The Fifth Sunday of the Pentecost Season

Also known as the Third Sunday after

the Festival of the Holy Trinity – June 21, 2026

Major Messages from the Minor Prophets; Today…..Amos

How Are We Measuring Up to God’s Standards?

My cousin Butch, from Michigan, used to operate a used tool business. He would drive all over the state of

Michigan to buy overstocks from machine shops, attend auctions, and acquire his wares in other ways. Because Butch lives right across the street from my mother, whenever I visited her I’d always also get a “private tour” of Butch’s business. One of the things that my cousin specialized in was selling a variety of different (and in some cases VERY expensive) measuring devices and tools. But when the economy turned down, so did his business. Finally he had to close it and auction of most of the contents of his store…..including all those measuring devices that had once been “very good movers” for him. Ironically, he later told me, in spite of their value they ended up selling for pennies on the dollar at his going-out-of-business auction. While other items went for better prices, hardly anyone was interested in those measuring instruments and equipment…..

Now, Amos the OT prophet might not have been able to recognize the micrometers, digital scales, and measurement lasers that Butch had, but from nearly 28 centuries in the past Amos would join my cousin in saying that most of the people of his day weren’t interested much in making measurements either……at least the kind of measurements that exactingly evaluate a person’s true spiritual condition.

You see, just like with our own culture today (even with its economic problems), the northern ten tribes of Israel in Amos’ day (the mid 8^th century BC) were relatively successful and powerful, and they considered themselves quite “spiritual” – even blessed by God. The fact is, however, they had stopped measuring their behavior and their spirituality against the specific standards the LORD had given them in Scripture. Instead, over the years they’d thoroughly corrupted the worship of the true God by adding elements of paganism and idolatry and self-indulgence so that the nation had not only forsaken God – He had also decided to forsake, and to punish, them. Through Amos the LORD announced to the northern kingdom of Israel that God had judged them unfaithful, and that their fate was an impending destruction (30 years later) at the hands of the blood-thirsty Assyrian Empire.

As we consider the ministry of Amos to Israel in today’s Old Testament Lesson, one of the things we will want to do is ask ourselves this question: “How do we measure up to God’s righteous standards from His Word?” The Lord laid down His standards both for Israel and for us in His unchanging, and totally reliable Ten Commandments. How well do you still know them? More to the point, how faithfully do you follow them each day? And, finally, WHY do you follow them? (…..Out of fear? …..With the though that obeying them will earn you “points” with God? ….. Or, out of gratitude for God’s grace in Christ to you?)

In addition, we’ll use this portion of Scripture as our Sermon Text this morning. Following the thoughts of the preceding paragraph, we’ll also want to pay attention to Amos’ courageous and faithful example as he brought an unpopular and painful, but very necessary message to the northern kingdom of Israel, to its wayward King – Jeroboam II, and to a wicked priest by the name of Amaziah. In spite of their opposition to Amos’ ministry, He faithfully spoke the Word of the LORD to them all…..and did so out of love for their souls, that they might repent of their wickedness and return, in faith, to the true God. 2800 years later, God has also given us the same commission He gave to Amos, to faithfully proclaim His Law and Gospel to the people whose lives touch ours today. May the Holy Spirit, Who guided Amos’ preaching, similarly empower you and to to faithfully and boldly bring God’s Word to people…..even if they think it is too strong and politically incorrect.

In connection with this, in our Children’s Lesson we’ll talk for a while about the right – and the wrong – standards that people use for measuring faithfulness to the Lord.

Next, in this morning’s Epistle Lesson Paul encourages the Corinthians to live faithfully before the Lord both with assurances of God’s blessings in Christ, and with painful examples from Israel’s past of God’s judgments against disobedience.

Finally our Gospel Lesson warns us to avoid false teachers. In it Jesus also reminds us that mere “knowledge” of God and ceremonial (external) faithfulness won’t guarantee anyone a place in heaven. Rather, the Lord is looking for true faith – which is founded in His redeeming work, which is found in the believer’s heart – and resulting faithfulness in thought, word and deed, which is motivated by the Christian’s love for God and which is evidenced in faithful adherence to the full Word of God.

Who Was Amos?

