Thy Strong Word – Looking Ahead: Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 16)

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Hosted by Rev. Will Weedon, LCMS Director of Worship and International Center Chaplain.

With guest Rev. Nabil Nour from Trinity Lutheran Church in Hartford, South Dakota.

Looking Ahead: Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 16)

Introit: Psalm 2:6-7; Psalm 117

6 “As for me, I have set my King
on Zion, my holy hill.”

7 I will tell of the decree:
The Lord said to me, “You are my Son;
today I have begotten you.

The Lord‘s Faithfulness Endures Forever

117 Praise the Lord, all nations!
Extol him, all peoples!
2 For great is his steadfast love toward us,
and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.
Praise the Lord!

Antiphon: Psalm 115:18

18 But we will bless the Lord
from this time forth and forevermore.
Praise the Lord!

Gradual: Psalm 34:9, 19

9 Oh, fear the Lord, you his saints,
for those who fear him have no lack!

19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
but the Lord delivers him out of them all.

Old Testament: Isaiah 51:1-6

The Lord‘s Comfort for Zion

51 “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness,
you who seek the Lord:
look to the rock from which you were hewn,
and to the quarry from which you were dug.
2 Look to Abraham your father
and to Sarah who bore you;
for he was but one when I called him,
that I might bless him and multiply him.
3 For the Lord comforts Zion;
he comforts all her waste places
and makes her wilderness like Eden,
her desert like the garden of the Lord;
joy and gladness will be found in her,
thanksgiving and the voice of song.

4 “Give attention to me, my people,
and give ear to me, my nation;
for a law[a] will go out from me,
and I will set my justice for a light to the peoples.
5 My righteousness draws near,
my salvation has gone out,
and my arms will judge the peoples;
the coastlands hope for me,
and for my arm they wait.
6 Lift up your eyes to the heavens,
and look at the earth beneath;
for the heavens vanish like smoke,
the earth will wear out like a garment,
and they who dwell in it will die in like manner;[b]
but my salvation will be forever,
and my righteousness will never be dismayed.

Footnotes:

Isaiah 51:4 Or for teaching; also verse 7

Isaiah 51:6 Or will die like gnats

Psalm 138 (antiphon: v. 8a)

Give Thanks to the Lord

Of David.

138 I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart;
before the gods I sing your praise;
2 I bow down toward your holy temple
and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness,
for you have exalted above all things
your name and your word.[a]
3 On the day I called, you answered me;
my strength of soul you increased.[b]

4 All the kings of the earth shall give you thanks, O Lord,
for they have heard the words of your mouth,
5 and they shall sing of the ways of the Lord,
for great is the glory of the Lord.
6 For though the Lord is high, he regards the lowly,
but the haughty he knows from afar.

7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
you preserve my life;
you stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies,
and your right hand delivers me.
8 The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me;
your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever.
Do not forsake the work of your hands.

Footnotes:

Psalm 138:2 Or you have exalted your word above all your name

Psalm 138:3 Hebrew you made me bold in my soul with strength

Epistle: Romans 11:33-12:8

33 Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!

34 “For who has known the mind of the Lord,
or who has been his counselor?”
35 “Or who has given a gift to him
that he might be repaid?”

36 For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.

A Living Sacrifice

12 I appeal to you therefore, brothers,[a] by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.[b] 2 Do not be conformed to this world,[c]but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.[d]

Gifts of Grace

3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. 4 For as in one body we have many members,[e] and the members do not all have the same function, 5 so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. 6 Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; 7 if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; 8 the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads,[f] with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.

Footnotes:

Romans 12:1 Or brothers and sisters

Romans 12:1 Or your rational service

Romans 12:2 Greek age

Romans 12:2 Or what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God

Romans 12:4 Greek parts; also verse 5

Romans 12:8 Or gives aid

Proper Verse: Ephesians 2:19b-20

19b But you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone,

Footnotes:

Ephesians 2:19 Or sojourners

Gospel: Matthew 16:13-20

Peter Confesses Jesus as the Christ

13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock[a] I will build my church, and the gates of hell[b] shall not prevail against it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed[c] in heaven.” 20 Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ.

Footnotes:

Matthew 16:18 The Greek words for Peter and rock sound similar

Matthew 16:18 Greek the gates of Hades

Matthew 16:19 Or shall have been bound… shall have been loosed

Underwriter of Thy Strong Word

English Standard Version (ESV)The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.