Third Sunday in Lent

3461 Merle Ave Modesto, CA 95355 (209) 551-0563 www.stpetermodesto.org W Third Sunday in Lent March 24, 2019 Give up false security; repent lest you fall elcome all - both visitor and member alike! May our ever-giving and gracious God fill your heart with joy, peace, and hope through the message of forgiveness in our living Savior, Jesus Christ! The Lord s Supper (Holy Communion) The Bible tells us that those who take Communion together are to: Recognize that Christ s true body and blood are present in the Sacrament (1 Cor. 11:29), Examine themselves as Scripture instructs (1 Cor. 11:28), and Be one in faith and belief with the congregation with which they commune (1 Cor. 10:17). For these reasons, it is our practice that only those who are members of our congregation or a congregation of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS) join us for Holy Communion. If you are interested in learning more about becoming a member of our body of believers or want to find out more about our Communion practice please speak to Pastor Schroeder after the service. PRAYER BEFORE WORSHIP God the Father, forgive us for not always treating you and your house the way that we should. May we come to this church ready to worship and praise you. May we come to meditate and pray, and may we come to respect and honor you and this place. In Jesus name I pray. Amen. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Flowers adorning our altar this morning are given to the glory of God by Barbara Atkinson in loving memory of her wedding anniversary and by the Hejnal family in celebration of God s many blessings. Minister: Pastor Daniel Schroeder Pianist: Karen Adams 1

PREPARING FOR WORSHIP During Lent God calls us to give up our sin. His pointed attacks against the sins that beset his people help us put off the attitudes and actions of our sinful nature. His perfect righteousness as our substitute assures us that we are right with God and empowers us in godly living. Today Jesus attacks complacency and security. No sooner are we assured of God's love than we are tempted to think that we have done something to earn or deserve it. We must always remember the importance of repentance. If we think we are standing firm because of our character or merit, we are in danger of falling. Thankfully, God graciously gives us time to turn to him and trust in his mercy. GATHERING RITE FOR LENT Minister: In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Congregation: Amen. M: Listen to my words, LORD, consider my lament. Hear my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray. C: In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly. M: Lead me, LORD, in your righteousness because of my enemies C: make your way straight before me. M: Let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. C: Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you. Psalm 5:1-3, 8, 11 2

CONFESSION OF SINS M: Lord of life, C: I confess that I am by nature dead in sin. For faithless worry and selfish pride, For sins of habit and sins of choice, For the evil I have done and the good I have failed to do, You should cast me away from your presence forever. O Lord, I am sorry for my sins. Forgive me, for Jesus sake. ABSOLUTION M: Almighty God in his mercy has given his Son to die for you and for his sake forgives you all your sins. And the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:7-9). Therefore as a called servant of Christ and by his authority, I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. C: Amen. 3

PRAYER OF THE DAY M: Let us pray. Almighty God, look with favor on your humble servants and stretch out the right hand of your power to defend us against all our enemies; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. C: Amen. THE WORD OF GOD CHILDREN S MESSAGE Children are invited to come forward for a children s devotion in the front of the church. FIRST LESSON Numbers 16:23-40 Those who think they are standing firm end up perishing. The LORD replied to Moses, 24 Tell the community: Get away from the dwellings of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. 25 Moses got up and went to Dathan and Abiram, and the elders of Israel followed him. 26 He warned the community, Get away now from the tents of these wicked men. Don t touch anything that belongs to them, or you will be swept away because of all their sins. 27 So they got away from the dwellings of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. Meanwhile, Dathan and Abiram came out and stood at the entrance of their tents with their wives, children, and infants. 28 Then Moses said, This is how you will know that the LORD sent me to do all these things and that it was not of my own will: 29 If these men die naturally as all people would, and suffer the fate of all, then the LORD has not sent me. 30 But if the LORD brings about something unprecedented, and the ground opens its mouth and swallows them along with all that belongs to them so that they go down alive into Sheol, then you will know that these men have despised the LORD. 31 Just as he finished speaking all these words, the ground beneath them split open. 32 The earth opened its mouth and swallowed them and their households, all Korah s people, and all their possessions. 33 They went down alive into Sheol with all that belonged to them. The earth closed over them, and they vanished from the assembly. 34 At their cries, all the people of Israel who were around them fled because they thought, The earth may swallow us too! 35 Fire also came out from the LORD and consumed the 250 men who were presenting the incense. 4

