The Sixth Sunday of the Season of Lent
also known as Palm Sunday / The Sunday of the Passion
April 10, 2022
Jesus’ Road to Jerusalem:
A Journey of Tragedy and Triumph
The first Palm Sunday must have been an amazing day…..it certainly began a most amazing week for Jesus – and for all of humanity! On the one hand, on Sunday there were the crowds that praised Christ and sang,“Hosanna, blessed is He Who comes in the name of the Lord” when He entered Jerusalem as a conquering hero and King. On the other hand, Palm Sunday also saw Jesus weeping over Jerusalem’s willful rejection of Him (the crowds that praised Him on Palm Sunday would jeer Him and call for His crucifixion five days later). Palm Sunday was the occasion for a week’s worth of stern warnings from Jesus about the Jewish nation’s impending destruction (and its temple’s) because the people refused to believe in Him as the Messiah – preferring their failed religion of “works” to the religion of “grace” He brought them that alone could save them, us, and anyone else. That gracious salvation, of course, would be secured by Christ’s self-sacrifice for the world’s sin on Good Friday, and our vicarious victory over sin, death and the Devil’s power by His Easter Sunday resurrection to life for us.
This Day on the Church’s Calendar
On our Lutheran Church’s “church calendar,” this morning is
traditionally recognized as Palm Sunday, the day which marks the beginning of that which is appropriately called “Holy Week.” Holy Week is that special time during the church year when the sufferings, death, and resurrection of our Lord are commemorated with greater emphasis and appreciation than – quite possibly – any other period during the year. Palm Sunday is also known by the liturgical name “The Sunday of the Passion.” This latter designation serves to emphasize that with this Sunday the intensity of Christ’s “passion” (His sufferings for our sins) increases as He enters Jerusalem and proceeds through the events of Holy Week until they culminate with His death on Good Friday and His bodily resurrection three days later. In order for us to observe these days with a proper spirit of solemness and gratitude, we need to do much more than just hear a report of what once happened to Jesus in Jerusalem, before Pilate, and on Golgotha. You and I will also want to recognize that our spiritual lives are clearly connected to the events that constitute the Passion History of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ; indeed, we are also (like the Good Friday crowd) personally responsible for them due to our sins.
And so, through the eyes of faith let’s follow Jesus as He begins that first Holy Week by entering Jerusalem to the waving of palm branches and the shouts of “Hosanna” acclaiming Him as the King of Kings. And let’s continue to stay with our Savior throughout this Holy Week – on Maundy Thursday as He institutes the Lord’s Supper and later agonizes in prayer for Himself and us in Gethsemane before He suffers abuse at the hands of His enemies. We’ll also strive to be present with Him on Good Friday during His trials before Annas, Caiaphas, Pilate, and Herod, all the way to the nails and cross and brutal death which He endured on Calvary. But especially, let’s not fail to gather together again next Sunday, when with the eyes of our faith we will stand at His open grave celebrating the proof that Jesus accomplished all that He came to do for our forgiveness and salvation.
As far as you and I are concerned, with the help of God let’s not allow this year’s Holy Week commemoration to degenerate into just a traditional observance of Biblical events that happened long ago. Rather, let us all commemorate Holy Week with the sincerity and devotion it deserves. Let’s also maintain throughout this week the awareness that everything Jesus permitted to happen to Himself in Jerusalem during 20 centuries ago is an integral part of that which forms the foundation of our forgiveness, of our redemption, and of the eternal life that is ours through faith in Christ Jesus.
The waving palms and shouts of “Hosanna in the highest!” raised to Christ on that first Palm Sunday warmly welcomed into the city Him who was and remains King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Likewise today we will acclaim Christ as our King and Lord through the words of our sermon hymn “Hosanna, Loud Hosanna.” Also, we will acknowledge Christ’s Kingship over our lives and everything there is when we close today’s service by singing “Crown Him with many Crowns.”
