Sunday, May 19, 2024
+ PREPARATION +
HYMN Holy Ghost, with Light Divine TLH 234
Holy Ghost, with light divine Shine upon this heart of mine;
Chase the shades of night away, Turn the darkness into day.
Let me see my Savior's face, Let me all His beauties trace;
Show those glorious truths to me
Which are only known to Thee.
Holy Ghost, with power divine
Cleanse this guilty heart of mine;
In Thy mercy pity me, From sin's bondage set me free.
Holy Ghost, with joy divine
Cheer this saddened heart of mine;
Yield a sacred, settled peace,
Let it grow and still increase.
Holy Spirit, all divine, Dwell within this heart of mine;
Cast down every idol-throne,
Reign supreme, and reign alone.
See, to Thee I yield my heart,
Shed Thy life through every part;
A pure temple I would be, Wholly dedicate to Thee.
INVOCATION
Pastor: In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
People: Amen.
OPENING SENTENCES John 7:37–39
Pastor: On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.
People: Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ ”
Pastor: Now this He said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive.
People: Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of the faithful, and kindle in them the fire of Your love.
CONFESSION AND ABSOLUTION
Pastor: Let us then confess our sins to God our Father.
People: 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.
Pastor: Almighty God in His mercy has given His Son to die for you and for His sake forgives you all your sins. Upon this your confession, I, as a called and ordained servant of Christ and by His authority, therefore forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
People: Amen.
+ WORD +
HYMN Now Thank We All Our God TLH 36
Now thank we all our God, with heart and hands and voices,
Who wondrous things hath done, in whom His world rejoices;
Who, from our mothers’ arms, hath blessed us on our way
With countless gifts of love, and still is ours today.
Oh, may this bounteous God thro’ all our life be near us,
With ever joyful hearts and blessed peace to cheer us;
And keep us in His grace, and guide us when perplexed,
And free us from all ills in this world and the next.
All praise and thanks to God the Father now be given,
The Son, and Him who reigns with them in highest heaven,
The one eternal God, whom earth and heav’n adore;
For thus it was, is now, and shall be evermore.
PRAYER OF THE DAY
Pastor: Let us pray. O God, on this day You once taught the hearts of Your faithful people by sending them the light of Your Holy Spirit. Grant us in our day by the same Spirit to have a right understanding in all things and evermore to rejoice in His holy consolation; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
People: Amen.
OLD TESTAMENT READING Ezekiel 37:1–14 (The valley of the dry bones hears the Word of the Lord.)
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. 2 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. 3 And he said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord God, you know.” 4 Then he said to me, “Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. 5 Thus says the Lord God to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. 6 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.”
7 So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I prophesied, there was a sound, and behold, a rattling,[c] and the bones came together, bone to its bone. 8 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. 9 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.” 10 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.
11 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 indeed cut off.’ 12 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. 13 And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and raise you from your graves, O my people. 14 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.”
SECOND READING Acts 2:1–21 (The Spirit descended upon the disciples as Jesus had promised.)
When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested[a] on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” 12 And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.”
14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. 15 For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day.[b] 16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel:
17 “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy. 19 And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; 20 the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day. 21 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’
HOLY GOSPEL John 15:26–27; 16:4b–15 (“When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all the truth.”)
26 “But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me. 27 And you also will bear witness, because you have been with me from the beginning.
4 “I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. 5 But now I am going to him who sent me, and none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ 6 But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. 7 Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. 8 And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; 11 concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.
12 “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. 14 He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. 15 All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.
CHILDREN’S MESSAGE
HYMN Spirit Song CH 384
O let the Son of God enfold You with His Spirit and His love;
Let Him fill your heart and satisfy your soul.
O let Him have the things that hold you, and His Spirit, like a dove,
Will descend upon your life and make you whole.
Refrain: Jesus, O Jesus, come and fill your lambs.
Jesus, O Jesus, come and fill your lambs.
O come and sing the song with gladness as your hearts are filled with joy;
Lift your hands in sweet surrender to His name.
O give Him all your tears and sadness; give Him all your years of pain,
And you’ll enter into life in Jesus’ name. (Refrain)
SERMON
NICENE CREED
I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of his Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made: who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried. And the third day he rose again according to the Scriptures and ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of the Father. And he will come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead, whose kingdom will have no end.
And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and Son together is worshiped and glorified, who spoke by the prophets. And I believe one holy Christian and apostolic Church, I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins, and I look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.
GREETING/ANNOUNCEMENTS
OFFERING
PRAYER OF THE CHURCH
Pastor: In peace, let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord, have mercy.
Pastor: For the peace from above and for our salvation, let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord, have mercy.
Pastor: For the peace of the whole world, for the well-being of the church of God, and for the unity of all, let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord, have mercy.
Pastor: For this holy house and for all who offer here their worship and praise, let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord, have mercy.
Pastor: For an abundance of the fruits of the earth and for a plentiful harvest, let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord, have mercy.
Pastor: For the sick, the suffering, and the dying, [especially . . .], let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord, have mercy.
Pastor: For an increase of the Spirit and the work of witness, let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord, have mercy.
Pastor: For pastors, teachers, missionaries, church workers, and all who proclaim the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord, have mercy.
Pastor: For unity in the congregations and for the unity of the church, let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord, have mercy.
Pastor: For a spirit of repentance and renewal, for the forgiveness of our sins, and for a spirit of reconciliation and peace, let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord, have mercy.
Pastor: In thanksgiving for those who have gone before and for our faithfulness unto death that we may receive the crown of everlasting life, let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord, have mercy.
Pastor: Help, save, comfort, and defend us, gracious Lord.
People: Amen