THE LAST SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY
FEBRUARY 14, 2021
10.30 o’clock
THE ORDER OF SERVICE FOR MORNING PRAYER
Opening Hymn: Worship the Lord in the Beauty of Holiness
Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness,
Bow down before Him, His glory proclaim;
Gold of obedience and incense of lowliness,
Bring and adore Him—the Lord is His Name.
Low at His feet lay Thy burden of carefulness,
High on His heart He will bear it for thee;
Comfort thy sorrows and answer thy prayerfulness,
Guiding thy steps as may best for thee be.
Fear not to enter His courts in the slenderness
Of the poor wealth thou wouldst reckon as thine;
Truth in its beauty, and love in its tenderness,
These are the offerings to lay on His shrine.
These though we bring them in trembling and fearfulness,
He will accept for the Name that is dear,
Mornings of joy give for evenings of tearfulness,
Trust for our trembling, and hope for our fear.
Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness,
Bow down before Him, His glory proclaim;
Gold of obedience and incense of lowliness,
Bring and adore Him—the Lord is His Name.
Sentence of Scripture
The earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. (Habakkuk 2.14)
The Minister,
DEARLY beloved brethren, the Scripture moveth us in sundry places to acknowledge and confess our manifold sins and wickedness; and that we should not dissemble nor cloke them before the face of Almighty God our heavenly Father; but confess them with an humble, lowly, penitent, and obedient heart; to the end that we may obtain forgiveness of the same, by his infinite goodness and mercy. Wherefore I pray and beseech you, as many as are here present, to accompany me with a pure heart and humble voice unto the throne of the heavenly grace.
ALMIGHTY and most merciful Father, We have erred and strayed from thy ways like lost sheep, We have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts, We have offended against thy 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 no health in us. But thou, O Lord, have mercy upon us, miserable offenders. Spare thou them, O God, which confess their faults. Restore thou them that are penitent; According to thy promises declared unto mankind in Christ Jesu our Lord. And grant, O most merciful Father, for his sake, That we may hereafter live a godly, righteous, and sober life, To the glory of thy holy Name. Amen.
ALMIGHTY Father, who of thy great love to men didst give thy dearly beloved Son to die for us; Grant that through his Cross our sins may be put away, and remembered no more against us, and that, cleansed by his Blood, and mindful of his sufferings, we may take up our cross daily, and follow him in newness of life, until we come to his everlasting kingdom; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
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 them that trespass against us; And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, For ever and ever. Amen.
O Lord, open thou our lips;
And our mouth shall show forth thy praise.
O God, make speed to save us;
O Lord, make haste to help us.
GLORY be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Praise ye the Lord;
The Lord’s Name be praised.
Worship in Song: He is Exalted Medley
He is exalted the King is exalted on High
And I will praise Him.
He is exalted forever exalted
And I will praise His name.
Chorus:
He is the Lord
Forever His truth shall reign
Heaven and Earth
Rejoice in His holy name
He is exalted the King is exalted on high
For Thou O Lord Art High above all the earth
You exalted above all the earth
I exalt thee, I exalt thee,
I exalt thee, I exalt thee, I exalt thee, O Lord.
We exalt thee…
For you are the Lord
Forever Your truth shall reign
Heaven and Earth
Rejoice in Your holy name
You are exalted forever exalted on high.
THE FIRST LESSON:2 Kings 2:1-12
Now when the Lord was about to take Eli′jah up to heaven by a whirlwind, Eli′jah and Eli′sha were on their way from Gilgal. And Eli′jah said to Eli′sha, “Tarry here, I pray you; for the Lord has sent me as far as Bethel.” But Eli′sha said, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel. And the sons of the prophets who were in Bethel came out to Eli′sha, and said to him, “Do you know that today the Lord will take away your master from over you?” And he said, “Yes, I know it; hold your peace.” Eli′jah said to him, “Eli′sha, tarry here, I pray you; for the Lord has sent me to Jericho.” But he said, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they came to Jericho. The sons of the prophets who were at Jericho drew near to Eli′sha, and said to him, “Do you know that today the Lord will take away your master from over you?” And he answered, “Yes, I know it; hold your peace.” Then Eli′jah said to him, “Tarry here, I pray you; for the Lord has sent me to the Jordan.” But he said, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So the two of them went on. Fifty men of the sons of the prophets also went, and stood at some distance from them, as they both were standing by the Jordan. Then Eli′jah took his mantle, and rolled it up, and struck the water, and the water was parted to the one side and to the other, till the two of them could go over on dry ground.
