The Seventh Sunday of Easter
Prelude
The Gathering
Easter Acclamation
P: Alleluia! Christ is risen.
C: Christ is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Confession and Forgiveness
Please stand as you are able. All may make the sign of the cross, the sign that is marked at baptism, as the presiding minister begins.
P: Blessed be the holy Trinity, ☩ one God, who forgives all our sin, whose mercy endures forever.
C: Amen.
P: Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid: cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you and worthily magnify your holy name, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
C: Amen.
P: Let us confess our sin in the presence of God and of one another.
Please kneel or sit as you are able. Silence is kept for reflection.
P: Gracious God,
C: have mercy on us. We confess that we have turned from you and given ourselves into the power of sin. We are truly sorry and humbly repent. In your compassion forgive us our sins, known and unknown, things we have done and things we have failed to do. Turn us again to you, and uphold us by your Spirit, so that we may live and serve you in newness of life through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
P: God, who is rich in mercy, loved us even when we were dead in sin, and made us alive together with Christ. By grace you have been saved. In the name of ☩ Jesus Christ, your sins are forgiven. Almighty God strengthen you with power through the Holy Spirit, that Christ may live in your hearts through faith.
C: Amen.
P: Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
C: His mercy endures forever.
Please stand as you are able.
Entrance Hymn #448 (green hymnal)
“Amazing Grace, How Sweet the Sound”
1 Amazing grace, how sweet the sound,
that saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
was blind, but now I see.
2 ’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
and grace my fears relieved;
how precious did that grace appear
the hour I first believed!
3 Through many dangers, toils, and snares
I have already come;
’tis grace has brought me safe thus far,
and grace will lead me home.
4 The Lord has promised good to me;
his word my hope secures;
he will my shield and portion be
as long as life endures.
Greeting and Prayer of the Day
P: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
C: And also with you.
P: Let us pray.
O God, form the minds of your faithful people into your one will. Make us love what you command and desire what you promise, that, amid all the changes of this world, our hearts may be fixed where true joy is found, your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
C: Amen.
The Word
Blessing of the Lector
P: Let us pray.
Bless, O Lord, your servant Chet as he reads to us the holy word. May our hearts burn within us as you open to us the scriptures; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
C: Amen.
Please be seated.
First Lesson: Acts 16:16-34
16 One day, as we were going to the place of prayer, we met a slave-girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners a great deal of money by fortune-telling. 17 While she followed Paul and us, she would cry out, “These men are slaves of the Most High God, who proclaim to you a way of salvation.” 18 She kept doing this for many days. But Paul, very much annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I order you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And it came out that very hour.
19 But when her owners saw that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the authorities. 20 When they had brought them before the magistrates, they said, “These men are disturbing our city; they are Jews 21 and are advocating customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to adopt or observe.” 22 The crowd joined in attacking them, and the magistrates had them stripped of their clothing and ordered them to be beaten with rods. 23 After they had given them a severe flogging, they threw them into prison and ordered the jailer to keep them securely. 24 Following these instructions, he put them in the innermost cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.
25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly there was an earthquake, so violent that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were unfastened. 27 When the jailer woke up and saw the prison doors wide open, he drew his sword and was about to take his own life, since he supposed that the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul shouted in a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.” 29 The jailer called for lights, and rushing in, he fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. 30 Then he brought them outside and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 They answered, “Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” 32 They spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. 33 At the same hour of the night he took them and washed their wounds; then he and his entire family were baptized without delay. 34 He brought them up into the house and set food before them; and he and his entire household rejoiced that he had become a believer in God.
The word of the Lord.
C: Thanks be to God.
Psalm: Psalm 97
The psalm will be spoken responsively. The lectern side of the congregation will speak the odd verses (in italics) and the pulpit side will speak the even verses.
1 The Lord reigns; let the earth rejoice;
let the multitude of the isles be glad.
