The Festival of the Holy Trinity

The Second Sunday of the Pentecost Season

 

Pre-Service Prayer  –  Heavenly Father, guide us through Your Holy Word this morning, that we may grow stronger in our faith in You, and in Your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ.   Through Your Holy Spirit, help us to be on guard against any and everything that seeks to harm our salvation, and please lead us all to live in the same unselfish love toward each other that Christ extends to us.   In Jesus’ name I ask this.   Amen.

 

Welcome to Grace Lutheran Church If you are a first-time guest today, we are honored that you’ve chosen to worship with us this morning.  If you’ve been with us before, we’re glad to have you back!  If we can do anything to make your time among us more edifying and enjoyable, please speak with one of our ushers, our Pastor, or the person sitting near you.  We’ll be pleased to serve you in whatever way we can.   Finally, we invite you to join us on future Sundays as we worship our Lord together.    May the comfort of God’s love and His forgiveness through Jesus Christ bring you peace and be with you throughout this day and this week.

 

“God in Three Persons, Blessed Trinity”

…..is a portion of today’s Opening Hymn, which is one of our hymnal’s “Trinity emphasis” hymns.  It serves as our “Worship Theme” this morning because you and I today are celebrating “The Festival of the Holy Trinity.”  Trinity Sunday is that occasion on the church calendar when Christians traditionally concentrate their attention on the mysterious, yet marvelous doctrine of our Triune God.  Although the Scriptures nowhere contain either the word “Trinity” or the word “Triune,” the teaching that our God is a “three-in-one God” is thoroughly Biblical.   As Christians what we believe and teach is that our God is one “Essence,” (or Being) Who reveals Himself through three distinct, unique Persons:  Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.   

         As we’ll see in our Scripture readings today, this doctrine of the Trinity is clearly set forth in both the Old and New Testaments.    In addition to the Trinity-emphasis found in today’s hymns, the Athanasian Creed, which will be included in today’s worship service, is a centuries-old, detailed statement of belief that focuses extensively on the Biblical doctrine of the Trinity.   Our Psalm Reading for this Trinity Sunday expresses a believer’s earnest desire that all people might know, believe in, and praise the One true God.   The Children’s Lesson, using the traditional Christian symbol for the Trinity of the combined triangle and circle will talk about the “separate-sameness” of our three-in-one God – the only true God.  Instead of our usual Old Testament, Epistle, and Gospel Lessons, today’s Scripture Lesson consists of selected Bible passages which speak about the responsibilities and functions of the three Persons of the Trinity.  The readings are separated into three parts, referring to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, respectively.  Following each reading, we will give our attention to the words from our Small Catechism which offer Martin Luther’s explanations to the first, second, and third articles of the Apostles’ Creed.  Today’s Sermon focues on “The God We Worship….The Only God There Is”.  It’s based on two portions of Scripture.   The first part is from John 8, and is part of the account of Jesus’ adversaries accusing him of being demon-possessed and a “Samaritan” (which the Jews regarded as unbelievers).   Jesus responds, among other things, by letting them know what He not only is telling/teaching the truth, but that God is His Father, and that I, Himself, is God through declaring “Before Abraham was, I AM” (which is the OT name for the LORD….see Exodus 34:5,6).   They recognized wht He was saying and, accusing Him of blaspheny in their hearts, tried to stone Jesus to death…..which they were unable to do because He slipped away from them.   In our second Scripture text, a part of Peter’s Pentecost sermon, he mentions all three persons of the Trinity:   the Father, Who send, raised and exalted His Son;   the Son Who died and rose for our salvation;   and the Holy Spirit — sent by the Son — to establish faith in our hearts.

 

 The Athanasian Creed

         The Athanasian Creed is the third, the longest, and the least used of the three “ecumenical” (accepted church-wide) creeds of the Christian Church.  The other two ecumenical Christian creeds (a creed is “a statement of what we believe”)  are the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed.      While we are not certain of the name of the person who “authored” this creed, we do know that it received the designation “Athanasian” as a tribute to Athanasius, one of the prominent, orthodox leaders of the early Christian Church.  Athanasius lived from 293-373 A.D.    Not only was he very influential in supporting and defending the doctrines of the Nicene Creed, he also prominently and personally was involved in the actual development of that statement of belief.     (The Nicene Creed was prepared in its initial form for the 1st Ecumenical Council of the Christian Church held at Nicea in 325.   The “improved”   version, which we use today [with the 591 A.D. addition of the term “filioque” (“and the son”) which expresses the truth that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son] is actually the Niceno-Constantinopolitan version.   It was developed by the 2nd Ecumenical Council of the Church, at Constantinople in 381 A.D.)  

