Baptism Of Jesus (A)
Worship
All Things Are Ready
Communion Prayers for the Church Year and Pastoral Occasions
Object:
The next three prayers all focus in on the baptism of Jesus. While they are appropriate for early in January, they can also be used on a day when the sacrament of baptism is bring celebrated.
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them up to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is good to give God thanks and praise.
God of heaven and earth, we do give you thanks and praise. For in the beginning, your Holy Spirit hovered over creation and all things were brought into being. You fashioned the sun and stars, the oceans and rivers, the deserts and mountains.
You breathed life into the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and the animals of every land. You created men and women in your image. Then you looked at all of creation and called it good.
God of the law and the prophets, we praise you for your mercy. For when we, your beloved creation, turned away from you and fell into sinful ways, you did not abandon us. Instead your Holy Spirit inspired women and men of faith to call us back to you.
In the fullness of time you came as Jesus of Nazareth to complete the law and the prophets. When Jesus came to be baptized, the Holy Spirit descended upon him as a sign of the new creation you offer. Through Jesus Christ, you have opened for us the gates of salvation and the way of eternal life.
God of our salvation, we thank you for Jesus Christ our Savior. For through Jesus we are saved and called to be the church. We thank you also for the Holy Spirit who witnesses to the truth of your promises made to us in Christ. For the Holy Spirit descends and blesses your people with gifts and power.
We thank and praise you for Jesus Christ who has shown us the way and for the Holy Spirit who inspires us and challenges us in our faith. For we can change our lives and our world through faith and service.
You have given us the Holy Spirit to be an active witness and visible presence in the world. Through the Holy Spirit, the waters of baptism become a visible sign of your grace and forgiveness.
Through the Holy Spirit, the bread and wine become for us signs of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and these common items become for us a way to experience your divine love and grace.
Send your Holy Spirit among us, we pray, to bless this gift of bread and cup. Allow the bread to be for us the broken body of Christ, a sign of your mercy and forgiveness.
Allow the wine to be for us the blood of Christ, through which you bring about the new covenant binding us to you forever.
Send your Holy Spirit, we pray, that we might rise from this table filled with new strength and hope to boldly live and witness in Jesus' name.
Amen.
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them up to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is good to give God thanks and praise.
God of heaven and earth, we do give you thanks and praise. For in the beginning, your Holy Spirit hovered over creation and all things were brought into being. You fashioned the sun and stars, the oceans and rivers, the deserts and mountains.
You breathed life into the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and the animals of every land. You created men and women in your image. Then you looked at all of creation and called it good.
God of the law and the prophets, we praise you for your mercy. For when we, your beloved creation, turned away from you and fell into sinful ways, you did not abandon us. Instead your Holy Spirit inspired women and men of faith to call us back to you.
In the fullness of time you came as Jesus of Nazareth to complete the law and the prophets. When Jesus came to be baptized, the Holy Spirit descended upon him as a sign of the new creation you offer. Through Jesus Christ, you have opened for us the gates of salvation and the way of eternal life.
God of our salvation, we thank you for Jesus Christ our Savior. For through Jesus we are saved and called to be the church. We thank you also for the Holy Spirit who witnesses to the truth of your promises made to us in Christ. For the Holy Spirit descends and blesses your people with gifts and power.
We thank and praise you for Jesus Christ who has shown us the way and for the Holy Spirit who inspires us and challenges us in our faith. For we can change our lives and our world through faith and service.
You have given us the Holy Spirit to be an active witness and visible presence in the world. Through the Holy Spirit, the waters of baptism become a visible sign of your grace and forgiveness.
Through the Holy Spirit, the bread and wine become for us signs of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and these common items become for us a way to experience your divine love and grace.
Send your Holy Spirit among us, we pray, to bless this gift of bread and cup. Allow the bread to be for us the broken body of Christ, a sign of your mercy and forgiveness.
Allow the wine to be for us the blood of Christ, through which you bring about the new covenant binding us to you forever.
Send your Holy Spirit, we pray, that we might rise from this table filled with new strength and hope to boldly live and witness in Jesus' name.
Amen.