When they had crossed, Eli′jah said to Eli′sha, “Ask what I shall do for you, before I am taken from you.” And Eli′sha said, “I pray you, let me inherit a double share of your spirit.” And he said, “You have asked a hard thing; yet, if you see me as I am being taken from you, it shall be so for you; but if you do not see me, it shall not be so.” And as they still went on and talked, behold, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them. And Eli′jah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. And Eli′sha saw it and he cried, “My father, my father! the chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” And he saw him no more.
This is the Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
PSALM 50:1-6
THE LORD, even the Most Mighty God, hath spoken, / and called the world, from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof.
Out of Sion, the perfection of beauty, / God hath shined forth.
Our God cometh, and keepeth not silence; / there goeth before him a consuming fire, and a mighty tempest is stirred up round about him.
He calleth to the heavens from above, / and to the earth, that he may judge his people:
‘Gather my saints together unto me: / those that have made a covenant with me with sacrifice.’
And the heavens declare his righteousness; / for God is judge himself.
SECOND LESSON: 2 Corinthians 4:3-6
And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the likeness of God. For what we preach is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For it is the God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.
This is the Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God
Worship in Song: Purify my Heart
Purify my heart,
Let me be as gold and precious silver.
Purify my heart,
Let me be as gold, pure gold.
Refiner’s fire,
My heart’s one desire
Is to be… holy;
Set apart for You, Lord.
I choose to be… holy;
Set apart for You, my Master,
Ready to do Your will.
Purify my heart,
Cleanse me from within
And make me holy.
Purify my heart,
Cleanse me from my sin, deep within.
Refiner’s fire,
My heart’s one desire
Is to be… holy;
Set apart for You, Lord.
I choose to be… holy;
Set apart for You, my Master,
Ready to do Your will.
THE HOLY GOSPEL: Mark 9:2-9
R. / Glory be to Thee, O Lord.
Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them. And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus. Then Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” He did not know what to say, for they were terrified. Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, “This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!” Suddenly when they looked around, they saw no one with them any more, but only Jesus. As they were coming down the mountain, he ordered them to tell no one about what they had seen, until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead.
R./ Praise be to thee, O Christ.
BENEDICTUS. ST LUKE 1:68
BLESSED be the Lord God of Israel; / for he hath visited and redeemed his people;
And hath raised up a mighty salvation for us, / in the house of his servant David;
As he spake by the mouth of his holy Prophets, / which have been since the world began;
That we should be saved from our enemies, / and from the hands of all that hate us;
To perform the mercy promised to our forefathers, / and to remember his holy covenant;
To perform the oath which he sware to our forefather Abraham, / that he would grant us
That we being delivered out of the hands of our enemies / might serve him without fear,
In holiness and righteousness before him, / all the days of our life.
AND thou, child, shalt be called the Prophet of the Highest: / for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways;
To give knowledge of salvation unto his people / for the remission of their sins;
Through the tender mercy of our God; / whereby the day-spring from on high hath visited us;
To give light to them that sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death, / and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
GLORY be to the Father, and to the Son, / and to the Holy Ghost;
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, / world without end. Amen.
Then shall be said or sung the Confession of the Faith, called the Apostles’ Creed.
I BELIEVE in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth: And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, Born of the Virgin Mary, Suffered under Pontius Pilate, Was crucified, dead, and buried: He descended into hell; The third day he rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, And sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost; The holy Catholic Church; The Communion of Saints; The Forgiveness of sins; The Resurrection of the body, And the Life everlasting. Amen.
The Lord be with you;
And with thy spirit.
Let us pray.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
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 them that trespass against us; And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil. Amen.
O Lord, show thy mercy upon us;
And grant us thy salvation.
O Lord, save the Queen;
And mercifully hear us when we call upon thee.
Endue thy Ministers with righteousness;
And make thy chosen people joyful.
O Lord, save thy people;
And bless thine inheritance.
Give peace in our time, O Lord;
And evermore mightily defend us.
O God, make clean our hearts within us;
And take not thy Holy Spirit from us.
The Collect for the Last Sunday after Epiphany.
O God, whose blessed Son was manifested that he might destroy the works of the devil, and make us the sons of God, and heirs of eternal life: Grant us, we beseech thee, that, having this hope, we may purify ourselves, even as he is pure; that, when he shall appear again with power and great glory, we may be made like unto him in his eternal and glorious kingdom; where with thee, O Father, and thee, O Holy Ghost, he liveth and reigneth, ever one God, world without end. Amen.
The Second Collect, for Peace.
