The Service in PDF format is at: January 1, 2023 New Years Day Service
Video of service is at: YouTube
Peace Lutheran Church
We welcome you in the name of the Lord Jesus. We are honored with your presence. If you do not have a church home, you are invited to join us regularly. Please introduce yourself to Pastor Jeremy Lucke or one of the Ushers as you leave today and sign the guest book in the entryway. We continue to observe the guidelines for health safety. If you have any questions, please see an usher. Everyone is welcome.
The ringing of the bell and the lighting of the Christ candle mark the beginning of our service and a time for quiet meditation, prayer and inward reflection as we begin our worship.
Children are welcome at our worship services. If you prefer, Peace Lutheran has a playroom equipped for children three years old and younger. The room is unstaffed and can be accessed in the fellowship hall where the service is also being live streamed for your convenience and enjoyment.
Holy Communion is celebrated every first and third Sunday and will follow the order of service in the bulletin. If you are a baptized Christian and share our faith in Jesus as Savior and have been instructed in the meaning and use of the Lord’s Supper, you are invited to partake. We have pre-wrapped communion wine or juice and wafers. We also have gluten-free wafers available. If you desire a gluten-free wafer, ask the server. May the body and blood of Jesus, present in the bread and wine, be a blessing to you.
There are times during the service when you will be asked to stand if you are able. Please feel free to remain seated if standing is difficult.
Offering. Peace Lutheran Church understands and teaches that Offerings are voluntary and to be from the heart. Whether we give or do not give does not determine our salvation. Whether we give much or little does not determine our standing before God. Sharing an Offering is an opportunity to quietly practice generosity with our neighbors. Offerings may be placed in the plates by the doors as we exit the sanctuary.
Serving You
Pastor Pastor Jeremy Lucke
Music Director Colleen Schulze
Choir Director Diane Crocker
Supt. Of Sunday School Brandy Stokes & Karyn Stanley
Admin Assistant Daniel Dusek
Parish Nurse Kathy Durling
Webmaster Jim Holroyd
Audio-Visual Johnathon Holroyd, George Abele, Nicholas Abele, Merv Munster, Callie Santora, Caleb Santora, Joyce Long, Oscar Gutbrod, Sam Worth, Rick Durling, Jim Holroyd, Nora Stanley, Debbi Weiler, Daniel Dusek
Today, January 1, 2023
Musician Colleen Schulze
Reader Carole Gutbrod
AS WE GATHER…………………Today, one week after Christmas, we recognize Jesus’ circumcision and naming. But approximately nine months earlier, Mary already knew how this child was to be named. Even before Jesus was conceived, the angel Gabriel came to Mary and announced, “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call His name Jesus” (Luke 1:31). Mary didn’t need to consult any books of baby names to decide what her child should be called. No, God had already decided that this child would be named Jesus, which means “Savior” or the “the Lord saves.” You see, Jesus’ name is more than just who He is, but it is also what He does. Jesus’ name defined His perfect life, sacrificial death, and life-giving resurrection. In Jesus, the Lord truly does save!
Leader: In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
People: Amen.
Leader: Our help is in the name of the Lord,
People: who made heaven and earth.
Leader: If You, O Lord, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand?
People: But with You there is forgiveness; therefore You are feared.
CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS
Leader: Before we join in our Christmas celebration, we clear the way by confessing our sins and hearing once again God’s gracious words of forgiveness……
People: We admit that we are sinners, Lord. We sin in our thoughts, words and actions, by things we have done and left undone. We especially recognize our fear of the future, wanting to know and control our future………. rather than trusting You for what is to come. Forgive us when we forget Your promises for our future and make clear to the eyes of our hearts that our future is in Your loving hands.
SONG OF CONFESSION “White As Snow” (twice through)
White as snow, white as snow,
Though my sins were as scarlet
Lord, I know, 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.
Leader: God knows our fears, our failures to trust him for the future, and in Christ assures us of his forgiveness. I therefore in Christ’s stead announce the free and full forgiveness of all your sins, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
People: Amen!
OPENING SONG OF PRAISE: “Joy to the World”
Text: Isaac Watts, 1674-1784, Tune: George F Handel, 1685-1759, adapt. © 1978 by LUtheran Church in America, The AMerican Lutheran Church, The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Canada, The Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod
Joy to the world, the Lord is come!
Let earth receive its King;
Let ev’ry heart prepare him room
And heav’n and nature sing, And heav’n and nature sing,
And heav’n, and heav’n and nature sing.
.
He rules the world with truth and grace
And makes the nations prove
The glories of his righteousness
And wonders of his love, And wonders of his love,
And wonders, wonders of his love.
Leader: O God, our Maker and Redeemer, You wonderfully created us and in the incarnation of Your Son yet more wondrously restored our human nature. Grant that we may ever be alive in Him who made Himself to be like us; through Jesus, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
People: Amen!
THE SCRIPTURE LESSONS
The Old Testament Lesson: Numbers 6:22-27
The Benediction
22 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 23 “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, Thus you shall bless the people of Israel: you shall say to them, 24 The Lord bless you and keep you;
25 the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.