This morning’s Opening responsive reading is one familiar to nearly all our worshipers today: Isaiah’s inspired depiction of Jesus as the Suffering Servant, the Lamb of God Who bore the sins of the world on His shoulders. Reading Isaiah 53 together is a very fitting way for us begin our Holy Week observance. Additionally, in today’s Old Testament Lesson we have Zechariah’s prophecy – 500 years before Christ’s entry into Jerusalem – that when the Savior came to Zion for the purpose of completing His work of redemption, He could come riding on a donkey. For our New Testament Lesson this morning, we’ll consider Luke’s record of a sermon Paul preached at Pisidian Antoich during his first missionary journey. To a Jewish audience Paul proclaimed that Jesus Christ was the fulfillment of prophecy, the Son of David, and the world’s promised and received Savior from sin. In particular, for our purposes today, Paul speaks about how neither the chief teachers nor the Jewish people in Jerusalem recognized Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah, even though the Lord validated His work by raising Christ from the dead. Today’s Gospel Lesson is taken from John’s Gospel, and initially gives us some additional background information regarding why Jesus’ enemies were so hostile toward Him and so intent on eliminating Him: Jesus had raised Lazarus from the grave, and many were putting their faith in Him. Those “many” were certainly part of the two crowds that celebrated Jesus’ Palm Sunday entry into Jerusalem…..just as we also celebrate it this morning. The second half of our reading is John’s version of that account which by tradition has been read in Christian Churches on Palm Sunday for nearly 19 centuries. Through it the inspired apostle recounts for us Jesus’ triumphant entry in Jerusalem. Some praise and acclaim Him as a King. Others, uncertain about His identity (as our Sermon Text will show) wonder just “Who is He?” Still others (His “enemies,” including Satan) see Him only as a threat to their power. Ironically, the masses who adore Him with calls of “Hosanna” will, later in the week, turn hostile and call for His crucifixion. This morning’s Children’s Lesson is based on II Corinthians 8:9, and will focus our attention on all that Christ gave up for us in order that we might one day be able……through faith in Jesus…… to live with Him forever in heaven. Finally, in our Sermon, based on Luke’s Palm Sunday account, we will look in more detail – and more personally – at Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem on that first Palm Sunday. The “triumph” the crowds saw and celebrated brought tears of impending tragedy to Jesus’ eyes as He recognized their superficial commitment to Him and it’s tragic consequences. Jesus also understood, in ways the crowd didn’t, the blessed consequences of His commitment to them and the tragedy He would endure on Good Friday to give them (and us) triumph over sin.
A Brief Overview of Holy Week
The final Sunday in Lent is customarily known as Palm Sunday, and in some circles as “The Sunday of the Passion of our Lord.” This day marks the beginning of that seven day period fittingly referred to as “Holy Week.” During this special week of the church we focus on the sufferings, death, and resurrection of our Lord with greater attention, reverence and devotion than perhaps at any other time during the year. As it has been done throughout the reading of the Passion History during our six midweek Lenten vespers (evening) worship services, we will recall once more what happened to Jesus in Jerusalem, before Pilate, and on Golgotha. The waving palms and shouts of “Hosanna in the highest!” raised to Christ on that first Palm Sunday warmly welcomed into the city Him who was and remains King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Likewise as we observe Palm Sunday this morning, we acclaim Christ as our King and Lord and express our devotion to Him by also declaring: “Blessed is He Who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”
Holy Week, itself, has a number of interesting facets to its significance. Although in our Lutheran church it is not customary to worship on the Wednesday of Holy Week, it is worth noting that this day has been given the name “Spy Wednesday,” owing to the Gospels recording it as the day when the treacherous covenant to betray Jesus was consummated by Judas and the chief priests (Luke 22:1-6)..
The Thursday of Holy Week has always been a day of great significance in the Church, chiefly because it commemorates Jesus’ institution of the Lord’s Supper. The name by which it is most commonly known, Maundy Thursday (from the Latin Dies Mandati, “Day of the Commandment”), has particular reference to the Savior’s injunctions regarding they way humility and love should exemplify the brotherhood of believers (John 13:34). An ancient custom connected to this day was the practice of carrying gifts to the poor in hand baskets which were called “maunds.”