Amos, the Prophet, came from Tekoa (1:1), a small town about 6 miles south of Bethlehem and 11 miles from

Jerusalem. His name, in Hebrew, means “burden-bearer.” Amos himself tells us that by occupation he was not a professional prophet but a shepherd (7:14). Besides herding sheep he also took care of sycamore-fig trees (7:14). He was, perhaps, the most unlikely of all the Old Testament prophets, because he had no training as prophet, nor was he the son of a prophet. Amos was “just an ordinary guy.” Then, one day while tending his sheep, the LORD called him to be a prophet, saying, “Go prophesy to My people Israel” (7:15).

Amos served the LORD while Uzziah was reigning over Judah (792-740 B.C.). Like Hosea, Amos worked in the Northern Kingdom of Israel under King Jeroboam II who ruled from 793-753 B.C. Specifically, Amos ministered in Israel’s two chief cities: Bethel, which was the residence of Jeroboam II and also the location of a site for idolatrous golden calf worship; and Samaria, which was Israel’s capital city. The public preaching part of his ministry, which lasted about two years, was probably carried out sometime between 760-750 BC. Afterward he was inspired by the Holy Spirit to record for God’s people, then and now, the message the LORD gave Him in the book we know as “Amos.”

Hosea and Amos were contemporaries, serving as prophets either along with Jonah, or shortly after Jonah’s time. Amos’ ministry also took place during the time when Isaiah and Micah were carrying out their prophetic activities in the Southern Kingdom of Judah. Both kingdoms were enjoying great prosperity in those years, and each had reached political and military heights not known since the days of the united kingdom under David and Solomon. (Elisha actually had predicted this resurgence roughly 40 years earlier in II Kings 13:17-19). Jonah also described the economic, political and military prosperity of the days of Jeroboam II and Uzziah as something which the children of Israel had not experienced since the days of Solomon (II Kings 14:23-29). Israel was living in the heyday of its prosperity and influence. If David and Solomon’s days were the “Golden Age” for Israel, then the days of Uzziah and Jeroboam II were certainly Israel’s “Silver Age.” Many people were convinced that the two nations’ successes and prosperity were sure signs that God was pleased with them and was showering them with His blessings.

Regrettably, God was not pleased….not in the least. During that period, the northern kingdom of Israel was guilty of excessive idolatry. In addition their weak attempts to worship the true God were so “compromised” that God saw it as an abomination. It’s true that the people of that day were outwardly very religious. The shrines at Bethel, Gilgal, and Dan were crowded with worshipers, and their various religious festivals were occasions for elaborate ceremonies. But the insincerity and inauthenticity of their religion was proved by the immorality of the peoples’ lives. Dishonesty, drunkenness and deviant behavior were rampant. Plus, those who were rich heartlessly engaged in extravagant living while the poor suffered terribly. Violence abounded. The legal system was corrupt and for sale to the highest bidder; and so justice in the courts was all but non-existent. The dreadful spiritual conditions of the last years of the Northern Kingdom are described in some detail for us in II Kings 17:7-17. Suffice it to say, God’s chosen people were failing Him (and themselves) – miserably!

Consequently, what God did through Amos was inform His people that He was putting them on the same level as the surrounding nations – in other words, that He expected the same purity and godliness from all of them. Just as with any other nation that rebelled against God, Israel and Judah were not going to be excused from God’s judgment of their idolatry and unjust ways just because they were part of His “Chosen” people. The notion that God’s covenant with Israel exempted them from responsibility for their sins might have been something the people of Israel foolishly believed, but that wasn’t they way God viewed things. Anyone – then and now – who represented Him was expected by the LORD to live righteously as a faithful witness of Him to the world – not to dishonor His holy name by godless behavior.

Given the attitude that the people of Judah and Israel had during his days as a prophet, it’s not surprising that the book which bears Amos’ name is full of condemnation and dire warnings of impending judgment. In many respects, it is a hard book for us to read because in the book of Amos God hits sin (ours included) hard….and promises to bring His divine justice to bear against anyone who disregards and disobeys Him. Nevertheless, the grace of God is also evident in Amos’ writings. That grace is shown, first of all, insofar as Amos was sent by God to them to call them to repentance…..something God didn’t have to do for them. What’s more, at the close of his book (9:11-15), Amos predicts that there will one day be a reconstituted, faithful Israel where the Messiah “will repair the broken places, restore its ruins and build it.” Amos, under the Holy Spirit’s guidance, was pointing ahead – in a veiled way – to the work that Jesus would carry out in order to reconcile us to His Father through His substitutionary sinless life, sacrificial death and glorious resurrection.

