Advent - Week 3 - Joy - Isaiah 11:1-9 and Ephesians 6:1-10

ISAIAH 11:1–9

¹A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, 
     and a branch shall grow out of his roots. 
²The spirit of the LORD shall rest on him, 
     the spirit of wisdom and understanding, 
     the spirit of counsel and might, 
     the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. 
³His delight shall be in the fear of the LORD.

 

He shall not judge by what his eyes see, 
     or decide by what his ears hear; 
⁴but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, 
     and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; 
he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, 
     and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. 
⁵Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist, 
     and faithfulness the belt around his loins.

⁶The wolf shall live with the lamb, 
     the leopard shall lie down with the kid, 
the calf and the lion and the fatling together, 
     and a little child shall lead them. 
⁷The cow and the bear shall graze, 
     their young shall lie down together; 
     and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 
⁸The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp, 
     and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder's den. 
⁹They will not hurt or destroy 
     on all my holy mountain; 
for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD 
     as the waters cover the sea.

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EPHESIANS 6:10-20

¹⁰Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. ¹¹Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. ¹²For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. ¹³Therefore take up the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. ¹⁴Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. ¹⁵As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. ¹⁶With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one.¹⁷Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

 

¹⁸Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints. ¹⁹Pray also for me, so that when I speak, a message may be given to me to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, ²⁰for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it boldly, as I must speak.

Advent - Week 3 - Joy - Psalm 50 and Mark 1:1-8

PSALM 50

¹The mighty one, God the LORD,

speaks and summons the earth

from the rising of the sun to its setting.

²Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,

God shines forth.

³Our God comes and does not keep silence,

before him is a devouring fire,

and a mighty tempest all around him.

⁴He calls to the heavens above

and to the earth, that he may judge his people:

⁵"Gather to me my faithful ones,

who made a covenant with me by sacrifice!"

⁶The heavens declare his righteousness,

for God himself is judge. Selah

⁷"Hear, O my people, and I will speak,

O Israel, I will testify against you.

I am God, your God.

⁸Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you;

your burnt offerings are continually before me.

⁹I will not accept a bull from your house,

or goats from your folds.

¹⁰For every wild animal of the forest is mine,

the cattle on a thousand hills.

¹¹I know all the birds of the air,

and all that moves in the field is mine.

¹²"If I were hungry, I would not tell you,

for the world and all that is in it is mine.

¹³Do I eat the flesh of bulls,

or drink the blood of goats?

¹⁴Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving,

and pay your vows to the Most High.

¹⁵Call on me in the day of trouble;

I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me."

¹⁶But to the wicked God says:

"What right have you to recite my statutes,

or take my covenant on your lips?

¹⁷For you hate discipline,

and you cast my words behind you.

¹⁸You make friends with a thief when you see one,

and you keep company with adulterers.

¹⁹"You give your mouth free rein for evil,

and your tongue frames deceit.

²⁰You sit and speak against your kin;

you slander your own mother's child.

²¹These things you have done and I have been silent;

you thought that I was one just like yourself.

But now I rebuke you, and lay the charge before you.

²²"Mark this, then, you who forget God,

or I will tear you apart, and there will be no one to deliver.

²³Those who bring thanksgiving as their sacrifice honor me;

to those who go the right way

I will show the salvation of God."

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MARK 1:1–8

¹The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

 

²As it is written in the prophet Isaiah, 
     "See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, 
          who will prepare your way; 
³     the voice of one crying out in the wilderness: 
          'Prepare the way of the Lord, 
          make his paths straight,'" 
⁴John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. ⁵And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. ⁶Now John was clothed with camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. ⁷He proclaimed, "The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. ⁸I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."

Advent - Week 3 - Joy - Psalm 33 and Isaiah 9:2-7

PSALM 33

¹   Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous.
          Praise befits the upright. 
²   Praise the LORD with the lyre; 
          make melody to him with the harp of ten strings. 
³   Sing to him a new song; 
          play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.

⁴   For the word of the LORD is upright, 
          and all his work is done in faithfulness. 
⁵   He loves righteousness and justice; 
          the earth is full of the steadfast love of the LORD.

⁶   By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, 
          and all their host by the breath of his mouth. 
⁷   He gathered the waters of the sea as in a bottle; 
          he put the deeps in storehouses.

⁸   Let all the earth fear the LORD; 
          let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him. 
⁹   For he spoke, and it came to be; 
          he commanded, and it stood firm.

¹⁰  The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; 
          he frustrates the plans of the peoples. 
¹¹  The counsel of the LORD stands forever, 
          the thoughts of his heart to all generations. 
¹²   Happy is the nation whose God is the LORD, 
          the people whom he has chosen as his heritage.

¹³  The LORD looks down from heaven; 
          he sees all humankind. 
¹⁴  From where he sits enthroned he watches 
          all the inhabitants of the earth — 
¹⁵  he who fashions the hearts of them all, 
          and observes all their deeds. 
¹⁶  A king is not saved by his great army;
          a warrior is not delivered by his great strength. 
¹⁷  The war horse is a vain hope for victory, 
          and by its great might it cannot save.

¹⁸  Truly the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him, 
          on those who hope in his steadfast love, 
¹⁹  to deliver their soul from death, 
          and to keep them alive in famine.

²⁰  Our soul waits for the LORD; 
          he is our help and shield. 
²¹  Our heart is glad in him, 
          because we trust in his holy name.
²²  Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us, 
          even as we hope in you.

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ISAIAH 9:2–7

²The people who walked in darkness 
     have seen a great light; 
those who lived in a land of deep darkness — 
     on them light has shined. 
³You have multiplied the nation, 
     you have increased its joy; 
they rejoice before you 
     as with joy at the harvest, 
     as people exult when dividing plunder. 
⁴For the yoke of their burden, 
     and the bar across their shoulders, 
     the rod of their oppressor, 
     you have broken as on the day of Midian. 
⁵For all the boots of the tramping warriors 
     and all the garments rolled in blood 
     shall be burned as fuel for the fire. 
⁶For a child has been born for us, 
     a son given to us; 
authority rests upon his shoulders; 
     and he is named 
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, 
     Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 
⁷His authority shall grow continually, 
     and there shall be endless peace 
for the throne of David and his kingdom. 
     He will establish and uphold it 
with justice and with righteousness 
     from this time onward and forevermore. 
The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.

Advent - Week 3 - Joy - 2 PETER 1:1–11 and PSALM 67

2 PETER 1:1–11

¹Simeon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have received a faith as precious as ours through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:

2 May grace and peace be yours in abundance in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.

³His divine power has given us everything needed for life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.⁴Thus he has given us, through these things, his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may escape from the corruption that is in the world because of lust, and may become participants of the divine nature. ⁵For this very reason, you must make every effort to support your faith with goodness, and goodness with knowledge, ⁶and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with endurance, and endurance with godliness, ⁷and godliness with mutual affection, and mutual affection with love. ⁸For if these things are yours and are increasing among you, they keep you from being ineffective and unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁹For anyone who lacks these things is nearsighted and blind, and is forgetful of the cleansing of past sins. ¹⁰Therefore, brothers and sisters, be all the more eager to confirm your call and election, for if you do this, you will never stumble. ¹¹For in this way, entry into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be richly provided for you.

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PSALM 67

1 May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face to shine upon us,Selah
²that your way may be known upon earth,
your saving power among all nations.
³Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you.

⁴Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,
for you judge the peoples with equity
and guide the nations upon earth. Selah
⁵Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you.

⁶The earth has yielded its increase;
God, our God, has blessed us.
7 May God continue to bless us;
let all the ends of the earth revere him.

Advent - Week 2 - Peace - Isaiah 7:10-17 and Psalm 16

ISAIAH 7:10–17

¹⁰Again the LORD spoke to Ahaz, saying, ¹¹Ask a sign of the LORD your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven. ¹²But Ahaz said, I will not ask, and I will not put the LORD to the test.¹³Then Isaiah said: "Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary mortals, that you weary my God also? ¹⁴Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel. ¹⁵He shall eat curds and honey by the time he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. ¹⁶For before the child knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land before whose two kings you are in dread will be deserted. ¹⁷The LORD will bring on you and on your people and on your ancestral house such days as have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah - the king of Assyria."

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PSALM 16

¹   Protect me, O God, for in you I take refuge. 
²   I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord; 
          I have no good apart from you.”

³   As for the holy ones in the land, they are the noble, 
          in whom is all my delight.

