The Sunday Lectionary and Prayers for Sunday, August 27, 2023—Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost

 

The Sunday Lectionary and Prayers
Sunday, August 27, 2023
Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost
[Ordinary 21, Proper 16]
(Revised Common Lectionary Year A)
(Semi-continuous Reading Plan)

Conspiracy of Hearts
Exodus 1:8—2:10; Psalm 124; Romans 12:1-8;

Matthew 16:13-20

Introduction

Paul invites us to present our bodies as a living sacrifice to God, dedicating ourselves so fully that God can transform us by renewing our minds and revealing God’s will. The great stories of our faith are filled with moments of ordinary people doing just this. Exodus reveals midwives risking their lives to save the Hebrew children. Pharaoh’s daughter recognizes a refugee child and saves him from the water. And Moses’s sister stands watch to protect her brother and re-unite him with his mother. Peter proclaims Jesus as the Christ, and Jesus proclaims Peter as the rock upon whom God will build the church. Whether we are mighty or small, God is not only our helper but also our maker. Having created us in the divine image, God invites us to give ourselves fully. In so doing, we open the door for God to transform our lives, and through us, to transform the world.

Opening Prayer
(Romans 12)

Gracious and loving God, bless us with your presence as we worship this day. Bless us with your love as we grow in love and mature faith. Bless us with your guidance as we give ourselves to you, to your church, and to your work in the world. Amen.

The Wound

Prayer for Unity

How very good and pleasant it is when kindred live together in unity! It is like a summer rain which restores the parched earth. It is like a cool breeze at the shore of a lake, at the top of a mountain or through a crowded city street. God meets us here.

God of all creation who called every being into life who is mindful of humankind in all its diversity who embodies us with dignity, granting different gifts and talents to shape life in this world we ask for your Spirit to unite us where we face lack of understanding and disunity in our churches, in our communities, in our countries. And in silence we lay before you the burdens of our hearts.

We ask for your Spirit to unite us in the face of the conflicts, hatred and violation of life experienced in so many regions of the earth and in silence we bring to you the pain of the victims.

We ask for your Spirit to unite us wherever fear prevents us from caring for our neighbor, from meeting people of different ethnicities, cultures and faith communities with respect and in silence we bring to you the brokenness of human relationships.

God of all creation, in Christ we are reconciled, and so we ask for your uniting Spirit to help us to overcome all our divisions that we may live in peace. Amen.

Call to Confession
(Exodus 2, Psalm 124, Romans 12, Matthew 16)

Rock of ages, be our fortress and our shelter in troubled times. Be our strength and our courage when we are afraid. Be our grace and our forgiveness when we fall short. Be our inspiration and our guide when we strive to serve you and your world fully. In hope and gratitude, we pray. Amen.

Assurance of Pardon
(Psalm 124)

Our help is in God, the maker of heaven and earth. God is our rock, a fortress of mercy and grace.

Today’s Verse-of-the-Day:

Isaiah 26:3

You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.

Perfect peace is the complete wholeness that God can bring into a nation or a person who will trust completely in him. It is not merely absence of conflict, but an integration of all the separate parts. It is a fixed disposition of trust in the Lord that brings a peace that the wicked can never know (Isa. 48:22; 57:21).

Introduction to the Word
(Romans 12)

As we listen for God’s still-speaking voice, may the words we hear, the thoughts we think, and the wisdom we glean transform our lives by the renewing of our minds and the maturing of our faith.

Today’s Lectionary Readings:
First Reading

Exodus 1:8—2:10
Pharaoh’s daughter takes Moses in

Then a new king, to whom Joseph meant nothing, came to power in Egypt. “Look,” he said to his people, “the Israelites have become far too numerous for us. Come, we must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us and leave the country.”

So they put slave masters over them to oppress them with forced labor, and they built Pithom and Rameses as store cities for Pharaoh. But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread; so the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites and worked them ruthlessly. They made their lives bitter with harsh labor in brick and mortar and with all kinds of work in the fields; in all their harsh labor the Egyptians worked them ruthlessly.

The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah, “When you are helping the Hebrew women during childbirth on the delivery stool, if you see that the baby is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live.” The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live. Then the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and asked them, “Why have you done this? Why have you let the boys live?”

The midwives answered Pharaoh, “Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women; they are vigorous and give birth before the midwives arrive.”

So God was kind to the midwives and the people increased and became even more numerous. And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own.

Then Pharaoh gave this order to all his people: “Every Hebrew boy that is born you must throw into the Nile, but let every girl live.”

Now a man of the tribe of Levi married a Levite woman, and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son. When she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him for three months. But when she could hide him no longer, she got a papyrus basket for him and coated it with tar and pitch. Then she placed the child in it and put it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile. His sister stood at a distance to see what would happen to him.

