pray, He introduced them to the Love of the Father, both through His example and through His teachings.  In another letter to the Church in Colosse, Paul wrote that Jesus is, “the visible image of the invisible God … For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, …  And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”  Later on,  in Romans, he writes:  “from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.”

 

One of our favorite songs is called “You are My All in All”.   All In All.

From Him and Through Him and To Him are all things!

 

It is almost incomprehensible that a God who is bigger than the universe; the One who quizzed Job with questions like…

“Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Or…

“Have you commanded the morning since your days began,
    and caused the dawn to know its place, or…

“Where is the way to the dwelling of light,
    and where is the place of darkness, or …

“Have you entered the storehouses of the snow,
    or have you seen the storehouses of the hail, or …

Have you an arm like God,
    and can you thunder with a voice like his?

 

So we have some idea of how BIG GOD is. But the next (last) word catches us off guard. 

 

WITH…

What?  We’re talking about God … right?  And the one thing that we need most of all, is immediately available to us, in Jesus, the Son.  It’s His Presence.  God is WITH.  What does that mean? GOD IS WITH…

Right next to us, sure.  St Patrick’s Breastplate says it this way:

 

4 Christ be with me, Christ within me,
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort and restore me;
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love me,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.

 

With … in every way … in every circumstance … in all our victory and in all our pain… in all our comfort and all our brokenness.  God is WITH.

 

This past week we had the joy of having Deacon Aaron Eime from Christ Church, Jerusalem on our Diocesan Zoom Call.  Aaron has been here at REZ and is a great Hebrew scholar.  He said to our clergy this week that as the Israelites were building the Tabernacle in Exodus 25 and 26, God clearly directed the making of the Holy of Holies, where He would dwell… that it would be made of Skins.  All the rest of the structure was made of curtains, cloth and gold and silver.  But God directed SKIN to be where He dwells among men.  And further, that the construction of the Tabernacle in the Wilderness took 9 Months!!

Any parallels there?

Hmmmmmm.

But additionally, the Hebrew word that is used to dwell WITH can also be translated DWELL IN!  God With, becomes GOD IN!

In what?   In whom?

Well… US!

 

US… um… that’s you and me … AND … you and me together!  Wherever two or three of you come together, I will be there in your midst!

GOD ( Yeah, HIM) WITH/IN … say it:   US!

 

Jesus, said, “I am with you and I will be IN you!” (14:17)

 “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. ⁷ If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”

 

Paul later said to his friends in Phillipi: 

For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ ⁹ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— ¹⁰ that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,

 I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, ¹⁴ I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

I would say to all of us, the door is open… open wide!

Nothing stands in our way… but us!  Jesus Christ has cleared the way through to a relationship with His Father, God, and proven God’s unfailing love for us in his self-sacrifice on the Cross.  As our prayer goes:  God extended His arms of Love on the hard wood of the Cross, that everyone might come into the reach of His loving embrace!! 

And that is the call that comes with the invitation of Jesus…  I AM WITH YOU AND I AM IN YOU! 

Paul said it this way:  “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

Three Little Words:   God … With… Us

Immanuel … Immanuel … Your Name is called:   Immanuel
God With Us … Revealed in Us.  Your Name is called Immanuel!

 

God With Us… Revealed In Us.

 

“Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross that everyone might withing the reach of your saving embrace;  So clothe us with your Spirit, that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those who do not know You, to the knowledge and love of You, for the honor of Your Name!”  Amen.

The Promises of Word & Spirit - Fr. Phil

 Advent 2
Dec 4, 2022
Fr. Phil Eberhart

 

The Promises of Word and Spirit

 

Today is the second Sunday of Advent, the season of anticipation – of preparation – of repentance.  That was the message of John the Baptist, Jesus’ cousin, at the Jordan river:   Repent for the kingdom of heaven is “at hand”.   It’s close enough to touch!  This is the message that had been preached by prophetic types for hundreds of years, from Isaiah on down to Malachi.  John picks up the messages of God’s judgement on evil and wickedness as the FORERUNNER for the Messiah, his cousin Jesus of Nazareth.

 

John’s recognition of Jesus began early in his life – actually intra-uterine!  Never let anyone say that life doesn’t begin until birth – John recognized Jesus, actually Jesus’ mother’s voice, and jumped in Elizabeth’s womb!!  Proof of life at conception!  If you wanted it.  It’s free!  Today and today only!

 

John was last of the line of Old Covenant prophets, and the FORERUNNER of the Messiah – he referred to himself as the Friend of the Bridegroom!  One of his greatest lines in the light of Jesus’ ascendancy in ministry, is “He must become greater; I must become less.”  Jn 3. 

 

Today’s readings bring out the promises that were preached for many hundreds of years about the Messiah:
² And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,
    the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
    the Spirit of counsel and might,
    the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
³ And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.

for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord
    as the waters cover the sea.

¹⁰ In that day the root of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples—of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be glorious.

The other theme that seems to be coming up is judgement, based on the justice and righteousness of God – judgement that will be executed by The Son.  This is a judgement that begins “with the House of the Lord.”  This is one of the reasons that both John in our reading and later, Jesus, were so hard on the Pharisees and Sadducees, the religious “professionals” of their day. 

As I said, the judgement of God, through Christ, is based entirely on the concept of God’s Justice and on His Righteousness.  It is the character of Jesus that forms the basis of the judgement that He brings.  The call of John the Baptist was to self-examination and repentance, in light of the coming Kingdom of Heaven;  something that had been longed-for for 700 years, and now was “near enough to touch!”  “At Hand…”  So close that it’s in the very next verses in Matthew 3!

Jesus is revealed by John as “the lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world!”  Jesus’ person and His mission are prophecied in these early words by cousin John at the river and by the very voice of God at His baptism.  We’ll celebrate that in a few weeks!  The Prophet Isaiah spoke of Him early as having the Spirit of God resting on him – Jesus himself is assigned to read this passage as he reads in the synagogue in his hometown of Nazareth in the months to follow… another one of those “lectionary” coincidences?  He read to his friends and neighbors…

61 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
    because the Lord has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor;^[a]
    he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
    and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;^[b]
2 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor,
    and the day of vengeance of our God;

And in Luke 4 he adds, “Today, in your hearing, these Scriptures are fulfilled!”

At the end of the reading this morning, John promises that Jesus will send the same Spirit on us as was on Him!  He describes is at “fire.”  And that prophecy came to fulfillment at the empowerment of the Church at Pentecost. And it comes to fulfillment for us as we are confirmed in the life of the church and as God’s Spirit dwells on us, individually and corporately, through the Baptism in the Holy Spirit.

 

We at REZ, expect this experience as a norm for our life together, and we expect to see its fruit in our midst, both in character and in fruitfulness in ministry that is empowered by the Spirit of God, as has been promised here.  We expect FIRE!

 

I want to circle back and highlight again what Jesus was prophetically given, sometimes referred to as the “Sevenfold” Spirit of God:

SEVENFOLD GIFT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT:

 

Wisdom: The application of knowledge… to judge what is important, meaningful and to know what to do with the knowledge of God… Sometimes coming with maturity.

Understanding: Tied to Wisdom because to truly understand something is different than just knowing something. We refer to is as the 18” drop, from head to heart!

Counsel: to be able to differentiate between right and wrong, and to share it with others.

Fortitude: courage and endurance in the face of “longsuffering”

Knowledge: based in experience which helps us to know God actually. This is actually delineated by two different Greek words in the NT.

Piety: practices of a proper reverence for God; to obey a Holy God out of love.

The Fear of the Lord: to have an inner awe of God's presence; His holiness, goodness and unfailing love, that leads to a disdain for sin.

And we circle back here, because the Psalmist tells us over an over that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom!”

 

We see these kinds of lists in other places in Holy Writ:

Galatians 5:22 in the listing of the Fruit of the Spirit – the inner character that the believer can expect to manifest in a life “led by the Spirit.”

“Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Goodness, Kindness,
Faithfulness, Gentleness & Self-control”

That’s a whole different sermon series!!

 

Paul delineates the Gifts, Workings and Effects of the Spirit in 1 Cor 12, more things that we expect to see in our midst, as we “keep in step with the Spirit of God” moving among and through each of us.

“Words of Wisdom, Words of Knowledge, Faith, Healings, Miracles, Prophetic Words, Discernment of Spirits, Gifts of tongues and interpretation of tongues”

All given “for the building up of the Body of Christ” unto a mature “man”.