27 “So shall they put my name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them.”
Reader: This is the Word of the Lord.
People: Thanks be to God.
Jesus’ Circumcision and Naming
21 And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.
22 And when the time came for their purification according to the Law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord
23 (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every male who first opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord”)
24 and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the Law of the Lord, “a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.”
25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.
26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.
27 And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, 28 he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said,
29 “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; 30 for my eyes have seen your salvation 31 that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.” 33 And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him.
34 And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed
35 (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”
36 And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin,
37 and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day.
38 And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.
39 And when they had performed everything according to the Law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth.
40 And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him.
Leader: This is the Gospel of the Lord.
People: Praise to You O Christ.
SERMON HYMN: “It Came Upon the Midnight Clear”
Edmund Hamilton Sears & Richard Storrs Willis; © Words: Public Domain Music: Public Domain
It came upon the midnight clear,
That glorious song of old,
From angels bending near the earth
To touch their harps of gold:
“Peace on the earth, good will to men,
From heav’n’s all gracious King”;
The world in solemn stillness lay
To hear the angels sing.
.
Still through the cloven skies they come
With peaceful wings unfurled,
And still their heav’nly music floats
O’er all the weary world;
Above its sad and lowly plains
They bend on hov’ring wing,
And ever, o’er its Babel sounds,
The blessed angels sing.
.
All you, beneath your heavenly load,
By care and guilt bent low,
Who toil along a dreary way
With painful steps and slow:
Look up, for golden is the hour,
Come swiftly on the wing,
The Prince was born to bring you peace;
Of Him the angels sing.
.
For lo! the days have come to pass
By prophets seen of old,
When down into the circling years
Came Christ as was foretold.
His word of peace shall to the earth
God’s ancient promise bring,
And all who take this gift will hear
The song the angels sing.
SERMON
“Perhaps Today”
Pastor Jeremy Lucke
I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
Creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
And born of the virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
Was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again,
He ascended into heaven,
And is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again 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.
Leader: Let us go to God in prayer for ourselves, for God’s people around the world, and for all people in their various circumstances.
Lord, we pray for this New Year that is here, that You continue to bless us, Your people chosen before the foundation of the world, so that we may be a blessing to others. Fill us with the wisdom of Your Word. Lead and guide our visioning, goal setting, and planning so that we have a positive impact in our world both now and for eternity. Lord, in Your mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Leader: Lord, we pray for all who lead—in government, in the public and private sectors, and in Your Church—that they lead with Your wisdom so that the decisions they make are in line with Your will for all people. Lord, in Your mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Pastor: Lord, we pray for all who are hurting, grieving, and struggling in their heart, soul, strength, and mind, [especially . . .] that they experience Your dear, sweet love for them as You lead, guide, and provide for them. Lord, in Your mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Leader: Lord, we pray for those who are beginning this year with goals to read the Bible and learn more about You, that You connect them with Your people so that, as with Philip and the Ethiopian, there is someone to help them understand the mystery of Your will. Lord, in Your mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Leader: Into Your hands, O Lord, we commend all for whom we pray, trusting in Your dear love; through Your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord.
People: Amen.
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
DISTRIBUTION HYMNS
By: Anna B. Warner, alt. & Wm. B. Bradbury; © 1971 by William J. Gaither. The Fellowship Publications Edina, MN 55435
Jesus Loves Me
Jesus loves me this I know,
For the Bible tells me so.
Little ones to Him belong,
They are weak, but He is strong.
Chorus: Yes Jesus loves me,
Yes Jesus loves me,
Yes Jesus loves me,
The Bible tells me so.
.
Jesus loves me, Loves me still,
Though I’m very weak and ill.
That I might from sin be free
Bled and died upon the tree.
Chorus
Jesus loves me! He who died,
Heavens gates to open wide
He will wash away my sin,
Let his little child come in.
Chorus
Jesus loves me he will stay,
Close beside me all the way.
That I might from sin be free,
I will henceforth live for thee.
Chorus
Words & Music by: Carol Owens, adapted from: Matt. 10:7,8; © 1971 by William J. Gaither. The Fellowship Publication
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.”
CLOSING SONG: “This Little Light of Mine”
Arr. By Harry Dixon Loes
This little light of mine,
I’m going to let is shine;
This little light of mine,
I’m going to let it shine,
Let is shine, let it shine, let it shine.
.
Don’t you try to blow it out;
I’m going to let it shine;
Don’t you try to blow it out;
I’m going to let it shine;
Let is shine, let it shine, let it shine.
.
Hide it under a bushel? No!
I’m going to let it shine;
Hide it under a bushel? No!
I’m going to let it shine;
Let is shine, let it shine, let it shine.
.
All around the neighborhood;
I’m going to let is shine;
All around the neighborhood;
I’m going to let it shine,
Let is shine, let it shine, let it shine.
.
Hold it high so all can see;
I’m going to let is shine;
Hold it high so all can see;
I’m going to let it shine
Let is shine, let it shine, let it shine.