However, there are no direct references to Christ anywhere in the book of Amos. But Christ certainly knew the book of Amos well. Jesus’ words in Matthew 11:21-22 seem to make an allusion to Amos 1:9,10, where the prophet speaks of the judgment of God that will come upon Tyre. Jesus says there that if in Tyre and Sidon the miracles occurred that had been done in Chorazin and Bethsaida, the people of Tyre and Sidon would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. Amos is directly quoted two times in the New Testament. The first reference is found in Acts 7:42-43. There Stephen cites Amos 5:25-27 in connection with his rebuke of the Jews, showing from it that the Jews had never kept God’s law from the time they first came out of Egypt. The second instance where Amos was quoted is in Acts 15:16-17. Here, during the First Jerusalem Council of the church, James quotes Amos 9:11-12, as an evidence of Christian liberty, specifically that the Gentiles under the new Testament should not be forced to keep the law of Moses (particularly practicing circumcision and following various dietary regulations)….which the Jews themselves had never kept and could not keep faithfully.

A Summary of Amos’ Message

The Book of Amos is basically a message of pure condemnation of sin and the promise of divine judgment against godless disobedience. That judgment would be meted out on the nations surrounding Israel – including Judah. But Israel would not escape God’s judgment for its wickedness any more than Judah or the other nations could. The chief emphasis of Amos’ ministry and written message is that Israel had broken its covenant with GOD, and that consequently, GOD would have to discipline Israel severely for its sin and, particularly, its impenitence.

In his opening chapters, Amos provides a series of predictions that God would bring His judgments against Israel’s neighboring nations, including Judah. Later on he speaks of prophecies from God against Israel (1:3-2:16). The neighboring peoples were going to be punished for specific offenses that they had committed against Israel or another nation. Israel and Judah, however, would be punished for having broken their covenant with GOD. The following section (3:1-6:14) contains a series of three oracles (or sermons) against Israel. These include the threat of national destruction and exile. The third section of the book (7:1-9:10) presents a series of five visions of judgment, including a devouring plague of locusts; a plumb line measuring God’s people for their destruction; and a basket of ripe fruit – soon to rot – all depicting Israel’s impending destruction. In two of those visions GOD withdraws Himself and His Word from His wayward, obstinate people. Finally, Amos predicts God’s gracious, eventual restoration of Israel and His continuation of the Davidic line (9:11-15) – which, no doubt, is a reference to the coming Promised Messiah.

An Invitation To Our Guests

The “church family” that is Grace Lutheran Church is honored to have you as our guest this morning. If there is anything we can do to make our visit more edifying and comfortable, please don’t hesitate to ask one of our elders, ushers or our Pastor. They will be happy to serve you in every way they can. It is our prayer that you will be blessed as you worship our Lord today, and that you will choose to worship here in the future with us.

In fact, if you have no church home of your own, and/or are looking for religious truth and spiritual certainty as a foundation for your life and to insure your eternal future, then we invite you to consider becoming a part of our Christian fellowship. For further information on becoming a member of our church family, please speak with our Pastor after today’s worship service, or at your convenience. We thank you for the opportunity to serve you with God’s Word and to have you as a part of our worshiping family today. Please know that you will always be welcome at Grace Lutheran Church. May God bless you, now and always…..in Jesus’ name.

Pre-Service Prayer

O Lord God, Almighty Creator, from Whom every good and perfect gift comes, You have bountifully blessed me across the course of my life. You have preserved me in Your Word. You have provided for my bodily needs. You have protected me from spiritual harm and have kept me in the true Christian faith. For your abundant goodness to me, I humbly praise and thank You. In the days and years that might lie ahead for me, I implore You to continue to bless me with Your abiding presence, Your Fatherly protection, and Your guidance in all areas of my life. I submit myself to Your gracious will, with the confidence that You will use me, as Your humble servant, in whatever ways will serve to further Your glory and Your kingdom. Bless and enrich my faith as I hear Your Word today, and receive my heart-felt praises and generous, first-fruits offerings, in the name and for the sake of Jesus Christ, Your Son, my Savior and Lord. It is in His name that I pray. Amen.

