The Daily Readings for MONDAY, July 3, 2017

Acts 7:54-60 The Stoning of Stephen

Opening Sentence

I was glad when they said to me, "Let us go to the house of the Lord." Psalm 122:1

Morning Prayer

Lord help me to remember that nothing is going to happen to me today that You and I together can't handle. Amen

Confession and Forgiveness

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 nothing good in us. O Lord, have mercy upon us, miserable offenders. Spare those, O God, who confess their faults. Restore those who are penitent; according to Your promises declared unto men in Christ Jesus our Lord. Grant that we may hereafter live a godly, righteous, and sober life; to the glory of His name. Amen

The Epistle Lesson

The Epistle Lesson for today is taken from 1 Samuel 10:17-27

Samuel summoned the people to the LORD at Mizpah and said to them, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, 'I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and I rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all the kingdoms that were oppressing you.' But today you have rejected your God, who saves you from all your calamities and your distresses; and you have said, 'No! but set a king over us.' Now therefore present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes and by your clans." Then Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel near, and the tribe of Benjamin was taken by lot. He brought the tribe of Benjamin near by its families, and the family of the Matrites was taken by lot. Finally he brought the family of the Matrites near man by man, and Saul the son of Kish was taken by lot. But when they sought him, he could not be found. So they inquired again of the LORD, "Did the man come here?" and the LORD said, "See, he has hidden himself among the baggage." Then they ran and brought him from there. When he took his stand among the people, he was head and shoulders taller than any of them. Samuel said to all the people, "Do you see the one whom the LORD has chosen? There is no one like him among all the people." And all the people shouted, "Long live the king!" Samuel told the people the rights and duties of the kingship; and he wrote them in a book and laid it up before the LORD. Then Samuel sent all the people back to their homes. Saul also went to his home at Gibeah, and with him went warriors whose hearts God had touched. But some worthless fellows said, "How can this man save us?" They despised him and brought him no present. But he held his peace. Now Nahash, king of the Ammonites, had been grievously oppressing the Gadites and the Reubenites. He would gouge out the right eye of each of them and would not grant Israel a deliverer. No one was left of the Israelites across the Jordan whose right eye Nahash, king of the Ammonites, had not gouged out. But there were seven thousand men who had escaped from the Ammonites and had entered Jabesh-gilead.

The Epistle Lesson

The Epistle Lesson for today is taken from in Acts 7:44-8:1

"Our ancestors had the tent of testimony in the wilderness, as God directed when he spoke to Moses, ordering him to make it according to the pattern he had seen. Our ancestors in turn brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations that God drove out before our ancestors. And it was there until the time of David, who found favor with God and asked that he might find a dwelling place for the house of Jacob. But it was Solomon who built a house for him. Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made with human hands; as the prophet says, 'Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What kind of house will you build for me, says the Lord, or what is the place of my rest? Did not my hand make all these things?' "You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you are forever opposing the Holy Spirit, just as your ancestors used to do. Which of the prophets did your ancestors not persecute? They killed those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One, and now you have become his betrayers and murderers. You are the ones that received the law as ordained by angels, and yet you have not kept it." When they heard these things, they became enraged and ground their teeth at Stephen. But filled with the Holy Spirit, he gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. "Look," he said, "I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!" But they covered their ears, and with a loud shout all rushed together against him. Then they dragged him out of the city and began to stone him; and the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul. While they were stoning Stephen, he prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." Then he knelt down and cried out in a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." When he had said this, he died. And Saul approved of their killing him. That day a severe persecution began against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout the countryside of Judea and Samaria.

The Holy Gospel Lesson

The Holy Gospel is written in Luke 22:52-62

Then Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple police, and the elders who had come for him, "Have you come out with swords and clubs as if I were a bandit? When I was with you day after day in the temple, you did not lay hands on me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness!" Then they seized him and led him away, bringing him into the high priest's house. But Peter was following at a distance. When they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them. Then a servant-girl, seeing him in the firelight, stared at him and said, "This man also was with him." But he denied it, saying, "Woman, I do not know him." A little later someone else, on seeing him, said, "You also are one of them." But Peter said, "Man, I am not!" Then about an hour later still another kept insisting, "Surely this man also was with him; for he is a Galilean." But Peter said, "Man, I do not know what you are talking about!" At that moment, while he was still speaking, the cock crowed. The Lord turned and looked at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said to him, "Before the cock crows today, you will deny me three times." And he went out and wept bitterly.

Morning Psalms

Psalm 106:1-18 Confitemini Domino
1   Hallelujah! Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his mercy endures for ever.
2   Who can declare the mighty acts of the LORD or show forth all his praise?
3   Happy are those who act with justice and always do what is right!
4   Remember me, O LORD, with the favor you have for your people, and visit me with your saving help;
5   That I may see the prosperity of your elect and be glad with the gladness of your people, that I may glory with your inheritance.
6   We have sinned as our forebears did; we have done wrong and dealt wickedly.
7   In Egypt they did not consider your marvelous works, nor remember the abundance of your love; they defied the Most High at the Red Sea.
8   But he saved them for his Name's sake, to make his power known.
9   He rebuked the Red Sea, and it dried up, and he led them through the deep as through a desert.
10   He saved them from the hand of those who hated them and redeemed them from the hand of the enemy.
11   The waters covered their oppressors; not one of them was left.
12   Then they believed his words and sang him songs of praise.
13   But they soon forgot his deeds and did not wait for his counsel.
14   A craving seized them in the wilderness, and they put God to the test in the desert.
15   He gave them what they asked, but sent leanness into their soul.
16   They envied Moses in the camp, and Aaron, the holy one of the LORD.
17   The earth opened and swallowed Dathan and covered the company of Abiram.
18   Fire blazed up against their company, and flames devoured the wicked.

