Spiritual Communion for the 2nd Sunday after Trinity
21st June, 2020
¶ Preparation: You may wish to find a space for prayer in front of a cross, a candle, or a special place.
In the name of the Father,
and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit.
All: Amen.
The Lord be with you
All: and also with you.
Hymn
Praise my soul, the King of heaven!
Praise my soul, the King of heaven!
To his feet thy tribute bring;
ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven,
who like me his praise should sing?
Praise him! Praise him!
Praise him! Praise him!
Praise the everlasting King!
Praise him for his grace and favour
to our fathers in distress;
praise him still the same as ever,
slow to chide and swift to bless.
Praise him! Praise him!
Praise him! Praise him!
Glorious in his faithfulness!
Father-like, he tends and spares us;
well our feeble frame he knows;
in his hands he gently bears us,
rescues us from all our foes.
Praise him! Praise him!
Praise him! Praise him!
Widely as his mercy flows!
Angels, help us to adore him;
ye behold him face-to-face;
sun and moon, bow down before him,
dwellers all in time and space.
Praise him! Praise him!
Praise him! Praise him!
Praise with us the God of grace!
Prayer of Preparation
Almighty God,
to whom all hearts are open,
all desires known,
and from whom no secrets are hidden:
cleanse the thoughts of our hearts
by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit,
that we may perfectly love you,
and worthily magnify your holy name;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Prayers of Penitence
Kyrie Eleison
Jesus says, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is close at hand.’
So let us turn away from our sin and turn to Christ,
confessing our sins in penitence and faith.
Silence is kept.
Lord, have mercy.
All: Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
All: Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
All: Lord, have mercy.
Blessed is the Lord,
All: for he has heard the voice of our prayer;
Therefore shall our hearts dance for joy
All: and in our song will we praise our God.
Gloria in Excelsis
(Sung to the Tune of ‘At the name of Jesus’: Camberwell)
All: Glory in the highest
to the God of heaven!
Peace to all your people
through the earth be given:
Mighty God and Father,
thanks and praise we bring,
Singing alleluias
to our heavenly King.
Jesus Christ is risen,
God the Father’s Son:
with the Holy Spirit,
you are Lord alone!
Lamb once killed for sinners,
all our guilt to bear,
Show us now your mercy,
now receive our prayer.
Christ the world’s true Saviour,
high and holy one,
Seated now and reigning
from your Father’s throne:
Lord and God, we praise you;
highest heaven adores:
In the Father’s glory,
all the praise be yours!
The Collect
Let us pray:
A period of silent prayer is kept.
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.
All: Amen.
¶ The Liturgy of the Word
New Testament Reading
Romans 6:1b-11
Dying and Rising with Christ
What then are we to say? Should we continue in sin in order that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.
For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be destroyed, and we might no longer be enslaved to sin. For whoever has died is freed from sin. But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. The death he died, he died to sin, once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.
At the end:
This is the Word of the Lord.
All: Thanks be to God.
Gradual Hymn
Take up thy cross, the Saviour said
Take up thy cross, the Saviour said,
if thou wouldst my disciple be;
deny thyself, the world forsake,
and humbly follow after me.
Take up thy cross – let not its weight
fill thy weak spirit with alarm:
his strength shall bear thy spirit up,
and brace thy heart, and nerve thine arm.
Take up thy cross, nor heed the shame,
nor let thy foolish pride rebel:
thy Lord for thee the Cross endured,
to save thy soul from death and hell.
Take up thy cross then in his strength,
and calmly ev’ry danger brave;
‘twill guide thee to a better home,
and lead to vict’ry o’er the grave.
Take up thy cross, and follow Christ,
nor think till death to lay it down;
for only those who bear the cross
may hope to wear the glorious crown.
To thee, great Lord, the One in Three,
all praise for evermore ascend:
O grant us in our home to see
the heav’nly life that knows no end.
Gospel Reading
Matthew 10:24-39
Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew.
All: Glory to you, O Lord.
At the end:
This is the Gospel of the Lord.
All: Praise to you, O Christ.
[Jesus said:] ‘A disciple is not above the teacher, nor a slave above the master; it is enough for the disciple to be like the teacher, and the slave like the master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household!
‘So have no fear of them; for nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known. What I say to you in the dark, tell in the light; and what you hear whispered, proclaim from the housetops. Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground unperceived by your Father. And even the hairs of your head are all counted. So do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows.
‘Everyone therefore who acknowledges me before others, I also will acknowledge before my Father in heaven; but whoever denies me before others, I also will deny before my Father in heaven.
‘Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.
For I have come to set a man against his father,
and a daughter against her mother,
and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
and one’s foes will be members of one’s own household.
Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up the cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Those who find their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.
Reflection
The Rt Revd Jonathan Meyrick
Bishop of Lynn
To follow given permission.
Affirmation of Faith
All: We believe and trust in God the Father,
source of all being and life, the one for whom we exist.
We believe and trust in God the Son,
who took our human nature, died for us and rose again.
We believe and trust in God the Holy Spirit,
who gives life to the people of God
and makes Christ known in the world.
This is the faith of the Church.
This is our faith.
We believe and trust in one God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Prayers of Intercession
Pray for the needs of the world, for our local communities, our loved-ones and our friends.
The Lord’s Prayer
Let us pray with confidence as our Saviour has taught us:
All: 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,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
Hymn
The strife is o’er
The strife is o’er, the battle done;
now is the Victor’s triumph won;
O let the song of praise be sung:
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.
Death’s mightiest pow’rs have done their worst,
and Jesus hath his foes dispersed;
let shouts of praise and joy outburst:
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.
On the third morn he rose again
glorious in majesty to reign;
O let us swell the joyful strain:
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.
Lord, by the stripes which wounded thee
from death’s dread sting thy servants free,
that we may live, and sing to thee:
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.
Closing Prayer
Loving Father, we thank you for meeting 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.
All: Amen.
Virtual Blessing & Dismissal
The peace of God,
which passes all understanding,
keep your hearts and minds
in the knowledge and love of God,
and of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord;
and the blessing of God almighty,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be with you, and all those whom you love, today and always.
All: Amen.
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.
All: In the name of Christ.
Amen.