Concordia Lutheran Church 255 West Douglas St. South St. Paul, MN 55075 651-451-0309 Vision Creating a Christ-Centered Community, one family at a time, beginning in South St. Paul and continuing through the world Mission Creating a Christ-Centered community gathered together To joyfully worship our God To grow in faith and knowledge To love one another And to share the Good News of Jesus Christ
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SIXTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST PROPER 18 September 9, 2018 AS WE GATHER Sometimes when a student does a good job on an assignment, the teacher will reward him or her with a gold star. A gold star is a symbol for a job well done. Yet, not every assignment that a student completes is handed back with a gold star on top. Not every test or paper is done well. Jesus, however, is different. The crowds in today s Gospel proclaim with astonishment, He has done all things well (Mark 7:37). The people are right: Jesus can do only good because He is God, and God is good! In His healing, preaching, and teaching, He does all things well. Even right up to the end as He cries out from the cross, It is finished, Jesus does His Father s will with gold-star perfection. With His death, resurrection, and eventual return, Jesus has done, and will do, all things well. PRE-SERVICE MUSIC THE WELCOME THE RITE OF FRIENDSHIP PREPARATION OPENING SONG/HYMN As the Deer As the deer panteth for the water, so my soul longeth after Thee. You alone are my heart s desire, and I long to worship Thee. You alone are my strength, my shield; To You alone may my spirit yield. You alone are my heart s desire, and I long to worship Thee. You re my friend and You are my brother even though You are a King. I love You more than any other, so much more than anything. You alone are my strength, my shield; To You alone may my spirit yield. You alone are my heart s desire, and I long to worship Thee. 3
I want You more than gold or silver, only You can satisfy. You alone are the real joy-giver and the apple of my eye. You alone are my strength, my shield; To You alone may my spirit yield. You alone are my heart s desire, and I long to worship Thee. You alone are my heart s desire, and I long to worship Thee. INVOCATION P: In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. CONFESSION AND ABSOLUTION Psalm 28:2, 6 P: Hear the voice of my pleas for mercy, C: when I cry to You for help, when I lift up my hands toward Your most holy sanctuary. P: Since we are gathered to hear God s Word, call upon Him in prayer and praise, and receive the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ in the fellowship of this altar, let us first consider our unworthiness and confess before God and one another that we have sinned in thought, word, and deed, and that we cannot free ourselves from our sinful condition. Together as His people, let us take refuge in the infinite mercy of God our heavenly Father, seeking His grace for the sake of Christ, and saying: God, be merciful to me, a sinner. C: Blessed be the LORD! For He has heard the voice of my pleas for mercy. Almighty God, have mercy upon us, forgive us our sins, and lead us to everlasting life. Amen. P: Upon this your confession, I, by virtue of my office, as a called and ordained servant of the Word, announce the grace of God unto all of you, and in the stead 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 Spirit. WORD INTROIT Psalm 28:1 2, 6 7; antiphon: v. 8 P: The Lord is the strength of his people; he is the saving refuge of his anointed. C: To you, O Lord, I call; my rock, be not deaf to me, lest, if you be silent to me, I become like those who go down to the pit P: Hear the voice of my pleas for mercy, when I cry to you for help, when I lift up my hands toward your most holy sanctuary. 4
C: The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him. All: Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen. P: The Lord is the strength of his people; he is the saving refuge of his anointed. KYRIE P: In peace let us pray to the Lord. C: Lord, have mercy. P: For the peace from above and for our salvation let us pray to the Lord. C: Lord, have mercy. P: For the peace of the whole world, for the well-being of the Church of God, and for the unity of all let us pray to the Lord. C: Lord, have mercy. P: For this holy house and for all who offer here their worship and praise let us pray to the Lord. C: Lord, have mercy. P: Help, save, comfort, and defend us, gracious Lord. HYMN OF PRAISE You are the Rock of My Salvation You are the Rock of my salvation, You are the strength of my life. You are my hope and my inspiration, Lord, unto You will I cry. I believe in You, believe in You, for your faithful love to me. You have been my help in time of need; Lord, unto you will I cleave. You are the Rock of my salvation, You are the strength of my life. You are my hope and my inspiration, Lord, unto You will I cry. I believe in You, believe in You, for your faithful love to me. You have been my help in time of need; Lord, unto you will I cleave. You are the Rock of my salvation, You are the strength of my life. SALUTATION P: The Lord be with you. C: And also with you. 5
PRAYER OF THE DAY P: Let us pray. O Lord, You are a good and perfect God who does all things well, C: grant that by faith in Your Son who did Your will perfectly, we would have forgiveness and life; P: through the same Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. OLD TESTAMENT READING 4 Say to those who have an anxious heart, Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. 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 shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute sing for joy. For waters 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; in the haunt of jackals, where they lie down, the grass shall become reeds and rushes. P: This is the Word of the Lord. C: Thanks be to God. Isaiah 35:4 7a GRADUAL ALL: Fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him lack nothing! Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all. EPISTLE James 2:1 10, 14 18 1 My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory. 2 For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, 3 and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine 6
