Scripture for Today

By Aliso Creek ChurchReligion & Spirituality Christianity

Scripture for Today episodes

January 03, 2025 Genesis 3
Passage:
1 Now the serpent was the most cunning of all the wild animals that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You can’t eat from any tree in the garden’? ”
2 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit from the trees in the garden. 3 But about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, God said, ‘You must not eat it or touch it, or you will die.’ ”
4 “No! You will certainly not die,” the serpent said to the woman. 5 “In fact, God knows that when you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6 The woman saw that the tree was good for food and delightful to look at, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit and ate it; she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 So the Lord God called out to the man and said to him, “Where are you? ”
10 And he said, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.”
11 Then he asked, “Who told you that you were naked? Did you eat from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from? ”
12 The man replied, “The woman you gave to be with me — she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate.”
13 So the Lord God asked the woman, “What have you done? ”
And the woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
14 So the Lord God said to the serpent:
Because you have done this,
you are cursed more than any livestock
and more than any wild animal.
You will move on your belly
and eat dust all the days of your life.
15 I will put hostility between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring.
He will strike your head,
and you will strike his heel.
16 He said to the woman:
I will intensify your labor pains;
you will bear children with painful effort.
Your desire will be for your husband,
yet he will rule over you.
17 And he said to the man, “Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘Do not eat from it’:
The ground is cursed because of you.
You will eat from it by means of painful labor
all the days of your life.
18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
and you will eat the plants of the field.
19 You will eat bread by the sweat of your brow
until you return to the ground,
since you were taken from it.
For you are dust,
and you will return to dust.”
20 The man named his wife Eve because she was the mother of all the living. 21 The Lord God made clothing from skins for the man and his wife, and he clothed them.
22 The Lord God said, “Since the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil, he must not reach out, take from the tree of life, eat, and live forever.” 23 So the Lord God sent him away from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. 24 He drove the man out and stationed the cherubim and the flaming, whirling sword east of the garden of Eden to guard the way to the tree of life.
-- Genesis 3:1-24 (CSB)
Song:
Grace Greater Than Our Sin by Bart Millard, Brown Bannister, Julia Harriette Johnston
Lyrics:
Marvellous grace of our loving Lord
Grace that exceeds our sin and our guilt
Yonder on Calvary's mount outpoured
There where the blood of the Lamb was spilt
Grace grace God's grace
Grace that will pardon and cleanse within
Grace grace God's grace
Grace that is greater than all our sin
Sin and despair like the sea waves cold
Threaten the soul with infinite loss
Grace that is greater yes grace untold
Points to the refuge the mighty Cross
Dark is the stain that we cannot hide
What can avail to wash it away
Look there is flowing a crimson tide
Whiter than snow you may be today
Marvellous infinite matchless grace
Freely bestowed on all who believe
You that are longing to see His face
Will you this moment His grace receive
Prayer:
Kindness flows from you, Lord, pure and continual. You had
cast us off, as was only just, but mercifully you forgave us;
you hated us and you were reconciled to us, you cursed us
and you blessed us; you banished us from paradise, and you
called us back again; you took from us the fig leaves that had
made us so unseemly a garment, and you put on us a cloak
of great value; you opened the prison gates and gave the
condemned a pardon; you sprinkled us with clean water and
washed away the dirt.
Never again, after all this, will Adam blush when you
call him, never will he try to hide because his conscience
reproaches him, never will he seek concealment under the
trees in the garden. The flaming sword will nevermore whirl
about the walls of paradise and cut off the entrance from
those who approach it.
For us that were heirs to his sin, all has been changed to
rejoicing; for man now has access to paradise and even to
heaven itself. The whole creation, heaven and earth, is at
one again in friendship, its former differences forgotten;
men join their voices with the angels and echo the angels’
praise of God. . . .
There is no doubt who it is that dresses the bride in her
finery: it is, of course, Christ—he that is and was and will be.
Blessed is he, now and throughout the ages. Amen.
