Lutheran Church of the Holy Spirit 3461 Cedar Crest Blvd. EMAIL Info@holyspirit-emmaus.org Emmaus, PA 18049-1599 www.lchsemmaus.org PHONE 610.967.2220 www.facebook.com/lchsemmaus FAX 610.966.3021 Spirit Alive! upbeat Christ-Centered Second Sunday after Epiphany Sunday, January 20, 2019 8:45 am The Holy Spirit Empowers Us for Ministry in Daily Life Gathered by God s grace and empowered by the Holy Spirit, we invite and welcome all people to join us on our journey to become more faithful ministers of Jesus Christ in our homes, our communities, and the world.
ELW refers to the Evangelical Lutheran Worship, the red worship book. Page numbers are in the front of the book with hymn numbers following in the middle & end. During worship, please silence all communication devices. *As you are able, please stand. Gathering Gathering and Fellowship Welcome and Theme of the Day The Sundays after Epiphany continue to celebrate the revelation of the glory of God to us as it was made known to the magi and to those on Jordan s banks at the baptism of Jesus today using wedding imagery. Our God rejoices over God s people as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride. By the power of the Spirit there are gifts galore for everyone. In Christ Jesus the best wine is saved for last. Taste and see. *Gathering The assembly reads responsively. Let us celebrate God s glory around us, and the light of Christ within us! Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of God has dawned on us. Your son, Jesus, performed the first of his signs of glory at a wedding in Cana. Bless all who are joined as family: And for all who make a covenant to live together for mutual support and love. May God be revealed today for God will be our glory! Jesus is the light of the world. Open our eyes to see your miracles in and around us! *Gathering Song Let Us Go Now to the Banquet ELW Hymn 523 2
*Prayer of the Day Let us pray together. Lord God, source of every blessing, you showed forth your glory and led many to faith by the works of your Son, who brought gladness and salvation to his people. Open our eyes to the surprising wonders you do, that we may believe with our minds and trust in our hearts that you alone are Lord of all creation. Transform us by the Spirit of his love, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen. Word First Reading A Reading from Isaiah 62:1-5. CEV The people s return to Judah after the exile was marred by economic and political troubles. Nevertheless, the prophet declares, Jerusalem and Judah will be restored. God will rejoice over Jerusalem as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride; and the people are called to the celebration. Jerusalem, I will speak up for your good. I will never be silent till you are safe and secure, sparkling like a flame. Your great victory will be seen by every nation and king; the LORD will even give you a new name. You will be a glorious crown, a royal headband, for the LORD your God. Your name will no longer be Deserted and Childless, but Happily Married. You will please the LORD; your country will be his bride. Your people will take the land, just as a young man takes a bride. The LORD will be pleased because of you, just as a husband is pleased with his bride. Word of God, Word of Light. Thanks be to God! Word for God s Children Children ages 3 7 are invited to the All Saints Room. They will return after the Sermon. We encourage at least one parent to be present. *Gospel The Holy Gospel according to John 2:1-11 in The Message Bible. Open our hearts, Lord Turning water to wine at the wedding at Cana is described as the first of Jesus signs. Through many such epiphanies, Jesus reveals that he bears God s creative power and joyful presence into the world. 3
Three days later there was a wedding in the village of Cana in Galilee. Jesus mother was there. Jesus and his disciples were guests also. When they started running low on wine at the wedding banquet, Jesus mother told him, They re just about out of wine. Jesus said, Is that any of our business, Mother yours or mine? This isn t my time. Don t push me. She went ahead anyway, telling the servants, Whatever he tells you, do it. Six stoneware water pots were there, used by the Jews for ritual washings. Each held twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus ordered the servants, Fill the pots with water. And they filled them to the brim. Now fill your pitchers and take them to the host, Jesus said, and they did. When the host tasted the water that had become wine (he didn t know what had just happened but the servants, of course, knew), he called out to the bridegroom, Everybody I know begins with their finest wines and after the guests have had their fill brings in the cheap stuff. But you ve saved the best till now! This act in Cana of Galilee was the first sign Jesus gave, the first glimpse of his glory. And his disciples believed in him. This is the good news! Thanks be to God! Hallelujah! Sermon Pr. Ric Elliott *Word in Song The Trumpets Sound, the Angels Sing ELW Hymn 531 *Epiphany Affirmation Let us affirm our faith. We believe in God, the creator and giver of life, who brought all creation to birth, who mothers us and fathers us, protecting, nurturing, and cherishing us. We believe in Jesus Christ: God born among us as a fragile baby, embodying both love and the need for love, and calling us to rest in God as trustingly as a tiny child. 4