2 Clouds and darkness surround the Lord,
righteousness and justice are the foundations of God’s throne.
3 Fire goes before the Lord,
burning up enemies on every side.
4 Lightnings light up the world;
the earth sees and trembles.
5 The mountains melt like wax
before the Lord of all the earth.
6 The heavens declare your righteousness, O Lord,
and all the peoples see your glory.
7 Confounded be all who worship carved images and delight in false gods!
Bow down before the Lord, all you gods.
8 Zion hears and is glad, and the cities of Judah rejoice,
because of your judgments, O Lord.
9 For you are the Lord, most high over all the earth;
you are exalted far above all gods.
10 You who love the Lord, hate evil!
God guards the lives of the saints
and rescues them from the hand of the wicked.
11 Light dawns for the righteous,
and joy for the honest of heart.
12 Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous,
and give thanks to God’s holy name.
Second Lesson: Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20-21
12 “See, I am coming soon; my reward is with me, to repay according to everyone’s work. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”
14 Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they will have the right to the tree of life and may enter the city by the gates.
16 “It is I, Jesus, who sent my angel to you with this testimony for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.”
17 The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.”
And let everyone who hears say, “Come.”
And let everyone who is thirsty come.
Let anyone who wishes take the water of life as a gift.
20 The one who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.”
Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!
21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all the saints. Amen.
The word of the Lord.
C: Thanks be to God.
Please stand as you are able.
The Holy Gospel: John 16:33-17:5, 17:11-26
P: The Holy Gospel according to St. John, the 17th chapter.
C: Glory to you, O Lord.
Jesus said: 33 “I have said this to you, so that in me you may have peace. In the world you face persecution. But take courage; I have conquered the world!” 17:1 After Jesus had spoken these words, he looked up to heaven and said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you, 2 since you have given him authority over all people, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. 3 And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. 4 I glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do. 5 So now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had in your presence before the world existed.
11 “And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one. 12 While I was with them, I protected them in your name that you have given me. I guarded them, and not one of them was lost except the one destined to be lost, so that the scripture might be fulfilled. 13 But now I am coming to you, and I speak these things in the world so that they may have my joy made complete in themselves. 14 I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. 15 I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one. 16 They do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. 17 Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. 19 And for their sakes I sanctify myself, so that they also may be sanctified in truth.
20 “I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. 24 Father, I desire that those also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.
25 “Righteous Father, the world does not know you, but I know you; and these know that you have sent me. 26 I made your name known to them, and I will make it known, so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.”
P: The Gospel of the Lord.
C: Praise to you, O Christ.
Please be seated.
Children’s Sermon
Sermon
Silence for reflection and meditation.
Special Music
“Jesus Hold My Hand”
Albert E. Brumley
David Hill, tenor, and Chrissy Harris, alto
Please stand as you are able.
The Apostles’ Creed
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into hell.
On the third day he rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
Prayers of Intercession
A: Let us pray for the whole people of God in Christ Jesus, and for all people according to their needs.
After each petition:
A: Lord, in your mercy,
C: Hear our prayer.
After the last petition:
A: Into your hands, O Lord, we commend all for whom we pray, trusting in your mercy; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
C: Amen.
The Peace
P: The peace of the Lord be with you always.
C: And also with you.
The ministers and congregation may greet one another in the name of the Lord.
Invitation to Offering
Offertory
“If I Be Lifted Up”
Charles H. Pace, J. R. Baxter
David Hill, tenor, and Chrissy Harris, alto
Offertory Prayer
A: Let us pray.
C: Blessed are you, O God, ruler of heaven and earth. Day by day you shower us with blessings. As you have raised us to new life in Christ, give us glad and generous hearts, ready to praise you and to respond to those in need, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
The Meal
The Great Thanksgiving
P: The Lord be with you.
C: And also with you.
P: Lift up your hearts.
C: We lift them to the Lord.
P: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
C: It is right to give him thanks and praise.