clothing and say, You sit here in a good place, while you say to the poor man, You stand over there, or, Sit down at my feet, 4 have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? 5 Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor man. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who drag you into court? 7 Are they not the ones who blaspheme the honorable name by which you were called? 8 If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, You shall love your neighbor as yourself, you are doing well. 9 But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it. 14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, Go in peace, be warmed and filled, without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. 18 But someone will say, You have faith and I have works. Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. P: This is the Word of the Lord. C: Thanks be to God. ALLELUIA AND VERSE ALL: Alleluia. The Lord builds up Jerusalem; He gathers the outcasts of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. Alleluia. HOLY GOSPEL Mark 7:31 37 P: The Holy Gospel according to St. Mark, the seventh chapter. C: Glory to You, O Lord. 31 Then he returned from the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. 32 And they brought to him a man who was deaf and had a speech impediment, and they begged him to lay his hand on him. 33 And taking him aside from the crowd privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and after spitting touched his tongue. 34 And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. 35 And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. 36 And Jesus charged them to tell no one. But the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. 37 And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak. P: This is the Gospel of the Lord. C: Praise to You, O Christ. 7
CREED Nicene Creed C: 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 Spirit 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 sits at the right hand of the Father. And He will come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead, whose kingdom will have no end. And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified, who spoke 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. HYMN OF THE DAY O Lord, Who Brightens Darkened Eyes O Lord, who brightens darkened eyes, So grant me sight to recognize The pain and need of rich and poor, To share a glimpse of all in store. 8
O Lord, who loosed the muted tongue, So give me voice for prayers unsung. May words of truth flow from my lips With courage as Your Word equips. O Lord, who opened silent ears, So help me hear the longing fears Of those who sorrow all alone And comfort them with joys unknown. O Lord, who set the captive free, So break my bonds of apathy. Forgive me when I fail in deed, My heart locked to my neighbor s need. O Lord, who made the ailing leap, So strengthen me, Your will to keep. You died and rose to live again That we may rise with You. Amen! Text: Lisa M. Clark. Copyright 2018 Concordia Publishing House. All rights reserved. Used by permission. SERMON OFFERING SONG What a Friend We Have in Jesus What a friend we have in Jesus, All our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry Everything to God in prayer! Oh, what peace we often forfeit, Oh, what needless pain we bear, All because we do not carry Everything to God in prayer! Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere? We should never be discouraged Take it to the Lord in prayer. Can we find a friend so faithful, Who will all our sorrows share? Jesus knows our every weakness; Take it to the Lord in prayer. 9
Are we weak and heavy-laden, Cumbered with a load of care? Precious Savior, still our refuge Take it to the Lord in prayer. Do thy friends despise, forsake thee? Take it to the Lord in prayer! In His arms He ll take and shield thee, Thou wilt find a solace there. PRAYER OF THE CHURCH P: We come before our Lord in prayer, saying along with the psalmist, To You, O Lord, I call; my rock, be not deaf to me. O Lord, like those of whom the prophet Isaiah wrote, we too often have anxious hearts. Give us Your Holy Spirit that we might be strong and fear not. Let us take You up on Your gracious invitation to cast all our anxieties on You because You care for us. To You, O Lord, I call; C: my rock, be not deaf to me. P: O Lord, through Your servant James, You admonish us to show no partiality. Give us the desire to show love to and welcome all people into our midst, regardless of outward appearances. To You, O Lord, I call; C: my rock, be not deaf to me. P: O Lord, Your Son, Jesus Christ, cast out demons and gave hearing to the deaf. Grant that we trust in Your will today for healing and restoration. We ask that, according to Your will, You would lay Your hand upon those who are need of healing, [especially...]. To You, O Lord, I call; C: my rock, be not deaf to me. P: O Lord, You have done all things well. You pronounced all things as good at the creation of the world. Give us wisdom and resources to care for Your creation as faithful stewards of Your gifts to us. To You, O Lord, I call; C: my rock, be not deaf to me. P: O Lord, give us faithful hearts with which to receive Your Son s body and blood at Your Table. Grant that it strengthen and sustain us in the one true faith. To You, O Lord, I call; C: my rock, be not deaf to me. P: Into Your hands, O Lord, we commend all for whom we pray, trusting in Your mercy. 10
