12. Year B - Second Sunday after Epiphany

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VERSION: 9 April 2002

SECOND SUNDAY AFTER EPIPHANY, YEAR B

In 2003: 19 Jan

In 2006: 15 Jan

In 2009: 18 Jan

In 2012: 15 Jan

In 2015: 18 Jan

- - -

Note: For explanations and suggestions on the various resources provided, see the documents 'General notes and resources' and 'Epiphany season and time after' 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.

Jesus found Philip and said to him:

Follow me!

Philip found Nathaniel and said to him:

Come and see!

OR, use the standard Epiphany Sentence in the document 'Epiphany season and time after', 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 and eternal God,

ruler of all things in heaven and earth:

Mercifully hear the prayers of your people,

and grant us your peace

all the days of our life;

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 and eternal God,

you rule over everything in heaven and on earth.

In mercy listen to the prayers of your people,

and give us your peace in our times.

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 that God will keep us true to our calling as his followers.[silence])

Almighty and merciful God,

it is by your loving kindness alone

that you accept us

and call us to serve you.

Strengthen us by your Holy Spirit

and make us worthy of our calling.

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 follow Jesus. [silence])

Jesus Christ, Son of God,

we thank you for calling us to be your disciples.

Open our eyes to recognise you

as the promised Messiah,

and draw us to follow you

wherever you lead.

For you live and reign

with the Father and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever.

Amen.

FIRST READING

1 Samuel 3:1-10(11-20) The Lord reveals himself to Samuel

PSALM

Psalm 139:1-6,13-18

Antiphon:

Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts. (Ps 139:23 NRSV)

SECOND READING

1 Corinthians 6:12-20 Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit

ALLELUIA VERSE (John 1:51 NRSV)

Alleluia, alleluia.

(Jesus said:) 'Very truly, I tell you,

you will see heaven opened

and the angels of God ascending and descending

upon the Son of Man.'

Alleluia.

GOSPEL

John 1:43-51 We have found the Messiah

PRAYER AFTER THE GOSPEL

This is the gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, O Christ.

Lord Jesus, thank you for calling us to be your followers.

Help us to listen to you and to believe in you.

Amen.

OFFERING PRAYER

Thank you, Lord, for calling us to be your followers.

Lead us to serve you in all that we do

by trusting you and doing your will.

Use us and our possessions for your purposes.

Amen.

PRAYER OF THE CHURCH

Call to prayer

Jesus has called us to follow him. So let us follow where he leads us, and pray to God our Father for the whole people of God in Christ Jesus, and for all people according to their needs.

The regular response, OR:

Lord God, in your grace,

hear the prayer of your people.

Suggested intercessions

Concluding prayer

Lord God, since you have called us and received us as your disciples, keep us true to our calling. Build us up in trust in you, and in love towards each other, until we finally see you face to face. We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Amen.

PREFACE

For these non-festival Sundays after Epiphany, either no seasonal preface is used, as in the Service with Communion (LHS p 6), or the following Epiphany preface may be used.

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.

You have sent your only Son

to appear among us as a human being,

and through him

you have fully revealed

the light of your presence to us.

And so, with angels and archangels,

and with all the company of heaven,

we adore and praise your glorious name:

COMMUNION INVITATION

The following Epiphany invitation or one of the two general invitations below may be used.

Epiphany

Jesus says:

'The bread that God gives

is he who comes down from heaven

and gives life to the world.'

(Thanks be to God.)

Come, everything is ready.

General

1  Jesus says:

'I am the bread of life.

Whoever comes to me will never be hungry,

and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.'

(Thanks be to God.)

Come, everything is ready.

2  Jesus says:

'My flesh is true food and my blood is true drink.

Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood

remain in me, and I in them.'

(Thanks be to God.)

Come, everything is ready.

PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION

If the third prayer listed above under 'Prayer of the day' has not already been used, it may be used in this modified form as a post-communion prayer.

Almighty and merciful God,

it is by your loving kindness alone

that you accept us

and call us to serve you.

Strengthen us by this sacrament

and make us worthy of our calling.

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.

DISMISSAL

Go in peace, as followers of the Lord.

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: 1 Samuel 3:1-10 (11-20)

LHS

AT

TIS

Second reading: 1 Corinthians 6:12-20

LHS

AT

TIS

Gospel: John 1:43-51

LHS

AT

TIS

PSALM 139:1-6,13-18

For musical settings of Psalm 139:1-6,13-18, see Music Packages 4 and 9. See also TIS 88 O Lord, you have searched me out and known me.

The following metrical paraphrase of Psalm 139:1-6,13-18 by David Sch¸tz could be sung to the tune 'Dir, dir, Jehovah' (LH 218). If reproducing this version, please put 'Words (c) David Sch¸tz' at the beginning or the end of the psalm.

O Lord, you've searched me and you know me,

you know when I sit down and when I rise.

From far away you know my thinking;

you watch me where I walk and where I lie.

You know my ways and all the things I do,

before I speak a word, it's known to you.

On every side, you're all around me;

your mighty hand is always over me.

So great your knowledge - far beyond me! -

its height and depth too great for me to see.

For it was you who made my inmost being

and knitted me together in the womb.

I praise you for my wondrous making -

I know that all your works are wonderful.

When I was hidden deep in darkness,

yet there you saw me and you made me whole.

And even then you numbered all my days -

my life unlived was written on your page.

Your thoughts, O God, are deep in mystery!

How vast they are is more than I can say.

Were I to count your thoughts, I'd stumble -

their number is far more than grains of sand!

If counting them, I were to fall asleep,

when I awoke you'd still be here with me.

Note that the songs AT 224 Where could I run from you, 394 Search me, O God, and 424 O God, you search me are song versions of Psalm 139.

NOTES ON THE READINGS

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

1 SAMUEL 3:1-10: The young boy Samuel, born in answer to prayer to aged Hannah and Elkanah, was given back to God by his mother to serve in the temple at Shiloh. Sleeping there one night, the little boy was called by God three times during the night. Thinking it was the priest Eli who called, Samuel wakened him on each occasion. Eli eventually instructed him to answer, 'Speak Lord, your servant hears'. Samuel obeyed, and God told him many things which would happen in Israel.

1 CORINTHIANS 6:12-20: Before hearing and believing the gospel, the Corinthian Christians had engaged in sexual immorality as part of their heathen religious worship. Some were still finding it hard not to be involved in sexual perversion. They knew that Christ had died for their sins to set them free from death. They thought they were free, however, to do what they pleased. St Paul here defines a very clear-cut teaching of how a Christian sees his/her body. Having been redeemed from sin, the body belongs to God.

JOHN 1:43-51: Just after John the Baptist had pointed to Jesus as the Lamb of God, that is the Messiah, Jesus went the next day to Galilee. Jesus convinced Philip of Jesus' messiahship. Philip brought Nathanael to Jesus. Jesus convinced and called Nathanael also. Jesus' knowledge of Nathanael's inner spiritual life authenticated Jesus' divine sonship in Nathanael's mind.

VISUAL

VISUALS FOR THE READINGS

Pictures or visual symbols could be displayed on banners or the overhead screen during the readings. For instance, the first reading could be accompanied by a picture such as the TEV illustration for 1 Samuel 3:10.

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, Samuel (the part of Samuel could be read by a boy), Eli, the Lord; and the gospel could be read by four readers: narrator (the pastor), Jesus, Philip, Nathanael.

CHILDREN

CHILDREN AND THE READINGS

A boy could take the part of Samuel if the first reading is read dramatically.

'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: 'The boy Samuel' (to be found in both the original and RCL editions, 2 Epiphany, year B).