Collect, Readings & Prayers for the First Sunday of Epiphany, the Baptism of Christ.

Collect

Eternal Father,

who at the baptism of Jesus

revealed him to be your Son,

anointing him with the Holy Spirit:

grant to us, who are born again by water and the Spirit,

that we may be faithful to our calling as your adopted children;

through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,

who is alive and reigns with you,

in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and for ever.

Readings

Isaiah 42 verses 1-9.

The Servant, a Light to the Nations

42 Here is my servant, whom I uphold,
    my chosen, in whom my soul delights;
I have put my spirit upon him;
    he will bring forth justice to the nations.
² He will not cry or lift up his voice,
    or make it heard in the street;
³ a bruised reed he will not break,
    and a dimly burning wick he will not quench;
    he will faithfully bring forth justice.
⁴ He will not grow faint or be crushed
    until he has established justice in the earth;
    and the coastlands wait for his teaching.

⁵ Thus says God, the Lord,
    who created the heavens and stretched them out,
    who spread out the earth and what comes from it,
who gives breath to the people upon it
    and spirit to those who walk in it:
⁶ I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness,
    I have taken you by the hand and kept you;
I have given you as a covenant to the people,
    a light to the nations,
⁷     to open the eyes that are blind,
to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon,
    from the prison those who sit in darkness.
⁸ I am the Lord, that is my name;
    my glory I give to no other,
    nor my praise to idols.
⁹ See, the former things have come to pass,
    and new things I now declare;
before they spring forth,
    I tell you of them.

Acts 10:34-43

Gentiles Hear the Good News

³⁴ Then Peter began to speak to them: ‘I truly understand that God shows no partiality, ³⁵ but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. ³⁶ You know the message he sent to the people of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ—he is Lord of all. ³⁷ That message spread throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John announced: ³⁸ how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power; how he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. ³⁹ We are witnesses to all that he did both in Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree; ⁴⁰ but God raised him on the third day and allowed him to appear, ⁴¹ not to all the people but to us who were chosen by God as witnesses, and who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. ⁴² He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one ordained by God as judge of the living and the dead. ⁴³ All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.’

Matthew 3:13-17

The Baptism of Jesus

¹³ Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. ¹⁴ John would have prevented him, saying, ‘I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?’ ¹⁵ But Jesus answered him, ‘Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfil all righteousness.’ Then he consented. ¹⁶ And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. ¹⁷ And a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.’

Prayers

• Holy God,

in Mary’s child you enter the world.

We greet you as friend and brother.

We hail you as Lord and Saviour.

And we ask that as we grow in knowledge of you so may we grow

in knowledge of ourselves as known, treasured,

and beloved from eternity to eternity Amen.  

• Lord of life, we thank you for the moments in history which have pointed towards the mystery of baptism: especially Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan River, when you opened the door of heaven to proclaim him to be your beloved son and sent the Holy Spirit down in the form of a dove,  Come to us, open our hearts and minds, so that we too may hear your life-giving word and be renewed by the power of the spirit. Amen

• We pray O Lord, that the Christian community, made one by our common baptism, may always welcome the unborn, the stranger, and all who are vulnerable and that each one of us as we celebrate the Baptism of our Lord and Saviour, may renew the commitment of our own baptism, renouncing sin and promising to serve God faithfully in his holy Church Amen

• Lord, we so easily forget in our churches that we are a new creation. The struggle goes on to repair the roof, to find a new Treasurer, to pay the Parish Gift to the Diocese. So easily the vision fades and the Christian story which brought us to life, so easily becomes a suffocating system which leads us back to captivity.  Lord remind us again and again that it need not be so, that there is a new world and we are part of it. Help us to take from your hands each day the gift of new life. Amen

• Dear Lord, our world is old and spiritually tired. We have forgotten the ways that lead to peace. We live in anxious times, subject to the vagaries of powerful men who believe they can act with impunity as they follow their own agendas regardless of the consequences. We have forgotten to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with you. Restrain the forces of cruelty, exploitation and aggression, strengthen with your costly love those who struggle for a new social order. Remind us again and again, that there is a new world and we are part of it. Help us to take from your hands each day the gift of new life. Amen

• Gracious God, we pray for the sick and especially for those who because of their weariness or pain find it difficult to pray; may they be aware of our prayer on their behalf and graciously accept the support and love of their families and friends within the Church and the wider community. We pray too for those who are dying and those who have already completed their life here on earth; may they rest in peace and rise in glory. We pray for the families and friends remaining as they remember with fondness mingled with sadness, the life and memories of a loved one that has passed into your loving care.  Amen

• We pray for the churches in our area which are involved in the development of our proposed Minster Community, as they discern its future ministry, mission, and governance.  We pray that the meeting arranged with the Bishop of Leicester on the 12^th January, concerning the future of this Community, may be fruitful and constructive and that the pathway ahead may become clearer and may be such as will promote the health and effective outreach of the churches concerned and the extension of your Kingdom here on earth.  Amen

• For all of us, we pray that we may we recognize the gifts we have received from the Spirit and use them freely for the good of our local parishes and for all. Good and gracious God, we give you thanks and place our trust in you. Hear our prayers, guide us in the time of change, and give us the strength to persevere so that one day we may share everlasting life with you. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen