THE NINTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

Welcome to Grace!

Our mission at Grace is to teach the inspired and inerrant Word of God, to proclaim that Jesus Christ is the crucified and risen Savior of the world, and to nurture believers for lives of Christian service.

Check out the GRACE WEBSITE at GraceLutheranSAZ.org

Worship Notes

We are very pleased that you have joined us for worship today! We pray that this time will be a blessing for you as God comes to you with his Word and promises, and as you offer him your thanks and praise.

The order of worship we will follow is printed in this worship folder for you to follow along and participate. You’ll notice that the service is a dialogue between God and us, his people. The pastor speaks to God along with the congregation and also speaks the Word of God to the people. LARGE PRINT worship folders are available at the entrances for those who desire them.

Today we are using elements from the Christian Worship (2021) hymnal. You will find these blue worship books in the hymnal racks in each pew. You will be asked to open the hymnal to participate in parts of the service today. A vocalist will aid in our singing and will be recorded for our audio disks and video live-streaming.

There is no cost to park in our parking lot during Sunday morning worship services. If you receive a citation by mistake, please let our office staff know so it can be cleared.

OUR WORSHIP SERIES—DEFINE CHRISTIAN

Ask ten different people to define the word Christian and you may get ten different answers. One might say, “A Christian is someone who believes in Jesus.” Okay. But the demons believe that Jesus exists and is the Son of God. So is that definition adequate? Another person might have a more negative view. He says, “A Christian is someone who believes he is better than others.” Is that completely false? And if you aren’t humble, does that mean you aren’t Christian?

In this worship series Christ himself defines the term Christian and describes what Christians do. We are struck by how often we do not do all those things. There likely are times when people could look at our behavior and assume we were unbelievers. Yet throughout this series Jesus demonstrates that ultimately a Christian is one who runs to Christ for forgiveness precisely because he has failed to live like what he is a Christian. As we receive the mercy of Christ, it moves us to strive with all our being to better fit Christ’s beautiful definition, doing all the things Jesus says that Christians do. Our worship series is following this path:

The Christian Loves God above All

The Christian Finds Rest in Jesus

The Christian Is Planted by the Word

The Christian Lives as Wheat among Weeds

The Christian Seeks Spiritual Wealth

The Christian Trusts God to Provide

The Christian Answers Doubt with Faith

Welcome

OPENING HYMN My Worth Is Not in What I Own ChristianÊWorshipÊ753

The vocalist will sing stanzas 1, 2, and the first refrain. Please join in singing the rest of the hymn.

PleaseÊstand INVOCATION

Minister: In the name of the Father and of the Son (+) and of the Holy Spirit.

Congregation: Amen.

Spoken Responses

I rejoiced with those who said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.”

How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord Almighty! Blessed are those who dwell in your house; they are ever praising you.

The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.

Teach me, Lord, the way of your decrees, that I may follow it to the end.

Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.

Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.

PRESERVICE MUSIC: Variations on “All Depends on Our Possessing”

JeffreyÊBlersch,ÊJacobÊ Weber,ÊJohnÊBehnke Variations on “What Is the World to Me” DonaldÊBusarow,Ê FlorÊPeters PsalmÊ122:1 PsalmÊ84:1 PsalmÊ84:4 PsalmÊ145:18 PsalmÊ119:33 PsalmÊ119:105

RomansÊ10:17

Lord, hear my prayer, listen to my cry for mercy; in your faithfulness and righteousness, come to my relief.

Spare us, Lord, from the lies of the devil and the attacks of our conscience. Comfort and save us in your patient compassion.

Have mercy on us, Jesus.

Guide us, Lord, to the wisdom of your Word and the power of your promises. Take away our confusion and doubt.

Have mercy on us, Jesus.

Hear us, Lord, when we come to you in prayer. Make us confident to take you at your word and to follow you in faith.

Have mercy on us, Jesus.

Empower us, Lord, to walk in your ways and live in your truth. Fill us with your love, that we may love you and one another.

Have mercy on us, Jesus.

Lord, we confess our sins to you and plead for your mercy. We acknowledge that sin runs too deep in our nature for us ever to rid ourselves of it, but we thank you that Jesus has done what we could not do, washing us clean of every stain. We plead that your Spirit would give us the strength to live a new life; through Christ our Lord.

Amen.