Of course, the pinnacle of the Holy Week observances is Good Friday, the day on which Christ was crucified. Its earliest name was “Parasceve,” which means “preparation.” Other names were “Day of the Lord’s Passion” and “Day of the Cross.” The designation Good Friday is a peculiarly English expression. It reflects the joy of completed redemption and protests against the superstitious notions that all Fridays are “unlucky” as well as against the idea that this particular Friday should be observed in funeral gloom and despair. Nevertheless, it is a day of solemn mourning for the Christian, given the reality that Christ died that day for all the sins that each of us has committed. Worship services on this day obviously emphasize the death of Christ as our sin-substitute. Some Christian congregations commemorate the three hours Christ spent on the cross with a “Tre Ora” (Three Hours) service which lasts from noon to three in the afternoon. This was a service practiced primarily by churches in the Western Church (Europe). Another traditional approach to commemorating Good Friday is known as “Tennebrae,” the Latin name for “darkness,” This “Tennebrae” service is usually observed after sunset, and is developed around the reading of and commentary on the seven statements (words) of Christ while on the cross. As the service progresses, at the conclusion of each of the seven commentary/readings the lights of the worship area are progressively dimmed until everything is completely darkened once Christ’s death is announced. After a few moments’ reflection upon the “darkness” of sin, a “Resurrection Candle” is lit and brought to the altar while a brief statement is read reminding the congregation that Christ has promised He will not remain in the grave, but will rise after three days. The congregation then pauses for silent prayer and exits the worship area and church building in silence, meditating upon all that God accomplished for us on that first Good Friday. The service of Tennebrae was generally practiced in the early Eastern Churches (from Greece eastward). For some, the custom of fasting is observed in the time between the close of the Maundy Thursday evening worship service and the end of the Good Friday service. Through fasting the Christian is able to share (be it ever so lightly) in a portion of our
Savior’s physical sufferings for us, and thus better appreciate His tremendous sacrifice for our benefit.
The final day of Holy Week is known as Holy Saturday. It focuses both on the time when our Lord’s body lay in death in the tomb and on His descent into hell, the two stages mentioned in the Apostles’ Creed as”dead and buried; He descended into hell.” The descent into hell is typically misunderstood by most Christians. It does not indicate that Christ continued to suffer for a time for our sins while in the captivity of hell. Some of His final words on Good Friday, “it is finished,” tell us that with His death, Christ’s suffering for sin was complete. Rather than to suffer in hell, Christ descended to proclaim and demonstrate His total victory over sin, death, and Satan by going unhindered into the “headquarters” of the Devil. Scripture supports the understanding of Christ’s victorious descent into hell in I Peter 3:18-20 and Colossians 2:15. As with Good Friday, Holy Saturday is observed with a solemn spirit, yet it also contains an element of anticipation in preparation for the celebration of the Lord’s resurrection on the next morn.
A Word Of Welcome To Our Guests . . . Good morning and welcome to Grace Lutheran Church. We’re pleased that you’ve chosen to be a part of our worshiping assembly this morning. Whether you are a guest today or a member of this Christian family, your presence at this service is sincerely appreciated. It is our wish that the time you spend here will be enjoyable and spiritually edifying, and so it is our desire to serve you in the best way we can. If there is anything that we might do to assist you in your worship today, please speak with one of our ushers or our Pastor. They will be pleased to serve you in any way they can. Following the worship service this morning, we invite you to join those around you for some coffee, refreshments, and good conversation during our fellowship period. If you are able, we would also be honored to have you remain after today’s fellowship time in order that you might further hear and study the Scriptures with us in one of our Bible Classes or Sunday School classes. And, we hope that you will come back soon to again praise the Lord with us. May God bless you and your worship of Him today.
Pre-Service Prayer – In the name of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen. My heavenly Father, I thank You through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, for keeping me through the night from all harm and danger. Keep me through this day also from sin and every evil that all my doings and life may please You. I commend my body and soul and all things into Your hands. Let Your holy angel be with me, so that the devil may have no power over me. Amen.
The portions of God’s Word 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
Pre-service music
Pre-Worship Hymn Singing, beginning at 9:25 a.m.
The Greeting and Introduction to Worship
We Worship Our Lord
at the Pastor’s invitation the Congregation will rise for
The Invocation
Pastor “We begin this service in the name of the Father
Congregation Who gave us our lives through His almighty power.
P: And in the name of the Son
C: Who redeemed our lives with His precious blood.
P: And in the name of the Holy Spirit
C: Who gave us eternal life through faith in Christ Jesus.
P: Amen
The Responsive Reading for the Beginning of Holy Week Isaiah 53
P: Who has believed our report and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
C: He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, and like a root from dry ground.
