| Prelude
Greeting and Welcome
Lighting of the Candles
Hymn of Invocation – I Know My Faith Is Founded (LSB 587)
I know my faith is founded On Jesus Christ, my God and Lord; And this my faith confessing, Unmoved I stand on His sure Word. Our reason cannot fathom The truth of God profound; Who trusts in human wisdom Relies on shifting ground. God’s Word is all-sufficient, It makes divinely sure; And trusting in its wisdom, My faith shall rest secure.
Increase my faith, dear Savior, For Satan seeks by night and day To rob me of this treasure And take my hope of bliss away. But, Lord, with You beside me, I shall be undismayed; And led by Your good Spirit, I shall be unafraid. Abide with me, O Savior, A firmer faith bestow; Then I shall bid defiance To ev’ry evil foe.
In faith, Lord, let me serve You; Though persecution, grief, and pain Should seek to overwhelm me, Let me a steadfast trust retain; And then at my departure, Lord, take me home to You, Your riches to inherit As all You said holds true. In life and death, Lord, keep me Until Your heav’n I gain, Where I by Your great mercy The end of faith attain.
+ Preparation +
Invocation P: In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. C: Amen.
Confession and Absolution P: That we may rest on Jesus and His unchanging grace, let us with repentant hearts confess our sins in the presence of God and of one another.
We observe a moment of silence for personal prayers of confession.
P: How firm a foundation, O saints of the Lord, is laid for your faith in His excellent Word! C: Heavenly Father, Your Word tells us that we all have sinned and fall short of Your glory. By what we have done and by what we have failed to do, we have lived shaky lives that falter when we do not stand firm in You. P: Rock of Ages, cleft for me, let me hide myself in Thee! C: Lord Jesus, have mercy upon us. You are the rock of ages in whom we find protection and deliverance. P: On Christ, the solid rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand! C: Holy Spirit, enable us to trust the promises of Your Word, confident in the forgiveness of sins found in Christ Jesus, our solid rock. Amen. P: Upon this your confession, I am blessed to proclaim the certainty of God’s saving grace to all of you! In the stead and by the command of our Lord Jesus Christ, our mighty rock and fortress, I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. C: Amen.
+ Word +
Introit P: But we will bless the LORD from this time forth and forevermore. Praise the LORD! C: As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill. P: I will tell of the decree: The LORD said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you.” C: Praise the LORD, all nations! Extol him, all peoples! P: For great is his steadfast love toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD! All: Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen P: But we will bless the LORD from this time forth and forevermore. Praise the LORD!
Salutation and Prayer of the Day P: The Lord be with you. C: And also with you. P: Let us pray. Almighty God, grant us to know Your Son, Jesus Christ, to be the rock upon whom our lives are built. C: Help us rest securely in Your promises and find strength in Your mighty deliverance; P: 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 51:1-6 “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek the LORD: look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug. Look to Abraham your father and to Sarah who bore you; for he was but one when I called him, that I might bless him and multiply him. For the LORD comforts Zion; he comforts all her waste places and makes her wilderness like Eden, her desert like the garden of the LORD; joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of song. “Give attention to me, my people, and give ear to me, my nation; for a law will go out from me, and I will set my justice for a light to the peoples. My righteousness draws near, my salvation has gone out, and my arms will judge the peoples; the coastlands hope for me, and for my arm they wait. Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look at the earth beneath; for the heavens vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment, and they who dwell in it will die in like manner; but my salvation will be forever, and my righteousness will never be dismayed.
P: This is the Word of the Lord. C: Thanks be to God.
Epistle – 2 Timothy 1:14-16 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God according to the promise of the life that is in Christ Jesus, To Timothy, my beloved child: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I thank God whom I serve, as did my ancestors, with a clear conscience, as I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. As I remember your tears, I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy. I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well. For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher, which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me. Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you.
P: This is the Word of the Lord. C: Thanks be to God.
Holy Gospel – Matthew 16:13-20 P: The Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew, the sixteenth chapter. C: Glory to You, O Lord.
Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ.
P: This is the Gospel of the Lord. C: Praise to You, O Christ.
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 – I Am Jesus’ Little Lamb (LSB 740)
I am Jesus’ little lamb, Ever glad at heart I am; For my Shepherd gently guides me, Knows my need and well provides me, Loves me ev’ry day the same, Even calls me by my name.
Day by day, at home, away, Jesus is my staff and stay. When I hunger, Jesus feeds me, Into pleasant pastures leads me; When I thirst, He bids me go Where the quiet waters flow.
Children’s Message – Janet Leet
Hymn of the Day – My Faith Looks Up to Thee (LSB 702)
My faith looks up to Thee, Thou Lamb of Calvary, Savior divine. Now hear me while I pray; Take all my guilt away; O let me from this day Be wholly Thine!
May Thy rich grace impart Strength to my fainting heart; My zeal inspire! As Thou hast died for me, Oh, may my love to Thee Pure, warm, and changeless be, A living fire!
While life’s dark maze I tread And griefs around me spread, Be Thou my guide; Bid darkness turn to day, Wipe sorrow’s tears away, Nor let me ever stray From Thee aside.
When ends life’s transient dream, When death’s cold, sullen stream Shall o’er me roll, Blest Savior, then, in love, Fear and distrust remove; O bear me safe above, A ransomed soul!
Sermon
Offertory | 
