July 9, 2023 The Sixth Sunday After Pentecost

Entrance Hymn #657 Love Divine Sequence Hymn #457 All Loves Excelling Thou Art the Way To Thee Alone Offertory Music Musician VoluntaryCommunion Music Musician Voluntary Post-Communion Musician Voluntary Hymn #544 Jesus Shall Reign, Where’er the SunTHE COLLECT OF THE DAYO God, you have taught us to keep all your commandments by loving you and our neighbor: Grant us the grace of your Holy Spirit, that we may be devoted to you with our whole heart, and united to one another with pure affection; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.FIRST READINGRejoice greatly, O daughter Zion!Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem!Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he,humble and riding on a donkey,on a colt, the foal of a donkey.He will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem;Zechariah 9:9-12and the battle bow shall be cut off,and he shall command peace to the nations;his dominion shall be from sea to sea,and from the River to the ends of the earth.As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit.Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; today I declare that I will restore to you double.PSALM Psalm 145:8-15 Exaltabo te, Deus8 The LORD is gracious and full of compassion, * slow to anger and of great kindness.9 The LORD is loving to everyone *and his compassion is over all his works.10 All your works praise you, O LORD, * and your faithful servants bless you.11 They make known the glory of your kingdom * and speak of your power;12 That the peoples may know of your power * and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom; * your dominion endures throughout all ages.14 The LORD is faithful in all his words * and merciful in all his deeds.15 The LORD upholds all those who fall; * he lifts up those who are bowed down.SECOND READING Romans 7:15-25aI do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree that the law is good. But in fact it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me.So I find it to be a law that when I want to do what is good, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God in my inmost self, but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!GOSPEL Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30Jesus said to the crowd, “To what will I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in themarketplaces and calling to one another,‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not mourn.’For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon’; the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.”At that time Jesus said, “I thank y