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 Lord is glorious in his saints:
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
1 Chronicles 19
[1] Now after this Nahash the king of the Ammonites died, and his son reigned in his place. [2] And David said, “I will deal kindly with Hanun the son of Nahash, for his father dealt kindly with me.” So David sent messengers to console him concerning his father. And David’s servants came to the land of the Ammonites to Hanun to console him. [3] But the princes of the Ammonites said to Hanun, “Do you think, because David has sent comforters to you, that he is honoring your father? Have not his servants come to you to search and to overthrow and to spy out the land?” [4] So Hanun took David’s servants and shaved them and cut off their garments in the middle, at their hips, and sent them away; [5] and they departed. When David was told concerning the men, he sent messengers to meet them, for the men were greatly ashamed. And the king said, “Remain at Jericho until your beards have grown and then return.”
[6] When the Ammonites saw that they had become a stench to David, Hanun and the Ammonites sent 1,000 talents of silver to hire chariots and horsemen from Mesopotamia, from Aram-maacah, and from Zobah. [7] They hired 32,000 chariots and the king of Maacah with his army, who came and encamped before Medeba. And the Ammonites were mustered from their cities and came to battle. [8] When David heard of it, he sent Joab and all the army of the mighty men. [9] And the Ammonites came out and drew up in battle array at the entrance of the city, and the kings who had come were by themselves in the open country.
[10] When Joab saw that the battle was set against him both in front and in the rear, he chose some of the best men of Israel and arrayed them against the Syrians. [11] The rest of his men he put in the charge of Abishai his brother, and they were arrayed against the Ammonites. [12] And he said, “If the Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me, but if the Ammonites are too strong for you, then I will help you. [13] Be strong, and let us use our strength for our people and for the cities of our God, and may the LORD do what seems good to him.” [14] So Joab and the people who were with him drew near before the Syrians for battle, and they fled before him. [15] And when the Ammonites saw that the Syrians fled, they likewise fled before Abishai, Joab’s brother, and entered the city. Then Joab came to Jerusalem.
[16] But when the Syrians saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they sent messengers and brought out the Syrians who were beyond the Euphrates, with Shophach the commander of the army of Hadadezer at their head. [17] And when it was told to David, he gathered all Israel together and crossed the Jordan and came to them and drew up his forces against them. And when David set the battle in array against the Syrians, they fought with him. [18] And the Syrians fled before Israel, and David killed of the Syrians the men of 7,000 chariots and 40,000 foot soldiers, and put to death also Shophach the commander of their army. [19] And when the servants of Hadadezer saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they made peace with David and became subject to him. So the Syrians were not willing to save the Ammonites anymore.
1 Chronicles 20
[1] In the spring of the year, the time when kings go out to battle, Joab led out the army and ravaged the country of the Ammonites and came and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem. And Joab struck down Rabbah and overthrew it. [2] And David took the crown of their king from his head. He found that it weighed a talent of gold, and in it was a precious stone. And it was placed on David’s head. And he brought out the spoil of the city, a very great amount. [3] And he brought out the people who were in it and set them to labor with saws and iron picks and axes. And thus David did to all the cities of the Ammonites. Then David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.
[4] And after this there arose war with the Philistines at Gezer. Then Sibbecai the Hushathite struck down Sippai, who was one of the descendants of the giants, and the Philistines were subdued. [5] And there was again war with the Philistines, and Elhanan the son of Jair struck down Lahmi the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam. [6] And there was again war at Gath, where there was a man of great stature, who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number, and he also was descended from the giants. [7] And when he taunted Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimea, David’s brother, struck him down. [8] These were descended from the giants in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants.
New Testament Reading
1 Peter 1
[1] Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, [2] according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood:
May grace and peace be multiplied to you.
[3] Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, [4] to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, [5] who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. [6] In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, [7] so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. [8] Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, [9] obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
[10] Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, [11] inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. [12] It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.
[13] Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. [14] As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, [15] but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, [16] since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” [17] And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, [18] knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, [19] but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. [20] He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you [21] who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.
[22] Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, [23] since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; [24] for
“All flesh is like grass
and all its glory like the flower of grass.
The grass withers,
and the flower falls,
[25] but the word of the Lord remains forever.”
And this word is the good news that was preached to you.
- 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 and merciful God, it is only by your gift that your faithful people offer you true and laudable service: Grant that we may run without stumbling to obtain your heavenly promises; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
- Commission -
The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace.
(Numbers 6:24-26)
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord and our neighbors.