The Bulletin is at: 04-02-2017 BULLETIN
The Service in PDF format is at: 04-02-2017 Fifth Sunday in Lent
or the service is as follows:
FIFTH SUNDAY IN LENT
April 2, 2017
PRE-SERVICE MUSIC
AS WE GATHER…………Accounts of life coming out of death are found throughout the Bible. In the Old Testament, there is the story of the Valley of Dry Bones, which is celebrated in a familiar spiritual song that ends with this refrain: “Now hear the word of the Lord!” Jesus has words for us to hear—important, eternal words. In today’s Gospel we hear Him say, “I am the resurrection and the life!” Life came out of death for Lazarus and, by God’s gracious action, it does for us as well.
RINGING OF THE BELL
Following the ringing of the bell, we take a few moments in silence to prepare our hearts and minds for today’s worship.
Pastor: In the name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
People: Amen.
Pastor: Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open, all desires are known, and from whom no secrets are hid, cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of Your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love You and magnify Your holy name, through Jesus, Your Son, our Lord.
People: Amen.
Pastor: Humble yourselves before God, confess your sins to Him, and implore His forgiveness.
People: Almighty God, merciful Father, we acknowledge our sinful nature and repent of our sins—those of which we are not aware and those we know full well. We do not love You and other people as we ought. We are often careless with Your creation and heedless in choosing the proper priorities in our lives. It is our intent to say and do that which honors You. For the sake of Jesus, grant us Your forgiveness so that, as Your redeemed people, we may receive the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and may serve You in time and in eternity.
Pastor: God be gracious to you and strengthen your faith. In the stead and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ, I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit. Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus. He who calls you is faithful; He will surely do it.
People: Amen.
OPENING HYMN Green Book 518 “Beautiful Savior”
Beautiful Savior, King of creation,
Son of God and Son of Man!
Truly I’d love thee, Truly I’d serve thee,
Light of my soul, my joy, my crown.
Fair are the meadows, Fair are the woodlands
Robed in flow’rs of blooming spring;
Jesus is fairer, Jesus is purer,
He makes our sorrowing spirit sing.
Fair is the sunshine, Fair is the moonlight,
Bright the sparkling stars on high;
Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer,
Than all the angels in the sky.
Beautiful Savior, Lord of the nations,
Son of God and Son of Man!
Glory and honor, Praise, adoration,
Now and forevermore be thine!
Pastor: O Lord and giver of life, You call Your people from death and despair to faith and faithfulness. In Christ, we are assured of resurrection and life. Enlighten our hearts that we may have a right understanding in all things and may rejoice in the power and blessing of Your Word among us. This we ask through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who with You and the Father are one God, world without end.
People: Amen.
OLD TESTAMENT LESSON Ezekiel 37: 1-14
Life is restored in the Valley of Dry Bones.
The hand of the LORD was upon me, and he brought me out in the Spirit of the LORD and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones. And he led me around among them, and behold, there were very many on the surface of the valley, and behold, they were very dry. And he said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord GOD, you know.” Then he said to me, “Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the LORD. Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live, and you shall know that I am the LORD.”
So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I prophesied, there was a sound, and behold, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. And I looked, and behold, there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them. But there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, Thus says the Lord GOD: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they may live.” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army.
Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Behold, they say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are indeed cut off.’ Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will open your graves and raise you from your graves, O my people. And I will bring you into the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves, and raise you from your graves, O my people. And I will put my Spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I am the LORD; I have spoken, and I will do it, declares the LORD.”
Life in the Spirit through Christ
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
Lazarus is restored to life by Jesus.
Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother. So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”
Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.” Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.” When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.” Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what he did, believed in him, but some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. So the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered the Council and said, “What are we to do? For this man performs many signs. If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.” But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all. Nor do you understand that it is better for you that one man should die for the people, not that the whole nation should perish.” He did not say this of his own accord, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but also to gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad. So from that day on they made plans to put him to death.
CHOIR ANTHEM “Love One Another” By Lloyd Larson
SERMON HYMN Red Book 98 “In His Time”
In his time, in his time, He makes all things beautiful, in his time
Lord please show my ev’ry day as you’re teaching me your way,
That you do just what you say, in your time.
In your time, in your time, you make all things beautiful in your time,
Lord, my life to you I bring, May each song I have to sing,
Be to you a lovely thing, in your time.