         The best information we have today about the date and place of origin of the Athanasian Creed suggests that it was written possibly in North Africa, but more likely in southern France sometime between 435 and 570 (when Venatius Fortunatus of Poitiers wrote a short commentary on the creed).

         The writing of the Athanasian Creed was made necessary because orthodox (true-teaching) Christians were forced increasingly to defend the Church’s Biblical doctrine concerning the God it worshiped.  Consequently, the post-Nicean Christian Church felt compelled to develop this written statement of what the Scriptures teach about the true God specifically for this reason: a number of false beliefs and teachings (various forms of Unitarianism and tri-theism) about God were being vigorously promoted by certain individuals and groups desiring to operate under the umbrella of the Church.  However, while they might have technically been “in” the church,  in reality through their heretical teachings those individuals and groups had already departed from the Christian Church (and were misleading others with their false, damnable beliefs). 

         The Athanasian Creed’s primary purpose was to set down in detail what the Scriptures specifically teach about the Triune God and about the incarnation of God (that is to say, the Second Person of the Trinity’s becoming truly human while at the same time remaining entirely divine).    The Creed emphasizes the Unity of the Godhead……that we worship ONE God.  However, it carefully points out the Plurality of that One divine Essence…..that there are three distinct persons of the Godhead….Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  In so doing, this longest of the three Ecumenical (accepted Church-wide) Creeds meticulously states the differences and distinctions that the Bible teaches concerning those three persons of that one God….the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.    This is a most complicated doctrine, one not understood by our human reason, but rather one which is simply presented to us in Scripture as fact, and which is to be accepted by us by faith.

         Because it focuses in greater detail on the various characteristics of the Triune God Whom we worship, the Athanasian Creed is traditionally recited by Christian Churches on Trinity Sunday as our confession of our faith in the one, true God.    Following that centuries-old practice, we will make use of this statement of our Christian faith by reading it responsively during this morning’s worship service. 

 

Please Note:    The closing words of the Athanasian Creed say that all people will finally “give an account” before the judgment seat of Christ.  This phrase comes from Bible passages such as  the following:

 

Matthew 12:36  But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken.

Romans 14:12     So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.  (Cf. Hebrews 4:13; 13:17; 1 Peter 4:5).

 

         This refers to the fact that all people will rise on the Last Day to appear before Christ, the Judge of all.

 

2 Corinthians 5:10       For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.

 

         Sometimes Christians who know that the way to heaven is by faith in Jesus Christ alone (and not by works – Ephesians 2:8,9) are troubled by the words of the Creed: “And they that have done good will go into life everlasting; and they that have done evil, into everlasting fire.”  (See John 5:29). These words do not mean that we earn heaven by good works. Romans 3:28  For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law.  (Cf. John 3:16-18).

         Since faith in the heart is invisible, Christ will prove that believers had faith by

pointing out the “fruits” of that faith (Matthew 25:31-46).  Only believers can produce such fruits of faith, done out of love for the Lord, which God recognizes as “good works,” for Hebrews 11:6 declares that “without faith it is impossible to please God.”

         Christ kept the commandments for us all, as our Substitute, and by faith His perfect obedience is credited to us as our own obedience.  Scripture says that all of our Savior’s righteous works are credited to the account of believers (2 Cor. 5:21).  For Jesus’ sake, by God’s grace, our failures have been entirely forgiven;   this God promises when He says that He will forget the sins of His believers (Jeremiah 31:34).    On Judgment Day, Christ will not mention the sins of believers, but will recognize their fruits of faith in Him  (“good works”).  Furthermore, He will reveal the “motive of their own works” (that they were moved by Spirit-given faith and love for Him;    Matthew 25:40 “Whatever you did…..You did  for Me”).  On the other hand, Christ will point to the unbelievers’ absence of “Godly,” faith-inspired good works (and not to their secular, and self-serving good deeds which did not flow from faith, in spite of how numerous those good deeds might have been) as the evidence that they did not possess faith in Him and thus, that their eternal condemnation by virtue of their unbelief is warranted.     It will be just as Christ said: “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:16).