O GOD, who art the author of peace and lover of concord, in knowledge of whom standeth our eternal life, whose service is perfect freedom: Defend us thy humble servants in all assaults of our enemies; that we, surely trusting in thy defence, may not fear the power of any adversaries; through the might of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Third Collect, for Grace.
O LORD our heavenly Father, Almighty and everlasting God, who hast safely brought us to the beginning of this day: Defend us in the same with thy mighty power; and grant that this day we fall into no sin, neither run into any kind of danger; but that all our doings may be ordered by thy governance, to do always that is righteous in thy sight; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
A Prayer for the Clergy and People.
ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, from whom cometh every good and perfect gift: Send down upon our Bishops and Clergy, and all Congregations committed to their charge, the healthful Spirit of thy grace; and that they may truly please thee, pour upon them the continual dew of thy blessing. Grant this, O Lord, for the honour of our Advocate and Mediator, Jesus Christ. Amen.
The Hymn: Fairest Lord Jesus.
Fairest Lord Jesus, ruler of all nature,
O thou of God to earth come down.
Thee will I cherish, Thee will I honor,
thou, my soul’s glory, joy, and crown.
Fair are the meadows, fairer still the woodlands,
Robed in the blooming garb of spring:
Jesus is fairer, Jesus is purer
who makes the woeful heart to sing.
Fair is the sunshine, fairer still the moonlight,
and all the twinkling starry host:
Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer
than all the angels heaven can boast.
The Sermon – The Rector
Prayers and Thanksgiving
For the Prime Minister of Canada and the Premiers of the Provinces.
LORD of all power and mercy, we beseech thee to assist with thy favour the Prime Minister of this Dominion, and the Premiers of the Provinces. Cause them, we pray thee, to walk before thee in truth and righteousness, and to fulfil their office to thy glory and the public good; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
For the Advancement of Medical Science.
O GOD, whose Spirit filleth all the world, revealing the wonders of nature through each succeeding day: We thank thee for the continual advance in medical science, whereby the bodies of men are made apt for thy service; beseeching thee that those who minister to thee in nature may be consecrated to thee by grace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
For the Diocese
ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, who dost govern all things in heaven and earth: Mercifully hear our prayers, and grant to this Diocese all things needful for its spiritual welfare ministers to labour in this portion of thy vineyard, churches complete in the beauty of holiness. Strengthen and confirm the faithful; protect and guide the children; visit and relieve the sick; turn and soften the wicked; arouse the careless; recover the fallen; restore the penitent. Remove all hindrances to the advancement of thy truth; and bring us all to be of one heart and mind within the fold of thy holy Church, to the honour and glory of thy blessed Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
For Faithfulness in the Use of this World’s Goods
ALMIGHTY God, whose loving hand hath given us all that we possess: Grant us grace that we may honour thee with our substance, and, remembering the account which we must one day give, may be faithful stewards of thy bounty; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Prayer for Those Preparing for Holy Baptism
God of Light, you cut away corruption and strengthen faith, you build up hope and foster love. You lead us into abundant life. We, who are threatened by unbelief and hesitation in faith, by the love of money and lawless passions, by enmity and quarrelling, and by every manner of evil, call upon you now in humility and trust.
Free your Cailin and Derek whom you have called, and empower them by your Holy Spirit to be holy and faithful in your sight. Create in them a spirit of reverence, of patience and hope, balance and purity, and of charity and peace. We ask this through Christ our ord. Amen.
A Prayer of Saint Chrysostom.
ALMIGHTY God, who hast given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplications unto thee; and dost promise that when two or three are gathered together in thy Name thou wilt grant their requests: Fulfil now, O Lord, the desires and petitions of thy servants, as may be most expedient for them; granting us in this world knowledge of thy truth, and in the world to come life everlasting. Amen.
2 Corinthians 13. 14. THE grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Ghost, be with us all evermore. Amen.
Hymn: Eternal Ruler of the Ceaseless round
Eternal Ruler of the ceaseless round
of circling planets singing on their way,
Guide of the nation from the night profound
into the glory of the perfect day;
rule in our hearts, that we may ever be
guided and strengthened and upheld by thee.
We would be one in hatred of all wrong,
one in the love of all things sweet and fair,
one with the joy that breaketh into song,
one with the grief that trembleth into prayer;
one in the love that makes thy children free
to follow truth, and thus to follow thee.
Oh, clothe us with thy heavenly armor, Lord,
thy trusty shield, thy sword of love divine;
our inspiration be thy constant word,
we ask no victories that are not thine;
give or withhold, let pain or pleasure be;
enough to know that we are serving thee.