P: He had no attractiveness or majesty. When we saw Him, nothing about His appearance made us desire Him.
Men & Boys: He was despised and rejected by men, a Man Who knew grief Who was well acquainted with suffering.
Women & Girls: Like someone whom people cannot bear to look at, He was despised, and we thought nothing of Him.
P: Surely He was taking up our weaknesses, And He was carrying our sufferings. We thought it was because of God that He was smitten, stricken and afflicted.
C: But it was because of our rebellion that He was pierced.
Lectern Side He was crushed for the guilt our sins deserved.
Pulpit Side: The punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.
P: We all have gone astray, like sheep.
C: Each of us has turned to His own way; but the LORD has charged all our guilt to Him.
P: He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth. Like a lamb He was led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that is silent in front of its shearers, He did not open His mouth.
C: He was taken away without a fair trial and without justice. And of His generation, who even cared?”
Women & Girls: So He was cut off from the land of the living.
Men & Boys: He was struck because of the rebellion of my people.
P: They would have assigned Him a grave with the wicked, but He was given a grave with the rich in His death, because He had done no violence, and no deceit was in His mouth.
C: Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush Him and allow Him to suffer. Because You made His life a guilt offering,
Pulpit Side: He will see His offspring. He will prolong His days,
Lectern Side: and the LORD’s gracious plan will succeed in His hand.
P: After His soul experiences anguish, He will see the light of life. He will provide satisfaction. Through their knowledge of Him, my Just Servant will justify the many, for He Himself carried their guilt.
C: Therefore I will give Him an allotment among the great, and with the strong He will share plunder, because He poured out His life to death, and He let Himself be counted with rebellious sinners.
P: He Himself bore carried the sin of many, and He intercedes for the rebels.
after which the Congregation will be seated for
The Opening Hymn Hymn 131 “All Glory, Laud, and Honor”
1 All glory, laud, and honor To you, Redeemer, King,
To whom the lips of children Made sweet hosannas ring.
You are the King of Israel And David’s royal Son,
Now in the Lord’s name coming, Our King and blessed one.
2 All glory, laud, and honor To you, Redeemer, King,
To whom the lips of children Made sweet hosannas ring.
The company of angels Is praising you on high,
And we with all creation In chorus make reply.
3 All glory, laud, and honor To you, Redeemer, King,
To whom the lips of children Made sweet hosannas ring.
The people of the Hebrews With palms before you went;
Our praise and prayer and anthems Before you we present.
4 All glory, laud, and honor To you, Redeemer, King,
To whom the lips of children Made sweet hosannas ring.
To you before your passion They sang their hymns of praise;
To you, now high exalted, Our melody we raise.
5 All glory, laud, and honor To you, Redeemer, King,
To whom the lips of children Made sweet hosannas ring.
As you received their praises, Accept the prayers we bring,
O Source of ev’ry blessing, Our good and gracious King.
after which the Congregation will rise as
We Make Confession Of Our Sins To God
Pastor God, our Heavenly Father, invites us to come into His presence and to worship Him with humble and penitent hearts. Therefore, let us now turn to Him, acknowledging our sinfulness and seeking His forgiveness for all our sins.
Congregation Holy and merciful Father, I confess that I am by nature sinful and that I have disobeyed You in my thoughts, words, and actions; I have done what is evil in Your sight and have failed to do what is
good. For this I know that I deserve Your punishment, both now and for eternity. But I am truly sorry for all my sins, and trusting in the perfect life and innocent death of my Savior, Jesus Christ, I plead: God have mercy on me, a sinner.
Pastor Our gracious Lord and Master has shown us His mercy: He has given His one and only Son to save us
from all our sins. And now, carrying out my office as a called servant of Christ, and according to His command and authority, I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. May the peace of God rest upon all of you. Amen.
The Prayer For This Morning
Almighty and everlasting God, + in Your tender love for sinful humanity, + You sent Your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ, + to take upon Himself our human nature, + and to suffer death on the cross, + that we might be redeemed + from the eternal consequences of our sins; + Mercifully grant that we might follow + His example of humility, obedience, and patience, + and also that we be made partakers of His resurrection; + through the same Jesus Christ, + Your Son, our Lord, + Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, + One God, forever and ever. + Amen.