 

Finally, Peter tells us that we are given the Spirit of God AND the Word of God in order that we may become PARTAKERS IN THE DIVINE NATURE.  This is another sermon series!!  Peter gives us steps, sometimes called the Ladder of Virtue:

A similar list again reflecting the character and virtue of Jesus and of the Father:

“Add to your Faith;  Goodness;  Understanding;  Self-control;  Patient Endurance;  Godliness; Mercy and Unfailing Love.”

Sound familiar? 

 

Over and over and over and over again we are given the charge by God to live lives that reflect who HE is – that SHINE with the light of HIS FACE, reflected in and out of our lives, lived here in the church and outside the church as we go about our daily lives.  If we did this, would we stick out?  Uh huh!!

 

There would be no question.  We would look SOOOOOO different, that the world around us could not help but take notice.  Peter, in his first letter put it this way:  “Set apart Jesus as Lord, and be prepared to give an answer to those who question the source of the hope that is in you!    Always be ready to explain your faith – with gentleness and respect.”

Friends, God wants to be in you – as close as your very breath.  God has given his “breath” – His Spirit, to rest upon you,  to dwell with you and to be “In You!”  He is the source of the life of God that is manifested in you, through His Spirit, resting on you and dwelling in you.

May we open ourselves today to His Spirit – His FIRE – given as Gift to bring us to the fullness of who HE is and Who We Are IN HIM.

 

In the Name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

 

Amen.

Who do YOU say that I am? - Christ the King Sunday

 Christ the King Sunday

Nov 20, 2022
Fr. Phil Eberhart

 

Who do YOU say that I am?

 

Today we have two reaffirmations of Baptismal Vows and we have a baptism for Claira Early this morning.  It is so appropriate that it’s all happening on Christ the King Sunday!

 

This is a sermon for all of us, who witness these vows and reaffirm them ourselves, which we will do in actuality at the baptism in a few minutes.

 

The ultimate of ultimate questions in our world is “Who do you say Jesus is?”  Jesus himself posed the question to his disciples one day. Peter has some particularly special revelation in that moment as he answered Jesus for the rest of the disciples:  “You are the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the Living God.”

 

Jesus commended Peter and acknowledged the source of that knowledge: God Himself.  We call that the Great or the Good Confession.  That confession is the golden nugget at the heart of the Good News, the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Our apprehension of who Jesus IS is the door of our heart upon which we hear that knocking sound as He stands outside, wanting to come in and eat dinner with us. (Rev 3:20)  Paul tells us that we must “confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord” – Lord means sovereign – King of kings / Lord of lords!

 

What is means is the Death Star is NOT the ultimate power in the universe!  Nor is the “Force.”  Ultimate power and authority has a Name… and it’s JESUS.  He is alive – that’s the second part of the confession that Paul says must be believed in our hearts – that JESUS was “Raised from the dead.”  He is completely unique in that category!

 

Turn in your bulletin to the reading from Paul’s letter to the Colossians:  This letter was written to answer questions that were surfacing in the early Church about Jesus Divine Nature.  Some were saying, as they continue today, that Jesus was simply a man, an extraordinary man, but just a man.  A Son of God, but not THE Son of God, as He described Himself:  ONLY BEGOTTEN.

Paul delineates the whole picture in a few verses to the Colossian Church and to us by extension:

¹⁵ He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. ¹⁶ For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. ¹⁷ And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. ¹⁸ And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. ¹⁹ For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, ²⁰ and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

Let’s focus our attention on some key words here:

 

The IMAGE of the Invisible God…

I believe the Greek word here is ICON and the Latin is IMAGO…  He Is the “exact representation of the Father” – the perfect visible image of God – He is God with Us… with Skin ON!

 

All things were created through him and for him…

He was present as the voice that said “Let there be light.”
Father – Son – Holy Spirit all present and active in the act of creation – and continuously active even now, because

 

In him all things hold together…

Jesus is the binding “force” in the universe. It’s not a thing, the Force is a person!  A person that can be known and loved, worshipped and obeyed, talked to and heard from!

Paul later said to the Greek Philosophers:  “In Him, we live and move and have our being!”

 

He is the head of the Body…
We get our marching orders, our moving directions, our motive force from Jesus!  The Church is today’s living expression:  Hands, feet, eyes, ears, mouth… nose to toes!

As He is, so are we in the world! 

 

At the end of Ephesians 1 Paul tells us that

²² … he [GOD] put all things under his [JESUS’] feet and gave him [Jesus] as head over all things to the church, ²³ which is his [Jesus’] body, the fullness of him [GOD] who fills all in all.

Any questions?

 

And here is the ultimate qualification for Jesus:

For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell

In our extensive research over the years, what does “all” mean?

ALL!

 

And “The fullness of God” – How full is that?

ALL OF IT!  ALL THE FULLNESS.

 

What did we just read from Ephesians?

“The FULLNESS OF HIM WHO FILLS ALL IN ALL”

 

Now here is the mind-blower:  In that sentence God is talking about US!

 

BOOM!   Purple smoke!!!

 

So, Who DO you say JESUS is?    

That is the ultimate question in the universe!

The answer that you give – that anyone gives – to that question determines everything that follows it!  EVERY THING!

Because the first thing that happens after that confession is the last thing in our reading from Colossians this morning:

through him to reconcile to himself
all things, whether on earth or in heaven, 
making peace by the blood of his cross.

Friends,  Jesus is KING not because of some “divine right.”   He isn’t king simply because He is the Son.  Jesus is King because He came, in obedience to God, the Father, and laid down His divine life – and then laid down his earthly life … for you and for me.  So that we can come home to Father, with him.

This is all captured in the scene at the cross of Jesus.  In the midst of the mocking, spitting, cursing, gambling… in the midst of all that was swirling around him; in the midst of excruciating (the very word comes from ex-crucia “out of the cross”) pain, Jesus spoke the words of forgiveness:  “Father, forgive them!  They know know what they are doing!”  And one who heard it, simply believed it.  One of the ones hanging near him.  Rebuked the jeering and sneering as he prayed the prayer of the ages:

 

JESUS, REMEMBER ME, WHEN YOU COME INTO YOUR KINGDOM.

 

Will you pray with the thief on the cross next to Jesus?  This is the answer to the ultimate question of the universe!  “Who do YOU say that I AM?  

JESUS, REMEMBER ME, WHEN YOU COME INTO YOUR KINGDOM.
JESUS, REMEMBER ME, WHEN YOU COME INTO YOUR KINGDOM.

 

SHALL WE PRAY?

JESUS, REMEMBER ME, WHEN YOU COME INTO YOUR KINGDOM.

JESUS, REMEMBER ME, WHEN YOU COME INTO YOUR KINGDOM.

JESUS CHRIST, SON OF GOD, HAVE MERCY ON ME, A SINNER!

JESUS CHRIST, SON OF GOD, HAVE MERCY ON ME, A SINNER!

 

YOU BECAME SIN FOR ME,

THAT I MIGHT BECOME GOD’S RIGHTEOUSNESS IN YOU!

I BELIEVE YOU ROSE FROM THE DEAD,

AND I RECEIVE YOU AS MY LORD AND MY KING.

 

JESUS, REMEMBER ME, WHEN YOU COME INTO YOUR KINGDOM.

JESUS, REMEMBER ME, WHEN YOU COME INTO YOUR KINGDOM.

 

AMEN.

 

Choose Life ...

13th Sunday of Pentecost 
September 4, 2022
Fr. Phil Eberhart

 

Choose Life!

We hear a lot these days about “choice” don’t we?  We, here in the west, put a high value on our own ‘sovereignty.’  Personal sovereignty.  It’s my life … it’s my choice.  Literally anything is justified as being ok… even good … if it’s ‘My choice!”

 

Let’s talk about choosing this morning.

 

Our scriptures this morning are about choosing.  The very first words this morning set out the choices! I have set before you today life and good, death and evil. That is the basis of every choice we have in life.  Our big problem is knowing the difference, it seems!  We live in a culture that has started to fly upside down… at night!  We’ve lost our orientation to the horizon and where we are in relation to the ground.  It’s really easy to crash the plane that way!

 

So let’s talk about “orientation” for a moment.

 

Orientation is defined as a person or objects relative position related to its surroundings.  Orientation can relate to the compass:  North / South / East / West.  Orientation can relate to altitude, to latitude & longitude (its position on the globe).

Of course I’m talking about our physical space – the direction we’re headed or the position we occupy in space.  Orientation has taken on a much wider meaning than just spacial meanings today as well.  It has emotional meanings, even sexual meanings today.

 

Orientation begins to really matter to us at the moment that we realize that we have lost our way!  If you are flying upside down at night, and you don’t know it, you are in danger of pulling “UP” and flying into the ground!!  So orientation is pretty important!

 

Like I said earlier, our culture today is “flying upside down at night!”  It’s a culture that, how does the Bible put it?  “Calls evil good and good evil.”   Flying upside down, at night!

 

So how do we re-orient our life?  “Choose you this day,” God says.  Life and good … or … death and evil.  So how do we know and see the choices … the real choices… that are before us?

 

Life and death – good and evil.  Light and dark.  Ying and yang.  John warns us in his gospel that we have a leaning toward “loving the dark.”  But he also says that the dark will never overcome the light!  Have you ever done the experiment?  Open the closet door and see if the dark falls out?  No!  Why not?  Because the light always rushes in!  Never fails.  Darkness never wins!

 

So how do we switch on the light?  What is the source of the light in our lives?  Anyone know?  Psalm 119:105.  Can someone tell me what it says.

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” 

So the source material for our orientation should be the source of light in our life.  The basis for orienteering is my relationship with the light (the sun) and the direction of my movement.  It’s true in our spiritual life as well.  The basis for orienteering my life is my relationship with the LIGHT * THE SON – and the direction of my movement (OBEDIENCE.)

 

OK.  There it is … the “O” word!  The very next words in our scripture reading from Deuteronomy were “IF YOU OBEY.”

Not our favorite “three little words.”  Something about the “O” word that causes us to…  ya know? 

Obey, Obey, Obey!

We just get our back up!

Why is following God’s rules so hard for us?

 

We have a heart problem.  And we’re “hard of hearing.” 

At the other end of the Bible, John again, at the end of his life, sends these words from Jesus to the Church at Laodicea:

¹⁷ For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.

Flying upside down … at night!

 

What’s the answer?  Let’s look at our other scriptures this morning:

1 Blessed is the man who has not walked in the counsel of the ungodly,* nor stood in the way of sinners, and has not sat in the seat of the scornful;

2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord, * and on his law will he meditate day and night.

 

Paul tells Philemon he is “confident of his obedience…”

Jesus tells us:  “Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.”

 

Friends, our orientation is determined by our relationship to the SON and our direction in OBEDIENCE to His Word.  We call it a Biblical Worldview.

David reminds us in verse 2 of Psalm 1: “But his delight is in the law of the Lord, * and on his law will he meditate day and night.”                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

Show me your hand.  Hold it up!

Hear … Read … Mark … Learn … and Inwardly Digest.

 

C.H. Spurgeon comments that these disciplines are like cutting the wheat, grinding the wheat into flour, kneading it into dough and baking the bread but that meditation is sitting down and eating the meal!

It is clear throughout the Scriptures that the one who obeys the Word is “blessed in His/Her doing.”  James lays it out pretty clearly for us:

²² But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. ²³ For 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. ²⁴ For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. ²⁵ But 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.

 

Obedience is the basis of blessing.  From Deuteronomy, actually from Genesis, to Revelation!  From beginning to end the basis of our getting oriented rightly in our life has been a relationship of obedience to God, through His Word.

 

John gave the invitation to the Laodiceans from Jesus:

¹⁹ Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. ²⁰ Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.

 

 

Let’s pray together:

O most loving Father, by your mercy you put away the sins of those who truly repent, and remember their sins no more. Restore and renew in us, your servants, whatever has been corrupted by the fraud and malice of the devil, or by our own selfish will and weakness. Preserve and protect us within the fellowship of the Church; hear our prayers and relieve our pain; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

Show favor to your people, O Lord, who turn to you in weeping, fasting, and prayer. For you are a merciful God, full of compassion, long-suffering, and abounding in steadfast love. You spare when we deserve punishment, and in your wrath you remember mercy. Spare your people, good Lord, spare us; in the multitude of your mercies, look upon us and forgive us; through the merits and mediation of your blessed Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

And join me in our opening collect from your bulletin:

O Lord God, grant your people grace to withstand the temptations of the world, the flesh, and the devil, and with pure hearts and minds to follow you, the only God; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.