Thursday Evenings at All Hallows (Thursday, August 10, 2023)
All Hallows is a digital church and online worship ministry designed to serve families and individuals who are unable to attend a local church in person for any reason; who are traveling; who wish to learn more about the Christian faith and way of life; and who otherwise may benefit from its services.
This evening’s service is one of two services that are offered on this website each week, one on Thursday evenings and the other on Sundays.
WE GATHER IN GOD’S NAME
A lamp or candle may be lit.
You, O Lord, are my lamp;
my God, you make my darkness bright.
The light and peace of Jesus Christ be with you
and also with you.
As this evening hymn is sung, more lamps and candles may be lit.
Open this link in a new tab to hear David Hogan’s arrangement of the Phos hilaron, “O Gracious Light.”
1 O gracious Light,
pure brightness of the everlasting One,
O Jesus Christ, most holy and blessed!
2 Now as we come to the setting of the sun,
and our eyes behold the vesper light,
we sing thy praises, O God:
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
3 Thou art worthy at all times
to be praised by happy voices,
O Son of God, O Giver of life,
and to be glorified through all the worlds.
Amen, Amen, Amen.
Hear these words of scripture.
Love one another,
for love is of God,
and whoever loves is born of God and knows God.
Spirit of God, search our hearts.
Let us bow our heads and, in silence,
remember our need for God’s forgiveness.
Silence
Let us confess our sins to God.
God of mercy,
we have sinned against you and against others.
We have sinned in what we have done,
and in what we have failed to do.
We are truly sorry.
For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ,
who died for our sins,
forgive us all that is past
and raise us to newness of life. Amen.
Almighty God, who pardons all who truly repent,
forgive our sins, strengthen us by the Holy Spirit,
and keep us in life eternal;
through Jesus Christ our Redeemer.
Amen.
Open this link in a new tab to hear Jim Cooper and Brian Wooten’s "Song of Moses, Rev. 15:3-4."
Great and marvelous are Your deeds
Oh, Lord God Almighty
Great and marvelous are Your deeds
Oh, Lord God Almighty
Just and true are Your ways
Oh, King of the Ages
Who shall not fear, oh Lord
And glorify Your name
For You alone
You alone are Holy
All nations will come
And worship before You, Lord
For You alone
You alone are Holy
All nations will come
And worship before You, Lord
(Your righteousness has been revealed)
You alone are Holy
Holy
Great and marvelous are Your deeds
Oh, Lord God Almighty
Great and marvelous are Your deeds
Oh, Lord God Almighty
Just and true are Your ways
Oh, King of the Ages
Who shall not fear, oh Lord
And glorify Your name
For You alone
You alone are Holy
All nations will come
And worship before You, Lord
For You alone
You alone are Holy
All nations will come
And worship before You, Lord
(Your righteousness has been revealed)
You alone are Holy
Holy
The Lord be with you.
The Lord bless you.
Let us pray.
Silence
Raise up your great power, Lord, and come among us to save us; that, although through our sins we are grievously hindered in running the race that is set before us, your plentiful grace and mercy may speedily help and deliver us; through the sufficiency of your Son our Lord, to whom with you and the Holy Spirit be honor and glory, now and for ever. Amen.
WE HEAR GOD’S WORD
A reading from the New Testament (Matthew 7:21-23)
“Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.
Silence
May your word live in us
and bear much fruit to your glory.
The Path of a True Disciple
Today’s reading from the Gospel of Matthew anticipates two other passages from Matthew’s Gospel. All three passages are related to discipleship. The first passage it anticipates is Matthew 12: 46-56 in which Jesus identifies as his true family those who do the will of his Father in heaven.
As Jesus was speaking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, asking to speak to him. Someone told Jesus, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, and they want to speak to you.”
Jesus asked, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” Then he pointed to his disciples and said, “Look, these are my mother and brothers. Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother!”
In this passage Jesus ties kinship to him to obedience to God’s will. Our time has seen an erosion of the place of family in our lives. In the time of Jesus’ earthly ministry family played a far greater role in people’s lives. While the religious laws of the Old Testament made some provision for widows, the elderly were dependent upon the generosity of their children, their extended family, and their relatives for food, shelter, and other necessities.
