4 NOV 2016 · Luke 13:18-30 18He said therefore, ‘What is the kingdom of God like? And to what should I compare it?19It is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in the garden; it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.’ 20And again he said, ‘To what should I compare the kingdom of God? 21It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.’ 22Jesus went through one town and village after another, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. 23Someone asked him, ‘Lord, will only a few be saved?’ He said to them,24‘Strive to enter through the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able. 25When once the owner of the house has got up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, “Lord, open to us”, then in reply he will say to you, “I do not know where you come from.” 26Then you will begin to say, “We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.” 27But he will say, “I do not know where you come from; go away from me, all you evildoers!” 28There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrown out. 29Then people will come from east and west, from north and south, and will eat in the kingdom of God.30Indeed, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.’ The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

3 NOV 2016 · Sirach 44:1-15 Let us now sing the praises of famous men,    our ancestors in their generations.  2 The Lord apportioned to them great glory,    his majesty from the beginning.  3 There were those who ruled in their kingdoms,    and made a name for themselves by their valour; those who gave counsel because they were intelligent;    those who spoke in prophetic oracles;  4 those who led the people by their counsels    and by their knowledge of the people's lore;    they were wise in their words of instruction;  5 those who composed musical tunes,    or put verses in writing;  6 rich men endowed with resources,    living peacefully in their homes—  7 all these were honoured in their generations,    and were the pride of their times.  8 Some of them have left behind a name,    so that others declare their praise.  9 But of others there is no memory;    they have perished as though they had never existed; they have become as though they had never been born,    they and their children after them.  10 But these also were godly men,    whose righteous deeds have not been forgotten;  11 their wealth will remain with their descendants,    and their inheritance with their children's children.  12 Their descendants stand by the covenants;    their children also, for their sake.  13 Their offspring will continue for ever,    and their glory will never be blotted out.  14 Their bodies are buried in peace,    but their name lives on generation after generation.  15 The assembly declares their wisdom,    and the congregation proclaims their praise. The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

1 NOV 2016 · Psalm 57  1Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful, for I have taken refuge in you; * in the shadow of your wings will I take refuge until this time of trouble has gone by. 2I will call upon the Most High God, * the God who maintains my cause. 3He will send from heaven and save me; he will confound those who trample upon me; * God will send forth his love and his faithfulness. 4I lie in the midst of lions that devour the people; * their teeth are spears and arrows, their tongue a sharp sword. 5They have laid a net for my feet, and I am bowed low; * they have dug a pit before me, but have fallen into it themselves. 6Exalt yourself above the heavens, O God, * and your glory over all the earth. 7My heart is firmly fixed, O God, my heart is fixed; * I will sing and make melody. 8Wake up, my spirit; awake, lute and harp; * I myself will waken the dawn. 9I will confess you among the peoples, O LORD; * I will sing praise to you among the nations. 10For your loving-kindness is greater than the heavens, * and your faithfulness reaches to the clouds. 11Exalt yourself above the heavens, O God, * and your glory over all the earth.

31 OCT 2016 · Revelation 15:3-4  O ruler of the universe, Lord God, great deeds are they that you have done, * surpassing human understanding. Your ways are ways of righteousness and truth, * O King of all the ages Who can fail to do you homage, Lord and sing the praises of your Name for you only are the Holy One. All nations will draw near and fall down before you because your just and holy works have been revealed. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

31 OCT 2016 · Luke 12:49-59 49 'I came to bring fire to the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! 50I have a baptism with which to be baptized, and what stress I am under until it is completed! 51Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division! 52From now on five in one household will be divided, three against two and two against three; 53they will be divided: father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.' 54 He also said to the crowds, 'When you see a cloud rising in the west, you immediately say, "It is going to rain"; and so it happens. 55And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, "There will be scorching heat"; and it happens. 56You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky, but why do you not know how to interpret the present time? 57'And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right? 58Thus, when you go with your accuser before a magistrate, on the way make an effort to settle the case, or you may be dragged before the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer throw you in prison. 59I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the very last penny.' The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

