ASCENSION LUTHERAN CHURCH THE LUTHERAN CHURCH MISSOURI SYNOD LITTLETON, COLORADO June 10, 2018 10:00 am THIRD SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST Tragedy Reversed AS WE GATHER Not all news is good news. Not every story is a happy story. But the Scriptures tell us of the grace God has shown to His people, even in their sinfulness and rejection of Him. God does not give up on His creation. The seeds He has planted will bear fruit according to His promise. There will be a happy ending! In this season of growing things, we renew our hope in the Lord, who is our health and salvation.
GATHERING SONGS Glory, Glory, Hallelujah Anita Baresel, piano Ann Westra, cello HE REIGNS Furler Taylor It s the song of the redeemed rising from the African plain. It s the song of the forgiven drowning out the Amazon rain. The song of Asian believers filled with God s holy fire. It s ev ry tribe, ev ry tongue, ev ry nation; A love song born of a grateful choir. Chorus: It s all God s children singing: Glory, glory, hallelujah! He reigns, He reigns! It s all God s children singing: Glory, glory, hallelujah! He reigns, He reigns! Let it rise above the four winds, caught up in the heavenly sound. Let praises echo from the towers of cathedrals to the faithful gathered underground. Of all the songs sung from the dawn of creation, some were meant to persist. Of all the bells rung from a thousand steeples, none rings truer than this: CHORUS And all the powers of darkness tremble at what they ve just heard, cause all the powers of darkness can t drown out a single word. CHORUS THE LION AND THE LAMB Brown/Johnson/Mooring He's coming on the clouds, kings and kingdoms will bow down And every chain will break, as broken hearts declare His praise Who can stop the Lord Almighty? CHORUS: Our God is the Lion, the Lion of Judah He's roaring with power and fighting our battles And every knee will bow before You Our God is the Lamb, the Lamb that was slain For the sin of the world, His blood breaks the chains And every knee will bow before the Lion and the Lamb Oh every knee will bow before the Lion and the Lamb So open up the gates, make way before the King of kings Our God who calls the saved is here to set the captives free Who can stop the Lord Almighty? CHORUS
PREPARATION PASTORAL GREETING OPENING SONG How Great Thou Art LSB 801 Verse 3-Solo INVOCATION In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. CONFESSION AND ABSOLUTION Let us now make confession of our sins to God, our heavenly Father. Merciful Father, we confess our sinfulness. We are sinful from our birth and since that time have sinned against You in thought, word, and deed. Our actions have brought injury to others. We have left undone those things we ought to have done; we have done those things we ought not to have done. We sincerely repent of our sins. Graciously hear this our confession, O Lord, and grant us Your grace and forgiveness in Jesus Christ. By the renewing work of the Holy Spirit within us, lead us to amend our sinful lives, that each day we grow in righteousness and in hope to the glory of Your holy name. Jesus, our Redeemer and God s greatest gift, promises forgiveness, life, and salvation. As a called and ordained servant of Christ, I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. As you believe, so may it be. WORD SALUTATION The Lord be with you. And also with you. Old Testament Reading: Genesis 3:8-15 (The fall into sin in the Garden of Eden.) Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, Where are you? He answered, I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid. And he said, Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree
that I commanded you not to eat from? The man said, The woman you put here with me she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it. Then the Lord God said to the woman, What is this you have done? The woman said, The serpent deceived me, and I ate. So the Lord God said to the serpent, Because you have done this, Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel. Lector: This is the Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. Epistle: 2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1 (We look with hope to the things that are unseen.) It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken." With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak, because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in his presence. All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God. Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. Lector: This is the Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. Congregation, please stand for the Gospel Holy Gospel: Mark 3:20-35 (Jesus teaches about who truly is His family.) The Holy Gospel according to St. Mark, the third chapter. Glory to You, O Lord. Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, "He is out of his mind." And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem said, "He is
possessed by Beelzebub! By the prince of demons he is driving out demons." So Jesus called them and spoke to them in parables: "How can Satan drive out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come. In fact, no one can enter a strong man's house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can rob his house. I tell you the truth, all the sins and blasphemies of men will be forgiven them. But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; he is guilty of an eternal sin." He said this because they were saying, "He has an evil spirit." Then Jesus' mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, "Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you." "Who are my mother and my brothers?" he asked. Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, "Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does God's will is my brother and sister and mother." This is the Gospel of the Lord. Praise to You, O Christ. CHILDREN S MESSAGE Kathy Johnson SONG OF THE DAY SING TO THE KING Foote Sing to the King who is coming to reign. Glory to Jesus, the Lamb that was slain. Life and salvation His empire shall bring, and joy to the nations, when Jesus is King. Come, let us sing a song, a song declaring that we belong to Jesus; He is all we need. Lift up a heart of praise. Sing now with voices raised to Jesus; sing to the King. For His returning we watch and we pray; We will be ready the dawn of that day. We ll join in singing with all the redeemed, cause Satan is vanquished and Jesus is King. Come, let us sing a song, a song declaring that we belong to Jesus; He is all we need. Lift up a heart of praise. Sing now with voices raised to Jesus; sing to the King.
SERMON A Divided House Pastor Larson TEXT: Mark 3:20-35 CREED The First Article I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth. What does this mean? I believe that God has made me and all creatures; that He has given me my body and soul, eyes, ears, and all my members, my reason and all my senses, and still takes care of them. He also gives me clothing and shoes, food and drink, house and home, wife and children, land, animals, and all I have. He richly and daily provides me with all that I need to support this body and life. He defends me against all danger and guards and protects me from all evil. All this He does only out of fatherly, divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness in me. For all this it is my duty to thank and praise, serve and obey Him. This is most certainly true. PRAYER OF THE CHURCH SHARING OF THE PEACE The peace of the Lord be with you always. Amen. We greet one another with a word of reconciliation, such as Peace be with you.
OFFERING VICTORY CHANT Vogels (Congregation repeats [sings] each phrase after the Singers.) Hail, Jesus, You re my King. Hail, Jesus, You re my King. Your life frees me to sing. Your life frees me to sing. I will praise You all my days. I will praise You all my days. Perfect in all Your ways. Perfect in all Your ways. Hail, Jesus, You re my Lord. Hail, Jesus, You re my Lord. I will obey Your Word. I will obey Your Word. I want to see Your kingdom come. I want to see Your kingdom come. Not my will, but Yours be done. Not my will, but Yours be done. Glory, glory to the Lamb. Glory, glory to the Lamb. You take me into the land. You take me into the land. We will conquer in Your name. We will conquer in Your name. And proclaim that Jesus reigns. And proclaim that Jesus reigns. And proclaim that Jesus reigns. And proclaim that Jesus reigns. RECEPTION OF NEW MEMBERS Amy Meyer, Linda Nedry, Dustin and Cheryl Olson
HOLY COMMUNION AT ASCENSION The Lord, our Host, invites to his Supper those who are baptized into the Christian faith, confess him as Savior, have been instructed and have examined themselves, truly repent of sins, believe the Risen Lord is present in the sacrament with his true body and blood, and resolve to live faithfully and obediently. For those with an intolerance to alcohol, the center ring of the tray contains grape juice. Gluten free wafers are available to those with wheat allergies. Children who have not been instructed, yet desire a blessing, are invited to come forward with arms crossed. When receiving the bread and wine, the communicant may respond with Amen!, a word of affirmation and belief. PREFACE SACRAMENT The Lord be with you. 2 Timothy 4:22 And also with you. Lift up your hearts. [Colossians 3:1] We lift them to the Lord. Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. [Psalm 136] It is right to give Him thanks and praise.
THE WORDS OF OUR LORD Matthew 26:26 28; Mark 14:22 24; Luke 22:19 20; 1 Corinthians 11:23 25 Our Lord Jesus Christ, on the night when He was betrayed, took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it and gave it to the disciples and said: Take, eat; this is My body, which is given for you. This do in remembrance of Me. In the same way also He took the cup after supper, and when He had given thanks, He gave it to them, saying: Drink of it, all of you; this cup is the new testament in My blood, which is shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me. LORD S PRAYER Text found in back of Hymnal (Matthew 6:9 13) DISTRIBUTION SONGS ALL THE PEOPLE SAID AMEN! Maher You are not alone if you are lonely. When you feel afraid, you're not the only. We are all the same, in need of mercy, To be forgiven and be free. It's all you got to lean on, But thank God, it's all you need. CHORUS: And all the people said, amen. Whoa. And all the people said, amen. Give thanks to the Lord, for His love never ends. And all the people said, amen. If you're rich or poor, well, it don't matter. Weak or strong, you know love is what we're after. We're all broken, but we're all in this together. God knows we stumble and fall, And He so loved the world, He sent His son to save us all. CHORUS Blessed are the poor in spirit who are torn apart. Blessed are the persecuted and the pure in heart. Blessed are the people hungry for another start, For theirs is the kingdom, the kingdom of God. CHORUS
LORD I NEED YOU Lord, I come, I confess. Bowing here, I find my rest. And without You, I fall apart. You're the one that guides my heart. CHORUS: Lord, I need You, oh, I need You. Ev'ry hour I need You. My one defense, my righteousness; Oh, God, how I need You. Where sin runs deep, Your grace is more. Where grace is found is where You are. And where You are, Lord, I am free. Holiness is Christ in me. CHORUS Maher So, teach my song to rise to You When temptation comes my way. And when I cannot stand, I'll fall on You. Jesus, You're my hope and stay. CHORUS LET IT RISE Davis Let the glory of the Lord rise among us, Let the glory of the Lord rise among us; Let the praises of the King rise among us, let it rise. Let the songs of the Lord rise among us, Let the songs of the Lord rise among us; Let the joy of the King rise among us, let it rise. O, let it rise. O, let it rise. GENERAL COMMUNION BLESSING BENEDICTION The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. The Lord look upon you with favor and give you peace. Numbers 6:24 26 Amen.
CLOSING SONG HOW GREAT IS OUR GOD! Tomlin Reeves Cash The splendor of the King, clothed in majesty; Let all the earth rejoice, all the earth rejoice. He wraps Himself in light, and darkness tries to hide, And trembles at His voice, and trembles at His voice. CHORUS: How great is our God! Sing with me: How great is our God! And all will see how great, how great is our God! And age to age He stands, and time is in His hands; Beginning and the End, Beginning and the End. The Godhead, three in one, Father, Spirit, Son, The Lion and the Lamb, the Lion and the Lamb. CHORUS CONGREGATIONAL CONCERNS
Serving in Worship OFFICIANT and CELEBRANT DIRECTOR OF MUSIC MINISTRIES Agape Praise Team Pastor John Larson Michael Zehnder Bri Fort, Lisa O Neal, Ken Price, Bob Shiflet ELDER 8:00 Arvin Michel 10:00 Don Loptien LECTOR 8:00 Tom Munson 10:00 Margo Pasha ACOLYTE 8:00 Josh Federico 10:00 Hannah Schmitt USHERS 8:00 Larry Nisbet, Members of the Congregation 10:00 Jason Dierking, Members of the Congregation SERVER 10:00 Les Young ALTAR GUILD Sally Atchison, Gloria Gaudreault, Joyce Dowdy, Barb Williams FLOWERS Chrissy Coon in celebration of her 40 th birthday. CCLI License #1903595