This is one reason the loyalty of the Moabitess Ruth to her Jewish mother-in-law Naomi is remarkable as Ruth was not related to Naomi by blood but by marriage. Since Ruth’s husband, Naomi’s son, had died, Ruth was under no obligation to remain with her mother-in-law.
If you are not familiar with the story of Ruth, who was the grandmother of King David, the second king of Israel, and an ancestor of Jesus, you can read it in the Book of Ruth in the Old Testament. The loyalty that Ruth showed to Naomi is a good example for us all. The Book of Ruth is a lesson in faithfulness.
The second passage that today’s reading anticipates is Matthew 25: 31-46 which describes the final judgment.
“But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left.
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’
“Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’
“And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’
“Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’
“Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’
“And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’
“And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.”
All of the acts described in this passage have one thing in common: they are acts of mercy—acts of kindness to the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick, and the prisoner. They reflect the attitude, the way of thinking, and the behavior that Jesus encouraged not only in his disciples but also in others, in particular the Pharisees and the teachers of the religious law. He told his disciples to be merciful as their Father in heaven was merciful and thereby show that they were children of the Most High. He told the Pharisees and the teachers of the law to go and learn what God meant when he spoke through the prophet Hosea, saying, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” He told the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 29-37) to an expert in religious law who asked him, “Who is my neighbor?” He then asked the expert—
“Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?” Jesus asked.
The man replied, “The one who showed him mercy.”
Then Jesus said, “Yes, now go and do the same.”
We may read this third passage from Matthew’s Gospel and conclude that we are saved by our good deeds. However, Jesus tells his disciples in Matthew 19:16-30 that even a rich man cannot be saved by his good deeds.
The disciples were astounded. “Then who in the world can be saved?” they asked.
Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.
Jesus’ disciples believed that only the wealthy had the time and the resources to comply with all the requirements of the religious law and therefore be righteous in God’s sight.
What Jesus is saying is that we cannot put ourselves right with God by our own efforts. Rather we need the help of God’s grace. God’s grace, the power of the Holy Spirit working in us, awakens faith in us, enables us to turn away from our old ways to God, quickens us spiritually, and with the passage of time transforms our lives.
As James, Jesus’ older brother, points to our attention in the Letter of James faith that is active and alive will manifest itself in the form of good deeds, in acts of mercy.
Faith in Jesus involves not only believing that he is who he claimed to be, that his suffering and death on the cross put us right with God but also thinking what he said was true and what he did was right and acting on it, following his teaching and example and demonstrating by our actions that Jesus truly has spiritual lordship over our lives.
As the apostle Paul put it, “faith works through love.” It is shown more clearly in our deeds than in our words.
Rather than questioning how much faith we may have, something that Christians are prone to do, and in doing so, feed any doubts that they might have, it is better to act on what faith we do have. Acting on faith that we have will make it stronger. God’s grace works in us in that way. The more we act on our faith, the more it will grow, and the more God’s grace will abound in our lives. If we put our trust and confidence in Jesus’ words and his actions and seek to live according to his teaching and example, we will find ourselves walking the path of a true disciple.
Silence
WE RESPOND
Open this link in a new tab to hear Keith Getty and Margaret Becker’s “Jesus, Draw Me Ever Nearer.”
1Jesus draw me ever nearer
As I labour through the storm.
You have called me to this passage,
and I’ll follow, though I’m worn.
May this journey bring a blessing,
May I rise on wings of faith;
And at the end of my heart’s testing,
With Your likeness let me wake.
2 Jesus guide me through the tempest;
Keep my spirit staid and sure.
When the midnight meets the morning,
Let me love You even more.
May this journey bring a blessing,
May I rise on wings of faith;
And at the end of my heart’s testing,
With Your likeness let me wake.
3 Let the treasures of the trial
Form within me as I go –
And at the end of this long passage,
Let me leave them at Your throne.
May this journey bring a blessing,
May I rise on wings of faith;
And at the end of my heart’s testing,
With Your likeness let me wake.
