The 4th Sunday in Lent
Morning Prayer, March 22, 2020
VERSICLES
L O Lord, open my lips,
C and my mouth shall declare Your praise.
C Glory be 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.
+ PSALMODY +
L Give glory to God, our light and our life.
C O come, let us worship Him.
VENITE
C O come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.
! Let us come into His presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to Him with songs of praise.
@ For the Lord is a great God and a great king above all gods.
! In His hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are His also.
@ The sea is His, for He made it; and His hand formed the dry land.
! O come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our maker.
@ For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand.
C Glory be 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.
L Give glory to God, our light and our life.
C O come, let us worship Him.
PSALM
8Arise, O Lord, and go to your resting place,
you and the ark of your might.
9Let your priests be clothed with righteousness,
and let your saints shout for joy.
10For the sake of your servant David,
do not turn away the face of your anointed one.
you and the ark of your might.
9Let your priests be clothed with righteousness,
and let your saints shout for joy.
10For the sake of your servant David,
do not turn away the face of your anointed one.
11The Lord swore to David a sure oath
from which he will not turn back:
“One of the sons of your body
I will set on your throne.
12If your sons keep my covenant
and my testimonies that I shall teach them,
their sons also forever
shall sit on your throne.”
from which he will not turn back:
“One of the sons of your body
I will set on your throne.
12If your sons keep my covenant
and my testimonies that I shall teach them,
their sons also forever
shall sit on your throne.”
13For the Lord has chosen Zion;
he has desired it for his dwelling place:
14“This is my resting place forever;
here I will dwell, for I have desired it.
15I will abundantly bless her provisions;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.
16Her priests I will clothe with salvation,
and her saints will shout for joy.
17There I will make a horn to sprout for David;
I have prepared a lamp for my anointed.
18His enemies I will clothe with shame,
but on him his crown will shine.”
he has desired it for his dwelling place:
14“This is my resting place forever;
here I will dwell, for I have desired it.
15I will abundantly bless her provisions;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.
16Her priests I will clothe with salvation,
and her saints will shout for joy.
17There I will make a horn to sprout for David;
I have prepared a lamp for my anointed.
18His enemies I will clothe with shame,
but on him his crown will shine.”
READING
1After this Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. 2And a large crowd was following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick. 3Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. 4Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand. 5Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?” 6He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. 7Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii would not buy enough bread for each of them to get a little.” 8One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him, 9“There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?” 10Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, about five thousand in number. 11Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted. 12And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.” 13So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves, left by those who had eaten. 14When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!”
15Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.
SERMON
HE SAID THIS TO TEST HIM -- JOHN 6:5-6
So Jesus tested Philip and the other disciples. He challenged them to believe in the unseen and the as yet unrealized. The Lord wanted them to believe. He wanted to make sure all the people gathered there that day would not go hungry and miserable, obviously. But listening to the conversation between Jesus and Philip, it seems the greater concern on Jesus' part, was that they believe.
Philip was fooled by Jesus question. He heard it and thought about it naturally, humanly, practically. And all he could come up with for a response, was something like, “That's impossible.”
We can find ourselves in similar situations. Things are messed up and we feel helpless and there's not going to be enough money and the whole thing seems impossible. When we can't see how to fix a problem, and when we can't tell what the Lord is thinking about the problem, well, that's when it is especially clear that the Lord wants you to believe.
Believe that God has mercy. God cares about you. God forgives you your sins. This is not a truth you and I will get to on our own; we won't reason out that one with our smarts; there will be many days when we won't feel that in our hearts. But still, the Lord Jesus wants us to believe it. So He keeps saying it. He keeps promising the mercy of God is upon. He keeps reminding the care of God for the creation of this world, especially for those who pray to Him in repentance and faith. Jesus keeps assuring us poor sinners that He has forgiven us freely and completely by His innocent death on the cross and the shedding of His innocent blood.
The Lord has given gifts to His Church on earth so that through her preaching and teaching, baptizing and communing, people will keep hearing these promises that Jesus keeps making. God has mercy. God cares about you. God forgives you your sins.
When we listened to Psalm 132 we heard some great promises about the Lord's Church, the new Zion that He is building and where He promises to dwell. He says this, about His Church:
14 “This is my resting place forever;
here I will dwell, for I have desired it.
15 I will abundantly bless her provisions;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.
16 Her priests I will clothe with salvation,
and her saints will shout for joy.
But today, the Lord is fooling me with these words, like He fooled Philip long ago. Because the people of God aren't where they are supposed to be. There are no saints in God's house. There are no shouts of joy here, it echoes empty. He promised to clothe His servants with righteousness and salvation. But the servants of the Lord are sitting in their pajamas and sweat pants.
Dear friends, I've gotta trust what God promises, even if it is unseen. I've gotta believe that you are His people. You are His chosen Zion because you have faith and fellowship in Jesus, and so you are the Lord's Church, even when you are scattered. You are the people He describes you to be, even when you don't look that way. You are His saints, I believe that, holy people, because He has promised us that He forgives you your sins.
I can believe God when He says, the saints will shout for joy. I can believe that because when God says something, He makes it happen. He says to His disciples feed these people and it happens, there's plenty and more to feed thousands. He says, shout for joy and it happens because faith produces joy, true joy, eternal joy that need not fail even in plague or pestilence, war or famine, sickness or temporary death.
God has promised to bless and keep you. so He has, so He does, so He will in the time to come. He’s promised to clothe you with salvation. So He does. Unseen now, but being fulfilled in the Kingdom of Heaven. God has promised that His saints will sing for joy. Take joy and peace in all His promises.
Amen.
+ PRAYER +
COLLECT OF THE DAY
L Let us pray.
Almighty God, our heavenly Father, Your mercies are new every morning; and though we deserve only punishment, You receive us as Your children and provide for all our needs of body and soul. Grant that we may heartily acknowledge Your merciful goodness, give thanks for all Your benefits, and serve You in willing obedience; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
C Amen.
PRAYER IN TIMES OF PANDEMIC
L Compassionate Lord, graciously defend us from all calamity by pestilence, scarcity, famine and every other evil. Spare us from disease and its fear. Protect and prosper all who labor in their rightful callings, especially those who remain in harm’s way for the good of their neighbors. Be the God and Father of the poor, the unemployed and the homeless; the helper of the hungry and needy; the comforter of the distressed and those who sorrow. Lord, have mercy on this world and grant your people peace, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
C Amen.
COLLECT FOR GRACE
L O Lord, our heavenly Father, almighty and everlasting God, You have safely brought us to the beginning of this day. Defend us in the same with Your mighty power and grant that this day we fall into no sin, neither run into any kind of danger, but that all our doings, being ordered by Your governance, may be righteous in Your sight; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
C Amen.
LORD’S PRAYER
L Taught by our Lord and trusting His promises, we are bold to pray:
C Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be Thy 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
forever and ever. Amen.
BENEDICAMUS
L Let us bless the Lord.
C Thanks be to God.
BENEDICTION
P The almighty and merciful Lord, the Father, the T Son, and the Holy Spirit, bless and preserve you.
C Amen.
743 JESUS, PRICELESS TREASURE
1 Jesus, priceless treasure,
Fount of purest pleasure,
Truest friend to me,
Ah, how long in anguish
Shall my spirit languish,
Yearning, Lord, for Thee?
Thou art mine,
O Lamb divine!
I will suffer naught to hide Thee;
Naught I ask beside Thee.
Fount of purest pleasure,
Truest friend to me,
Ah, how long in anguish
Shall my spirit languish,
Yearning, Lord, for Thee?
Thou art mine,
O Lamb divine!
I will suffer naught to hide Thee;
Naught I ask beside Thee.
2 In Thine arms I rest me;
Foes who would molest me
Cannot reach me here.
Though the earth be shaking,
Ev’ry heart be quaking,
Jesus calms my fear.
Lightnings flash
And thunders crash;
Yet, though sin and hell assail me,
Jesus will not fail me.
Foes who would molest me
Cannot reach me here.
Though the earth be shaking,
Ev’ry heart be quaking,
Jesus calms my fear.
Lightnings flash
And thunders crash;
Yet, though sin and hell assail me,
Jesus will not fail me.
3 Satan, I defy thee;
Death, I now decry thee;
Fear, I bid thee cease.
World, thou shalt not harm me
Nor thy threats alarm me
While I sing of peace.
God’s great pow’r
Guards ev’ry hour;
Earth and all its depths adore Him,
Silent bow before Him.
Death, I now decry thee;
Fear, I bid thee cease.
World, thou shalt not harm me
Nor thy threats alarm me
While I sing of peace.
God’s great pow’r
Guards ev’ry hour;
Earth and all its depths adore Him,
Silent bow before Him.
4 Hence, all earthly treasure!
Jesus is my pleasure,
Jesus is my choice.
Hence, all empty glory!
Naught to me thy story
Told with tempting voice.
Pain or loss,
Or shame or cross,
Shall not from my Savior move me
Since He deigns to love me.
Jesus is my pleasure,
Jesus is my choice.
Hence, all empty glory!
Naught to me thy story
Told with tempting voice.
Pain or loss,
Or shame or cross,
Shall not from my Savior move me
Since He deigns to love me.
5 Evil world, I leave thee;
Thou canst not deceive me,
Thine appeal is vain.
Sin that once did blind me,
Get thee far behind me,
Come not forth again.
Past thy hour,
O pride and pow’r;
Sinful life, thy bonds I sever,
Leave thee now forever.
Thou canst not deceive me,
Thine appeal is vain.
Sin that once did blind me,
Get thee far behind me,
Come not forth again.
Past thy hour,
O pride and pow’r;
Sinful life, thy bonds I sever,
Leave thee now forever.
6 Hence, all fear and sadness!
For the Lord of gladness,
Jesus, enters in.
Those who love the Father,
Though the storms may gather,
Still have peace within.
Yea, whate’er
I here must bear,
Thou art still my purest pleasure,
Jesus, priceless treasure!
For the Lord of gladness,
Jesus, enters in.
Those who love the Father,
Though the storms may gather,
Still have peace within.
Yea, whate’er
I here must bear,
Thou art still my purest pleasure,
Jesus, priceless treasure!
Text: Public domain
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Morning Prayer from Lutheran Service Book
Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Created by Lutheran Service Builder © 2018 Concordia Publishing House.
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