The portions of God’s that are used in this worship flyer have been taken from The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version Copyright 2019, The Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

Music and lyrics, as needed, are used with permission via OneLicense.net #A712831

Prayer upon entering the sanctuary Pre-service Music

The Service Introduction and Invitation to Worship

The Opening Hymn “The Morning Sun Is Dawning”

To the tune of “The Morning Light Is Breaking”

The morning sun is dawning, And I thank God once more

Beneath Whose care awaking I find the night is o’er:

I thank Him that He’s called me To be His child and heir;

I know, whatever happens I’m safely in His care.

O Lord of all creation, Watch over me this day;

In all I do be near me, For others too I pray –

To You I do commend them: Our church, our youth, our land;

Direct them and defend them, When dangers are at hand.

You are the Vine, O Savior, May we, Your branches be,

Connected to You firmly, And for eternity.

Your Spirit place within us, And let His gifts of grace

Empower us to serve You – throughout our earthly race.

So grant us, Lord, Your blessing That we may do Your will,

No more Your ways transgressing, Our calling to fulfill;

To go and tell the Good News: Christ died for all, that we –

through faith in Him, forgiven — Have heaven eternally. Amen.

After which the Congregation will rise for

Invocation

P: We make our beginning this morning, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you

C: And also with you.

The Confessional Order of Service

Pastor O LORD, open my lips.

Congregation (Sung) And my mouth shall show forth Your praise.

Pastor Hasten, O God, to deliver me.

Congregation (sung) Hasten to help me, O LORD.

Pastor The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit.

Congregation (sung) A broken and a contrite heart, O God,

You will not despise.

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.

We Make Confession Of Our Sins To God

Pastor – “I now ask you before God, who searches your heart, do you confess that you have sinned against God and deserve His wrath and punishment? Then declare so by saying, “I do confess.”

Congregation – “I do confess.”

Pastor – “Truly you should confess, for the Holy Scriptures say, “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.”

Second, do you, with all your heart, repent of all your sins, committed in thought, word, and deed? Then declare so by saying, “I do repent.”

Congregation – “I do repent.”

Pastor – “Truly, you should repent, as other penitent sinners have done: King David, who prayed for a contrite heart; Peter, who wept bitterly; the sinful woman, the prodigal son, and others.

Third, do you sincerely believe that God, by grace, for

Jesus’ sake, will forgive you all your sins? Then declare so by saying, “I do believe.”

Congregation – “I do believe.”

Pastor – “Truly you should so believe, for the Holy Scriptures say, “God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”

Fourth, do you promise that with the help of the Holy Ghost, you will, from this time forward, reform your sinful life? Then declare it by saying, “I do promise.”

Congregation – “I do promise.”

Pastor – “Truly, you should so promise, for Christ, the Lord says: “Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”

Finally, do you believe that through me, a called servant of God, you will receive from God the forgiveness of all your sins? Then declare it by saying, “I do believe.

Congregation – “I do believe.”

Pastor – “Upon this, your confession, I, because of my office as a

called and ordained servant of God’s Word, announce the grace of God to all of you. And, in the place, 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 Ghost. Peace be with you. Amen.”

We Respond To God’s Forgiveness

ALL sing: Hymn 339 “Today Your Mercy Calls Us”

verses 1 & 2

1 Today Your mercy calls us

To wash away our sin.

However great our trespass,

Whatever we have been,

However long from mercy

Our hearts have turned away,

Your precious blood can cleanse us

And make us pure today.

2 Today Your gate is open,

And all who enter in

Shall find a Father’s welcome

And pardon for their sin.

The past shall be forgotten,

A present joy be giv’n,

A future grace be promised,

A glorious crown in heav’n. AMEN

The Psalm for Today Psalm 119:33-40

Teach me, O Lord , to follow Your decrees; then I will keep them to the end.

Give me understanding, + and I will keep Your law + and obey it with all my heart.

P: Direct me in the path of Your commands, for there I find delight.

C: Turn my heart toward Your statutes + and not toward selfish gain.

Turn my eyes away from worthless things; preserve my life according to Your word.

Fulfill Your promise to your servant, + so that You may be feared.

Take away the disgrace I dread, for Your laws are good.

How I long for Your precepts! + Preserve my life in Your righteousness.

after which the Congregation will be seated

We Hear God’s Word

The Old Testament Lesson Amos 7:7-15

7 This is what He showed me: I saw the Lord standing by a wall that had been constructed with a plumb line. He had a plumb line in His hand.

