What You Hear and See. December 11, :00 am & 9:30 am

Transcription

1 What You Hear and See Messengers of John the Baptist ask Jesus, Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another? (Matt. 11:3). John, who thrived outdoors, is confined to a prison cell, awaiting violent death. Perhaps he wonders: Was I wrong about Jesus? Has my own life s calling been in vain, or can it bear fruit? John s question is the sort we ask when we are hemmed in and it s hardest to see, hear, or move. In our darkest hours of pain, injustice, and loss, we too may wonder: does it make sense to trust, to hope? Jesus asks the crowds who had followed John, What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? (Matt. 11:7). The wilderness is empty and rough, yet it can also be a wide open space for gaining perspective and connecting or reconnecting with God. As we continue through the wilderness season of Advent, what do we ourselves long to discover and see? A desert is a vast reach of rock and sand. When rare and welcome rain soaks into its thirsty ground, color and life spring forth; the very earth rejoices! Neither Solomon in all his glory nor Herod s softrobed courtiers were clothed like this. Our Advent readings from Isaiah present visions of the whole creation blossoming flowering flourishing not elsewhere, but on the climate-stressed, war-torn planet where we live. Today, images of healing and wholeness intensify promises of gladness and singing even in a hostile desert environment East 10 th Street Sioux Falls SD ; Fax: December 11, :00 am & 9:30 am Jesus responds to the messengers and to us, Go and tell... what you hear and see (Matt. 11:4). Evil would confine us in cynicism and fear, and hope is no small virtue. We strengthen one another s hearts by sharing where we have sensed God s presence: in beauty, in acts of healing and liberation, in people of integrity who have held to the truth. As we tell, we answer both questions. Yes, this is the one for whom we have waited whose coming is certain, and whose day draws near. We will gather for midweek Advent worship this Wednesday, 7:00 pm using Holden Evening Prayer with Norm Shomper as Cantor. Pastor Josh and Pastor Olaf will be offering Dialogue Sermons on The Redemption of Scrooge. The third one is The Spirit of Christmas Present Supper (lasagna, salad, breadsticks catered by Olive Garden) will be served from 5:45-6:45 pm. From Sundays and Seasons.com Augsburg Fortress. All rights reserved. Reprinted by permission under Augsburg Fortress Liturgies Annual License # New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

2 ORDER OF WORSHIP The PRELUDE is a signal to end our conversation and prepare ourselves for worship! Please be sure your cell phone/pager is off. Thank you! PRELUDE Meditation on I Wonder as I Wander John G. Barr CALL TO WORSHIP Call to Advent (A Quodlibet on Veni Emmanuel and Picardy ) THE ORDER FOR CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS P In the Name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit. P As we await the day of the Lord, let us confess our sin. Silence is kept for reflection. P Great and Holy One, C in this time of waning daylight, we confess the shadows of sin in our lives. We build ourselves up at the expense of others. We rely on our own efforts to make our lives secure. Yet you, O Lord, are the potter, and we are the clay. Come to restore us in your image, remake us into your people, and rebuild what sin has broken, that we and the whole creation may rejoice. Amen. P Fear not, people of God: the Almighty has done great things for us. God casts away our sin from us and makes of us a new creation. In + Jesus Christ, God comes to set you free. Take heart in the tender compassion of our God. HYMN 259 (vss. 1 & 2) Fling Wide the Door THE POST-COMMUNION CANTICLE Believers Rejoice, Rejoice, Rejoice, rejoice, believers, and let your lights appear; the evening is advancing, and darker night is near. The bridegroom is arising and soon is drawing nigh. Up, pray and watch and wrestle; at midnight comes the cry. Our hope and expectation, O Jesus, now appear; arise, O Sun so longed for, o'er this benighted sphere. With hearts and hands uplifted, we plead, O Lord, to see the day of earth's redemption that sets your people free! Text: Laurentius Laurenti, ; tr. Sarah B. Findlater, THE POST-COMMUNION PRAYER P God for whom we wait, C you come to us in the broken bread and the cup we share. Make us ready always to welcome Jesus Christ into our hearts, and send us forth now to be your people in the world, announcing your coming among us in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. THE BENEDICTION P May God direct your ways in peace, make you abound in love for one another and for all, and strengthen your hearts until the coming of our Lord Jesus. Almighty God, Father, + Son, and Holy Spirit, bless you now and forever. THE DISMISSAL P The Living Christ has set you free! C Free indeed! Thanks be to God! HYMN 267 Joy to the World POSTLUDE Rejoice, Rejoice, Believers Kevin J. Sadowski 2 11

