St John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church & School 520 W Chestnut St, Lake City, MN 55041 651-345-3523 (church) 651-345-4092 (school) www.StJohnsLakeCity.com [email protected] Fourth Sunday after Pentecost 28 June 2020 9:00 A.M. Welcome! Even if no one else here knows you, our Savior Jesus knows you by name. In His name we welcome you, praying that you find God’s peace and our friendship here in His house. We love to have Children with us in the pews for worship. We love babies in worship too because our Savior said, “Let the little children come to me.” When babies need to cry loudly, the Parent’s Room (just outside our worship area) is a good place for them to let it all out. Then come back so we can all worship together. If your hearing aids have T-Coils, set them to “on” and the service will be piped wirelessly to your ears. We would love to stay in contact with you. You may fill out a ministry card, which you can find at the end of your pew. God bless your week. Come hear God’s Word with us again! Pre-Worship Pondering: —Horatio Bonar Go labor on; spend and be spent—‘tis joy to do the Father’s will. It is the way the Master went; should not the servant tread it still? Go labor on; count not the cost—your earthly loss is heav’nly gain. The world indeed will praise you not, but you will share in heaven’s reign. Page 1 Go labor on while it is day; the world’s dark night is hast’ning on. Speed, speed your work, do not delay, for it is thus that souls are won. They die in darkness at your side without a hope to cheer the tomb; Take up the torch and wave it wide, the torch that lights the thickest gloom. Toil on, faint not, keep watch, and pray; be wise the erring soul to win. Go forth into the world’s wide way; compel the wand’rer to come in. Toil on and in your toil rejoice; for toil comes rest, for exile home. Soon shall you hear the Bridegroom’s voice, the midnight cry, “Behold, I come.” Divine Service I Worship Theme God’s Compassion for Us Led Him to Establish the Gospel Ministry Hymn #223* 1. As we begin another week, in Jesus’ name Your grace we seek. God, grant that through these seven days no evil may befall our ways. 2. Your gentle blessings, Lord, outpour on all our labors evermore. Our hearts with Your good Spirit fill that we may gladly do Your will. 3. In ev’ry season, ev’ry place, may we recall Your Word of grace until, when life’s brief day is past, we reach eternal joy at last. 4. And keep with angels in Your rest the endless Sabbath of the blest. Grant this to us through Christ, Your Son, who reigns with You upon Your throne. Page 2 Invocation Pastor: In the name of the Father, who created us to be His children— and of the Son, who redeemed us from all rebellion against the Lord—and of the Holy Spirit, who brought us to faith and keeps us in faith through the gospel in Word and Sacraments. Congregation: Amen. We are God’s children through faith in Jesus. We rejoice to continue celebrating Christ’s resurrection and His ascension. Confession and Absolution P: In His great love God gives us the opportunity to confess our sins to Him. He calls each of us to come humbly before Him and ask His forgiveness for our many wrongs. We have the assurance that God will hear our confession because He has promised to listen. C: Lord God, I confess my inability to keep You first in my life. My service toward Your Kingdom sometimes fades in the midst of my own priorities and agenda. P: Your Word stirs up our love for others, and yet we regularly become self-centered again. C: You said I am Your witness [Acts 1:8]. I am to share the good news about Your love and forgiveness through Jesus. But I often find it more comfortable to keep the gospel to myself. P: Too often we look critically at those around us and then allow our judgments to keep us from showing love. C: Lord, please forgive me for the sake of Jesus. He gave up His life willingly to restore my relationship with You fully. P: The apostle John writes: “If we live in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son washes us clean from every sin... If we confess our sins, He will keep His promise... He will forgive our sins and wash away all unrighteousness” (NET). God looks on us with favor because of Jesus’ life and His death on the cross. God’s forgiveness is complete and thorough. It comes to us in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. May the power of His forgiving love enable you to walk in all His ways and live according to His will. Page 3 C: Amen. We are the forgiven people of God! This is most certainly true. P: In the peace of forgiveness, let us praise the Lord. Song of Praise (sung by the congregation) #346 1. In You is gladness amid all sadness, Jesus, Sunshine of my heart. By You are given the gifts of heaven; You the true Redeemer are. Our souls are waking; our bonds are breaking. Who trusts You surely has built securely and stands forever. Alleluia! Our hearts are pining to see Your shining, dying or living to You are clinging now and forever. Alleluia! 2. If He is ours, we fear no powers, not of earth or sin or death. He sees and blesses in worst distresses; He can change them with a breath. Wherefore the story: tell of His glory with hearts and voices. All heav’n rejoices in Him forever. Alleluia! We shout for gladness, win over sadness, love Him and praise Him and still shall raise Him glad hymns forever. Alleluia! Prayer of the Day P: O Father, we see how Your plan worked. You went beyond rescuing us from sin. In Your compassion for the whole world, You established the gospel ministry so that people everywhere could hear the good news that You rescued everyone from sin through Your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. C (speaks): Amen. Page 4 We Listen to God’s Word Epistle Lesson Romans 5:6-11 6You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. 8But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! 10For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! 11Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. P: You have heard the Word of the Lord. C (speaks): Thanks be to God! Psalm of the Day Psalm 100 Refrain Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord a new song. Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.* Worship the LORD with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs.* Know that the LORD is God. It is He who made us, and we are His;* we are His people, the sheep of His pasture. Refrain Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise;* give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the Lord is good and His love endures forever;* His faithfulness continues through all generations. Page 5 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. Refrain Verse of the Day Psalm 132:9 P: Alleluia! Praise the Lord! May Your priests be clothed with righteous- ness; C: may all whom You have declared holy sing for joy. Alleluia! Gospel Matthew 9:35—10:8 35Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. 36When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” 10:1He called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. 2These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; 3Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; 4Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.