First Luteran Church
Eastr Season 2024
Much of this service is built around the AUGUSTANA LITURGY of the Swedish Synod (1925), modified. May 12
Please note our services are both live streamed and video recorded, your image may appear online.
Prelude
Please stand as you are able.
P: Christ is risen!
C: He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
P: Blessed be the Father, Son +, the Holy Spirit, who gives us victory over sin, death, and the Devil.
C: Alleluia!
P: Lord Jesus the heavens and earth rejoice in your triumph over the grave!
C: All Creation celebrates his salvation.
P: On the mountain of the Lord, all people will feast on rich food and drink well-aged wine!
C: We praise you, O God! For you have prepared a table before us, and our cups over?low!
P: Christ has swallowed up death forever; he has wiped away the tears from all faces!
C: We shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever!
P: Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us!
C: We rejoice in his salvation! (from Isa25 & Ps23)
AM: The Son of God has ransomed us to glory, the Servant of the Lord has destroyed death.
C: We worship God, who reigns on high. We exalt the Lord, for he has redeemed us!
AM: Even in tombs and the depths of Sheol, God has triumphed. On the hills and mountaintops, the Lord has called us to worship.
C: We are the chosen people of God! We are his beloved sons and daughters!
AM: God has created a new heavens and a new earth. The Lord has established Zion among all peoples.
C: Open the gates of righteousness, that I may enter through them and give thanks to the Lord.
AM: This is the gate of the Lord; the righteous shall enter through it.
C: We thank you that you have answered us and have become our salvation.
AM: The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.
C: This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes.
AM: This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
C: Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his steadfast love endures forever! (from Ps118 & Isa65)
Confession and Assurance of Pardon:
P: Let us acknowledge our failing before our Holy and Merciful God.
C: Merciful Father, we confess that we have sinned against you by thought, word, and deed. We have not loved you above all things, nor our neighbor as ourselves. But you have promised to receive all penitent sinners who seek refuge in your Fatherly compassion, and in the merits of the Savior, Jesus Christ. Relying upon this promise, we con?idently ask you to be merciful and gracious to us and to forgive us all our sins, to the praise and glory of your Holy Name.
P: ΚυS ριε, εW λεS ησον.
C: Lord, have mercy.
P: ΧριστεS , εW λεS ησον.
C: Christ, have mercy.
P: ΚυS ριε, εW λεS ησον.
C: Lord, have mercy.
P: Upon your sincere confession, and because of your earnest desire for the forgiveness of your sins through Jesus Christ, God, according to his promise, forgives you all your sins; and so by the authority of God’s Word and by the command of our Lord Jesus Christ, I offer you God’s Peace; in the Name of the Father, the Son +, and the Holy Spirit.
C: Amen.
AM: Glory be to God on high, and on earth, peace, good will toward men. We praise you, we worship you, we glorify you, O Lord God, heavenly King. O Lord Jesus Christ, the Only-begotten Son: the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, have mercy upon us, and receive our prayer. You sit at the right hand of God the Father, for you are holy; Together with the Holy Spirit, the Lord and giver of Life, who calls, gathers and enlightens the whole Church on earth, be all glory!
C: Amen.
P: The prophet Isaiah writes: Before they call I will answer; while they are yet speaking I will hear. The wolf and the lamb shall graze together; the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust shall be the serpent's food. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain,” says the Lord. (Isa65:24-25)
(silent reFlection)
P: The Lord be with you.
C: And with your spirit.
P: Let us pray.
C: Almighty God, in raising Jesus from the tomb you have given us the sure sign of your power to deliver us from sin and death and to renew all creation. We confess that we still fall into doubt and fear. We continue to cling to sel?ish ways and doubt your power to make all things new. Forgive our lack of faith. Have mercy on our weakness. Raise us from the death of sin that we may live with Christ in the joy of his resurrection, now and forever. Amen.
Te Prayer of te Day:
LP: Gracious and glorious God, you have chosen us as your own, and by the powerful name of Christ you protect us from evil. By your Spirit transform us and your beloved world, that we may lind our joy in your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
C: Amen. Please be seated.
Te Lessons:
L: The reading from: Genesis 27 O Lord open our ears!
L: When Isaac was old and his eyes were dim so that he could not see, he called Esau his older son and said to him, “My son”; and he answered, “Here I am.” He said, “Behold, I am old; I do not know the day of my death. Now then, take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the lield and hunt game for me, and prepare for me delicious food, such as I love, and bring it to me so that I may eat, that my soul may bless you before I die.” Now Rebekah was listening when Isaac spoke to his son Esau. So when Esau went to the lield to hunt for game and bring it, Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “I heard your father speak to your brother Esau, ‘Bring me game and prepare for me delicious food, that I may eat it and bless you before the LORD before I die.’ Now therefore, my son, obey my voice as I command you. Go to the llock and bring me two good young goats, so that I may prepare from them delicious food for your father, such as he loves. And you shall bring it to your father to eat, so that he may bless you before he dies.” But Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “Behold, my brother Esau is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man. Perhaps my father will feel me, and I shall seem to be mocking him and bring a curse upon myself and not a blessing.” His mother said to him, “Let your curse be on me, my son; only obey my voice, and go, bring them to me.” So he went and took them and brought them to his mother, and his mother prepared delicious food, such as his father loved. Then Rebekah took the best garments of Esau her older son, which were with her in the house, and put them on Jacob her younger son. And the skins of the young goats she put on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck. And she put the delicious food and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob. So he went in to his father and said, “My father.” And he said, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?” Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your lirstborn. I have done as you told me; now sit up and eat of my game, that your soul may bless me.” But Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?” He answered, “Because the LORD your God granted me success.” Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come near, that I may feel you, my son, to know whether you are really my son Esau or not.” So Jacob went near to Isaac his father, who felt him and said, “The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” And he did not recognize him, because his hands were hairy like his brother Esau’s
hands. So he blessed him. He said, “Are you really my son Esau?” He answered, “I am.” Then he said, “Bring it near to me, that I may eat of my son’s game and bless you.” So he brought it near to him, and he ate; and he brought him wine, and he drank. Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come near and kiss me, my son.” So he came near and kissed him. And Isaac smelled the smell of his garments and blessed him and said, “See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a lield that the LORD has blessed! May God give you of the dew of heaven and of the fatness of the earth and plenty of grain and wine. Let peoples serve you, and nations bow down to you. Be lord over your brothers, and may your mother’s sons bow down to you. Cursed be everyone who curses you, and blessed be everyone who blesses you!”
