Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost 9/10/23
FIFTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
SEPTEMBER 10, 2023
IN THE NAME OF JESUS, WELCOME TO ST. PAUL’S!
8:00 & 10:30 a.m.
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THE ENTRANCE RITE
PRELUDE God Himself is Present Setting: Jeffery Blersch
ENTRANCE HYMN God Himself is Present LSB 907
1 God Himself is present:
Let us now adore Him
And with awe appear before Him.
God is in His temple;
All within keep silence;
Humbly kneel in deepest rev’rence.
He alone
On His throne
Is our God and Savior;
Praise His name forever!
2 God Himself is present:
Hear the harps resounding;
See the hosts the throne surrounding.
“Holy, holy, holy!”
Hear the hymn ascending,
Songs of saints and angels blending.
Bow Your ear
To us here:
Hear, O Christ, the praises
That Your Church now raises.
3 Fount of ev’ry blessing,
Purify my spirit,
Trusting only in Your merit.
Like the holy angels,
Worshiping before You,
May I ceaselessly adore You.
Let Your will
Ever still
Rule Your Church terrestrial
As the hosts celestial.
CONFESSION AND ABSOLUTION LSB 167
In the name of the Father and of the ✠ Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
But if we confess our sins, God, who is faithful and just, will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Silence for reflection on God’s Word and for self-examination.
Let us then confess our sins to God our Father.
Most merciful God, we confess that we are by nature sinful and unclean. We have sinned against You in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not loved You with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We justly deserve Your present and eternal punishment. For the sake of Your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Forgive us, renew us, and lead us, so that we may delight in Your will and walk in Your ways to the glory of Your holy name. Amen.
Almighty God in His mercy has given His Son to die for you and for His sake forgives you all your sins. As a called and ordained servant of Christ, and by His authority, I therefore forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the ✠ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
KYRIE LSB 168
In peace let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For the peace from above and for our salvation let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For the peace of the whole world, for the well-being of the Church of God, and for the unity of all let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For this holy house and for all who offer here their worship and praise let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
Help, save, comfort, and defend us, gracious Lord.
Amen.
HYMN OF PRAISE This is the Feast LSB 171
This is the feast of victory for our God. Alleluia.
Worthy is Christ, the Lamb who was slain, whose blood set us free to be people of God.
Power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and blessing and glory are His.
This is the feast of victory for our God. Alleluia.
Sing with all the people of God, and join in the hymn of all creation:
Blessing and honor and glory and might be to God and the Lamb forever. Amen.
This is the feast of victory for our God, for the Lamb who was slain has begun His reign.
Alleluia, alleluia.
THE PRAYER OF THE DAY
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Let us pray. O God, from whom all good proceeds,
grant to us, Your humble servants, Your holy inspiration, that we may set our minds on the things that are right and, by Your merciful guiding, accomplish them; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
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THE LITURGY OF THE WORD
FIRST LESSON (Be seated) Ezekiel 33:7-9
“So you, son of man, I have made a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me. If I say to the wicked, O wicked one, you shall surely die, and you do not speak to warn the wicked to turn from his way, that wicked person shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, that person shall die in his iniquity, but you will have delivered your soul.”
This is the Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
(8:00) PSALM 32:1-7 (Sung responsively)
(10:30) ANTHEM Jubilation Choir Leaning on the Everlasting Arms Text: E. Hoffman; Music: A. Showalter
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- What a fellowship, what a joy divine,
leaning on the everlasting arms;
what a blessedness, what a peace is mine,
leaning on the everlasting arms.
- What a fellowship, what a joy divine,
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Refrain:
Leaning, leaning,
safe and secure from all alarms;
leaning, leaning,
leaning on the everlasting arms.
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- O how sweet to walk in this pilgrim way,
leaning on the everlasting arms;
O how bright the path grows from day to day,
leaning on the everlasting arms. (Refrain)
- O how sweet to walk in this pilgrim way,
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- What have I to dread, what have I to fear,
leaning on the everlasting arms?
