Prelude
Greeting and Welcome
Lighting of the Candles
Hymn of Invocation – Just as I Am, without One Plea (LSB 570)
Just as I am, without one plea
But that Thy blood was shed for me
And that Thou bidd’st me come to Thee,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
Just as I am and waiting not
To rid my soul of one dark blot,
To Thee, whose blood can cleanse each spot,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
Just as I am, though tossed about
With many a conflict, many a doubt,
Fightings and fears within, without,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
Just as I am; Thy love unknown
Has broken ev’ry barrier down;
Now to be Thine, yea, Thine alone,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
+ Preparation +
Invocation
P: In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
C: Amen.
Confession and Absolution
P: When we use the Ten Commandments and other parts of the moral code as a mirror, we see that we have fallen from the perfection of God’s good creation and His perfect Law. Who can discern his errors?
C: Declare me innocent from hidden faults.
P: Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins;
C: let them not have dominion over me!
P: Our gracious Lord has promised full and free forgiveness to all who call out to our heavenly Father in His name. Let us therefore confess our sins to God, our heavenly Father.
C: O God, we confess that we have sinned against You and one another in our thinking, speaking, and acting. Worse, in our fallen nature, we are sinful and unclean, and in the eyes of many we are weak, lowly people. But because You have graciously chosen us and worked faith in our hearts, we humbly ask for mercy for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ. Forgive, renew, and lead us in paths of righteousness.
P: The foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. We preach Christ crucified, and for us the word of the cross is the power of God. As a called and ordained servant of Christ, and by His authority, I therefore forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
C: Amen. Thanks be to God.
P: Then I shall be blameless, and innocent of great transgression.
C: Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
+ Word +
First Reading – Exodus 20:1–17
And God spoke all these words, saying,
“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
“You shall have no other gods before me.
“You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.
“You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.
“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
“You shall not murder.
“You shall not commit adultery.
“You shall not steal.
“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”
P: This is the Word of the Lord.
C: Thanks be to God.
Epistle – 1 Corinthians 1:18–31
For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”
Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, whom God made our wisdom and our righteousness and sanctification and redemption. Therefore, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”
P: This is the Word of the Lord.
C: Thanks be to God.
Holy Gospel – Mark 11:12-14, 20-26
P: The Holy Gospel according to St. Mark, the eleventh chapter.
C: Glory to You, O Lord.
On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it.
As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. And Peter remembered and said to him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”
P: This is the Gospel of the Lord.
C: Praise to You, O Christ.
Children’s Hymn – God Is So Good (AGPS 107)
God is so good, God is so good,
God is so good, He’s so good to me.
He cares for me, He cares for me,
He cares for me, He’s so good to me.
Children’s Sermon
Hymn of the Day – What Wondrous Love Is This (LSB 543)
What wondrous love is this, O my soul, O my soul!
What wondrous love is this, O my soul!
What wondrous love is this
That caused the Lord of bliss
To bear the dreadful curse for my soul, for my soul,
To bear the dreadful curse for my soul!
When I was sinking down, sinking down, sinking down,
When I was sinking down, sinking down,
When I was sinking down
Beneath God’s righteous frown,
Christ laid aside His crown for my soul, for my soul,
Christ laid aside His crown for my soul.
And when from death I’m free, I’ll sing on, I’ll sing on;
And when from death I’m free, I’ll sing on.
And when from death I’m free,
I’ll sing His love for me,
And through eternity I’ll sing on, I’ll sing on,
And through eternity I’ll sing on.
Sermon
Apostles' Creed
C: 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 Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell. The third day He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life + everlasting. Amen.
Prayer of the Church
+ Celebrating birthdays this week: 8 – Sylvia Bach; 12 – Ken Clark, Thomas Willmann; 13 – Jean Das, Zach Ortstadt, Luke Schultz
Special Celebrations and Needs:
+ Church family members: Family and friends of Charlotte Moret upon her death last week; prayer of thanksgiving for Fiona Marie Wise, newborn granddaughter of Julie Atwood-Wise; prayer of thanksgiving for Charlotte Nichole Jacobson, newborn grandchild of Bob & Debbie Jacobson
+ Friends of our congregation: Rebecca Guion, daughter-in-law of Mary Guion, who is receiving treatment for lymphoma; Ryan Barnett’s father, who has cancer; the family and friends of former Glendale Lutheran member Nancy Allen upon her death
+ Those who are homebound or in nursing facilities: Mary Guion, Corinne Gutzler, Anne Hammann, Bettie Welch, Joan Winkler, Ruth Wussler
Offertory