After which the Congregation will be seated as
We Hear God’s Word
The Old Testament Lesson Zechariah 9:9-12
9 Rejoice greatly, Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem!
Look! Your King is coming to you. He is righteous and brings salvation. He is humble and is riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. 10 I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the horse from Jerusalem. The battle bow will be taken away, and he will proclaim peace to the nations. His kingdom will extend from sea to sea,
from the River to the ends of the earth. 11 As for you, because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will release your prisoners from the waterless pit. 12 Return to the stronghold, you prisoners who have hope. This very day I declare that I will restore double to you.
The New Testament Lesson Acts 13:23-39
23 “From this man’s descendants God brought the Savior Jesus to Israel, in keeping with his promise. 24 Before he appeared publicly, John had preached a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. 25 As John was finishing his course, he said, ‘Who do you suppose I am? I am not that One. But look! That One is coming after me, and I am not worthy to untie the sandals on his feet.’ 26 Gentlemen, brothers, sons of Abraham’s family, and those among you who fear God, this message of salvation has been sent to you. 27 The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize him, and by condemning him they fulfilled the statements of the prophets that are read every Sabbath. 28 Though they found no grounds for a death sentence, they asked Pilate to have him executed. 29 When they carried out everything that was written about him, they took him down from the cross and laid him in a tomb. 30 But God raised him from the dead, 31 and for many days he was seen by those who had come up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. These same individuals are now his witnesses to the people. 32 “We are preaching to you the good news about the promise that was made to our fathers. 33 God has fulfilled this promise for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is also written in the second Psalm: You are my Son. Today I have begotten you.
34 “That God would raise him from the dead never again to be subject to decay, God said in this way: I will give you the holy and sure blessings promised to David. 35 “Therefore he also says in another place: You will not let your Holy One see decay. 36 For David, after he had served God’s purpose in his own generation, fell asleep, was laid to rest with his fathers, and saw decay. 37 But the One God raised did not see decay. 38 So, gentlemen, brothers, let it be known to you that through this Jesus forgiveness of sins is being proclaimed to you, also forgiveness from everything from which you could not be justified through the law of Moses. 39 In this Jesus, everyone who believes is justified.
Afterward the Congregation will rise for the Gospel Lesson
The Gospel Lesson John 11:45 to 12:19
45 Therefore many of the Jews who came to Mary and saw what Jesus did believed in him. 46 But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. 47 So the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin. They asked, “What are we going to do, because this man is doing many miraculous signs? 48 If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him. Then the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.”
49 But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all. 50 You do not even consider that it is better for us that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.” 51 He did not say this on his own, but, as high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation, 52 and not only for that nation, but also in order to gather into one the scattered children of God.
53 So from that day on they plotted to kill him. 54 Therefore Jesus no longer walked about openly among the Jews. Instead he withdrew into a region near the wilderness, to a town called Ephraim. And he stayed there with his disciples.
55 The Jewish Passover was near, and many went up to Jerusalem from the country to purify themselves before the Passover. 56 They kept looking for Jesus and asking one another as they stood in the temple area, “What do you think? He certainly won’t come to the Festival, will he?” 57 The chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that if anyone knew where Jesus was, he should report it so that they could arrest Jesus.
12:1 Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, the hometown of Lazarus, who had died, the one Jesus raised from the dead. 2 They gave a dinner for him there. Martha was serving, and Lazarus was one of those reclining at the table with him.
3 Then Mary took about twelve ounces of very expensive perfume (pure nard) and anointed Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
4 But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was going to betray him, said, 5 “Why wasn’t this perfume sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” 6 He did not say this because he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief. He held the money box and used to steal what was put into it.
7 Jesus replied, “Leave her alone. She intended to keep this for the day of my burial. 8 Indeed, the poor you always have with you, but you are not always going to have me.”
9 A large crowd of the Jews learned that he was there. They came not only because of Jesus, but also to see Lazarus, whom he raised from the dead. 10 So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus too, 11 because it was on account of him that many of the Jews were leaving them and believing in Jesus.
12 The next day, the large crowd that had come for the Festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. 13 Taking palm branches, they went out to meet him, shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord—the King of Israel!”
14 Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written: 15 Do not be afraid, daughter of Zion. Look! Your King is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.