I have blessed peace with my Lord so near,
leaning on the everlasting arms. (Refrain)
- What have I to dread, what have I to fear,
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SECOND LESSON Romans 13:1-10
Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer. Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience. For the same reason you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.
Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
This is the Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
(10:30) CHILDREN’S SERMON
ALLELUIA VERSE (Stand) LSB 173
Alleluia. Lord, to whom shall we go?
You have the words of eternal life. Alleluia.
GOSPEL Matthew 18:1-20
The Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew, the 18th chapter.
Glory to You, O Lord.
At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
“Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.
“Woe to the world for temptations to sin! For it is necessary that temptations come, but woe to the one by whom the temptation comes! And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire.
“See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven. For the Son of Man came to save the lost. What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? And if he finds it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. So it is not the will of my Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.
“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”
This is the Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to You, O Christ.
SERMON (Be seated)
Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus. Amen. Dear friends in Christ:
The Gospel lesson just read relates a number of thoughts on how we are to live together as church. And of course we need good counsel from the Lord on this, for living together with others is not always easy.
Think about how hard it can be to live with your own family. I read an article a while back which spoke to the difficulty families are having these days with their meals. According to the article, it wasn’t just the problem of getting everyone together with their crazy schedules. Rather, it was the fact that in our individualistic and affluent society we have now gotten very used to having things our own way. And that includes our food. As a result, parents are becoming short-order cooks, making food to suit each family member.
Maybe that isn’t the way it is at your house. But if it is, the article has a suggestion for how to counter such an exhausting trend. It suggests dropping one key word when doing meal planning. Instead of asking family members: “what would you like to eat today?” just drop the “what” at the beginning and ask: “would you like to eat today?”
Living together with others as church is possibly even more difficult than living with our biological families. And one reason for this is that people have lots of ideas on the way church is to be done. No doubt this is why Jesus seeks to help us with his instructions.
Today’s reading begins with the disciples asking Jesus a question. The disciples wanted to know who was the greatest in his kingdom.
And this question might seem like a bad one to us because we know that the disciples sometimes quarreled amongst themselves about this very subject. But as it is asked here, the question doesn’t necessarily point to a quarrel. Rather, it seems to come from a place of simple concern for how one should live in Christ’s kingdom.
Jesus had just recently chided one of them, Peter, for his “little faith.” And then, soon thereafter, Jesus commended that same disciple because he gave an excellent confession. So we see that Jesus definitely has ideas on good and bad ways of living in the kingdom.
The disciples assumed that greatness should be strived for and that those who achieve it should be recognized. Which is what we assume too. After all, greatness can lift everybody up. And those who embody it can serve as a helpful example.
In his answer to the disciples, Jesus doesn’t discourage them from pursuing greatness. But he does strongly clarify what it means to be great. Greatness, he says, is about being humble. And to illustrate this, he pointed to a child and told of the need to become like children.
By this statement, Jesus doesn’t suggest that a person should be childish. No, his followers are to act with maturity instead. What he does mean is that people should be child-like in their recognition of their need to learn and grow, and in their inclination to trust.
The one who is humble is the one who is truly great in the kingdom. Remember, this is the kingdom where the last are first and the first last. And it is the kingdom where the one who loses his life will save it.
After making this clear, Jesus then expounds on the principle of humility by applying it specifically to the disciples’ life together. Using the presence of that child before them, he repeats a term which he had used some time earlier – that of “the little ones.” Christ’s followers are to receive little ones – meaning children, yes, but also all those who are powerless and needy. When people receive these, they are not only humbling themselves but also receiving Christ himself – a statement which speaks to the great importance of these actions.
To this instruction, Jesus then adds one more element. He adds a warning against leading little ones into sin.
Little ones, as we know, are vulnerable. They don’t have the training, the experience or the expertise of others. And because of this they are easily persuaded.
People will lead them into sin in order to take advantage of them. They will lead them into sins of gluttony and overindulgence in order to make sales. They will lead them into sins of lying and stealing through their high pressure. They will lead them into sexual sins to gratify their own desires.
