Ascension to Pentecost
O Lord, open our lips
and our mouth shall proclaim your praise.
Send your Holy Spirit upon us,
and clothe us with power from on high. Alleluia.
The minister may say
We have come together in the name of Christ
to offer our praise and thanksgiving,
to hear and receive God’s holy word,
to pray for the needs of the world,
and to seek the forgiveness of our sins,
that by the power of the Holy Spirit
we may give ourselves to the service of God.
Confession Prayer
Seeing we have a great high priest
who has passed into the heavens,
Jesus the Son of God,
let us draw near with a true heart,
in full assurance of faith,
and make our confession to our heavenly Father.
Silent prayer
Come, let us return to the Lord and say:
Lord our God,
in our sin we have avoided your call.
Our love for you is like a morning cloud,
like the dew that goes away early.
Have mercy on us;
deliver us from judgement;
bind up our wounds and revive us;
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Hosea 6
May the God of love
bring us back to himself,
forgive us our sins,
and assure us of his eternal love
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Blessed is the Lord,
for he has heard the voice of our prayer.
Therefore shall our hearts dance for joy
and in our song will we praise our God.
Blessed are you, Creator God,
to you be praise and glory forever.
As your Spirit moved over the face of the waters
bringing light and life to your creation,
pour out your Spirit on us today
that we may walk as children of the light
and by your grace reveal your presence.
Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Blessed be God forever.
Hymn or Song
Through Christ’s death and resurrection,
The Kingdom of Heaven lies open before us;
let us pray with one heart and mind.
Silent prayer
As we rejoice in the gift of your new creation,
so may the light of your presence, O God,
set our hearts on fire with love for you;
now and forever.
Amen.
Psalm 104:24–33
Refrain:
I will sing to the Lord as long as I live.
O Lord, how manifold are your works!
In wisdom you have made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.
Yonder is the sea, great and wide,
creeping things innumerable are there,
living things both small and great.
There go the ships,
and Leviathan that you formed to sport in it.
These all look to you
to give them their food in due season;
When you give to them, they gather it up;
when you open your hand, they are filled with good things.
When you hide your face, they are dismayed;
when you take away their breath, they die
and return to their dust.
When you send forth your spirit, they are created;
and you renew the face of the ground.
May the glory of the Lord endure forever;
may the Lord rejoice in his works—
who looks on the earth and it trembles,
who touches the mountains and they smoke.
I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and shall be forever.
Amen.
Refrain:
I will sing to the Lord as long as I live.
Old Testament Reading
Jeremiah 2:4-13
4 Hear the word of the Lord, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of Israel. 5 Thus says the Lord:
What wrong did your ancestors find in me that they went far from me,
and went after worthless things, and became worthless themselves?
6 They did not say, “Where is the Lord
who brought us up from the land of Egypt,
who led us in the wilderness,
in a land of deserts and pits,
in a land of drought and deep darkness,
in a land that no one passes through,
where no one lives?”
7 I brought you into a plentiful land
to eat its fruits and its good things.
But when you entered you defiled my land,
and made my heritage an abomination.
8 The priests did not say, “Where is the Lord?”
Those who handle the law did not know me;
the rulers transgressed against me;
the prophets prophesied by Baal,
and went after things that do not profit.
9 Therefore once more I accuse you,
says the Lord,
and I accuse your children’s children.
10 Cross to the coasts of Cyprus and look,
send to Kedar and examine with care;
see if there has ever been such a thing.
11 Has a nation changed its gods,
even though they are no gods?
But my people have changed their glory
for something that does not profit.
12 Be appalled, O heavens, at this,
be shocked, be utterly desolate,
says the Lord,
13 for my people have committed two evils:
they have forsaken me,
the fountain of living water,
and dug out cisterns for themselves,
cracked cisterns that can hold no water.
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
A New Heart
Refrain:
The Spirit of God fills the whole world. Alleluia.
I will take you from the nations,
and gather you from all the countries.
I will sprinkle clean water upon you,
and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses.
A new heart I will give you,
and a new spirit I will put within you.
I will remove from your body the heart of stone
and put a new spirit within you.
You shall be my people,
and I will be your God.
Ezekiel 36:24-26, 28
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and shall be forever.
Amen.
Refrain:
The Spirit of God fills the whole world. Alleluia.
New Testament Reading
John 7:37-43
37 On the last day of the festival, the great day, while Jesus was standing there, he cried out, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, 38 and let the one who believes in me drink. As the scripture has said, ‘Out of the believer’s heart shall flow rivers of living water.’ ” 39 Now he said this about the Spirit, which believers in him were to receive; for as yet there was no Spirit, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
40 When they heard these words, some in the crowd said, “This is really the prophet.” 41 Others said, “This is the Messiah.” But some asked, “Surely the Messiah does not come from Galilee, does he? 42 Has not the scripture said that the Messiah is descended from David and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?” 43 So there was a division in the crowd because of him. 44 Some of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him.
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your people
and kindle in us the fire of your love.
All who are led by the Spirit of God
are children of God and fellow-heirs with Christ.
Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your people.
Renew the face of your creation, Lord,
Pouring on us the gifts of your Spirit,
and kindle in us the fire of your love.
For the creation waits with eager longing
for the glorious liberty of the children of God.
Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your people
and kindle in us the fire of your love.
The Song of Zechariah
Refrain:
Christ has gone up on high
and has led captivity captive. Alleluia.
1 Blessed are you O Lord our God:
you have come to your people and set them free.
2 You have raised up for us a mighty Saviour:
born of the house of your servant David.
3 Through your holy prophets you promised of old:
that you would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all who hate us.
4 You promised to show mercy to our forebears:
and to remember your holy covenant.
5 This was the oath you swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
6 free to worship you without fear:
holy and righteous in your sight
all the days of our life.
7 And you, child, shall be called
the prophet of the Most High:
for you will go before the Lord to prepare the way,
8 to give God’s people knowledge of salvation:
through the forgiveness of their sins.
9 In the tender compassion of our God:
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
10 to shine on those who dwell in darkness
and the shadow of death:
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Luke 1: 68-79
Glory to the Father and to the Son:
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now:
and shall be for ever. Amen.
Refrain:
Christ has gone up on high
and has led captivity captive. Alleluia.
The Creed
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will 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.
Intercessions
for the day and its tasks
for the world and its needs
for the Church and her life
O God the King of glory,
you have exalted your only Son Jesus Christ
with great triumph to your kingdom in heaven:
we beseech you, leave us not comfortless,
but send your Holy Spirit to strengthen us
and exalt us to the place
where our Saviour Christ is gone before,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer follows
Being made one by the power of the Spirit as our Saviour has taught us, so we pray:
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
Amen.
The service concludes
Hymn or Song
May the Holy Spirit kindle in us the fire of God’s love.
Amen.
Let us bless the Lord. Alleluia, alleluia.
Thanks be to God. Alleluia, alleluia.