16 At first, his disciples did not understand these things. But when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and that they did these things for him.
17 The crowd that was with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead kept telling what they had seen. 18 This is another reason a crowd met him: They heard he had done this miraculous sign. 19 So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see? You are accomplishing nothing. Look! The world has gone after him.”
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 II Corinthians 8:9
9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you by His poverty might become rich.
He Gave Everything Up to Give Us Everything
The Sermon Hymn Hymn 341 “Crown Him With Many Crowns”
1 Crown him with many crowns, The Lamb upon his throne;
Hark how the heav’nly anthem drowns All music but its own.
Awake, my soul, and sing Of him who died for thee,
And hail him as thy matchless King Through all eternity.
2 Crown him the Lord of love – Behold his hands and side,
Rich wounds, yet visible above, In beauty glorified.
No angel in the sky Can fully bear that sight,
But downward bends his wond’ring eye At mysteries so bright.
3 Crown him the Lord of life, Who triumphed o’er the grave
And rose victorious in the strife For those he came to save.
His glories now we sing Who died and rose on high,
Who died eternal life to bring And lives that death may die.
4 Crown him the Lord of heav’n, Enthroned in worlds above;
Crown him the King to whom is giv’n The wondrous name of Love.
Crown him with many crowns As thrones before him fall;
Crown him, ye kings, with many crowns For he is King of all.
The Pastor’s Greeting
Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus Christ, our Lord! Amen.
The Sermon Text Luke 19:28-44
28 After Jesus had said these things, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. 29 As he came near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the place called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples ahead, 30 saying, “Go to the village ahead of you. When you enter it, you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it here. 31 And if anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you will say this: ‘The Lord needs it.’” 32 Those who were sent ahead went and found things just as he had told them. 33 As they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?” 34 They said, “The Lord needs it.”
35 Then they brought the colt to Jesus. They threw their robes on the colt and set Jesus on it. 36 As he went along, people spread their robes on the road. 37 As he was approaching the slope of the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began to praise God joyfully, with a loud voice, for all the miracles they had seen, 38 saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” 39 Some of the Pharisees from the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!” 40 He replied, “I tell you, if these people would be silent, the stones would cry out.” 41 As he came near, he saw the city and wept over it. 42 He said, “If you, yes you, had only known on this day] the things that would bring peace to you. But now, it is hidden from your eyes. 43 In fact, the days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you, surround you, and hem you in on every side. 44 Within your walls, they will dash you and your children to the ground. And within your walls, they will not leave one stone on top of another, because you did not recognize the time when God came to help you.”
Jesus’ Road to Jerusalem
following the Sermon, the Congregation will rise for the blessing
Pastor To Him Who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy — to the only God our Savior, be glory, majesty, power, and authority now and forever. Amen.
We Respond To God’s Word through our Offerings
Offerings will be received this morning through offering plates passed among those who have gathered here for worship.
However, for those viewing this service online, we offer you the following suggestions for providing God with Your thank-offerings through our ministry:
1) You can mail a check (no cash, please) to our church address
(415 N. 6th Place, Lowell, AR 72745); or
2) You can donate through our website: www.gracelutherannwa.com
Our Offerings of Love to our Lord
after the offerings are brought forward, the Congregation will rise for
We Offer the LORD our Prayers
In our Prayers this morning we include:
An Intercessory Prayers for
for Dan Beck, who is contending with pancreatic cancer; and for Marilyn Outlaw, who will have surgery on Tueseday
Today’s General Prayer
P: Finally, Lord God, accept our thanks for the unspeakable privilege of being called Your children, and of being able to come to you now and at any time in prayer. Help us to grow intellectually, emotionally, spiritually through Your Word and Sacraments, so that we may be faithful servants for You in our homes, and communities, in this congregation, and as members of Your Church on earth. Mercifully hear our prayer, and bless us one and all, for the sake and in the name of Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and rules with You and the Holy Spirit, eternally one God, forever and ever. And in whose name we also join in praying:
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 Prepare To Leave With Our Lord’s Blessing
The Closing Blessing
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.
The Closing Hymn “The Time Has Come, O Lord”
The time has come O Lord, for us to leave this place.
Tend Your sheep, Good Shepherd, and lead us in Your grace.
Wherever life may take us as we go our separate ways,
Help us share with others the things we’ve shared today.
May the peace of God the Father,
and the Love of Christ, His Son,
Guide us in the days ahead, and strengthen us, each one.
May the blessings of the Spirit fill us from within.
God bless us and return us. to this fellowship…..Once again.
Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
Announcements
Looking Ahead At Grace Lutheran Church
April 10 (Sun) Choir, 8:40 a.m. Worship Service 9:30 a.m.
Bible Classes/Sunday School, 11:05 a.m. Easter Outreach Brochure Distribution, noon
April 12 (Tues) Morning Bible Class, 10:30 a.m.
April 14 (Thurs) Maundy Thursday Worship Service, 7 p.m.
April 15 (Fri) Good Friday Worship Service, 7 p.m.
April 16 (Sat) Work Day at Church, preparing for Easter, 9 a.m.
April 17 (Sun) Easter Sunday Worship Service, 9:30 a.m.
Easter Brunch and Egg Hunt, after worship
Last Week At Grace Lutheran: Sunday Worship Attendance: 77
Sunday School Attendance: 3 Sunday Bible Class Attendance: 24 Budget Offerings: $4219 Online Offerings: $543.17
Tuesday Bible Class: 11 Midweek Lent Service: 24 Offerings: $886
Serving Us Next Week Elders: John Johnson, Rick Tragasz Ushers: Terry Bruns, Tim Huebner, Tom Otto
Altar Guild: Harriet Johnson, Christine Quinlan
This Week’s Birthdays April 11 – Dawn Watkins; April 12 – Rachel Strackbein;
April 13 – Jimmy Clark; April 15 – Kyla Huebner
This Week’s Bible Classes In Bible Class today we’ll continue our study of I Corinthians 16. We’ll be looking further at how and why Christians present their offerings to the Lord. For our Tuesday morning Bible class we’re studying the book of Ezra. Please join us!
Please Bring Your Easter Lilies to Church on Easter Sunday….. – We’d like to adorn the front of our church with Easter lilies on Easter Sunday. Please help us do that by bringing a lily (or lilies) to church. To volunteer use the sign up sheet in the front lobby, or for more information.
Children’s Easter Egg Hunt Easter Sunday – The children of our congregation (and their friends) are invited to an Easter Egg hunt to be held here on the church grounds at the close of our post-worship Easter Brunch. In connection with this activity…..if you’d be willing to help fill the plastic eggs, please volunteer yourself to Debbie Huebner
TODAY: Evangelism Invitation Distribution After our normal day’s activities this morning, we hope you’ll be able to help us by giving an hour’s worth of your time to distribute 1500 Easter evangelism brochures to homes near our church. On the table under the coat rack, you’ll find bundles of doorhanger bags, each with a map of the streets where we’d like them to be distributed. And if you can’t distribute them this aftenoon, but would be willing to pass them out on Monday or Tuesday, please take some brochures and distribute them at your convenience during the next few days (hopefully, no later than Wednesday). For more information, please speak with Pastor.
Whom will you bring to worship this Easter Sunday? Yourself (and your spouse) of course. But how about inviting and bringing your son or daughter,,,,your Grandchildren….your parents….an unchurched neighbor…..someone with whom you work….or how about a stranger that you’ve yet to meet? You could even invite a member of Grace who hasn’t been in church with us for a very long time. Many people we know haven’t been in church to worship our Lord in a very long time. God has put each of us in the lives of these people because He wants us to be examples of faith in Christ to them. He’s also called us all to verbally witness to them about how essential faith in the crucified and risen Christ is for us…and for them. After all, all of us are Christ’s “ambassadors” whose privilege it is to present the Gospel to people so the Holy Spirit can either establish, or strengthen, saving faith in their hearts. There’s no better opportunity to do that than this week, as we head toward the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection. So, please be a witness for Jesus, and invite (and bring) someone you know who’s non-churched to worship our risen Savior with us on Easter morning.
Rummage Announcement…..On May 14-15 our Women’s Group will sponsor a rummage sale. We’d appreciate it if you could donate any items to our rummage sale. And, if you need to bring those items earlier than the week before the sale, we’ll work out a time with you for early drop offs. Just speak with Pastor about it. Thank you.