WE PRAY FOR GOD’S WORLD
Let us pray for all people and for the Church throughout the world.
Father, we pray for the universal Church;
that we all may be one in Christ.
Grant that every member of the Church may truly and
humbly serve you;
that your Name may be glorified by everyone.
We pray for all Christian pastors;
that they may be faithful ministers of your word and
sacraments.
We pray for the spread of the gospel;
that people everywhere may come to know and love you.
We pray for all who govern and exercise authority in the
nations of the world;
that there may be peace and justice among all.
Give us strength to do your will in all that we undertake;
that we may be blessed in all our works.
Have compassion on those who suffer or are in grief or
trouble;
that they may he delivered from their distress.
We praise you for all your saints who have entered into
joy;
may we also share in your heavenly kingdom.
Let us pray for our own needs and those of others.
Silence
Those present may add their own petitions.
Accept our prayers through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who taught us to pray,
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 those who 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.
WE GO FORTH TO SERVE
May the Lord bless us and keep us,
May the Lord make his face to shine on us and be gracious to us,
May the Lord look on us with kindness and give us peace. Amen.
Open this link in a new tab to hear Marty Haugen’s “Song of St. Patrick (May the Spirit of Christ).”
May the Spirit of Christ be our hope through the day,
be our guard through the night,
our companion on the way.
1 Christ be ever before us,
Christ be ever behind us,
Christ be ever within.
May the Spirit of Christ be our hope through the day,
be our guard through the night,
our companion on the way.
2 Christ upon our left hand watching,
At our right hand guiding,
Christ above, beneath us guarding,
Near to us abiding.
May the Spirit of Christ be our hope through the day,
be our guard through the night,
our companion on the way.
3 Christ be in each holy silence,
Christ be in our speaking,
Christ in every work we offer,
Ever in our seeking.
May the Spirit of Christ be our hope through the day,
be our guard through the night,
our companion on the way.
4 Let us be God’s light in the darkness,
Let us be God’s kindness;
Let us be God’s justice and mercy,
Hands and feet of Christ.
May the Spirit of Christ be our hope through the day,
be our guard through the night,
our companion on the way.
5 God Creator, bless and keep us,
Christ, be ever near us;
Spirit be the light before us,
Gentle be our pathway.
May the Spirit of Christ be our hope through the day,
be our guard through the night,
our companion on the way.
Those present may exchange a sign of peace.
The peace of the Lord be always with you.
And also with you.
The second passage that today’s reading anticipates is Matthew 25: 31-46 which describes the final judgment.
“But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left.
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’
“Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’
“And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’
“Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’
“Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’
“And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’
“And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.”
All of the acts described in this passage have one thing in common: they are acts of mercy—acts of kindness to the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick, and the prisoner. They reflect the attitude, the way of thinking, and the behavior that Jesus encouraged not only in his disciples but also in others, in particular the Pharisees and the teachers of the religious law. He told his disciples to be merciful as their Father in heaven was merciful and thereby show that they were children of the Most High. He told the Pharisees and the teachers of the law to go and learn what God meant when he spoke through the prophet Hosea, saying, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” He told the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 29-37) to an expert in religious law who asked him, “Who is my neighbor?” He then asked the expert—
“Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?” Jesus asked.
The man replied, “The one who showed him mercy.”
Then Jesus said, “Yes, now go and do the same.”
We may read this third passage from Matthew’s Gospel and conclude that we are saved by our good deeds. However, Jesus tells his disciples in Matthew 19:16-30 that even a rich man cannot be saved by his good deeds.
The disciples were astounded. “Then who in the world can be saved?” they asked.
Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.
Jesus’ disciples believed that only the wealthy had the time and the resources to comply with all the requirements of the religious law and therefore be righteous in God’s sight.
What Jesus is saying is that we cannot put ourselves right with God by our own efforts. Rather we need the help of God’s grace. God’s grace, the power of the Holy Spirit working in us, awakens faith in us, enables us to turn away from our old ways to God, quickens us spiritually, and with the passage of time transforms our lives.
As James, Jesus’ older brother, points to our attention in the Letter of James faith that is active and alive will manifest itself in the form of good deeds, in acts of mercy.
