Sixth Midweek Lent Evening Worship Service
April 09, 2025
Our 2025 Lenten Services Theme:
Giving ____ Up for Lent, for Life and for our LORD
Tonight…….Giving Up our Legalism
Scripture quotations in this flyer are from the EVANGELICAL HERITAGE VERSION of the Bible. Copyright 2019 by the Wartburg Bible Society. Worship responses and prayers marked by an asterisk * are used, with permission, from Christian Worship: A Lutheran Hymnal under authority from OneLicense.net Lic# A-712831
Pre-service prayer Pre-service music
We Approach The Lord With Praise And Prayer
Greeting and Introduction to Worship
at the Pastor’s invitation, the Congregation will rise for
The Invocation
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Opening Prayer
In the name of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.
I thank You, my heavenly Father, + through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, + That You have graciously kept me through this day. + Forgive me all my sins, + and graciously keep me this night. + Into Your hands I commend my body and soul and all things. + Let Your holy angel be with me, + That the Wicked Foe may have no power over me. + Amen.
after which, the Congregation will be seated for
Opening Hymn: Hymn 108 “Jesus, Refuge of the Weary”
1 Jesus, Refuge of the weary, Blest Redeemer, whom we love,
Fountain in life’s desert dreary, Savior from the world above,
Oh, how oft your eyes, offended, Gaze upon a sinner’s fall!
Yet, upon the cross extended, You endured the pain of all.
2 Dare we pass that cross unheeding, Breathing no repentant vow,
As we see you wounded, bleeding, See your thorn-encircled brow?
Since your sinless death has brought us Life eternal, peace, and rest,
Only what your grace has taught us Calms the sinner’s deep distress.
3 Jesus, may our hearts be burning With more fervent love for you!
May our eyes be ever turning To behold your cross anew,
Till in glory, parted never From the blessed Savior’s side,
Graven in our hearts foreve r, Dwell the cross, the Crucified!
at the Pastor’s invitation, the Congregation will rise as
We Join in the Confession of Our Sins
Pastor: As we approach the Lord in worship this evening, let us all confess our sins and seek God’s forgiving mercy:
Congregation: O Lord, hear my prayer, + Listen to my cry for mercy + and in Your faithfulness, come to my relief. + Do not bring Your servant into judgment, + for no one living is righteous
before You. + Answer me quickly, O Lord; + my spirit fails. + Do not hide Your face from me, + For I have put my trust in You. + Show me the way I should go, + for to You I lift up my soul. + Teach me to do Your will, + for You are my God.
Almighty God, merciful Father, + I, a troubled and repentant sinner + confess that I have sinned against You in my actions, thoughts and words. + I have not loved You with all my heart; + I have not loved others the way I should. + I have not been a faithful steward of the time, abilities, opportunities and resources + which You have entrusted to my care. + I have not always been eager and willing to worship You, serve You, or learn from You as I ought. + My transgressions, whether deliberate or done out of ignorance + are too numerous for me to recall. + I know that because of them + I deserve Your punishment both now and eternally. + But I truly am distressed by + and deeply sorry for my sins. + And so I implore You, for Jesus’ sake, + to have mercy upon me + and to forgive me, + a poor, sinful being.
Pastor: Jesus says to His followers: “If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven.” Do you believe this word and promise of your Savior?
Congregation: Yes, I believe.
Pastor: Then according to the command and promise of our Savior, Jesus Christ, and in His place, I forgive you all your sins, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Be at peace once more with your God, assured that you are a dear child of God and an heir of eternal life in heaven through faith in Christ Jesus.
Congregation: O Lord, my God + I called to You for help + and You answered me. + I thank You for the love You have shown me in Jesus Christ, my Savior. + Through Him You have rescued me from the guilt and curse of my sin. + Renew me now, through Your Holy Spirit + that I might faithfully fight against all temptation, + correct whatever wrongs I can, + and live in the peace of Your forgiveness. + Let my life be filled with Your love and praise. + Now and forever. + Amen.
