| Prelude Greeting and Welcome Lighting of the Candles Hymn of Invocation – Prepare the Royal Highway (LSB 343, verses 1, 3, 4) Prepare the royal highway; The King of kings is near! Let ev’ry hill and valley A level road appear! Then greet the King of Glory Foretold in sacred story: Refrain: Hosanna to the Lord, For He fulfills God’s Word! Then fling the gates wide open To greet your promised king! Your king, yet ev’ry nation Its tribute too should bring. All lands, bow down before Him! All nations, now adore Him! Refrain His is no earthly kingdom; It comes from heav’n above. His rule is peace and freedom And justice, truth, and love. So let your praise be sounding For kindness so abounding: Refrain + Preparation + P: In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. C: Amen. P: Our help is in the name of the Lord, C: who made heaven and earth. P: If You, O Lord, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand? C: But with You there is forgiveness; therefore You are feared. P: Since we are gathered to hear God’s Word, call upon Him in prayer and praise, and receive the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ in the fellowship of this altar, let us first consider our unworthiness and confess before God and one another that we have sinned in thought, word, and deed, and that we cannot free ourselves from our sinful condition. Together as His people let us take refuge in the infinite mercy of God, our heavenly Father, seeking His grace for the sake of Christ, and saying: God, be merciful to me, a sinner. C: Almighty God, have mercy upon us, forgive us our sins, and lead us to everlasting life. Amen. P: Almighty God in His mercy has given His Son to die for you and for His sake forgives you all your sins. 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. + Word + Salutation and Collect of the Day P: The Lord be with you. C: And also with you. P: Let us pray. Stir up our hearts, O Lord, to make ready the way of Your only-begotten Son, that by His coming we may be enabled to serve You with pure minds; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. C: Amen. First Reading – Isaiah 11:1–10 There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins. The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder’s den. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. In that day the root of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples—of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be glorious. P: This is the Word of the Lord. C: Thanks be to God.
Epistle – Romans 15:4–13 For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God. For I tell you that Christ became a servant to the circumcised to show God’s truthfulness, in order to confirm the promises given to the patriarchs, and in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written, “Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles, and sing to your name.” And again it is said, “Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people.” And again, “Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and let all the peoples extol him.” And again Isaiah says, “The root of Jesse will come, even he who arises to rule the Gentiles; in him will the Gentiles hope.” May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
P: This is the Word of the Lord. C: Thanks be to God. Hymn of the Word – On Jordan’s Bank the Baptist’s Cry (LSB 344, verses 1-2) On Jordan’s bank the Baptist’s cry Announces that the Lord is nigh; Awake and hearken, for he brings Glad tidings of the King of kings! Then cleansed be ev’ry life from sin; Make straight the way for God within, And let us all our hearts prepare For Christ to come and enter there. Holy Gospel – Matthew 3:1-12 P: The Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew, the third chapter. C: Glory to You, O Lord. In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight.’” Now John wore a garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. “I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
P: This is the Gospel of the Lord. C: Praise to You, O Christ. Hymn of the Word – On Jordan’s Bank the Baptist’s Cry (LSB 344, verse 5) All praise, eternal Son, to Thee Whose advent sets Thy people free, Whom with the Father we adore And Holy Spirit evermore.
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 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 – Light One Candle (AGPS 163) Light one candle for hope, One bright candle for hope, He brings hope to ev’ry heart, He comes! He comes! Light one candle for peace, One bright candle for peace, He brings peace to ev’ry heart, He comes! He comes! Light one candle for joy, One bright candle for joy, Ev’ry nation will find salvation In Bethl’em’s baby boy.
Light one candle for love, One bright candle for love, He brings love to ev’ry heart, He comes! He comes! He brings love to ev’ry heart, He comes! He comes! Children’s Message – Steph Chapa Hymn of the Day – Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus (LSB 338) Come, Thou long-expected Jesus, Born to set Thy people free; From our fears and sins release us; Let us find our rest in Thee. Israel’s strength and consolation, Hope of all the earth Thou art, Dear desire of ev’ry nation, Joy of ev’ry longing heart. Born Thy people to deliver; Born a child and yet a king! Born to reign in us forever, Now Thy gracious kingdom bring. By Thine own eternal Spirit Rule in all our hearts alone; By Thine all-sufficient merit Raise us to Thy glorious throne. Sermon – “The Courage to Hope” (Romans 15:13) Offertory | 
