| Greeting and Welcome
Prelude
Lighting of the Candles
Hymn of Invocation – 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.
To God and to the Lamb I will sing, I will sing; To God and to the Lamb I will sing; To God and to the Lamb, Who is the great I AM, While millions join the theme, I will sing, I will sing, While millions join the theme, I will sing.
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.
Invocation P: In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit. C: Amen.
Psalm – Psalm 130 P: Out of the depths I cry to You, O LORD! C: O Lord, hear my voice! Let Your ears be attentive to the voice of my pleas for mercy! P: If You, O LORD, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? C: But with You there is forgiveness, that You may be feared. P: I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in His word I hope; C: my soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning. P: O Israel, hope in the LORD! For with the LORD there is steadfast love, and with Him is plentiful redemption. C: And He will redeem Israel from all his iniquities.
Salutation P: The Lord be with you. C: And also with you. P: Let us pray. Heavenly Father, by the death and resurrection of Your only Son, You have shown the world that the way of self-sacrifice is the way of life. Give us such a strong faith in Your providence that we will not shrink from any sacrifice You ask of us but rejoice to offer our lives to Him who gave His life for us¬—that is, Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. C: Amen.
Old Testament Reading – Ezekiel 37:1-14 The hand of the Lord was upon me, and he brought me out in the Spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones. And he led me around among them, and behold, there were very many on the surface of the valley, and behold, they were very dry. And he said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord God, you know.” Then he said to me, “Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live, and you shall know that I am the Lord.” So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I prophesied, there was a sound, and behold, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. And I looked, and behold, there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them. But there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they may live.” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army. Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Behold, they say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are clean cut off.’ Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will open your graves and raise you from your graves, O my people. And I will bring you into the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and raise you from your graves, O my people. And I will put my Spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it, declares the Lord.”
Epistle – 1 Peter 3:13-22 Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts regard Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, than for doing evil. For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him.
Holy Gospel – Luke 17:22-37 And he said to the disciples, “The days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. And they will say to you, ‘Look, there!’ or ‘Look, here!’ Do not go out or follow them. For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day. But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all—so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed. On that day, let the one who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take them away, and likewise let the one who is in the field not turn back. Remember Lot’s wife. Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it. I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed. One will be taken and the other left. There will be two women grinding together. One will be taken and the other left.” And they said to him, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.”
Hymn of the Day – In the Cross of Christ I Glory (LSB 427)
In the cross of Christ I glory, Tow’ring o’er the wrecks of time. All the light of sacred story Gathers round its head sublime.
When the woes of life o’ertake me, Hopes deceive, and fears annoy, Never shall the cross forsake me; Lo, it glows with peace and joy.
When the sun of bliss is beaming Light and love upon my way, From the cross the radiance streaming Adds more luster to the day.
Bane and blessing, pain and pleasure By the cross are sanctified; Peace is there that knows no measure, Joys that through all time abide.
Sermon
Hymn – A Lamb Goes Uncomplaining Forth (LSB 438)
A Lamb goes uncomplaining forth, The guilt of sinners bearing And, laden with the sins of earth, None else the burden sharing; Goes patient on, grows weak and faint, To slaughter led without complaint, That spotless life to offer, He bears the stripes, the wounds, the lies, The mockery, and yet replies, “All this I gladly suffer.”
This Lamb is Christ, the soul’s great friend, The Lamb of God, our Savior, Whom God the Father chose to send To gain for us His favor. “Go forth, My Son,” the Father said, “And free My children from their dread Of guilt and condemnation. The wrath and stripes are hard to bear, But by Your passion they will share The fruit of Your salvation.”
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.
Responsive Litany P: Hear our prayer, O Lord. C: Let our cry come to You. P: Almighty God, grant us true repentance over our sins C: and steadfast faith in Your forgiveness, P: knowing that while we justly deserve Your punishment, C: You are a God who freely pardons. P: When we are weighed down by guilt or despair, lift us up in Your mercy C: and grant us a new beginning, standing in Your grace. P: As You once gave the rainbow as a sign of Your mercy, C: draw our eyes to the cross of Christ, P: that we may see in Him the assurance that Your mercies are new every morning C: and Your faithfulness to us is great. P: Hear us, O Lord, as we silently bring You our private petitions.
Silent prayer
P: Trusting in Your mercy, we pray as Your Son taught us:
Lord’s Prayer Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven; give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.
Benediction P: The Lord bless you, defend you from all evil, and bring you to everlasting life. C: Amen.
Closing Hymn – Stay with Us (LSB 879)
Stay with us, till night has come: Our praise to You this day be sung. Bless our bread, open our eyes: Jesus, be our great surprise.
Walk with us, our spirits sigh: Hear when our weary spirits cry, Feel again our loss, our pain: Jesus, take us to Your side.
Walk with us, the road will bend: Make all our weeping, wailing end. Wipe our tears, forgive our fears: Jesus, lift the heavy cross.
Stay with us, till day is done: No tears nor dark shall dim the sun. Cheer the heart, Your grace impart: Jesus, bring eternal life.
Postlude + + + + WORSHIP LEADERS + Preacher/Liturgist – Seminarian Ryan Philpot Sound/Video – Paul Barbercheck Organist/Pianist – Seth Carruthers | 