People: 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
Pastor: Grant grace, we pray, in mercy, Lord. We pray for Your kingdom on earth. Around the globe may there be an increase of the Word of life. May the Spirit’s power be made evident in the Church, as it reaches out to all parts of the world, bringing the good news of sins forgiven through Christ to every place. Gracious God, in mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Pastor: Grant love, we pray, in mercy, Lord. We pray for our household of faith, for our families, and for our neighborhoods, that we may be filled with a sense of appreciation for all Your good gifts. As we are blessed by the care of others, so may we bless them with care in Your name. Loving God, in mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Pastor: Grant health, we pray, in mercy, Lord. We pray at this time for the sick, homebound, and all who this day are in need of our intercession, (especially……..), that their prayers may be soon answered and that they may be supported by God’s people with care in the name of Christ. Healing God, in mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Pastor: Grant blessing, we pray, in mercy, Lord. As we remember with gratitude those sisters and brothers in Christ whose journeys on earth have been completed, may we be guided by the Spirit in ways that honor their earthly lives and bring blessings to others as we anticipate the eternal joys to be shared with them in the courts of heaven. Ever-living God, in mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Pastor: Into Your hands, O Lord, we commend all for whom we pray, trusting in Your mercy through Your Son, Jesus, our Lord.
People: Amen.
THANKSGIVING
Pastor: The Lord be with you.
People: And also with you.
Pastor: Lift up your hearts.
People: We lift them to the Lord.
Pastor: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
People: It is right to give Him thanks and praise.
WORDS OF INSTITUTION
LORD’S PRAYER
DISTRIBUTION
Red Book 78 “How Great Thou Art”
O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder
Consider all the worlds thy hand hath made,
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy pow’r throughout the universe displayed;
Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to thee,
How great thou art! How great thou art!
Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to thee,
How great thou art! How great thou art!
When through the woods and forest glades I wander,
And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees;
When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur
And hear the brook and feel the gentle breeze;
Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to thee,
How great thou art! How great thou art!
Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to thee,
How great thou art! How great thou art!
And when I think that God, his Son not sparing,
Sent him to die, I scarce can take it in,
That on the cross my burden gladly bearing
He bled and died to take away my sin;
Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to thee,
How great thou art! How great thou art!
Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to thee,
How great thou art! How great thou art!
When Christ shall come, with shout of acclamation,
And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart!
Then I shall bow in humble adoration
And there proclaim “My God how great thou art!”
Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to thee,
How great thou art! How great thou art!
Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to thee,
How great thou art! How great thou art!
Red Book 55 “Great is Thy Faithfulness”
“Great is Thy faithfulness,” O God my Father,
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not,
As Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be.
“Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!”
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed Thy hand hath pro vided
“Great is Thy faithfulness,” Lord unto me!
Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above,
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness mercy and love.
“Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!”
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed Thy hand hath pro vided
“Great is Thy faithfulness,” Lord unto me!
Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth,
Thy own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!
“Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!”
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed Thy hand hath pro vided
“Great is Thy faithfulness,” Lord unto me!
Red Book 183 “Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us”
Savior, like a shepherd lead us,
Much we need Thy tender care;
In thy pleasant pastures feed us,
For our use Thy folds prepare.
Blessed Jesus, Blessed Jesus,
Thou hast bought us, Thine we are;
Blessed Jesus Blessed Jesus,
Thou hast bought us, Thine we are.
We are Thine, do Thou befriend us,
Be the Guardian of our way;
Keep Thy flock, from sin defend us,
Seek us when we go astray;
Blessed Jesus Blessed Jesus,
Hear Thy children when they pray;
Blessed Jesus Blessed Jesus,
Hear Thy children when they pray.
Thou hast promised to receive us;
Poor and sinful though we be.
Thou hast mercy to relieve us,
Grace to cleanse and pow’r to free;
Blessed Jesus Blessed Jesus,
Early let us turn to Thee;
Blessed Jesus Blessed Jesus,
Early let us turn to Thee.
Early let us seek Thy favor;
Early let us do Thy will;
Blessed Lord and only Savior,
With Thy love our bosoms fill;
Blessed Jesus Blessed Jesus,
Thou hast loved us, love us still;
Blessed Jesus Blessed Jesus,
Thou hast loved us, love us still.
Pastor: Go out into the world in peace. Have courage. Hold on to what is good. Return no person evil for evil. Strengthen the fainthearted. Support the weak. Help the suffering. Honor everyone and care for creation. Love and serve the Lord, rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit. The almighty God—Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit—bless you.
People: Amen.
CLOSING HYMN Red Book 241 “To God Be the Glory”
To God be the glory, great things He has done;
So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,
Who yielded His life an atonement for sin,
And opened the life gate that all may go in.
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear His voice!
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father, through Jesus the Son,
And give Him the glory, great things He has done.
Great things He has taught us, great things He has done,
And great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son;
But purer, and higher, and greater will be
Our wonder, our transport, when Jesus we see.
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear His voice!
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father, through Jesus the Son,
And give Him the glory, great things He has done.