…This is the Word of the Lord.
C: Thanks be to God.
L: The Wisdom reading is from: Ecclesiastes 11
L: As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything. In the morning sow your seed, and at evening withhold not your hand, for you do not know which will prosper, this or that, or whether both alike will be good. Light is sweet, and it is pleasant for the eyes to see the sun. So if a person lives many years, let him rejoice in them all; but let him remember that the days of darkness will be many. All that comes is vanity.
…This is the Word of the Lord.
C: Thanks be to God.
Te Holy Gospel:
Please stand as you are able.
P: The Gospel reading is from O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.
P: Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me.
And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.” Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, “Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us, and not to the world?” Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father's who sent me. “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. You heard me say to you, I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe. I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me, but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here.
…This is the Gospel of the Lord C: Glory to you, O Christ!
Te Creed:
P: Let us proclaim our faith together in the words of the Apostles’ Creed:
We believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
We believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was cruci?ied, died, and was buried. He descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen
Please be seated.
Te Sermon:
AM: May the Holy Spirit conlirm the Word in our hearts, that we daily increase in faith, hope, love, and patience unto our lives’ end. And now the God of Peace, who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep, make you perfect in every good work, working in us that which is well pleasing in his sight. (Heb. 13: 20-21)
C: Amen.
AM: The Lord be with you.
C: And with your spirit.
Te Salutaton:
AM: Let us pause to pray…
Te Prayers of te People:
A moment of Silence is observed.
AM: Merciful God: we thank you for all your goodness to us. Sanctify and guide us through the work of your Holy Spirit, and grant that we may walk in holiness of life according to your Word. Unite, strengthen, and preserve your Church through the Word and the Holy Sacraments. Be the strength and stay of our land. Give it grace and honor. Grant health and prosperity to all in authority, especially to the President and the Congress, the Governor and Legislature of our state, and to all our Judges and Magistrates. Grant them grace to rule after your good pleasure, to the maintenance of righteousness, and to the hindrance of wrongdoing, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. Lord in your mercy, C: hear us!
Help us, O God, to live together in peace and concord, with true and Christian counsel in all that we undertake. Prosper every good work and turn away from us all harm and evil. May your blessing rest upon the fruits of the earth, and give success to every lawful occupation on land, sea, and air. Lord in your mercy, C: hear us!
Let the light of your Word shine in our homes. Keep the children of your Church in the covenant which you made with them in Holy Baptism, and give all parents and teachers grace to nurture them in your truth, and reverence. Lord in your mercy,
C: hear us!
We lift before you those who are sick, those who are homebound, and those who grieve Gabe W., Tommy S., Barbara H., Bobby, Al G., John, Jean S., Prudence H., Wisam, Tim B., Brian O., Cat, and those we name out loud or in hearts… pause. Almighty and Eternal God, you are the health and strength of all who trust
in you. And linally, when our hour is come, deliver us all from evil and bring us safely into your heavenly kingdom, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. C: Amen.
Te Eucharist
Please stand as you are able.
P: Lift up your hearts to God.
C: We lift them up unto the Lord our God.
P: Let us give thanks to the Lord.
C: It is meet and right so to do.
P: It is truly meet, right, and salutary, that we should at all times, and in all places, give thanks to you, O Lord, Holy Father, Almighty Everlasting God, through Jesus Christ our Lord. He is our Paschal Lamb, offered for us, the innocent Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. He has conquered death, risen again, and lives forevermore, as will all those who put their trust in him.
Te Words of Insttuton
P: Our Lord Jesus Christ, in the night in which he was betrayed, took bread; and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, Take, eat; this is my body, which is given for you; this do in memory of me.
P: In the same manner, he took the cup, and after he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, Drink of this all of you; this cup is the New Covenant in my blood, which is shed for you, and for all people, for the
Te Lord’s Prayer
P: We join together in singing the prayer Jesus taught us:
Confacton
P: Behold the Lamb of God!
P: The peace of the Lord be with you always.
Te Peace
C: and also with you. We Greet one another with the Peace of Christ Shake hands, Fist bump, or other acknowledgments as you prefer.
The Children’s collection will be donated to the Hands of Hope Food Pantry, If you have a gift for the church, please place it in the plate at the side doors of the Sanctuary.
If you have need of gluten free bread, please come First to receive. Please form a “circle” on the transition between the two shades of carpet The wine is offered both for intinction (dipping), or in a common chalice for drinking. You are welcome to light a candle in the middle window after you have received Communion.
Please be seated.