SACRAMENT PREFACE P: The Lord be with you. 2 Timothy 4:22 C: And also with you. P: Lift up your hearts. [Colossians 3:1] C: We lift them to the Lord. P: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. [Psalm 136] C: It is right to give Him thanks and praise. PROPER PREFACE P: It is truly good, right, and salutary that we should at all times and in all places give thanks to You, O Lord, holy Father, almighty and everlasting God, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who as Your only begotten Son did Your will perfectly in His life, but also in His suffering and death. All that Jesus has done is good in Your eyes so that, through faith, we might be forgiven in Your eyes. Therefore with angels and archangels and with all the company of heaven we laud and magnify Your glorious name, evermore praising You and saying: SANCTUS p. 208 11
PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING P: Blessed are You, Lord of heaven and earth, for You care for each one of us and our needs. We see this chiefly in Your Son as He demonstrated concern for all in His preaching and healing. Thank You for the love You show for us here as You give forgiveness in Your Son s body and blood. Gathered in the name and the remembrance of Jesus, we beg You, O Lord, to forgive, renew, and strengthen us with Your Word and Spirit. Grant us faithfully to eat His body and drink His blood as He bids us do in His own testament. Gather us together, we pray, from the ends of the earth to celebrate with all the faithful the marriage feast of the Lamb in His kingdom, which has no end. Graciously receive our prayers; deliver and preserve us. To You alone, O Father, be all glory, honor, and worship, with the Son and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. THE WORDS OF OUR LORD P: 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 (Matthew 6:9 13) C: 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. PAX DOMINI P: The peace of the Lord be with you always. 12
AGNUS DEI p. 210 DISTRIBUTION DISTRIBUTION HYMNS Oh, for a Thousand Tongues to Sing LSB 528 Lord Jesus Christ, We Humbly Pray LSB 623 Let all Mortal Flesh Keep Silence LSB 621 NUNC DIMITTIS LSB 211 13
POST-COMMUNION THANKSGIVING P: Let us pray. We give thanks to You, almighty God, that You have sent Your Son, who did all things well during His earthly ministry, and also continues to do all things well today in Word and Sacrament; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. BENEDICTION P: 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 14
CLOSING HYMN This Little Light of Mine This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine; This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine; Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine. Won't let Satan blow it out, I'm gonna let it shine; Won't let Satan blow it out, I'm gonna let it shine; Won t let Satan blow it out, I'm gonna let it shine; Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine. Hide it under a bushel, no! I'm gonna let it shine; Hide it under a bushel, no! I'm gonna let it shine; Hide it under a bushel, no! I'm gonna let it shine; Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine. Let it shine till Jesus comes, I'm gonna let it shine; Let it shine till Jesus comes, I'm gonna let it shine; Let it shine till Jesus comes, I'm gonna let it shine; Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine. Acknowledgments Divine Service, Setting Four from Lutheran Service Book Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version ), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Created by Lutheran Service Builder 2018 Concordia Publishing House. Creative Worship for the Lutheran Parish, Series B, Quarter 4. Copyright 2018 Concordia Publishing House. All rights reserved. Used by permission. As the Deer Martin Nystrom, 1994 And This Arr. 1997 Marantha! Music. Used By Permission under CCLI License number 1699359 You are the Rock Teresa Muller Copyright 1982 and this arr. 1993 by Maranatha! Music. Used by permission under CCLI License Number 1699359. 15
Concordia Lutheran Church s Covenant with One Another How Do We Love One Another at Concordia Lutheran Church? 1. We will behave in a spirit of forgiveness always speaking well of others with love and kindness knowing that God created every human being in His image and we will always show respect for others despite our mutual failures, acknowledging shortfalls and willing to forget prior harms. 2. We will promote and practice honest conversations following the 8 th Commandment to speak well of each other, avoiding gossip by redirecting people to the appropriate person and avoiding anything that would cause divisions in the Body of Christ. 3. We will lift up each other in prayer in all that we do by turning to God for guidance and support, showing our gratitude and thanksgiving, and realizing we depend on Him for our entire existence. 4. We will offer a hand of hospitality welcoming all people by acknowledging the presence of others, greeting everyone with concern for them and openly sharing our biblical faith with everyone in word and deed. 5. We will be positive and joyful sharing openly our happiness in the Lord with fun, positive humor and inclusive fellowship always defending each other, speaking well of each other, and putting the best construction on everything. Serving In God s House Pastor: Reverend William L. Keller II Organ/Piano: Beth Ekblad Communion Assistant: Keith Ogorek Usher Captain: Mike Weir Lay Reader: Jan Weir Altar Guild: John & Marcia Lally Greeters: Greg & Vickie Peterson 16