 

All Scripture Quotations in this worship flyer have been taken, with permission, from

The Evangelical Heritage Version, 2019 The Wartburg Project.    All rights reserved.

 

Order of Worship for Trinity Sunday

 

Silent Prayer

Pre-service music                                                                                                   

 

We Praise Our God

 

Invocation

 

“We begin this service in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen. 

 

The Preparatory Psalm                                                                          Psalm 67

 

May God be gracious to us and bless us  +    and make his face shine on us  +   so that your ways may be known on earth,  +    your salvation among all nations.   +  May the peoples praise you, God;  +   may all the peoples praise you.   +  May the nations be glad and sing for joy,  +    for you rule the peoples with equity  +     and guide the nations of the earth.  +   May the peoples praise you, God;   +      may all the peoples praise you.   +   The land  yields its harvest;   +     God, our God, blesses us.   +  May God bless us still,   +     so that all the ends of the earth will fear him.

 

After which the Congregation may be seated

 

The Opening Hymn                           “Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty”

 

1 Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty!  

Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee.

Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty!

God in three persons, blessed Trinity!

2 Holy, holy, holy! All the saints adore thee,

casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea;

cherubim and seraphim falling down before thee,

which wert and art, and evermore shalt be.

 

3 Holy, holy, holy! Though the darkness hide thee,

though the eye of sinfulness thy glory may not see,

only thou art holy; there is none beside thee,

perfect in pow’r, in love and purity.

 

the Congregation will rise to sing the final verse

 

4 Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty!

All thy works shall praise thy name in earth and sky and sea.

Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty!

God in three persons, blessed Trinity!

 

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 most merciful Father,     I confess that I am by nature sinful, and that I have disobeyed You in my thoughts, words, and actions; Each day I turn away from Your Will.    I have left undone

those things which  You have asked me to do,    and I have done those things which You tell me not to do.    I do not love You or my neighbor the way I should.     Because of these,    and all of my other sins,    too numerous for me to recall,      I acknowledge that I deserve nothing less than Your punishment      both now and for eternity.     But I am truly sorry for the evil that I have thought, spoken, and done,     and trusting in the perfect life,   and innocent death of my Savior, Jesus Christ, I pray:    Lord, forgive me all my sins,      restore to me the joy of Your salvation,   and strengthen my weak faith through the promises of Your divine Word     that I may obtain Your promised grace.

 

The Assurance Of God’s Forgiveness

 

Pastor –     “Find comfort for your souls, then, in these words of our Lord:   “If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just,  and will purify us from all unrighteousness,  because we have One Who speaks to the Father in our

defense — Jesus Christ,  the Righteous One.   We have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.”   And now, upon this, your voluntary confession,  I, because of my office as a called servant of God’s Word,  announce the grace of God to all of you.  And, in the place of, and according to 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 Spirit.   May the peace of God be with you.  Amen.”

 

 

We Respond To God’s Forgiveness

 

Praise God from Whom all blessings flow. 

 Praise Him, all creatures here, below —

Praise Him above, Ye heav’nly host.  

Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost.   Amen.

 

 

The Prayer For Trinity Sunday   (offered by the Pastor)

 

Almighty God and Father,    dwelling in majesty and mystery,    filling and renewing all creation by Your eternal Spirit,   and manifesting Your saving grace through our Lord Jesus Christ:    in Your mercy cleanse our hearts and lips,   so that, free from doubt and fear,    we may ever worship You,    the one, true, immortal God,    together with Your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ,   and God the Holy Spirit,   living and reigning,  now and forever.   Amen.

 

after which the Congregation will be seated

 

We Hear God’s Word

 

The Children’s Lesson                                                                 Matthew 28:19

 

19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

 

“Three-in-One Does Add Up to the One True God

 

The Biblical Doctrine of the Holy Trinity

 

We Believe in God the Father Almighty                                     

 

The Creator                                                                             I Corinthians 8:5-6

5 For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”), 6 yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live.

 

 

The Preserver                                                                           Psalm 145:13b-16

The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises      and faithful in all he does.   14  The Lord upholds all who fall  and lifts up all who are bowed down.   15  The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time.  16  You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.

