|
Fifth Sunday in Lent |
|
The Parable of the Wicked
Tenants |
O Almighty God, who alone canst order the unruly wills and affections of
sinful men: Grant unto thy people that they may love the thing which thou
commandest, and desire that which thou dost promise; that so, among the
sundry and manifold changes of the world, our hearts may surely there be
fixed where true joys are to be found; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who
liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for
ever. Amen.
|
|
Lesson - Isaiah 43:16-21 |
Thus says the LORD, who makes a way in the sea, a path in the mighty waters,
who brings forth chariot and horse, army and warrior; they lie down, they
cannot rise, they are extinguished, quenched like a wick: "Remember not the
former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new
thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in
the wilderness and rivers in the desert. The wild beasts will honor me, the
jackals and the ostriches; for I give water in the wilderness, rivers in the
desert, to give drink to my chosen people, the people whom I formed for
myself that they might declare my praise.
|
|
Epistle - Philippians 3:8-14 |
Pressing toward the Goal
Indeed I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing
Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things,
and count them as refuse, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in
him, not having a righteousness of my own, based on law, but that which is
through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith;
that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his
sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that if possible I may attain
the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or am
already perfect; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has
made me his own. Brethren, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but
one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what
lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of
God in Christ Jesus.
|
|
Gospel - Luke 20:9-19 |
The Parable of the Wicked Tenants
And he began to tell the people this parable: "A man planted a vineyard, and
let it out to tenants, and went into another country for a long while. When
the time came, he sent a servant to the tenants, that they should give him
some of the fruit of the vineyard; but the tenants beat him, and sent him
away empty-handed. And he sent another servant; him also they beat and
treated shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed. And he sent yet a third;
this one they wounded and cast out. Then the owner of the vineyard said,
`What shall I do? I will send my beloved son; it may be they will respect
him.' But when the tenants saw him, they said to themselves, `This is the
heir; let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours.' And they cast him
out of the vineyard and killed him. What then will the owner of the vineyard
do to them? He will come and destroy those tenants, and give the vineyard to
others." When they heard this, they said, "God forbid!" But he looked at
them and said, "What then is this that is written: `The very stone which the
builders rejected has become the head of the corner'? Every one who falls on
that stone will be broken to pieces; but when it falls on any one it will
crush him." The scribes and the chief priests tried to lay hands on him at
that very hour, but they feared the people; for they perceived that he had
told this parable against them.
|
|
