Genesis 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18
A Reading from the Book of Genesis
God put Abraham to the test.
He called to him, "Abraham!"
"Here I am!" he replied.
Then God said:
"Take your son Isaac, your only one, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah. There you shall offer him up as a holocaust on a height that I will point out to you."
When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. Then he reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son.
But the Lord's messenger called to him from heaven, "Abraham, Abraham!"
"Here I am!" he answered.
"Do not lay your hand on the boy," said the messenger. "Do not do the least thing to him. I know now how devoted you are to God, since you did not withhold from me your own beloved son."
As Abraham looked about, he spied a ram caught by its horns in the thicket. So he went and took the ram and offered it up as a holocaust in place of his son.
Again the Lord's messenger called to Abraham from heaven and said:
"I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you acted as you did in not withholding from me your beloved son, I will bless you abundantly and make your descendants as countless as the stars of the sky and the sands of the seashore; your descendants shall take possession of the gates of their enemies, and in your descendants all the nations of the earth shall find blessing—all this because you obeyed my command."
The Word of the Lord.
1. I believed, even when I said,
"I am greatly afflicted."
Precious in the eyes of the Lord
is the death of his faithful ones.
R: I will walk before the Lord, in the land of the living.
2. O Lord, I am your servant;
I am your servant, the son of your handmaid;
you have loosed my bonds.
To you will I offer sacrifice of thanksgiving,
and I will call upon the name of the Lord.
R: I will walk before the Lord, in the land of the living.
3. My vows to the Lord I will pay
in the presence of all his people,
In the courts of the house of the Lord,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
R: I will walk before the Lord, in the land of the living.
Romans 8:31b-34
A Reading from the book of Romans:
Brothers and sisters:
If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but handed him over for us all, how will he not also give us everything else along with him?
Who will bring a charge against God's chosen ones? It is God who acquits us, who will condemn? Christ Jesus it is who died—or, rather, was raised—who also is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us.
The Word of the Lord.
Mark 9:2-10
A Reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark:
Jesus took Peter, 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 fuller on earth could bleach them.
Then Elijah appeared to them along with Moses, and they were conversing with Jesus.
Then Peter said to Jesus in reply, "Rabbi, it is good that we are here! Let us make three tents: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."
He hardly knew what to say, they were so terrified.
Then a cloud came, casting a shadow over them; from the cloud came a voice, "This is my beloved Son. Listen to him."
Suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone but Jesus alone with them.
As they were coming down from the mountain, he charged them not to relate what they had seen to anyone, except when the Son of Man had risen from the dead.
So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what rising from the dead meant.
The Gospel of the Lord.
What Wondrous Love is This
1. What wondrous love is this, O my soul, O my soul?
What wondrous love is this, O my soul?
What wondrous love is this that caused the Lord of bliss
To bear the dreadful curse for my soul, for my soul,
To bear the dreadful curse for my soul?
2. To God and to the Lamb, I will sing, I will sing;
To God and to the Lamb, I will sing;
To God and to the Lamb, who is the great I AM,
While millions join the theme, I will sing, I will sing;
While millions join the theme, I will sing.
3. And when from death I'm free, I'll sing on, I'll sing on;
And when from death I'm free, I'll sing on;
And when from death I'm free, I'll sing and joyful be,
And through eternity, I'll sing on, I'll sing on!
And through eternity, I'll sing on.
Text: 12 9 12 12 9; anon; first appeared in A General Selection of the Newest and Most Admired Hymns and Spiritual Songs, 1811, adapt. Music: William Walker's The Southern Harmony, 1835.
There's A Wideness
IN BABILONE
1. There's a wideness in God's mercy
Like the wideness of the sea;
There's a kindness in his justice
Which is more than liberty.
There is plentiful redemption
In the blood that has been shed;
There is joy for all the members
In the sorrows of the Head.
2. For the love of God is broader
Than the measures of our mind,
And the heart of the Eternal
Is most wonderfully kind.
If our love were but more simple
We should take him at his word,
And our lives would be thanksgiving
For the goodness of our Lord.
3. Troubled souls, why will you scatter
Like a crowd of frightened sheep?
Foolish hearts, why will you wander
From a love so true and deep?
There is welcome for the sinner
And more graces for the good;
There is mercy with the Savior,
There is healing in his blood.
Text 87 87 D; Frederick F. Faber, 1814-1863, alt.
Music: Oude en Nieuwe Boerenlities, c. 1710.
All music used w/permission under One License #A730216.