 

Who sent His Son to be our Savior                                           Romans 8:31-32

31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?

 

 

The work that God the Father does for us             Luther’s explanation of the First Article of the Apostles’ Creed

 

I believe that God made me and all that exists, and that He gave me my body and soul, eyes, ears and all my members,  my mind and all my abilities.     And I believe that God still preserves me   by richly and daily providing clothing and shoes,  food and drink,   property and home,   spouse and children,   land, cattle and all I own,  and all that I need to keep my body and life.  God also preserves me by defending me against all danger,  and guarding and protecting me from all evil.   All this God does only because He is my good and merciful Father in heaven,   and not because I have earned or deserved it.     For all this I ought to thank and praise,  to serve and obey Him.  This is most certainly true.

 

 

We Believe in God the Son

 

He is both true God and true Man                                         Philippians 2:5-11

5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:   6  Who, being in very nature God,     did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;  7 rather, he made himself nothing  by taking the very natureof a servant,  being made in human likeness.  8  And being found in appearance as a man,  he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross!  9  Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name,

10  that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,   11  and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,  to the glory of God the Father.

 

 

He is our Savior from sin                                                                    Titus 3:4-7

4 But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.

 

 

The work that God the Son does for us                  Luther’s explanation to the Second Article of the Apostles’ Creed

 

I believe that Jesus Christ, true God,  begotten of the Father from eternity,    and also true man,    born of the Virgin Mary, is my Lord.   He has redeemed me a lost and condemned creature,   purchased and won me from all sins,   from death, and from the power of the devil,  not with gold or silver, but with His holy precious blood  and with His innocent suffering and death.     All this He did that I should be His own,   and live under Him in His kingdom,  and serve Him in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness,    just as He has risen from death and lives and rules eternally.   This is most certainly true.

 

 

We Believe in God the Holy Spirit

 

He is our Sanctifier, bringing us to faith

and keeps us in the one true faith                               II Thessalonians 2:13-15

13 But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters loved by the Lord, because God chose you as firstfruits to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth. 14 He called you to this through our gospel, that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.   15 So then, brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold fast to the teachings we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter.

 

 

He has enlightened the Church with His Gifts              I Corinthians 12:4-11

4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.  7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 8 To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues,[a] and to still another the interpretation of tongues.  11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.

 

 

He enriches us with His Fruits                                                Galatians 5:22-25

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

 

 

The work that the Holy Ghost does for us             Luther’s explanation to the Third Article of the Apostles’ Creed

 

I believe that I cannot by my own thinking or choosing,   believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him.  But the Holy Spirit has called me by the gospel,   enlightened me with His gifts,   sanctified and kept me in the true faith.    In the same way He calls, gathers, enlightens,  and sanctifies the whole Christian Church on earth,   and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith.    In this Christian Church  He daily and fully forgives all sins to me and all believers.    On the Last Day He will raise me and all the dead, and give eternal life to me and all believers in Christ.     This is most certainly true.

 

after which the Congregation will rise to join in

 

The Athanasian Creed

 

P:  Whoever will be saved, shall, above all else, hold the true Christian faith.

C:  Which faith, except everyone keeps whole and undefiled, without doubt he shall perish eternally.

P:  And the true Christian faith is this,

C: That we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity, neither confounding the Persons, nor dividing the Substance.

P:   For there is one Person of the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy Ghost.

C: But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost is all one: the glory equal, the majesty coeternal

P: Such as the Father is, such is the Son, and such is the Holy Ghost.

C:  The Father uncreated, the Son uncreated, and the Holy Ghost uncreated.

P:  The Father incomprehensible, the Son incomprehensible, and the Holy Ghost incomprehensible.

C:  The  Father eternal, the Son eternal, and the Holy Ghost eternal.

P:  And yet they are not three Eternals, but one Eternal.

C:  As there are not three Uncreated nor three Incomprehensibles, but one Uncreated and one Incomprehensible.

P:  So likewise the Father is almighty, the Son almighty, and the Holy Ghost almighty.

C:  And yet they are not three Almighties, but one Almighty.

P:  So the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Ghost is God.

C:  And yet they are not three Gods, but one God.

P:  So likewise the Father is Lord, the Son Lord, and the Holy Ghost Lord.  