“Everybody’s doing it,” they will tell these little ones. Or maybe they’ll use that line which the original tempter used – the one who spoke to Adam and Eve in the garden. “You can be like God – knowing all things.”
Jesus strongly condemns the leading of little ones into sin. His word picture of a millstone tied around a perpetrator’s neck to drown him in the sea certainly lets us know of his passion on this issue.
At this point, however, we may find ourselves protesting. We might say to ourselves: “but no one can cause another to sin; people are responsible for their own actions.”
It’s true that we are each responsible for the actions we take. But our protest ignores the weakness of human nature, especially the weakness of “little ones.” The world is filled with those who are little in age, confidence, ability or experience. And let’s face it, sometimes those little ones are us.
We are responsible for our own actions, yes. But this includes how we treat others. We are not to put stumbling blocks in people’s paths. Such temptations are serious business, and Jesus urges us to be aware of this.
Jesus’ words here should cause us to think about whether we engage in such tempting. Might there be times when we exercise our freedom in ways which influence others in the wrong way? Or might there be times when we overwhelm a little one with our strength?
In addition to the millstone and sea image, Jesus also addresses the subject of tempting others by pronouncing woe. “Woe to those,” he says twice.
And then, just to make sure we understand that he isn’t only talking about others, he makes it very personal. “If your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire.” And then he says the same thing about our eyes.
Some have said that in these verses Jesus is using the image of the church as a body, as St. Paul did in his writings. With this understanding, the church is then to cut off its members who may be tempting others to sin.
It’s true that in the next verses of today’s reading, Jesus shares words which speak to the work of the church. But his words here, about the body, are more likely meant to speak to us as individuals. The actions of cutting and tearing are symbolic of course. But the references to the parts of the body are very literal. Our own hands, feet and eyes can lead us to sin. The things we touch, the places we go and the images we look at can tempt us greatly. Controlling these members of ours will be important. And sometimes surgical solutions may be necessary – meaning that we cut things out of our life.
After all this strong urging of Jesus that we take a good look at ourselves, Jesus then turns to addressing how we should deal with others. And specifically, Jesus addresses what we are to do when our brother sins.
Here, Jesus once again makes mention of the “little ones.” But notice how his use of this phrase has changed. The little ones here are not innocent ones who are picked on by others, but rather those who have gone astray themselves. Straying from God’s path is sin – whether it be the sin of straying from God’s presence or the sin of straying from God’s commands.
When people sin against us, it hurts. So also, God is hurt by anyone’s sin.
And in such cases, we tend to reach for surgical solutions, like those mentioned above. We cut people off and turn away in anger and disgust.
But Jesus teaches us another way. Jesus makes it clear that our primary call is to care for those who hurt us. Those who stumble by hurting others are simply showing that they are little. We must not despise them. God doesn’t. Rather, he has given them angels, as he has to us. And
according to what Jesus tells us, he is well attentive to those angels as they care for His children.
We should see our sinful brothers and sisters as simply lost, and then take radical steps to bring them back. Those steps may even be as radical as leaving those in our care for a time in order to do a proper search.
It would be much easier to just let the sinner experience the consequences of their sin and try to figure things out on their own. Who knows, perhaps they would come back, chastened, in their own time. But Jesus calls the church to go after them. The Church may be rebuffed in this task, sometimes even angrily. But the call of love compels us to continue our search. We want our erring brothers to return.
To wrap up his thoughts on this, Jesus then gives some specific instructions on how we are to seek out our brother. Jesus tells us to go to him directly – one on one. Yes, there may be times when this isn’t possible. But in most cases, it will be. Here Jesus wants to keep the erring brother from feeling ganged up on. And we are not to rush off and seek others to take our side, as we often do. Jesus also wants there to be a direct dialogue so that the error can be articulated and understood – because often times it isn’t. And this may take some time.
If this one-on-one effort doesn’t win the brother back, however, then a small group might need to be brought in. And if the small group doesn’t make any headway, then the whole church may need to be involved.
