Trinity Luth_r[n Chur]h Grace...love...fellowship... from the Trinity at Trinity (2 Cor 13:14) 4704 N. Wall St - Spokane, WA 99205 Online @ www.spokanelutheran.com Nathan J. Pfeiffer, Pastor Church & Parsonage Phone: (509)327-4203 Cell: (509)703-2157 / Email: njpfifer@hotmail.com Luke Lillquist, President; Ivan Zarling, Head Elder; Kathy Conway, Organist; Tom Bettinger, Head Usher; Trinity is a member of the Church of the Lutheran Confession (CLC) Please visit www.clclutheran.org for more information 10 th Sunday after Pentecost August 5, 2012 Pre-Service Meditation: Psalm 32; Hymnal, p. 130-131 Morning Prayer for a Communicant: O Lord Jesus, because of Your great goodness, this morning I rejoice in being privileged to go to your house together with my fellow Christians, there to partake of Your body and blood in, with, and under the consecrated bread and wine. Oh, how my soul longs, yes, even faints for the courts of the Lord and His altar! As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, My Redeemer. You are my Shepherd; I shall not want. O Lord Jesus, even as You have begun the good work of salvation in me, a poor wretched sinner, so also mercifully perform it, by the gracious aid of Your Holy Spirit, to Your honor and the welfare and salvation of my soul. O dearest Redeemer, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. May Your grace which is able to do all things render me worthy and well prepared, so that the priceless nourishment of Your true body and blood may refresh my soul in this heavenly feast of love and joy. Array me in the robes of salvation and in the garments of righteousness of faith. Thus I may not be found among the guests without wedding garments, but may be a worthy guest at Your Table and partake of all the treasures of grace you have provided. May Your grace, O Lord Jesus, be and remain with me; even as my hope is continually in You. May Your providence preserve my spirit, my life, and my being. And do bestow, O faithful God, whatever else I may be in need of in this world and the next. Thou, who feedest us below! Source of all we have or know! Grant that with Thy saints above We may share Thy feast of love. Amen. -1-
A Special Welcome to our Visitors! We are thankful that the Lord led you to us today! Today s worship services follow a liturgical format which can be found on the following pages of this bulletin. We encourage you to speak with the Pastor or an Usher if you have any questions about today s service or our church. Please record your visit with us by signing our guest register and we hope you will join us again! +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ THE INVOCATION: (We call on the name of our Triune God) PASTOR: In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost CONGREGATION: + Amen PASTOR: Service introduction and opening prayer Opening Hymn #536 - Awake, My Soul, and with the Sun THE CONFESSION OF SINS AND ABSOLUTION: (We come before our Creator and Redeemer, confessing our guilt and seeking His forgiveness) P: Beloved in the Lord! Let us draw near with a true heart and confess our sins unto God our Father, beseeching Him in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to grant us forgiveness. Our Help is in the name of the Lord. C: + Who made heaven and earth. P: I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord. C: + And Thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. (Ps 32:5) ALL: O almighty God, merciful Father, I, a poor, miserable sinner, confess unto Thee all my sins and iniquities with which I have ever offended Thee and justly deserved Thy temporal and eternal punishment. But I am heartily sorry for them and sincerely repent of them, and I pray Thee of Thy boundless mercy and for the sake of the holy, innocent, bitter sufferings and death of Thy beloved Son, Jesus Christ, to be gracious and merciful to me, a poor sinful being. P: As Christ has given you the Keys to the Kingdom of Heaven, and you have called me to administer the same, even so, upon this your confession, I as a called servant of the Word, announce the grace of God to you all. And in the place and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. C: + Amen PSALM OF THE DAY: (from Psalm 35) P: Plead my cause, O LORD, with those who strive with me; C: Fight against those who fight against me. P: Take hold of shield and buckler, C: And stand up for my help. P: Also draw out the spear, C: And stop those who pursue me. P: Say to my soul, C: "I am your salvation." P: Let them shout for joy and be glad, C: Who favor my righteous cause; P: And let them say continually, "Let the LORD be magnified, C: Who has pleasure in the prosperity of His servant." P: And my tongue shall speak of Your righteousness C: And of Your praise all the day long. P: Glory be to God! THE GLORIA PATRI: + Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen THE KYRIE: + Lord have mercy upon us, Christ have mercy upon us, Lord have mercy upon us THE GLORIA IN EXCELSIS: (With the angels at Christ s birth, we glorify God for all He has done to save us. TLH 238:1-2) + All glory be to God alone, Forevermore the Highest One, Who doth our sinful race befriend And grace and peace to us extend. Among mankind may His good will All hearts with deep thanksgiving fill. We praise Thee, God, and Thee we bless; We worship Thee in humbleness; From day to day we glorify Thee, everlasting God on high. Of Thy great glory do we sing, And e er to Thee our thanks we bring. AMEN -2- -3-
THE SALUTATION: (The Pastor and Congregation greet one another) P: The Lord be with you. C: + And with thy spirit. THE COLLECT: (A prayer based on the service theme along with any prayer requests) P: Let us pray: Almighty God, our heavenly Father, of Your tender love toward us sinners You have given us Your Son that, believing in Him, we might have everlasting life. Continue to grant us Your Holy Spirit that we may remain steadfast in this faith to the end and come to life everlasting; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. C: + Amen The Scripture Lessons The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever. (Is 40:8) NEW TESTAMENT LESSON: Hebrews 12:1-3 Throughout the marathon of this life, keep your eyes focused on Jesus! Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls. THE GRADUAL: (The verse for the day which ties together the Scripture passages and service theme) P: Alleluia. Alleluia. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called. Alleluia! (1 Tim 6:6a) ALL: + Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! THE GOSPEL LESSON: P: Our Gospel lesson for today is from the gospel according to Mark, chapter nine, beginning with the forty-first verse. C: + Glory be to Thee, O Lord! Mark 9:41-50 Sin is serious business "For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in My name, because you belong to Christ, assuredly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward. 42 " But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea. 43 "If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, rather than having two hands, to go to hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched -- 44 "where 'Their worm does not die, And the fire is not quenched.' 45 "And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame, rather than having two feet, to be cast into hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched -- 46 "where 'Their worm does not die, And the fire is not quenched.' 47 "And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire -- 48 "where'their worm does not die, And the fire is not quenched.' 49 " For everyone will be seasoned with fire, and every sacrifice will be seasoned with salt. 50 "Salt is good, but if the salt loses its flavor, how will you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace with one another." P: So far our Scripture lessons. Blessed are those that hear the word of God, and keep it! (Lk 11:28) C: + Praise be to Thee, O Christ! -4- -5-
OUR CONFESSION OF FAITH: (We make public confession of our faith in the Triune God) The Nicene Creed I BELIEVE IN ONE GOD, THE FATHER ALMIGHTY, Maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible. AND IN ONE LORD JESUS CHRIST, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of His Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, Very God of Very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, By whom all things were made; Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven And was incarnate by the Holy Ghost of the Virgin Mary. And was made man; And was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried; And the third day He rose again according to the Scriptures; And ascended into heaven And sitteth on the right hand of the Father; And He shall come again with glory to judge both the quick and the dead; Whose kingdom shall have no end. AND I BELIEVE IN THE HOLY GHOST, the Lord and Giver of Life, Who proceedeth from the Father and the Son, Who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified, Who spake by the Prophets. And I believe in one holy Christian and Apostolic Church. I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins, And I look for the resurrection of the dead; And the life of the world to come. Amen Sermon Theme and Notes: OLYMPIC FAITH LESSONS 1) Focused 2) Disciplined 3) Certain (in Christ!) Pre-Sermon Hymn: (A hymn which prepares us to hear the Word of God) #764 - God of Grace and God of Glory THE WORD OF GOD: 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. 25 And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. 26 Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. 27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified. THE OFFERTORY: (We pray that God would bless us by His Word) P: The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Phil 4:7) + Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me, Cast me not away from Thy presence; and take not Thy Holy Spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with Thy free spirit. Amen. (Ps 51:10-12) -6- -7-
Hymn of the Day: #447 - Fight the Good Fight with All Thy Might ~ Offering of Thankful Hearts ~ In support of the Gospel ministry here at Trinity and throughout the CLC THE PRAYERS (Prayers of the church for our offering and in connection with our service theme) A SPECIAL NOTE TO OUR VISITORS ABOUT OUR COMMUNION PRACTICE: It is often difficult to express in a loving way to our visitors, why we at Trinity practice Close Communion. We want you to know first and foremost our practice is in no way a judgment of your faith. We eagerly desire to share this sacred meal with you! However, in Scripture the Lord has much to say about this sacred meal. One is, that the communicant must be able to examine himself in order for the communicant to receive its blessing and not bring judgment upon him/herself (I Cor. 11:27 ff.). That is why even our youngsters, though they have grown up in our church, do not participate until after they have been instructed about Lord s Supper and are able to examine themselves. Another reason is, that in the Lord s Supper, we are not only receiving blessings from on high (Jesus very body and blood), but we are also expressing to one another and to the world that we all share the same faith and confession (1 Cor. 10:17) Therefore, in loving concern for those visitors, who are not members of the CLC (Church of the Lutheran Confession), and as a testimony of the closeness of our own faith and confession, we limit participation in Supper. If you are looking for an altar at which to commune, please speak with our Pastor! We hope you understand and respect our teaching and practice, that by it we do not mean to judge anyone s faith, but to make a confession of our own before God and before the world. THE PREFACE: (A prayer of thanksgiving and introduction to our Communion liturgy) P: The Lord be with you. C: + AND WITH THY SPIRIT. P: Lift up your hearts. C: + WE LIFT THEM UP UNTO THE LORD. P: Let us give thanks unto the Lord, our God. C: + IT IS MEET AND RIGHT SO TO DO. P: It is truly fitting, right, and good that we should at all times and all places give thanks......therefore with angels and archangels and with all the company of heaven we laud and magnify Your glorious name, evermore praising You and saying: THE SANCTUS: (With the army of angels [Sabaoth] in heaven praise our most holy God) + HOLY, HOLY, HOLY, LORD GOD OF SABAOTH; HEAV N AND EARTH ARE FULL OF THY GLORY; HOSANNA, HOSANNA, HOSANNA IN THE HIGHEST. BLESSED IS HE, BLESSED IS HE, BLESSED IS HE THAT COMETH IN THE NAME OF THE LORD. HOSANNA, HOSANNA, HOSANNA IN THE HIGHEST. THE WORDS OF INSTITUTION: (Spoken by the Pastor) 1 Corinthians 10:16 The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? -8- THE LORD S PRAYER: P: 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. C: + FOR THINE IS KINGDOM AND THE POWER AND THE GLORY FOREVER AND EVER. AMEN.- -9-
THE PAX DOMINI: (Latin for The Peace of the Lord which is given us in the Sacrament) P: The peace of the Lord be with you always! C: + A- --MEN. THE AGNUS DEI: (Jesus is the Lamb (Agnus) of God (Dei) who takes away the sin of the world) + O CHRIST, THOU LAMB OF GOD, THAT TAKEST AWAY THE SIN OF THE WORLD, HAVE MERCY UPON US. O CHRIST, THOU LAMB OF GOD, THAT TAKEST AWAY THE SIN OF THE WORLD, HAVE MERCY UPON US. O CHRIST, THOU LAMB OF GOD, THAT TAKEST AWAY THE SIN OF THE WORLD, GRANT US THY PEACE... A --- MEN. DISTRIBUTION OF THE LORD S SUPPER Prayers for Communicants: Before Reception of Holy Communion: Dear Savior, I come to Your table at Your gracious invitation to eat and drink Your holy body and blood. Let me find favor in Your eyes to receive this holy sacrament in faith for the salvation of my soul and to the glory of Your holy name; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen After Reception of Holy Communion: Almighty and everlasting God, I thank and praise You for feeding me the life-giving body and blood of Your beloved Son, Jesus Christ. Send Your Holy Spirit that, having with my mouth received the holy Sacrament, I may by faith obtain and eternally enjoy Your divine grace, the forgiveness of sins, unity with Christ, and eternal life; through Jesus Christ, my Lord. Amen. THE NUNC DIMITTIS: (The Nunc Dimmittis is the song Simeon sang after holding the baby Jesus. We sing it having received the body and blood of Jesus in the Sacrament. - Lk 2:29-32) + LORD, NOW LETTEST THOU THY SERVANT DEPART IN PEACE ACCORDING TO THY WORD, FOR MINE EYES HAVE SEEN THY SALVATION: WHICH THOU HAS PREPARED BEFORE THE FACE OF ALL PEOPLE, A LIGHT TO LIGHTEN THE GENTILES AND THE GLORY OF THY PEOPLE ISRAEL. GLORY BE TO THE FATHER AND TO THE SON AND TO THE HOLY GHOST; AS IT WAS IN THE BEGINNING, IS NOW, AND EVER SHALL BE: FOR-EVER-MORE. AMEN. THE THANKSGIVING: P: As often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, C: You proclaim the Lord s death until He comes. (1 Cor 11:26) P: Let us pray -...through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. C: + A - - - MEN. THE BENEDICTION: (The Triune God blesses His people as they leave His house of worship) P: The Lord bless you and keep you The Lord make His face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you, The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace. (Num 6:24-26) C: + A-men. A-men. A-a-men. The Closing Hymn of Praise: #799 - This Is the Feast of Victory ~ Silent Prayer & Meditation ~ Almighty and merciful God, I have again worshiped in Your presence and received both forgiveness for my many sins and the assurance of Your love in Jesus Christ. I thank You for this undeserved grace and ask You to keep me in faith until, with all Your saints, I inherit eternal salvation; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, my Lord. Amen Distribution Hymn: #304 - An Awe-full Mystery Is Here NOTE: The Christian Olympics graphic was created and made available by CLC member and member of the CLC Board of Education and Publications, Rick Nelson. -10- -11-