Hymn: “The Advent of Our King” LSB # 331
1 The advent of our King Our prayers must now employ,
And we must hymns of welcome sing In strains of holy joy.
2 The everlasting Son Incarnate deigns to be,
Himself a servant's form puts on To set His servants free.
3 O Zion's daughter, rise To meet your lowly King,
Nor let your faithless heart despise The peace He comes to bring.
4 As judge, on clouds of light, He soon will come again
And His true members all unite With Him in heav'n to reign.
5 Before the dawning day Let sin's dark deeds be gone,
The sinful self be put away, The new self now put on.
6 All glory to the Son, Who comes to set us free,
With Father, Spirit, ever one Through all eternity.
P: In the name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
C: Amen.
P: If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
C: But if we confess our sins, God, who is faithful and just, will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:8-9)
(We reflect on God’s Word and examine ourselves)
P: Let us then confess our sins to God our Father.
C: 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.
P: In the mercy of almighty God, Jesus Christ was given to die for us, and for His sake God forgives us all our sins. To those who believe in Jesus Christ He gives the power to become the children of God and bestows on them the Holy Spirit. May the Lord, who has begun this good work in us, bring it to completion in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
C: Amen.
Matins (sung)
P O Lord, open my lips,
C and my mouth will declare Your praise.
P Make haste, O God, to deliver me;
C make haste to help me, O Lord.
C 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.
Praise to You, O Christ, King who comes to save us. (Advent response)
Psalmody (Psalm 95) (sung)
P: Blessed be God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
C: O come, let us worship Him.
O come, let us sing to the Lord.
Let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.
Let us come into His presence with thanksgiving,
Let us make a joyful noise to Him with songs of praise.
For the Lord is a great God and a great king above all gods.
The deep places of the earth are in His hands;
The strength of the hills is His also.
The sea is His, for He made it, and His hand formed the dry land.
O come, let us worship and bow down,
Let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker.
For He is our God, And we are the people of His pasture
And the sheep of His hand.
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: Blessed be God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
C: O come, let us worship Him.
Scripture Readings
Old Testament Reading (Isaiah 2:1-5))
The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
2 It shall come to pass in the latter days
that the mountain of the house of the Lord
shall be established as the highest of the mountains,
and shall be lifted up above the hills;
and all the nations shall flow to it,
3 and many peoples shall come, and say:
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the house of the God of Jacob,
that he may teach us his ways
and that we may walk in his paths.”
For out of Zion shall go forth the law,[a]
and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
4 He shall judge between the nations,
and shall decide disputes for many peoples;
and they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war anymore.
5 O house of Jacob,
come, let us walk
in the light of the Lord.
P: O Lord, have mercy on us.
C: Thanks be to God.
Epistle Reading (Romans 13:11-14)
Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. 12 The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. 13 Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy. 14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.
P: O Lord, have mercy on us.
C: Thanks be to God.
P: The holy Gospel according to St. Matthew the 21st chapter.
C: (Sung) Glory to You, O Lord.
(Matthew 21:1-11)
Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” 4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying,
5 “Say to the daughter of Zion,
‘Behold, your king is coming to you,
humble, and mounted on a donkey,
on a colt,[a] the foal of a beast of burden.’”
6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. 8 Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” 10 And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.”
P: This is the Gospel of the Lord.
C: (Sung) Praise to You, O Christ.
Hymn of the Day “Prepare the Royal Highway” LSB # 343
1 Prepare the royal highway; the King of kings is near!
Let ev’ry hill and valley a level road appear!
Then greet the King of glory, foretold in sacred story:
Hosanna to the Lord, for he fulfills God’s word!
2 God’s people, see him coming: your own eternal king!
Palm branches strew before him! Spread garments! Shout and sing!
God’s promise will not fail you! No more shall doubt assail you!
Hosanna to the Lord, for he fulfills God’s word!
3 Then fling the gates wide open to greet your promised king!
Your king, yet ev’ry nation its tribute too may bring.
All lands, bow down before him; All nations, now adore Him!
Hosanna to the Lord, for he fulfills God’s word!
4 His is no earthly kingdom; it comes from heav’n above.
His rule is peace and freedom and justice, truth, and love.
So let your praise be sounding for kindness so abounding:
Hosanna to the Lord, for he fulfills God’s word!
Sermon
Te Deum (Sung)
We praise You, O God; we acknowledge You to be the Lord.
All the earth now worships You, the Father everlasting.
To You all angels cry aloud, the heavens and all the pow'rs therein.
To You cherubim and seraphim continually do cry:
Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Sabaoth;
heaven and earth are full of the majesty of Your glory.
The glorious company of the apostles praise You.
The goodly fellowship of the prophets praise You.
The noble army of martyrs praise You.
The holy Church throughout all the world does acknowledge You.
The Father of an infinite majesty; Your adorable, true, and only Son;
also the Holy Ghost, the Comforter. You are the king of glory, O Christ;
You are the everlasting Son of the Father.
When You took upon Yourself to deliver man,
You humbled Yourself to be born of a virgin.
When You had overcome the sharpness of death,
You opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers.
You sit at the right hand of God in the glory of the Father.
We believe that You will come to be our judge.
We therefore pray You to help Your servants,
whom You have redeemed with Your precious blood.
Make them to be numbered with Your saints in glory everlasting.
O Lord, save Your people and bless Your heritage.
Govern them and lift them up forever. Day by day we magnify You.
And we worship Your name forever and ever.
Grant, O Lord, to keep us this day without sin.
O Lord, have mercy upon us, have mercy upon us.
O Lord, let Your mercy be upon us, as our trust is in You.
O Lord, in You have I trusted; let me never be confounded.
Prayer of the Church
P: Lord, in Your mercy,
C: hear 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
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.
Hymn “Wake, Awake, for Night Is Flying” LSB #516
1 "Wake, awake, for night is flying," The watchmen on the heights are crying;
"Awake, Jerusalem, arise!"
Midnight hears the welcome voices And at the thrilling cry rejoices;
"Oh, where are ye, ye virgins wise?
The Bridegroom comes, awake! Your lamps with gladness take! Allelujah!
With bridal care Yourselves prepare To meet the Bridegroom, who is near."
2 Zion hears the watchmen singing, And all her heart with joy is springing;
She wakes, she rises from her gloom.
For her Lord comes down all-glorious, The strong in grace, in truth victorious;
Her star is ris'n, her light is come.
Now come, Thou Blessed One, Lord Jesus, God's own Son, Hail! Hosanna!
We enter all The wedding hall To eat the Supper at Thy call.
3 Now let all the heav'ns adore Thee, Let saints and angels sing before Thee
With harp and cymbals' clearest tone.
Of one pearl each shining portal, Where, joining with the choir immortal,
We gather round Thy radiant throne.
No eye has seen the light, No ear has heard the might Of Thy glory;
Therefore will we Eternally Sing hymns of praise and joy to Thee!