Epiphany
We know the word: a moment of piercing awareness, the sudden jolt of understanding. This is the season of Epiphany, a season celebrating the revelation of the Savior, the light of the world. Throughout the season we focus on the ministry of Jesus: the calling of the disciples, the teachings of Christ, his miracles, and finally his transfiguration. The epiphany of Epiphany is that this is no mere teacher or prophet— this is the Son of God, the Messiah. Epiphany calls us to live God’s mission, announcing the good news of Christ’s arrival to every culture and to those who live across the street. We, the church, are sent out as the manifestation of Jesus to a watching world (from Seeking God’s Face by Philip Reinders).
- Calling -
O Lord, open our lips.
And our mouth shall proclaim 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!
The Lord has manifested his glory:
O come, let us adore him.
- Constitution -
Read/Listen, Meditate, Pray, and Contemplate on God’s Word, remembering that God is with you and ready to speak to you because he loves you.
Praying the Psalms
Psalm 37
Of David.
[1] Fret not yourself because of evildoers;
be not envious of wrongdoers!
[2] For they will soon fade like the grass
and wither like the green herb.
[3] Trust in the LORD, and do good;
dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.
[4] Delight yourself in the LORD,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
[5] Commit your way to the LORD;
trust in him, and he will act.
[6] He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,
and your justice as the noonday.
[7] Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him;
fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,
over the man who carries out evil devices!
[8] Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!
Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.
[9] For the evildoers shall be cut off,
but those who wait for the LORD shall inherit the land.
[10] In just a little while, the wicked will be no more;
though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there.
[11] But the meek shall inherit the land
and delight themselves in abundant peace.
[12] The wicked plots against the righteous
and gnashes his teeth at him,
[13] but the Lord laughs at the wicked,
for he sees that his day is coming.
[14] The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows
to bring down the poor and needy,
to slay those whose way is upright;
[15] their sword shall enter their own heart,
and their bows shall be broken.
[16] Better is the little that the righteous has
than the abundance of many wicked.
[17] For the arms of the wicked shall be broken,
but the LORD upholds the righteous.
[18] The LORD knows the days of the blameless,
and their heritage will remain forever;
[19] they are not put to shame in evil times;
in the days of famine they have abundance.
[20] But the wicked will perish;
the enemies of the LORD are like the glory of the pastures;
they vanish—like smoke they vanish away.
[21] The wicked borrows but does not pay back,
but the righteous is generous and gives;
[22] for those blessed by the LORD shall inherit the land,
but those cursed by him shall be cut off.
[23] The steps of a man are established by the LORD,
when he delights in his way;
[24] though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong,
for the LORD upholds his hand.
[25] I have been young, and now am old,
yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
or his children begging for bread.
[26] He is ever lending generously,
and his children become a blessing.
[27] Turn away from evil and do good;
so shall you dwell forever.
[28] For the LORD loves justice;
he will not forsake his saints.
They are preserved forever,
but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.
[29] The righteous shall inherit the land
and dwell upon it forever.
[30] The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,
and his tongue speaks justice.
[31] The law of his God is in his heart;
his steps do not slip.
[32] The wicked watches for the righteous
and seeks to put him to death.
[33] The LORD will not abandon him to his power
or let him be condemned when he is brought to trial.
[34] Wait for the LORD and keep his way,
and he will exalt you to inherit the land;
you will look on when the wicked are cut off.
[35] I have seen a wicked, ruthless man,
spreading himself like a green laurel tree.
[36] But he passed away, and behold, he was no more;
though I sought him, he could not be found.
[37] Mark the blameless and behold the upright,
for there is a future for the man of peace.
[38] But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed;
the future of the wicked shall be cut off.
[39] The salvation of the righteous is from the LORD;
he is their stronghold in the time of trouble.
[40] The LORD helps them and delivers them;
he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
because they take refuge in him.
Psalm 38
A Psalm of David, for the memorial offering.
[1] O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger,
nor discipline me in your wrath!
[2] For your arrows have sunk into me,
and your hand has come down on me.
[3] There is no soundness in my flesh
because of your indignation;
there is no health in my bones
because of my sin.
[4] For my iniquities have gone over my head;
like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me.
[5] My wounds stink and fester
because of my foolishness,
[6] I am utterly bowed down and prostrate;
all the day I go about mourning.
[7] For my sides are filled with burning,
and there is no soundness in my flesh.
[8] I am feeble and crushed;
I groan because of the tumult of my heart.
[9] O Lord, all my longing is before you;
my sighing is not hidden from you.
[10] My heart throbs; my strength fails me,
and the light of my eyes—it also has gone from me.
[11] My friends and companions stand aloof from my plague,
and my nearest kin stand far off.
[12] Those who seek my life lay their snares;
those who seek my hurt speak of ruin
and meditate treachery all day long.
[13] But I am like a deaf man; I do not hear,
like a mute man who does not open his mouth.
[14] I have become like a man who does not hear,
and in whose mouth are no rebukes.
[15] But for you, O LORD, do I wait;
it is you, O Lord my God, who will answer.
[16] For I said, “Only let them not rejoice over me,
who boast against me when my foot slips!”
[17] For I am ready to fall,
and my pain is ever before me.
[18] I confess my iniquity;
I am sorry for my sin.
[19] But my foes are vigorous, they are mighty,
and many are those who hate me wrongfully.
[20] Those who render me evil for good
accuse me because I follow after good.
[21] Do not forsake me, O LORD!
O my God, be not far from me!
[22] Make haste to help me,
O Lord, my salvation!
Old Testament Reading
Nehemiah 13
[1] On that day they read from the Book of Moses in the hearing of the people. And in it was found written that no Ammonite or Moabite should ever enter the assembly of God, [2] for they did not meet the people of Israel with bread and water, but hired Balaam against them to curse them—yet our God turned the curse into a blessing. [3] As soon as the people heard the law, they separated from Israel all those of foreign descent.
[4] Now before this, Eliashib the priest, who was appointed over the chambers of the house of our God, and who was related to Tobiah, [5] prepared for Tobiah a large chamber where they had previously put the grain offering, the frankincense, the vessels, and the tithes of grain, wine, and oil, which were given by commandment to the Levites, singers, and gatekeepers, and the contributions for the priests. [6] While this was taking place, I was not in Jerusalem, for in the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes king of Babylon I went to the king. And after some time I asked leave of the king [7] and came to Jerusalem, and I then discovered the evil that Eliashib had done for Tobiah, preparing for him a chamber in the courts of the house of God. [8] And I was very angry, and I threw all the household furniture of Tobiah out of the chamber. [9] Then I gave orders, and they cleansed the chambers, and I brought back there the vessels of the house of God, with the grain offering and the frankincense.
[10] I also found out that the portions of the Levites had not been given to them, so that the Levites and the singers, who did the work, had fled each to his field. [11] So I confronted the officials and said, “Why is the house of God forsaken?” And I gathered them together and set them in their stations. [12] Then all Judah brought the tithe of the grain, wine, and oil into the storehouses. [13] And I appointed as treasurers over the storehouses Shelemiah the priest, Zadok the scribe, and Pedaiah of the Levites, and as their assistant Hanan the son of Zaccur, son of Mattaniah, for they were considered reliable, and their duty was to distribute to their brothers. [14] Remember me, O my God, concerning this, and do not wipe out my good deeds that I have done for the house of my God and for his service.
[15] In those days I saw in Judah people treading winepresses on the Sabbath, and bringing in heaps of grain and loading them on donkeys, and also wine, grapes, figs, and all kinds of loads, which they brought into Jerusalem on the Sabbath day. And I warned them on the day when they sold food. [16] Tyrians also, who lived in the city, brought in fish and all kinds of goods and sold them on the Sabbath to the people of Judah, in Jerusalem itself! [17] Then I confronted the nobles of Judah and said to them, “What is this evil thing that you are doing, profaning the Sabbath day? [18] Did not your fathers act in this way, and did not our God bring all this disaster on us and on this city? Now you are bringing more wrath on Israel by profaning the Sabbath.”
[19] As soon as it began to grow dark at the gates of Jerusalem before the Sabbath, I commanded that the doors should be shut and gave orders that they should not be opened until after the Sabbath. And I stationed some of my servants at the gates, that no load might be brought in on the Sabbath day. [20] Then the merchants and sellers of all kinds of wares lodged outside Jerusalem once or twice. [21] But I warned them and said to them, “Why do you lodge outside the wall? If you do so again, I will lay hands on you.” From that time on they did not come on the Sabbath. [22] Then I commanded the Levites that they should purify themselves and come and guard the gates, to keep the Sabbath day holy. Remember this also in my favor, O my God, and spare me according to the greatness of your steadfast love.
[23] In those days also I saw the Jews who had married women of Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab. [24] And half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod, and they could not speak the language of Judah, but only the language of each people. [25] And I confronted them and cursed them and beat some of them and pulled out their hair. And I made them take an oath in the name of God, saying, “You shall not give your daughters to their sons, or take their daughters for your sons or for yourselves. [26] Did not Solomon king of Israel sin on account of such women? Among the many nations there was no king like him, and he was beloved by his God, and God made him king over all Israel. Nevertheless, foreign women made even him to sin. [27] Shall we then listen to you and do all this great evil and act treacherously against our God by marrying foreign women?”
