| Prelude Greeting and Welcome Lighting of the Candles Hymn of Invocation – I Want to Walk as a Child of the Light (LSB 411, verses 1-2) I want to walk as a child of the light. I want to follow Jesus. God set the stars to give light to the world. The star of my life is Jesus. Refrain Refrain: In Him there is no darkness at all. The night and the day are both alike. The Lamb is the light of the city of God. Shine in my heart, Lord Jesus. I want to see the brightness of God. I want to look at Jesus. Clear Sun of Righteousness, shine on my path, And show me the way to the Father. Refrain + Preparation + Invocation P: In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. C: Amen. Confession and Absolution P: Together we confess our sins to God our Father. C: Most merciful God, we confess that we are by nature sinful and unclean. We have sinned against You in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not loved You with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We justly deserve Your present and eternal punishment. For the sake of Your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Forgive us, renew us, and lead us, so that we may delight in Your will and walk in Your ways to the glory of Your holy name. 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 Prayer of the Day P: The Lord be with you. C: And also with you. P: Let us pray. Let us pray. Almighty and everlasting God, who governs all things in heaven and on earth, mercifully hear the prayers of Your people and grant us Your peace through all our days; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. C: Amen. First Reading – Isaiah 42:1, 4-6, 9; Isaiah 49:1-3, 6 P: Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations….He will not grow faint or be discouraged till he has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for his law. C: Listen to me, O coastlands, and give attention, you peoples from afar. The Lord called me from the womb, from the body of my mother he named my name. P: Thus says God, the Lord, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people on it and spirit to those who walk in it: “I am the Lord; I have called you in righteousness; I will take you by the hand and keep you; I will give you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations…. C: He made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me a polished arrow; in his quiver he hid me away. And he said to me, “You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified.” P: “Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things I now declare; before they spring forth I tell you of them.” C: He says: “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” P: This is the Word of the Lord. C: Thanks be to God. Epistle Reading - Romans 6:3–5 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. P: This is the Word of the Lord. C: Thanks be to God. Holy Gospel – Matthew 3:13-17; John 1:29-34 P: The Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew, the third chapter, and St. John, the first chapter. C: Glory to You, O Lord. Matthew 3:13–17 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” John 1:29–34 The next day [John] saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.’ I myself did not know him, but for this purpose I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel.” And John bore witness: “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.” 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 – Father Welcomes (LSB 605, verses 1, 3) Refrain: Father welcomes all His children To His fam’ly through His Son. Father giving His salvation, Life forever has been won. Little children, come to Me, For My kingdom is of these. Life and love I have to give, Mercy for your sin. Refrain Let us daily die to sin; Let us daily rise with Him, Walk in the love of Christ our Lord, Live in the peace of God. Refrain Children’s Message – Stephanie Chapa Hymn of the Day – To Jordan’s River Came Our Lord (LSB 405, verses 1, 3-4, 6) To Jordan’s river came our Lord, The Christ, whom heav’nly hosts adored, The God from God, the Light from Light, The Lord of glory, pow’r, and might. As Jesus in the Jordan stood And John baptized the Lamb of God, The Holy Spirit, heav’nly dove, Descended on Him from above. Then from God’s throne with thund’rous sound Came God’s own voice with words profound: “This is My Son,” was His decree, “The one I love, who pleases Me.” Now rise, faint hearts, be resolute; This man is Christ, our substitute! He was baptized in Jordan’s stream, Proclaimed Redeemer, Lord supreme. Sermon | 
