A Service of Prayer for December 16, 2020

 Sing praises to the LORD, for he has done gloriously;

let this be known in all the earth.

Shout aloud and sing for joy, O royal Zion

for great in your midst is the

Holy One of Israel.

Isaiah 12:5-6

The third week of Advent—the third candle which is pink or rose, represents the joy that the birth of Christ brought to the world. Today we will focus the coming of Elijah and preparing our hearts to receive the Christ child.

DIALOGUE

O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth shall declare your praise.
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.

Alleluia.

PSALMODY

Give glory to God, our light and our life.
Oh, come, let us worship him.
Oh, come, let us sing to the Lord; let us shout for joy to the rock of our salvation.
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving and raise a loud shout to him with psalms.
For the Lord is a great God and a great king above all gods.
In his hand are the caverns of the earth; the heights of the hills are also his.
The sea is his, for he made it; and his hands have molded the dry land.
Oh, come, let us bow down and bend the knee, and 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.

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

Give glory to God, our light and our life. 
Oh, come, let us worship him.

Psalm 125

Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion,
which cannot be moved, but abides forever.
As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
so the LORD surrounds his people,
from this time on and forevermore.

For the scepter of wickedness shall not rest
on the land allotted to the righteous,
so that the righteous might not stretch out
their hands to do wrong.
Do good, O LORD, to those who are good,
and to those who are upright in their hearts.
  But those who turn aside to their own crooked ways
the LORD will lead away with evildoers.
Peace be upon Israel! 

 HYMN
On Jordan's Bank the Baptist's Cry

 (Words vary from our hymnal.)

1. On Jordan's bank the Baptist's cry
announces that the Lord is nigh;
awake and hearken, for he brings
glad tidings of the King of kings!

2. Then cleansed be ev'ry life from sin;
make straight the way for God within,
and let us all our hearts prepare
for Christ to come and enter there.

3. We hail you as our Savior, Lord,
our refuge and our great reward;
without your grace we waste away
like flow'rs that wither and decay.

4. Stretch forth your hand, our health restore,
and make us rise to fall no more;
oh, let your face upon us shine
and fill the world with love divine.

5. All praise to you, eternal Son,
whose advent has our freedom won,
whom with the Father we adore,
and Holy Spirit, evermore.

Text: Charles Coffin, 1676-1749; tr. composite

READINGS
Malachi 3:16-4:6

Then those who revered the LORD spoke with one another. The LORD took note and listened, and a book of remembrance was written before him of those who revered the LORD and thought on his name. They shall be mine, says the LORD of hosts, my special possession on the day when I act, and I will spare them as parents spare their children who serve them.  Then once more you shall see the difference between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve him.

See, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble; the day that comes shall burn them up, says the LORD of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. But for you who revere my name the sun of righteousness shall rise, with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall. And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, on the day when I act, says the LORD of hosts.

Remember the teaching of my servant Moses, the statutes and ordinances that I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel.

Lo, I will send you the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of the LORD comes. He will turn the hearts of parents to their children and the hearts of children to their parents, so that I will not come and strike the land with a curse.  

Silence for meditation.

Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets,
but in these last days God has spoken to us by the Son.

GOSPEL
Mark 9:9-13

As they were coming down the mountain, [Jesus] ordered them to tell no one about what they had seen, until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead. So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what this rising from the dead could mean. Then they asked him, “Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?” He said to them, “Elijah is indeed coming first to restore all things. How then is it written about the Son of Man, that he is to go through many sufferings and be treated with contempt? But I tell you that Elijah has come, and they did to him whatever they pleased, as it is written about him.”

Silence for meditation.

Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets,
but in these last days God has spoken to us by the Son.

MESSAGE

Well, we are getting closer to receiving our Savior. How are you doing? If it makes your feel better, I haven’t done any decorating or shopping yet. I expect it will be a very different kind of Christmas, than  I’ve ever experienced. I’m opting for simplicity this year. 

Our lessons today speak of preparing and turning our hearts toward the Lord. In the Malachi lesson we see that within faithless, indifferent, rebellious Judah, there is a small, obedient group who live their lives as though the Kingdom is come. They “fear” the Lord and they “think on” his name. As faithful servants, Advent reminds us that we, too, belong to the Lord and we are to live as Kingdom people caring for others in grace and humility and in faithfulness to God. 

As Elizabeth Achtemeir in Interpretation Commentary puts it “Only those who in faith perceive the reign of God are free of the distortions, the cynicism, the despair, the unbelief that defeat the rest of society and that loose upon it the anarchy of human will freed from God’s direction. … They are, she goes on to say, “faithful to [God’s] covenant folk and overflowing with love, despite that people’s constant neglect of him.” … “God hears the words of those who fear him and esteem his name, and their names are inscribed in his “book of remembrance” to be eternally before his eyes and never forgotten.” 

