Weekly Readings

THE TWENTY-FOURTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

November 15, 2020

MEMORY VERSE: 1 Thessalonians 5:8

"Since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled and put on the armor of faith and love." (CSB)

Zephaniah 1:7-16

Be silent in the presence of the Lord God,
for the day of the Lord is near.
Indeed, the Lord has prepared a sacrifice;
he has consecrated his guests.

⁸ On the day of the Lord's sacrifice
I will punish the officials, the king's sons,
and all who are dressed in foreign clothing.
⁹ On that day I will punish
all who skip over the threshold,
who fill their master's house
with violence and deceit.

¹⁰ On that day—
this is the Lord's declaration—
there will be an outcry from the Fish Gate,
a wailing from the Second District,
and a loud crashing from the hills.
¹¹ Wail, you residents of the Hollow,
for all the merchants will be silenced;
all those loaded with silver will be cut off.

¹² And at that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps
and punish those who settle down comfortably,
who say to themselves:
The Lord will do nothing—good or bad.
¹³ Their wealth will become plunder
and their houses a ruin.
They will build houses but never live in them,
plant vineyards but never drink their wine.

¹⁴ The great day of the Lord is near,
near and rapidly approaching.
Listen, the day of the Lord—
then the warrior's cry is bitter.
¹⁵ That day is a day of wrath,
a day of trouble and distress,
a day of destruction and desolation,
a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and total darkness,
¹⁶ a day of ram's horn and battle cry
against the fortified cities,
and against the high corner towers. (CSB)

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

About the times and the seasons: Brothers and sisters, you do not need anything to be written to you. ² For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night. ³ When they say, "Peace and security," then sudden destruction will come upon them, like labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. ⁴ But you, brothers and sisters, are not in the dark, for this day to surprise you like a thief. ⁵ For you are all children of light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or the darkness. ⁶ So then, let us not sleep, like the rest, but let us stay awake and be self-controlled. ⁷ For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. ⁸ But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled and put on the armor of faith and love, and a helmet of the hope of salvation. ⁹ For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, ¹⁰ who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. ¹¹ Therefore encourage one another and build each other up as you are already doing. (CSB)

Matthew 25:14-30

[Jesus told His disciples] "The Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. He called together his servants and entrusted his money to them while he was gone. ¹⁵ He gave five bags of silver to one, two bags of silver to another, and one bag of silver to the last—dividing it in proportion to their abilities. He then left on his trip.

¹⁶ "The servant who received the five bags of silver began to invest the money and earned five more. ¹⁷ The servant with two bags of silver also went to work and earned two more. ¹⁸ But the servant who received the one bag of silver dug a hole in the ground and hid the master's money.

¹⁹ "After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to give an account of how they had used his money. ²⁰ The servant to whom he had entrusted the five bags of silver came forward with five more and said, 'Master, you gave me five bags of silver to invest, and I have earned five more.'

²¹ "The master was full of praise. 'Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let's celebrate together!'

²² "The servant who had received the two bags of silver came forward and said, 'Master, you gave me two bags of silver to invest, and I have earned two more.'

²³ "The master said, 'Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let's celebrate together!'

²⁴ "Then the servant with the one bag of silver came and said, 'Master, I knew you were a harsh man, harvesting crops you didn't plant and gathering crops you didn't cultivate. ²⁵ I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth. Look, here is your money back.'

²⁶ "But the master replied, 'You wicked and lazy servant! If you knew I harvested crops I didn't plant and gathered crops I didn't cultivate, ²⁷ why didn't you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it.'

²⁸ "Then he ordered, 'Take the money from this servant, and give it to the one with the ten bags of silver. ²⁹ To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away. ³⁰ Now throw this useless servant into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'" (NLT)

Psalm 90:1-12

Lord, you have been our refuge
in every generation.
² Before the mountains were born,
before you gave birth to the earth and the world,
from eternity to eternity, you are God.

³ You return mankind to the dust,
saying, "Return, descendants of Adam."
⁴ For in your sight a thousand years
are like yesterday that passes by,
like a few hours of the night.
⁵ You end their lives; they sleep.
They are like grass that grows in the morning—
⁶ in the morning it sprouts and grows;
by evening it withers and dries up.

⁷ For we are consumed by your anger;
we are terrified by your wrath.
⁸ You have set our iniquities before you,
our secret sins in the light of your presence.
⁹ For all our days ebb away under your wrath;
we end our years like a sigh.
¹⁰ Our lives last seventy years
or, if we are strong, eighty years.
Even the best of them are struggle and sorrow;
indeed, they pass quickly and we fly away.
¹¹ Who understands the power of your anger?
Your wrath matches the fear that is due you.
¹² Teach us to number our days carefully
so that we may develop wisdom in our hearts. (CSB)

www.zionhinsdale.org