And if even this doesn’t turn a person’s heart, then Jesus instructs that the sinner be treated as “a Gentile and a tax collector” – meaning someone outside the circle and someone declared to be in the wrong.
This doesn’t mean, however, that the person is to be hated. Far from it. Jesus loved Gentiles and tax collectors, as we see clearly in the many Gospel stories where they are mentioned. And because Jesus loves, so should we. We love by our continued care and our open arms – always being ready to receive the sinner when they have repented.
Today’s words from Jesus give lots of important instruction. However, they may also lead us to despair because of our inability to truly live them. Which of us always avoids temptation, cares for the little ones, and searches out the lost? Which church truly operates as a loving and supportive community all of the time? Seen in light of Ezekiel’s call in our Old Testament reading today, Jesus’ words hang heavy over our heads.
Thankfully, Jesus has shared plenty of other words which tell us that we live in his grace. And these messages can be recalled well even as we consider his words today.
For instance, Jesus calls us to humble ourselves. And while we may not always do this well, Jesus did. He did it perfectly, in fact – taking on the form of a servant and going to the cross to pay for our sins (Philippians 2:7-8).
Also, Jesus calls us to receive the little ones in his name. And we often fail to do this, but Jesus doesn’t. He receives those who are weak, including those who belittle themselves through their sin. St. Paul said it this way to the Corinthians: “for our sake God made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor. 5:21).
And Jesus calls us, also, to avoid and remove temptation, which we don’t do well either. But Jesus did. Although, actually, instead of avoiding temptation, Jesus was strong enough to face it and overcame it. You and I are encouraged to cut off that which is a stumbling block to us, but Jesus, out of his great mercy, allowed himself to be “cut off.” As Isaiah says of him in his great 53rd chapter: “he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people” (Isaiah 53:8).
Furthermore, Jesus calls us to seek out the lost sinner. And we definitely don’t do this very well, but Jesus does. Jesus is the Good Shepherd who seeks us out in our sin and brings us back into the fold (John 10:14-16). Jesus calls us to honest and truthful repentance, and then always forgives us when we make that confession in faith.
Jesus has much more to say about this beautiful forgiveness in the next verses of this chapter. And we will examine these in our service next Sunday.
But to conclude for today: Jesus calls us to the difficult but wonderful task of living together as church. And he works with his church to purify and protect it, so that it might be, as he said earlier in his teaching, the light of the world.
In the midst of this working and teaching, Jesus has promised to be with us. For as he said: “Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”
Knowing this beautiful promise, let us continue to gather in his name and under the cross, so that our life together would be blessed. In the name of Jesus. Amen.
HYMN OF THE DAY (Stand) My Soul, Now Praise Your Maker LSB 820
1 My soul, now praise your Maker!
Let all within me bless His name
Who makes you full partaker
Of mercies more than you dare claim.
Forget Him not whose meekness
Still bears with all your sin,
Who heals your ev’ry weakness,
Renews your life within;
Whose grace and care are endless
And saved you through the past;
Who leaves no suff’rer friendless
But rights the wronged at last.
2 He offers all His treasure
Of justice, truth, and righteousness,
His love beyond all measure,
His yearning pity o’er distress;
Nor treats us as we merit
But sets His anger by.
The poor and contrite spirit
Finds His compassion nigh;
And high as heav’n above us,
As dawn from close of day,
So far, since He has loved us,
He puts our sins away.
3 For as a tender father
Has pity on his children here,
God in His arms will gather
All who are His in childlike fear.
He knows how frail our powers,
Who but from dust are made.
We flourish like the flowers,
And even so we fade;
The wind but through them passes,
And all their bloom is o’er.
We wither like the grasses;
Our place knows us no more.
4 His grace remains forever,
And children’s children yet shall prove
That God forsakes them never
Who in true fear shall seek His love.
In heav’n is fixed His dwelling,
His rule is over all;
O hosts with might excelling,
With praise before Him fall.
Praise Him forever reigning,
All you who hear His Word—
Our life and all sustaining.
