Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever. Amen.
Jesus said, "The first commandment is this: Hear, O Israel: The Lord your God is the only Lord. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these." Mark 12:29-31
If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. But if we confess our sins, God, who is faithful and just, will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all
unrighteousness. 1 John 1:8,9
We confess our sins against God and others.
Silence may be kept.
Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you
in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.
We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen.
May Almighty God have mercy on you, forgive you all your sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen you in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep you in eternal life. Amen.
A Hymn of Praise
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King,
almighty God and Father,
we worship you, we give you thanks,
we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father:
receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High,
Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
The Collect
O God, you declare your almighty power chiefly in showing mercy and pity: Grant us the fullness of your grace, that we, running to obtain your promises, may become partakers of your heavenly treasure; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Old Testament Exodus 17:1-7
From the wilderness of Sin the whole congregation of the Israelites journeyed by stages, as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. The people quarreled with Moses, and said, “Give us water to drink.” Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?” But the people thirsted there for water; and the people complained against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?” So Moses cried out to the Lord, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.” The Lord said to Moses, “Go on ahead of the people, and take some of the elders of Israel with you; take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. I will be standing there in front of you on the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it, so that the people may drink.” Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. He called the place Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites quarreled and tested the Lord, saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?”
Psalm 78:1-4, 12-16 Attendite, popule
1 Hear my teaching, O my people; *
incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
2 I will open my mouth in a parable; *
I will declare the mysteries of ancient times.
3 That which we have heard and known,
and what our forefathers have told us, *
we will not hide from their children.
4 We will recount to generations to come
the praiseworthy deeds and the power of the Lord, *
and the wonderful works he has done.
12 He worked marvels in the sight of their forefathers, *
in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.
13 He split open the sea and let them pass through; *
he made the waters stand up like walls.
14 He led them with a cloud by day, *
and all the night through with a glow of fire.
15 He split the hard rocks in the wilderness *
and gave them drink as from the great deep.
16 He brought streams out of the cliff, *
and the waters gushed out like rivers.
The Epistle Philippians 2:1-13
If then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,
who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
but emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death —
even death on a cross.
Therefore God also highly exalted him
and gave him the name
that is above every name,
so that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bend,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue should confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
The Gospel Matthew 21:23-32
When Jesus entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching, and said, “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” Jesus said to them, “I will also ask you one question; if you tell me the answer, then I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin?” And they argued with one another, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ we are afraid of the crowd; for all regard John as a prophet.” So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And he said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.
“What do you think? A man had two sons; he went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ He answered, ‘I will not’; but later he changed his mind and went. The father went to the second and said the same; and he answered, ‘I go, sir’; but he did not go. Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him; and even after you saw it, you did not change your minds and believe him.
The Sermon Fr. Nelson Gaetz
Our Gospel today is extraordinarily simple to understand. Say yes to God by word AND deed! It’s so simple I am tempted to think that it’s an insult to your intelligence to say anything more about it. BUT, I am paid to write sermons and even if I was not, as a clergyman I am compelled to say things in the hope that sometimes they are meaningful. SO, here goes…
Start here: IT’S A PARABLE. That means there is more here than meets the eye/ear. Probably helpful to start with that obvious stuff. Saying yes and no. It’s so human. We grow up on it. No, to going to bed on time. Yes, to sleeping in. No, to homework. Yes, to playing with friends. Sometimes even the other way around. Life is filled with yes/no. Even yes, no and maybe. Dozens of times every day. Big decisions, little decisions, important decisions. mundane decisions. Life is made up of a crazy quilt of yes/no decisions. It’s what it’s like to be human. God created us that way. Capable of saying yes and no. Even to Him. (Remember that apple in the garden?) Messing up God’s good creation bringing about pain, suffering, jealousy, violence, war…. And the tragic list goes on and on.
So, we do say NO to God in lots of ways. “Words and deeds.” But, thanks be to God, that’s not the end of the story. Our NO is eclipsed by another mighty YES. Jesus says YES, to the father agreeing to become one of us. I bet he said yes and no lots of times while he was becoming fully one of us. Coming to understand us in all our contradictions. Saying yes to the love of us regardless of the cost. I have always loved how the hymn in Philippians puts it “He humbled himself and was obedient to God, even to the point of death on the cross.” So, there you have it. We said No to God but God in Jesus would not leave it at that, saying YES to us.
And then there was another YES. Tune in the Christmas story. The angel comes to Mary and tells her of God’s fantastic plan to win us back to himself including her role in it. And amazingly, she says YES. Yes, on her behalf and ours. The first step on our long road back to God.
But, the story does not end there either. By the power of God’s Spirit (Holy Spirit) we are gathered together in a partnership of people learning how to say yes to God by saying yes to each other.
Welcome to the team!
Amen.
THE NICENE CREED
We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven:
by the power of the Holy Spirit
he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary,
and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son.
With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified.
He has spoken through the Prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come.
Amen.
THE PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
O Lord, we are Your people, chosen by Your grace to be Your own possession, and granted mercy upon mercy. Hear Your people who cry to You in need, and remember us according to the favor You have shown to us in Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Brief silence
Make us to know Your ways, O Lord, that we may walk in the path of salvation made known in Your Word. Hear our complaints and quiet them by Your merciful deliverance, that we may respond with trust and thanksgiving. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
Encourage us, O Lord, by Your Holy Spirit, that we may not lose heart but, being of one mind and one will, may serve You with gladness, doing the works of Your Kingdom and speaking Your Word of witness throughout the world. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
Help us, O Lord, to hold fast to Your Word and bless us with faithful bishops, priests and deacons who will preach and teach Your eternal Gospel, that we may rejoice in doing Your will. Guide those considering church vocations, and bless them as they are formed for Your service. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
Shine Your light upon us, O Lord, that we may do what is good and right and live as faithful citizens in our nation. Bless our president; our governor; and all those elected and appointed to make, administer and judge our laws. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
Enlighten us with godly knowledge and wisdom, O Lord, and bless those who pursue science to improve our lives and the lives of those in greatest need. Bless all honorable vocations and all honest labor, and lead the unemployed to good jobs and noble work not only for their own interests but for the good of us all. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
Show us Your compassion, O Lord, and in Your mercy grant healing, comfort and peace to all those who suffer. Deliver them from all their afflictions, pain, sorrow and fear. all those we name in our hearts before You. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
Help us, O Lord, to remember the faithful who loved and served You and who now rest from their labors. Bring us with them to that most blessed day when together we shall dwell in Your presence on high forevermore. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
Grant to us all good things needful for this body and life and profitable for our salvation, and keep from us all things harmful, that sustained in time of want and guarded in time of prosperity, we may endure to the day of our Lord’s coming and be judged worthy of eternal life; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
So now we pray with confidence to the Father the words our Lord Jesus taught us:
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed by the 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,
for ever and ever. Amen.
The Closing Blessing
May God almighty bless and keep us, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
We go now in peace to love and serve the Lord.
Amen.