[28] And one of the sons of Jehoiada, the son of Eliashib the high priest, was the son-in-law of Sanballat the Horonite. Therefore I chased him from me. [29] Remember them, O my God, because they have desecrated the priesthood and the covenant of the priesthood and the Levites.
[30] Thus I cleansed them from everything foreign, and I established the duties of the priests and Levites, each in his work; [31] and I provided for the wood offering at appointed times, and for the firstfruits.
Remember me, O my God, for good.
New Testament Reading
Acts 23
[1] And looking intently at the council, Paul said, “Brothers, I have lived my life before God in all good conscience up to this day.” [2] And the high priest Ananias commanded those who stood by him to strike him on the mouth. [3] Then Paul said to him, “God is going to strike you, you whitewashed wall! Are you sitting to judge me according to the law, and yet contrary to the law you order me to be struck?” [4] Those who stood by said, “Would you revile God’s high priest?” [5] And Paul said, “I did not know, brothers, that he was the high priest, for it is written, ‘You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.’”
[6] Now when Paul perceived that one part were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, “Brothers, I am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees. It is with respect to the hope and the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial.” [7] And when he had said this, a dissension arose between the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and the assembly was divided. [8] For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, nor angel, nor spirit, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all. [9] Then a great clamor arose, and some of the scribes of the Pharisees’ party stood up and contended sharply, “We find nothing wrong in this man. What if a spirit or an angel spoke to him?” [10] And when the dissension became violent, the tribune, afraid that Paul would be torn to pieces by them, commanded the soldiers to go down and take him away from among them by force and bring him into the barracks.
[11] The following night the Lord stood by him and said, “Take courage, for as you have testified to the facts about me in Jerusalem, so you must testify also in Rome.”
[12] When it was day, the Jews made a plot and bound themselves by an oath neither to eat nor drink till they had killed Paul. [13] There were more than forty who made this conspiracy. [14] They went to the chief priests and elders and said, “We have strictly bound ourselves by an oath to taste no food till we have killed Paul. [15] Now therefore you, along with the council, give notice to the tribune to bring him down to you, as though you were going to determine his case more exactly. And we are ready to kill him before he comes near.”
[16] Now the son of Paul’s sister heard of their ambush, so he went and entered the barracks and told Paul. [17] Paul called one of the centurions and said, “Take this young man to the tribune, for he has something to tell him.” [18] So he took him and brought him to the tribune and said, “Paul the prisoner called me and asked me to bring this young man to you, as he has something to say to you.” [19] The tribune took him by the hand, and going aside asked him privately, “What is it that you have to tell me?” [20] And he said, “The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down to the council tomorrow, as though they were going to inquire somewhat more closely about him. [21] But do not be persuaded by them, for more than forty of their men are lying in ambush for him, who have bound themselves by an oath neither to eat nor drink till they have killed him. And now they are ready, waiting for your consent.” [22] So the tribune dismissed the young man, charging him, “Tell no one that you have informed me of these things.”
[23] Then he called two of the centurions and said, “Get ready two hundred soldiers, with seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen to go as far as Caesarea at the third hour of the night. [24] Also provide mounts for Paul to ride and bring him safely to Felix the governor.” [25] And he wrote a letter to this effect:
[26] “Claudius Lysias, to his Excellency the governor Felix, greetings. [27] This man was seized by the Jews and was about to be killed by them when I came upon them with the soldiers and rescued him, having learned that he was a Roman citizen. [28] And desiring to know the charge for which they were accusing him, I brought him down to their council. [29] I found that he was being accused about questions of their law, but charged with nothing deserving death or imprisonment. [30] And when it was disclosed to me that there would be a plot against the man, I sent him to you at once, ordering his accusers also to state before you what they have against him.”
[31] So the soldiers, according to their instructions, took Paul and brought him by night to Antipatris. [32] And on the next day they returned to the barracks, letting the horsemen go on with him. [33] When they had come to Caesarea and delivered the letter to the governor, they presented Paul also before him. [34] On reading the letter, he asked what province he was from. And when he learned that he was from Cilicia, [35] he said, “I will give you a hearing when your accusers arrive.” And he commanded him to be guarded in Herod’s praetorium.
- Communion -
Pray for yourself, others, our church, our neighbors, and the world.
Pray the Lord’s Prayer & the collect of the week:
Our Father who art in heaven...
Almighty God, whose Son our Savior Jesus Christ is the light of the world: Grant that your people, illumined by your Word and Sacraments, may shine with the radiance of Christ's glory, that he may be known, worshiped, and obeyed to the ends of the earth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
- Commission -
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. (2 Corinthians 13:14)
Let us go forth in the name of Christ.