-Gregory of Nyssa
11 min
January 02, 2025 Genesis 2
Passage:
18 Then the LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper corresponding to him.” 19 The LORD God formed out of the ground every wild animal and every bird of the sky, and brought each to the man to see what he would call it. And whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name. 20 The man gave names to all the livestock, to the birds of the sky, and to every wild animal; but for the man no helper was found corresponding to him. 21 So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to come over the man, and he slept. God took one of his ribs and closed the flesh at that place. 22 Then the LORD God made the rib he had taken from the man into a woman and brought her to the man.
23 And the man said:
This one, at last, is bone of my bone
and flesh of my flesh;
this one will be called “woman,”
for she was taken from man.
24 This is why a man leaves his father and mother and bonds with his wife, and they become one flesh. 25 Both the man and his wife were naked, yet felt no shame.
(Genesis 2:18-25 CSB17)
Song:
Creator by Bryan Fowler, Kristyn Getty, and Phil Wickham
Lyrics:
Praise Him all you creatures great and small
Praise Him summer winter spring and fall
Howling wind rushing streams
Rolling hills and crashing seas
Lift your voice and worship your Creator
Praise Him gleaming moon and burning sun
Praise Him all you spinning spheres above
Shining stars golden beams
Choir made of galaxies
Lift your voice and worship your Creator
Holy
You are holy
Earth and heaven
Sing forever
Holy
You are holy
All creation
Praise Creator
Praise Him who stepped into what He made
Paid our debt and pulled us from the grave
Every heart He set free
Every soul that’s been redeemed
Lift your voice and worship your Creator
This my great and everlasting hope
I’ve been saved and heaven is my home
I can’t wait for that day
When I see You face to face
For I was made to magnify my Maker
Yes I was saved to walk beside my Savior
I’m created to worship my Creator
Yes all creation
Praise Creator
Prayer:
O Lord, you have created all things perfect, and nothing imperfect. To you, no creature is ugly. You have created them with your divine order, peace, and harmony. I call to you. Everything that can love, loves you—both those that know what they love, and those that do not know what they love. I call to you who have created all creatures very good, without any evil, you who will not completely show yourself to any except the pure in heart. For you are the Father of truth, the wisdom of the true and highest life, and the highest life of blessing. You are the highest good, the highest brightness. You are the Father of the Son who has awakened us, and who still brings us to life from the sleep of our sins, and who bids us come to you. Amen.
—Augustine of Hippo
9 min
January 01, 2025 Genesis 1
Passage:
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness covered the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. 3 Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” There was an evening, and there was a morning: one day.
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness. They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, the whole earth, and the creatures that crawl on the earth.”
27 So God created man in his own image;
he created him in the image of God;
he created them male and female.
(Genesis 1:1-5, 26-27 CSB17)
Song:
In the Beginning by Sam Lee, Jonathan Baird, and Ryan Baird
Lyrics:
In the beginning was the Word
And the Word was with God
And the Word was God
He was with God in the beginning
Through Him, all things were made
Apart from Him, nothing was made that has been made
In Him was life, and the life was the light of men
The light shines in the dark, but the darkness could not comprehend
For God so loved the world
For God so loved the world
That He gave His only Son
That He gave His only Son
If you believe, you will not die
You will receive eternal life
Prayer:
The stars dance for you, Lord, while seasons laugh and sing. Planets shine for you, announcing your wisdom. Your lights sing to the glorious Trinity. Here below, we too are your glory. We exist to sing your praises, Light of the world. Immortal One, glory’s highest, you took on mortal flesh so you could put an end to our grief. I live for you, and my songs arise for you. I am a breathing sacrifice, putting aside all the things I once possessed. So I give to you now the only thing remaining: I will be silent, or sing, at your will. May I do your bidding, either way. May I say what is right, and nothing else. With your guidance, let me see the pearl in the mud, the gold in the sand, the rose in the thorny thicket. Let me hear what is pure in the noise of life. Amen.