8 The Lord said to me, “What do you see, Amos?”

I said, “A plumb line.”

Then the Lord said: “Look, I am about to set up a plumb line next to My people Israel.

I will no longer overlook their sin.

9 The high places of Isaac will be desolate,

and the sanctuaries of Israel will be ruined.

I will rise up against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.”

10 Then Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, sent a message to Jeroboam king of Israel: “Amos has conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel. The land is not able to endure all of his words. 11 This is what Amos says: “Jeroboam will die by the sword, and Israel will certainly go into exile away from its own soil.”

12 Then Amaziah said to Amos, “You seer, get out of here! Flee to the land of Judah. You may eat food and prophesy there. 13 But you must never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the sanctuary of the king and the national temple.”

14 Then Amos responded to Amaziah: “I was not a prophet, nor was I a son of a prophet. Rather, I was a sheep breeder and I took care of sycamore fig trees. 15 But the Lord took me from tending flocks, and the Lord said to me, “Go, prophesy to My people Israel.”

16 But now, hear the word of the Lord, you who are saying, “Do not prophesy against Israel” and “Do not preach against the house of Isaac.”

17 This is what the Lord says: “Your wife will be a prostitute in the city, and your sons and your daughters will fall by the sword. Your land will be parceled out with a measuring line, and as for you, you will die upon unclean soil. And Israel will certainly go into exile far away from its own soil.”

The Sequence Hymn Hymn 466

“Let Thoughtless Thousands Chose The Road

1 Though thoughtless thousands choose the road

That leads the soul away from God,

This happiness, dear Lord, be mine:

To live and die entirely thine.

2 In Christ, by faith, I wish to live,

From him my life, my all, receive,

To him devote my fleeting hours,

Serve him alone with all my pow’rs.

3 Christ is my everlasting all.

To him I look; on him I call.

He will my ev’ry want supply

In time and through eternity.

4 Soon will the Lord, my life, appear;

Soon shall I end my trials here,

Leave sin and sorrow, death and pain.

To live is Christ; to die is gain.

5 Soon will the saints in glory meet,

Soon walk through ev’ry golden street

And sing on ev’ry blissful plain,

“To live is Christ; to die is gain.”

The Epistle Lesson I Corinthians 9:24-10:13

24 Do you not know that when runners compete in the stadium, they all run, but only one receives the prize? Run like that—to win. 25 Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable victor’s wreath, but we do it for an imperishable one. 26 That is why there is nothing aimless about the way I run. There is no pummeling of the air in the way I box. 27 Instead I hit my body hard and make it my slave so that, after preaching to others, I myself will not be rejected.

10 For I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea, 2 and they were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. 3 They all ate the same spiritual food 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they drank from the Spiritual Rock that accompanied them—and that Rock was Christ! 5 Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them. He had them die in the wilderness.

6 Now these things took place as examples to warn us not to desire evil things the way they did. 7 Do not become idolaters like some of them—as it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink, and got up to celebrate wildly.” 8 And let us not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did, and in one day twenty-three thousand fell. 9 Let us not put Christ to the test, as some of them did, and so were being destroyed by the serpents. 10 And do not grumble, as some of them grumbled, and were destroyed by the destroyer. 11 All these things that were happening to them had meaning as examples, and they were written down to warn us, to whom the end of the ages has come.

12 So let him who thinks he stands be careful that he does not fall. 13 No testing has overtaken you except ordinary testing. But God is faithful. He will not allow you to be tested beyond your ability, but when He tests you, He will also bring about the outcome that you are able to bear it.

After which, the Congregation will rise for

The Gospel Lesson Matthew 7:15-29

15 “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. 16 By their fruit you will recognize them. You do not gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles, do you? 17 So then, every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree produces bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot produce good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 So then, by their fruit you will recognize them. 21 Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name and drive out demons in Your name and perform many miracles in Your name?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Depart from Me, you evildoers.’

24 “Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on bedrock. 25 The rain came down, the rivers rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house. But it did not fall, because it was founded on bedrock. 26 Everyone who hears these words of Mine but does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the rivers rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell—it was completely destroyed.”

28 When Jesus finished speaking these words, the crowds were amazed at His teaching, 29 because He taught them as One Who had authority, and not like their experts in the law.

The Apostles’ Creed

I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth. And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord; Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost; Born of the Virgin Mary; Suffered under Pontius Pilate; Was crucified, dead and buried; He descended into hell; The third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven And sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; From thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost; The Holy Christian Church, the Communion of Saints; The forgiveness of sins; The resurrection of the body; And the life everlasting. Amen.

After which the Congregation may be seated for

The Children’s Lesson I Corinthians 10:11,12

11 All these things that were happening to them had meaning as examples, and they were written down to warn us, to whom the end of the ages has come. 12 So let him who thinks he stands be careful that he does not fall.

Whose “Ruler” Will You Use’ To Measure Your Faithfulness?

The Sermon Hymn Hymn 382 “My Hope Is Built On Nothing Less”

1 My hope is built on nothing less

Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;

I dare to make no other claim

But wholly lean on Jesus’ name.

On Christ, the solid rock, I stand;

All other ground is sinking sand.

2 When darkness veils his lovely face,

I rest on his unchanging grace;

In ev’ry high and stormy gale

My anchor holds within the veil.

On Christ, the solid rock, I stand;

All other ground is sinking sand.

3 His oath, his covenant and blood

Support me in the raging flood;

When ev’ry earthly prop gives way,

He then is all my hope and stay.

On Christ, the solid rock, I stand;

All other ground is sinking sand.

4 When he shall come with trumpet sound,

Oh, may I then in him be found,

Clothed in his righteousness alone,

Faultless to stand before his throne.

On Christ, the solid rock, I stand;

All other ground is sinking sand.

after which the Congregation will rise

The Greeting

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ! O Lord, open my lips, that my mouth may declare Your praise. Amen.

The Sermon Text based on Amos 7:7-17

(Today’s Old Testament Lesson)

Just Because It Sounds Politically Incorrect, Don’t Mute

God’s Strong, But Gracious Message

following the sermon the Congregation will rise for

The Blessing

Now to Him Who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of His glory with great joy, 25 to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

After the sermon the Congregation will REMAIN SEATED as

Lord, Receive our Offerings and Prayers

Our Offerings of Love to our Lord

We will be passing an offering plate through our chapel at this point. For those unable to worship with us in person, if you would like to participate in this offering, we offer you the following suggestions for providing God with Your thank-offerings through our ministry:

1) You can send a check (no cash) in the mail to Grace Lutheran Church (415 N. 6^th Place, Lowell, AR 72745)

2) Or, go online to our website (www.gracelutherannwa.com) and use the giving option there.

at the Pastor’s invitation the Congregation will rise for

Give Online

Today’s Prayers

Included in our prayers this morning is a Prayer of Thanksgiving

for the following couples who are celebrating anniversaries this week

June – 21 – Taylor and Danielle Ashley;

June 25 – Marilyn and Mike Outlaw;

June 25 – Rick and Cynthia Tragasz;

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 Celebrate the Lord’s Supper

Pastor – The Lord be with you.

Congregation (sung) And also with you

Pastor – Lift up your hearts.

Congregation (Sung) We lift them up unto the Lord

Pastor – Let us give thanks unto the Lord, our God.

Congregation (sung) It is good and right so to do

Consecration of the Elements

Pastor – The peace of the Lord be with you always.

Congregation – (Sung) Amen.

The Exhortation Regarding the Lord’s Supper

(Please read the following if you have not spoken with

our Pastor about taking communion. Thank you.)

TO OUR GUESTS AND FRIENDS

We offer the Lord’s Supper this morning only to those individuals

who are confirmed, communicant members of Grace Lutheran congregation, or of a member congregation of our Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod. To our Guests this morning, we genuinely appreciate your presence among us and celebrate the faith in Christ which we share with you. However, we ask that you will please respect our communion practice (see above). A brochure further explaining the Biblical basis for our Communion practice is available on the tract rack in the church entryway. We encourage you both to examine it – especially the Biblical references within it, and also to speak with our Pastor after the service (at your convenience) so that you might better understand and appreciate our Biblically-based “Close Communion” practice. Thank you for your understanding, your patience, and for your presence here among us today.

The Distribution Hymn Hymn 310 “I Come, O Savior, To Your Table”

I Come, O Savior, To Your Table, For Weak And Weary Is My Soul;

O Jesus, You Alone Are Able To Satisfy And Make Me Whole: