Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever. Amen.
Jesus said, "The first commandment is this: Hear, O Israel: The Lord your God is the only Lord. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these." Mark 12:29-31
If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the
truth is not in us. But if we confess our sins, God, who is
faithful and just, will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all
unrighteousness. 1 John 1:8,9
We confess our sins against God and others.
Silence may be kept.
Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you
in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.
We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen.
May Almighty God have mercy on you, forgive you all your sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen you in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep you in eternal life. Amen.
A Hymn of Praise
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King,
almighty God and Father,
we worship you, we give you thanks,
we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father:
receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High,
Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
The Collect
Grant to us, Lord, we pray, the spirit to think and do always those things that are right, that we, who cannot exist without you, may by you be enabled to live according to your will; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Old Testament Genesis 37:1-4, 12-28
Jacob settled in the land where his father had lived as an alien, the land of Canaan. This is the story of the family of Jacob.
Joseph, being seventeen years old, was shepherding the flock with his brothers; he was a helper to the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father’s wives; and Joseph brought a bad report of them to their father. Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his children, because he was the son of his old age; and he had made him a long robe with sleeves. But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably to him.
Now his brothers went to pasture their father’s flock near Shechem. And Israel said to Joseph, “Are not your brothers pasturing the flock at Shechem? Come, I will send you to them.” He answered, “Here I am.” So he said to him, “Go now, see if it is well with your brothers and with the flock; and bring word back to me.” So he sent him from the valley of Hebron.
He came to Shechem, and a man found him wandering in the fields; the man asked him, “What are you seeking?” “I am seeking my brothers,” he said; “tell me, please, where they are pasturing the flock.” The man said, “They have gone away, for I heard them say, ‘Let us go to Dothan.’“ So Joseph went after his brothers, and found them at Dothan. They saw him from a distance, and before he came near to them, they conspired to kill him. They said to one another, “Here comes this dreamer. Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits; then we shall say that a wild animal has devoured him, and we shall see what will become of his dreams.” But when Reuben heard it, he delivered him out of their hands, saying, “Let us not take his life.” Reuben said to them, “Shed no blood; throw him into this pit here in the wilderness, but lay no hand on him” —that he might rescue him out of their hand and restore him to his father. So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe, the long robe with sleeves that he wore; and they took him and threw him into a pit. The pit was empty; there was no water in it.
Then they sat down to eat; and looking up they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead, with their camels carrying gum, balm, and resin, on their way to carry it down to Egypt. Then Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is it if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and not lay our hands on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And his brothers agreed. When some Midianite traders passed by, they drew Joseph up, lifting him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. And they took Joseph to Egypt.
Psalm 105, 1-6, 16-22, 45b
1 Give thanks to the Lord and call upon his Name; *
make known his deeds among the peoples.
2 Sing to him, sing praises to him, *
and speak of all his marvelous works.
3 Glory in his holy Name; *
let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
4 Search for the Lord and his strength; *
continually seek his face.
5 Remember the marvels he has done, *
his wonders and the judgments of his mouth,
6 O offspring of Abraham his servant, *
O children of Jacob his chosen.
16 Then he called for a famine in the land *
and destroyed the supply of bread.
17 He sent a man before them, *
Joseph, who was sold as a slave.
18 They bruised his feet in fetters; *
his neck they put in an iron collar.
19 Until his prediction came to pass, *
the word of the Lord tested him.
20 The king sent and released him; *
the ruler of the peoples set him free.
21 He set him as a master over his household,
as a ruler over all his possessions,
22 To instruct his princes according to his will
and to teach his elders wisdom.
45 Hallelujah!
The Epistle Romans 10:5-15
Moses writes concerning the righteousness that comes from the law, that “the person who does these things will live by them.” But the righteousness that comes from faith says, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down) “or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say?
“The word is near you,
on your lips and in your heart”
(that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); because if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For one believes with the heart and so is justified, and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved. The scripture says, “No one who believes in him will be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; the same Lord is Lord of all and is generous to all who call on him. For, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
But how are they to call on one in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in one of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone to proclaim him? And how are they to proclaim him unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”
The Gospel Matthew 14:22-33
Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, but by this time the boat, battered by the waves, was far from the land, for the wind was against them. And early in the morning he came walking toward them on the sea. But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them and said, “Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.”
Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
The Sermon Fr. Nelson Gaetz
SO – how are your walking on water skills? OK, I know all the jokes. How easy it is to walk on water in Central New York – after all, water is frozen up here half the year. But what about really walking on water?
During our lifetimes, we will have experienced the storms of wars, the storms that evolve around the death of family members and friends, tragic illnesses and crises of all kinds. We have experienced the horror of Oklahoma bombings, two attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City, wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, school shootings, the destitution and disregard for life present in our cities’ suburban and urban areas. We have been through one hurricane after another, one tornado and earthquake after another and yet survived. We seem surrounded at times by the many storms of life, emotionally, physically and mentally.
The disciples found themselves in one of those sudden weird storms on the Sea of Galilee. They had followed Jesus’ instructions and had gone ahead, launched their small boat and were now some distance from shore. The winds coming down the canyons to the sea were fierce and quite a storm was around them. They felt very alone, frightened and tired. When our storms come, we usually feel like we are all by ourselves battling them all alone, not knowing what to do, nor in this instance did they.
A lot had happened to the disciples this specific day. They were still new in their discipleship. Just that morning they had heard that John the Baptist had been beheaded. Jesus had that day fed the five thousand. Now they had been battling a storm at sea since they left Jesus to dismiss the crowds. Many things happened that day they found hard to comprehend. It was like a hurricane storm was washing over them.
Now the disciples could not believe what their eyes saw. Was it a ghost? Was it a vision? Was it a bird? Was it plane…?(Sorry… that’s another story. I got carried away.) No, it was Jesus. And he was talking to them in familiar tones. "Take heart, it is I; have no fear."
Now it was Peter who got carried away. As usual, he is bound to speak out his worst instincts. Peter calls out, "Lord, if it is you, bid me to come to you on the water." Jesus calmly says, "Come." As in “come, follow me.” Peter recognizes that tone. He has heard that call before.
Focused on Jesus, he is out of the boat walking toward Him as the storm continues to blow about him. For one brief moment, he allows his focus to stray from Jesus to the storm and, yes – he sinks like a rock. Peter, after all, means rock. (OK, I’ll save that image for another day.) For now, let me go with the obvious point. Without keeping our focus on Jesus, it does not take much of a storm to sink us. With all the storms around us, we need to work very hard to stay focused on Jesus. If we are not, as St. Paul says, praying unceasingly, the storms will overcome us. BUT if we are diligent in those things that keep us focused on Jesus, we can literally “walk on water.”
That is – the storms noted above will not overcome us. If you are reading this, I know you know where/how to start. Keep at it. Jesus is still calling, “Come, follow me.”
Amen.
THE NICENE CREED
We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven:
by the power of the Holy Spirit
he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary,
and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son.
With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified.
He has spoken through the Prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
THE PRAYERS
O Lord, our God, we do not presume to know Your ways or inform Your judgment. We ask You to grant us Your Holy Spirit so that we may apprehend Your ways and know Your Son, Jesus Christ, by faith. Give us wisdom, that we may trust in Your Word amid the stormy seas of this mortal life and be safely delivered from all danger onto the eternal shores of heaven. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
O Lord, our God, we have no righteousness of our own but only the righteousness of Christ into which we were clothed in Baptism. Grant us grace, that we may be faithful in every circumstance and bold in the confession of His saving name. Guard those who preach Your Word to us so that, hearing, we may believe and, believing, we may have everlasting life. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
O Lord, our God, we see the great need and ask You to raise up those who will serve us as Bishops, pastors, deacons, teachers, missionaries and in all church-work vocations. Bless church planters and the younger congregations, that they may endure. Bring hope and renewal to all struggling congregations and to the pastors who serve them, and do not let fear keep us from Your Word and Sacraments. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
O Lord, our God, we ask You to bless us, our nation and those who lead us. Guide all elected and appointed civil servants in their judgments, that we may know justice in our land and peace among the nations. Make us especially mindful of those who need our special protection, the aged and the oppressed. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
O Lord, our God, we pray for Your blessing upon the schools where children learn, especially for the schools, universities and seminaries of our church. Give Your blessing to all places where Your people gather to teach and learn. Help us to remember that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
O Lord, our God, we remember the sick, those who suffer, those troubled in mind, the grieving and the dying. Deliver them according to Your will and grant them the comfort of Your Word in their afflictions, that they may depend upon Your mercy in every circumstance. Hear us especially for those we think of now. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
O Lord, our God, we give thanks for the saints of old who trusted in You in life and now rest in Christ from all their labors. Deliver us from all evil and lead us through all temptation so that at last we may join them in the marriage supper of the Lamb in Your kingdom without end. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
O Lord, our God, we pray You to be our light in darkness, our strength in weakness, our courage in fear and our peace in distress. Speak to us by the voice of Your Word, that we may call upon You in the day of trouble and confess Your saving name before all people. Hear us on behalf of ourselves and those for whom we have prayed; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
So now we pray with confidence to the Father the words our Lord Jesus taught us:
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed by the 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, and the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
The Closing Blessing
May God almighty bless and keep us, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
We go now in peace to love and serve the Lord.
Amen.