Faith in Jesus involves not only believing that he is who he claimed to be, that his suffering and death on the cross put us right with God but also thinking what he said was true and what he did was right and acting on it, following his teaching and example and demonstrating by our actions that Jesus truly has spiritual lordship over our lives.
As the apostle Paul put it, “faith works through love.” It is shown more clearly in our deeds than in our words.
Rather than questioning how much faith we may have, something that Christians are prone to do, and in doing so, feed any doubts that they might have, it is better to act on what faith we do have. Acting on faith that we have will make it stronger. God’s grace works in us in that way. The more we act on our faith, the more it will grow, and the more God’s grace will abound in our lives. If we put our trust and confidence in Jesus’ words and his actions and seek to live according to his teaching and example, we will find ourselves walking the path of a true disciple.
Silence
WE RESPOND
Open this link in a new tab to hear Keith Getty and Margaret Becker’s “Jesus, Draw Me Ever Nearer.”
1Jesus draw me ever nearer
As I labour through the storm.
You have called me to this passage,
and I’ll follow, though I’m worn.
May this journey bring a blessing,
May I rise on wings of faith;
And at the end of my heart’s testing,
With Your likeness let me wake.
2 Jesus guide me through the tempest;
Keep my spirit staid and sure.
When the midnight meets the morning,
Let me love You even more.
May this journey bring a blessing,
May I rise on wings of faith;
And at the end of my heart’s testing,
With Your likeness let me wake.
3 Let the treasures of the trial
Form within me as I go –
And at the end of this long passage,
Let me leave them at Your throne.
May this journey bring a blessing,
May I rise on wings of faith;
And at the end of my heart’s testing,
With Your likeness let me wake.
WE PRAY FOR GOD’S WORLD
Let us pray for all people and for the Church throughout the world.
Father, we pray for the universal Church;
that we all may be one in Christ.
Grant that every member of the Church may truly and
humbly serve you;
that your Name may be glorified by everyone.
We pray for all Christian pastors;
that they may be faithful ministers of your word and
sacraments.
We pray for the spread of the gospel;
that people everywhere may come to know and love you.
We pray for all who govern and exercise authority in the
nations of the world;
that there may be peace and justice among all.
Give us strength to do your will in all that we undertake;
that we may be blessed in all our works.
Have compassion on those who suffer or are in grief or
trouble;
that they may he delivered from their distress.
We praise you for all your saints who have entered into
joy;
may we also share in your heavenly kingdom.
Let us pray for our own needs and those of others.
Silence
Those present may add their own petitions.
Accept our prayers through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who taught us to pray,
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 those who 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.
WE GO FORTH TO SERVE
May the Lord bless us and keep us,
May the Lord make his face to shine on us and be gracious to us,
May the Lord look on us with kindness and give us peace. Amen.
Open this link in a new tab to hear Marty Haugen’s “Song of St. Patrick (May the Spirit of Christ).”
May the Spirit of Christ be our hope through the day,
be our guard through the night,
our companion on the way.
1 Christ be ever before us,
Christ be ever behind us,
Christ be ever within.
May the Spirit of Christ be our hope through the day,
be our guard through the night,
our companion on the way.
2 Christ upon our left hand watching,
At our right hand guiding,
Christ above, beneath us guarding,
Near to us abiding.
May the Spirit of Christ be our hope through the day,
be our guard through the night,
our companion on the way.
3 Christ be in each holy silence,
Christ be in our speaking,
Christ in every work we offer,
Ever in our seeking.
May the Spirit of Christ be our hope through the day,
be our guard through the night,
our companion on the way.
4 Let us be God’s light in the darkness,
Let us be God’s kindness;
Let us be God’s justice and mercy,
Hands and feet of Christ.
May the Spirit of Christ be our hope through the day,
be our guard through the night,
our companion on the way.
5 God Creator, bless and keep us,
Christ, be ever near us;
Spirit be the light before us,
Gentle be our pathway.
May the Spirit of Christ be our hope through the day,
be our guard through the night,
our companion on the way.
Those present may exchange a sign of peace.
The peace of the Lord be always with you.
And also with you.
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