My soul, O praise the Lord!
APOSTLES’ CREED LSB, Back cover
I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth.
And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died and was buried.
He descended into hell.
The third day He rose again from the dead.
He ascended into heaven
and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.
From thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy Christian Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life ✠ everlasting. Amen.
OFFERING
Offerings support the church’s mission work – both here and through our many partners. Offerings may be placed in the box at the sanctuary entrance or sent to the church through our website or the mail. Fellowship Cards help us welcome new people and track participation. Please fill one out and place it in the offering box following the service.
PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH
Knowing that our Lord has promised to be in our midst wherever two or three are gathered in His name, let us bring our prayers and supplications before Him.
In peace, let us pray to the Lord: Lord, have mercy.
For the faithful, that each of us may serve as our brother’s keeper both in our earthly families and among our brothers and sisters in Christ; and that we may owe no one anything except to love each other, let us pray to the Lord: Lord, have mercy.
For all God’s little ones, that they would not perish but be called back to Him when they have strayed, be delivered from temptation, and be kept secure in the faith, let us pray to the Lord: Lord, have mercy.
For pastors, that as God’s watchmen, they may be faithful in calling sinners to repentance and joyfully announcing the Lord’s forgiveness to those who heed their warning, let us pray to the Lord: Lord, have mercy.
For our leaders, that they would bear the sword righteously; and for all who protect us, especially our armed forces, police and firefighters, let us pray to the Lord: Lord, have mercy.
For the ill, grieving and lonely; for all those on our prayer list; and for those whom we name in our hearts… that they may remember that the Good Shepherd who loves them, seeks and saves his lost sheep, let us pray to the Lord: Lord, have mercy.
For God’s blessings upon the offerings we bring this day, that they would shine light into the dark places of this world and be for us a sign of faith, let us pray to the Lord: Lord, have mercy.
For childlike faith as we receive Christ’s body and blood, that it may strengthen us in faith toward God and in fervent love toward one another, let us pray to the Lord: Lord, have mercy.
Into Your hands, O Lord, we commend all for whom we pray, trusting in Your mercy; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
OFFERTORY Let the Vineyards Be Fruitful (LSB 955)
1 Let the vineyards be fruitful, Lord,
And fill to the brim our cup of blessing.
Gather a harvest from the seeds that were sown,
That we may be fed with the bread of life.
Gather the hopes and the dreams of all;
Unite them with the prayers we offer now.
Grace our table with Your presence, and give us
A foretaste of the feast to come.
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SERVICE OF THE SACRAMENT
PREFACE LSB 177
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give Him thanks and praise.
It is truly good right and salutary…evermore praising You and saying:
SANCTUS LSB 178
Holy, holy, holy Lord, Lord God of pow’r and might:
Heav’n and earth are full of Your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.
PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING LSB 178
THE WORDS OF OUR LORD LSB 179
PROCLAMATION OF CHRIST
LORD’S PRAYER
Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be Thy name,
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done on earth
as it is in heaven;
give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those
who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For Thine is the kingdom
and the power and the glory
forever and ever. Amen.
PAX DOMINI LSB 180
The peace of the Lord be with you always.
Amen.
AGNUS DEI LSB 180
Lamb of God, You take away the sin of the world; have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, You take away the sin of the world; have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, You take away the sin of the world; grant us peace.
THE COMMUNION (Be seated)
The Communion Assistant will come forward to receive first, then those from the pulpit side – by order of pew, front to back. Communicants will come up the center aisle and return via the side aisle. When all from the pulpit side have communed, the baptismal font side will commune in the same manner. We ask that the wine be consumed away from the tray table. Empty cups should be dropped into the receptacles.
DISTRIBUTION HYMN Today Your Mercy Calls Us LSB 915
1 Today Your mercy calls us
To wash away our sin.
However great our trespass,
Whatever we have been,
However long from mercy
Our hearts have turned away,
Your precious blood can wash us
And make us clean today.
2 Today Your gate is open,
And all who enter in
Shall find a Father’s welcome
And pardon for their sin.
