January 27, 2019 Service and Bulletin

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THIRD SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY

January 27, 2019

AS WE GATHER: It’s easy to take for granted something that happens every time we gather in the Lord’s house and around His Means of Grace. It’s easy to lose sight of the fact that, whenever we worship in Spirit and in truth, Jesus Himself is present. As He did in the ancient Nazareth synagogue among His own family and friends, Jesus stands in our midst, opening the Scriptures to us, and showing us how He has come to fulfill them for our salvation. More than just speaking the Word, Jesus is the Word made flesh! Today, in our hearing, Jesus comes anew with God’s favor for us. Let us gladly receive Him!

RINGING OF THE BELL

After the ringing of the bell, we prepare our hearts and minds in silence for today’s worship.

WELCOME & ANNOUNCEMENTS

CHOIR ANTHEM: “God Will Open a Door” By Pepper Choplin

God will open, open, open a door. God will open, open, open a door.

God will open a door. The Spirit draws us to it.

With faith, we walk through it

as we follow the Lord through the open door.

God will open, open, open, open a door. The Spirit draws us to it.

With faith, we walk through it

as we follow the Lord through the open door.

So ask, it shall be given to you. Seek and you shall find.

Knock, it shall be opened unto you.

Ask, it shall be given to you. Seek and you shall find.

Knock, it shall be opened, opened unto you, opened unto you.

Now, God is calling, God is calling us on.

Let us leave behind our waiting. We’ll go forward, celebrating.

There are blessings in store through the open door.

God will open, open the door.

Let us follow the Lord through the open door, open door.

INVOCATION

P: In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.

C: Amen.

CONFESSION/FORGIVENESS

P: Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight,

C: O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.

P: O Lord, hear us as we silently come before You.

In silent prayer, God’s children bring their sins to Jesus.

P: Father, thank You for hearing us as we pray:

C: Too often we have neglected Your Word and ignored Your work in our lives. Instead of focusing on You, we have focused on ourselves. Instead of serving others, we have expected to be served. Forgive us, gracious Father, and renew us through Your Word of life. Help us to see Jesus in our midst as Your Word made flesh—crucified for our sins and raised to life again. By the working of Your Holy Spirit, give us hearts to joyfully worship You. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.

P: Jesus stands and proclaims the Good News in your hearing this day! As a pastor and as His servant, it is my joy to announce His forgiving grace to all of you and, in His stead and by His command, I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.

C: Amen.

SONG OF PRAISE: “How Great Thou Art” TOSB 78

O Lord my God! When I in awesome wonder

Consider all the worlds thy hands have made,

I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,

Thy pow’r throughout the universe displayed,

PRAYER OF THE DAY

P: Let us pray. Almighty and everlasting God, mercifully look upon us and stretch Your hand of majesty to heal and defend us. We pray this through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

C: Amen.

SCRIPTURE LESSONS

Old Testament Lesson: Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10

The people gather as one to hear God’s Word.

And all the people gathered as one man into the square before the Water Gate. And they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses that the LORD had commanded Israel. So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could understand what they heard, on the first day of the seventh month. And he read from it facing the square before the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women and those who could understand. And the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law.

And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was above all the people, and as he opened it all the people stood. And Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God, and all the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.

They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly, and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading.

And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the LORD your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people wept as they heard the words of the Law. Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”

Epistle: I Corinthians 12:12-31a

In Christ, we are one Body with many members.

For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.

For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.

The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.

Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues. Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? But earnestly desire the higher gifts.

And I will show you a still more excellent way.

CHILDREN’S MESSAGE

Holy Gospel: Luke 4:16-30

Jesus reads and fulfills God’s Word in His hometown synagogue.

And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written,

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” And all spoke well of him and marveled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth. And they said, “Is not this Joseph’s son?” And he said to them, “Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, ‘“Physician, heal yourself.” What we have heard you did at Capernaum, do here in your hometown as well.’” And he said, “Truly, I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his hometown. But in truth, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heavens were shut up three years and six months, and a great famine came over all the land, and Elijah was sent to none of them but only to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.” When they heard these things, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath. And they rose up and drove him out of the town and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they could throw him down the cliff.But passing through their midst, he went away.

SERMON

SERMON HYMN: “He Leadeth Me” LSB 501 (v. 1,3-4)

He leadeth me! O blessed thought!

O words with heav’nly comfort fraught!

What-e’er I do, where’er I be,

Still ‘tis God’s hand that leadeth me!

REFRAIN:

He leadeth me, He leadeth me,

By His own hand He leadeth me:

His faithful foll’wer I would be,

For by His hand He leadeth me.

Lord, I would clasp Thy hand in mine,

Nor ever murmur nor repine,

Content, whatever lot I see,

Since ’tis my God that leadeth me!

REFRAIN

And when my task on earth is done,

When, by Thy grace, the vict’ry’s won,

E’en death’s cold wave I will not flee,

Since God thru Jordan leadeth me!

REFRAIN

CONFESSING OUR FAITH

C: 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 catholic church,

The communion of saints,

The forgiveness of sins,

The resurrection of the body

And the life everlasting. Amen.

OFFERINGS GATHERED

We give our offerings as a sign of our lives given to the Lord in humble service.

PRAYERS OF GOD’S PEOPLE

P: Let us pray for the whole people of God in Christ Jesus and for all people according to their needs.

For the work of our triune God among our church—Peace Lutheran Church–and among all people in the Holy Christian Church, that Jesus would be the One upon whom all eyes are fixed and in whom we see all the Scriptures find their fulfillment, let us pray to the Lord.