Trinity 2 Sunday 1st June 2008
Collect
Lord, you have taught us that all our doings without love are nothing worth: send your Holy Spirit and pour into our hearts that most excellent gift of love, the true bond of peace and of all virtues, without which whoever lives is counted dead before you. Grant this for your only Son Jesus Christ’s sake, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
First reading - Deuteronomy 11.18-21,26-28
18) You shall put these words of mine in your heart and soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and fix them as an emblem on your forehead. 19) Teach them to your children, talking about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise. 20) Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, 21) so that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land that the LORD swore to your ancestors to give them, as long as the heavens are above the earth. 26) See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse: 27) the blessing, if you obey the commandments of the LORD your God that I am commanding you today; 28) and the curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn from the way that I am commanding you today, to follow other gods that you have not known.
Psalm Refrain
God is our hope and strength, a very present help in trouble
Second reading - Romans 1.16-17; 3.22b-28(29-31)
16) I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17) For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, ‘The one who is righteous will live by faith.’ 22) For there is no distinction, 23) since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; 24) they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25) whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith. He did this to show his righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over the sins previously committed; 26) it was to prove at the present time that he himself is righteous and that he justifies the one who has faith in Jesus. 27) Then what becomes of boasting? It is excluded. By what law? By that of works? No, but by the law of faith. 28) For we hold that a person is justified by faith apart from works prescribed by the law. 29) Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, 30) since God is one; and he will justify the circumcised on the ground of faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith. 31) Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law.
Gospel - Matthew 7.21-29
21) ‘Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. 22) On that day many will say to me, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many deeds of power in your name?” 23) Then I will declare to them, “I never knew you; go away from me, you evildoers.” 24) Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. 25) The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on rock. 26) And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27) The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell – and great was its fall!’ 28) Now when Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were astounded at his teaching, 29) for he taught them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.
Post-communion
Loving Father, we thank you for feeding us at the supper of your Son: sustain us with your Spirit, that we may serve you here on earth until our joy is complete in heaven, and we share in the eternal banquet with Jesus Christ our Lord.