Prelude – In Christ Alone
Greeting and Welcome
Lighting of the Candles
Hymn of Invocation – I Know That My Redeemer Lives (LSB 461, v 1-4)
I know that my Redeemer lives;
What comfort this sweet sentence gives!
He lives, He lives, who once was dead;
He lives, my ever-living head.
He lives triumphant from the grave;
He lives eternally to save;
He lives all-glorious in the sky;
He lives exalted there on high.
He lives to bless me with His love;
He lives to plead for me above;
He lives my hungry soul to feed;
He lives to help in time of need.
He lives to grant me rich supply;
He lives to guide me with His eye;
He lives to comfort me when faint;
He lives to hear my soul’s complaint.
+ Preparation +
Invocation
P: In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
C: Amen.
Confession and Absolution – Psalm 85:1-13
P: Today’s psalm has two parts. The first is the plea of the psalmist to God, and the second is his announcement of God’s promised salvation. We now use Psalm 85 as we confess our sins and hear God’s forgiveness for Jesus’ sake.
P: Lord, You were favorable to Your land;
C: You restored the fortunes of Jacob.
P: You forgave the iniquity of Your people;
C: You covered all their sin.
P: You withdrew all Your wrath;
C: You turned from Your hot anger.
P: Restore us again, O God of our salvation,
C: and put away Your indignation toward us!
P: Will You be angry with us forever?
C: Will You prolong Your anger to all generations?
P: Will You not revive us again,
C: that Your people may rejoice in You?
P: Show us Your steadfast love, O Lord,
C: and grant us Your salvation.
C: We confess, Lord our God, that we have listened to the voices of Satan, the world, and our own desires. We have not loved You with all that we are and have, and we have not considered our neighbors’ needs as important as our own. We can only throw ourselves on the mercy of Your gracious court and ask for forgiveness, that we may amend our sinful ways.
P: Let me hear what God the Lord will speak, for He will speak peace to His people, to His saints;
C: but let them not turn back to folly.
P: Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him,
C: that glory may dwell in our land.
P: Steadfast love and faithfulness meet;
C: righteousness and peace kiss each other.
P: Faithfulness springs up from the ground,
C: and righteousness looks down from the sky.
P: Yes, the Lord will give what is good,
C: and our land will yield its increase.
P: Righteousness will go before Him
C: and make His footsteps a way.
P: The steadfast love and faithfulness of our God are endless. For the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for all our sins, God declares us to be His own children and has opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers. As a called and ordained servant of Christ, I therefore forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
C: Thanks be to God. Amen.
+ Word +
First Reading – Amos 7:7-15
This is what [the Lord God] showed me: behold, the Lord was standing beside a wall built with a plumb line, with a plumb line in his hand.
And the Lord said to me, “Amos, what do you see?” And I said, “A plumb line.” Then the Lord said, “Behold, I am setting a plumb line in the midst of my people Israel; I will never again pass by them; the high places of Isaac shall be made desolate, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste, and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.”
Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, “Amos has conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel. The land is not able to bear all his words. For thus Amos has said, “‘Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel must go into exile away from his land.’”
And Amaziah said to Amos, “O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, and eat bread there, and prophesy there, but never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the king’s sanctuary, and it is a temple of the kingdom.”
Then Amos answered and said to Amaziah, “I was no prophet, nor a prophet’s son, but I was a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore figs. But the Lord took me from following the flock, and the Lord said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’
P: This is the Word of the Lord.
C: Thanks be to God.
Epistle – 1 Corinthians 7:17-24
Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him. This is my rule in all the churches. Was anyone at the time of his call already circumcised? Let him not seek to remove the marks of circumcision. Was anyone at the time of his call uncircumcised? Let him not seek circumcision. For neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision, but keeping the commandments of God. Each one should remain in the condition in which he was called. Were you a slave when called? Do not be concerned about it. But if you can gain your freedom, avail yourself of the opportunity. For he who was called in the Lord as a slave is a freedman of the Lord. Likewise he who was free when called is a slave of Christ. You were bought with a price; do not become slaves of men. So, brothers, in whatever condition each was called, there let him remain with God.
P: This is the Word of the Lord.
C: Thanks be to God.
Holy Gospel – Mark 6:14-29
P: The Holy Gospel according to St. Mark, the sixth chapter.
C: Glory to You, O Lord.
King Herod heard of it, for Jesus’ name had become known. Some said, “John the Baptist has been raised from the dead. That is why these miraculous powers are at work in him.” But others said, “He is Elijah.” And others said, “He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.” But when Herod heard of it, he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.” For it was Herod who had sent and seized John and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, because he had married her. For John had been saying to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” And Herodias had a grudge against him and wanted to put him to death. But she could not, for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he kept him safe. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed, and yet he heard him gladly.
But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his nobles and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee. For when Herodias’s daughter came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests. And the king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it to you.” And he vowed to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half of my kingdom.” And she went out and said to her mother, “For what should I ask?” And she said, “The head of John the Baptist.” And she came in immediately with haste to the king and asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” And the king was exceedingly sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests he did not want to break his word to her. And immediately the king sent an executioner with orders to bring John’s head. He went and beheaded him in the prison and brought his head on a platter and gave it to the girl, and the girl gave it to her mother. When his disciples heard of it, they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.
P: This is the Gospel of the Lord.
C: Praise to You, O Christ.
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.
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 – Janet Leet
Hymn of the Day – Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise (LSB 802)
Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
In light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
Most blessèd, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
Almighty, victorious, Thy great name we praise.
Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light,
Nor wanting, nor wasting, Thou rulest in might;
Thy justice like mountains high soaring above
Thy clouds which are fountains of goodness and love.
To all life Thou givest—to both great and small—
In all life Thou livest, the true Life of all;
We blossom and flourish as leaves on the tree
And wither and perish—but naught changes Thee.
Great Father of glory, pure Father of light,
Thine angels adore Thee, all veiling their sight;
All laud we would render: O help us to see
’Tis only the splendor of light that hides Thee.
Sermon
Offertory - Meditation
