THE GLORY OF THE LORD SHALL BE REVEALED TO ALL

Father in heaven, Your Son Jesus Christ showed his love for you by serving his brothers and sisters in need.  I now ask you to give me your help I serve you and your people Open my mouth to praise you in word and song. Open my ears to hear your word. Open my hand to do your work well.  Take from me all evil and distracting thoughts.

Help me to know what I should do and do it well. Help me to serve reverently at your Holy Altar and  give you praise and glory now and for ever. Amen.

Readings

Lectures

Reflection

The glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all mankind shall see it

'Console my people, console them 'says your God.

'Speak to the heart of Jerusalem and 

call her that her time of service is ended, 

that her sin  is atoned for, that she has

 received from the hand of the 

Lord double punishment for all her crimes.' 

A voice cries, 'Prepare in the wilderness

a way for the Lord.

Make a straight highway for our God across the desert.

Let every valley be filled in, every mountain and

hill be laid low. 

Let every cliff become plan, and the ridges a valley; 

then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all 

mankind shall see it;

for the mouth of the Lord has spoken,'  Isaiah 40:1-5,9-11

Let us see, O Lord, your mercy, and give us your saving help.

We are waiting for the new heavens and the new earth

There is one thing, my friends, that you must never forget: that with the Lord, ‘a day’ can mean a thousand years, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord is not being slow to carry out his promises, as anybody else might be called slow; but he is being patient with you all, wanting nobody to be lost and everybody to be brought to change his ways. The Day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then with a roar the sky will vanish, the elements will catch fire and fall apart, the earth and all that it contains will be burnt up.

 

Since everything is coming to an end like this, you should be living holy and saintly lives while you wait and long for the Day of God to come, when the sky will dissolve in flames and the elements melt in the heat. What we are waiting for is what he promised: the new heavens and new earth, the place where righteousness will be at home. So then, my friends, while you are waiting, do your best to live lives without spot or stain so that he will find you at peace.

A voice cries in the wilderness: prepare a way for the Lord

The beginning of the Good News about Jesus Christ, the Son of God. It is written in the book of the prophet Isaiah: 

Look, I am going to send my messenger before you; he will prepare your way. A voice cries in the wilderness:  Prepare a way for the Lord, make his paths straight.

and so it was that John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. All Judaea and all the people of Jerusalem made their way to him, and as they were baptised by him in the river Jordan they confessed their sins. John wore a garment of camel-skin, and he lived on locusts and wild honey. In the course of his preaching he said, ‘Someone is following me, someone who is more powerful than I am, and I am not fit to kneel down and undo the strap of his sandals. I have baptised you with water, but he will baptise you with the Holy Spirit.’

Lord Jesus Christ, you are my Shepherd. Guide me, direct my steps. Be the Shepherd of my heart that I may hear your voice, listen to your word. That you O Lord will be my shield and protection. Thank you Jesus Christ my Lord and Shepherd. Jesus I trust in you. Psalm 23