C:  and yet they are not three Lords, but one Lord.

P:  For as we are compelled by the Christian truth to acknowledge every Person by Himself to be God and Lord, 

C: So the true Christian faith forbids us to say that there are three Gods, or three Lords.

P:  The Father is made of none: neither created nor begotten.

C:  The Son is of the Father alone; not made, nor created, but begotten.

P:  The Holy Ghost is of the Father and of the Son: neither made, nor created, nor begotten, but proceeding. 

C: So there is one Father, not three Fathers; one Son, not three Sons; one Holy Ghost, not three Holy Ghosts.

P:  And in this Trinity none is before or after other; none is greater or less than another;

C: But the whole three Persons are coeternal together, and coequal:

P:  So that in all things, as was said before,

C:  The Unity in Trinity and the Trinity in Unity is to be worshiped.

P: He, therefore, that will be saved must thus think of the Trinity

C:  Furthermore, it is necessary to everlasting salvation that he also believe faithfully the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ.

P:  For the right faith is that we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and Man;

C:  God of the Substance of the Father, begotten before the worlds; and Man of the substance of His mother, born in the world;

P:  Perfect God and perfect Man, of a reasonable soul and human flesh subsisting.

C:  Equal to the Father as touching His Godhead, and inferior to the Father as touching His manhood;

P:  Who, although He is God and Man, yet He is not two but one Christ:

C:  One, not by conversion of the Godhead into flesh, but by taking the manhood into God;

P:  One altogether; not by confusion of Substance, but by unity of Person.

C:  For as the reasonable soul and flesh is one man, so God and Man is one Christ; 

P:  Who suffered for our salvation; descended into hell, rose again the third day from the dead;

C:  He ascended into heaven; He sits on the right hand of the Father, God Almighty; from there He will come to judge the living and the dead.

P:  At whose coming all men will rise again with their bodies,

C:  And will give an account of their own works.

P:  And they that have done good will go into life everlasting;

C:  And they that have done evil, into everlasting fire.

P:  This is the true Christian faith

C:  which, except a man believe faithfully and firmly,  He cannot be saved.

 

 

after which, the Congregation may be seated

 

Our Sermon Hymn                                                  Joyful, Joyful We Adore You

                                                                                  To the melody of “Ode to Joy”

 

Joyful, joyful we adore You,   God of glory, God of love!

Heav’n and earth bow down before You,     Praising You, our Lord above.

You our Father,   Christ our Savior,    With the Spirit faith provides,

Life eternal we’ve been granted, gracious gift that e’er abides.

 

You are giving and forgiving,      Ever glorious, Ever blest.

Source of every kind of blessing,    Giver of eternal rest.

You have claimed us as Your children     Heaven’s heirs through faith alone —

In the Rock of our salvation,   Jesus Christ, our Lord, Your Son.

 

Lord, receive our prayers and praises, weak and humble though they be.

Yours the power, Yours the glory,   Both today and endlessly.

None beside You, None before You, God of mercy, full and free.

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, ever blessed Trinity.

 

 

                  after which, the Congregation will be invited to rise for

The Greeting

 

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who has

blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ.    Amen.

 

Sermon Text                                                        Acts 2:14a,29-33; John 8:48-59

 

29 “Fellow Israelites, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. 30 But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. 31 Seeing what was to come, he spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, that he was not abandoned to the realm of the dead, nor did his body see decay. 32 God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of it. 33 Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear.

 

…….48 The Jews answered him, “Aren’t we right in saying that you are a Samaritan and demon-possessed?”  49 “I am not possessed by a demon,” said Jesus, “but I honor my Father and you dishonor me. 50 I am not seeking glory for myself; but there is one who seeks it, and he is the judge. 51 Very truly I tell you, whoever obeys my word will never see death.”   52 At this they exclaimed, “Now we know that you are demon-possessed! Abraham died and so did the prophets, yet you say that whoever obeys your word will never taste death. 53 Are you greater than our father Abraham? He died, and so did the prophets. Who do you think you are?” 54 Jesus replied, “If I glorify myself, my glory means nothing. My Father, whom you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies me. 55 Though you do not know him, I know him. If I said I did not, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and obey his word. 56 Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad.” 57 “You are not yet fifty years old,” they said to him, “and you have seen Abraham!” 58 “Very truly I tell you,” Jesus answered, “before Abraham was born, I am!” 59 At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds.

