Last Sunday of the Church Year – Divine Service 1

 

Christ is everything – making peace by the blood of His cross.  This is the most valuable proclamation for the end of the Church Year.  Jesus holds in balance all things:  the visible and the invisible; the heavens and the earth; the dead and the living; the wicked and the redeemed.  Upon the cross, Jesus utters words that forgive and reserve for repentant sinners eternal paradise.  Through Christ alone, we are declared to be His treasured possessions forever.

 

Malachi 3:13-18

Colossians 1:13-20

Luke 23:27-43

 

Lord Jesus Christ, You reign among us by the preaching of Your cross. Forgive Your people their offenses that we, being governed by Your bountiful goodness, may enter at last into Your eternal paradise; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

 

 

“Gracious God, You Send Great Blessings”     LSB 782

“Lo, He Comes with Clouds Descending”     LSB 336

“Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence”     LSB 621

“O God, Our Help In Ages Past”     LSB

733“Jesus Shall Reign”     LSB 832

“Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise”     LSB 802

“Sing, My Tongue, the Glorious Battle”     LSB 454

Twenty-third Sunday after Pentecost – Divine Service One

 

These final days are mingled with destruction and redemption.  Intense fire will reduce the evil and arrogant to ash.  Christ’s righteousness will delight and heal those who fear God’s name.  As we live out these final days, we dare not be idle, but rather labor diligently, imitating the very nature of Christ.  Wars will rage; calamities will increase; disease will plague mankind.  In the midst of all this, we proclaim truth:  the day of redemption draws near.   

 

 

O Lord, almighty and ever-living God, You have given exceedingly great and precious promises to those who trust in You. Rule and govern our hearts and minds by Your Holy Spirit that we may live and abide forever in Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

 

“All Christians Who Have Been Baptized”     LSB 596

“The Day Is Surely Drawing Near ”     LSB 713

“My Lord, What a Morning”

“The King Shall Come When Morning Dawns”     LSB 348

“Abide, O Dearest Jesus”     LSB 919

“Wake, Awake, for Night Is Flying”     LSB 516

“Gracious God, You Send Great Blessings”     LSB 782

“Herald, Sound the Note of Judgement”     LSB 511

The Twenty- second Sunday after Pentecost

Prayer and Preaching

 

The Lord makes His presence known to every generation!  Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Moses received God’s decisive commands.  The Lord’s word to them was not vague concerning the second coming of Christ.  Against all lawlessness, Christ will assert judgement.  For the faithful, God will assert comfort, hope, and eternal salvation.  As we wait for the Lord’s return, the urgency to repent remains, and yet we remain anxious to obtain the glory of Christ.      

 

Collect of the Day

Living God, Your almighty power is made known chiefly in showing mercy and pity. Grant us the fullness of Your grace to lay hold of Your promises and live forever in Your presence; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who llives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

 

“Creator of the Stars of Night”     LSB 351   sts. 1, 2, 4 & 6

“From God Can Nothing Move Me”     LSB 713

“Gracious God, You Send Great Blessings”  LSB 782    

 

All Saints’ Day (Observed) – Divine Service One

 

The confession resounds in every time and place by all believing peoples, tribes, and churches: “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”  These words emanate from faith-filled saints who belong to Jesus.  In His eternal presence, the beloved saints are utterly content in endless service and worship.  Saints are the ones forever blessed, comforted, satisfied, and rewarded, because their inheritance is the very kingdom of God.  

 

Readings:

 

Collect of the Day:

Almighty and everlasting God, You knit together Your faithful people of all times and places into one holy communion, the mystical body of Your Son, Jesus Christ. Grant us so to follow Your blessed saints in all virtuous and godly living that, together with them, we may come to the unspeakable joys You have prepared for those who love You; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

 

Hymns

“Our Paschal Lamb, That Sets us Free”     LSB 473

“For All the Saints”     LSB 677

“Gracious God You Send Great Blessings”     LSB 782   

“Behold a Host, Arrayed in White”     LSB 676

“Sing with All the Saints in Glory”     LSB 671

“Jerusalem My Happy Home”   LSB 673

 “We Sing for All the Unsung Saints”     LSB 678

 “Alleluia!  Sing to Jesus”     LSB 821

Reformation Day (Observed) – Divine Service

 

The Law leaves us speechless, for it condemns us and holds us accountable to God.  By the Law, every sin is unmasked, every sinner declared guilty.  In Christ, by His blood, we receive faith.  This faith justifies us apart from the works of the law.  Thanks be to God that Christ gives us this Gospel.  By it, sin is forgiven and sinners declared innocent.  This is our freedom in Christ proclaimed throughout every nation, tribe, language, and people.

 

 

Almighty and gracious Lord, pour out Your Holy Spirit on Your faithful people. Keep us steadfast in Your grace and truth, protect and deliver us in times of temptation, defend us against all enemies, and grant to Your Church Your saving peace; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

 

“The Church’s One Foundation”     LSB 644

“A Mighty Fortress Is Our God”     LSB 656

“Salvation Unto Us Has Come”     LSB 555  

“Gracious God You Send Great Blessings”     LSB 782

“On Budding Hearts God Wrote the Law”     OAR 346

“Built on the Rock”     LSB 645

“My Faith Looks Up to Thee”   LSB 702

“God Loves Me Dearly”     LSB 392

The Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost – Divine Service 1

 

Before God, men, women, and children plead incessantly for justice in the face of rebellion and adversity.  Those who know and confess Jesus bear the weight of guilt and need His Word of undeserved acquittal.  God’s word is the solitary source of that promise.  It teaches, corrects, declares righteousness, and equips us for every good work.  Scripture, in its entirety, is that living, breathing, vibrant account of God continually striving by the side of His chosen people – delivering them from sin.    

 

Genesis 32:22-30

2 Timothy 3:14-4:5

Luke 18:1-8

 

O Lord, almighty and everlasting God, You have commanded us to pray and have promised to hear us. Mercifully grant that Your Holy Spirit may direct and govern our hearts in all things that we may persevere with steadfast faith in the confession of Your name; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

 

“On Budding Hearts God Wrote the Law”     OAR 346“

I Trust, O Lord, Your Holy Name”     LSB 734  

“O Word of God Incarnate”     LSB 523

“The Law of God Is Good and Wise”     LSB 579

“The Gospel Shows the Father’s Grace”   LSB 580 

“God Who Made the Earth and Heaven”     LSB 877

The Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost and LWML Sunday

Divine Service

 

The Lutheran Women’s Missionary League (LWML) is an official  auxiliary of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. Since 1942, the LWML has focused on affirming each woman’s relationship with Christ, encouraging and equipping women to live out their Christian lives in active mission ministries and to support global missions.  As Lutheran Women in Mission, we joyfully proclaim Christ, support missions, and equip women to honor God by serving others. 

 

Ruth 1:1-19a  

2 Timothy 2:1-13     

Luke 17:11-19

 

Almighty God, You show mercy to Your people in all their troubles. Grant us always to recognize Your goodness, give thanks for Your compassion, and praise Your holy name; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

 

“On Budding Hearts God Wrote the Law”     OAR 346

“For All the Faithful Women”     LSB 855, sts. 1, 7, 3 & 4  

“Oh, for a Thousand Tongues to Sing”     LSB 525

“From Depths of Woe I Cry to Thee”     LSB 607

“Once He Came in Blessing”   LSB 333

“Serve the Lord with Gladness”