31 OCT 2016 · Matthew 18:21-35 21 Then Peter came and said to him, 'Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?' 22Jesus said to him, 'Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times. 23'For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. 24When he began the reckoning, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him; 25and, as he could not pay, his lord ordered him to be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions, and payment to be made. 26So the slave fell on his knees before him, saying, "Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything." 27And out of pity for him, the lord of that slave released him and forgave him the debt. 28But that same slave, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and seizing him by the throat, he said, "Pay what you owe." 29Then his fellow slave fell down and pleaded with him, "Have patience with me, and I will pay you." 30But he refused; then he went and threw him into prison until he would pay the debt. 31When his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their lord all that had taken place. 32Then his lord summoned him and said to him, "You wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33Should you not have had mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you?" 34And in anger his lord handed him over to be tortured until he would pay his entire debt. 35So my heavenly Father will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart. The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

30 OCT 2016 · 1 Corinthians 12:27-13:13 27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. 28And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers; then deeds of power, then gifts of healing, forms of assistance, forms of leadership, various kinds of tongues. 29Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? 31But strive for the greater gifts. And I will show you a still more excellent way. If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. 4 Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant 5or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. 7It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never ends. But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will come to an end. 9For we know only in part, and we prophesy only in part; 10but when the complete comes, the partial will come to an end. 11When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. 12For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. 13And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love. The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

30 OCT 2016 · Psalm 24  1The earth is the LORD'S and all that is in it, * the world and all who dwell therein. 2For it is he who founded it upon the seas * and made it firm upon the rivers of the deep. 3"Who can ascend the hill of the LORD? * and who can stand in his holy place?" 4"Those who have clean hands and a pure heart, * who have not pledged themselves to falsehood, nor sworn by what is a fraud. 5They shall receive a blessing from the LORD * and a just reward from the God of their salvation." 6Such is the generation of those who seek him, * of those who seek your face, O God of Jacob. 7Lift up your heads, O gates; lift them high, O everlasting doors; * and the King of glory shall come in. 8"Who is this King of glory?" * "The LORD, strong and mighty, the LORD, mighty in battle." 9Lift up your heads, O gates; lift them high, O everlasting doors; * and the King of glory shall come in. 10"Who is he, this King of glory?" * "The LORD of hosts, he is the King of glory."

30 OCT 2016 · Revelation 13:11-18 11 Then I saw another beast that rose out of the earth; it had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. 12It exercises all the authority of the first beast on its behalf, and it makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound had been healed. 13It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in the sight of all; 14and by the signs that it is allowed to perform on behalf of the beast, it deceives the inhabitants of earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that had been wounded by the sword and yet lived; 15and it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast so that the image of the beast could even speak and cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be killed. 16Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, 17so that no one can buy or sell who does not have the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. 18This calls for wisdom: let anyone with understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a person. Its number is six hundred sixty-six. The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

29 OCT 2016 · Ecclus. 35:1-17 Sir 35:1 The one who keeps the law makes many offerings; {2}one who heeds the commandments makes an offering of well-being.  2 {3}The one who returns a kindness offers choice flour, {4}and one who gives alms sacrifices a thank offering.  3 {5}To keep from wickedness is pleasing to the Lord,  and to forsake unrighteousness is an atonement.  4 {6}Do not appear before the Lord empty-handed, 5 {7}for all that you offer is in fulfillment of the commandment.  6 {8}The offering of the righteous enriches the altar,  and its pleasing odor rises before the Most High.  7 {9}The sacrifice of the righteous is acceptable,  and it will never be forgotten.  8 {10}Be generous when you worship the Lord,  and do not stint the first fruits of your hands. 9 {11}With every gift show a cheerful face,  and dedicate your tithe with gladness.  10 {12}Give to the Most High as he has given to you,  and as generously as you can afford.  11 {13}For the Lord is the one who repays,  and he will repay you sevenfold.  12 {14}Do not offer him a bribe, for he will not accept it; {15}and do not rely on a dishonest sacrifice;  for the Lord is the judge,  and with him there is no partiality.  13 {16}He will not show partiality to the poor;  but he will listen to the prayer of one who is wronged.  14 {17}He will not ignore the supplication of the orphan,  or the widow when she pours out her complaint.  15 {18}Do not the tears of the widow run down her cheek {19}as she cries out against the one who causes them to fall?  16 {20}The one whose service is pleasing to the Lord will be accepted,  and his prayer will reach to the clouds.  17 {21}The prayer of the humble pierces the clouds,  and it will not rest until it reaches its goal;  it will not desist until the Most High responds. The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.