P: In the night in which he was betrayed, our Lord Jesus took bread, and gave thanks; broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying: Take and eat; this is my body, given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me.
Again, after supper, he took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it for all to drink, saying: This cup is the new covenant in my blood, shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin. Do this for the remembrance of me.
The Lord’s Prayer
P: Lord, remember us in your kingdom, and teach us to pray:
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.
Invitation to Communion
P: The risen Christ invites us to this table. Drink, eat, and be raised from the dead.
Please be seated.
Communion
P: The Body of Christ, broken for you.
The Blood of Christ, shed for you.
All eat bread and drink wine or juice at their seat.
Special Music
“Who’ll Sing for Me”
Thomas J. Farris
David Hill, tenor, and Chrissy Harris, alto
Table Blessing
P: The body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ strengthen you and keep you in his grace.
C: Amen.
Post-Communion Prayer
A: Let us pray.
Life-giving God, in the mystery of Christ’s resurrection you send light to conquer darkness, water to give new life, and the bread of life to nourish your people. Send us forth as witnesses to your Son’s resurrection, that we may show your glory to all the world, through Jesus Christ, our risen Lord.
C: Amen.
The Sending
Announcements for God’s Mission in the World
Please stand as you are able.
Blessing
P: Almighty God, Father, ☩ Son, and Holy Spirit, bless you now and forever.
C: Amen.
Closing Hymn #390 (green hymnal)
“I Love to Tell the Story”
1 I love to tell the story
of unseen things above,
of Jesus and his glory,
of Jesus and his love.
I love to tell the story,
because I know it’s true;
it satisfies my longings
as nothing else would do.
Refrain
I love to tell the story;
I’ll sing this theme in glory
and tell the old, old story
of Jesus and his love.
2 I love to tell the story:
how pleasant to repeat
what seems, each time I tell it,
more wonderfully sweet!
I love to tell the story,
for some have never heard
the message of salvation
from God’s own holy word. Refrain
3 I love to tell the story,
for those who know it best
seem hungering and thirsting
to hear it like the rest.
And when, in scenes of glory,
I sing the new, new song,
I’ll sing the old, old story
that I have loved so long. Refrain
Easter Dismissal
A: Alleluia! Christ is risen.
C: He is risen indeed. Alleluia!
A: Go in the peace of the risen Christ. Alleluia!
C: Thanks be to God. Alleluia!
Postlude
Worship Leaders
The Rev. Emily Beckering, Pastor
Kris Keith, Music Director **away
Kate Wollenburg, Organist **away
David Hill and Chrison Harris, Music Leaders
Terry McDowell, Assisting Minister
Chet Laine, Reader
Upcoming Events
Sunday, May 29: The Seventh Sunday of Easter
10:30 am Worship Service
After Worship: Fellowship hall reserved
Monday, May 30
Memorial Day
7:30 am Float decoration
8 am Parade walkers/riders meet at church
Thursday, June 2
10:30 am Bible study
Sunday, June 5: The Day of Pentecost
10:30 am Worship Service
After Worship: Evangelism Committee
Thursday, June 9
10:30 am Bible study
6 pm BSA Troop meeting
Copyright Notices
Jesus Hold My Hand: Text and music © 1933 Hartford Music Company. Renewed 1961 Albert E. Brumley And Sons (Admin. by ClearBox Rights, LLC)
Who’ll Sing For Me: Text and music © 1944 Bridge Building Music, Inc. (Admin. by Brentwood-Benson Music Publishing, Inc.)
Hymns/anthems: Music reprinted and streamed by permission under ONE LICENSE #A‐726103 and CCLI Licenses #21045423 and #21045416. All rights reserved.
Liturgical texts and service music: From SundaysandSeasons.com. Copyright © 2022 Augsburg Fortress. All rights reserved. Reprinted by permission under Augsburg Fortress Liturgies Annual License #SAS010308.