04. Year A - Third Sunday in Lent

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VERSION: 29 April 2002

THIRD SUNDAY IN LENT, YEAR A

In 2002: 3 Mar

In 2005: 27 Feb

In 2008: 24 Feb

In 2011: 27 Mar

In 2014: 23 Mar

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Note: For explanations and suggestions on the various resources provided, see the documents 'General notes and resources' and 'Lent season' in the 'General and seasonal' folder.

LITURGY

SENTENCE

See the document 'General notes and resources', under 'Sentence', in the 'General and seasonal' folder for suggestions on using a Sentence.

Since we are justified by faith,

we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand;

and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God.

(Rom 5:1,2 NRSV)

OR

God has shown us how much he loves us;

it was while we were still sinners that Christ died for us!

(Rom 5:8 TEV)

OR

Jesus said, My food is to do the will of him who sent me

and to complete his work. (John 4:34 NRSV)

OR

The hour is coming, and is now here,

when you will worship the Father in spirit and truth.

(John 4:23 NRSV)

OR, use one of the standard Lent Sentences in the document 'Lent season', under 'Sentence', in the 'General and seasonal' folder.

OR, use one of the general Sentences in the document 'General notes and resources', under 'Sentence', in the 'General and seasonal' folder.

PRAYER OF THE DAY (COLLECT)

Traditional

Almighty God,

look upon the heartfelt desires

of your humble servants,

and stretch out your mighty hand

to defend us against all our enemies;

through your Son,

Jesus Christ our Lord,

who lives and reigns

with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever.

Amen.

OR, modernised traditional

Almighty God,

look in mercy on our heartfelt desires,

and stretch out your mighty hand

to defend us.

We ask this through your Son,

Jesus Christ our Lord,

who lives and reigns

with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever.

Amen.

OR, alternative

(Let us pray for strength in temptation. [silence])

Lord God, our strength,

the battle of good and evil rages

within and around us.

Keep us firm in our faith in your Son,

and when we fall,

raise and restore us.

We ask this through your Son,

Jesus Christ our Lord,

who lives and reigns

with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever.

Amen.

OR, new

(Let us pray that we live repentant lives. [silence])

Holy and merciful God,

we thank you for giving your Son Jesus

to die on the cross for us sinners.

Turn us away from our sins

and back to a life of trust in you.

We ask this through Christ our Lord,

who lives and reigns

with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever.

Amen.

FIRST READING

Exodus 17:1-7 The Israelites put God to the test

PSALM

Psalm 95

Antiphon:

O that today you would listen to his voice! (Do not harden your hearts.)

(Ps 95:7c (8a) NRSV)

SECOND READING

Romans 5:l-11 While we were still sinners, Christ died for us

VERSE

Use either the Verse given in the order of service or the following verse.

Jesus said: 'The water that I will give

will become in you a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.'

(John 4:14b NRSV alt)

GOSPEL

John 4:5-42 Jesus and the Samaritan woman

(In the first sentence, put 'Jesus' instead of 'he')

PRAYER AFTER THE GOSPEL

This is the gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, O Christ.

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for the living water of eternal life.

Help us to believe in you

and to worship God in spirit and in truth.

Amen.

OFFERING PRAYER

Lord, you have given so much to us.

Help us to show in our deeds

the faith you have planted within us.

Make us ready to serve you and other people

wth all that we are and all that we have.

Amen.

PRAYER OF THE CHURCH

Call to prayer

When God gave us the gift of his Holy Spirit in the living waters of baptism, he called us to pray to him as our Father. Let us pray to him in the name of Jesus for the church, the world, and those in need.

The regular response, OR:

Lord, in your mercy,

give us the water of life.

Suggested intercessions

Concluding prayer

Father, you give your Spirit to those who ask you. Pour out your Spirit on us to refresh us and bring us to life in you. We ask this through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Amen.

SEASONAL PREFACE

It is indeed right and good,

Lord God, holy Father,

that we should at all times and in all places

give thanks to you,

through Jesus Christ our Lord.

He has taken on himself our sin,

so that we might die to sin

and live to righteousness.

And so, with angels and archangels,

and with all the company of heaven,

we adore and praise your glorious name:

COMMUNION INVITATION

Every time we eat this bread and drink from this cup

we proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.

(Thanks be to God.)

Come, everything is ready.

PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION

For a Lent post-communion prayer, see the document 'Lent season', under 'Prayer after communion', in the 'General and seasonal' folder. Alternatively, use the third prayer of the day (as listed above) at this point. It may be modified as follows.

Lord God, our strength,

the battle of good and evil rages

within and around us.

Through this holy meal,

strengthen our faith in your Son,

and when we fall,

raise and restore us.

We ask this through your Son,

Jesus Christ our Lord,

who lives and reigns

with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever.

Amen.