The Order of Vespers
P: O Lord, open my lips.
C: (Sung) And my mouth shall show forth Your praise.
P: Hasten, O God, to deliver me.
C: (sung) Hasten to help me, O Lord.
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.
after which, the Congregation will be seated for
The Reading of the Passion History
The account of Jesus’ Passion as it is recorded through a harmony of the Gospels
of St. Matthew, St. Mark, St. Luke, and St. John.
Tonight’s Reading: The Death of our Savior
Two other men, who were criminals, were led away with Jesus to be executed. They brought Jesus to the
place called Golgotha, which means, “The place of a skull.” They offered Him wine to drink, mixed with gall; but when He tasted it, He would not drink it. They crucified Him there with the criminals, one on His right and the other on His left. Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” Now it was the third hour when they crucified Him. Pilate also had a notice written and fastened on the cross. It read, “Jesus the Nazarene, the King of the Jews.” Many of the Jews read this notice, because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and it was written in Aramaic, Latin, and Greek. So the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews,’ but that ‘this Man said, “I am the King of the Jews.” Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”
When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took His clothes and divided them into four parts, one part for each soldier. They also took His tunic, which was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom. So they said to one another, “Let’s not tear it. Instead, let’s cast lots to see who gets it.” This was so that the Scripture might be fulfilled which says: They divided My garments among them and cast lots for My clothing. So the soldiers did these things. Then they sat down and were keeping watch over Him there.
People who passed by kept insulting Him, shaking their heads and saying, “You Who were going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross!” Those who were crucified with Him also insulted Him. In the same way the chief priests, experts in the law, and elders kept mocking Him. They said, “He saved others, but He cannot save Himself. If he’s the King of Israel, let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. He trusts in God. Let God rescue Him now, if he wants Him, because He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” One of the criminals hanging there was blaspheming Him, saying, “Aren’t You the Christ? Save Yourself and us!” But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God, since you are under the same condemnation? We are punished justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for what we have done, but this Man has done nothing wrong.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom.” Jesus said to him, “Amen I tell you: Today you will be with Me in paradise.”
Jesus’ mother, His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene were standing near the cross. When Jesus saw His mother and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother, “Woman, here is your son!” Then he said to the disciple, “Here is your mother!” And from that time this disciple took her into his own home.
It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, while the sun
was darkened. At the ninth hour Jesus shouted with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” which means, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken
Me?” When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “Listen, He’s calling Elijah!”
After this, knowing that everything had now been finished, and to fulfill the Scripture, Jesus said, “I thirst.” A jar full of sour wine was sitting there. Immediately one of them ran, took a sponge, and soaked it with sour wine. Then he put it on a stick and gave Him a drink. When Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!”
Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit My spirit!” When He had said this, He bowed His head and gave up His spirit. Suddenly the temple curtain was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and rocks were split. Tombs were opened, and many bodies of saints who had fallen asleep were raised to life. Those who came out of the tombs went into the holy city after Jesus’ resurrection and appeared to many people. When the centurion and those who were guarding Jesus with him saw the earthquake and how He cried out with a loud voice and breathed His last, they were terrified and began to glorify God, saying, “This Man really was righteous. Truly This was the Son of God.”
When all the groups of people who had gathered to see this spectacle saw what had happened, they returned home beating their chests. All those who knew Jesus, and many women who had followed Jesus from Galilee and who had served Him, were there, watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph, Salome, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.
Since it was the Preparation Day, the Jews did not want the bodies left on the crosses over the Sabbath (because that Sabbath was a particularly important day). They asked Pilate to have the men’s legs broken and the bodies taken away. So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first man who was crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other man. But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear. Immediately blood and water came out. The one who saw it has testified, and his testimony is true. He knows that he is telling the truth, so that you also may believe. Indeed, these things happened so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, “Not one of His bones will be broken.” Again another Scripture says, “They will look at the One they pierced.”
