Pentecost
The word ‘Pentecost’ comes from the Greek meaning simply ‘fiftieth.’ Pentecost Sunday ends the season of Easter and symbolizes a new beginning. It celebrates the unleashing of the Holy Spirit on the world and the empowering of the church to reach the world with the gospel. In remembering Pentecost and living in light of this powerful turning point the church expresses gratitude to Christ for sending “another counselor” (John 14:16), celebrates the work of the Spirit in the renewal of all creation, and professes its confidence and security in knowing the Spirit’s power is available for its mission.
- 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 Word was made flesh and dwelt among us:
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 13
To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.
[1] How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
[2] How long must I take counsel in my soul
and have sorrow in my heart all the day?
How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?
[3] Consider and answer me, O LORD my God;
light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death,
[4] lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,”
lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken.
[5] But I have trusted in your steadfast love;
my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
[6] I will sing to the LORD,
because he has dealt bountifully with me.
Psalm 14
To the choirmaster. Of David.
[1] The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds;
there is none who does good.
[2] The LORD looks down from heaven on the children of man,
to see if there are any who understand,
who seek after God.
[3] They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt;
there is none who does good,
not even one.
[4] Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers
who eat up my people as they eat bread
and do not call upon the LORD?
[5] There they are in great terror,
for God is with the generation of the righteous.
[6] You would shame the plans of the poor,
but the LORD is his refuge.
[7] Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!
When the LORD restores the fortunes of his people,
let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad.
Psalm 15
A Psalm of David.
[1] O LORD, who shall sojourn in your tent?
Who shall dwell on your holy hill?
[2] He who walks blamelessly and does what is right
and speaks truth in his heart;
[3] who does not slander with his tongue
and does no evil to his neighbor,
nor takes up a reproach against his friend;
[4] in whose eyes a vile person is despised,
but who honors those who fear the LORD;
who swears to his own hurt and does not change;
[5] who does not put out his money at interest
and does not take a bribe against the innocent.
He who does these things shall never be moved.
Old Testament Reading
Ezekiel 46
[1] “Thus says the Lord GOD: The gate of the inner court that faces east shall be shut on the six working days, but on the Sabbath day it shall be opened, and on the day of the new moon it shall be opened. [2] The prince shall enter by the vestibule of the gate from outside, and shall take his stand by the post of the gate. The priests shall offer his burnt offering and his peace offerings, and he shall worship at the threshold of the gate. Then he shall go out, but the gate shall not be shut until evening. [3] The people of the land shall bow down at the entrance of that gate before the LORD on the Sabbaths and on the new moons. [4] The burnt offering that the prince offers to the LORD on the Sabbath day shall be six lambs without blemish and a ram without blemish. [5] And the grain offering with the ram shall be an ephah, and the grain offering with the lambs shall be as much as he is able, together with a hin of oil to each ephah. [6] On the day of the new moon he shall offer a bull from the herd without blemish, and six lambs and a ram, which shall be without blemish. [7] As a grain offering he shall provide an ephah with the bull and an ephah with the ram, and with the lambs as much as he is able, together with a hin of oil to each ephah. [8] When the prince enters, he shall enter by the vestibule of the gate, and he shall go out by the same way.
[9] “When the people of the land come before the LORD at the appointed feasts, he who enters by the north gate to worship shall go out by the south gate, and he who enters by the south gate shall go out by the north gate: no one shall return by way of the gate by which he entered, but each shall go out straight ahead. [10] When they enter, the prince shall enter with them, and when they go out, he shall go out.
[11] “At the feasts and the appointed festivals, the grain offering with a young bull shall be an ephah, and with a ram an ephah, and with the lambs as much as one is able to give, together with a hin of oil to an ephah. [12] When the prince provides a freewill offering, either a burnt offering or peace offerings as a freewill offering to the LORD, the gate facing east shall be opened for him. And he shall offer his burnt offering or his peace offerings as he does on the Sabbath day. Then he shall go out, and after he has gone out the gate shall be shut.
[13] “You shall provide a lamb a year old without blemish for a burnt offering to the LORD daily; morning by morning you shall provide it. [14] And you shall provide a grain offering with it morning by morning, one sixth of an ephah, and one third of a hin of oil to moisten the flour, as a grain offering to the LORD. This is a perpetual statute. [15] Thus the lamb and the meal offering and the oil shall be provided, morning by morning, for a regular burnt offering.
[16] “Thus says the Lord GOD: If the prince makes a gift to any of his sons as his inheritance, it shall belong to his sons. It is their property by inheritance. [17] But if he makes a gift out of his inheritance to one of his servants, it shall be his to the year of liberty. Then it shall revert to the prince; surely it is his inheritance—it shall belong to his sons. [18] The prince shall not take any of the inheritance of the people, thrusting them out of their property. He shall give his sons their inheritance out of his own property, so that none of my people shall be scattered from his property.”
[19] Then he brought me through the entrance, which was at the side of the gate, to the north row of the holy chambers for the priests, and behold, a place was there at the extreme western end of them. [20] And he said to me, “This is the place where the priests shall boil the guilt offering and the sin offering, and where they shall bake the grain offering, in order not to bring them out into the outer court and so transmit holiness to the people.”
[21] Then he brought me out to the outer court and led me around to the four corners of the court. And behold, in each corner of the court there was another court—[22] in the four corners of the court were small courts, forty cubits long and thirty broad; the four were of the same size. [23] On the inside, around each of the four courts was a row of masonry, with hearths made at the bottom of the rows all around. [24] Then he said to me, “These are the kitchens where those who minister at the temple shall boil the sacrifices of the people.”
- 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...
Lord, we pray that your grace may always precede and follow us, that we may continually be given to good works; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
- Commission -
Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever.
(Jude 1:24-25)
Let us go forth in the name of Christ.