The Service in PDF format is at: 04-07-2019 – Service
FIFTH SUNDAY IN LENT
April 7, 2019
AS WE GATHER…From the outside looking in, our walking together through the forty days of Lent does not seem nearly as exciting as the cheerfulness of Christmas or the elation of Easter, which we will experience two short weeks from today. Yet there is much joy to be found! Christ alone is our joy—at Christmas, at Easter, during the season of Lent, and every day we are given! “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice” (Philippians 4:4).
A WORD ABOUT OUR WORSHIP TODAY Psalm 51
P: Cast me not away from your presence,
C: And take not your Holy Spirit from me.
P: Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
C: And uphold me with a willing spirit.
P: O Lord, open my lips.
C:And my mouth will declare your praise.
CONFESSING TO GOD
C: Lord, we come before you in prayer today, asking for forgiveness. As Paul shares in Philippians today, You desire us to “strain ahead for what is in front of us by forgetting what is behind.” We have been all too focused on what on what we have done and what we have failed to do. Busy focusing on the past, we have forgotten to pay attention to Jesus’ presence today and the needs of our neighbors around us. Open our hearts and eyes to what you would like us to do.
SONG OF CONFESSION: “White As Snow” (twice through)
White as snow, white as snow,
Though my sins were as scarlet
Lord, I know,
That I’m clean and forgiven.
Through the power of Your blood,
Through the wonder of Your love,
Through faith in You
I know that I can be white as snow.
White as snow
P: Jesus once said, “He came not to be served, but to serve.” He serves you in a special way today as he grants forgiveness. As a called and ordained servant of the Jesus, I announce the grace of God to all of you. In the stead and by the command of my Lord Jesus, I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
C: Amen.
P: We pray…
C: Almighty God, our redeemer, in our weakness we have failed to be your messengers of forgiveness and hope in the world. Renew us by your Holy Spirit, that we may follow your commands and proclaim your reign of love; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
HEARING FROM GOD’S WORD
Everything is counted as loss except the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus.
Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith– that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Reader: This is the word of the Lord.
C: Thanks be to God.
CHOIR ANTHEM: “Without His Cross” By: Joseph Martin
Without His tears, there is no comfort.
Without His death there is no life.
Without His blood there is no pardon.
Without His cross there is no crown.
Without His shame there is no glory.
Without His grief there is no joy.
Without His stripes there is no healing.
Without His cross there is no crown.
Lamb of God, you bring salvation,
and with your grace our hearts are sealed.
Lord, with your tears of love you bathe our sorrows.
In your eyes we stand revealed.
Without His tears, there is no comfort.
Without His death there is no life.
Without His blood there is no pardon.
Without His cross there is no crown.
Without His blood there is no pardon.
Without His cross there is no crown.
The Parable of the Tenants
He went on to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard, rented it to some farmers and went away for a long time. At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants so they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. He sent another servant, but that one also they beat and treated shamefully and sent away empty-handed. He sent still a third, and they wounded him and threw him out. “Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my son, whom I love; perhaps they will respect him.’ “But when the tenants saw him, they talked the matter over. ‘This is the heir,’ they said. ‘Let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. “What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others. “When the people heard this, they said, “God forbid!” Jesus looked directly at them and asked, “Then what is the meaning of that which is written: “ ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone’? Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.”
P: This is the Gospel of the Lord.
C: Praise to You, O Christ.
SERMON SONG: “Great Is The Lord” TOSB 66
Great is the Lord, He is holy and just, By His power we trust In His love.
Great is the Lord, He is faithful and true, By His mercy He proves He is love.
Chorus:
Great is the Lord, And worthy of glory, Great is the Lord, And worthy of praise.
Great is the Lord, Now lift up your voice, Now lift up your voice:Great is the Lord Great is the Lord
Great is the Lord, He is holy and just, By His power we trust In His love.
Great is the Lord, He is faithful and true, By His mercy He proves He is love
Chorus
Great are you Lord, And worthy of glory Great are you Lord, and worthy of praise.
Great are you Lord, I lift up my voice, I lift up my voice: Great are you Lord! Great are you Lord!
C: I believe in God, who has created all things and continues to create new life within us.
I believe in Jesus, son of God, son of man, the Savior of the world. By His life, His death and resurrection, I can know the true depth of human possibility, and experience the true joy of an abundant life.
I believe that the Holy Spirit is present, now and always, calling us to faith, giving us gifts and empowering us for service.
I believe that the community of believers called the church can experience the fulness of life through the word, the sacraments, and all that we do.
OFFERING
We give our offerings as a sign of our lives offered to God.
PRAYER OF GOD’S PEOPLE (Using the Lord’s Prayer)
P: Friends in Christ, I urge you all to joyfully lift up your hearts to God and pray with me as Christ our Lord has taught us and freely promised to hear us.
P: God, our Father in heaven, look with mercy on us, Your needy children on earth, and grant us grace that Your holy name be hallowed by us and all the world through the pure and true teaching of Your Word and the fervent love shown forth in our lives. Graciously turn from us all false doctrine and evil living whereby Your precious name is blasphemed and profaned. Lord, in Your mercy,
C: hear our prayer and grant us Your joy.
P: Grant that Your kingdom come to us and expand. Bring all transgressors and those who are blinded and bound in the devil’s kingdom to come to know You by faith and find their righteousness in Jesus Christ, Your Son, that the number of Christians be increased. Lord, in Your mercy,
C: hear our prayer and grant us Your joy.