We believe in the Holy Spirit, breathed into us at our birth, always drawing us to be born again, encouraging, comforting, nourishing our growth and inspiring our living. We believe in the reconciliation of the world to God, through Christ. Hunted at birth and humiliated at death, Christ entered our fearful darkness so that we may enter his glorious light and share the life of his resurrection. And we believe that each new child is a glimpse of the face of God, a sign of the life to come, and a call to live in peace and celebrate living together. Glory to God in the highest, and God's peace to all people on earth. Amen. *Prayers of the People Giving thanks for God s great gifts, we pray for the church, the world, and all those in need. After each petition: Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer. Trusting your love and healing, O God, we commend to you all for whom we pray, knowing you will hear and answer, through Christ our Lord. Amen. *Share the Peace The peace of Christ be with you always. And also with you. The people greet one another with the peace of Christ. Offering Psalm 92 (O Most Holy) Voss/Varnadore/Baloche Jeff Gross, soloist The assembly responds to the Word of God by gathering an offering for the mission of the church, including the care of those in need. The music is offered as a gift to the glory of God. You may give your offering in the offering plate, or by using a credit or debit card at the Giving Kiosk, or Give by Text (610-981-1312), or through Simply Giving, or by sending it to the church office. The table is set. 5
*Offering Prayer Let us pray. Good and loving God, we rejoice in the birth of Jesus, who came among the poor to bring the riches of your grace. As you have blessed us with your gifts, let them be blessing for others. With the trees of the field, with all earth and heaven, we shout for joy at the coming of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. *Word in Meal Meal We have come looking for the child wondering where that love is born, Seeking that joy that satisfies our thirst. We have come to this place where wise people and shepherds and young women met. We have come to this place called Bethlehem. To this place where our hearts rise like yeast. To this place where we meet our newborn hope. To this place where we taste our deepest joy. In Bethlehem, where we assumed the worst, imagining that no good can come, we somehow missed its name - Bethlehem. Bethel means house. Lehem means bread. There is something here that will satisfy our hunger. No matter how long we have wandered, here our hearts arise. Our light has come. In this bread and in this cup, we celebrate something we can t quite understand. Because God has made a house at this table. Because God satisfies our hunger in the most unlikely places. Because God comes to be with us in and through the bread. It is with this expectation that we come to the table to taste and see that God is here. Holy Spirit, be present in, with and under this bread and this cup. Words of Institution 6
Transform these ordinary objects as you change our hearts to shape and form your world with the joys you promise. Pour your grace on us, so we overflow with your love. Help us to remember how a newborn baby grows into a little child that would one day turn to his hope-filled friends in an upper room Come, Lord Jesus, come and transform our lives for the sake of the world. *Lord s Prayer Gathered into one by the Holy Spirit, let us pray as Jesus taught us: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever. Amen. *Invitation to Communion Come to the table. Feast on God s abundant life for you. Amen. Sacrament of Holy Communion All who are baptized and believe in the presence of Jesus Christ in Holy Communion are welcome to receive the Sacrament. To facilitate flow, the ushers invite the side sections, the front few rows and then the back rows. The people come forward, using the center aisle in two lines, to receive the bread from the ministers, then go to the side to dip their bread into the wine. Grape juice is used in our celebration so that all may freely receive. In addition, gluten free wafers are available. After receiving the elements, people may kneel at the altar rail for prayer, and return to their seats using the side aisles. Children may receive the sacrament if they have completed instruction with a pastor. Children who do not commune may come forward for a blessing. Communion Songs The assembly sings of the light of the world. Now the Silence ELW Hymn 460 On Eagle s Wings ELW Hymn 787 One Bread, One Body ELW Hymn 496 7
*Prayer Let us pray. We give you thanks, O God, that in this bread and cup of Christ's very life, you give us food for our journey. As you led the magi by a star, as you brought the holy family home again, guide us on the way unfolding before us. Wherever we go, may our lives proclaim good news of great joy in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. *Blessing Sending May you be filled with the wonder of Mary, the obedience of Joseph, the joy of the angels, the eagerness of the shepherds, the determination of the magi, and the peace of the Christ child. Almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, bless you now and forever. Amen. *Sending Song Hallelujah! We Sing Your Praises ELW Hymn 535 *Dismissal The assisting minister sends the assembly into mission. Go, shine brightly with the love of Christ. Shine, Jesus, shine. CCLI #678084 One License A-701076 The Toolkit all content Changing Church Forum, Inc. Reproducible for church use only. Liturgy from Sundays and Seasons.com. Copyright 2019 Augsburg Fortress. All rights reserved. Reprinted by permission under Augsburg Fortress Liturgies Annual License #20593. 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. HymnPrint.net License #11804. The Message (MSG) Copyright 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission. Some liturgy reprinted by permission of Westminster John Knox Press from Feasting on the Word Worship Companion. 2014. Used by permission. Epiphany Affirmation of Faith written by Nathan Nettleton, 1999, incorporating some lines from "Midwife of our lives" by Kathy Galloway published in Kathy Galloway (ed.) The Pattern of Our Days, Glasgow: Wild Goose Publications, 1996, p.138. from laughingbird.net/seasonalpages/christmas.html. Word in meal Eucharistic prayer submitted to Liturgylink.net by Rev. Elsa Peters, the United Churches of Olympia, WA. Blessing from Sundays and Seasons. 8