The past shall be forgotten,
A present joy be giv’n,
A future grace be promised,
A glorious crown in heav’n.
3 Today our Father calls us;
His Holy Spirit waits;
His blessèd angels gather
Around the heav’nly gates.
No question will be asked us
How often we have come;
Although we oft have wandered,
It is our Father’s home.
4 O all-embracing Mercy,
O ever-open Door,
What should we do without You
When heart and eye run o’er?
When all things seem against us,
To drive us to despair,
We know one gate is open,
One ear will hear our prayer.
NUNC DIMITTIS LSB 182
Lord, now You let Your servant go in peace;
Your word has been fulfilled.
My own eyes have seen the salvation
which You have prepared in the sight of ev’ry people:
A light to reveal You to the nations
and the glory of Your people Israel.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
PRAYER (Stand)
BENEDICTION
SENDING HYMN Thy Strong Word LSB 578
1 Thy strong word did cleave the darkness;
At Thy speaking it was done.
For created light we thank Thee,
While Thine ordered seasons run.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Praise to Thee who light dost send!
Alleluia, alleluia!
Alleluia without end!
2 Lo, on those who dwelt in darkness,
Dark as night and deep as death,
Broke the light of Thy salvation,
Breathed Thine own life-breathing breath.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Praise to Thee who light dost send!
Alleluia, alleluia!
Alleluia without end!
3 Thy strong Word bespeaks us righteous;
Bright with Thine own holiness,
Glorious now, we press toward glory,
And our lives our hopes confess.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Praise to Thee who light dost send!
Alleluia, alleluia!
Alleluia without end!
4 From the cross Thy wisdom shining
Breaketh forth in conqu’ring might;
From the cross forever beameth
All Thy bright redeeming light.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Praise to Thee who light dost send!
Alleluia, alleluia!
Alleluia without end!
5 Give us lips to sing Thy glory,
Tongues Thy mercy to proclaim,
Throats that shout the hope that fills us,
Mouths to speak Thy holy name.
Alleluia, alleluia!
May the light which Thou dost send
Fill our songs with alleluias,
Alleluias without end!
6 God the Father, light-creator,
To Thee laud and honor be.
To Thee, Light of Light begotten,
Praise be sung eternally.
Holy Spirit, light-revealer,
Glory, glory be to Thee.
Mortals, angels, now and ever
Praise the holy Trinity!
ANNOUNCEMENTS (Be seated)
DISMISSAL
Go in peace. Serve the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
POSTLUDE Thy Strong Word Setting: Paul Manz
FLOWERS: In thanksgiving for God’s many blessings. By Marge Glass
Those serving:
Sunday, September 10, 8:00 a.m.:
Greeter: Steve Janssen
Comm. Assist.: Judy Koucky
Reader: Norm Williams
10:30 a.m.:
Greeter: Steve Berg
Comm. assist: Jill Hecht
Reader: Janice Sebring
AV Assistants: Hannes Buuck, Andreas Buuck
Acknowledgments
Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Created by Lutheran Service Builder © 2023 Concordia Publishing House.
907 God Himself Is Present Text: Gerhard Tersteegen, 1697–1769, abr.; tr. Frederick W. Foster, 1760–1835, alt.; tr. John Miller, 1756–90, alt. Tune: Joachim Neander, 1650–80 Text & Tune: Public domain
820 My Soul, Now Praise Your Maker Text: Johann Gramann, 1487–1541; tr. Catherine Winkworth, 1827–78, alt. Tune: Concentus novi, 1540, Augsburg Text & Tune: Public domain
915 Today Your Mercy Calls Us Text: Oswald Allen, 1816–78, alt. Tune: Friedrich K. Anthes, 1812–after 1857 Text & Tune: Public domain
578 Thy Strong Word Text: Martin H. Franzmann, 1907–76 Text: © 1969 Concordia Publishing House. Used by permission: LSB Hymn License no. 110005326 Tune: Thomas J. Williams, 1869–1944 Tune: Public domain