Lessons                                                                       Bread of Life                                                      11 December 2021

Zephaniah 3:14–20

₁₄Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion;

          shout, O Israel!

Rejoice and exult with all your heart,

          O daughter of Jerusalem!

₁₅The Lord has taken away the judgments

against you;

          he has cleared away your enemies.

The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst;

          you shall never again fear evil.

₁₆On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:

“Fear not, O Zion;

          let not your hands grow weak.

₁₇The Lord your God is in your midst,

          a mighty one who will save;

he will rejoice over you with gladness;

          he will quiet you by his love;

he will exult over you with loud singing.

₁₈I will gather those of you who mourn

for the festival,

          so that you will no longer suffer reproach.

₁₉Behold, at that time I will deal

          with all your oppressors.

And I will save the lame

          and gather the outcast,

and I will change their shame into praise

          and renown in all the earth.

₂₀At that time I will bring you in,

          at the time when I gather you together;

for I will make you renowned and praised

          among all the peoples of the earth,

when I restore your fortunes

          before your eyes,” says the Lord.

Psalm 85

₁LORD, you were favorable | to your land;*

you restored the fortunes of | Jacob.

₂You forgave the iniquity of your | people;*

you covered | all their sin.

₃You withdrew | all your wrath;*

you turned from your hot | anger.

₄Restore us again, O God of our sal- | vation,*

and put away your indignation | toward us!

₅Will you be angry with us for- | ever?*

Will you prolong your anger

to all gener- | ations?

₆Will you not revive | us again,*

that your people may re- | joice in you?

₇Show us your steadfast love, | O LORD,*

and grant us your sal- | vation.

₈Let me hear what God the | LORD will speak,*

for he will speak peace to his people,

to his saints;

but let them not turn back to | folly.

₉Surely his salvation is near

to those who | fear him,*

that glory may dwell | in our land.

₁₀Steadfast love and faith- | fulness meet;*

righteousness and peace kiss each | other.

₁₁Faithfulness springs up | from the ground,*

and righteousness looks down | from the sky.

₁₂Yes, the LORD will give | what is good,*

and our land will yield its | increase.

₁₃Righteousness will go be- | fore him*

and make his foot- | steps a way.

Philippians 4:4–7

          ₄Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. ₅Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; ₆do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. ₇And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Luke 7:18–28

          ₁₈The disciples of John reported all these things to him. And John, ₁₉calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” ₂₀And when the men had come to him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’” ₂₁In that hour he healed many people of diseases and plagues and evil spirits, and on many who were blind he bestowed sight. ₂₂And he answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them. ₂₃And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”

          ₂₄When John’s messengers had gone, Jesus began to speak to the crowds concerning John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? ₂₅What then did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Behold, those who are dressed in splendid clothing and live in luxury are in kings’ courts. ₂₆What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. ₂₇This is he of whom it is written,

“‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face,

          who will prepare your way before you.’

₂₈I tell you, among those born of women none is greater than John. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”