Evening Psalms

Psalm 106:19-48 Et fecerunt vitulum
19   Israel made a bull-calf at Horeb and worshiped a molten image;
20   And so they exchanged their Glory for the image of an ox that feeds on grass.
21   They forgot God their Savior, who had done great things in Egypt,
22   Wonderful deeds in the land of Ham, and fearful things at the Red Sea.
23   So he would have destroyed them, had not Moses his chosen stood before him in the breach, to turn away his wrath from consuming them.
24   They refused the pleasant land and would not believe his promise.
25   They grumbled in their tents and would not listen to the voice of the LORD.
26   So he lifted his hand against them, to overthrow them in the wilderness,
27   To cast out their seed among the nations, and to scatter them throughout the lands.
28   They joined themselves to Baal-Peor and ate sacrifices offered to the dead.
29   They provoked him to anger with their actions, and a plague broke out among them.
30   Then Phinehas stood up and interceded, and the plague came to an end.
31   This was reckoned to him as righteousness throughout all generations for ever.
32   Again they provoked his anger at the waters of Meribah, so that he punished Moses because of them;
33   For they so embittered his spirit that he spoke rash words with his lips.
34   They did not destroy the peoples as the LORD had commanded them.
35   They intermingled with the heathen and learned their pagan ways,
36   So that they worshiped their idols, which became a snare to them.
37   They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to evil spirits.
38   They shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters, which they offered to the idols of Canaan, and the land was defiled with blood.
39   Thus they were polluted by their actions and went whoring in their evil deeds.
40   Therefore the wrath of the LORD was kindled against his people and he abhorred his inheritance.
41   He gave them over to the hand of the heathen, and those who hated them ruled over them.
42   Their enemies oppressed them, and they were humbled under their hand.
43   Many a time did he deliver them, but they rebelled through their own devices, and were brought down in their iniquity.
44   Nevertheless, he saw their distress, when he heard their lamentation.
45   He remembered his covenant with them and relented in accordance with his great mercy.
46   He caused them to be pitied by those who held them captive.
47   Save us, O LORD our God, and gather us from among the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy Name and glory in your praise.
48   Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting; and let all the people say, "Amen!" Hallelujah!

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

Prayer of the Day

Almighty God, I thank Thee for the job of this day. May I find gladness in all its toil and difficulty, its pleasure and success, and even in its failure and sorrow. I would look always away from myself, and behold the glory and the need of the world, that I may have the will and the strength to bring the gift of gladness to others; that with them I stand to bear the burden and heat of the day and offer Thee the praise of work well done. Amen

~ Bishop Charles Lewis Slattery, 1903

Thanks for God’s Word

I  thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that the things which were hidden from the wise and prudent, and which many prophets and kings desired to see and could not, are revealed unto us babes in your written Word. I thank you that I have the Scriptures to search, and that they testify of Christ, for in them I can find eternal life.

I thank you, Father, for the preservation of your teachings through time, and despite the constant efforts of men to destroy it or change it, that through them I might find patience, and hope, and truth, and life. And having learned so much, I thank you that I can hear with my ears your wonderful works, the testimony of the earth and the spirit, like a light shining in darkness. In Christ’s name, I pray and render you thanks. Amen

A Prayer for Mission

O God, you have made of one blood all the peoples of the earth, and sent your blessed Son to preach peace to those who are far off and to those who are near: Grant that people everywhere may seek after you and find you; bring the nations into your fold; pour out your Spirit upon all flesh; and hasten the coming of your kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

Fireproof - You Belong To Me
Lyrics

You run, you hide,
As tears fall from your eyes.
They fall like snow
From a wounded soul.
You hold inside,
The hurt of great divide.
The hole is starting to get old.

Refrain:
So come back to the light,
To the love, you will find,
It’s been here all along.
So come back to the start
And you’ll find in your heart
That you always belonged
To me.

Just take the rope,
I won’t let it go.
Give in;
We can start again.
I’m life, I’m hope,
And I’m ready to explode.
With how bad I want you back home.

You’re my daughter, you’re my son,
You’re the one I long to love,
And you’ve heard I chose to die;
Do you know you’re the reason why?

Music and Lyrics by Jason Ingram and Matthew Minor.

Alleluia! Christ has risen.
Christ has risen indeed. Alleluia!

If you are with me, O God, who can be against me? For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate me from the love of God in Christ Jesus my Lord. Amen

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The New Revised Standard Version Bible may be quoted and/or reprinted up to and inclusive of five hundred (500) verses without express written permission of the publisher, provided the verses quoted do not amount to a complete book of the Bible or account for fifty percent (50%) of the total work in which they are quoted.