Then Pharaoh’s daughter went down to the Nile to bathe, and her attendants were walking along the riverbank. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her female slave to get it. She opened it and saw the baby. He was crying, and she felt sorry for him. “This is one of the Hebrew babies,” she said.

Then his sister asked Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?”

“Yes, go,” she answered. So the girl went and got the baby’s mother. Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I will pay you.” So the woman took the baby and nursed him. When the child grew older, she took him to Pharaoh’s daughter and he became her son. She named him Moses, saying, “I drew him out of the water.”

A Psalm and A Prayer
Responsive Readings from the Psalms and Prayers
for Public Worship and Private Devotions
Psalm 124
We have escaped like a bird
Nisi quia Dominus

If the LORD had not been on our side, *
  let Israel now say;

If the LORD had not been on our side, *
  when enemies rose up against us;

Then would they have swallowed us up alive *
  in their fierce anger toward us;

Then would the waters have overwhelmed us *
  and the torrent gone over us;

Then would the raging waters *
  have gone right over us.

Blessed be the LORD! *
  he has not given us over to be a prey for their teeth.

We have escaped like a bird from the snare of the fowler; *
  the snare is broken, and we have escaped.

Our help is in the Name of the LORD, *
  the maker of heaven and earth.

We thank you, dear Father in heaven, that you let the light from your face shine into our hearts. Look upon our time, we pray, with your clear, penetrating eyes, and let all people sense that they are watched over by more than they are able to see. Let them realize that a strong God and Father is watching over them. Protect us on our way, and let your light shine ever more brightly, so that in all we do your name is glorified. Amen.

Second Reading
From the Epistles

Romans 12:1-8
One body in Christ with gifts that differ

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

Today’s Gospel Reading

Matthew 16:13-20
The profession of Peter’s faith

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”

They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”

Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.

Here end the Readings

Click HERE to read today’s Holy Gospel Lesson message

The Nicene Creed

The Nicene Creed

• We believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible.

• And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, begotten from the Father before all ages, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made; of the same essence as the Father. Through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven; he became incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary, and was made human. He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate; he suffered and was buried. The third day he rose again, according to the Scriptures. He ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again with glory to judge the living and the dead. His kingdom will never end.

• And we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life. He proceeds from the Father and the Son, and with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified. He spoke through the prophets. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church. We affirm one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look forward to the resurrection of the dead, and to life in the world to come. Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer

The Lord's Prayer - Our Father Who Art in Heaven

Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that 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.

Holy Communion

Holy Communion
A nondenominational serving of bread and wine

Though no video can truly replace the experience of celebrating together in our places of worship, we know that where two or more are gathered, the Lord is present. This table is open to all who recognize Jesus Christ as healer and redeemer. This table is open to all who work to bring God’s Kingdom here on earth. No one is turned away because of life circumstances. No one is barred from this table. No one seeking God’s abundant grace and mercy is turned aside. We see before us the abundance that a life of faith offers as we respond to God’s everlasting mercy in prayer and deed.

Benediction
(Romans 12)

My friends, we are the body of Christ, built on the foundation of God’s grace. Go now to love and serve in your unique and individual ways. As people connected in call and in love, give yourselves fully to God and God’s world.

Optional parts of the readings are set off in [square brackets].

The Bible texts of the Old Testament, Epistle, and Gospel lessons are from The Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Responsive Readings from the Common Book of Prayer (1789).

The Daily Lectionary is a three year cyclical lectionary. We are currently in Year A. Beginning with the first Sunday of Advent in 2023, we will be in Year B. The year which ended at Advent 2022 was Year A. These readings complement the Sunday and festival readings: Thursday through Saturday readings help prepare the reader for the Sunday ahead; Monday through Wednesday readings help the reader reflect and digest on what they heard in worship. Revised Common Lectionary Daily Readings, copyright © 2005 Consultation on Common Texts. www.commontexts.org
The Sunday Lectionary and Prayers for Sunday, August 27, 2023
Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost
Exodus 1:8—2:10; Psalm 124; Romans 12:1-8; Matthew 16:13-20
Paul invites us to present our bodies as a living sacrifice to God, dedicating ourselves so fully that God can transform us by renewing our minds and revealing God’s will. The great stories of our faith are filled with moments of ordinary people doing just this. Exodus reveals midwives risking their lives to save the Hebrew children. Pharaoh’s daughter recognizes a refugee child and saves him from the water. And Moses’s sister stands watch to protect her brother and re-unite him with his mother. Peter proclaims Jesus as the Christ, and Jesus proclaims Peter as the rock upon whom God will build the church. Whether we are mighty or small, God is not only our helper but also our maker. Having created us in the divine image, God invites us to give ourselves fully. In so doing, we open the door for God to transform our lives, and through us, to transform the world.