P: Strengthen us by Your Spirit according to Your will, both in life and in death, in the midst of both good and evil things, that our own wills be crucified daily and sacrificed to Your good and gracious will. Into Your merciful hands we commend [names . . . and] all who are in need, praying for them at all times: Thy will be done. Lord, in Your mercy,
C: hear our prayer and grant us Your joy.
P: Grant us our daily bread, preserve us from greed and selfish cares, and help us trust in You to provide for all our needs, rejoicing always in Your fatherly care. Lord, in Your mercy,
C: hear our prayer and grant us Your joy.
P: Forgive us our sins as we also forgive those who sin against us so that our hearts be at peace and rejoice in a good conscience before You, and that no sin may ever frighten or alarm us. Lord, in Your mercy,
C: hear our prayer and grant us Your joy.
P: Lead us not into temptation, O Lord, but help us by Your Spirit to subdue our flesh, to turn from the world and its ways, and to overcome the devil as he seeks to rob us of our joy and confidence in Christ. Lord, in Your mercy,
C: hear our prayer and grant us Your joy.
P: And lastly, O heavenly Father, deliver us from all evil of both body and soul, now and forever. Lord, in Your mercy,
C: hear our prayer and grant us Your joy.
P: We joyfully trust, O Lord, in Your great mercy to hear and answer us; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
C: Amen.
WORDS OF INSTITUTION
DISTRIBUTION
“Freely, Freely” TOSB 47
God forgave my sin in Jesus’ name,
I’ve been born again in Jesus’ name;
And in Jesus’ name I come to you
To share His love as He told me to.
He said, “Freely, freely you have received:
Freely, freely give.
Go in my name, and because you believe,
Others will know that I live.”
All pow’r is giv’n in Jesus’ name,
In earth and heav’n in Jesus’ name
And in Jesus’ name I come to you
To share His pow’r as He told me to.
He said, “Freely, freely you have received:
Freely, freely give.
Go in my name, and because you believe,
Others will know that I live.”
“Amazing Grace” TOSB 31
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.
‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed!
Through many dangers, toils, and snares
I have already come;
‘Tis grace has bought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
When we’ve been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing
God’s praise Than when we first begun.
“Blessed Assurance” TOSB 16
- Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!
Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long;
This is my story, This is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.
- Perfect submission, perfect delight,
Visions of rapture now burst on my sight;
Angels descending bring from above
Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long;
This is my story, This is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.
- Perfect submission, all is at rest,
I in my Savior am happy and blest;
Watching and waiting, looking above,
Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long;
This is my story, This is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.
P: Rejoice in the Lord always;
C: again, I will say rejoice!
CLOSING HYMN: “I Have the Joy” TOSB 150
I have the joy, joy, joy, joy, down in my heart,
Down in my heart, down in my heart; I have the joy, joy,
Joy, joy, down in my heart, down in my heart to stay.
I have the peace that passes understanding, down in my heart,
Down in my heart, down in my heart; I have the peace that passes
Understanding, down in my heart, down in my heart to stay.
I have the love of Jesus, love of Jesus, down in my heart,
Down in my heart, down in my heart; I have the love of Jesus,
Love of Jesus, down in my heart, down in my heart to stay.
P: Go in Peace. Serve the Lord!
C: Thanks be to God!
Calendar for the Week of April 7
MON – 4/8 10:00 AM Pieces by Peace
TUES – 4/9 11:00 AM Rotary Board Meeting
12:00 PM Rotary Luncheon
WED – 4/10 7:30 AM Eat, Chat, Pray
4:00 PM Elders Meeting
6:00 PM Soup Supper
7:00 PM Lent Service – Pastor Westhafer
THURS – 4/11 7:00 AM Men @ Imagine
SAT – 4/13 11:00 AM Joel Bond Memorial Service
ANNOUNCEMENTS
ANNOUNCEMENTS ARE BEING PROJECTED: You will also see the announcements being projected before and after the service. I will continue putting in the announcements here; but if the announcements come to me late, they will only be projected.
ROTARY: Rotary is getting ready for “Salmon and Jazz” and you can get tickets from the church office as well as from Rotary Members. $25/adult & $15/youth twelve and younger.
YOUTH FUNDRAISER: The Youth Lasagna Feed will be held on April 14 after church to benefit the Peace youth trip to the National Youth Gathering in Minneapolis . Lasagna, Salad, Beverage and Dessert will be served. Donations are greatly appreciated!
FROZEN MEAL MINISTRY CONTAINERS: The containers used for the freezer meal ministry can be returned to the kitchen island area on the shelves, you will see the bins.
LEFTOVERS FROM FELLOWSHIP: If you would like to take some leftovers from fellowship or need a container to transport food, please see the small cart that holds the hot water. The lower cabinet has many containers you can use. Foil, saran, & Ziploc bags are available in the kitchen as well.
NEW BIBLE STUDY: Do you have your copy of “Joining Jesus Show Me How” they are available for $5 from Oscar Gutbrod. This is a very simple and informative study! Plan on joining us!
HELP NEEDED
CHILDREN’S MESSAGE: We need someone who is willing to cover the second Sunday each month for the children’s message. Talk with Pastor with inquiries or suggestions for someone who may be interested in the role.
USHERING: We would love to have a few more teams covering the role of ushering on Sundays. We will give you training to help you feel comfortable. This is one of the easiest ways to help out on Sunday.