—Gregory Nazianzen
7 min
December 31, 2024 Philippians 3:12-14
Passage:
12 Not that I have already reached the goal or am already perfect, but I make every effort to take hold of it because I also have been taken hold of by Christ Jesus. 13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, 14 I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus. -- Philippians 3:12-14 (CSB)
Song:
Because of Christ by Andrew Holt, Chris Clayton, and Mitch Wong
Lyrics:
On a hill in Israel
Mercy spoke for me
Mercy spoke for me
Mercy spoke for me
It was on Golgotha’s tree
His death brought liberty
His death brought liberty
His death brought liberty
May I never boast in anything
Except the cross of Jesus Christ
May I not forget the blood He shed
It is by His death I am alive
Because of Christ I am alive
What a humble sacrifice
Love that washed me clean
Love that washed me clean
Love that washed me clean
What a blessed mystery
His punishment my peace
His punishment my peace
His punishment my peace
Hallelujah hallelujah
Praise the One who set me free
Death has lost its grip on me
Hallelujah hallelujah
Jesus rose in victory
He’s alive alive in me
Prayer:
Almighty God, you alone can bring into order the unruly wills and affections of sinners: Grant your people grace to love what you command and desire what you promise; that, among the swift and varied changes of this world, our hearts may surely there be fixed where true joys are to be found; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
8 min
December 30, 2024 Philippians 1:3-6
Sunday’s Sermon:
Aliso Creek Church Podcast
Passage:
3 I give thanks to my God for every remembrance of you, 4 always praying with joy for all of you in my every prayer, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. 6 I am sure of this, that he who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
-- Philippians 1:3-6 (CSB)
Song:
Grateful by Jesseca Toovey and Sam Hart
Lyrics:
I am overwhelmed
When I think of all you’ve done
The blood that You poured out
The price that you paid
Just to have my heart
Grateful
Grateful
I’m grateful to you
Forever my heart will sing
I’m grateful to you
It’s nothing I could earn
And it’s nothing that I deserve
On the cross you bought my freedom
Now I’m seated at your table
And I belong to you
How can it be
You bled for me
How can it be
You’d pour out mercy
It’s all because
It’s all because of your love
Prayer:
This is another day, O Lord. I know not what it will bring forth, but make me ready, Lord, for whatever it may be. If I am to stand up, help me to stand bravely. If I am to sit still, help me to sit quietly. If I am to lie low, help me to do it patiently. And if I am to do nothing, let me do it gallantly. Make these words more than words, and give me the Spirit of Jesus. Amen.
8 min
December 27, 2024 Luke 1:39-56
Passage:
39 In those days Mary set out and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judah 40 where she entered Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped inside her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 Then she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and your child will be blessed! 43 How could this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 For you see, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped for joy inside me. 45 Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill what he has spoken to her! ”
46 And Mary said:
My soul magnifies the Lord,
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 because he has looked with favor
on the humble condition of his servant.
Surely, from now on all generations
will call me blessed,
49 because the Mighty One
has done great things for me,
and his name is holy.
50 His mercy is from generation to generation
on those who fear him.
51 He has done a mighty deed with his arm;
he has scattered the proud
because of the thoughts of their hearts;
52 he has toppled the mighty from their thrones
and exalted the lowly.
53 He has satisfied the hungry with good things
and sent the rich away empty.
54 He has helped his servant Israel,
remembering his mercy
55 to Abraham and his descendants forever,
just as he spoke to our ancestors.
56 And Mary stayed with her about three months; then she returned to her home. -- Luke 1:39-56 (CSB)
Song:
Mary’s Song (Our King of Peace)
Lyrics:
My soul magnifies the Lord
My spirit rejoices in God
My Savior has seen his servant in need
And behold the great things He has done
He scatters the proud and rich
He lifts up the humble and weak
The kings of the earth He casts from their thrones
And the hungry He welcomes to feast
Oh behold my Savior has come
And my soul will tell of His praise
For He Who is strong has come to the weak
And at last He will reign as our King of Peace
From now to the end of time
The nations will know me as blest
For God has made new His promise of love
And mercy through Abraham’s seed
Prayer:
Father, what we know not, teach us; what we have not, give us; what we are not, make us; for the sake of your Son our Savior. Amen.
-Old Anglican Prayer
8 min
December 26, 2024 Luke 3:7-20
Passage:
7 He then said to the crowds who came out to be baptized by him, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8 Therefore produce fruit consistent with repentance. And don’t start saying to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you that God is able to raise up children for Abraham from these stones. 9 The ax is already at the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”
10 “What then should we do? ” the crowds were asking him.
11 He replied to them, “The one who has two shirts must share with someone who has none, and the one who has food must do the same.”
12 Tax collectors also came to be baptized, and they asked him, “Teacher, what should we do? ”
13 He told them, “Don’t collect any more than what you have been authorized.”
14 Some soldiers also questioned him, “What should we do? ”
He said to them, “Don’t take money from anyone by force or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages.”
15 Now the people were waiting expectantly, and all of them were questioning in their hearts whether John might be the Messiah. 16 John answered them all, “I baptize you with water, but one who is more powerful than I am is coming. I am not worthy to untie the strap of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17 His winnowing shovel is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with fire that never goes out.” 18 Then, along with many other exhortations, he proclaimed good news to the people. 19 But when John rebuked Herod the tetrarch because of Herodias, his brother’s wife, and all the evil things he had done, 20 Herod added this to everything else — he locked up John in prison.
-- Luke 3:7-20 (CSB)
Song:
The First Noel by traditional, sung by Lauren Daigle
Lyrics:
The first Noel the angel did say
Was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay
In fields where they lay keeping their sheep
On a cold winter's night that was so deep
Noel Noel Noel Noel
Born is the King of Israel
They looked up and saw a star
Shining in the east beyond them far
And to the earth it gave great light
And so it continued both day and night
And by the light of that same star
Three wise men came from country far
To seek for a king was their intent
And to follow the star wherever it went
This star drew nigh to the northwest
O'er Bethlehem it took its rest
And there it did both stop and stay
Right over the place where Jesus lay
Then entered in those wise men three
Full rev'rently upon the knee
And offered there in His presence
Their gold and myrrh and frankincense
Prayer:
You, Lord, have become my hope, my comfort, my strength, my all! In you does my soul rejoice. The darkness vanished from before my eyes, and I beheld you, the sun of righteousness. When I loved darkness, I knew you not, but wandered on from night to night. But you led me out of that blindness; you took me by the hand and called me to yourself, and now I can thank you, and your mighty voice which has penetrated to my inmost heart. Amen.
-Augustine
9 min
December 25, 2024 Psalm 80:1-7
Passage:
1 Listen, Shepherd of Israel,
who leads Joseph like a flock;
you who sit enthroned between the cherubim,
shine
2 on Ephraim,
Benjamin, and Manasseh.
Rally your power and come to save us.
3 Restore us, God;
make your face shine on us,
so that we may be saved.
4 Lord God of Armies,
how long will you be angry
with your people’s prayers?
5 You fed them the bread of tears
and gave them a full measure
of tears to drink.
6 You put us at odds with our neighbors;
our enemies mock us.
7 Restore us, God of Armies;
make your face shine on us, so that we may be saved.
-- Psalms 80:1-7 (CSB)
Song:
Once in Royal David’s City by Cecil Frances Humphreys Alexander and Henry John Gauntlett, arr. Sandra McCracken, Laura Story, and Matt Papa
Lyrics:
Once in royal David's city
Stood a lowly cattle shed
Where a mother laid her baby
In a manger for His bed
Mary was that mother mild
Jesus Christ her little Child
He came down to earth from heaven
Who is God and Lord of all
And His shelter was a stable
And His cradle was a stall
With the poor and meek and lowly
Lived on earth our Saviour holy
Jesus is our childhood's pattern
Day by day like us He grew
He was little weak and helpless
Tears and smiles like us He knew
And He feels for all our sadness
And He shares in all our gladness
And our eyes at last shall see Him
Through His own redeeming love
For that Child so dear and gentle
Is our Lord in heaven above
And He leads His children on
To the place where He has gone
Prayer:
Almighty God, who sees that we have no power of ourselves to help ourselves, keep us both outwardly in our bodies and inwardly in our souls, that we may be defended from all adversities that may happen to the body and from all evil thoughts that may assault and hurt the soul; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
-The Gregorian Sacramentary
6 min
December 24, 2024 Micah 5:2-5a
Passage:
2 Bethlehem Ephrathah,
you are small among the clans of Judah;
one will come from you
to be ruler over Israel for me.
His origin is from antiquity,
from ancient times.
3 Therefore, Israel will be abandoned until the time
when she who is in labor has given birth;
then the rest of the ruler’s brothers will return
to the people of Israel.
4 He will stand and shepherd them
in the strength of the Lord,
in the majestic name of the Lord his God.