36 Then the LORD spoke to Moses: 37 Tell Eleazar son of Aaron the priest to remove the firepans from the burning debris, because they are holy, and scatter the fire far away. 38 As for the firepans of those who sinned at the cost of their own lives, make them into hammered sheets as plating for the altar, for they presented them before the LORD, and the firepans are holy. They will be a sign to the Israelites. 39 So the priest Eleazar took the bronze firepans that those who were burned had presented, and they were hammered into plating for the altar, 40 just as the LORD commanded him through Moses. It was to be a reminder for the Israelites that no unauthorized person outside the lineage of Aaron should approach to offer incense before the LORD and become like Korah and his followers. (CSB) M: This is the Word of the Lord. C: Thanks be to God. 5

PSALM OF THE DAY Psalm 38 When we realize the sorry state of our sinfulness. we plead to the Lord for forgiveness. He hears and answers our cries for mercy. We will sing the psalm responsively by the half verse. The organ side of the congregation sings the first half of the verses. The piano side of the congregation sings the second half of the verses. All join in singing the refrain. O LORD, do not rebuke me in your anger or discipline me in your wrath. For your arrows have pierced me, and your hand has come down upon me. My guilt has overwhelmed me like a burden too heavy to bear. Refrain All my longings lie open before you, O LORD; my sighing is not hidden from you. I wait for you, O LORD; you will answer, O Lord my God. Come quickly to help me, O Lord my Savior. Refrain 6

SECOND LESSON 1 Corinthians 10:1-13 Paul warns those who think they are standing firm. Now I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors were all under the cloud, all passed through the sea, 2 and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. 3 They all ate the same spiritual food, 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual rock that followed them, and that rock was Christ. 5 Nevertheless God was not pleased with most of them, since they were struck down in the wilderness. 6 Now these things took place as examples for us, so that we will not desire evil things as they did. 7 Don t become idolaters as some of them were; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and got up to party. 8 Let us not commit sexual immorality as some of them did, and in a single day twenty-three thousand people died. 9 Let us not test Christ as some of them did and were destroyed by snakes. 10 And don t complain as some of them did, and were killed by the destroyer. 11 These things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our instruction, on whom the ends of the ages have come. 12 So, whoever thinks he stands must be careful not to fall. 13 No temptation has come upon you except what is common to humanity. But God is faithful; he will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation he will also provide a way out so that you may be able to bear it. (CSB) M: This is the Word of the Lord. C: Thanks be to God. VERSE OF THE DAY John 3:14,15 C: Refrain M: Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. C: Refrain 7

GOSPEL LESSON Luke 13:1-9 Tragedy should not produce false security but rather repentance. At that time, some people came and reported to him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. 2 And he responded to them, Do you think that these Galileans were more sinful than all the other Galileans because they suffered these things? 3 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as well. 4 Or those eighteen that the tower in Siloam fell on and killed do you think they were more sinful than all the other people who live in Jerusalem? 5 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as well. 6 And he told this parable: A man had a fig tree that was planted in his vineyard. He came looking for fruit on it and found none. 7 He told the vineyard worker, Listen, for three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree and haven t found any. Cut it down! Why should it even waste the soil? 8 But he replied to him, Sir, leave it this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. 9 Perhaps it will produce fruit next year, but if not, you can cut it down. (CSB) M: This is the gospel of the Lord. HYMN OF THE DAY Lord, to You I Make Confession Christian Worship #302 8

SERMON Numbers 16:23-40 Hear and Fear CATECHISM Fifth Petition of the Lord s Prayer Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. What does this mean? We pray in this petition that our Father in heaven would not look upon our sins or because of them deny our prayers; for we are worthy of none of the things for which we ask, neither have we deserved them, but we ask that he would give them all to us by grace; for we daily sin much and surely deserve nothing but punishment. So we too will forgive from the heart and gladly do good to those who sin against us. OFFERING The members of St. Peter Congregation have joined together to do the Lord s work in this community and around the world. Guests at St. Peter are welcome to participate in the offering but need not feel obligated to do so. 9

PRAYER OF THE CHURCH AND LORD S PRAYER M: Dear God, heavenly Father, how great is your love for us! You willingly sent your beloved Son to a world of sinful rebels. The innocent one came to serve the guilty, but his own people rejected him, and his enemies tortured him and put him to death. C: Because you did not withhold your one and only Son but let him take our guilt on himself to set us free, we praise your holy name. M: Dear Son of God, our brother, how great is your love for us! You allowed yourself to be condemned so that we could be declared not guilty. Fill our hearts with the same self-sacrificing love that you showed us. You allowed no suffering, no fear, and no doubt to swerve you from your path to Calvary. C: Give us the same single-minded dedication and unshakable commitment as we daily take up our cross and follow you. M: Dear Holy Spirit, how great is your love for us! By Word and sacrament you have warmed and transformed our foolish and stubborn hearts, making us wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus and receptive to his gospel of forgiveness. Hold his cross before our eyes that we may dedicate our lives to him who died for us. C: Make us strong in the hour of temptation. Lead us to love and serve our neighbor as unselfishly as Christ did. Special prayers of intercession may follow. M: Hear us, Lord, as we bring you our private petitions. Silent prayer. M: Keep us in the true faith in unity with all faithful Christians, and grant us a blessed death. C: Hear us for Jesus sake. 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. 10

THE SACRAMENT St. Peter Lutheran Church practices close communion. We invite confirmed members to come forward to partake of the Sacrament. Thank you for your consideration. This dialog (also known as the preface ) leads into the heart of the Sacrament portion of the service. In its exalted sentences, we have the oldest and least changed part of the liturgy. There is evidence of its use in the 100 s A.D. M: The Lord be with you. M: Lift up your hearts. M: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. M: Praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In love he has blessed us with every spiritual blessing. He made his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ. To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and thanks and honor and glory forever and ever. 11

HOLY, HOLY, HOLY (SANCTUS) WORDS OF INSTITUTION M: Our Lord Jesus Christ, on the night he was betrayed, took bread; and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying: Take and eat. This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me. Then he took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink from it all of you; this is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for you for the forgiveness of sins. Do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me. M: The peace of the Lord be with you always. C: Amen 12

O CHRIST, LAMB OF GOD (AGNUS DEI) 13

DISTRIBUTION OF THE LORD S SUPPER During the distribution you are invited to join in singing the indicated hymns or to use the time for private prayer and meditation. Appropriate prayers are found on page 11 in the front of the hymnal. A personal preparation for the Lord s Supper is found on page 156. DISTRIBUTION HYMNS Today Your Mercy Calls Us Christian Worship #339 Lord Jesus Christ, You Have Prepared Christian Worship #312 CLOSING PRAYER AND BLESSING M: We give thanks, heavenly Father, for the mercy you have shown to us and to the whole world. Bring to us the aid of your Holy Spirit that we may respond to your mercy with faith and serve you in willing obedience all the days of our lives. Continue to feed and nourish us on the grace of your Word and Sacrament that we may not depart from your truth; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. C: Amen. M: Brothers and sisters, go in peace. Live in harmony with one another. Serve the Lord with gladness. The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you. The Lord look on you with favor and give you peace. The following were reprinted under OneLicense.net #A-706579: Psalm 38.Patricia Craig 1986 GIA Publications, Inc. Chicago,, Il. All rights reserved. Used by permission. Service of Word and Sacrament 1993 Northwestern Publishing House. All rights reserved. Cover artwork by Ian M. Welch. Copyright 2015 Ian M. Welch. All Rights Reserved. The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible, and CSB are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved. 14