SEASONAL BLESSING

This seasonal blessing is used together with (ie before) the usual blessing in the order of service.

(May) Christ our crucified Saviour draw you to himself,

so that you may find in him the assurance of sins forgiven

and the gift of eternal life; . . .

DISMISSAL

Go in peace. Christ has reconciled us to God and will save us.

Thanks be to God. OR In the name of Christ. Amen.

HYMNS AND SONGS

FOR THE READINGS

Please note:        * =        Modernised version available

      G3, G4 . . . =        Guitar chords available in the Music Package 3, 4 . . .

      GS =        Guitar chords in the Supplement to LH

First reading: Exodus 17:1-7

LHS

      See also under the gospel below

AT

      See also under the gospel

TIS

Second reading: Romans 5:1-11

LHS

AT

TIS

Gospel: John 4:5-42

LHS

AT

TIS

PSALM 95

It is recommended that congregations sing the Venite ('O come, let us sing to the Lord') from the Order of Matins (LHS pp 37, 38).

TIS 52, Let us sing to the God of salvation, and 53, Come, sing praises to the Lord above, are based on Psalm 95.

The first three verses of the following paraphrase of Psalm 95 are by David Schubert, from the Modern Matins, and the other verses by David Sch¸tz. The song may be sung to the tune in the Modern Matins by Peter Schmidt.

O come, let's sing aloud to God,

and shout for joy to the Rock who saves.

Let's come before him, giving thanks.

With joyful songs let us praise the Lord.

The Lord is great, the King of all.

The depths of earth, the heights of hills,

the sea he made, and all the land:

they all are his, all made by him.

O come, bow down and worship him,

and kneel before the Lord our God.

For he's our maker, we are his;

we are the flock that is led by him.

O that today you'd hear his voice,

and harden not your hearts again,

as on that day at Meribah,

at Massah in the wilderness,

when your ancestors tested me

although they'd seen the things I'd done.

That generation sickened me,

for forty years I loathed their sight.

Their hearts have always gone astray;

they do not follow in my ways.

Then I was angry and I swore:

'They shall not come into my rest.'

NOTES ON THE READINGS

See the document 'General notes and resources', under 'Notes on the readings', in the 'General and seasonal' folder.

EXODUS 17:1-7: God had shown his marvellous saving hand to the Israelites in their rescue at the Red Sea. He had also miraculously provided food daily with bread (manna) and quail. However, the pattern of grumbling, of unjust criticism of Moses and of God, together with the threat of rebellion, emerged again on this occasion when they reached a location without water. They did not stop even to think whether God was testing them. They rather put God to the test. God's patience was abundantly demonstrated by his order to Moses to strike the rock from which poured out water.

ROMANS 5:1-11: In this reading Paul continues on from the teachings of the previous chapters on 'justification'.  He enlarges now upon its results in the new life of the believer. There is now the experience of peace with God and access to him by his freely given favour (grace). Even suffering produces a positive outcome in terms of endurance, character and hope. All of this new relationship is based not on feeling but on fact. The fact that Christ died not for good people but for sinners establishes assurance of salvation and ensures God's forgiven people the removal of his wrath. A Christian's boasting is indeed only in God.

JOHN 4:5-42: Not only does Jesus travel through a country avoided by Jews because of its mixed religion, but also engages a Samaritan in conversation. And a woman, at that! Though he is fully aware of her sinful lifestyle, he is not deterred from seeking her spiritual wellbeing. He speaks to her of God-pleasing worship ('in spirit and in truth') and receives a repentant and joyful response. He finds an open heart to reveal himself as the Messiah. Not only that, but through this woman a whole village receives two days of productive ministry from the Lord whose mission is to the whole world.

VISUAL

VISUALS FOR THE READINGS

Pictures or visual symbols could be displayed on banners or the overhead screen during the readings. For instance, the gospel could be illustrated by a picture like the one in the TEV Bible for John 4:7.

DRAMA

'MEGA DRAMA'

See a drama for the day in Mega Drama resources (Openbook Publishers), originally included in these worship resources when they were released on disks.

DRAMATISING THE READINGS

The readings can be read by more than one person to make the dramatic meaning of the text clearer. For instance, the first reading could be read by four readers: narrator, one of the people, Moses, the Lord; and the gospel could be read by several voices: narrator, Jesus, woman, and one other who may speak the words of the disciples and the Samaritan villagers.

CHILDREN

'COME AND SEE JESUS'

The Come and See Jesus curriculum published by Openbook Publishers has a wealth of material and ideas that may be adapted for use in worship. Please note that a new edition of this material is now available for the Revised Common Lectionary.

This week's story is 'Jesus talks with a Samaritam woman (John 4:1-42)'. Material for this story may be found in

Original Edition, Series A, Lent 2

OR

Revised RCL Edition, 3 Lent, year A