3 THIRD CANDLE - THE CANDLE OF LOVE P Light and peace, in Jesus Christ our Lord. C Thanks be to God! THE WORDS OF INSTITUTION THE LORD S PRAYER P C Lord, remember us in your kingdom and teach us all to pray: 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. THE DISTRIBUTION All baptized Christians who confess Jesus Christ as Lord, and His Real Presence in the bread and wine, are welcome to the Lord s Supper. Please fill out a registration card and hand it to the usher. We will gladly commune anyone in their seat if they are unable to come forward for communion. White grape juice is available in the center of the communion tray. Glutenfree communion wafers are available upon request. We sing Hymns: THE BLESSING 264 Prepare the Royal Highway 241 O Lord, How Shall I Meet You P The body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ strengthen you and keep you in his grace. P Today is the Third Sunday of Advent and we will light the Candle of Love. Last Sunday we lighted the Candle of Peace. We light it and the Candle of Hope again as we remember Jesus, born in Bethlehem, our hope and our peace. (We light the Candles of Hope, and Peace.) Today we light the Third Candle of Advent, the Candle of Love. In their old age God gave to Zechariah and Elisabeth a son called John. John spoke to the people bravely in the desert denying his own comforts and prepared to die for what he believed. John taught that we should share what we have with others, treat each other kindly and show Gods love. He did this because he cared for people and wanted them to repent and find God's forgiveness. (We light the third Candle, the Candle of Love) Love is like a candle shining in a dark place. As we look at the light of this candle we celebrate the love we have in Christ. P Let us pray: C Lord God, your witness, John the Baptist, grew up strong in spirit and prepared people for the coming of the Lord. He loved your people and baptized them in the River Jordan to wash away their sins. Help us to have the same love that we would be witnesses to him and spread the good news of your love. As Christmas draws closer day by day, help us to be ready to welcome him. Amen. HYMN 259 (vss. 3 & 4) Fling Wide the Door 10 3

4 THE APOSTOLIC GREETING P The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. C And also with you. HOLY COMMUNION THE PRAYER OF THE DAY P Stir up the wills of all who look to you, Lord God, and strengthen our faith in your coming, that, transformed by grace, we will walk in your way; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. THE FIRST READING: Isaiah 35:1 10 The prophet describes the return from the Babylonian captivity as a joyous procession to Zion. God's coming reign will bring a renewal of creation in which health and wholeness will be restored. There is no need for fear, for God is coming to save. The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad, the desert shall rejoice and blossom; like the crocus 2 it shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it, the majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They shall see the glory of the LORD, the majesty of our God. 3 Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees. 4 Say to those who are of a fearful heart, "Be strong, do not fear! Here is your God. He will come with vengeance, with terrible recompense. He will come and save you." 5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; 6 then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy. For waters shall break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert; 7 the burning sand shall become a pool, and the thirsty ground springs of water; the haunt of jackals shall become a swamp, the grass shall become reeds and rushes. 8 A highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Holy Way; the unclean shall not travel on it, but it shall be for God's people; no traveler, not even fools, shall go astray. 9 No lion shall be there, nor shall any ravenous beast come up on it; they shall not be found there, but the redeemed shall walk there. 10 And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. L This is the Word of the Lord! C Thanks be to God! THE PREFACE FOR ADVENT THE SANCTUS PSALM: Luke 1:46b 55 (read responsively) 46b "My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, 4 9

5 disciples. In response, Sunday after Sunday again and again we give our offerings in thankfulness to God. Thank you for your faithful giving! ORGAN OFFERTORY Noël: Or nous dites Marie (Now Tell Us Mary) THE OFFERTORY You can scan this with your QR reader on your smart phone to give on-line to East Side. Jean-François Dandrieu Let the vineyards be fruitful, Lord 47 my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48 for you, Lord, have looked with favor on your lowly servant. From this day all generations will call me blessed: 49 you, the Almighty, have done great things for me and holy is your name. 50 You have mercy on those who fear you, from generation to generation. 51 You have shown strength with your arm and scattered the proud in their conceit, 52 casting down the mighty from their thrones and lifting up the lowly. 53 You have filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty. 54 You have come to the aid of your servant Israel, to remember the promise of mercy, 55 the promise made to our forbears, to Abraham and his children forever." THE SECOND READING: James 5:7 10 In anticipation of the Lord's coming, Christians are called upon to cultivate patience rather than discontent. 7 Be patient, therefore, beloved, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious crop from the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains. 8 You also must be patient. Strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near. 9 Beloved, do not grumble against one another, so that you may not be judged. See, the Judge is standing at the doors! 10 As an example of suffering and patience, beloved, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. L This is the Word of the Lord! C Thanks be to God! THE ADVENT VERSE THE OFFERING PRAYER P Savior of the nations, come, C Make your home here in us. Feed us with your love, that our faith shine ever new and our lives reveal your light. Amen. 8 5

6 of all that is, seen and unseen. THE HOLY GOSPEL: Matthew 11:2 11 John the Baptist expects the Messiah to bring God's judgment upon the earth. From a prison cell, he wonders whether Jesus is the one who will do this. 2 When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples 3 and said to him, "Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?" 4 Jesus answered them, "Go and tell John what you hear and see: 5 the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. 6 And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me." 7 As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: "What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? 8 What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. 9 What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10 This is the one about whom it is written, 'See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.' 11 Truly I tell you, among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. P The Gospel of the Lord. C Praise to You O Christ! CHOIR ANTHEM Advent Prayer (Incorporation Panis Angelicus and Lo, How a Rose E er Blooming ) Ardelle Kleinsasser, Flute THE SERMON HYMN 256 THE NICENE CREED We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, Pastor Joshua Johnson Comfort, Comfort Now My People We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father. Through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven; by the power of the Holy Spirit he became incarnate from the virgin Mary, and was made man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified. He has spoken through the prophets. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen. THE PRAYERS OF GOD S PEOPLE (Lord in your mercy hear our prayer) WE SHARE GOD S PEACE THANKOFFERING Advent is an annual reminder that God is patient with us patiently forgiving us again and again; while giving us again and again all we need to live as his 6 7