Hymn “Come, Thou Almighty King” LSB # 905
1 Come, Thou almighty King, Help us Thy Name to sing: Help us to praise;
Father all-glorious, O’er all victorious,
Come and reign over us, Ancient of Days.
2 Come, Thou incarnate Word, Gird on Thy mighty sword; Our prayer attend.
Come and Thy people bless, And give Thy Word success,
And let Thy righteousness On us descend.
3 Come, holy Comforter, Thy sacred witness bear In this glad hour!
Thou, who almighty art, Now rule in ev'ry heart,
And ne’er from us depart, Spirit of pow'r.
4 To Thee, great One in Three, Eternal praises be Hence evermore!
Thy sov'reign majesty May we in glory see,
And to eternity Love and adore.
P: In the name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
C: Amen.
P: Beloved in the Lord! Let us draw near with a true heart and confess our sins unto God our Father, beseeching Him in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to grant us forgiveness. Our help is in the name of the Lord,
C: who made heaven and earth.
P: I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord,
C: and You forgave the iniquity of my sin.
(We reflect on God’s Word and examine ourselves)
P: O almighty God, merciful Father,
C: I, a poor, miserable sinner, confess unto You all my sins and iniquities with which I have ever offended You, and justly deserved Your temporal and eternal punishment. But I am heartily sorry for them and sincerely repent of them, and I pray You of Your boundless mercy and for the sake of the holy, innocent, bitter sufferings and death of Your beloved Son, Jesus Christ, to be gracious and merciful to me, a poor, sinful being.
P: Upon this your confession, I, by virtue of my office as a called and ordained servant of the Word, announce the grace of God unto all of you, and in the stead and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
C: Amen.
The Introit is read…
(Sung)
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen.
The Antiphon is read…
(Sung)
Lord, have mercy upon us. Christ have mercy upon us. Lord, have mercy upon us.
(Glory be to God on high)
…and on earth peace, goodwill toward men. We praise Thee, we bless Thee, we worship Thee, we glorify Thee, we give thanks to Thee for Thy great glory. O Lord God, heav’nly King, God the Father Almighty. O Lord, the only begotten Son, Jesus Christ; O Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father, that takest away the sin of the world, receive our prayer. Thou that sittest at the right hand of God the Father, have mercy upon us. For Thou only art holy; Thou only art the Lord. Thou only, O Christ, with the Holy Ghost, art most high in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
P: The Lord be with you.
C: And also with you.
P: Let us pray.
Collect of the Day:
P: O God, You make the minds of Your faithful to be of one will. Grant that we may love what You have commanded and desire what You promise, that among the many changes of this world our hearts may be fixed where true joys are found; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
C: Amen.
Hymn “Alleluia! Jesus Is Risen” LSB # 474
1 Alleluia! Jesus is risen! Trumpets resounding in glorious light!
Splendor, the Lamb, Heaven forever! Oh, what a miracle God has in sight!
Jesus is risen and we shall arise: Give God the glory! Alleluia!
2 Walking the way, Christ in the center Telling the story to open our eyes;
Breaking our bread, Giving us glory: Jesus our blessing, our constant surprise.
Jesus is risen and we shall arise: Give God the glory! Alleluia!
3 Jesus the vine, We are the branches; Life in the Spirit the fruit of the tree;
Heaven to earth, Christ to the people, Gift of the future now flowing to me.
Jesus is risen and we shall arise: Give God the glory! Alleluia!
4 Weeping, be gone; Sorrow, be silent: Death put asunder, and Easter is bright.
Cherubim sing: “O grave, be open!” Clothe us in wonder, adorn us in light.
Jesus is risen and we shall arise: Give God the glory! Alleluia!
5 City of God, Easter forever, Golden Jerusalem, Jesus the Lamb,
River of life, Saints and archangels, Sing with creation to God the I AM!
Jesus is risen and we shall arise: Give God the glory! Alleluia!
Scripture Readings
First Reading (Acts 8:26-40)
An angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is a desert place. 27 And he rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship 28 and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah. 29 And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.” 30 So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” 31 And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 32 Now the passage of the Scripture that he was reading was this:
“Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter
and like a lamb before its shearer is silent,
so he opens not his mouth.
33 In his humiliation justice was denied him.
Who can describe his generation?
For his life is taken away from the earth.”
34 And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?” 35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus. 36 And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?” 38 And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. 39 And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. 40 But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through he preached the gospel to all the towns until he came to Caesarea.
P: This is the Word of the Lord.
C: Thanks be to God.
Epistle Reading (1 John 4:1-11)
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. 4 Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. 5 They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error. 7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
P: This is the Word of the Lord.
C: Thanks be to God.
P: The holy Gospel according to St. John, the 15th chapter.
C: (sung) Glory be to Thee, O Lord.
(John 15:1-8)
[Jesus said:] “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.”
P: This is the Gospel of the Lord.
C: (sung) Praise be to Thee, O Christ.
Confession of Faith -- 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.
Hymn “Lift High the Cross” LSB # 837
Refrain:
Lift high the cross, the love of Christ proclaim
Till all the world adore His sacred name.
Come, Christians, follow where our Captain trod,
Our king victorious, Christ, the Son of God. Refrain
Led on their way by this triumphant sign,
The hosts of God in conqu’ring ranks combine. Refrain
All newborn soldiers of the Crucified
Bear on their brows the seal of Him who died. Refrain
O Lord, once lifted on the glorious tree,
As Thou has promised, draw us all to Thee. Refrain
Let ev’ry race and ev’ry language tell
Of Him who saves our lives from death and hell. Refrain
So shall our songs of triumph ever be:
Praise to the Crucified for victory! Refrain
Sermon
Prayer of the Church
P: Lord, in your mercy,
C: Receive our prayer.
The 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
P: The Lord be with you.
C: And with thy spirit.
P: Bless we the Lord.
C: Thanks be to God.
Benediction
P: The Lord bless you and keep you.
The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you.
The Lord look upon you with favor and + give you peace.
C: Amen.
Closing Hymn “Spread the Reign of God the Lord” LSB # 830
1 Spread the reign of God the Lord, Spoken, written, mighty Word;
Ev'rywhere His creatures call To His heav'nly banquet hall.
2 Tell how God the Father's will Made the world, upholds it still,
How His own dear Son He gave Us from sin and death to save.
3 Tell of our Redeemer's grace, Who, to save our human race
And to pay rebellion's price, Gave Himself as sacrifice.
4 Tell of God the Spirit giv'n Now to guide us on to heav'n,
Strong and holy, just and true, Working both to will and do.
5 Enter, mighty Word, the field; Ripe the promise of its yield.
But the reapers, oh, how few For the work there is to do!
6 Lord of harvest, great and kind, Rouse to action heart and mind;
Let the gath'ring nations all See Your light and heed Your call.