They will live securely,
for then his greatness will extend
to the ends of the earth.
5 He will be their peace. -- Micah 5:2-5 (CSB)
Song:
O Little Town of Bethlehem by Adrian Disch, Lewis Henry Redner, Phillips Brooks, Ross Aaron Fishburn, Shane Barnard
Lyrics:
O little town of Bethlehem
How still we see thee lie
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by
Yet in thy dark streets shineth
The everlasting light
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee tonight
For Christ is born of Mary
And gathered all above
While mortals sleep
The angels keep their watch
Of wondering love
O morning stars together
Proclaim the holy birth
And praises sing to God the King
And peace to men on earth
How silently how silently
The wondrous gift is given
So God imparts to human hearts
The blessings of His Heaven
No ear may hear His calling
But in this world of sin
Where meek souls will receive Him still
The dear Christ enters in
O holy Child of Bethlehem
Descend to us we pray
Cast out our sin and enter in
Be born to us today
We hear the Christmas angels
The great glad tidings tell
O come to us abide with us
Our Lord Emmanuel
Prayer:
Stir up your power, O Lord, and with great might come among us; and as we are sorely hindered by our sins from running the race that is set before us, let your bountiful grace and mercy speedily help and deliver us; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory, now and for ever. Amen.
9 min
December 23, 2024 2 Samuel 11-12
Sunday’s Sermon:
Aliso Creek Church Podcast
Passage:
2 One evening David got up from his bed and strolled around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing—a very beautiful woman. 3 So David sent someone to inquire about her, and he said, “Isn’t this Bathsheba, daughter of Eliam and wife of Uriah the Hethite?”
4 David sent messengers to get her, and when she came to him, he slept with her. Now she had just been purifying herself from her uncleanness. Afterward, she returned home. 5 The woman conceived and sent word to inform David, “I am pregnant.”
14 The next morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it with Uriah.
15 In the letter he wrote:
Put Uriah at the front of the fiercest fighting, then withdraw from him so that he is struck down and dies.
16 When Joab was besieging the city, he put Uriah in the place where he knew the best enemy soldiers were. 17 Then the men of the city came out and attacked Joab, and some of the men from David’s soldiers fell in battle; Uriah the Hethite also died.
1 So the LORD sent Nathan to David. When he arrived, he said to him:
There were two men in a certain city, one rich and the other poor.
2 The rich man had very large flocks and herds,
3 but the poor man had nothing except one small ewe lamb that he had bought. He raised her, and she grew up with him and with his children. From his meager food she would eat, from his cup she would drink, and in his arms she would sleep. She was like a daughter to him.
4 Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man could not bring himself to take one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for his guest.
5 David was infuriated with the man and said to Nathan, “As the LORD lives, the man who did this deserves to die! 6 Because he has done this thing and shown no pity, he must pay four lambs for that lamb.”
7 Nathan replied to David, “You are the man!"
13 David responded to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.”
Then Nathan replied to David, “And the LORD has taken away your sin; you will not die. 14 However, because you treated the LORD with such contempt in this matter, the son born to you will die.”
24 Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba; he went to her and slept with her. She gave birth to a son and named him Solomon.
(2 Samuel 11:2-5, 14-17; 12:1-7, 13-14, 24 CSB)
Song:
Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence by Gerard Moultrie
Lyrics:
Let all mortal flesh keep silence
And with fear and trembling stand
Ponder nothing earthly minded
For with blessing in His hand
Christ our God to earth descendeth
Our full homage to demand
Rank on rank the host of heaven
Spreads its vanguard on the way
As the Light of light descendeth
From the realms of endless day
That the powers of hell may vanish
As the darkness clears away
At His feet the six winged seraph
Cherubim with sleepless eye
Veil their faces to the Presence
As with ceaseless voice they cry
Alleluia alleluia
Alleluia Lord Most High
Prayer:
This is another day, O Lord. I know not what it will bring forth, but make me ready, Lord, for whatever it may be. If I am to stand up, help me to stand bravely. If I am to sit still, help me to sit quietly. If I am to lie low, help me to do it patiently. And if I am to do nothing, let me do it gallantly. Make these words more than words, and give me the Spirit of Jesus. Amen.
10 min

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