NEW LIFE: THE LORD
V. O God, make speed to save us;
R. O Lord, make haste to help us.
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.
PSALMODY
Antiphon: With you is the well of life,*
and in your light we see light. (Ps. 36.9)
Opening (from Psalm 36)
Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens,*
and your faithfulness to the clouds.
Your righteousness is like the strong mountains,
your justice like the great deep;*
you save both man and beast, O Lord.
How priceless is your love, O God!*
your people take refuge under the shadow of your wings.
They feast upon the abundance of your house;*
you give them drink from the river of your delights.
Glory be to the Father…
Psalm 98
Sing to the Lord a new song,*
for he has done marvellous things.
With his right hand and his holy arm*
has he won for himself the victory.
The Lord has made known his victory;*
his righteousness has he openly shown in
the sight of the nations.
He remembers his mercy and faithfulness to
the house of Israel,*
and all the ends of the earth have seen the
victory of our God.
Shout with joy to the Lord, all you lands;*
lift up your voice, rejoice, and sing.
Sing to the Lord with the harp,*
with the harp and the voice of song.
With trumpets and the sound of the horn*
shout with joy before the King, the Lord.
Let the sea make a noise and all that is in it,*
the lands and those who dwell therein.
Let the rivers clap their hands,*
and let the hills ring out with joy before the Lord,
when he comes to judge the earth.
In righteousness shall he judge the world*
and the peoples with equity.
Glory be to the Father . . .
Lord God, we see your righteous rule in all your works, and we join our voices with the song of your whole creation in praising you, in and through Jesus Christ our Saviour. Amen
Psalm 99
The Lord is king; let the people tremble;*
he is enthroned upon the Cherubim; let the earth shake.
The Lord is great in Zion;*
he is high above all peoples.
Let them confess his name, which is great and awesome;*
he is the Holy One.
‘O mighty King, lover of justice,
you have established equity;*
you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob.’
Proclaim the greatness of the Lord our God
and fall down before his footstool;*
he is the Holy One.
Moses and Aaron among his priests,
and Samuel among those who call upon his name,*
they called upon the Lord, and he answered them.
He spoke to them out of the pillar of cloud;*
they kept his testimonies and the decree that he gave them.
‘O Lord our God, you answered them indeed;*
you were a God who forgave them,
yet punished them for their evil deeds.’
Proclaim the greatness of the Lord our God
and worship him upon his holy hill;*
for the Lord our God is the Holy One.
Glory be to the Father . . .
Lord our God, ruler of the universe, you love what is right. Lead us in your righteousness, that we may live to praise you, through your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
Conclusion (from Colossians 1)
Give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ;*
he has delivered us from the dominion of darkness.
He has transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,*
in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of our sins.
he is the image of the invisible God,*
the first-born of all creation.
For in him all things were created,*
in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible.
He is the head of the body, the church;*
he is the beginning, the first-born from the dead.
In him all the fulness of God was pleased to dwell,*
to reconcile all things to himself,
making peace by the blood of his cross.
Glory to the Father…
Antiphon: With you is the well of life,
and in your light we see light.
READING
Luke 3:15-4:13
As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, John answered all of them by saying, ‘I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing-fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing-floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.’
So, with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people. But Herod the ruler, who had been rebuked by him because of Herodias, his brother’s wife, and because of all the evil things that Herod had done, added to them all by shutting up John in prison.
Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.’
Jesus was about thirty years old when he began his work. He was the son (as was thought) of Joseph son of Heli, son of Matthat, son of Levi, son of Melchi, son of Jannai, son of Joseph, son of Mattathias, son of Amos, son of Nahum, son of Esli, son of Naggai, son of Maath, son of Mattathias, son of Semein, son of Josech, son of Joda, son of Joanan, son of Rhesa, son of Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, son of Neri, son of Melchi, son of Addi, son of Cosam, son of Elmadam, son of Er, son of Joshua, son of Eliezer, son of Jorim, son of Matthat, son of Levi, son of Simeon, son of Judah, son of Joseph, son of Jonam, son of Eliakim, son of Melea, son of Menna, son of Mattatha, son of Nathan, son of David, son of Jesse, son of Obed, son of Boaz, son of Sala, son of Nahshon,son of Amminadab, son of Admin, son of Arni, son of Hezron, son of Perez, son of Judah, son of Jacob, son of Isaac, son of Abraham, son of Terah, son of Nahor, son of Serug, son of Reu, son of Peleg, son of Eber, son of Shelah, son of Cainan, son of Arphaxad, son of Shem, son of Noah, son of Lamech, son of Methuselah, son of Enoch, son of Jared, son of Mahalaleel, son of Cainan, son of Enos, son of Seth, son of Adam, son of God.
Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished. The devil said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.’ Jesus answered him, ‘It is written, “One does not live by bread alone.” ’
Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And the devil said to him, ‘To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please. If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.’ Jesus answered him, ‘It is written,
“Worship the Lord your God,
and serve only him.” ’
Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written,
“He will command his angels concerning you,
to protect you”,
and
“On their hands they will bear you up,
so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.” ’
Jesus answered him, ‘It is said, “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.” ’ When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time.
Silence
Response (Ps. 30.1)
V. I will exalt you, O Lord, for you have lifted me up; alleluia, alleluia.
R. I will exalt you, O Lord, for you have lifted me up; alleluia, alleluia.
V. You have not let my enemies triumph over me.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
V. Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
R. I will exalt you, O Lord, for you have lifted me up; alleluia, alleluia.
MAGNIFICAT
Magnificat Antiphon: Peace be with you, * says the Lord. Alleluia
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,*
my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour;
for he has looked with favour on his lowly servant;*
from this day all generations will call me blessed.
The Almighty has done great things for me*
and holy is his name.
He has mercy on those who fear him*
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm;*
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones*
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things,*
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel,*
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our forebears,*
to Abraham and his children for ever.
Glory to the Father
Magnificat Antiphon: Peace be with you, * says the Lord. Alleluia
PRAYERS
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
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.
Do not bring us to the time of trial,
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours,
now and for ever. Amen.
Collects
Almighty and eternal God, the strength of those who believe and the hope of those who doubt, may we, who have not seen, have faith and receive the fullness of Christ’s blessing, who is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen
Lord God almighty, come and dispel the darkness from our hearts, that in the radiance of your brightness we may know you, the only unfading light, glorious in all eternity. Amen.
Let us bless the Lord:
Thanks be to God!
The God of hope fill us with all joy and peace in believing:
through the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
