❖ Praise

Glory be to the Father

and to the Son

and to the Holy Spirit:

As it was in the beginning,

is now and ever shall be,

world without end. Amen.

[Gloria Patri]

❖ Nicene Creed

I believe in one God, the Father Almighty,

Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God;

begotten of the Father before all worlds;

God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God;

begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father;

by whom all things were made.

Who, for us men and for our salvation,

came down from heaven

and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary,

and was made man;

and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate;

he suffered and was buried;

and the third day he rose again, according to the Scriptures;

and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father;

and he shall come again, with glory, to judge the living and the dead;

whose kingdom shall have no end.

And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of life;

who proceeds from the Father and the Son;

who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified;

who spoke by the prophets.

And I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church.

I acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins;

and I look for the resurrection of the dead,

and the life of the world to come.

Amen.

❖ Assurance of Pardon

Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord:

though your sins are like scarlet,

they shall be as white as snow;

though they are red like crimson,

they shall become like wool. Isaiah 1:18

❖ Confession of Sin

O most great, most just and gracious God; you are of purer eyes than to behold iniquity. You condemn the ungodly, unrepentant, and unbelievers; but you have promised mercy through Jesus Christ to all who repent and believe in him. Therefore we confess that we are sinful by nature and that we have all sinned and come short of the glory of God. We have neglected and abused your holy worship and your holy name. We have dealt unjustly and uncharitably with our neighbors. We have not sought first your kingdom and righteousness. We have not been content with our daily bread. You have revealed your wonderful love to us in Christ and offered us pardon and salvation in him; but we have turned away. We have run into temptation; and the sin that we should have hated, we have committed. Have mercy upon us, most merciful Father. We confess you alone are our hope. Make us your children and give us the Spirit of your Son, our only Savior. Amen.

[Richard Baxter]

❖ Reading of the Law

Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.

And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.

You shall teach them diligently to your children,

and shall talk of them when you sit in your house,

and when you walk by the way,

and when you lie down,

and when you rise.

You shall bind them as a sign on your hand,

and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.

You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

[Deuteronomy 6:4–9]

❖ Adoration

We praise you, O God, we acknowledge you to be the Lord.

All the earth worships you, the Father everlasting.

To you, all angels cry aloud, the heavens and all the powers in it.

To you, cherubim and seraphim continually cry, “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Hosts.”

Heaven and earth are full of the majesty of your glory.

The glorious company of the apostles, praise you.

The good fellowship of the prophets, praise you.

The noble army of martyrs, praise you.

The holy church throughout all the world, acknowledges you.

The Father of an infinite majesty.

Your honorable, true, and only Son.

Also, the Holy Spirit, the Comforter.

You are the King of glory, O Christ.

You are the everlasting Son of the Father.

When you took upon yourself to deliver man, you did not abhor the virgin’s womb.

When you overcame the sharpness of death, you opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers.

You sit on the right hand of God, in the glory of the Father.

We believe that you will come to be our judge.

We therefore pray, help your servants, whom you have redeemed with your precious blood.

Make them to be numbered with your saints, in glory everlasting.

O Lord, save your people, and bless your heritage.

Govern them, and lift them up forever.

Day by day we magnify you.

And we worship your name evermore, world without end.

Grant, O Lord, to keep us this day without sin.

O Lord, have mercy upon us; have mercy upon us.

O Lord, let your mercy shine upon us, since our trust is in you.

O Lord, in you have I trusted; let me never be confounded.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

[Book of Common Prayer]

❖ Call to Worship

As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

[1 Peter 2:4–5]

❖ Lord’s Prayer

Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name;

your kingdom come;

your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.

For yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.

Amen.

❖ Prayer of Intercession

Grant, Almighty God, that as you constantly remind us in your word, and have taught us by so many examples, that there is nothing permanent in this world, but that the things which seem the firmest tend to ruin, and instantly fall and of themselves vanish away, when by your breath you shake your strength in which men trust—O grant that we, being really subdued and humbled, may not rely on earthly things, but raise up our hearts and our thoughts to heaven, and there fix the anchor of our hope; and may all our thoughts abide there until at length, when you have led us through our course on earth, we shall be gathered into that celestial kingdom which has been obtained for us by the blood of your only begotten Son. Amen.

[John Calvin]

❖ Scripture Reading

• Genesis 49

• Luke 2

• Job 15

• 1 Corinthians 3

❖ Prayer for Illumination

Almighty God, and most merciful Father, we humbly submit ourselves, and fall down before your Majesty, asking you from the bottom of our hearts, that this seed of your Word now sown among us, may take such deep root, that neither the burning heat of persecution cause it to wither, nor the thorny cares of this life choke it. But that, as seed sown in good ground, it may bring forth thirty, sixty, or a hundredfold, as your heavenly wisdom has appointed. Amen.

[Middelburg Liturgy]

❖ Catechism

Westminster Shorter Catechism

Question 15

❖ Praise

Glory be to God the Father;

Glory be to God the Son;

Glory be to God the Spirit, ever three and ever one:

As it was in the beginning, now and evermore shall be.

[Gloria Patri]

❖ Apostles’ Creed

I believe in God the Father Almighty,

Maker of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only-begotten Son, our Lord;

who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary;

suffered under Pontius Pilate;

was crucified, dead, and buried;

he descended into hell;

the third day he rose again from the dead;

he ascended into heaven,

and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty;

from there he shall come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit;

the holy catholic church;

the communion of saints;

the forgiveness of sins;

the resurrection of the body;

and the life everlasting.

Amen.

❖ Assurance of Pardon

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

[1 John 1:8–10]

❖ Confession of Sin

Almighty and most merciful Father, we have erred and strayed from your ways like lost sheep. We have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts. We have offended against your holy laws. We have left undone those things which we ought to have done, and we have done those things which we ought not to have done, and there is no health in us. But you, O Lord, have mercy upon us, miserable offenders. Spare those, O God, who confess their faults. Restore those who are repentant, according to your promises declared to mankind, in Christ Jesus our Lord. And grant, O most merciful Father, for his sake, that we may hereafter live a godly, righteous, and sober life, to the glory of your holy name. Amen.

[Book of Common Prayer]

❖ Reading of the Law

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.

[Matthew 22:37–40]

❖ Adoration

Praise God from whom all blessings flow;

Praise him all creatures here below;

Praise him above you heavenly hosts;

Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.

[Doxology]