When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathaea, named Joseph, who was also a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews. Joseph of Arimathaea, prominent member of the council, was a good and righteous man. He had not agreed with their plan and action. He was looking forward to the kingdom of God. He boldly went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Pilate was surprised that Jesus was already dead. He summoned the centurion and asked him if Jesus had been dead for a long time. When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he granted the body to Joseph. Joseph bought a linen cloth, came, and took Jesus’ body away. Nicodemus, who earlier had come to Jesus at night, also came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-two pounds. They took Jesus’ body and bound It with linen strips along with the spices, in accord with Jewish burial customs.
There was a garden at the place where Jesus was crucified. And in the garden was a new tomb in which no one had ever been laid. So they laid Jesus there, because it was the Jewish Preparation Day, and the tomb was near. Joseph took the body and laid it in his own new tomb that he had cut in the rock. He rolled a large stone over the tomb’s
entrance and left.
The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee followed after Joseph, and they observed the tomb and how Jesus’ body was laid there. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses were watching where the body was laid. Then they returned and prepared spices and perfumes. On the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment.
On the next day, which was the day after the Preparation Day, the chief priests and Pharisees gathered in the presence of Pilate and said, “Sir, we remembered what that Deceiver said while He was still alive: ‘After three days I will rise again.’ So give a command that the tomb be made secure until the third day. Otherwise His disciples might steal His body and tell the people, ‘He is risen from the dead.’ And this last deception will be worse than the first.” Pilate said to them, “You have a guard. Go, make it as secure as you know how.” So they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and posting a guard.
Second Hymn Hymn 287 “The Law of God Is Good And Wise”
1 The law of God is good and wise; It sets his will before our eyes,
Shows us the way of righteousness, But dooms to death when we transgress.
2 The law is good, but since the fall Its holiness condemns us all;
It dooms us for our sins to die And has no pow’r to justify.
3 Its light of holiness imparts The knowledge of our sinful hearts
That we may see our lost estate And seek relief before too late.
4 To Jesus we for refuge flee, Who from the curse has set us free,
And humbly worship at his throne, Saved by his grace through faith alone.
The Evening’s Meditation Based on Romans 1:16-17
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes—to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. 17 For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed by faith, for faith, just as it is written, “The righteous will live by faith.”
Giving up our Legalism for Lent,
for Life and for our LORD
We bring our Offerings and Prayers to our Lord
As we gather the offering for this evening,
we will pass offering plates throughout the chapel.
For those watching this service online, we offer you the following suggestions for providing God with Your offerings through our ministry:
1) You can send a check (no cash) in the mail to our church address
(415 N. 6th Place, Lowell, AR 72745); OR
2) You can go online to our website (www.gracelutherannwa.com)
and use the giving option there.
Tonight’s Special Prayers
The Prayer for This Evening Concluding with…..
P: Hear us, O Lord, as we also bring you our silent, personal petitions and praises:
A Few Moments For Silent Prayer
P: Finally, Lord, help us run with perseverance the race which You have marked out for us. Keep us faithful even to the point of death, that we may receive, by Your grace, the crown of eternal life, through faith in Christ Jesus our Lord, Who lives and rules with You and the Holy Spirit as the One True God, for ever and ever, in Whose name we have offered this prayer and in Whose name we also join now in praying:
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.
We Leave With God’s Blessing
The Benediction
May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all. Amen.
Closing Hymn: Hymn 594 “The Day You Gave Us, Lord, Is Ended”
1 The day you gave us, Lord, is ended; The darkness falls at your request.
To you our morning hymns ascended; Your praise shall sanctify our rest.
2 We thank you that your Church, unsleeping While earth rolls onward into light,
Through all the world her watch is keeping And never rests by day or night.
3 As over continent and island Each dawn leads to another day,
The voice of prayer is never silent, Nor do the praises die away.
4 So be it, Lord; your throne shall never, Like earth’s proud kingdoms, pass away.
Your kingdom stands and grows forever Until there dawns your glorious day.
Silent prayer, Announcements, Post-service Music