⁴   Those who choose another god multiply their sorrows; 
          their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out 
          or take their names upon my lips.

⁵   The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup; 
          you hold my lot. 
⁶   The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; 
          I have a goodly heritage.

⁷   I bless the LORD who gives me counsel; 
          in the night also my heart instructs me. 
⁸   I keep the LORD always before me; 
          because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.

⁹   Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices; 
          my body also rests secure. 
¹⁰  For you do not give me up to Sheol, 
          or let your faithful one see the Pit.

¹¹  You show me the path of life. 
          In your presence there is fullness of joy; 
          in your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Advent - Week 2 - Peace - Psalm 18:1-20 and Psalm 126

PSALM 18:1–20

¹I love you, O LORD, my strength.

²The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer,

my God, my rock in whom I take refuge,

my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

³I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised,

so I shall be saved from my enemies.

⁴The cords of death encompassed me;

the torrents of perdition assailed me;

⁵the cords of Sheol entangled me;

the snares of death confronted me.

⁶In my distress I called upon the LORD;

to my God I cried for help.

From his temple he heard my voice,

and my cry to him reached his ears.

⁷Then the earth reeled and rocked;

the foundations also of the mountains trembled

and quaked, because he was angry.

⁸Smoke went up from his nostrils,

and devouring fire from his mouth;

glowing coals flamed forth from him.

⁹He bowed the heavens, and came down;

thick darkness was under his feet.

¹⁰He rode on a cherub, and flew;

he came swiftly upon the wings of the wind.

¹¹He made darkness his covering around him,

his canopy thick clouds dark with water.

¹²Out of the brightness before him

there broke through his clouds

hailstones and coals of fire.

¹³The LORD also thundered in the heavens,

and the Most High uttered his voice.

¹⁴And he sent out his arrows, and scattered them;

he flashed forth lightnings, and routed them.

¹⁵Then the channels of the sea were seen,

and the foundations of the world were laid bare

at your rebuke, O LORD,

at the blast of the breath of your nostrils.

¹⁶He reached down from on high, he took me;

he drew me out of mighty waters.

¹⁷He delivered me from my strong enemy,

and from those who hated me;

for they were too mighty for me.

¹⁸They confronted me in the day of my calamity;

but the LORD was my support.

¹⁹He brought me out into a broad place;

he delivered me, because he delighted in me.

²⁰The LORD rewarded me according to my righteousness;

according to the cleanness of my hands he recompensed me.

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PSALM 126

¹   When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion, 
          we were like those who dream. 
²   Then our mouth was filled with laughter, 
          and our tongue with shouts of joy; 
     then it was said among the nations, 
          “The LORD has done great things for them.” 
³   The LORD has done great things for us, 
          and we rejoiced.

⁴   Restore our fortunes, O LORD, 
          like the watercourses in the Negeb. 
5   May those who sow in tears 
          reap with shouts of joy. 
⁶   Those who go out weeping, 
          bearing the seed for sowing, 
     shall come home with shouts of joy, 
          carrying their sheaves.

Advent - Week 2 - Peace - Isaiah 6:1-8 and John 7:53-8:11

ISAIAH 6:1-8

¹In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lofty; and the hem of his robe filled the temple. ²Seraphs were in attendance above him; each had six wings: with two they covered their faces, and with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. ³And one called to another and said: 
     "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; 
     the whole earth is full of his glory." 
⁴The pivots on the thresholds shook at the voices of those who called, and the house filled with smoke. ⁵And I said: "Woe is me! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!"

 

⁶Then one of the seraphs flew to me, holding a live coal that had been taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. ⁷The seraph touched my mouth with it and said: "Now that this has touched your lips, your guilt has departed and your sin is blotted out." ⁸Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I; send me!

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JOHN 7:53-8:11

⁵³Then each of them went home, ¹while Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. ²Early in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him and he sat down and began to teach them. ³The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery; and making her stand before all of them, ⁴they said to him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. ⁵Now in the law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?" ⁶They said this to test him, so that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. ⁷When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, "Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her." ⁸And once again he bent down and wrote on the ground.⁹When they heard it, they went away, one by one, beginning with the elders; and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. ¹⁰Jesus straightened up and said to her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?" ¹¹She said, "No one, sir." And Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on do not sin again."