 

 The God We Worship…..The Only God There Is

 

following the sermon, the Congregation will rise for

 

The Post-Sermon Blessing

 

May the LORD our God be with us as He was with our fathers;   May He never leave us or forsake use.  May He turn our hearts to Him, to walk in all His ways.    Amen.

 

after which the Congregation may be seated for

 

We Offer Our Gifts and Prayers to the Lord

 

Our Offerings of Love to our Lord                                                                      

 

Because we aren’t able to pass an offering plate today during today’s worship

service those in attendance may leave their offerings in the offering plates

by the exit door at the close of our service today.

For those watching today’s service, 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 the church address

(415 N. 6th Place, Lowell, AR 72745)

2) You can go online to our website (www.gracelutherannwa.com)

and use the giving option there.

after which the Congregation will rise for

The Prayers for this Day  

 

Pastor:     Lord God, Almighty Father, You made us the crown of all Your creation, and You graciously preserve us with every good thing, that we may live before You in peace and joy.

 

Cong: You do this all out of pure Fatherly goodness and mercy,   +  and not because we have earned or deserve it;   +   now, for this it is our duty to thank and to praise You,   +  and to gladly offer all that You have given us,   +   especially ourselves, to Your service,   +  and for Your glory.

 

P: Lord Jesus Christ, God’s only Son from all eternity, You have redeemed us, lost and condemned sinners, with Your holy, precious blood and You have set us free from all sin, from death, and from the power of the Devil.

 

C:      All this You did to make us Your own,  +  that we may live with You, now and forever,   +  in perfect joy and endless glory.

 

P:      O Holy Spirit, You have called us out of the darkness of unbelief through the Gospel; You have illumined our hearts by the light of faith and joined us into one sanctified family with our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

C:      You have done all this so that we may be filled with the rich gifts of Your grace:   +  an unwavering trust in the true God;   +  the love of Christ that knows no limits;   +   a strong faith to willingly serve and publicly confess You,   +   our God, before all people;   +  and the courage to meet and overcome every trial of life and death.

 

P:      O Triune God, we praise and thank You for all the blessings You have so generously given us, Your unworthy servants. At Your invitation, we now bring all our needs of body and soul to You as we join 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 The Lord’s Blessing

 

The Benediction   

 

           The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ

                And the Love of God the Father

                      And the Fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.   Amen.

 

The Closing Hymn                                                        “The Lord, My God, Be Praised”

 

The Lord, my God, be praised,   My God, the ever-living,

To whom the heav’nly host    All praise and honor giving

The Lord, my God, be praised,   In Whose great name I boast,

God Father, God the Son,   And God the Holy Ghost.    Amen.

 

Silent Prayer

Announcements

Post-service Music                                                                                                               

 

Announcements

 

Serving Us Today)                                     Elders:   Tim Pfortmiller and Ken Abernathy

Ushers:   Chris Roberts, Drake Schwartz, Murray Mansch, Chase Roberts

Altar Guild:  Tina Wambold

 

Serving Us Next Sunday, June 14th              Elders:   Ken Abernathy, Tim Pfortmiller

Ushers:   Heath Jones;   John Wambold;   Jim Winnat

Altar Guild:     Christine Quinlan;   Linda Winnat

 

Last Week at Grace Lutheran:                                                                                          

Sunday Worship Attendance:   54

Tuesday Bible Class:  12                Offerings….Budgetary: $4972.48

Memorial for Budgetary Fund in honor of Larry Brown:   $990.39

 

Looking Ahead at Grace Lutheran

Today           Festival of the Holy Trinity, morning worship at 9:30 a.m. (including the Lord’s Supper)    

June 09 (Tues) Morning Bible Study, 10:30 to 11:30 a.m.

                          Church Council Meeting, 6 p.m.   Elders’ Meeting, afterward

June 14 (Sun)   Morning Worship, 9:30 a.m.

 

Church Council and Elders’ Meeting, THIS WEEK   …..This Tuesday evening (June 09)  we’ll be meeting both as a Church Council (6 p.m.) and as Elders (afterward).   We will meet in the gym.

 

This Week’s Birthday           June 10 — Ella Quinlan