The passage ends with a warning from the Lord. In the The Message, Eugene Peterson puts it this way, “I’m sending Elijah the prophet to clear the way for the Big Day of GOD—the decisive Judgment Day! He will convince parents to look after their children and children to look up to their parents. If they refuse, I’ll come and put the land under a curse.”

The context for the gospel reading from Mark is Jesus’ transfiguration. He takes Peter, James, and John and leads them up a high mountain. His appearance changes right before their eyes. His clothes shimmer glistening white. Elijah, along with Moses, come into view and they are in deep conversation with Jesus. The disciples are stunned by what they are seeing. Then a light-radiant cloud envelopes them and they hear a voice from deep in the cloud saying, “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him.” With that, the scene changes. The three disciples are alone with Jesus. They go back down the mountain and Jesus tells them not to tell a soul what they have seen. Jesus goes on to say “After the Son of Man rises from the dead, you’re free to talk.” They puzzle over Jesus words.

A discussion about Elijah ensues and they ask Jesus, “Why do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?”  Jesus replies, “Elijah does come first, and restores all things. Why then is it written that the Son of Man must suffer much and be rejected? But I tell you, Elijah has come, and they have done to him everything they wished, just as it is written about him.” Here, Jesus implies that that he is the Son of Man who will rise from the dead and John the Baptist is equal to Elijah. 

So, as we continue our preparations for Christmas, allow Jesus to illumine your hearts with joy. For John prepares the way and Christ brings light and love into our dark and dreary world.

In Christ, 
Pastor Harkness

THE GOSPEL CANTICLE

Refrain:
In the tender compassion of our God the Dawn from on high shall break upon us.

Blessed are you, Lord, the God of Israel,
you have come to your people and set them free.
You have raised up for us a mighty Savior,
born of the house of your servant David. Refrain

Through your holy prophets, you promised of old
to save us from our enemies, from the hands of all who hate us;
you promised to show mercy to our forebears
and to remember your holy covenant. Refrain

This was the oath you swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship you without fear,
holy and righteous before you, all the days of our life. Refrain

And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare the way,
to give God's people knowledge of salvation
by the forgiveness of their sins. Refrain

In the tender compassion of our God
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace. Refrain

PRAYERS

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.

Let us pray,
Mighty God of mercy, we thank you for the resurrection dawn, bringing the glory of our risen Lord who makes every day new.
Especially we thank you—
for the sustaining goodness of your creation . . .
for the new creation in Christ and all gifts of healing and forgiveness . . .
for the gifts of relationship with others . . .
for the communion of faith in your church . . .

Merciful God of might, renew this weary world, heal the hurts of all your children, and bring about your peace for all in Christ Jesus, the living Lord.
Especially we pray—
for those who govern nations of the world especially our president and governors . . .
for the people of our country, for the restoration of peace, and for justice . . .
for the people in countries ravaged by strife or warfare . . .
for all who work for peace and international harmony . . .
for all who strive to save the earth from carelessness and destruction . . .
for the church of Jesus Christ in every land . . .

Almighty and everlasting God, you have brought us in safety to this new day. Preserve us with your mighty power, that we may not fall into sin nor be overcome in adversity. In all we do, direct us to the fulfilling of your purpose; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen

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,
and the power, and the glory,
forever and ever. 
Amen

Let us bless the Lord
Thanks be to God.

BENEDICTION

Almighty God, the Father,  ☩  the Son, and the Holy Spirit, bless and preserve us. Amen

HYMN
Prepare the Royal Highway

(Words vary from our hymnal.)

1. Prepare the royal highway;
the King of kings is near!
Let ev'ry hill and valley
a level road appear!
Then greet the King of glory,
foretold in sacred story:

Refrain
Hosanna to the Lord,
for he fulfills God's word!

2. God's people, see him coming:
your own eternal king!
Palm branches strew before him!
Spread garments! Shout and sing!
God's promise will not fail you!
No more shall doubt assail you!  Refrain

3. Then fling the gates wide open
to greet your promised king!
Your king, yet ev'ry nation
its tribute too may bring.
All lands will bow before him
their voices join your singing:  Refrain

4. His is no earthly kingdom;
it comes from heav'n above.
His rule is peace and freedom
and justice, truth, and love.
So let your praise be sounding
for kindness so abounding:  Refrain

Text: Frans Mikael Franzén, 1772-1847; tr. Lutheran Book of Worship
Text © 1978 Lutheran Book of Worship, admin. Augsburg Fortress.

Copyright © 2020 Augsburg Fortress. All rights reserved. Reprinted by permission under Augsburg Fortress Liturgies Annual License #SB125183